My Crazy Army Plan - 17 Down and onto Tomb Kings (again!), Eldar on hold for now, 2,000 Points for each Army!

[BIG]

Greetings all,

Since this seems to be a potential replacement for dear old wargamerau I figured I would come across and continue the painting madness from there.  For those of you familiar (thanks for reading) for those of you who are not and want a glimpse into what this is all about please refer to this link: http://www.wargamerau.com/forum/index.php?act=ST&f=93&t=152339

Edit: SInce WargamerAU is totally gone now, for the rest of this blog you can check out - https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/521618.page as it is pretty much the same as waht was on WargamerAU.

I will probably migrate some older pictures across to add to this first post (maybe finished army shots and the intended lists) but definitely will not be bringing it all over.......

Stay tuned for more.

Thanks for reading.

Edited August 14 by BIG

[BIG]

So I began this hobby blog before Age of Sigmar was a twinkle in the eye of Games Workshop.  So the armies I wanted to do were based on 7th/8th edition.  When the new game dropped (and lets face it it is a completely different game) I agonized whether I should go ahead and rebase the armies I had already collected and prepare them to be used in AoS.  I came to the conclusion that I am better off leaving them for a number of reasons, firstly, the amount of work required to rebase the models was more than I think I was willing to face.  If I do play AoS ever the style of games and the people I game with are not going to care if the bases are square/rectangular or round/oval.  I am more likely to play Kings of War or 9th age and therefore still need to be able to rank them up.  So I have and will leave these armies on the square bases.  If I do a dedicated AoS army in the future, that will be a different story......

Completed armies:

Please note that on occasion I have added extra models to an army (mainly due to edition changes and drastic point changes), normally I avoid this as I do not want to keep back tracking, but so far every time I have done it they are models that I have taken from my bits box or kitbashed......

40k

Grimskraga's Razorfangs

Probably my favorite army so far and the one I have the most success with (as its a pretty simple game plan).  The trucks are all converted Imperial vehicles (Bombard, Rhino, Chimera).  It now plays as a Free Booterz army in 8th edition.

Hive Fleet Acidica

Haven't managed a lot of games with the 'Nids, although I am looking forward to more.  If you ignore the Termagants spawning from the Tervigons, the smallest bug is a Tyranid Warrior, so hopefully the terror of the giant bugs will be enough.  Would of loved a few Carnifex's, but just couldn't fit them in the list.

Astra Militarum 5th Armoured Detachment 34/87th Tullarium Armoured

Additions:

My very first painted army of the project, my painting has vastly improved since then, but I still love to get the tanks out and blast things from a far.  With recent developments (long running campaign) I took the opportunity to add the Tech Priest, what Tank Company would leave home without one?

Iron Hands Taskforce from the Gaarsak Clan Company

Additions:

I certainly love Dreadnoughts, so when I decided to do the first of the Space Marine army's I couldn't resist Iron Hands (I did them before their latest hottness).  I am particularly happy with the conversion beamer Techmarine.

Alpha Legion - XII Ambush Cell

Everything in the this army is a duplicate.  Two Marine Squads, Two Havoc Squads, 2 Chosen Squads all with identical loadouts.  Sort of really played to the Alpha Legion background of multi-headed, except for the Terminators......but I only had 4 so the squad in itself was a duplicate.......I have since added a 5th Terminator to the unit, 8th edition had a minimum of 5.....

Aeldari of the Yarn Le'ath Craftworld (this army is based on the Ulthwe Guardians and Psykers)

Eldar were always my go to army and I have a lot of them in storage preparing to become a larger part of this project.  These were the first for the new painting and I am really happy with the gradients I achieved on the Falcons and Hemlock.

Witch FInder Tasetus and Coven

Although not technically an "army" they are on my list and they are finished in their entirety.

Necron - The Reclamation Legion of the Tomb World Fordris

Imperial Guard - 7^th Abhuman Detachment, 17^th Tullarium “Immovables” + Remnant of the 6^th Tullarium Rifles “The Lucky Few”                                                                                          

WARHAMMER FANTASY/KoW/AoS etc.

Empire Knightly Order

All Knights, all the time.  Not a great one off photo.  Each unit has a Character of some description except for the Demigryphs.  I really like this army and it has found the most use as a Kings of War army.  Very, very one dimensional, but looks good doing it.

Bretonnian Questing Knight Army

I really enjoyed painting this army.  I think I reflected the nature of the different Bretonnian Knights pretty well.  What I did was the Knight Errant have the heraldic colors but no insignias (Centre), the Knights of the Realm have colors and insignias (left of centre) and then the Questing Knights who have given up their titles in search of the Grail only have colors on shields, but still have their heraldic symbols.  It really makes them ragtag and road weary.

