Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

 Nevelon wrote:
Some nice looking tau there. Don’t think I’ve ever seen some of those guns before. Pathfinders come with something other then markerlights?

I’m sure once painted they will make some fine targets for the Ultramarines.

Thanks as always for your feedback, Nevelon. As mentioned above rail rifles and ion rifles aren't bad in 8th edition thanks to a points drop from 7th and various rules interactions introduced with the new edition. I think the reason we don't see them is that they only come on Pathfinders and Pathfinders aren't quad fusion coldstar commanders, storm surges or riptides so aren't really called on for causing actual damage by most.

Anyway - update time. I managed to get the team base coated a few weeks ago and also done the rocks on thier bases. I've used a heavier wash and greater highlight contrast which I think makes the rocks look kind of glassy. Which is ok:


I then messed with some more triangle splinter cammo a la those XV15s and found that death world forest green gave just enough definition to survive an ink wash...




I then jumped ahead a little and did the ink washes/recess shade on this guy, a bit of a tidy up on the cammo to bring the green back up and this is the kind of thing I'm going for...




Hopefully I'll get a few chances to paint throughout December as there's a Blackstone Fortress-shaped box hidden under some clothes in my wife's wardrobe so I'll probably be spending January swimming through cards, tiles, counters and models without hoofs.

Thanks for looking x

Edit - New page baaaaaam!

Like the rock. Makes it feel like he’s fighting on an alien world, not just scraps of gravel from the side of the road.

Camo looks very nice. My only problem is a general one with camo: it’s boring. While probably that guy would blend in well on an actual battlefield, as a tabletop mini he lacks anything to make him “pop” Might just be at that stage of WIP. Pick out a few more details and you will be good.

Bonus points for the classic Stealth Suits - always favorites of mine. I like your bold, solid colors personally.

He's looking really nice, those triangles are far too neat, you need to embrace 'good enough-ness', you'd double your output!

Nevelon wrote:Like the rock. Makes it feel like he’s fighting on an alien world, not just scraps of gravel from the side of the road.

Camo looks very nice. My only problem is a general one with camo: it’s boring. While probably that guy would blend in well on an actual battlefield, as a tabletop mini he lacks anything to make him “pop” Might just be at that stage of WIP. Pick out a few more details and you will be good.

Thanks Nev - this is the age old dilemma of camo on scale models. While I'm trying for a 'realistic' look for all of these guys it does make them quite literally rather drab. They will be grateful of this when they have to hide from a rampaging army made up solely from space marine captains!

I'm hoping that these Pathfinders will catch the eye more once the highlights, markings and details are done. We shall see...

kestral wrote:Bonus points for the classic Stealth Suits - always favorites of mine. I like your bold, solid colors personally.

Thank you Kestral. You could argue I'm 'speed painting' these hence the limited colour range and heavy washes. Just very slowly.

RandyMcStab wrote:He's looking really nice, those triangles are far too neat, you need to embrace 'good enough-ness', you'd double your output!

Cheers. I tried to tone down the precision and the team of seven are now getting their final coat before details go on. Here's the weapon specialists...



Ion rifle gunner - he actually is ready for highlighting.



Rail rifleist - needs some touching up, in fact the paint is still wet!

And how about those chapter approved points reductions for Tau eh? Just in my tiny 'paint 1,000 points' list I've had to add a little extra unit to make it back up to 1k. I've also got about 13 lovingly converted XV8s just dying to be pressed back into service now they are significantly cheaper.

I'll keep plugging away at these guys for now. There has been much talk of a small themed Ultramarine 10th co versus Tau ambush game and I'd love to start the new year with an all models painted batrep.

Night night.

Looking great. I still think the back end bit (the boxy thing past the blob above his shoulder) of the Ion rifle needs to go away.

I look forward to a nice themed game, sooooooon.

 RandyMcStab wrote:
Looking great. I still think the back end bit (the boxy thing past the blob above his shoulder) of the Ion rifle needs to go away.

I look forward to a nice themed game, sooooooon.

