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I have been tossing around an ambitious modelling idea for about a year while I have been building my own home (yep foundation/frames/walls/paint/roof all done by yours truly). Now that I have finished the biggest modelling project I think I will ever do (yes I consider building my house a modelling project) and I have a warm dry place to hide my models I have decided to start the second biggest modelling project I will ever do and commit it to paper. It makes it very real to do this, but hopefully it will provide the motivation for me to stick with it.

A little background on me, I have been collecting, gaming and painting mini's for a long time, my first introduction was 2nd Edition AD&D and its few models, Rogue Trader and Warhammer in the early days. I have only been an on and off hobbyist in the last few years due to getting married, building a home, but now I plan on jumping back in with everything I have got. I am a patternmaker by trade so am very familiar with casting, molding, sculpting and the like and am an Industrial Designer from uni so have a good understanding of 3d modelling, sketching and color. This doesn't however translate to the painting of minis and I have always been a weaker painter than converter and gamer. But I am quick with the brushes and usually get a nice neat finish.

Now onto the plan...... I want to collect, assemble and paint a 2,000 point army for every codex (current crop that is, not ones like Catachan, Eye of Terror, Craftworld Eldar etc. etc.) and Army Book (I plan on including a Chaos Dwarf list from Tamurkhan or whatever it is from Forgeworld). Plus I want to do three Inquisitors and there retinue (one for Malleus, Hereticus and Xenos about 12 models plus Chimera) just because I can and fluff wise these 3 keep popping up all over the place so I though I should make models of them.

Now I have been accused of being crazy and overly ambitious, but many, many moons ago I was inspired by I think it was Rick Priestly in a White Dwarf from yesteryear that talked about collecting an army of models you like, to a theme you like, paint it, make a carrying case for the whole army and then stop. Use it against all comers, if people want to fight with a larger army then they can, you will just take your humble 2,000 point army (or stick a few armies together as allies). So this is what I am going to do. As rules and editions are updated and changed I plan to try and tweak the list as little as possible so the army is still usable. "Counts as" may become my friend in the future.

I have written a list for each army, competitiveness is up for debate, but that is not the point, I have never been much into the tournament scene so I am not after an ultra competitive army (oh the horror of not being competitively minded). I have then written a piece of fluff (probably poorly) explaining the goals/motivation/reason for the army (as an army approaches completeness I may expand on the fluff).

So what I will be using this post for is to document my long term goal with pictures, anecdotes and the like and hopefully some of the gaming community can come along for the ride. Support is hoped for, comments and criticism are welcome (go easy I have never been that great a painter) and general shenanigans are encouraged. Feel free to make comment on the fluff, I like to continually polish things as I go and if you feel the fluff isn't quite right or lacks something let me know. Or just let me know you like it!

Below are the races and proposed names of the Armies I plan on collecting:

Warhammer
Vampire Counts Army - The Ghoul Court of Strigany
Vampire Counts Army - Hunting Pack of Blood Keep
Vampire Counts Army - Mnemenorth's Slaves to Undeath
Vampire Counts Army - The Coven of Lahmian Excesses
Empire Army - The Obsidian Order
Empire Army - The Thunderous Cacophony, Artillery Train of Nuln
Empire Army - The Grand Province of Hochland
Bretonnian Army - Baron Reinholf’s Household
Bretonnian Army - The "Vain" Quest for the Grail, the 11th Crusade of Araby
Dwarf Army - The Throng of Kark Veng
Dwarf Army - The Gate Sentinels of Barrak Varr
Warriors of Chaos Army - Ashenvaal’s Revenge
Warriors of Chaos Army - The Flux
Warriors of Chaos Army - Flyblown Legion
Warriors of Chaos Army - The Blood Hunt
Warriors of Chaos Army - The Undenied
Lizardman Army - Guards of the Piranha Swamps
Lizardman Army - The Stampede of Huatl
Beastman Army - The Harvesters of Morrslieb
Beastman Army - The Cloven Ones of Morrslieb
Ogre Kingdoms Army - The Wondrous Caravan of the Traveller and his Maneaters
Ogre Kingdoms Army - The Gut March of Beasts
Orcs and Goblins Army - The Bloodfang Tribe
Orcs and Goblins Army - The Forked Moon Tribe
Orcs and Goblins Army - The Broken Arm Tribe
Skaven Army - Greypaw Hollow, Clan Skryre Research Warren
Skaven Army - Den of the Swaying Tail, Clan Eshin Training Warren
Skaven Army - The Fetid Grove, Clan Pestilence Distillery
Skaven Army - The Abomination Pits, Clan Moulder Breeding Den
Tomb Kings Army - The Bronze Host of Ka-Sabar
Tomb Kings Army - The Alabaster Army of Quatar
Chaos Dwarfs - Protectors of Hashut's Holy Places
Chaos Dwarf Army - The Tithe Collectors of Hashut
Daemons of Chaos Army - The Jailbreak of K'Z'Arkera'ss the Deceiver
Daemons of Chaos Army - Devotees to Be'Zul'Ab'Iz
Daemons of Chaos Army - The Blood Ravagers Court
Daemons of Chaos Army - The Rot Carnival
High Elf Army - The Hunters of Chrace
High Elf Army - Guardians of the White Tower
High Elf Army - The Everqueen's Court
High Elf Army - The Gate Wardens of Lothern
High Elf Army - The Dragon Riders of Caledor
High Elf Army - Lords of the Open Plains
High Elf Army - Ghosts of the Cursed Lands
Dark Elf Army - The Witch King's Guard
Dark Elf Army - The Slavers of Karond Kar
Dark Elf Army - The North Tower
Dark Elf Army - The "Nobility" of Hag Graef
Dark Elf Army - Khaine's Chosen of Har Ganeth
Dark Elf Army - Clar Karond's Carnival of Monsters
Dark Elf Army - The Black Ark "Harvester of Sorrow"
Wood Elf Army - The Kindred of Sethayla
Wood Elf Army - The Kindred of Selathoi
Wood Elf Army - The Kindred of Talu
Wood Elf Army - The Kindred of Auryaur
Wood Elf Army - The Spirits of Loren
Wood Elf Army - The Kindred of Arahain and Nymraif
Wood Elf Army - The Kindred of Caidath
Age of Sigmar
Idoneth Deepkin Army - The Soul Harvest of the Volcanic Ridge
Kharadron Overlords Army - The Glimmering Magnates
Stormcast Eternals Army - The Stormborn Companions
Ossiarch Bonereapers Army - The Cohort of Ash
Sons of Behemat - The War Shouter Tribe

