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I've decided to start logging the building of my dream army of Blood Angels.

Some background introduction. I have been into 40K as soon as I saw Rogue Trader in a local bookshop some time during the late eighties. Space Marines looked so cool back then; cooler than star wars, cooler than what was on Robotech morning cartoons or Judge Dredd, cooler than anything I could think of! The Rogue Trader cover art stuck to my brain like crazy. I knew there and then I had to get some of that stuff into my life..

So I've been following and participating in the "hobby" on and off since all those years. Sometimes leaving it for a decade, only to come back to it later. Throughout it all, I've always been drawn to Space Marines, and particularily to Blood Angels specifically.

Blood Angels were the posterchild marine chapter in the first edition of Space Hulk "3D Roleplaying Hobby Game". I absolutely loved the metal Terminator models back then, and found the whole colourscheme of "Red vs Blue/purple" evocating. Space Hulk was my favourite game back then; We were too young to get involved with 40K proper at the time (The logistics of owning a full Space Marine army was out of our reach both financially and otherwise).

So now I'm old as heck and feel like I want to finally scratch the itch properly. An itch I've had all those years. To own a Blood Angels army of my dreams. I've long been planning to do it, but was unsure how I'd want the Army to look, both stylistically and in terms of unit choices. There are so many options.. so for years, this has been puzzling me. I knew I was going to do it but wanted to be sure about the "vision" of the army.. Which brings us to the present.

40K as a whole has changed significantly in its lore and visuals. While the roots of the game can still be found pointing all the way to Rogue Trader, things have evolved with the times and current day Space Marines have a very different feel to them. However, my first love to the Space Marines in the Rogue Trader book never waned. So What would be a more fitting style for my army than the look Space Marines had in the times of Rogue Trader and 1st edition Space Hulk? That's it! I finally found the solution to my "vision". As my research into the history of 40K deepened, I have narrowed my favourite 40K "period" down to 1991 or thereabouts. Power armour of the time was still Mk VI (although Mk VII was the new shiny on the scene) and the majority of the Space Marine lore had been fleshed out, we had Terminators, Jump Pack Assault marines, the classic rhino variant vehicles, so most of the core of a Modern Space Marine Army had been conceptualized.

So I am going to build a Blood Angels army that takes the visual aesthetics of that era as much as possible, and combines that to what exists now. Marry the old and the new, but keep the original "generic scifi" vibe which was present in the late 80s / early 90s instead of the newer "Knights.. In SPACE!" grimdark gothicness. But this wont be limited to just the looks. No sang guard spam or smash captain nonsense here! The army will have a more "modern warfare" style, and I also want the army to reflect the portion of the lore which depicts Marines as a scarce and prescious resource to the Imperium. This means an army which leans towards being heavily mechanized, multiple small units, vehicles and autonomous systems heavy. Lots of apotecharies to heal the wounded and to collect the geneseed of fallen brothers. And emphasis on jump packs, flyers, skimmers, Drop pods and Battle Automata!

As for the Flaw of the Blood Angels, this is a bit problematic. Rogue Trader era BA didn't have it, nor were the Angels vampiric back then. I've never liked the vampiric aspects of BA, like, at all. So my army will have none of that. However, I do like the idea of the Flaw and Black Rage in general, so I'm definetely including that part of the lore for my army. But I want to twist things a bit.

The way I see it, homicidal, uncontrollable anger and Psykers are a very, very bad combo.. basically we're talking about severe Heresy against the IoM and I cannot see the Imperium ever consenting to such a thing tbh. Therefore, if I'm accepting the Flaw, I don't see how I can accept any Psykers in my army - the risk of them turning into Daemons of Khorne is just too great to leave to chance. So no psykers (Sorry Mephiston, you're out! LOL). For dealing with psyker enemies, I'll have two allies to rely upon; Inquisitor who is a psyker, and the Sisters Of Silence..

Now the next part might be hard for oldhammer purists to swallow: I intend to include Primaris Marines in my BA army! I don't see any reason why I couldn't do it. Most Primaris marines have the sleek "generic scifi" look to them, so they will fit in with all the legacy units if I plan this right. Scale difference makes things a bit problematic, but I have decided to keep the amount of Primaris Marines low, and favour special units instead of interecessor spam, so we're talking Mk X Gravis armour for the most part.

