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Thats impressive! It reminds me just how many options SM have. People always seem to boil it down to smash-face on bike, or bare bones librarian. It's really cool to see other HQs hitting the table.

 Zambro wrote:
Thats impressive! It reminds me just how many options SM have. People always seem to boil it down to smash-face on bike, or bare bones librarian. It's really cool to see other HQs hitting the table.

Well, if we believe everything we read on the internet, CC is dead (so no jump packs) and terminators are useless (so no TDA). That’s half the options gone right there.

Your comment about stuff hitting the table got me thinking. Every game I’ve played since I’ve started this blog is documented here, so I thought I’d go back over the last year and look at what has actually hit the table. I could have gone back farther, but I got bored.

Captain
-Bike 2
-JP 2
-Foot 1

Chaplain
-Bike 2
-JP 3
-TDA 1

Librarian
-JP 1

Techmarine
-Full harness 1

Chronos 1
Calgar 1
Cassius 1

Now this does stretch back over the last codex, so the techmarine was actually there as a MotF, for my all-dread list, and Calgar was not a LOW. Mostly bike and JP. Not terribly surprising, as most HQs want to be in CC, and those help them get there. Plus it’s hard to fit them into transports with a full squad. The one time I fielded TDA was in an intentionally “soft” list playing a new guy. I’d use it more often, but I can’t fit a HQ in my LR with the termi assault squad these days. I guess I could take the shooty ones more often and tag him along there. Librarians have been collecting a lot of dust. Still not a fan of rolling powers. Their heyday was back in 5th.

Some options will probably never see the field. With access to artificer armor, TDA captains fill a very narrow niche. And I’ll probably never take a generic foot chaplain, as I can field Cassius instead. Not to say it won’t ever happen. Particularly with my policy of dusting off forgotten models to take them for a spin periodically.

Hope everyone enjoys their weekend. It’s raining here (glad I primed yesterday). but should be a lazy at-home one. Which is good, as I’m still recovering from staining my deck.

I'm impressed by all the hq's. I only have a tda chaplain and a foot captain for my ultra's atm. How have the ultramarines special characters performed for you? I wanted to pick them up as centerpiece models for my ultramarines, but if they perform well I'd have an excuse to use them in game too.

Calgar is a very expensive beatstick. His army-wide buffs are less relevant then they used to be. If you are still working with a CAD, he might be worth it. But in a UM gladius formation, we already get to use each doctrine twice, and the tactical 3 times. Do we need more? He is an eternal warrior that hits like a truck on his initiative, so he is very good at beating things to death. Worth the points? I’m not sure. But then, I’m a boys before toys guy who dislikes sinking points into upgrades.

Cassius is nice. He’s got a cool bolter, and still keeps the BP/crozius for an extra attack. T6 and FNP make him a tough old bugger. His one drawback is that he’s on foot, so needs to be in a ride. If you can deal with that, he’s very good for his points.

I’ve not fielded Sicarius, as he’s unpainted ATM. He’s got a number of tricks, and I think is costed fairly. A nice mix of army buffs and personal power. He is everything a 4th edition captain should be, which tickles my nostalgia.

Tigurius is one of the best psychers in the game, in an edition where space magic is very strong. There are so many dirty pool tricks you can pull with him. There is a reason you see him allied into a lot of lists. I’ve not fielded him.

Sgt. Cronos is fun. He’s a nice upgrade for a tank, and fits very well into mechanized list. Mostly because you don’t need to worry about finding a spot to stick a HQ. The big problem is deciding on a ride for him. The LRs are mostly TL’d so don’t get a lot from his BS5. Most lighter tanks are hard to justify the upgrade points. I ran him in an auto/las pred, and had fun doing so.

I’ve not fielded Telion since he went HQ. He’s cheep and has a good warlord trait? Looks to do well in low point or themed lists. I liked him better as a squad upgrade. But if you ever need someone to man a gun emplacement, he’s your man. 50 points for BS6, all shots are precision shots. Hard to beat that.