Ta. I'm with you on the Ion Rifle thing. That gun has a kind of magical crystal thing in it for ammo (one of the models in the kit has the rock/crystal popping out the top). Anyway while it doesn't quite work I appreciate the attempt at an 'alien' weapon design. It kind of reminds me of the weapon tech from District 9 which can only be a good thing if you ask me.

Well, the in-laws are only hours away so I think I've done my last bit of painting until after the big C. Would have been nice to finish the team before the chaos starts but that's just the way she goes.

Here's where we are. Left to do are weathering, lenses, metalics and bases all of which will hopefully make them look less brown:

The team marking is just random which is fine because it's a made up language!

Specialists and 'Ui. The weapon guys don't have a right pouldron so unit icon goes on the left (they have read the Codex Astartes).

Once this team is done I'm planning a little group photo shoot really just to highlight to myself that I've now managed to paint 6 or so whole units!

Thanks for all the feedback and encouragement here on Dakka this year. It's been a brilliant way to focus my limited hobby time.

Happy New Year etc! X

Those guys look great. I look forward to seeing them finished. How was the Xmas with all the family invading. Did they behave themselves?

Howdy doody!

Well I not only survived 2018 but also user Randy McStab's epic birthday weekend (which involved an 8 way Blackstone Fortress orgy so violent the Eldar Ranger's Longrifle got snapped again).

I'm now done with the Pathfinders and will finish up their support drones next. I enjoyed painting these as it was a small squad with a number of novel elements. While the camo is hard to spot it does the job and I will maintain the scheme for future 'finder squads.

I screwed the lighting up a little (slightly overlit) and only repositioned for the last two photos so appols for that...


Shas'ui which is officially my first bare fishface (although you can't really see due to the giant binos).



Special weps (I've got parts for another pair of these so a more focussed weapon team is a future option).





Four redshirts. I tried to pile on the kit with these guys in order to convey their utility and specialist nature.


...and the group shot.

Well hope you like them and thanks for looking!

Finally, thanks to the generosity of fellow Bristol gaymers Randy and Meph I am now the proud owner of three of these beauties:

...and couldn't resist a bit of a dry fit. These guys won't be on the table for a good few months I would imagine and will also need to be painted in sub-assemblies so don't hold your breath.

Ta.

Tau came out looking very nice.

For filthy xenos...

They look great. I think you are losing some of the excellent subtly in your shading with those pics. The lenses look fantastic too. Really nice.....

For filthy xenos.

The suit looks good, how about a scale comparison with the OG ones, I've never seen them side by side. I'm looking forward to seeing what you do with them.

Those eye-lenses in pics 3 and 4 especially are just jaw-dropping. Taking notes for my own purposes for sure!

Nevelon wrote:

For filthy xenos...

Cheers Nevelon. I've painted enough Tau squishies to not be afraid to get stuck in so hopefully the final push to 1k, which involves another 15 infantry, won't be too far away.

RandyMcStab wrote:For filthy xenos...

Yes they were a bit lit-from-above which helped the lenses but hid some of the other details. Happy with how the Pathfinders came out but all the exposed fatigue just highlights how badly the hoofs and gators etc. are being ignored. I've a Fireblade to do as you know so maybe I'll dial it up for that one a little.

I'll be sure to do a XV8 comparison when I start plogging the build.

Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll wrote:Those eye-lenses in pics 3 and 4 especially are just jaw-dropping. Taking notes for my own purposes for sure!

Thanks Gwyn, I think the lighting makes them look better that they are in real life. I hate mixing paint and I'll probably get a pot of something to simulate warpstone glow plus white which hopefully will still have a good effect. I think colour selection is more important than accuracy with gems and lenses; your eyes/brain do the hard work!

So, a little update. I had a handful of drones belonging to various units that needed squaring away. I shan't bore you all with WIP photos so here are five shield drones...



These two belong to the Pathfinder Team I recently did. Hopefully the markings match. I did some sponge weathering over the freehand in Zandri Dust (my base colour) and I think it worked well to blur up the dodgy edges and hide brush marks. These two will join the Recon, Grav and Pulse Drones which I will be painting next (BORING!).