Troops will mainly consist of Mk VI & Mk IV armour. Mk IV armoured helmets are visually somewhat close to the beaked Mk VI armour, and the pauldrons can also be pretty much interchangeable. Mk IV helmet also maintains a visual link to the Primaris Mk X helmet, so this all should hopefully work out to make for a somewhat unified look for the whole infantry.

Vehicles will be Rogue Trader -inspired. The current Forge World kits offer the classic kits and variations of them, so they will be used along with other GW plastic kits.

The colourscheme will most likely end up being inspired by the 1991 Space Marine Paint Set, which had a cool Terracotta/Orange colour. Besides, Warhammer 40,000 Compendium states "The Blood Angels wear Vermillion coloured armour" - it is official GW canon from 1991 so I'm running with it.

Now that the idea is in place, I've been slowly amassing bits and kits to start building the army. I'm thinking of building and painting the units one by one, in order to keep ADHD from running amok and preventing progressing with the project through distraction. I'm not sure if I'm ADHD but I get distracted easily, which is why I never got around to building this army in the first place! EDIT: Turns out my concentration didn't hold in the end, apologies..

So I'm starting with the most basic building block of any Marine army - The humble tactical squad.

Will be looking forward to this, good luck

 Rybrook wrote:
Will be looking forward to this, good luck

Thanks! I'm kinda hoping starting this log will help me keep the building going. I've already blu tac'd the tac squad first draft, I'll try to post pics soon.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Here are some pictures I've compiled to give insipiration and ideas to the visuals. If including them here violates forum rules or otherwise infringes on copyrights severely, feel free to take them down or notify me.

(I assume no cooyright over these pictures - they have been obtained from the public WWW via search engines)

Some more research material.. Whoopsie! Just realize the "black BA" scheme is actually some other chapter altogether! EDIT: OMFG its the original Dark Angels colourscheme! All these years I thought.. *facepalm* Oh nevermind, it will still serve me as insipiration for my Fallen brothers..

I've been obsessing over the exact red shade for years now, and I still prefer the venerable OOP colour "Mechrite Red". It's sort of an amalgation of all the various BA colourschemes through the years: From Blood Red to the orange/terracotta and back.. I still prefer the way Mechrite Red looks on a black basecoat vs any other shade of red I've tried. Looks more grimdark, for lack of a better term

Mechrite Red can still be bought via Instar Paints, they make a vintage paint in the same shade.

EDIT2: Here's one more RTB01 reference image I found on BOLS (I remember it well from back in the day but cant remember where it's from)



EDIT3: In the end, the colour eventually changed to vermillion, as you will see..

I like the black stripe that doen't extend all the way down.. Looks pretty cool! Also seems like the sergeant has a light trim on his helmet stripe..? Also loving that camo on the Captain! (not sure about the red bits though..)

So on to the building!

I've almost done a first draft of the tac squad with blu-tac. The bolters will still be swapped to proper Umbra pattern FW bolters later, and I might also swap out the backpacks later, but this is what I'm starting with.

The sergeant and squad veteran (he acts as a 2nd sergeant when splitting into combat squads) have Mk IV helmets. The plasmagunner is a Mk VII armoured Marine, my idea here is that plasmagunners tend to be among the first brothers to die as they overcharge their weapons every now and then, so they would sport a "newbier" mark of armour. Thoguhts on that? Does the lone Mk VII suit stick out too much from the rest of the squad?

Also wanted to ask opinions about the chest plates. I have accumulated quite a lot of Mk VI bitz over the years, enough to kit out the whole squad with the plain, aquilaless version of the Mk VI chestplate. Do you think I should use those as much as possible? Or should I mix it up with the Mk VII aquila chest plates like I've done now? I seem to recall artwork of Mk VI armour with the Mk VII chestplates, so I guess there is no right answer either way.. Using the RTB-01 style chestplate would be the most minimalistic choice, but might end up looking too uniform/boring across the whole squad? I'll swap out the chestplates and do some comparisons..

Spent some more time with the drafts. I remembered one cache of spare bitz I had aquired earlier this year for this project, and swapped out the missile launcher marine bitz to the better ones I had planned for it - kneeling Mk VI legs from the most recent devastators box recut, which have the heavy weapon recoil bracing thingamajigs. Also, swapping out some chest pieces into the RTB01 Mk VI pieces, found all of them and there's now enough for the whole squad.