Dwarf Artillery Train

My absolute favorite of the fantasy armies, only appear (as an ally) in a KoW game.  So, many, guns.  I really love the dwarf models, I have even managed a unit of Warriors where every model has a beer stein.....the only "War Machine" I am missing is the Gyrobomber, but it came out after this army was completed.

Ogre Kingdoms - Maneater Mercenary's Galore

Additions:

I absolutely loved the Maneater Mercenary Ogre models and knew I had to do an army around them.  So I have one of each of the scuplts and converted three of my own.  They have such individual character and stories.  I even ended up adding the old Ogre from Mordheim later on......

Tomb Kings - Host from the Bronze City of Ka-Sabar

Inspired by the Nagash trilogy (before he was the Undead powerhouse he is now) I decided I would build an army based on the Hosts of Ka-Sabar the then military powerhouse of Khemri that road to oppose him and eventually were betrayed and perished in the desert.  It is very simple with few of the tricks of the Tomb Kings, have had decent success with them in KoW, never managed to get them into a game of Warhammer. 

High Elves of Caledor - Here be Dragons.....

Close to the smallest model count legal army (at the time) I could come up with.  I plan to do a few elf armies and want them to all reflect the different regions of Ulthuan (the world that was to you AoS people).  Caledor is known for Dragons and its Dragon Princes, insert two dragons and you don't have a lot left over......

Chaos Dwarfs - Temple Guards of Hashut

Definitely my favourite army so far. I just think the colour scheme worked really well. Also the K'Daai are my new favourite unit, they just look so messed up. Still think the Bull Centaurs are too big....

 

Harvesters of Morrslieb

The chariot heavy Beastmen, I really ended up digging the blue and white of the beastmen against the browns of the Chariots and Beasts.  The Razorgors are by far the best part.

Edited August 14 by BIG

[Doreaver]

This is so cool. I love the idea of having multiple armies all done up! It would also be something to have fully complete armies, ie. with every sculpt released. Keep the pics coming :).

[BIG]

So to go with the above finished army photos, here are the armies I plan to collect and paint.  There are quite a few multiples (as in all the first founding Space Marine Chapters and the like) as well as multiple Aeldari and Drukhari armies.  This is because I do not do things by halves and sometimes I wanted to explore particular themes within a given race.

Armies in BOLD have been completed.

Armies in Italics I own all the models and they are ready to paint.

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

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

Armies in BOLD have been completed......

Edited August 14 by BIG

[korocite]

That is still a very long list. What are the next few armies that you are thinking of painting?

[BIG]

Once the Necron are done it will be back to Fantasy and I will be doing the Chaos Dwarf army that I have been hanging out to do for a while. 
Then back to 40k and I have begun to get the bits for the Genestealer cults which will be an army of the 1st and 4th generation (lots of Genestealers and Jackals). 
Then back to Fantasy and an entire Beastman army of Chariots is on the cards. 
Then 40k again and it will be a Haemonculus Coven. 
Then fantasy for I think a Skaven army around either Moulder or Skryre. 
 

This of course is open to change and opinion in case someone wants to see a particular army take shape. 

[BIG]

What a very interesting year we find ourselves in.  I certainly hope that everyone is able to keep their heads down and are weathering the storm as best you can with your nearest and dearest and my heart goes out to anyone struggling with it.  In my own home front, we have had a huge year so far.  Started a new job at the start of the year, with what has happened it seems it may have been the best move I could have made.  But our biggest news is we have welcomed our second child, Baby Isabel was born happy and healthy at 2.7kgs, a whole 300 grams bigger than her big brother.  So we now have a two and a half year old and a newborn in the home.

Everyone is adjusting to the change.  The hospital as you can imagine was a ghost town as visitors were not permitted and elective surgeries have all been cancelled.  But ultimately it was a happy occasion as we have a happy and healthy daughter.  She seems free of the issues her brother has had to deal with in his young life (but happy to report he looks like he has come through the surgeries and looks like he will have no long term issues at all).

On the two and a half year olds front, he has always shown a lot of interest in painting and drawing and over the Easter long weekend I left my painting station out and he really wanted to have a crack at Daddy's paints and brushes.  So here is his first foray into the hobby scene:

This is a Chapel and Watchtower that I will one day finish for Fantasy/KoW games.

He is enthusiastic, but his attention span is slightly worse than a fly....

This is the bottom of a Razorback that is actually going to be a gift to a friend.  Sorry Steve!

I am pretty happy that he was happy to play with Dad's models and he is actually pretty careful when I let him handle them.  Mum was perhaps less impressed as he is a messy operator.

Now I have managed the tiniest bit of progress in painting myself.  I forgot how much a newborn effects the flow of everything so am hoping that we are now into the swing of things and I can get some more stuff done.

This is yet another objective marker that I have had floating around for a while, just wanted to knock it out and get it off the painting station.  Chose orange so that it really stands out when on the table top.