Warhammer 40,000
Orks Army - Kaptin Grimskraga's Razorfangs
Tyranid Army - Hive Fleet 105_856EXTREMIS99B Codename: Acidica
Tyranid Army - Hive Fleet 105-866OMEGA Codename: Corrosiva
Genestealer Cult Army - Nomads of the Dusty Stars
Genestealer Cult Army - Home Fires of the Nomads
Astra Militarum Army - Murdoch's 5th Armoured Detachment, 34/87th Tullarium Armoured
Astra Militarum Army - 7th Abhuman Detachment, 17th Tullarium "Immovables" + Remnant of the 6th Tullarium Rifles "Lucky Few"
Necron Army - The Reclamation Legion of Tomb World Fordris
Sisters of Battle Army - The Albigensian Crusade
Grey Knights Army - The Purging of Skalathrax, Strike Force Varn
Ordos Malleus Inquisitor - Daemonhunter Grendl Oriens and Coterie
Ordos Xenos Inquisitor - Alien Savant Hiroko and Kill Team
Ordos Hereticus Inquisitor - Witchfinder Tasetus and Coven
Tau Army - The El’Res Schism
Tau Army - Fasight Enclaves - El'Pui Reactionary Battlesuit Cavalry
Tau Army - War Sphere Vawk Karaow - Kroot and Auxiliaries
Space Marines Army - Crusade Bacchus of the Black Templars
Iron Hands Army - Taskforce of the Garrsak Clan Company
Space Marines Army - Brotherhood of the Storm, White Scars 2nd Company
Space Marines Army - Imperial Fist 3rd Company Sentinels of Terra, Crusade of Thunder
Space Marines Army - Ultramarines 5th Company, Wardens of the Eastern Fringe
Space Marines Army - Raven Guard THe 8th & 10th Shadow Company, The Unseen & The Subtle
Space Marines Army - The Rok Hunters of Hemlock River, Salamanders Strike Force Helldrake
Dark Angels Army - Hunt for the Fallen
Blood Angel Army - Blood Angels Strike Force ‘Panacea’
Space Wolves Army – Bran Redmaw's Great Company ‘The Bloodmaws'
Space Marines Army - Primaris 3rd Company of the Silver Templar's Chapter 'The Swords of Novaris'
Adeptus Mechanicus Army - Voss Prime Acquisition Crusdae Alpha 4th Cohort Priesthood Expedition
Adeptus Mechanicus Army - Voss Prime Acquisition Crusdae Alpha 4th Cohort Skitarii War Maniple
Imperial Knights Army - Knight House Orhlacc, Scions of Wychval, Lords of Dark Haven
Deathwatch Army - Watch Force Borleos of the Ghoul Stars
Custodes and Sisters of Silence Army - The Gilded Talon Shield Company & Bone Tiger Cadre of the Outer Solar Vigil
Chaos Daemons Army - Be’Zul’Ab’Iz’s Host
Chaos Daemons Army - Jailers of K'Z'Arkera'ss the Deceiver
Chaos Daemons Army - The Blood Ravager and His Court of Skulls
Chaos Daemons Army - The Ringmaster and His Rot Carnival
Chaos Space Marines Army - XII Ambush Cell, Loyalists of the Twin Primarchs
Chaos Space Marines Army - World Eaters The World Eaters 7th, the Skulltakers
Thousand Sons Army - 4th Thrallband, 2nd Sect, Cult of Knowledge, 'The Sect of the Red Echo'
Chaos Space Marines Army - Iron Warriors Brittle Peak Garrison, 4th Company, 11th Chapter
Chaos Space Marines Army - Word Bearers The Iconoclastic Brotherhood
Chaos Space Marines Army - Emperors Children The Symphony of Excess
Chaos Space Marines Army - Night Lords The Black Hunt
Death Guard Army - The 4th Colony of the 5th Sepsis Cohort - 'The Putrid Blightlords'
Chaos Space Marines Army - Black Legion Abaddon's Spear Tip
Chaos Space Marines Army - Red Corsairs The Tyrant's Hunting Pack
Dark Eldar Army - Kabal of the Eyeless Depths
Dark Eldar Army - Void Masters of the Eyeless Depths
Dark Eldar Army - The Outcasts of the Kabal
Dark Eldar Army - Arena Champions of the Cult of the Envenomed Fang
Dark Eldar Army - Aerialists of the Envenomed Fang
Dark Eldar Army - Coven of the Twisted Limb
Dark Eldar Army - The Monstours Carnival of the Twisted Limb
Eldar Army - The Ghost Warriros of Yarn Le'ath
Eldar Army - Yarn Le'ath Wild Riders
Eldar Army - The Guiding Light of Yarn Le'ath
Eldar Army - The Loss of Yarn Le'ath
Eldar Army - The Outcasts from the Path
Eldar Army - Fury of Yarn Le'ath
Eldar Army - The Veiled Fist Corsairs, Outriders of Yarn Le'ath
Harlequins Army - The Great Delusion, Masque of the Veiled Path

I plan on doing one army at a time, I get too easily distracted so I need to focus my energies on one step at a time, so I will pick one, post up its army list and fluff and then go for it. Opinions on the army composition are welcomed, but please note theme and fluff and my model preference is more important than tabletop performance. I am up for making changes if people really think I should, but once the models are purchased that is it for changing (at least until the Codex or Army book gets changed).

Once a project is done I am up for suggestions on which one to do next. I am not following any set order, but would probably like to avoid horde armies back to back. I am only one man after all. I will try to include both Work In Progress photos when I remember, but want to focus more on the finished models. Feel free to ask about any of the proposed armies and I will let you know what their story is.

One other hobby/modelling thing I would like to do is make a few choice pieces of themed terrain for each army, nothing too much, or that would give an advantage, maybe some objective markers that can just add an extra flavor for when the army is on the tabletop. With this I would really appreciate some input from the community as to what they think I should do for each army.

Ok, it has been decided Imperial Guard are the first cab off the rank. I have attached the army list and fluff below for perusal and I have attached the first lot of images. Assembling everything I had kicking around I will only need to buy 4 Sentinels and 2 Chimeras (not bad since I have never been a guard player). Some of the models have paint that may need stripping, the tanks have undergone a little surgery to change weapon fits and I have converted two to become Leman Russ Exterminators for a little anti-infantry mayhem. Without further adieu:

2,000 Point Warhammer 40,000 Imperial Guard Army - Murdoch’s 5th Armoured Detachment, 34/87th Tullarium Armoured

Specialist Murdoch - [Lord Commisar], Power Weapon

7th Heavy Mounted Infantry ‘The Foot Sloggers’[Veteran Squad] - Veteran Sergeant Kreel and 9 Veterans, 3 armed with Grenade Launchers, Grenadiers, Chimera ‘AAV-11’
4th Heavy Mounted Infantry ‘Short Straw’[Veteran Squad] - Veteran Sergeant Pateel and 9 Veterans, 3 armed with Flamers, Grenadiers, Chimera ‘AAV-32’
5th Heavy Mounted Infantry ‘Lucky Spades’[Veteran Squad] - Veteran Sergeant Jaleel and 9 Veterans, 3 armed with Meltaguns, Grenadiers, Chimera ‘AAV-27’
21st Wayfinder Infantry ‘Slow Pokes’[Veteran Squad] - Veteran Sergeant Endeel and 9 Veterans, 3 armed with Sniper Rifles, Forward Sentries

1st Recon Squad ‘Eyes of the Brigade’ - 2 Scout Sentinels
18th Recon Squad ‘Brigade Guides’ - 2 Scout Sentinels
12th Recon Squad ‘Loose Cannons - 2 Scout Sentinels

3rd Close Support Division ‘The Exterminators’ [Leman Russ Squadron] - 2 Leman Russ Exterminators with Heavy Bolter Sponsons, Dozer Blades
11th Siege Spearhead ‘Glory Hounds’ [Leman Russ Squadron] - 2 Leman Russ Demolishers, Dozer Blades
56th Tank Hunter Division ‘Death Dealers’ [Leman Russ Squadron] - 2 Leman Russ Vanquishers both with Lascannons, Dozer Blades

Total List = 2,000 Points - 41 on Foot, 15 Vehicles

Tactics:

This list is a one trick pony. TANKS!!! The Leman Russ Tanks will be required to dominate the field, each variant will have a different task, but with their ability to move and fire they should be able to roll up the field taking all in their stride.

The Veterans in Chimera are to seize and hold objectives as the Tanks roll passed. They will only engage the enemy at range or suicide charge to protect a tank. The Lord Commissar will add a little close combat muscle. The Veterans on foot will sit on an objective as early as possible and use their Sniper Rifles to pin a high priority infantry target.

Priority targets are anything that can hurt the tanks. Other tanks, Melta and Lance Weapons, Monstrous Creatures, The Vanquishers will target other tanks, Exterminators will deal with infantry armed for anti-tank and the Demolishers will target anything else.

Background:

EDIT - Fluff has been moved to a different Thread see my signature below.

Ok a quick update, didn't get as much done as I had hoped during ANZAC day, but had other duties so that was not a surprise. Planning on having my first ever game of sixth edition with the Imperial Guard (in fact first EVER game using the Imperial Guard). Will be going without 4 sentinels and 2 Chimera as I have yet to actually get these models (stupid slow paypal). Anyway on to some updates.....

Had my first ever game of 6th Edition 40k on the weekend courtesy of NSW Northern Knights games club. Was a great day and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Was handed an absolute pummeling though, never recovered from a turn 1 drop pod with 5 Sternguard Vets loaded with melta or combi-meltas. A good scatter roll and say goodbye to both of the Demolishers.

The only unit that survived was the lone Chimera (I played at 1750 points because I am still waiting the remaining sentinels and Chimeras)

Well the Powers that be have been conspiring heavily against my progress in this project. I was struck down with a devastating flu that really knocked me about, now my wife has bronchitis that has put a dampener on things. However, I have managed over the previous weekend to make a little progress so I will post a couple of pics (low quality and poor lighting) showing where I am up to.

So to start with I have cut the foam in an old Games Workshop carry case to suit my needs and I will be able to put the entire army safely into one case, which is my intention for every army. They fit quite well with a little judicious cutting.



Next up are some close ups of the infantry fast approaching completion, forgive the poor lighting but it was late and I was in a hurry. But I believe the colours come through ok.


Sergeant of the boys in Red with CCW swapped.


One of the boys in Red.


A boy in Blue


A Green Veterans.

I just need to add the camo stripes to the black armour plates like the Chimera commander above, give the yellow an orange wash to tie it in better and the exposed flesh where needed and my Infantry are all done. SO close its painful.


Sniper Veteran, I am really happy with the way the Sniper Rifles turned out, if anyone wants to know how I did them I can post up some step by step photos.