Three of the drones are magnetised. Any new ones I build get the magnet treatment so that I can later just paint different lower parts for marker and gun drones and reuse the lids when possible.


...and here are the Stealth Team's helpers. I decided not to replicate the green and black splinter scheme as they don't have the 'stealth' ability in-game. I removed the antennae for a low-profile look!


Finally, the poor old battered shieldy who goes with the Breachers and their Guardian Drone. When the Breachers next come out of their case we will see if the unit markings match.

That's all for now. Sorry for *droning* on for so long.

I'll keep plugging away as I'm on a promise of a birthday game of 40k in a few weeks which I'd like to do a batrep of.

...for filthy xenos.

These look ace. I love the frisbees of death. The stippling looks rally good and I think I will do a bit on my robot thing. I like stippling back on top of the detail, looks very effective.

Look forward to seeing 1k of your guys done soon!

Hello,

Although I've not updated for two months I feel I have, on reflection, had a pretty action packed wargaming time. I have:

- at least 'tabletop ready' completed 1,000 pts of my Tau (will upload pics shortly).
- had a 1k cities of death NARRATIVE game with RandyMcStab (we have loads of photos so will do a batrep. Promise!)
- played a game of Killteam (Pathfinders V Primares).
- completed the access route to the third stronghold in our Blackstone Fortress campaign.
- prepped and began painting three magnetised Crisis Suits!

Today I am here to talk about those Crisis Suits...


Here is the current project. Everything is clean and built as sub assemblies as I want to do a nice tidy job of them.


Bases are done.






I've sunk a round magnet into each arm and right booster. The arms needed a bit of gouging and although I've looked at a lot of tutorials this seemed to be the simplest way to go (probably needed smaller magnets.

Rather than using magnets for the weapons and kit I just made a little plastic plug and fitted a bit of paperclip. The connection is not as strong as I would have liked but it will be fine for games and provides a larger margin of error for connecting other bits and bobs (I only prepped plasma, missile and shield).



I made a start on painting. I'll probably basecoat components for a whole battlesuit at a time to help with the motivation!

Thanks for looking. I'd be grateful for any ideas about markings and other details for the team, I'm also on the fence re drone flying base bottoms - clear or painted?

Very lovely stuff. I like the subtle camo on the pathfinders. I'm just starting out with tau myself so I'll be following your updates closely from now on.

Lovely smooth paint job on the suits.

Regarding magnetised weapons, i can highly recommend 3mm square and 0.5mm thick magnets. They surface mount really easily and fit nicely on Tau suit weapons.

They are looking great, I look forward to being unable to harm them due to a wall of expendable drones.

Nice to see Fireknives too, classic config. Will you do a scale pic as well? I'd like to see them in comparison to the OG XV8s.

Flapjack wrote:Very lovely stuff. I like the subtle camo on the pathfinders. I'm just starting out with tau myself so I'll be following your updates closely from now on.

Thanks - I'll keep an eye out for updates to your Tau. I also like your AWI and other historical stuff.

Flinty wrote:Lovely smooth paint job on the suits.

Regarding magnetised weapons, i can highly recommend 3mm square and 0.5mm thick magnets. They surface mount really easily and fit nicely on Tau suit weapons.

Thanks Flinty. Multiple thin coats etc. Yep with the magnets. I used round as that's what I had but I regret taking the extra time to source square ones. Hopefully it'll all work out in the end!

Keep plugging away at those Blackstone minis. Mine have seen heavy play but are all still bare plastic.

RandyMcStab wrote:They are looking great, I look forward to being unable to harm them due to a wall of expendable drones.

Nice to see Fireknives too, classic config. Will you do a scale pic as well? I'd like to see them in comparison to the OG XV8s.

Thanks Randy. Fireknives are pretty retro these days but they look cool and since CA18 points drop they're a pretty flexible budget choice.

Will deffo do a scale comparison when I finally assemble (hopefully this year).