Back view of the console.  Could be good in an urban game with lots of ruined buildings.

Here are the last two members of Inquisitor Tasetus's warband.  Cardinal Ratsuunga on the left and Confessor Artemis on the right.  I will run them both as Missionary's from the Sisters of Battle Codex in our Campaign games (whenever we can get back to them).

I quite like these models, the Cardinal donated his mace to my Alpha Legion Dark Apostle conversion a while ago, so now he has a Sisters of battle chainsword.  The Confessor has picked up a Space Wolf power sword at some point, knowing the Space Wolves dislike for Inquisitors I wonder how he got it?

Guarding the console until someone that actually knows how to hack a computer turns up.

One thing I have noticed that I am really lacking is objective markers that fit into a medieval/fantasy setting well.  So I decided to rectify that (a little) with these three.

The broken chest is because I had a single corner of a chest (no idea where the rest of it went) so I had a crack at sculpting some coins spilling out.

So these three are the start of some fantasy objectives.  Does anyone have any other ideas of easy markers that I may have parts for in my bits box?  I was thinking some Lord of the Rings style signal fire stacks.....

So there you have my paltry painting progress since my last update.  But, progress is progress.  I hope everyone is doing ok.

Thanks for reading.
 

[korocite]

Nice to see some painting progress. What base colour did you use as for the cardinal. It’s very nice.

[BIG]

So I have yet again fallen off the wagon of updates.  But there has been steady progress on the painting front.  Still haven't managed any games (my wife is reluctant and the kids just too young to trust with small objects).  But we are doing a text message based D&D campaign on Discord, that I think is going quite well.  It is very entertaining being able to carry on four independent conversations as the DM when the party splits up (which they seem to be doing quite often).  

But we are here for painting, let us begin with:

This is my squad of Immortals for my Necron all done and dusted.  I am really happy with these guys, they are a little darker than the Warriors that I have already done, but as the Elites I don't mind a slight variation.

I am a little disappointed that they have done away from the clear plastic rods in the Immortals Gauss Blasters (hence why I chose to give the Tesla Carbines).

Here is the squad with the Overlord, you can see that he is a little brighter on the "Bone" areas like the warriors compared to the Immortals.

Close up of one of the Immortals.

And here is the second unit I have finished for the Necron, Deathmarks.

A closer look at a deathmark.  They are a little rough around the edges, but I am very happy with the overall appearance.

I am now left with 12 Tomb Blades to finish off the army, I was struggling to figure out how to paint them since they are Warriors mounted on the Tomb Blade.  But I have come to the conclusion to try and match the stippled Monolith effect on the "vehicle" part of the Tomb Blade and the guns and rider will be painted as per the warriors I have already done.

Finally and it isn't really painting "progress" but it was pointed out that although it isn't an "army" technically, it is on my list of armies to paint so, I should show off Witch Finder Tasetus and his Inquisitorial Henchman as if they were an army and tick them off the list!  So here they are......

Thanks for reading and stay safe everyone.
 

[korocite]

The dusty bone/metallic colour scheme works well for the necrons. I hope we can get them on a gaming table soon.

Similarly, Tasetus and mates are looking very cohesive. The red you have used ties them all together well. They should present something of a challenge to play against. With all that variety it looks like you have a tool for every occasion.  

 

[Blackhearts Reaver]

your list is insane. :)

You have inspired me to re-organise my collection and focus my building and painting a little more. 

[Greese Monkey]

I remember this WAU thread well!

[BIG]

It has been far too long since I popped in here.  But as is always the case, life.

I am still pottering around, my output has dried up to almost nothing.  I blame it on feeling a tad overwhelmed with what is in front of me, which in reality isn't actually that much, but I need a friendly kick up the backside to get back into it.

Would love to finish off the Necrons and Deathguard (commission for a friend) by the end of the year, plus I am 4 out of 5 models down on a Space Marine Command Squad as a gift and would really like to get them finished.

I noticed that wargamerau.com.au has finally bitten the bullet, so even though I can't access the old blog I was running it in parallel with another over on dakkadakka so feel free to drop in there should you want to go back through the archives of previous work......https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/521618.page

Hoping to become more active again and looking forward to showing some progress soon.

Couple of questions.....does anyone know a good stain/oil I can use to weather a lot of terrain effectively?

Does anyone have a three Ork Nob bodies floating around? I want to convert 7 Flash Gitz (as I have 4 Nobz already) and need some bodies to build off.  Or I just need to bite the bullet and buy some Flash Gitz.

Thanks for reading and its good to be posting again.

[Krefey]

You can do it mate 🙂  I *might* have some nob bodies lying around.  I'll have a look.

[cobweb]

I too have a few, if you would like them.

[BIG]

Well if either of you fine peoples would let me know what you would like for the Nob bodies I would appreciate it.  Then I can get down to sculpting some pirate hats......