And just to prove that I’m still occasionally painting:

AM sarge and the last VV have their bodies done.

Accessories are still WIP:


I’ve switched the LotD out for the chaplain for the monthly challenge. While I’m not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, there is a reason I only partially assemble before painting. Getting a brush into spots on the chap is proving to be a real bear. Which is a shame, as I want to do a good job on him. Still blocking colors out on him.

As awkward as it will be to paint, I'm sure you'll manage I'm realising now that I have fully assembled my LotD. So I'm going to have to deal with weaponry over chest plates and other areas being covered. It's not ideal, but at the end of the day, if you cant see it, does it really need painting?

 Zambro wrote:
As awkward as it will be to paint, I'm sure you'll manage I'm realising now that I have fully assembled my LotD. So I'm going to have to deal with weaponry over chest plates and other areas being covered. It's not ideal, but at the end of the day, if you cant see it, does it really need painting?

Some things, like drybrushing, the angle of attack is important. Trying to do that sideways is going to be a pain.

Your assault marines are looking good. Where is that studded helmet from?

 brushcommando wrote:
Your assault marines are looking good. Where is that studded helmet from?

That’s one of the heads from the venerable dreadnought kit. The neck design is slightly different then a normal head, but still fits. As I don’t like the look of the dreads w/ heads, they all just hit the bits box waiting for a fun project. That head stuck me a the kind well suited for someone who was going to crash through the wall and beat you to death. It’s odd that SM helmets can have “expressions” After all, you only get to see the eyes, they don’t show a lot. They are all built differently, and can (at least in my eyes) say different things.

The one on the sarge to the left gives me more of a "focused determination” vibe. It might be the smoother lines, or the peaked front. He’s got a target, and he’s going to take it out quickly and efficiently.

The vet's studded faceplate oozes raw brutality. That is the helmet of someone face-rolling through life. He’s killed people with headbuts. Multiple times. He might have that helmet on for your protection, not his; he bites. He’s not subtle, he’s not graceful. He’s not stoppable either.

As a unique helmet (only one in my collection) and an archaic one, I thought it would fit well on a vanguard vet. These guys don’t have artificer armor, but they should have the next best thing. So having odd and unusual bits showing up seemed appropriate. And with the menace I get from that helm, it needed to be on some CC monster.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Personal aside/rant

THIN YOUR DAMN PAINTS!

This was going through my head all afternoon. Dakka has drilled it into my brain that your paints should have the consistency of milk. So I when I was working with paint the consistency and color of chocolate mousse, all sorts of alarm bells were going off in my head. Brush strokes everywhere, not flowing into recesses/details properly, and just hard to apply. But it wasn’t my deck that was being resurfaced. That was last week, and I had purchased a much thinner paint to go on. But in a little quid pro quo, the in-laws helped me paint my deck, so I went over to help them with theirs. My father in law thought he had bought the same stuff I did. He was wrong. Even when we were done with the brush work and switched to rollers, it was still a bear. What’s the appropriate nap for pudding? Whatever it is, we weren’t using it. I wonder if they make rollers to paint vehicles? Tanks would go a lot quicker.

But now my hands are blister covered claws of pain, and my back is not happy with me. I really wanted to get some more work done, but don’t trust myself with a brush. Normally I do some building when I’m like this, but the workbench is a little light at the moment.

/rant

For the monthly competition:


Because I started them, and need to finish them (even if they aren’t going into the comp)


And so those last two guys can go on to the finished shelf:


Lots of projects on the bench, and slow progress on all of them. But still progress. I should really try to get some off the bench, so I’m less divided. Also so I can get some other projects moving. But motivation is low, and distractions are high.

Hope everyone has a nice weekend!

Looking good Nev. That chappy is grim.

 Gitsplitta wrote:
Looking good Nev. That chappy is grim.

Are chaplains ever not grim?