Game wise I imagine the XV8s will be a swap with your favorite XV15s so at least you can have a break from -1 to hit. Obviously the XV8s can bring six drones though

I've made a little progress on them. All legs are base coated now...


...and made a start on heads. The 'Vre's head is a base of administratum grey, shaded with agrax and is now being slowly built up with ulthuan grey. I'll highlight with white and the result will hopefully be less jarring than the white on Shas O'Bese...




I'm going to have a little break from the Crisis Team now and focus my limited time on writing up a battle report of the game Randy and I had in March. You can expect adrenaline-fueled action like this...



...so stay tuned (or at least check back in a month or so).

Peace out x

 Mid-life Crisis Suit wrote:

Flinty wrote:Lovely smooth paint job on the suits.

Regarding magnetised weapons, i can highly recommend 3mm square and 0.5mm thick magnets. They surface mount really easily and fit nicely on Tau suit weapons.

Thanks Flinty. Multiple thin coats etc. Yep with the magnets. I used round as that's what I had but I regret taking the extra time to source square ones. Hopefully it'll all work out in the end!

Keep plugging away at those Blackstone minis. Mine have seen heavy play but are all still bare plastic.

I will most definitely do so I've run 2 expeditions so far and need to get stuck into one of the bad guy lairs. Pondering which models to do for this month's painting comp.

Looking forward to the batrep. Tau are what cozened me back into the hobby when I was getting a bit bored so they have a special place in my heart

+1 on the Fireknives. Iconic.

 Flinty wrote:


Looking forward to the batrep. Tau are what cozened me back into the hobby when I was getting a bit bored so they have a special place in my heart

+1 on the Fireknives. Iconic.

Just for you Flinty, and several months later as predicted - I've finally written up the batrep from MARCH!

Way back in March It was my birthday. I had mostly finished 1k of my current T’au project, and my regular 40k buddy Randy McStab had also finished a squad of SM Reivers and some more SM Scouts. We had previously talked about taking a morning off and playing/photographing a small narrative game so it seemed reasonable to dive into some of the content from Chapter Approved ‘18 as we were keen to try the expanded Cities of Death rules for cover etc.

Randy also committed to doing a stellar job of painting the terrain from the Kill Team starter in time for our game.

I have now finally got around to sorting through the photos and putting something together and so may I present...

Village of Light Injury – Relief Force (a Cities of Death narrative battle report)

“Pathfinder Shas’Ui Watana inhaled slowly and deeply as the rest of her team moved quietly into position. She could taste on her breath the acrid tang of the tall, green-needled trees that dotted the Cadre’s rally point; it was an unfamiliar sensation which pulled her mind back to thoughts of the ghost-like Xenos force that she knew had been stalking her Cadre for many ‘Rota.

Watana glanced across to the right of the cramped ruin and watched as the taciturn and heavily armoured XV15 team finished making adjustments to their kit and began setting up the orbital beacon.

Suddenly, and as one, the XV15s froze. A moment later four of the team blinked into shadow leaving only the team’s Vre visible. Watana barely had time to decipher the ‘Vre’s hand signals before he too engaged his optical camouflage and dissolved in a cascade of pixelated light.

The Gue’Ron’Sha predators had found them”.

Mission – Relief Force (CA18 CoD Narrative). This is an asymmetric scenario where defenders are tasked with holding a central ruin initially with only a small portion of their force against the attacker’s full (and potentially flanking) strength. Additional defender units enter the battle from turn 2 on a roll of 3+.

House Rules – Not loads but we generally count the footprint of several small groups of trees as area terrain.

Playing Area and forces – The battle played out on a 6’x4’ with medium ruin and woodland terrain (although we were using CoD rules).

We agreed that my Tau would consist of models I had painted and that Randy’s force would be made up of Scouts, Rievers and light floating things. Approx. 1k points each:

Attacker – Ultramarines Scout Force:

[Warlord – Adept of the Codex] Sgt. Telion.

Lieutenant with Primarch’s Wrath (relic bolter) and Axe.