Also, I have made some progress on the Deathguard Spartan.  What a horrible example of resin casting it is.  Not sure how "legitimate" it is.  But from what I have read about the Spartan kit it is one of the worse models that Forgeworld have done.  It has taken a lot of heart ache (and broken tracks) to get it to where I am currently at.  Almost as far as I am willing to take it before applying paint as I want to have the front assault ramp able to open and close when its finished.

I had thought about keeping the rear doors accessible, but since it really lacks any interesting detail inside I have decided to secure them permanently.

I have used leftover Deathguard parts and greenstuffed them to look like they have bonded or are extruding out of the tank.  This has the added benefit that I can tie it into the rest of the army as well as hide any crappy casting errors on the model.  God bless Papa Nurgle.

I was going to stick a Deathguard Legionnaire out the top of the Spartan like I did for the Rhino to really tie it into the army, only to discover I didn't have any spare parts leftover.  So I have gone with the tried and tested "horrible tentacles of doom".  Makes a nice nod to it being a possessed vehicle though and was very easy to do.

This was the front of a bloat drone that has been cut down and put in place.  I thought it would match the Rhino nicely as it has sculpted doors as well.

I thought it was a good idea to cut off the Aquila that used to be on the top hatch. A nice suitable replacement was found and welded in place.

Just a dummy of how it will look when fully assembled.  Look at that joint line on the tracks. Shudder.

These smoke stacks are from the Mortarion Daemon Primarch (the alternate parts I didn't use in assembling him).  I think it is a nice addition right next to the "real" exhausts.

Another Bloat Drone part donated to conceal a nasty joint.  You can see the fine greenstuff line where I had to cut and reposition the floor to make it fit properly.  Not sure I have ever put a more horrible model together.

So I have got the hobby enthusiasm back which is really nice.  I almost have it ready to start putting the paint onto it.  Just hope that the paint distracts from a couple of failings of the model.......I am very likely to glue some sand and flock to the tracks (painted the same way I do the Deathguard bases) for three reasons.  One, it helps tie it to the rest of the army. 2, it helps hide some of the ugliness of the track moulding. 3, it will help strengthen what is an incredibly fragile and brittle part of the model.

Thanks for reading.

[BIG]

So I have signed up for the monthly painting comp

(this time at the start of the month rather than the end of it, oops) so intend to actually finish a model.  Since the subject of the comp is Beasts, I have decided to do the Bull Centaur Taur'uk from my Chaos Dwarf army. 

It is excellent timing as I am almost finished the Necron (yup exciting!) I don't feel like it would distract too much and the fact the Chaos Dwarfs are next in the army queue I am taking it as a sign I am meant to do it.

Stay tuned as there may be some Necron updates (and actually painting progress) around the corner.

Thanks for reading.

Edited October 7, 2020 by BIG

[BIG]

A few updates to get through and more to come (how exciting).  I have a game lined up in our long on hold 40k campaign, so a return to the Jungles.  This time I am taking on the role of "NPC" army as my faithful Orks are attracted by an orbital bombardment that was used to clear the canopy to allow my opponents forces to land their troops.  I will post the details of the game (including any extra rules) and photos hopefully tomorrow.  We will be continuing with 8th edition rules as that is where we started the campaign and it is where we will finish it I believe.

On the painting front I have been quite productive.  I am one colour and a wash away from the Necron Tomb Blades being finished (and therefore the whole Necron army....) so that is really good.

I had this objective sitting on my painting table for absolutely ages, so quickly threw some paint at it.  Not going to win awards, but it is nice enough.  Unfortunately I lost the clear plastic window that is meant to be in the front door.

I tried to VERY simply make the base look like it had ploughed into the earth as it impacted the ground.

Who could have been riding along in this thing? I was tempted to try and stuff a body in, but kind of like the mystery of the empty escape pod.....

Next up is the Chaos Dwarf Taur'uk I am doing for a painting challenge.  No longer is he in pieces, I have even managed to undercoat him.  As always the paint has revealed a couple of areas that need a little extra work (filling/scrapping/filing) so will do that before I get to the base coats.  But I think I may actually manage to finish him by the deadline, so yay me.

Now the more interesting painting update.  My opponent in the campaign is using a space marine army that has an involving background, but basically every squad will be drawn from a different Chapter (except a few squads who are from the base Chapter which contains the Chapter Master).  I volunteered to paint a squad up for the army project.  A little concerned as my mate is an excellent painter and I am not sure I wanted my models to be directly compared to his.  However, I have persevered.  I came to the decision to paint a Command Squad, one, I have never actually painted one and two, he had yet to add one to his army.

The next question is what Chapter?  He was happy for a homebrew one if I wanted, but I decided instead to try to choose an "official" Chapter that didn't have a lot info.  I decided on the Angels Revenant, a dark blue armour offset with gold and bone.  I thought it could be interesting and amusingly it makes a thing that the soles of their boots are silver.  Really odd.