Now I want to kitbash a happy chaplain. Probably swinging his crozious and covered in gore. But with a big ol’ grin on his face. Could anything make him happier then the knowledge that he’s doing the Emperor’s work, the work he was created to do? The serenity of knowing that his place is right here, on the battlefield, where he belongs. Surrounded by his brothers, their bolters singing praises to the Emperor in a voice sweeter then any choir? Could he ask for anything more? Perhaps another Xenos to kill. But wait! There is another one right there! <splorch> Is there any higher joy?

I can't help but hear an "I've been working on the Railroad" soundtrack with the chappy's crozious smashing down on enemy skulls with every beat (rather than the RR spike hammer in the song). That's kind of a joyous tune.

I've (smash) been working for the Em... (smash) ...prah (smash), all the live long day! (smash) (smash) (smash)
I've (smash) been hammering the Her... (smash) ...etics (smash), just to pass the time away! (smash) (smash) (smash)
Can't (smash) you hear the Captain shou... (smash) ...ting (smash), well... you get the idea.

@Gitsplitta I could quite easily see Chaplains singing that song, very loudly and proudly to boot.

@Nev I really like the look of the new Bike Librarian but didn't realize you had so many different versions of all the HQ's. I remember all of the Captains but not the rest.

@Gits: Now I have Space Marine: The Musical ideas going through my head. I don’t think this and sanity are compatible.

@Adam: The Captains have been out for some photoshoots recently, the rest have been a little more shy. As I get more of the rows/columns of matrix painted, I should do some group shots. The TDA HQ collection is already done. As is the JP collection, buy I don’t have a picture of that yet.

Any marine player who has been playing for any length of time tends to get far more HQs then they could ever use. I’m not saying they are like Pokemon, and you need to catch them all, but you defiantly catch more then you need. By my count in the HQ pic, I have 23 of them (all but 6 painted). I fielded 11 different HQs 16 total times. Now some of them were just put together or painted recently, but there are some older guys who haven’t seen the table in over a year.

I should play the librarians more often, it’s been forever since the TDA libi took the field. I also need to get the Deathwatch Mantis (and his squad) on the table, as they are new paint that has not been bloodied yet. My basic foot librarian got so much play back in 5th he triggered my “overplayed” switch and I had to intentionally write him out of lists. So it’s OK for him to be taking a break.

The terminator captain isn’t WYSWYG these days, as he has a SB, sword, and a captain’s powerfist. So not only is his gear illegal, but not even very effective. My old metal foot captain is probably in for a lot of dust in the future.

I love chaplains. They are just a lot of fun to use, so they actually get more then their fair share of the spotlight.

I want to field the techmarines more. Previous editions of the rules made that a little rough, as the basic one was overpriced and not a HQ, and the MotF/TFC gunner was a late addition to my collection. And usually manning his gun on the table. Now the rules make so I can get the old guy on the table easier, but the formations make that a little rougher. Captains and Chaplains are easy to fit into lists these days, techs are a little harder. The armored TF is still a ways off, so they are only going to show up in CADs for the near future,

OK, I’ve spent enough time here typing, time to get painting.

Done with all the bits and bobs for the last two jump packs guys. Which finishes off a few projects. Here is the final 7th squad. Shelf deployment is 2 flamers, vet sarge with a maul. The old power sword sarge moved back to the 8th, and the sarge there (PP/fist) moved down to the swap shelf.


The vanguard was the 10th, so finishes the squad.



Front, Back, and all together.
2x Axe/SS (one with a MB)
Sarge with LC/SS
Sword/BP
Spear/BP
5x BP/CCW (one with a MB)

Might not be the most efficient loadout. I planned it under the last codex, where we were still paying full price for power weapons. Might need some new arms.

The chaplain is coming together. I need to decide colors for the alien bits. Hive Fleet Behemoth is the dark blue/black with brighter blue edging, right? There are some Tau bits that need color as well. I’ll probably go with the traditional tans. Is there a sept of Tau that fights the Ultramarines more then others?

I think I’ve changed my mind on the LotD again. Not likeing the whole black arm. Might just leave it as the shoulder pad and helmet to differentiate. I’ll keep the SSs black.