The RTB01 chestpieces change the appearance significantly for the better, more towards my original vision, so they will be used as much as possible gping forward, even if it risks looking more boring than changing it up now and then. I will just need to rely more on leg pieces, helmets, poses and battle damage for making the models feel less repetitive.

Also swapped the skull adorned chestpiece of the plasmagunner to an aquila one. Better!

After I have swapped out the remaining chestpieces, I'll start messing with these lovely FW umbras <3 Bayonets and chainblades will give the tacs their much needed BA "flair". After all, Blood Angels love CC!

The final pic makes me wonder - should I splurge on the FW Mk VI legionnaires? I don't know any other source for the RTB01 looking backpacks, as the vintage plastic ones look out of scale on the current miniatures.. Any ideas?

Thanks for sharing - I agree the chains look to BT (as a BT player myself, it jumps straight out at me).

Really looking forward to seeing this develop!

 IGtR= wrote:
Thanks for sharing - I agree the chains look to BT (as a BT player myself, it jumps straight out at me).

Really looking forward to seeing this develop!

I was thinking of starting this project when that Black Templar upgrade kit was the only source of "flavoured" bits for plastic marines; I think that's where the idea originally came from hehe! Just goes to show how long I wanted to start this..

Yes, the chains do not fit in in this context. On a Death Company marine, I could perhaps understand the chains a lil better, as DC marines are supposedly "gone" so it might make sense for the Chaplains to chain their weapons to the Fallen, but not on a "compus mentis" tac brother. Doesn't jive with the generic scifi look either. I've already removed those arms.

I must admit being quite inexperienced with handling FW resin. I've had probs getting acrylic paint to stick on the resin in my earlier dabblings with them. So I hope I will be able to tame it, as I already know this army will be resin heavy!

One more thing - I am torn between making these 100% WYSIWYG or not.. I think I have enough holstered bolt pistols and krak/frag grenade bits, but I'm not sure if always having them on the model will limit my poses too heavily? Any suggestions welcome!


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Spent this morning rummaging through my bits bags and found enough pouches and grenades to fit the whole squad with them. Unfortunately, I couldn't find enough holstered pistols, so ordered some more from a bitz store. I'd also need two empty bolt pistol holsters for the Squad veteran and the Missile Launcher marine. Where can I get empty pistol holster bits? Which kit has those? Anyone know?

I've decided to go all in with this so now am waiting until I can get my hands on 10 forgeworld beakies before continuing. I want those original looking backpacks for these tacs, nothing else will do. Costs be damned, I've spent too much on this hobby to turn back now hehehe

I've also been brainstorming on the army as a whole, and have already devised a "roadmap" into an army of ~2500 pts. So plenty of stuff to build and paint for this project! But like I said, I don't want to distract myself so I'll keep all that in the backlog for now..

Scoured through all of my mini archives while looking for bits & inspiration, and even found a long forgotten batch of my own RTB-01's from ~1989! Does anyone recognize this flag design? I think it was photocopied from the Space Marine Paint Set booklet but I'm not sure anymore, that set is long gone now.. Ah, and also found a set of vintage BA transfers!

I'm digging the flag and the halved look of the Captain.. So I reckon this army will be from the 2nd Company as well!

Cool project, that’s a lot of beanies you’ve managed to build up. They’re going to look great as a RT inspired force. Makes me want to get out my RTB01 boys! I love how your old Captains eye lenses invert colours, that wouldn’t be disorientating at all!

Maybe this will inspire you: https://apologentsia.blogspot.com/2020/11/inload-finished-blood-angels-army.html

gobert wrote:Cool project, that’s a lot of beanies you’ve managed to build up. They’re going to look great as a RT inspired force. Makes me want to get out my RTB01 boys! I love how your old Captains eye lenses invert colours, that wouldn’t be disorientating at all!

I've been gathering beakie bits throughout all my hobby years, so have managed to get a modest amount together. Although that all feels a bit in vain now with forgeworld beakie kits existing.. And remember that captain was painted around 1992-94 (IIRC), I didn't think much about realism back then hehe

Malika2 wrote:Maybe this will inspire you: https://apologentsia.blogspot.com/2020/11/inload-finished-blood-angels-army.html

Thanks for the link! This army is in the same spirit as I intend to go for, but I'll try taking it a notch down by one ruleset edition (very few Mk VII models to be included etc). But that colour of red is very close to my target!