Anyway, I have managed to finish the squad off (I do plan to also paint a Razroback for them to ride around in style, but that is only just started).

I am really happy with how they have turned out and I think that the colour scheme is really effective and a little unusual.

One problem with non-supported Chapters is a lack of the Chapter symbol.  But I had a bash at trying to do the symbol and I think i managed to at least keep it consistent across the shoulder pads and Standard.

Knock, knock.  Anyone inside?

So there you are.  Progress and consistent progress so that is really nice.  I even managed to start the kids cubby house on Sunday.  Hopefully will be able to get some good photos of the game tonight and write it up tomorrow.  Then plan to hopefully finish the Necron before the end of this week and then I can get to the Chaos Dwarfs entirely.

Thanks for reading.

Edited October 11, 2020 by BIG

[BIG]

This will be a long post, so hang in there.......

So, we managed to get our first game in for quite some time due to the whole the world is ending shenanigans.  It was good to catch up face to face.  It also gave me an opportunity to debut this:

This is a modular army carry case I have been tinkering with for a little while.  The boxes I had previously made works well enough, but the problem was they took up a lot of room.  Plus, my intention is for most of the armies to be on display most of the time, so I didn't want to have to store lots of empty carry boxes and foam trays.  So, I cam up with this idea (not original, plenty of people have made similar stuff).  The metal shelves can be positioned at whatever heights I need.  As I go back and varnish my completed armies I am gluing a magnet or two up under the base of each figure so they can securely sit in place for transport.

This was the first ever outing, so I was a little concerned that the army would hold up ok, but fortunately it worked as intended and the army arrived safe and sound.  I am considering making another smaller box as this one would be capable of transporting two 2,000 point armies in one go and it barely fits in my car (admittedly there are two child seats on the back seat so it rides up front with me).  Other things I would consider if I made it again is instead of using whatever I had on hand I would buy thinner material as it weighs a fair bit when fully packed.

I also probably wouldn't paint it with house paint and instead do something a little more creative.

But now onto the important stuff, our game......

Clear the drop zone
The deck officer turned to the imposing physical presence that was the Inquisitor. "We  have created a keyhole in the canopy using minimal bombardment and planted the homing beacon. There is no new damage to the adjacent imperial structures. However, there are some areas of thick vegetation that will need to be cleared by hand. Sensors are somewhat confounded by unknown factors, but they indicate multiple life signs around the deployment zone - it would appear that we have attracted the attention of some of the locals. As for insertion, it will not be a problem in the bombardment zone. Anything outside this could be more difficult as we cannot pinpoint the exact location of whatever xenos species are down there. If we run into any challenges I can redirect the deep striking units to the homing beacon.”

The silence that followed the report was just long enough to make the deck officer uncomfortable. He was unable to read anything in the Inquisitors impassive face.

“That will be adequate” came the deep baritone of the Inquisitor. “Prepare for insertion.”

Inquisitor(deep strike unit and/or flyers only) vs Xenos, 1500 points.

Set up. 
Impact craters dominate a 24” diameter circle in the centre of the table. This forms the deployment zone for the Inquisitor. Scattered around this are ten basic jungle features. Outside of this are three ruins and more jungle features (rocky). A homing beacon is placed in the centre of the table. 

Deployment.
The Xenos player sets up his units using hidden deployment rules (place a numbered marker for each unit) anywhere outside the 24” circle. The inquisitor then deploys numbered markers to represent his deep striking units. He may deep strike units outside his deployment zone. For units deployed outside the deployment zone roll a scatter dice and 2d6 to see where the marker is placed. If the marker lands in impassable terrain or on top of another marker, move the deep strike marker in the direction of the scatter arrow so that is three inches past the obstacle/marker. If the deep strike marker lands off the table, that unit is lost.

The Xenos player deploys his units first. If a deep strike marker is covered when a unit is deployed, the marker is removed and placed in the inquisitors deployment zone within three inches of the homing beacon. The inquisitor takes first turn by deploying his units. Place the first model in the unit on the marker and then place any subsequent models in a ring around the first model. Ignore the 9” restriction regarding proximity to enemy units. This counts as moving, but units can shoot, advance, assault etc. If any models deploy within an inch of the enemy, this counts as an assault with neither side having the opportunity to shoot or perform over watch.

Game length.
Six turns.

Victory conditions. 
Victory points
The Xenos player scores ten VP if he assaults the homing beacon (which will destroy it) without being in contact with an enemy unit. The Inquisitor scores one VP for each jungle feature surrounding the deployment zone that is cleared (up to a maximum of ten). 

Victory points are also awarded for destroying enemy units. One VP is awarded for destroyed units for each hundred points or part thereof. For example, one VP is scored for units worth up to 100 points, two VP for units worth 101-200 pts etc.