I should grab some more pics of the WIP stuff.

Really nice looking squad. Love the gold bits on top of the jump packs... really makes them look nice.

Another great looking squad. I'm jealous

That's a beautiful set of Vanguards. As for Tau and Ultras I only know of the lot that Calgar didn't exterminate with the Necrons. Haven't heard of a specific long term rival. Wasn't Ardias away fighting Tau just before the Battle of Macragge and died before he and the 3rd re-took the Polar Fortresses. Maybe those Tau could be classed as a rival/nemesis.

Gitsplitta wrote:Really nice looking squad. Love the gold bits on top of the jump packs... really makes them look nice.

I feel kinda bad that one of them just has some extra purity seals on his. Two of the VV JPs got poached for other projects, and replaced with assault marine ones. For the last one (Mr. studded helmet) I used terminator honor badges from the command squad sprue so he had a little something extra up top. No mount of bling is too much for the Vets!

War Kitten wrote:Another great looking squad. I'm jealous

Thanks!

Adamski Alders wrote:That's a beautiful set of Vanguards. As for Tau and Ultras I only know of the lot that Calgar didn't exterminate with the Necrons. Haven't heard of a specific long term rival. Wasn't Ardias away fighting Tau just before the Battle of Macragge and died before he and the 3rd re-took the Polar Fortresses. Maybe those Tau could be classed as a rival/nemesis.

I think Ardias actually died fighting the Tau before the Battle of Macragge. But I don’t know where that bit of lore actually came from. When I was thumbing through my 2nd ed Tyranid codex last night (looking for hive fleet colors) I found a bit of fluff about captain Fabian taking down a hive tyrant in the polar fort. The only Tau stuff I have is the old 3rd codex, and a stack of WDs I’m not willing to spend the time sifting through for the possibility of a hint.

Some painting progress:


While it might not look like a lot of progress since last time, a number of washes went down. I also put the deep blue on the nid carapace, and after taking the pic put a little Macragge on the edges. I’ll go over it again with a brighter highlight, and possibly glaze and re-highlight. I’ll try to get a different angle on him next time.

God I hate extreme close ups.



But I am pretty happy with the way the nid carapace turned out.

I agree closeups suck. I spent a couple of minutes looking at this picture trying to work out what it was.

And I won't even mention that mould line that it brings out so well.

The carapace armor makes it look like he's been doing some diy so he can keep on fighting

Lost Soul wrote:
I agree closeups suck. I spent a couple of minutes looking at this picture trying to work out what it was.

And I won't even mention that mould line that it brings out so well.

The carapace armor makes it look like he's been doing some diy so he can keep on fighting

He’s a gift, so I didn’t do the assembly. I probably should have double-checked all the mold lines before I primed him, but he looked OK at the time. Nothing like a good wash to show where you missed stuff. He’s got home-brewed rules and fluff that came with the mini. I’ll post his whole story when I finish painting him.

Made it up to the FLGS last night for a game. 1k teams. Ultras and Orks vs. IG and IF. Took the foot captain out with the HG, and a pair of full melta tac squads.


Emperor’s will, long deployment.

The Fists dropped a ironclad and rolled a rhino tac squad to try to take out objective, but the two ork mobs in the area stopped them. Barely. this game saw two empty rhinos trying to hold objectives, only to be destroyed on the last turn. But most of the action was centered around the stormwhatever superheavy:

(The ork player is still working up his list, and was proxying some bikes)

Lysander and his TH/SS buddies were helping to bubble wrap the tank, which had guys inside patching it up as well as leaping out periodically to keep me at arm’s length. So while I was blowing HP off it with the LR, he was fixing it faster then I could shoot. Needed to get the tac squads in close. Which did not happen in time; I ended up going for the objective (just off to the right of the picture) Wasn’t able to hold it unfortunatly, so we ended up with a tie. We had first blood, they had warlord, no linebreakers. Fun game overall.