10 Scouts with cloaks, 9 Rifles and a Missile Launcher.

10 Scouts with Shotgun/Axe (Sgt.), 2 Shotguns, 6 CCW and a Heavy Bolter.

10 Scouts with Bolter and Sword (Sgt.), 8 Bolters and a Heavy Bolter.

6 Reivers with Grapnel, HB Pistol and CCW.

Land Speeder with H Bolter and H Flamer.

Land Speeder Storm with H Bolter.

Stormtalon with Twin AC and Lascannons.

Defender – T’au Sept Infantry Cadre:

[Warlord – Exemplar of Mont’ka] XV8 Commander with Iridium Armour, Vectored Thrusters, 2 CIBs and 2 F Blasters.

Cadre Fireblade with PENchip (-1 CP).

9 Breachers with 1 Shield Drone and Guardian Drone.

9 Strikers with Rifles (‘Ui has a Carbine).

9 Strikers with Rifles (‘Ui has a Carbine).

5 Strikers with Rifles and a SMS DS8.

5 XV15s with 2 shield drones (‘Vre has a F Blaster).

7 Pathfinders with 1 Ion Rifle, 1 Rail Rifle, 2 Shield Drones, Pulse Drone, Grav Drone and Recon Drone.

1 Devilfish with Gun Drones.

1 Hammerhead with Railgun and SMS.

As per the scenario, I had to select two infantry units to deploy in the ruined building which was to be the objective. I went for my Pathfinders because they had a large drone unit attached, and the XV15 team who are notoriously difficult to dig out of cover (and would be able to use the ‘finders’ drones for ablative wounds. I prepared my Commander for Manta Strike, and the rest of my force would be walking on from turn 2 onwards.

Randy deployed his sniper Scouts centre right in woodland, his bolter scouts on his centre left, and five of the CCW scouts embarked in the Storm and facing the objective. The remaining HB combat squad took cover on Randy’s far right in front of the Stormtalon. The Ultramarine Lt. and Telion stood bravely in the open so their commanding presence could be felt by the two large scout squads. On Randy’s left flank were the Landspeeder and Reivers.

The Ultramarine attackers took the first turn…

Turn 1:

Ultramarines...

The Space Marines begin the laborious task of clearing out multiple drones from the ruin. The Reivers advance towards the target ruin through parallel cover and both ‘speeders head to its base in preparation for an assault.

The Stormtalon strafes the front of the ruin as it moves across the Ultramarine’s left flank.


Even under the watchful eye of Sgt. Telion and the encouraging roars of the Lt., the combined fire of Randy’s force is unable to clear the wall of protective drones. The XV15 and Pathfinder teams are left relatively unscathed and ready to answer the Marines’ opening volley.

Tau...

Leaving their shield drones sparking and smoking on the ground, the Stealth Team boost up to the ruined roof of the objective building, delivering heavy damage to the Landspeeder. The Pathfinders further damage the ‘speeder while repositioning in preparation of the inevitable charge from Randy’s Scouts.

The Tau will have to weather another blistering fusillade before they can expect their relief force to arrive…

Turn 2:

Ultramarines...

Goaded by promises of organic engine oil from its crew, the Landspeeder’s Machine Spirit pulls the vehicle’s smoking chassis away from the Stealth Team’s heavy weapon.

Confident in the disembarking Scouts’ ability to decisively provide the Pathfinders with ‘the good news’, the majority of the Astartes guns are pointed at the Stealth Team. Hard Cover (thanks to Cities of Death) and the coruscating nimbus of the Xenos stealth tech result in only light damage!

The Pathfinders are not so lucky as shotgun shells and explosive bolts churn into the ruins, but as the Scouts charge in they are cut down by ion and rail fire, as well as plunging burstcannon rounds from the ruins above!

Once the dust has settled the surviving Pathfinders break and run…

Randy’s Reivers move out into the open as they close on the objective and the ‘Talon moves deeper into the Tau right flank, hunting for the Xenos relief force.

Tau...

As the clouds part, Shas’O’Bese descends heroically from the sky and takes position on the Ultramarines’ left flank. The XV15s jump away from the objective ruin, ready to support their Commander.