Murdoch looking a little shiny for my liking, looks like his storm coat is latex........may need a drybrush or something to take the edge off.


All 41 of my infantry, getting close to finished. Need to start thinking of basing.



Most importantly I recently had the final components for the army arrive, God Bless Ebay. (2 Chimeras and 4 Sentinels)

So there you have it, I have not progressed like I had wanted to, but am glad I managed something. The major things I am contending with in the near future is what to base the army with. A couple of the tanks have had some snow effect (white flock) glued to the tracks and guards, don't ask me what possessed me many moons ago to do that. Since I am not really keen to try and scrape it off does anyone know if paint goes well with flock? Or should I just base everyone in a nice wintery theme? Thanks for the input.

An exciting update, well at least for me. I have finished all of the infantry off and one of the Chimera's. What I mean by finished is all the models have had a coat of varnish and their bases have been modeled in some way. For this army I have gone for a snowy terrain with plenty of rocks and tundra grass to break up the stark whiteness. I am extremely happy with it and it helps to tie the army together. The tanks are also going to get a little snow drizzle here and there, but hopefully I don't overdo it.

I was a little concerned the army colors were a little rag-tag since they were second hand or half painted models. But with the consistent black armor plates and uniform basing I think they tie in well together. I am extremely happy with the way the Forward Sentry Vets camo-cloaks have come out. Will help me remember they have them now.

A friendly shout out to the staff of GW Parramatta for some useful tips on using the snowy flock.

Now onto the finished pics:

The Green Grenadiers, they have there transport finished. I am undecided if each of the Chimeras will have a commander out the top hatch.





Without a transport I have found the Meltas are just not effective, but once they are mounted up I feel they will become a much bigger threat.



Like the Meltas, the flamers lack range and mobility, but oh are they great at tearing mobs to pieces.



The Squad I am really happy with, the cloaks really make the unit and I like the Sniper Rifle conversions.





Finally my leader, I find that he isn't all that effective as I don't really want to assault and Imperial Guard units tend to die rather than have to take morale checks. Ah well practice makes perfect.




So that is where I stand so far. My plan is to now do the Leman Russ Tanks as they mostly need touch up paint work and the snow effects and that shouldn't take too long. Then I will do a pair of sentinels, a Chimera, a pair of sentinels etc. etc. until I am finished. I will keep people posted and hope that my posts are at least mildly entertaining to someone at the very least and people enjoy the journey.

Thanks for reading so far.

I really wish I could figure out photobuckets editing, it never seems to keep the changes I have made consistently, next time I am just going to photoshop them before upload.

As usual I have failed miserably at keeping to my deadlines. But I have perservered and I must thank the interested parties for keeping me updating. It helps a lot when I think there are people interested in looking at the ramblings of a mad man.

I have now finished the Vanquishers and Exterminators (however I still need to add snow to the Exterminators. I finished them off today before jumping on a plane to Melbourne to attend my wife's, cousins wedding. What does that make her to me you ask? Well family of course.

Some pretty pictures......notice the fish tank of death in the background?

Greetings to anyone still reading, it has been a little while since I have posted anything, I am not going anywhere, but I have had a few distractions. Mostly with Infinity. I had a demo game that intrigued me. Not sure if it has legs. But the models are nice and I picked up a box of Nomads. Time will tell if it goes anywhere....

Yes I know I am letting myself get distracted by all the wrong things.

Anyway, I have now finished off the last two Leman Russ, this time of the Demolisher variety and I have now also built all of the remaining units for the army (this is 2 Chimera and 4 more Sentinels totaling 6). I can definitely see an end to this army now and hopefully full steam ahead.

I was all set to have a game of 40K over at the NSW Northern Knights this coming Sunday and even get in an intro game to Infinity, but alas my Wife was born on this coming weekend and I nearly committed the cardinal sin of forgetting! Well not really her presents are all wrapped and I have decided on the cake I will make her, but I didn't consider maybe just maybe she wanted to do something on the Sunday! Ah well, maybe next time. On to some pictures:


My faithful Sentinel Pilots and their Canopies


The remainder of the Army to take it to the 2000 Point goal. I do intend to add some baggage and other adornments to them just like the 2 older black sentinels.


The two new Chimera, I didn't notice until I sat them next to the painted Chimera that they are actually a newer model, I didn't realize GW changed the design. Shows how much attention I pay.


Front view of the 'Howling Griffon rip off'


Is that an auspex in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?


The two Demolishers together, hopefully they will actually get to shoot something in their next game.

Well that is it for now, with the current Sydney weather it looks like I will get some good painting time. I am meant to be building a new aviary for my Zebra finches, but if it keeps raining that will be on hold and the Imperial Guard may, just may get another army.

I appreciate the comments & criticisms. I appreciate any advice or opinion. In regard to the snow I have had a couple of opinions from other sources (read other sites), firstly, a couple of the tanks already had a fair bit of snow and gunge stuck to them (ah a misspent youth) and I had a half hearted attempt at getting rid of it. Instead I went the other way and made them all look alike. I can explain it away to myself as it is a snap shot of the tanks as they warm up to move out rather after having sat for a while.....yeah I know but it makes me sleep better at night

Any way, thanks for reading and keep the comments coming. Soon will run a little poll to see which army gets the treatment (and I promise less snow next time, well that depends on which army I do....)

The "choice" of making the tanks different colors came from first of all necessity. This army was made from a hodge podge mix of second hand, previously painted and half destroyed vehicles. The paint is pretty crude in some places (not applied by me I swear).

Therefore, when I came to look at this idea of building a lot of armies I assessed what I had in my collection and built armies around them. So some armies will be less effective because of this, but it saves me time and money.

Besides, all the stories and what not keep going on and on about how each tank is a precious commodity and serves as a shrine in its own right, so I had no compunction about having different coloured tanks. Although since I have unpainted Chimera and Sentinels I am thinking of painting them the same as they are not as important a figure as the Leman Russ.

Any thoughts? (although it is obviously a bit late to redo the tanks)

The latest update and getting close to the end. Although I spent the weekend helping to celebrate a friends 30th birthday in the Blue Mountains I have managed to finish off the Sentinels and I must say I am extremely happy with them. A much more unified color scheme than the tanks of the army, but it does help to distinguish that the tanks are important and individual icons. On with the pictures:

With 6 Sentinels I really hope to distract the enemy. The extra scout move can help them appear as a threat very early on and hopefully they can act as a screen or better yet get in the way of deep striking units.


All the Sentinels together, one big happy family.

I have used different colored blue stripes to differentiate the Sentinel Units. I hope it looks a little like what I did to the Veteran's armor and help tie it all together.

The Light Blues:




The Mid Blues:




The Dark Blues:




Well that leaves me with the two remaining Chimera to finish off and this army is done. Don't want to celebrate too soon.

I have also managed another 2 games with the Guard, this time I used everything except the above mentioned Chimera (although at this time the Sentinels hadn't been completely painted boo hiss). Both opponents knew what my army contained, but neither did any specific army tailoring. That definitely cost my first opponent dearly.

Orks were my first opponents. An all infantry foot slogging horde, very intimidating as your opponent sets up hundreds of Boys and requires a bucket to scoop them on. However, I have come to the conclusion that this army is an anti-horde one and he also needed a shovel to take them off the board. It did get touch and go towards the middle of the game, but between the Demolishers and Exterminators I was in control for most of the battle.

I next battled Tyranids and it was a much closer run thing, although I was able to clear out the little bugs pretty quickly (I have decided I REALLY hate Hormagants) I struggled with the bigger bugs. The Vanquishers though did me proud, as did my rolling, managing to blow chunks out of Carnifex and Trygon. This could have gone either way, but I think it was fitting to end a draw.

All in all I am happy with how things are developing and will welcome the step up to 2,000 Points and a little bit of protection and mobility to the other two Grenadier Vets.

I have managed it, I have actually finished the first of the army's in this crazy plan. Yay me! I have yet to take some shots of the whole army together, but I have got some of the Chimera which were the only outstanding models after the Sentinel update. So here they are:


All 3 of the Chimera together, as previously stated as generic vehicles (unlike the Leman Russ which are supposed to be important) I went with a fairly consistent scheme. I am quite happy about how the three different variations worked out, my paint is starting to get quite thick and is more than likely in serious need of replacement. Anyway, different patterns and weapon fits to help identify them on the tabletop. The Flamer Vets obviously get the twin flamer Chimera for lots of toasty fun.


Close up of the Flamer Chimera, hopefully with 3 Flamers and 2 Heavy Flamers I can clear any horde off an objective without delay.


The 'generic' Chimera, standard weapons for standard performance. And yes that is a dreadnought in the background, I may just have already started the next army....