I got some levelups in my hobby tools this week, and found some pistol holster bits online, but I'm afraid nothing much is happening during December, skint right now and those forgeworld beakie packs wont be here until early next year. But rest assured once those are in, I'll be sure to post a significant update. Will probably be able to finish assembling those umbras by then as well; they are a bit fiddly to get the bayonets/chainblades securely in place.

cheers

One small update before the end of 2020 - something came in the mail today! Here he is, posing on a 32mil

Not sure yet if he'll make the cut for the final army, or if I'll just use him as a study piece for a similar conversion.. I adored this model during its heydays, but time marches on and the pose is a lil derpy by contemporary standards. You know what I'm going for, its the chap in the research pic illustrations (I am presuming later lore named him as Erasmus Tycho?)

But hey, I'm getting waayy ahead of myself here - Back to building the tac bolters!

Cool purchase! I think he became Tycho with a conversion of his Bolter in to a Combi-Melta/Bolter for a White Dwarf Battle Report just after 2nd Edition came out. I hope he or a new version makes the cut on the final Army.

A bit late in the day, but I do like the idea of chains on the Death Company - your fluff rationale makes some sense to me!

Updates are looking interesting, and nice to see you chugging along with the project

Thanks for sharing

With the forgeworld beakies still stuck in transit/customs (thx Brexit!), I've been getting distracted again.. Almost impulse bought a 3D printer and some epic HH marine prints from ebay! Thankfully reason won out this time and I tried concentrating on other parts of the army building. I was supposed to stick to the tacs and tacs only but since they cant be progressed right now, I got started on an inceptor squad I've been thinking of adding.

I bouht the Dark Imperium box when I got back to the hobby because I wanted the current rulebook and some Primaris on the cheap for playing some games with. Well, turned out the Dark Imperium marines were a bit of a letdown in the sense that you could not add BA iconography to the shoulderpads, there were no weapon options for interecessors nor hellblasters either.. But I was hell bent on getting both done. So I decided to convert the DI inceptors in the meantime while I wait for the beakie stuff to arrive. Had bought replacement bits to swap out the bolters to the multipart ones (they are more detailed) as well as one primaris upgrade sprue just for doing it.

I got it done but messed up quite a bit hehe! I damaged the sergeant model accidentally while cutting off the left arm to swap out to the multipart arm, so made a bunch of simulated battle damage to the left side to make the mess look more intentional. Also noticed that one of the model had broken its left leg "sneaker pump", so battle damaged that one too. Also on the sergeant, which I worked on first, I made a bit of a mess cutting the old right bolter arm from the elbow joint and while reconnecting the multipart plastic weapon to the elbow, snapped the cable in two! After a lot of cursing and faffing around, I finally managed to glue the snapped cable back in place. Whew!

After the weapon swaps were done, I realized I was missing two right shoulderpads since I only had spares for tacticus primaris and forgot the inceptor shoulderpads are gravis-sized. Oof. So now the inceptors wait for new shoulder pads bits to ship from the UK.

I also finished my first painting test for the upcoming army. Wasnt too pleased with the result, it looks a bit too washed out. The shade of red I tested wasn't mechrite red, and it shows. Nothing beats that mechrite! Next test I'll make with that. Tested the AK weathering pencils on the model a bit and can already tell they will be something I want to use for the final models as well.

I'm also brewing up some kitbash ideas for the Death Company.. can already feel concentration slipping away! Must stick to the plan dammit

My beakies from Forge World arrived finally! Ordered on Xmas eve, so they took almost two full months to reach me.. Brexit FTW

Comparing the forgeworld beakies to my multipart plastics reveals another difference - The studded shoulder pads appear to have slightly larger studs on the FW resin versions. So I will switch to using them exclusively.. Aargh! This is going to be a slight pain as I'll need FW studded pads for my assault marines as well, which don't need the backpacks.. But no way around it.

Here's also a comparison pic of the OG platic RTB-01 backpack vs the current FW one. You can see the FW pack is slightly wider and the exhausts are larger. There are slight differences in detailing as well.

But the main thing is, building can finally resume!

Built up one FW beakie to compare better to a multipart plastic one.

The colour difference of the materials makes 1:1 comparisons a bit difficult, but there seem to be subtle diffs. The helmet shape is perhaps ever so slightly refined in the FW model and the shoulder pads are a touch bigger; they also seem to fit better overall. Have to say the bigger shoulder pads and the better fit makes the FW model look slightly better than the plastic one.