The battlesuits split their fire, wrecking the Speeder...

...but only slaying a single Reiver. O’Bese is wounded when one of his weapons overheats.

Additional relief arrives in the form of a Devilfish packed with a frustrated Breacher Team which screams down the Ultramarines’ right flank.

A team of missile turret-equiped Firewarriors and the Cadre’s Fireblade also move into position.

Turn 3:

Ultramarines...

Presented with the juiciest of targets, the Stormtalon vectors its strafing run straight towards the Tau Commander and combined with the heavy fire of Scout snipers (using the ‘Master Snipers’ stratagem no less), brings him close to death!

Viz magazine – it’s like 3 quid an issue now! Thanks Obama.

The Landspeeder Storm zooms right into the Tau lines and blasts one of the DS8 team Firewarriors.

The Reivers continue their advance toward the objective building and take cover out of LOS ready for the next wave of Tau reinforcements. Telion and the Lt. continue to support the Scout gunline and put additional pressure on the XV15 team.

Tau...

“Tau Va!” Two units of Firewarriors rush into the AO desperate to protect their Commander from the aircraft screaming overhead.

Shas’O’Bese activates his automated repair system and boosts into melta range while his warriors attempt to distract the Stormtalon…

...which manages to remain airborne (or jams according to the photo).

XV15s take a flanking position and rake the Reivers with burst fire but they are protected by thick Mark X armour (and perhaps their terrifying visage?).

The DS8 team hold position and target the approaching Storm while their drone turret sends a barrage of smart missiles into the Reivers, again failing to leave a mark!


Meanwhile on the Ultramarine’s right, the Breachers disembark but score few kills due to extreme range. Their Devilfish flanks the Scouts and rams through the trees towards them.

Turn Four:

Ultramarines...

As the sun sets over the ruined village, victory seems certain for the Marines…


Although badly damaged and belching smoke, the Storm Talon finally dispatches Shas’O’Bese and turns its Assault Cannon towards the Firewarriors.

Deploying their grappling hooks, the Reivers achieve their mission and take the objective ruin! Now they just need to hold it…

Tau...

Unaware of the late hour the Breachers single-mindedly assault the Scouts with point-blank Pulse Blasters – ouch!

While the Devilfish and its Drones race towards the centre ruin and cause light damage to the Reivers holding it.

In a last ditch effort to clear the objective the Tau infantry and their Cadre Fireblade pour rapid-fire pulse rounds into the Reivers but the hulking man-monsters hold fast!

Phew - I think the write-up was more exhausting than the game itself. it was fun and frustrating - a very difficult scenario for Tau with so few units starting and such a big element of chance for reserves coming in - did anyone spot the complete adscence of my Railhead? Quite a large part of a 1k force never deoployed due to bad luck. I'm pretty sure we played it correctly and there is no 'comes on automatically by T 3/4 kind of rule.

Well I hope you enjoyed - great work by Randy McStab for painting the Killteam ruins up so beautifully and so quickly.

Reivers FTW! Well done for doing this, I know how long it takes.

It was a good game as I wouldn't have stood a chance normally but the scenario allowed me an opportunity (and the total lack of Railhead helped a tidge). It was a fun game and I got to use all my sneaky stuff in one go. Also got to use a bit of BOLTER DISCIPLINE for the first time too!

Nice battle report! It's always nice to see an old fashioned text and pics report, I prefer those over youtube videos. Both your armies look great on the field. Very good looking terrain too.

Death to the filthy Xenos! None can stay the Emperor’s wrath.

Fun report, always nice to see two well painted armies clash on a full table. Low point games with heavy reserves can be very swingy, but it looks like fun was had regardless.

Keep on fighting the good fight. Being the punching bag for the noble Ultramarines is a dirty job, but someone has to do it...

 Flapjack wrote:
Nice battle report! It's always nice to see an old fashioned text and pics report, I prefer those over youtube videos. Both your armies look great on the field. Very good looking terrain too.