You have seen him before, but I like him, its the Boys in Green transport and commander. It was this model that was painted some time ago that inspired the paint scheme for the Vets.


To give a bit of variety and extra interest to the Chimera's I painted a spare Veteran to be glued into the back of each Chimera. Also helps to remind me of which squad goes with which Chimera as I am liable to forget, sometimes I really wonder about my short term memory. I mean you would think it isn't hard to remember to take a cake out of the oven and lock the bathroom door and... oh wait.. what was I doing again?


I was actually amazed that I could get the models to fit without any work, I love it when a plan is easy.

So, army done or at least almost. It will be done once I have taken some photos of the army as a whole, that is the point of the project, get them to tabletop standard so they look good as a combined force, won't win any prizes on an individual level, but hopefully they look good as a whole. Will probably take a whole army shot, then break them down into HQ, Elites, Troops, Fast Attack and Heavy Support. I have also tested it and they fit really well into a single case which was the plan from the start.

So it's time to move onto the next project and unfortunately valiant reader I am being a tyrant (yep the power is going to my head) and you don't get a choice, it is the Space Marines next, or more specifically the Iron Hands. Stay tuned.

A big update today, well two updates if you behave and I have time. Firstly, the final photos of Murdoch and his boys. The Imperial Guard are finished. The following photos show the army in all its snowy glory. I have also broken them down into their FOC for a slightly (only slightly) close up.

The Army in all its glory:


Aerial Surveillance of the army


HQ - Murdoch loves to lead from the front (and unsurprisingly get squished.....)


No Elites made the cut for this army.

Troops - The faithful grunts, dedicated objective holders and general nuisances.






Fast Attack - I really love Sentinels, I would rate them amongst the best in the Imperial Guard range, just something about the quirky Egg on Legs look.


Heavy Support - The game winners, plain and simple, my success hinges on how these guys perform.


Although they do look impressive whether they succeed or not....


So there you have it, my 2,000 Point Imperial Guard army, tank heavy and loving it. Thanks for sharing the journey and stay tuned for Chapter 2 - Space Marines (read Iron Hands)

To some it may seem like I don't actually work, but I do honest. But I bring you the next in the series of my Crazy Army plan. Space Marines or as many like to call them Vanilla Marines. I have always for some reason been drawn to the men of Medusa and so I will undertake an army of the Iron Hands Chapter. Lots of Techmarines and Dreadnoughts, I would have liked to include some Terminators, but since the fluff talks about them usually being squad leaders I decided to leave them at home, ah well more room for Dreadnoughts.

You may have noticed my readers aren't getting a choice here, this is largely due to this army (like the Guard) being close to complete model wise and therefore is the cheapest option for me. After the Marines though I only have a few choice pieces floating around and therefore I will be open to suggestions. Probably want to jump game systems though and do a Warhammer Fantasy Army next. My wife likes Knights so the Empire is out in front already.

Anyway enough rambling the Iron Hands list:

2,000 Point Warhammer 40,000 Space Marine Army - Taskforce of the Garrsak Clan Company ‘Skythaal Incident’

Iron Father Metral Locus - [Master of the Forge], Conversion Beamer, 2 Servitors with Heavy Bolters

Techmarine Sprockus - Full Servo Harness, Power Weapon, 3 Servitors
Venerable Dreadnought Ferris Maxis - Assault Cannon, Drop Pod
Dreadnought Noferrus - Twin-Linked Lascannon, Missile Launcher

Clave Cognus - Sergeant Cognus w/ Combi-Melta, 9 Space Marines, Missile Launcher, Flamer, Rhino 'Ironhide'
Clave Foundrix - Sergeant Foundrix w/Combi-Melta, 9 Space Marines, Missile Launcher, Flamer, Rhino 'Invex'
Clave Fettlix - Veteran Sergeant Fettlix w/ Combi-Melta, 9 Space Marines, Missile Launcher, Flamer

Clave Metalex - Sergeant Metalex, 7 Space Marine Bikers, 2 Meltaguns, Attack Bike with Multimelta

Ironclad Ferritic - Drop Pod, Ironclad Assault Launchers, Hunter Killer Missile
Dreadnought Forgus Minux - Drop Pod
Fury of the Forge - Techmarine Pattex Makex with Thunderfire Cannon

Total List = 2,000 Points - 38 on Foot, 10 Mounted, 17 Vehicles

Tactics:
The Army will make an armoured spearhead advance. The high number of armoured targets will hopefully confuse the enemy.

The Thunderfire and Master of the Forge will hold a corner and steadily destroy high priority targets. The infantry tactical squad will make a steady advance as 2 combat squads. The Rhinos and Tactical squads will race ahead, disembark and begin laying cover fire. The Rhinos will remain close for extraction or ablative armour.

The Multi-Melta Dread, Venerable and Ironclad will Drop next to each other for support and the tip of the spear. The other dread will advance with the Techmarine for support and repair; they will link with the other dreads.

The Bikes will target armour or light infantry as needed. They will run escort to the Rhino mounted Tactical Squads to ensure their safe arrival.

Hopefully having to fend off the constant threat of the Dreadnoughts will allow the rest of the army to achieve its goals and carry the day. Or if the dreads are ignored they will have a field day with their close range armaments.

For the Background fluff follow the link in my signature....


Automatically Appended Next Post:
So onto some Space Marine pictures, as previously said I have a lot of this army, in fact to complete the models I need to buy: 3 Drop Pods, an Ironclad Dreadnought, a Thunderfire Cannon and 3 Bikes.

So my painting station with the troops and existing bikes all in need of some TLC


The centerpiece of the army, only missing the Ironclad, I have cannibalized the banners from previous projects and I think they are suitably ornate. I have one left over for the Ironclad which I take as a sign that it was meant to be.


Ranged Support


The junior Dread


The Venerable Dread (obviously I have already painted this guy)


My Iron Father and Servitors with his converted over the top conversion beamer


Techmarine and Servitors


Some of the minor conversions I have done to represent the Iron Hands 'flesh is weak attitude' I also have an Iron Hands conversion kit mixed in as well, the Combi Meltas are all conversions on the Sergeants.


So that is where I stand with the Marines, will hopefully be a little quicker with these guys, their color scheme is pretty simple. Just need to buy some more black paint.

Dark Elves are an interesting choice as with all pointy ear armies (High Elves, Dark Elves, Wood Elves, Dark Eldar and Eldar) I plan on doing 7 armies for each......

The Eldar are easy, one for each major craftworld variation, the Dark Elves will be influenced by each of their cities plus a Black Ark crew, Wood Elves based around the Kindreds and so on, will eventually post up the Pointy Eared army lists once I get them sorted like the rest of the armies.

(If you haven't figured it out I have a thing for the pointy ears)

It has been a little while since I posted anything, alas life gets in the way of the little men. Anyway, I have managed to do a little bit of work on the Iron Hands, oh how I wish I was further along. The biggest speed hump I encountered is I ran out of black paint! Not sure how I hadn't noticed the most important color for an Iron Hands army was running low. So I trundled off to the store to replace it. I am aware that GW has changed there paint ranges a couple of times since I last bought paint. But the size of the range is really quite overwhelming. Not sure if they even still sell some of the paints I am using..... but I guess black is still black, well until the hippies get a hold of it and make it rainbow so no harm done with the color pallet yet.

I have managed to finish off the Venerable Dreadnought (he only needed his base improved) and I have finished the TL Lascannon and Missile Launcher armed Dreadnought (who began his life as a twin-power fist Crimson Fist Dreadnought from Forgeworld). I also took a little time to paint up some craters (alas I cannot claim ownership of the modelling, they are again Forgeworld sculpts) and I am really happy with the way they have turned out.

On to the pictures:


The Two Dreads wandering through the crater strewn landscape


Aerial view of the Dreads and craters


The Venerable and his new base


Rear view of the Venerable showing some of the devotional script he is plastered with


This is what happens when you cross a Venerable Dreadnought (or at least I hope it does!)


The ranged Dreadnought


Detail of the Ranged Dreads banner (I think more work went into the banners of the Dreads than into the Dreads themselves, oops)


Surveying the carnage of the battlefield

So there is my progress so far. Not as much as I wanted by this stage, but good to be back at the painting table. I have also been looking at transport options as the one I am currently using for the Imperial Guard is just not going to cut it long term. I did say way back at the beginning of the project that I would do custom cases for each army and that is exactly what I am going to do. I have sourced some suitable foam and designed a hinged box that will house each army safely and securely. Only a matter of securing funding and away I go.

Thanks for your time and hope you like the updates.

Eh, I may have gone a tad overboard with the snow effect on the tanks, but en mass it doesn't look so bad.