Fresh paint report:
Foot captain: I need to stop with the crazy. He was not tooled up to take down Lysander and a squad of TH/SS terminators, but I charged in anyway.
MM: This was the first game I was able to field a pair of MM/M c-melta tac squads. They should have been in pods, but I liked the mech list. I was unable to get into melta range, but did use them to get some (rapidly repaired) hits on the big guy.

Apologies in advance for those just interested in the painting side of the hobby. I’ll get back to that shortly (once I grab my camera for some more WIP shots, so later today/tomorrow). The leaks for the new campaign book are out, and while the main strikeforces are WS/RG specific, all the sub-formations are available to all marines, and I’m kinda excited about them.

Stormlance Battle Demi-Company:Got it
1 Captain or Chaplain (including the named Captains and Chaplians, Vulkan, Pedro Kantor and High Marshal Helbrecht.)
0-1 Command Squad
3 Tactical Squads
1 Devastator Squad
1 Assault Squad, Bike Squad, Attack Bike Sqaud or Land Speeder SquadronThe loss of the tac doctrine and obsec over the stock demi-co is rough, but blowing people off objectives and the mobility boost could be very nice in most games.

Hunting Force:Got it, although for max benefit would need more ABs and scout bikes
1 Captain (including Kor'sarro, though he must be riding Moondrakkan)
0-1 Chaplain (including Kor'sarro, though he must be riding Moondrakkan)
0-1 Command Squad
2-5 Bike Squads
1-3 Attack Bike Squads
1-3 Scout Bike SqaudsFor adding more bikes to a list it’s not as efficient as just using a CAD, but free special rules for taking a few fluffy tax units.

Stormbringer Squadron:Got it
1-3 Land Speeder units
1-3 Scout Squads (that must take Land Speeder Storms as DTs)While the LSS’s don’t get ObSec, disembarking after 12” is a really nice perk. I can see myself using this a bit.

Speartip Strike:Got it
1-3 Land Speeder units
2 Bikes Squads, Attack Bike Squads or Scout Bike SquadsSpecial rules are very Meh unless you are building a list around them, but a great little formation if you want to add a splash of FA to a force.


Pinion Battle Demi-Company:Got it
1 Captain or Chaplain (including the named Captains and Chaplians, Vulkan, Pedro Kantor and High Marshal Helbrecht.)
0-1 Command Squad
3 Tactical Squads
1 Assault Squad
1 Devastator Squad
1-5 Scout Squads or Scout Bike SquadsWith all the cover save shenanigans out there, this could be very nice. But those scout sarges are going to draw a lot of fire.


Shadowstrike Kill TeamGot it
2-4 Scouts
1-3 Vanguard Veterans w/ Jump PacksLets VV do one of the tricks they lost again, with a low buy-in cost. Could be a lot of fun.


Bladewing Assault Brotherhood:Got it
1 Captain w/ Jump Pack or Chaplain w/ Jump Pack (may include Shrike instead)
1-3 Vanguard Veterans w/ Jump Packs
2-4 Assault Squads w/ Jump PacksRules seem fluffy and fun, if situational.

Skyhammer Orbital Strike Force:Got it
3 Tactical Squads in Drop Pods
1-3 Land Speeder units.If I was putting a list together just using formations, this isn’t a bad way of getting tacticals on the table. The competitive player is probably asking why you’d need that, but the fluffy side of me always feels bad if I don’t have at least two full squads of them forming a core of my list.


Ravenhawk Assault GroupGot it
1 Sternguard Veteran Squad
1 Dread/Ironclad Dread/Venerable Dread
1 StormravenA fully loaded SR. Nice perks. Nothing saying to need to start embarked, or can’t take pods for the SG/dread. This might be a way for me to get my SR to the table, as I like and own all the component parts.


Raptor WingNeed another talon
1 Land Speeder unit
2 StormtalonsI like this a lot better then the SR/2xTalon formation. Seeing this boosts my desire for a second talon a little higher.