So I think that I will prioritise FW bits for the helmets, shoulder pads and backpacks at least; I can use multipart plastic legs, torsos and accessories to spice things up a lil more. So I'll rebuild everything I've made so far and see where I'll end up.. I don't really like the idea of being froced to use the plain right side shoulderpads, so I'll still check if I can make the BA iconographied pads fit better; perhaps the more loose fit is throwing off my judgement and that the slightly smaller size of the plastic pad won't be too obnoxious?

Here's also a quick test of the first umbra pattern bolter fitting. The chainaxe bayonet makes hand positioning extra finicky for the left arm, but the extra effort required for the fit will be well worth it methinks! I was thinking I'll make one extra kneeling brother and one who is reloading his bolter, the reloading pose should give me extra flexibility in posing..

EDIT: Fortunately, it seems I was mistaken about the shoulder pads! On closer inspection, both the plastic pads and the FW pads are exactly the same size after all. My blutacing job was sloppy which caused the poor fit on the test midel. Furthermore, the colour difference must have thrown me off; I have read that the human eye tends to perceive a lighter coloured object to being larger than a same sized darker coloured one. This was the case in this instance as well.. So the BA chapter iconographied shoulder pads are back on the table! Phew

Yeah, if you really want to compare the FW beakie to the plastic one - best to do it after primer.

Cool project. I’m also a big fan of the older WH40k aesthetic that got so many of us into the hobby. Really looking forward to seeing you get a few guys built and painted. Beakies with Umbra bolters is going to look great. I think the first test model is a bit dark for the way I envision Blood Angels but go with what you think looks best. (And it may just be the lighting of the photo.) There is no wrong shade of red.

 The Riddle of Steel wrote:
Cool project. I’m also a big fan of the older WH40k aesthetic that got so many of us into the hobby. Really looking forward to seeing you get a few guys built and painted. Beakies with Umbra bolters is going to look great. I think the first test model is a bit dark for the way I envision Blood Angels but go with what you think looks best. (And it may just be the lighting of the photo.) There is no wrong shade of red.

I'm constantly agonizing over the shade of red I'll end up using for the army! Now I'm thinking that maybe I want to go for the vintage terracotta style after all.. I'll need to do another test model. I keep going back to my old RTB01 captain, that orangish red is looking better by the day. AK Interactive's Red Primer might give me that shade with a single colour, I'll order a bottle and do some tests.

And yeah, I totally feel you on the older aesthetic! Got bit by the 2000AD bug recently (Mainly stuff like Nemesis The Warlock, ABC Warriors, Strontium Dogs) and am now looking at the entirety of 40K with a new shade of "UK scifi" tinted glasses. I got most of the Blackstone Fortress boxes for my birthday and am going hard back to the Rogue Trader era, but using modern minis to do it. It shows a side of 40K that I miss dearly and I want to bring that vibe back to the present, but want to keep the retro miniatures in the past (Modern plastic and resin sculpts are superior IMO).

But that's enough rambling hehehe! Also got this fella with the FW beakies, shown here on a 40mil. I'm considering converting him into a beakie version but since the model is now sold out from FW (maybe the mold died? This one has slight QC issues), maybe I'll just not risk ruining a classic model. But maybe he needs a jump pack?

Looking forward to seeing you make progress on these guys now your FW order came in. Even better that they fit with the plastic beakies too. As for colours I’m partial to a bright Blood red for classic blood angels. The terracotta base never worked out for me

 gobert wrote:
Looking forward to seeing you make progress on these guys now your FW order came in. Even better that they fit with the plastic beakies too. As for colours I’m partial to a bright Blood red for classic blood angels. The terracotta base never worked out for me

I reckon you wont be happy then as a bright "Santa Claus Red" was never on the table for my minis. I never liked my BA like that, even when I did paint them with a bright red, I always made them have a red "urban camo" pattern on top, made up of sections of more orange and brownish reds. Unfortunately, the minis from that era are lost now, so can't reference what that looked like anymore..

I'm 95% sure It is either going to be Mechrite Red or German Military Red Brown (AK red primer) for me. The reason for this will become clear in due time

I've also decided to ditch the Mk VII plasmagunner. It will just be Mk IV & Mk VI + Indomitus TDAs for now. I made a Kill Team list for fun for this tac squad, used the random KT random generators of the Core Manual and tweaked a bit from the base results. This Kill Team list will also guide me further on how to develop more character for the whole squad, treating each mini as an individual with a name and a background of sorts..