However, I am not to unhappy with how they turned out. Snow does have an ability to crust and cake onto things that have been sitting for a while. That was the look I was going for.

Anyway, they are a done and dusted army now and for the tabletop. The Iron Hands are where my focus is now.

Well its that time again. I have managed to steal a few hours to put the finishing touches onto some more models. Unfortunately it's only 2 at this stage, but it is an important two. First up we have the most basic of the armies Dreadnoughts, the Junior of the team, armed with a Multi-melta and Powerfist and eventually to be loaded into a drop pod I expect him to be a one hit wonder, land behind some nasty vehicle or squad and hopefully put an end to them before the poor dreadnought bites the dust.



He isn't as grand as the previous two dreads, but that is the idea, he isn't venerable like the other two, he is a newbie and has to earn his stripes.

The next model that is completed is the leader of my army, the Master of the Forge (or in the case of the Iron Hands, an Iron Father) with his insanely large conversion beamer. I am personally really happy with the over the top look of the weapon.



So I am holding out for the new Space Marine Codex to see what changes will be wrought and how easily my army list can be modified to suit the changes, it will be the first test as to whether my plan will be able to adapt to the evolving rules and still keep its fluff. I am really keen that there will be individual Chapter traits again, but I so hope they don't remove the ability of the Master of the Forge to take Dreadnoughts as Elites or Heavy Support, that would really change the army around. But will have to wait and see. Also I would love to see Terminator Sergeants reintroduced, but that would be a minor tweak to the list.

I am about an hour away from finishing the first tactical squad off and another hour or so will see their rhino finished as well. I then plan to knuckle down and get the other two tac squads and one rhino done. That will then leave me the bikes I already have and I will hold off on further purchases until I know where I stand rules-wise with the new codex (would hate to buy the Ironclad and find I can't fit it into the army).

On a side note, I played a 1750 point game with my Imperial Guard against a beautifully painted Dark Eldar army at the NSW Northern Knights club on Sunday, great game and I had some insane dice roles early on that really put me on the front foot. Although there was one Ravager that must have made more than 10 flickerfield saves in 3 turns and it survived to the end of the game. But once the smoke had cleared I had done enough to secure a solid victory, unfortunately the Dark Eldar were just not suited to deal with so much armour.

I hope to keep updates coming at fairly regular intervals, particularly as my Tactical Marine color scheme is pretty damned simple. Who would have thought that black was the new black?

This update sees the first of my Tactical Squads and their faithful Rhino. The squad was done a couple of days ago, but I waited til I had their Rhino finished to post them all together.

For those interested, this will actually be my first EVER power armored army, yep, really. Never used the Space Marines before (I sold my soul to the Eldar many, many moons ago) I still feel a little unclean with all this heavy armor, but can't wait to laugh in the face of the dice gods with 3+ saves everywhere. (Please dice gods don't hold it against me, I was only trying to be a big man and show off to my friends).

On to the photos:

Here we see the squad posing with the first Venerable Dreadnought (can't seem to get that guy out of the camera). You can see the Sergeant with his combi-melta on the left with a quick banner. There are quite a few "bionic" upgrades throughout the squad that don't show up too well in this photo unfortunately.


This is a close up of three of the Marines showing off there bionic leg, hand, leg (from left to right), I figured with mechandrites common in the Adeptus Mechanicus it wasn't too much of a stretch the Iron Hands would have smaller scale ones.


Here we see the squad getting out of their Rhino, I have no illusion that on the tabletop they instead will be disembarking from a flaming wreck most of the time. But hey, you have to at least try.....


Front view of the Rhino, like the squad fairly basic, but with the effort I put into the Dreads and Iron Father I needed to just relax and knock out a few marines, please don't hold it against me.


Back side of the Rhino, the top hatch and rear ramp aren't secured, this means I can put a member of the squad inside during game play so I don't forget who is who. Anything to help my failing memory. It didn't show up well, but I am really stoked by how the tarp rolled up on the back came up, best part of the whole Rhino.


Last photo for this update, the Rhino interior. I love how the interior of some of the vehicles have been detailed. It adds an extra depth to the models that I really enjoyed painting.


In fact, it may sound strange, but I actually really enjoyed painting the Rhino, I would go so far as to say it has been my favorite model so far, not really sure why, but I am strange like that.

So that is it for now, currently I am painting the two Heavy Bolter Servitors that are going to accompany the Iron Father and then I will paint the second tactical squad and their Rhino, then if I stay of track the final tactical squad who were too poor to get a Rhino. But I do have a Necromunda gang that I want to rebase.....

Thanks for reading.

Well it has been quite a while since I have updated my progress, largely due to there being very little progress going on. [Insert witty and completely believable excuse here]. Oh, oh wait pick me, pick me! I have one. Well you see my wife and I have a young German Short Haired Pointer (she is 9 months old now) but still as crazy as a puppy can be. So full of energy and life. But unfortunately she decided to tangle with a snake a couple of weeks back and it looked very grim for a little while, but all turned out well, she is about 99% back to her old mischievous self and we have managed to deal with the Vet bills a lot easier than I had thought. Unfortunately the snake didn't come off too well with the encounter and did not survive, so I guess that is Puppy 1, Snake 0. (Just lucky it was this type of snake and not one of the more aggressive and deadly varieties that our sunburnt country can offer).

It was the biggest example of its species that I have ever seen in person, was a beautiful specimen though, very healthy looking and probably explains why it got so touch and go with our dog. Internet Cookie for anyone that can name the species (I am looking at you Aussies). On a side note those are my shoes and I wear size 12's US. So it worked out to be about 1.2 meters long. I did put a tape measure next to it later, but numbnuts forgot to take a picture of that.


It was surprisingly heavy. Wasn't expecting that from the snake, although it was pretty long.


Hmmm, I believe they can get longer, but it was the longest I have seen with my own eyes.

ANYWAY, back to the modelling. I have had a little success rolling forward, but what with my gaming club being fairly active and an all day Saturday event, my painting has been suffering as my gaming has been going ok. I was handed to comfortable losses to Blood Angels and then Dark Angels (I hate their Special Characters) I have learned though that I need to castle up my Imperial Guard. In both games I started REALLY well, few casualties and some good kills. But with my army divided it was easier for the Marines to divide and conquer. I needed to pick a corner and bunker down, letting them come to my guns rather than them being able to duck and weave around picking me apart piecemeal. But hopefully the lessons have been learned and next time a wall of Lasguns and Leman Russ will meet them. On a side note I love outflanking Sentinels, can be such a royal pain in the ass.

Other lessons I learned was that I really needed my own objective markers, it was a little embarrassing having to borrow someone else's, even though it was a cool Terminator statue. So I took a break from the Marines and threw together some objective markers, I also decided I needed to make some markers for smoke launchers and something a little more cinematic for hull point counters. These are still a work in progress so stay tuned for them, but at least the objective markers have been finished.


So I may have gone overboard making 10, but like many hobbyists know you end up with such a ridiculous amount of spare parts I couldn't help myself. Another Internet cookie to however can identify the podium with the blue top (its not that hard)


Extra supplies, quick load them up!


Had these things for a long time now. Good to put them to use.


Never realized how many jerry cans I had in my bits box.

I also have finished the second of three tactical squads, this one has a few conversions for bionics that I am pretty happy with, particularly the giant eye on the Sergeant.



To keep things fresh I have been cycling in some terrain pieces that have been in need of finishing for quite some time. Like the craters shown previously this one got a very similar paint job to tie it all together.



I really think some good terrain and painted models look awesome together (yes I am blowing my own trumpet).





You may notice in that previous photo there was a terminator. Well when the new Codex dropped I found I had a few points to spend compared to my new list. I racked my brains on what to spend the points on and realized I wanted something to really take advantage of the new Iron Hands Chapter Traits. Therefore I could think of little better than a Terminator Captain. He will lead the Tactical Squad without a Transport and with IWND and FNP, plus a 2+/4++ I think/hope he will be a rock for the squad. Yes there could have been better things to spend the points on and maybe he won't be that effective, but damn it I loved when Iron Hands could have Terminator Sergeants and this is as close as I can get.


Plus I think I did a great job on his conversions. I love his half mechanical face.


A little pattern to break up the black.


So a bionic arm and leg (see previous photo) and a bionic face. A true son of Medusa.

Finally on the new painting side a Rhino for the Tactical Squad to roll around in. I did a little more to this one than the previous Rhino.




The new Tactical Squad have that hammer on their Shoulder. Makes it easier for me to tell what squad is where, even though they are all armed exactly the same.....


I have exactly no idea what Medusa would look like from space, but a stylized planet helped break up the large black areas.