Any units (up to a maximum of two) that control the homing beacon at the end of the game counts as controlling an objective for the purpose of experience.

Victory.
If the Inquisitor wins the game, destroyed units add one to their roll to see if they are available for the next game. Additionally, they subtract one from the d3 roll for losing experience. 

So there you have the rules of the game.  It was going to be a hard slog I felt with the Marines being able to setup almost anywhere and get to shoot/charge turn one.  But since I was running the faithful greenskins I figured early assaults would help me in the long run.

Edited October 13, 2020 by BIG

[BIG]

So this is how to board setup looked:

A suitable clearing had been blasted from orbit for the Space Marines to safely drop into.

I had setup my army via hidden deployment, but this is how they looked after the reveal, but before the marines showed up.  The look on my opponents face when two Deff Dreads and my MegaNobz were encircling two of his counters was priceless (bottom of the picture).

Roit den, whooz dis comin in from orbitz?

I tried to encircle the drop zone (which wasn't hard).  But as the game rolled on it proved to be a mistake and I should have deployed far more conservatively and en-mass in one location.  Ah hind sight.

After the Marines had dropped, a few scatter results that ended up probably helping my opponent out a little, but most stuff ended up where it was supposed to.  So. Many. Terminators.

I really was concerned that I wasn't packing enough armour piercing weapons to deal with that many Terminators.  In the end I was right and on multiple occasions my massed attacks just bounced harmlessly off of their armour.

It looks great for the orks, already so close to the enemy.  I REALLY should have paid closer attention to the scenario (that deep strike and get first turn was painful).  I lost far too many boys to the storm bolters of the Terminators.  Out in the open and each one throwing out 4 shots a piece really carved into the boys.  Plus there were flamers and heavy flamers aplenty and I foolishly put my boys in range right from the get go......

These shooters had pushed the enemy back (by deploying onto the deep strike tokens, however, it didn't do them any good as they got chewed through by this assault squad and the Lieutenant with a Burning Blade (that thing is absolutely brutal).

This assault squad was meant to drop between the Mega Nobz and Deff Dreads, but they scatter and it probably saved them (for at least a turn....) as they were packing a pair of flamers yet again my poor boyz really suffered under the onslaught.

This is Inquisitor Dial, plus some more Assault Marines and a Land Speeder. He is a massive pain in the backside and him slinging Smite around all game really started to hurt.  Plus as a Space Marine Librarian he is as tough as nails.

Here we see the first action after deployment, this brave unit of Crimson Fist Terminators assaulted the Mega Nobz turn 1, I think only the Burna did any damage and their armour shrugged off the worst of it.  Although in the wash up, the Mega Nobz lost one of their number (one got pretty shot up and then was finished off in combat) before exacting spectacular bloody revenge by wiping out the terminators in return.  Possibly was my highlight of the game and at that point I began to think maybe I hadn't botched deployment so badly.

This is a small squad of Vanguard Veterans that were supposed to be supported by that Blood Angel Assault Squad.  Left on their own they valiantly charged the orange Deff Dread and between the Power Axes, Power Fists and Thunderhammer I felt certain I would lose a Dread early on.  As it turned out just like the Mega Nobz luck was with me early on and the Dread survived with two wounds remaining.

But the above highlights quickly dissolved as I lost I think 13 Slugga Boyz to the shooting from this Assault squad before they piled in to hack more Orks down.

I couldn't get anyone over to help the Slugga Boyz, so they were smashed in the Assault phase.  Although you can just see the cavalry in the form of a Mega Nob that will arrive a moment too late.

Trouble for me on the other side of the long table edge as my other Slugga Boyz were shot up and then charged by the Terminators.  The only thing that stopped more boyz getting gunned down was the unit of Nobz that were behind them taking a lot more of the enemy firepower as they were considered a much larger threat.

The next few photos are from the start of my FIRST TURN!  I had lost a considerable amount of boyz in one turn of brutal shooting and combat and I was not looking forward to how I could salvage even a little pride.  The Red and Yelllow Slugga Boyz had been absolutely decimated.  At least the Mega Nobz were in a position to exact a little revenge.

The Veterans almost destroyed this Dread turn one, but it had killed two in return and I felt confident that the two Dreads together could finish them off.  I would have prefer to advance the red Dread deeper into the battle, but I just could risk any of the Vanguard surviving as they would become a massive thorn in my back line if I didn't deal with them.

Suffice to say, the red Dread charged and made a fine paste out of the three of them and consolidated toward the Mega Nobz.

The boyz in blue actually did a sterling job of gunning down the Assault squad that charged them (if only I had remembered the rules for orks and Dakka!Dakka! may have wiped them out on the charge.....). But that damn Lieutenant got into combat and proceeded to carve a bloody swathe through the mob, what made it worse is that the overwatching Shootas didn't get an opportunity to shoot him as he was always in combat or able to jump away to safety. Coward.