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Blood Angels Kill Team = Squad Lorenzo
10 Marines (1 Leader, 3 Specialists, 6 Troopers - 135 points)

Background: Tactical Strike Force
Versatile and strategically balanced, these warriors can adapt quickly to any situation.

Squad quirk: Zealous
Unusual amongst their kind, Brothers of squad Lorenzo are true believers in the divinity of the Emperor. Lorenzo himself claims to have been saved by His Will more times than he can count. Even Syras believes He is watching over them, and never cracks jokes about Him. Castivar believes that the Emperor is leading them to their fate in the form of a final sacrifice, one which he has seen many times in his dreams.

Leader: Brother Sergeant Lorenzo
Attitude: Dour
Nothing surprises or shocks Lorenzo anymore, but neither does anything bring him joy. Lorenzo lost his closest battle-brothers during the siege of Xhin, and has felt survivors guilt ever since. Regardless, His Divinity asks Lorenzo to serve, and serve he shall, to the bitter end.

Tactical Marine Sgt with Combi-Plasma

Comms Specialist: Brother Furian
Attitude: Xenophobic
This battle-brother hates the perfidy of aliens with a particular vehemence. Furian's family was killed during Kabalite raids on his home world, and the desire to unleash vengeance on all Xenos has turned into a perverse obsession for him. Chaplains have been concerned about his temper, and he is under constant supervision for any signs of the Flaw. Nonetheless, Furian is an excellent vox-caster on a good day, and has inspired squad Lorenzo to perform their best countless times.

Tactical Marine with comms array

Demolitions Specialist: Brother Castivar
Attitude: Mysterious
Castivar rarely speaks, and his pronouncements are laced with prophecy and dark insinuation. He seems as serene as a priest during battle, his clarity of mind being a great asset to the squad in the heat of battle. Castivar's past is unknown and he rarely speaks about himself. Syras likes to make jokes of Castivar's stoic demeanor, but he pays them no mind.

Tactical Marine with Missile Launcher

Sniper Specialist: Brother Syras
Attitude: Castellan
This battle-brother excels on the defensive, at digging in and eliminating all foes who approach. Syras once held the line singlehandedly against the Orks for three consecutive days without a moment's rest, holding out until reinforcements arrived. Syras is the squad's joker, always coming up with morbid jokes no matter how dire the situation.

Tactical Marine with Targeter and Plasma Gun

Troopers: 6 Battle-Brothers

Brother Gaius
Brother Vic
Brother Belaria
Brother Andron
Brother Sholta
Brother Nolan

Tactical Marines

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Building continues...

Okay, I know it's been way longer than I thought since my last update, but here goes..

I got another batch of 10 FW beakies so as to not run out of shoulderpads until my army has been built up to my current "roadmap". Also been gathering some more bits which I will need to complete everything. I know I've only shown you the tacs and the Inceptors but there's lot more stuff coming! I've got most of the main ideas already conceptualized, it'll be awesome!

So now back to the tacs. I am about 80% done with the squad build, the biggest hurdle remaining is the missile launcher conversion for Brother Castivar. The vintage RTB-01 launcher is proving to be tricky to install onto the model because I also want Castivar to have the modern ML backpack with the missile feeder arm.. Got the back exhaust bit sawed off today, and probably will need to move it up on top of the launcher instead of having it on the side, since the missile backpack is too bulky and fills up the space where the exhaust is originally placed.

Here's the whole squad at this stage. Sgt Lorenzo and Brother Furian are still waiting for some Mk IV bitz, and I haven't finished adding in all the ammo mags/grenades/pistols/knives, but I'm getting there. In the end I abstained from attaching the bayonets & chainblades to most of the umbras as I actually prefer them without any after all. Besides, those things will probably be breaking off all the time during gaming, IIRC that's what always happened to the RTB-01 bayonets as well

Things are progressing painfully slow, but I think it'll all be worth it in the end.. Unless I fudge up the paintjob

And now, a quick peek at the next unit on the list. Here's the first HQ I'm making, a Captain with a master-crafted power fist (thanks to @Green Is Best!) and an inferno pistol. He's probably also getting a jump pack, but I'm still trying to decide the most fitting one for him.

I’m loving the classic look you have going here. You are putting a ton of effort into the look you want. I really enjoy the classic old school style. Keep it going.