On a side note I have gone back over the Dreadnoughts and previous Rhino and given them all Searchlights and Smoke Launchers. I am a big fan of WYSIWYG so it was only appropriate that I follow the Imperial Guard and makes sure everyone is carrying what they are equipped with and it may actually help me remember to use the upgrades in game (even if they are free).

So that has been my progress and life since the last update. On an encouraging note I now actually own all the models I need to finish this army. So on the cards I have:
8 Bikes and an Attack Bike
3 Drop Pods
Techmarine with Servo Harness and 3 Servitors
Tactical Squad
Thunderfire Cannon and Techmarine
Ironclad Dreadnought

Gee that is depressing, really though I had made a lot more progress than that. Need to get back to the painting table. Or at least try. Think I will try to knock off the Techmarine and his Servitors next. Then do the last Tactical Squad.

Wish me luck and its good to be back posting.

Thanks for reading.

Before I begin I apologize for the shocking photography of this update, I was a little rushed this morning and instead of putting the update off until tomorrow I stubbornly have gone ahead with it....

Well it is time for another update, I had a long weekend and managed to even get some painting done, amongst doing a fair amount of clearing of my property in preparation of the bush fire season. Yes, yes it is a little later in the year than I was planning, but a combination of things have been keeping me from what I should have been doing. Anyway, long story short I have had a very productive long weekend and here are the hobby results:

First up some in progress work on the Drop Pods, I tried something a little different here and did the silver first (white undercoat, some sort of silver, then a black wash over the top). This is mainly due to me starting to run out of black paint and being too lazy to go get more, the plan was then to paint the sections in black, thus conserving more of the rapidly dwindling black paint. It works from a distance, but unfortunately I am having a hell of a time trying to get the black paint to go on smoothly, I have tried thinning it down, but I am still getting streaks, lumps and bumps. Should have bitten the bullet and undercoated it in black to get it nice and smooth. There is still time to do it on the other two......



The one pod that has had black added to it. I really like the color scheme though even if the paint isn't playing ball. I think it is enough black to fit the rest of the army, but enough silver to not have it look like a black blob from a distance. I have been painting the outsides only and will move to the inside once I have finished the exterior. Maybe not the best way to play it, but damn if a drop pod is an involved and detailed model.



Next up is the Techmarine and his Servitor Cannon Fodder....I mean assistants. I continued the Armour color scheme from the Master of the Forge, that being a brass/bronze armor where the Shoulder pads and backpack have the Black and Silver Chapter Colors. Helps them stand out from the crowd (because the four extra arms aren't enough). The Servitors are fairly bland to help the Techmarine pop a little. You can see them wandering past an oil tank that has sprung a leak. I am finding the motivation to keep going is assisted by having a piece of terrain going at the same time.



Alternate angle:



Close Up of the Techmarine, prize goes to anyone that knows the pieces used to make this Techmarine (may be hard considering the shocking photography), I thought it kind of fitting since the Iron Hands use their Techmarines (Iron Fathers) as a Spiritual Leader as well.



Next we have the Thunderfire Cannon, probably the model I have enjoyed painting the most thus far in the project. I sorely considered getting another one.....but the list is set so I forgot about that idea. I got this model off eBay from the UK, only paid about AUS$40 for it and its the metal version, way better than the AUS$90 they want for the finecast one. Anyway, the vendor claimed "well painted" when it turned up it was in pieces with a shocking paint job and what seemed to be no mold lines or flash cleaned off it. Felt like saying something to him, but reminded myself I saved $50 on it and being metal could easily strip the paint off it.



I continued with the red tipped missiles that this army has, as well as the white weapon casings.



Back view of the Thunderfire Cannon:



And finally for this update the three Techmarines all together for the first time. I think they work well together and are a fitting leadership group to the Iron Hands.



So I now have the following to finish off:

3 Drop Pods 15% done
8 Bikes assembled and undercoated
1 Attack Bike assembled and undercoated
10 Tactical Marines assembled
1 Ironclad Dreadnought assembled

I am hoping I can get this army done by the end of November and dedicate the Christmas period to hammering into an Empire Knightly Order army for Warhammer. Sorry folks the wife has spoken and she said she may even paint a knight or two, would be her first ever painting (she does play occasionally with my armies) so I am keen to introduce her to painting.

I don't hold out much hope I will get anything done over Christmas, we are off to a friends wedding in Sunny Scotland, leaving Sydney on Boxing day and spending all of my annual leave abroad. Any tips on what an Aussie can do in the middle of the UK over Christmas?

Oh on a side note and I forgot to take photos of them (will do it next time) I have made pillars of "smoke" to represent when a vehicle pops smoke (cotton wool soaked in spray fixative) and vehicle hull point markers that are columns of smoke and fire made from steel wool painted with red, orange and yellow highlights. They really help to make a visual emphasis of what a vehicle is actually up to.

Hi all, hope there are still some interested souls out there. (Not that it matters as I am actually enjoying putting the updates up )

Anyway, I am going to do two updates today, this first one is related to Warhammer 40k in general (like the objective markers I made) but I have picture my creations with one of the humble Iron Hands Rhino's. So without further adieu:

Here we see a humble Rhino, just trying to survive in the world, minding its own business.



But to try and survive a little longer in a harsh and dangerous universe it POPS SMOKE!



But alas, even the smoke clears eventually and then every Tau and his Pulse Rifle want to have a crack..... 1 Hull Point down.



Uh-oh, another one lost.....



Damn, wrecked, looks like we are walking now guys.....



So basically you see I have made some visual props to keep track of vehicles that have popped smoke and hull points. I was getting sick of sticking a dice on top that could fall off, be forgotten (yes I admit it I am fallible). So it is now very hard for me to forget or ignore these little beauties. Really helps with the Imperial Guard as I have 9 vehicles and 6 walkers to keep track of. (And yes, I made enough smoke and hull point markers for ever vehicle to be wrecked with smoke at the same time).

I also think it improves the battlefield and reminds everyone of the fact vehicle wrecks are difficult as well as dangerous terrain.

Stay tuned for an Iron Hands update.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
How about that, a long absence and now two updates in one day, you lucky internet readers you.

I managed to finish off the Drop Pods for the Iron Hands army over the weekend. I am almost happy with them, I had some massive issues with my black paint going on really lumpy and horrible. I thinned it out with water, an acrylic medium but nothing seemed to work. I ended up biting the bullet and bought a new pot and guess what? It solved the issues, so I guess I must have gotten some form of contamination in the pot at some point or it was starting to go bad, who knows. I have taken a couple of photos of the nasty stuff just to show my issue.

Anyway, to start the three pods. I am really hoping to scare an opponent when two of these crash down first turn.



The paint scheme is VERY simple, but it ties in nicely with the rest of the army I think. Besides, after they deploy they are just expensive paper weights essentially.

Dreadnought attack! Here is what will be climbing it's way out of the pods for this army.....although the Dread up the back will be deployed on foot and the unpainted Ironclad will instead be pod bound.







As previously mentioned though, once the precious cargo has moved off (or more likely reduced to molten slag) the Pods themselves are just pretty, expensive paper weights. I need to think about dropping them in somewhere that inhibits my opponents ability to move. Since the pods are going to be purely for the Dreadnoughts I decided not to fit the center console and harnesses, that way it looks marginally like the pod could at least hold a dismantled dreadnought.



I didn't have the points available to afford a weapon upgrade, so the pods only have a storm bolter to harass the enemy with, although, if an opponent forgot it was there and exposed an AV10 vehicle they potentially (although unlikely) get a rude shock....



You can see here that the black paint is uneven and lumpy (from a distance its not too bad and its only one of the pods). Solved the issue with a new pot of paint.



Although I did the bases of the Pods all at once with the old paint so they are all a little uneven, but who is ever going to see the bottom of a drop pod?



So that is where I stand with the Iron Hands so far. I now have an Ironclad Dreadnought, Tactical Squad (who aren't important enough to get a Rhino, objective Campers anyone?) and a full Bike Squad with Attack Bike left to paint. I am going to try and hammer the Tactical Squad out for the rest of the week and weekend and if I can achieve that I believe I will be successful with finishing the Iron Hands by the end of November.

Hope you enjoyed the read.

I had been holding off updating until I had more done, but after a VERY wet weekend building yet more fences to contain our over-excited puppy I have managed very little on the hobby front. Since we have had our four legged bundle of joy (now 14 months old) she has required the raising of our fence line from 4.5 feet to 7 feet. (That's about 300 meters of fencing), what we discovered last week however, after she got out again, was that she had now discovered a way to climb down the cliff that borders two of our properties edges.....she is a little too clever for her own good. So, out in the rain all weekend I have laid another 50 meters of fencing along the cliff edge she had been climbing down. Now I just hope she doesn't learn to fly or abseil as I am not looking forward to having to fence the entire cliff line. I was told German Short-Haired Pointers were active, smart dogs, but it is starting to get crazy, maybe I can teach her to play Warhammer? Please note we also have two other dogs on the property and they don't seem inclined in the slightest to want to go anywhere.