This is moments before I start my charges in my first turn, you can see just how mauled my Orks were.  I had pretty much given up on winning now and was looking to take as many of them with me as I could.  Pride in the Greenskin and all.  You can see where I probably made a massive mistake in setting up my charges.  My Warboss Grimskraga decided to head over and hit the Assault squad in concert with the Mega Nobz.  This perhaps was a game defining decision.

You see, I should of had him charge the Terminators that almost wiped out the yellow Slugga Boyz.  But I felt with a unit of Nobz, Killa Kanz and the remnants of the yellow Slugga Boyz I had those Terminators covered.  I. Was. Wrong.

What ended up happening is those Terminators ended up surviving (and butchering) everything I sent their way.  If Grimskraga had joined in, I probably would have had the chance to fold my opponents left flank.  Instead, it held steady and gave him an anchor to swing the rest of his army around.

But it was awfully satisfying to watch the elite of my army smash into the silly assault marines and mow them down.  Probably the bet my Warboss has ever performed on the dice.

Yes, the mistake, I really though I had committed enough to deal with this squad, then they could all link up with the second unit of Kanz advancing through the trees to stomp on that other unit of Terminators.  But alas, the Emperor's finest stood firm and my momentum was quashed and that poor unsupported unit of Kanz ended up being blown to bits.

Again, in true Orky bullying fashion I love mismatched fights.  These Vanguard really stood no chance.

This game really did look great.  I thoroughly enjoyed the look of the game and my opponents army is really beautiful to look at and all the different chapters make it a really interesting army to look at.

What should have happened is the Nobz and Kanz should have really made a mess of this fight.  What they actually did was get distracted by a passing squig salesman....

In the Orks defense, I really am not sure how I am supposed to utilize Killa Kanz.  I think I should have run them six strong not two lots of three.  And also, they are better as a ranged threat I think where their melee ability acts as a deterrent against someone charging them.  Time will tell if I ever learn.

In a moment of spite I read through the Ork stratagems and found the Kill-Kroozer Broadside and since my army are Freebooters and the Imperials had already bombed the planet from orbit I decided it was my turn.  At 3 CP its pretty steep, but I got lucky and got to pick three locations (shown by the flaming markers) and with such a dense lot of enemy managed to hit multiple units.  I rolled well and I think four Terminators went to visit the Emperor and I felt vindicated.  I don't often use CP, but I think this one may become my go to favorite.

In an attempt to keep the bloodshed going and win some of the momentum back my star recruits the Mega Nobz charged yet another unit of Terminators.  This time they slaughtered all but one of them (the turquoise bloke with the Cyclone Missile Launcher).  This had the unfortunate effect that they remained locked in combat and meant when my opponent threw the kitchen sink at them they didn't get a chance to overwatch.  It probably would have made no difference as the opposition was overwhelming and Inquisitor Dial got involved.......

This did have the effect though of opening up my primary objective the homing beacon which these marines were previously guarding.......

I may have complained and moaned about it, but the Killa Kanz did a sterling job of holding up the Terminators and frustratingly on three separate occasions the Terminators made their 5++ against the Drill and Klaw which would have been killing them outright.  Eventually they succumbed and these Terminators moved back towards the centre.

The game was meant to go for 6 turns, but I don't think we got out of the 4th one.....here you can see my troops massing for one final Waagh! at the homing beacon.  

I charged the homing beacon with the Big Mek as it only seemed fitting that he be the one to loot it.  The Shoota's surrounded him as mobile cover and the Dreads now both on 1 and 2 wounds closed in to try and take something with them.

The aftermath.  I was wiped from the table, but gave a fairly bloody nose to the marines, including smashing their homing beacon. So we obviously didn't add up victory points as I was wiped out.  But if you ignore that I think the scores were roughly 20-17 in favor of the Orks (my opponent can correct me but I think it was around this) so I actually scored more but didn't survive to gloat about it.

I did use the final up yours of the Ork Stratagem Orks is Never Beaten that allowed Grimskraga to fight after he had been killed allowing him to wipe out the remnants of the Assault squad that charged him and one Terminator as a last gasp grab for redemption.

It was a good game and happy to be back rolling dice.  But gee did I make some fundamental errors beyond my usual poor deployment and decision making.  My Dreads were right near a Big Mek for most of the game, but did you think I remembered to use him to repair them? Nope.  This could of had a serious affect on the game as I probably could have kept them near full wounds as they only copped a few wounds a turn.

Secondly, Dakka!Dakka! was something that I don't think I actually remembered to use at any point in the battle.  Again, I didn't do a lot of shooting, but even one extra shot in a few cases could have really helped out.

Thirdly, at one point I let Grimskraga get isolated and a Cyclone Missile Launcher toting Terminator lined him up.  He was very fortunate to survive at all, but the loss of half his wounds meant he wasn't at his best when he finally went down swinging.