 The Riddle of Steel wrote:
I’m loving the classic look you have going here. You are putting a ton of effort into the look you want. I really enjoy the classic old school style. Keep it going.

Thanks for the encouragement! Its funny, in 2021 the original beakie look has aged well - it almost looks fresh again weirdly

After the tacs are done, I want a change from infantry. I think a support dreadnought for Sqd Lorenzo is going to be next in line.

Castivar is finally coming together! Just a bit of filing to do and the pieces will fit. But now I need to get me some polystyrene rod in correct thickness in order to rebuild the back of the missile launcher properly. O'well, that can wait a bit I suppose..

Now that most of the squad is done, I felt that Sgt Lorenzo didn't match the image I had in mind, so I remodeled him again. Now he's clad in Mk VI like the rest of his brothers, leaving only brother Furian donning the Mk IV.

I also received a test batch of 2 HH BA shoulderpads I bought from ebay. It's a good thing I only bought two - despite the claims of these being for Mk IV armour, its clear the trim on them is too thick to match a studded Mk IV shoulderpad. A minor niggle, but I still prefer the look of it over the plastic 40K one for this particular model. The plastic one was meant for Mk VII anyways..

Looking at Furian again, I'm not sure about the BA symbol on his chestplate anymore.. Seems like there's too much going on with two symbols and all? I'll probably try something else there, although I do love the raised collar of that Mk VIII breastplate. He also needs something on his backpack to signify the comms specialism.. It's possible he too will end up getting the Corvus treatment

You might have also noticed that in addition of sporting Umbra pattern bolters, I've also secured a cache of matching pattern bolt pistols for that Rogue Trader style! I'll be using these for my assault marines further down the line.

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Update: I was digging through my cousin's old White Dwarf magazines and struck gold! I found out that those BA transfers were actually sold in official blister packs and they had transfers for all the biggest chapters of those times (Ultras, Space Wolves, BA, DA etc). I have to seach ebay and elsewhere if I could locate nore of those somehow..

What was also an unexpected delight is the fact that White Dwarf issue # 119 contains a copy of the 1989 Space Marine Paint Set booklet! So now I have access to that venerable old resource once more.. That flag design I had is also from that exact same booklet. I'll study the contents in detail, I think I'll want to come up with a way to adopt that orange/terracotta colour scheme to these models.

Another colour test

I finally started using oil paints for miniatures, and this old Black Reach starter dread was used as a test model for some oil wash techniques. I fell in love with oils immediately, they can create superb colour modulations and really make large, flat areas come alive!

This model had already been airbrushed and edge highlighted, so the colour isnt the sort of red primer/terracotta looking I am now planning for the army, but the oils even make "santa claus red" looking good! Still need to gain more exp in using oils as I find the colours settle a lot more after drying completely.. This makes judging the effect a bit tricky. I've included pics after finishing the oil paints as well as after basing was done (they are chronologically roughly 24hrs apart), so you can get some idea how drying changes things - I suppose this is why people generally prefer enamel washes?

Red Primer and complementary oils for it are on their way now, soon I can test the actual colours I'm planning to use for the army.. assuming I like the way it'll look hehehe!

Since my progress has stalled even more, lack of concentration has finally won over mental discipline. My tacs are still unfinished, but have instead started sketching up other infantry units for the army.

I have been coming up with many versions for my death company, but this is the look I've settled on for now. The DC has more "freedom" in its execution in a Rogue Trader universe since no official models nor even rules for them existed back in the day (AFAIK? Please correct me if I'm wrong). I wanted to incorporate more bling to them to contrast with the tacticool look of the pure corvus armoured units, but still didin't want to go with the official GW style as it looks very played out to my eyes, not to mention the fact that GW DC uses Mk VII helmets and armour quite liberally, which I find wanting to avoid more and more as my army project progresses.

I am pretty pleased with the look tbh. Adding the current BA chaplain with jump pack model is planned, and I think these will match his look quite nicely in giving a more or less thematic coherence to the DC portion of the army. I'm still going to swap out the chainswords on them with Mk III plastic chainswords, to further the distinction against the gear of the upcoming assault squad.. I like the Mk III chainsword look, looks more chainsaw-y and brutal

Oh yes, and here's also a WIP of the DC dread which I'm adding to the roster (eventually). The fingers will take ages to suss out pose-wise hehehe!