Anyway, I have finished off the final Tactical Squad who will accompany the Terminator Captain in most games (or at least a combat squad will). I have also continued with my plan to work on terrain as I go churning through my old and unloved terrain collection so I end up not only with painted armies but some cool painted terrain to fight over. So this update also sees the finish of a Citadel Wood that I didn't realize I had lying around. I think it is a sign of addiction when you forget what you have, right?

So on with some pictures:


Here we see the Tactical Squad, like the two previous they are armed with Missile Launcher, Flamer and Combi-Melta. They will likely combat squad to get the best use out of the Heavy and Special weapons. Unlike the other squads though they don't get a Rhino. Someone has to watch the base....also, with the recent addition of the Terminator Captain (after the points changes with the 6th Edition Codex) they will now follow him around when needed).


Here they have pushed their way through to the outskirts of the Woods I have finished. The area that the trees take up is quite extensive meaning they will make a great imposing feature on the tabletop. The bases for the trees are roughly 6" x 12" which is a pretty large area, put all three together and that is a fairly extensive piece of terrain. I think they have come out well, but they are pretty labor intensive with a lot of paint and time going into them.


The size of the trees is also pretty impressive, its great to have terrain that is actually in some sort of scale to the models, I like the fact also these trees are also capable of maybe hiding a dreadnought. Almost. Kind of.


A wide shot of all the woods and the tactical squad. Gives a pretty good example of how much of the table they would take up and how well they dwarf the marine models. I think so far these are the favorite piece of terrain I have done, purely for the impact they will have on the table top.

So that is what I have achieved since the last update, maybe I am spending too much time on terrain and not enough on the army. But I am finding it is keeping things fresh and a necessary break from the black and silver of the Iron Hands. I have also go the bike squad undercoated, with the silver trim and black wash done and have started blocking in the white for the weapons. So they are well on their way to being finished. Although I am taking the opportunity to randomly add the same check pattern on the Terminator Captain to areas of the bikes to break up the large panels a little and make them appear a little bit different.

So its the 18th of November hear and I have a Dreadnought and lets say 65% of the bikes squad left to paint. If i can focus and avoid any more terrain I am still confidant I can finish them by the end of November as planned.

I would like to also finish off their custom foam cases in December before my wife and I go away. That way I can start completely refreshed and with a clean slate in the new year. Wish me luck. Oh and I would like to start looking at making a hard case to hold the foam trays I am making, wonder if I can make a box that can hold the foams of an army allowing me to have one box and I just swap in and out what foams (and therefore what armies) are inside.

Hey, nice to here from everyone. To answer a few questions that have been posed:

@freytag93
Yup, dogs can be crazy, but I wouldn't trade her for the world. 95% of the time she is an amazing well behaved dog.

I am really impressed by the Citadel Wood, but yes, prices for terrain are getting ridiculous, these trees have been kicking around for years, so not sure what I actually paid for them.

I have done a little freehand lines onto the bike squad which will be finished by this weekend, just to break up the big areas of black that I enjoyed doing.

@master of asgard
Yes I am insane :-)

Not really sure I am awesome, but my wife thinks so.

I really like the double tracks as well, here's to hoping the new Imperial Guard dex has Ace Tanks or similar.

Ah, you see the Dark Angel army has some fluff regarding the name and what is going on. If you go to the link to the fluff I am doing to accompany this plan it is about the 6th post down. You see its all a scheme to lure out the fallen and the rest of the army is simply bait.... I think the name suits quite well. Let me know your thoughts.

Well, my missus (wife) is very understanding and supports a lot of the crazy ideas I have, so long as I clean up after myself, keep making her nice things and let her call me a nerd every now and then she is cool. I have also convinced her to paint one of the models from the next army on the line. The Empire Knightly Order I am doing.

@ Spartan-Kun
Unfortunately I don't have any photos of putting the double tracks together, they were assembled some time ago and only just became an army in their own right. However, I do believe I have enough spare parts lying around of a Chimera I think that I can pull a small demonstration together, I will have a look and see. Stay Tuned.

Well the tide is turning and I am hitting a pretty productive streak. Not only have I finished off the bikes, but I also managed to paint both of the arms for the Ironclad Dreadnought. This leaves me just the Ironclad Body and Legs for the Iron Hands army, yay!

Straight into some photos of the Bikes (please excuse the even more shocking quality of the photos than the normal shocking):


All ten mounted marines. 8 bikes and the essential attack bike. I am pretty sure I will ALWAYS combat squad these guys. Makes the best use out of their weapons.


Here is the first combat squad, Plasma gunner and Power Weapon on the Sergeant. I had wanted two Meltaguns, but since the upgrade kit comes with a melta and plasma I did the lazy thing and took one of each, not perhaps totally sensible, but I was at a low point in energy and I had run out of Meltaguns in my bits box.....so these guys will hunt heavy infantry I think, plasma at range at least until he overheats and then charge into assault and hope the power weapon pays for itself.


The second combat squad has eyes only for tanks and 2+ armour. With a Meltagun and Multi-Melta they should provide a pretty serious distraction that hopefully will draw some attention from the Dreadnoughts, especially with a couple of bold turbo boosts to draw attention. Well that is the plan anyway.

A lot of the bikes have been pieced back together from my bits box, therefore there are a lot of "bionics" ie. I didn't have the original pieces so I stuck something else in its place.... the following photos show this off a little.



Even Iron Hands feel the need for speed and a thrill every now and then, my totally out of character jumping biker.


Close ups of the Multi-Melta attack bike and Meltagun Biker.

I enjoyed painting these guys as well, the large areas of flat paneling allow for a little decoration to easily be added. I can understand the lure of a whole bike army. (White Scars anyone?) Well I am now down to the main part of the Ironclad and then these guys are ready for the foam storage trays.

My plan for the rest of this year is hopefully going to be:

- Finish the Ironclad (Obviously)
- Do the custom foam trays for the whole army (Did I post photos of the ones for the Imperial Guard Army? Need to check and I will do both at once)
- Work out a timber carry box that said foam trays will fit inside would be great to have one box per army, but with limited space I may try to do one box that can house any on the foams. Difficulty with that will be if the number of foam trays are really different from each other. Anyway, that will sort itself out once I have cut the foam for the Iron Hands. Then I will make my decision.
- I have started looking at options to do a modular transportable gaming table. So I will briefly look at this before I go on my trip overseas. I won't be devoting heaps of time to this project, it will definitely be a now and then idea.
- Begin collecting the parts for the Warhammer: The Empire army that is next up. All Knights and Demi-Gryphs. Effective? Probably not. Intimidating? Probably. Awesome looking? Definitely. Quick to do? You betcha.

Thanks for reading.

I managed to do it, yup I finished the Iron Hands off by the end of November. (Yeah, yeah I know its December now, but I swear the Ironclad was done BEFORE December .

This means that I have now finished off my first EVER Space Marine army, and managed to trundle along to NSW Northern Knights to play my first ever game with a 3+ armor save, what a novelty. More on the battle later.

First of all here is the last piece of the puzzle, the Ironclad Dreadnought in all his shiny glory....









He is rocking a Powerfist and Seismic Hammer as well as the underslung Storm Bolter and Meltagun. He also has one Hunter Killer Missile, Frag Assault Launchers and the standard smoke launchers and searchlight. I think the model is awesome, the two fists makes it really bulky and far better proportioned than the standard Dreadnoughts.

So with the completion of the final Dreadnought the army is finished and ready for its custom foam case to be made up (already done one tray for the Rhinos and bikes).

Here is the army in all its black and silver glory:


The HQ of the army:

The Master of the Forge with Conversion Beamer and two gun servitors, Techmarine with servo harness and 3 servitors and a Terminator Captain.

Troops:

3 Tactical Squads and 2 Rhinos

Elites:

Venerable Dreadnought and Ironclad Dreadnought with 2 Drop Pods.

Fast Attack:

Bike Squad with attack Bike.

Heavy Support:

Venerable Dreadnought, Dreadnought with Drop Pod and Thunderfire Cannon.

I took them for there first game on Sunday at the NSW Northern Knights and I had high hopes for the power armored goodness. I wasn't disappointed, the Power Armour combined with their Iron Hands Chapter traits really kept them hanging in there.