Shadow ForceGot it
1 Captain (including named Captains, Vulkan, Pedro Kantor and Helbracht)
1 Sternguard Squad
1 Vanguard Squad
1 Land Speeder unitFun collection of units.

A lot of the formations in the codex are either very spammy, expensive, or both. Almost all of these seem more accessible. It might just be in the last two years I’ve been working on this blog I’ve been primarily focused on bikes and jump packs, which are very WS/RG, and have a decent supply of scouts and speeders, but I’m only one talon shy of fielding everything new. Unlike the codex formations, where I couldn’t muster half of them. The fact that I can’t use them in a Gladius, and can’t use the chapter specific formations without changing up my CT means I might not use these often. But in smaller games (like 1,000 points) where I’m not going to have the points for a Gladius anyway, I could easily see myself just using one or two of these, rather then a CAD.

From a modeling POV, these make me want to pick up another talon and a second LSS. Both were on the radar before, but this bumps them up a little bit.

Looks like you're pretty well set to do whatever you want.

Some of those formations look awesome! I didn't even know there was a book with new formations coming out...

Gitsplitta wrote:Looks like you're pretty well set to do whatever you want.

Zambro wrote:Some of those formations look awesome! I didn't even know there was a book with new formations coming out...

Zambro, as a White Scar guy, you should make sure you get a look at it. It’s the new Tau campaign thing, there is a thread over in the N&R section about it.

At the moment I’m looking at all the vanguard vet ones. With the last of mine done for a full 10 man squad, they were on the short list to hit the table next. I think I might use one of these to drop down onto my foes.

And a WIP shot, as this is the painting and modeling section:


The LotD are chugging along. I did go back and put blue on the black arm again. So right now they have the silver helms, black shoulders w/silver trim, and similarly colored shields to distinguish them. Plus the backpacks. Should be distinctive enough. These guys are almost to the final blue touch up coat and wash.

Chaplain is almost done. Base needs a black wash, and an overall double check for touchups. Working on the crozius and the BP arm. Which needs a brown wash, and some work on the fang/bone thing. Might put a yellow drybrush back over the necron orb thing. But he should be done by the end of the week.

The last guy I’m working on is an undine monk for Pathfinder. He’s a mini a friend of mine had custom printed from Heroforge. Not very happy with the quality. It has a bit more texture then I’m used to, sort of like painting on a bad prime. Just working up the basecoats now, need to get some washes down on him. Going to try a thin green on the skin, might have to mix a little to get a good aquamarine look. Also need some more work on the robes and the details/accessories.

Next month’s subject is “Prince of the Universe” I think I’ll do my Cato counts-as. SM captains are a bit larger then life, and he is vying to be the next in line to lead the UMs, so very prince like in that aspect.

I'm a fan of that chaplain. He has a general but confident striding pose and it looks as though you're doing him justice so far. Liking his aesthetic at the moment, and i'm excited to see more progress Also is that an orkish iron jaw on his foot? It's doing something for me which for some reason, which I can't get my head around, I like. Complimenting his composition or something. Regardless, keep up the good work! Keen for the finished product

Nice Ultras! The Chaplain us coming along nicely, I like the use of Tyranid chitin for armour mods.

D

lipsdapips wrote:I'm a fan of that chaplain. He has a general but confident striding pose and it looks as though you're doing him justice so far. Liking his aesthetic at the moment, and i'm excited to see more progress Also is that an orkish iron jaw on his foot? It's doing something for me which for some reason, which I can't get my head around, I like. Complimenting his composition or something. Regardless, keep up the good work! Keen for the finished product

evildrcheese wrote:Nice Ultras! The Chaplain us coming along nicely, I like the use of Tyranid chitin for armour mods.

D

The build of him I can’t take credit for. One of the guys at the FLGS made custom characters for a number of people, myself included, with special rules/fluff to go with them. I can only take credit for the paint job here.

Here is his full story/rules:


And now, I’m calling him done. Although I might go back and put some scribbles on the purity seals.