Thanks Flapjack. I too prefer the classic photo reports and usually abandon video reports before the end (although I have huge respect for the efforts made by the likes of SS82 and Winters).

Lighting is always an issue for us due the colour of the walls in our usual play space and the fact we tend to play late at night once our respective spawn are a bed.

Having a fully painted force on the tabletop is an unfamiliar experience for me so being able to do it and then look back at the snaps is a great painting motivator!


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Nevelon wrote:
Death to the filthy Xenos! None can stay the Emperor’s wrath.

Fun report, always nice to see two well painted armies clash on a full table. Low point games with heavy reserves can be very swingy, but it looks like fun was had regardless.

Keep on fighting the good fight. Being the punching bag for the noble Ultramarines is a dirty job, but someone has to do it...

Thanks Nevelon. I usually let Randy win to be honest as he cooks a mean curry and I like to be invited back over.

I'd definitely like to have another shot at this scenario but with the roles switched around.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Well, Crisis Team is finally done and I have very few wip images so I'll jump straight in...

The team - classic fireknife config (plus shield generator) mainly because it looks cool. The arms and right jet pack are magentised so the inevitable switch to flamers or CIBs wont be too difficult. Being unfamiliar with the 'new' kit I was conservative with the poses but I think I managed to avoid making them look too clumsy.


Shas'Vre - I had a few extra bits so I was able to give all three models cyclopean heads. I also managed to step up my white game.


First Shas'Ui and a bit of detail. Probably could have got the right arm a little higher but they are big models so his aim is pretty much at centre mass of a primaris marine at double tap range!



Second Shas'Ui - taking a defensive posture. The insignia on the legs and back hatch are from the 2002 Tau transfer set just with some heavy weathering. Markings on the right shoulders are a simple freehand which matches the rear hatch unit marking. Easy to apply to the six shield drones which will no doubt be joining them soon.

I enjoyed this project and I'm happy with results. The kit was a generous xmas gift and I wanted to do it justice. Looking forward to getting them zapped off the table by psychic powers!

Thanks for looking. Feedback very welcome as usual.

These are really excellent, definitely some of the best stuff yet. I like the weathering, very well executed, it gives them a real world feel. Even got some lovely flowers in there.

I'd be interested in seeing them next to the old suits (and a Terminator squad) to see the difference between the old and new models.

What's next on the schedule?

 RandyMcStab wrote:
These are really excellent, definitely some of the best stuff yet. I like the weathering, very well executed, it gives them a real world feel. Even got some lovely flowers in there.

I'd be interested in seeing them next to the old suits (and a Terminator squad) to see the difference between the old and new models.

What's next on the schedule?

Thanks for the lovely feedback, Randy. I managed to avoid getting lost in details and re paints and while there are plenty of cut corners the whole job took relatively few actual painting hours. It was the prep and sub assemblies which took all the time but it was totally worth it.

As requested here is a comparison photo with an OG xv8...

Not massively different size-wise eh? Stick the old ones on bigger bases and they'd be hard to spot.

What's next? I have some base coated dregs which all need highlighting, weathering, lenses etc...

Specialist drones from those Pathfinders...

A 5 Shas Firewarrior team with a custom and magnetized DS8...

A 9 Shas Firewarrior team...



And Mr Kicky himself (my grizzled custom Fireblade). Shas'Nel Kicky has a bionic leg made from bits of plastic rod and green stuff. It's a bit rough around the edges but will hopefully scrub up well!

So plenty to be getting on with.

I also just rescued 14 Kroot off Ebay

Great updates! The battlesuits look swell and kicky certainly looks the part. I liie what you did with the bionic leg.

I'm surprised how similar in scale the suits are. The new ones are much more lovely however. I'm glad to hear you finally tracked down some Kroot, they could be fun.

Looking forward to seeing those infantry topped off. It shouldn't take long to get those dudes nicely finished.

That missing leg going to show up anywhere as a trophy? I wouldn’t say that ripping a leg of a filthy xenos and beating his squad to death with it is something that always happens, but it’s been known to...

Nice looking guys there