Fosreddan

'I admired them, the Raven Guard. Even during Isstvan V, when we murdered our fellow Astartes to usher in the new order of Lupercal, some part of me found the Guard honourable even as they were cut down to a man. Lupercal sent the Red Angel to finish that which our Legions combined could not, and this pleased me, for Angron in his rage would be hasty, and easily outwitted by Corax, and then we could turn the Ravens to our cause in time. Had I known that the proud gene-line of Corvus would lead to these thin-blooded Shrikes. I would have slain Corax myself to save his honour.'

Wosnek Fosreddan 'Terran-Born', Traitor Commander, 35th Company Black Legion.

Ravensbane

A short, but important update this time. Below is the second half of Tactical Squad Alejandro, led by Millian Alejandro. These aren't very far from being complete, so soon I will have a legally painted army. All 500 points of it :P

And last night I got itchy fingers and started my Black Legion Lord, Wosnek Fosreddan. He's been a charm to paint, and meant I got to use 'Blood for the Blood God' I wasn't too sold putting it on, but after it's dried it looks really good. I also tried for a flayed skin look on his shoulder which hopefully comes across. I'm most pleased with his chain halberd conversion though, and have called his weapon 'Ravensbane' for reason that will become clear!

It's gone a bit quiet, and a small change of plans

So...been a while! I haven't disappeared into the ether, although there have been some changes!

First, I now have a decent camera, and a lightbox to use them with. These are both new to me, so I've been playing about with them to get things how I'd like, which hopefully explains the lack of recent photos and posts.

Secondly, and also dealing with the above, I haven't done as much painting as I'd like. Call it being busy, call it laziness, call it Titanfall, but I've been fairly slow. I've built plenty, including a Tactical squad, a second Sternguard unit and the two Web Captains, but painting wise I've been behind. This will change however as I get back into the flow of things.

So, with excuses out of the way, what have I actually been doing hobby wise...?

Well...the first thing is I am now the owner of a small Scions force of 1500 pts or so. The models were too nice to resist, and although gaming wise I think they'll get battered, there's something about small elite armies of Special Forces types that totally appeals to me! These will also be tied into the Fourth Shrine War, and show that normal humans (even if they are trained killers from birth) can surprise even Astartes.

Also, and I know this will be a disappointment to some, I've changed my mind on which Chaos legion to paint as my army. I was umming and ahing over a few, but I happened to read Vengeful Spirit last week,and that sealed the deal.

The tale of Wosnek Terra-Born and his sorceror 'The Vermille Hexatude' will hopefully be as fun for you all to read as it will be for me to write. The Crimson Shrikes will look into a dark mirror, and emerge changed for all time.

Productive days and The War Escalates.

So, with the (relatively) lovely weather we're having, I've spent a productive day getting models sprayed and prepped for future painting. There won't be much actual work put into the below, but I just wanted to show how the army will develop over the months and years. But first some WIP's of my Sternguard, which I really need to finish but just seem to be avoiding!

They seem a little washed out here, but the robes look really nice in the flesh. I really do have to get a decent camera and soon! They just need the arms and weapons completing and they'll be ready to go.

Next, a few little additions to the Shrikes' motor pool. The Rhino with the Stalker front is the personal transport of the Captain of the 3rd, and not because I forgot to actually put it on my Stalker at all....

And a small pile of bits and pieces that will be getting a lick of paint sooner or later. This includes a Contemptor, two Thunderfire Cannons on which the Techmarines have had arm swaps to try and make them look different, and my new Captain armed with the Teeth of Terra and storm bolter. The Marines will eventually be a Devastator unit, but I'm not in a rush for those just yet.

My Knight in his current state. Two washes of Nuln Oil give a nice look to the metals, which will then be drybrushed with Leadbelcher and Ironbreaker, before pinpoint washes with Typhus Corrosion in joints and bolts that wouldn't move much. The armour plates will be a mix of Stegadon Scale Green with highlights, yellow and black hazard striping and bronze edging, which will have Nilkanth Oxide washed over. The intention is to make this Knight look like a machine that has existed for over fifteen thousand years, which also leads me to ask...anyone have any good weathering techniques? Never done it before but I think a small amount would look really good on the plates.

And finally...

The horrors of the Ethnarch in the Fourth Shrine War have lead to a sector-wide charnel house of death and pain. The weeping and terror of mortals on every planet have created a heady musk of fear that draws dark beings from a time long forgotten. The Pleasure-Flayers of the 3rd legion translate into the Kerishian system...

Squad Numiah finished, Nerd League round one, and The Red Murder

Squad Numiah is now finished! I'm really happy with how they've come out, but I decided in the end to leave the wings as my freehand is not up to scratch. Little bit disappointed with that, but I think you have to know when it's time to stop painting a model and walk away...

Pics

Next up for the Dark Angels is completing the last three Black Knights, and then either my second Ravenwing Attack Squad or a complete tactical squad. Just have to see what I feel like!

We started our Nerd League this week, and I was drawn to play against Danny's Salamanders. His list consisted of 40 footslogging marines, two Preds, two Rifleman Dreads and five Hammernators. That's a lot of 3+ to put down! However, Danny went melta heavy without taking Vulkan, which could have made the army absolutely awful to deal with.  The game was close throughout, but really did come down to the last dice roll of the game...which left me with a 12 - 10 win! I was happy with my performance, but in hindsight I was very aggressive with my Ravenwing, and really should have let Danny come to me and reacted as I had the speed and maneuverability to attack weak points. But a win is a win! In the other game Pootank had much better luck this week against Gandy, and produced a wave of Termagants that Gandy just couldn't compete with. I know the general internet consensus is that Tyranids are underpowered, but in all the games I've seen with them they always do well...maybe the Internet underestimates a good Tyranid general? (I know, the Internet getting something wrong?!?!? :P) The next set of games in two weeks will be Danny vs Pootank, and myself vs Gandy, which I'm looking forward to to help Gandy with some of the tactics and complexities...I dislike winning just because someone hasn't played as much!

Finally, as I have felt the need to paint something for fun, I have felt the call of the Blood God! I have been reading Betrayer by Aaron Dembski-Bowden, which is a fantastic read, and have started to fall in love with the World Eaters. I feel that Khorne Berzerkers aren't just blood crazed, but save their notorious rage for when it is needed. More of a needle than a blunt hammer! So, I have decided to paint a test piece to see if I can be inspired to start an army of Angron's finest. I present to you Kalak Scraan, The Red Murder.

 This was the best model release of the recent Chaos Marine update in my opinion, and is just a beautiful model. I want to try my method of painting red that I have been using on my Dark Angels on a whole model, and hopefully can do this guy justice.