In regard to the scenario, I think it was solid.  I felt I could have one (and if I had deployed better had a better chance at it).  The only thing I would perhaps change if I ever played it again is make units that deepstrike outside of the defenders deployment zone more at risk of damage as they are dropping into a thick jungle rather than a prepared drop zone.  So perhaps if they land on terrain or enemy units they suffer X number of mortal wounds in addition to the other restrictions.  That way its a gamble for a unit, but being able to drop behind the enemy and still get a turn one shoot/charge is a massive benefit.

So there you have it, our campaign is back on track and now both Inquisitors have successfully made it onto the planets surface and have right royally pissed the locals off.  I think the next game will be Dial trying to secure his drop zone like my Inquisitor Tasetus had to do.

Thanks for reading.

[BIG]

So I have had a productive couple of weeks on the painting front (even the Taur'uk is coming along).  So see below my completed Tomb Blades for my Necron army:

I decided to have each of their weapon options available to me (Gauss Blasters, Tesla Carbines and Particle Beamers).  These are the Tesla Tomb Blades.  I stuck to the overall colour scheme I had developed, but I used a lot more green on these guys as I felt the vanes and blades lent themselves as sort of "solar collectors" or some other power source.

These are the particle beamers, depending on how I run this army these guys will either get mixed in the Gauss/Tesla units to make squads of 6, otherwise I will run them as 3 squads of 4 as I think the minimum size is 3.....

And finally the Gauss Blasters, as the Tesla and Gauss Tomb Blades actually carry 2 of each gun they are a little points heavy, but I am hoping with their save, speed and a lot of shots they will cause some damage.

Group shot of my 12 Tomb Blades, they are actually a lot bigger models than I gave them credit for when I first added them to the army and will take up a fair bit of real estate on the tabletop, which will be a good thing as perhaps their threat level will be misjudged by how big they are?  Or am I dreaming?

Now, obviously the exciting part of this is that with the Tomb Blades finished (finally!) it brings an end to the Necrons for me.  I have finally finished the next army!  So as os traditional, here is the army recap.

The HQ, my converted Cryptek (form all sorts of pieces, but I love his hunched look) and my Overlord.  Looking formidable and dismissive as only a Necron Lord can be.

The Elites of the army, a big unit of Lychguard and a small unit of Deathmarks.  I have managed to get the Lychguard on the battefield and they are very good at what they do, if a little slow.  I have never used Deathmarks before so am not sure what they are capable of.

We are Legion.  My Troops, 4 squads of Warriors backed up by a unit of Tesla toting Immortals.  Originally I was going to have no Deathmarks and another 10 man squad of Immortals with Gauss Blasters, but I am very happy with how things ended up.

My Fast Attack options, Scarabs and a lot of Tomb Blades.  Again, the Scarabs were a last minute addition as I shuffled the army list to make changes based on models that I had managed to get.  I am very glad to have added in the Scarabs as I have become quite fond of the little guys and they add an interesting element to the army.

The true heavy hitters (I hope) in my Heavy Support, a pair of Monoliths.  I am a little jealous of the new Monolith kits GW is going to release, but mine are assembled and painted so I am only a little jealous.

And here we see the whole lot of them crushed together.  Can't wait to have a game with them.

I think I have managed to do an interesting colour scheme on them without doing a "traditional" army or going way out there with the choice.

I was also a little concerned that so much time had passed between the various models that I would have a big difference in how I had painted them.  But I am pretty happy that they are unified.

Also a cheeky photo of one of the walls in my hobby shed slowly being filled with these armies.

Now, I am onto the Chaos Dwarf army and importantly the Taur'uk for a hobby challenge.  Hopefully I can keep a bit of this momentum as we head into the festive season.
Thanks for reading.

[Krefey]

How did you do that stone effect on the Monoliths?  Looks cool!

[BIG]

Since I had such large areas that otherwise may have looked as little plain I decided to have a crack at stippling.

So, basecoat Ushabti bone (base colour of the entire army).

Then used three browns (Rhinox Hide, Mournfang Brown and Doombull Brown), starting with the darkest and worked back up to the lightest.  Then, any areas that I thought I had gone too heavy with the stippling I muted it back down with Usahbti Bone or Zamesi Desert in a few places.  Kept working it up and down until I was happy with it.
Use an old brush as stippling is devastating to a brush.

Then I went back and ran some Rhinox Hide into all the edges and grooves to give it a bit of definition as it looked like a blob before I did that.

[BIG]

Oh and I have left the door over the Inifinity Gate on the Monolith's loose, so you can slide them up and reveal the pretty green doorway whenever you want.

[korocite]

Well done getting the necrons finished - another milestone. I reckon they will be tough to face with just about any army. The stone effect is very realistic.