We played a mission from the Battle Mission Book from 5th edition which was a nice change of pace. Unfortunately though, after holding 2 of the 3 objectives for most of the battle a determined Mephiston and an assault squad with Sanguinary Priest pushed me away from the central objective. My opponent ended up with no troops left (not a concern in this mission as once you had held an objective it was yours until your opponent took it back, think the Dawn of War computer game) and we ran out of time to continue the fight. I still had plenty of troops left, so maybe with more time I could have stolen the central objective back, but it was not to be, and there still was an angry Mephiston clinging to life jumping around like no one cared. I am beginning to hate that guy. Twice I have faced him now and both times I would say he was the difference between winning and losing for me. Ah next time he will cop a conversion beamer to the face.


Here were my glorious Iron Hands controlling 2/3rds of the board by turn 2. They stuck in there until the end of Turn 5 when we had to finish the game due to time.


I had my opponent penned in his deployment zone for much of the battle. I just couldn't keep him there and Mephiston and the Priest starting flexing their muscles.

SO there you have it. A completed Iron Hands army and their first battle. I am really happy with how they turned out and how they performed on the table. With some more experience and better tactics I am sure they won't fail me. (I mean really, who in there right mind advances on Blood Angels, damn I was stupid with that one, should of held back and made him come to me. All the while shooting the hell out of them. I just can't help myself).

I have started the custom foam trays for the Iron Hands and have finished the Imperial Guard ones. I need to do some form of carrying box so the rest of my year is going to be modelling accessories rather than models. So I plan on starting the Empire Knightly Order in the new year. I think I have had a successful year at the start of this project.

Thanks for reading and if I don't post again this year thank you to those of you who are reading. Stay safe and enjoy the festive time of year and I hope to kick off 2014 with a bang and get through even more armies.

Happy New Year to all and I certainly hope your festive season was, well, festive.

I am back and almost running at full steam, I have finished assembling and cleaning the Horses for my first 16 Knights for the next army on the list - The Empire. I am taking a break (although hopefully brief) from 40k and am delving into the twisted world of Warhammer. To help me in this endeavor I am going to collect the following army:

2,000 Point Warhammer Fantasy Empire Army – The Obsidian Order

Grandmaster Garak ‘The Obsidian’ - Obsidian Blade, Obsidian Lodestone, Charmed Shield

Captain Jaegar ‘The Black’ - Battle Standard Bearer, Full Plate Armour, Lance, Barded Warhorse, Shield, Lichebone Pendant
Captain Balin ‘The Ebon’ - Full Plate Armour, Barded Warhorse, Obsidian Amulet, Relic Blade, Dragonhelm
Warrior Priest Mosiah - Heavy Armour, Barded Warhorse, Van Horstmann’s Speculum, Great Weapon, Shield

The Obsidian Inner Circle ‘Obsidian’s Guard’ - Inner Circle Preceptor Belial, Inner Circle Musician, Inner Circle Standard Bearer with Steel Standard, 6 Inner Circle Knights
The Black’s Guard - Preceptor Jorge, Musician, Standard Bearer, 6 Knights
The Ebon’s Guard - Preceptor Arne, Musician, Standard Bearer, 6 Knights
The Honour Guard - Preceptor Margariz, Musician, Standard Bearer, 6 Knights

Outcasts of the Order - Inner Circle Preceptor Mannuss, Inner Circle Musician, Inner Circle Standard Bearer, 3 Demigryph Knight, all 6 Demigryph Knights carry Halberds.

Total List = 2,000 Points - 46 Mounted

The current plan will be to spread the Characters out, one to each Regiment of Knights, This may change as I gain experience. I don't expect it to be even remotely competitive, especially if someone brings a level 4 Wizard Lord with them....but, I just want to see the look on someones face when I deploy the army. That and I believe the army will be fairly easy to paint quickly so I can get on to the next army. This year I really want to try and get 5 armies done. That's an improvement of 3 from last year, but I didn't have a full year last year and I also didn't 100% know what I was doing then either.

Anyway, since I have no pictures I would like to pose a question to anyone still out there interested. I am doing a Knightly Order called the Obsidian Order, how should I go about painting them? (In BLACK you moron!) Please keep in mind I just came off the back of an Iron Hands army so want to try and keep it away from just all black. The ideas I have had thus far are:

- The Knights are all black, but their horses have silver barding.
- Mix up Silver and Black ink to make a sort of metallic black and use this all over. <---- This is currently my favourite idea.
- Bite the bullet and paint them all black (I mean I named them right? I knew what I was getting into).
- Some brilliant individual has an even better idea? (Please, pretty please).
- Combination of the above.

I hope there are still interested readers out there and I apologize if I went dark for longer than I had intended. Look forward to entertaining you for 2014 and lets all make it a good one.

Well having had a lot of opinions and great ideas from the modelling community around me I present 4 concepts (they are really pretty similar, just slight difference) for painting the horses of my Knightly Order. Once I have sorted this out I will then work out how to do the riders.


This is the "Control" Model. It is simply black with a couple of gloss varnish coats. It is a really basic way of achieving the gloss black of Obsidian, but I am hoping to avoid it and get something a little more visually interesting.


This is my least favorite option. The red is a little too obvious and the black just looks like it has muddied up the armor.


Definitely a front runner, the green is there, but looks more like it is 'under' the black.


Another firm favourite (and my wife's choice) again it is mainly black with a nice blue highlight.

So, if the good people of the Hobby world would give me their wise and considered opinion on what way I should go and then I can move on to how to do the Knights themselves.

Thanks for reading.

Hi all,

I would like to thank everyone for their input and advice on the paint scheme front, some very inventive people out there. Some of the ideas are probably beyond my current painting abilities and therefore may be reserved for attempts on my characters.

With the 4 schemes painted above I seem to be getting mixed reactions (as in I think I have people voting for each of the 4 color schemes which I was hoping wouldn't happen).

So I pose another idea, I happen to have 4 regiments of Knights in the Army, should I do each regiment one of the 4 options or do you think it will divide the overall look of the army too much?

Thanks again for all the advice.

The hobby community has been a great help with the armor for my Knights horses. I have decided to go with the blue and black scheme (although I will likely tweak it a bit to bring more blue through the black, but that is another story). Now I need help in deciding how to do the armor of the Knights themselves. I have a couple of samples that I invite the community to have a look at.

Firstly, this is simply a black undercoat (with a bit of gloss) to see what pure black would look like. Now I am not a fan, I feel that the Knight and horse blend together too much. But it is a good control model.


I haven't done one up, but I guess the option would be to imitate the horses armor on the Knight as well, but I am concerned it will suffer the same as above and just blend together, I could try a really dark blue with sharp edge highlights as which continues to carry the bluish theme?

Onto some other ideas.....


A more traditional paint scheme for a knight (please note I didn't paint this guy, he is an eBay hand me down). It is definitely a contrast to the horse. Not sure if it is too much though. I like the use of blue on the ribbons and the like, ties it into the horse a little.


I don't mind the bronze look, I think it is a little more muted than the pure silver guy. Gold and black also go quite well together, again would use blue on the ribbons and leather to tie back to the horse.


On the idea of 'gold' going well with black, here is the bronze sample with gold highlighting added. It is quite startling, but maybe a bit much over the whole army? Maybe could be used on characters only and the rest of the guys are the duller bronze?

On that idea, maybe I could do the knights in either bronze (as above) OR a boltgun metal type with a heavy black wash and then the characters are in shining gold or mithril silver to have them stand out from the crowd?

Anyway, any and all opinions are welcome and very much appreciated. The only other test I might do is a dark blue armor and an armor exactly like the horse.

Last pic before I go, what I have ready for painting with this army......


All 36 Knights and two of the Characters (who will be a Warrior Priest and Grandmaster) to finish off the 2,000 Points I need 6 Demigryph Knights and the Empire General box so I can kit bash two Captains. So very close to having all the models bought. Oh and yes that is my take on a Salamanders Captain I did ages ago hiding in the top right of the photo, not sure how he got out of his box, but I think he is one of the best models I have ever done.

Thanks for reading.

Thanks for the input. It is always a little crazy to jump into ambitious hobby plans with both feet.

However, I have been at this modelling game for a long time and thought it was time to focus my energies. I have so many models lying about that it was past time to collate them into usable armies. Therefore, some of the armies are almost done before I even get to them.

I would never discourage someone from trying to make their dreams reality, but as I say to a mate of mine, who has just started collecting (Space Wolves) and want to do "the entire Chapter", first things first, get a core together that you like using, then try to focus it towards a particular Great Company and then rinse and repeat. Small steps, this avoids the feeling of being overwhelmed.

Good luck with anything you do decide to do.