FW Contemptor Dreadnought

As soon as I saw the Contemptor, like many others, I had to have it. The model is nicely sculpted as well. My only problem with it is the limited range of arm weapons available. However, the rumor mill does posit that "forbidden" weapons will be forth coming. So I will probably pick up another after I see what becomes available. This model is destined to join my pre-heresy Ultramarines.

Grey Knight Dreadnought

The last model I planned to work on for the foreseeable future for my Grey Knights was a venerable dreadnought. I used the furioso dreadnought kit as a base for the model, with the librarian dread sarcophagus, but I replaced the death mask with a Grey Knight helmet. I then added some purity seals and the reliquary piece, a book and sword bit and the heraldry shield bit from the dread knight kit.



I kept to the same painting schemes for the dreadnought as I did for the other Grey Knights. Using a black primer base, I then gave it a base coat of Boltgun, a wash of Asurmen Blue and a final coat of Chainmail. I then did base coats of P3 Kommando Khaki and Brazen Brass, with a wash of Devlan Mud, and then a top coat of P3 Menoth Base Coat and the gold was finished with a coat of Shining Gold and an extreme highlight of Burnished Gold. The red was done with layers of P3 Sanguine Base, Sanguine Highlight, Khador Base and Khador Highlight.



To continue the Arthurian theme, the dreadnought is named Uther. I kept the heraldry simple, with just a white field and a diagonal red bar across it. I then added faux writing with a micron pen to finish the model.

Black Consuls Command Squad

One of the specialists most valued in a doomed chapter would be the apothecary. Only through careful cultivation of geneseed and selective recruitment would a chapter be able to replenish its ranks, especially if they were decimated to the point the Black Consuls were. A command squad would then become the bodyguard for the apothecary, more than the body guard for a captain.



One thing I tried to convey with these models was a sense of age. Beyond being old campaigners, these were marines who had been put out to pasture in one form or another. Whether through extensive bionic replacement, or just plain being too old, they were side lined by the Black Consuls. Now they are the ones responsible for ensuring their chapter has a future.



I also wanted to create a sense of memory for these marines. Ghoddeth Hive was a colossal tragedy for the Black Consuls. One which they can never forgive or forget. To that end, I chose a limited number of letters for their purity seals. Where normally I would use G or H for glory or honor, V for vengeance is more prominent. Even being spelled out on the champion's shield.



The apothecary is probably the simplest of builds in the squad. The model is mostly stock, however I used more of the medical or containment bitz to indicate someone who is ready to acquire more than the average amount of geneseed.



The standard bearer is my least favorite of these models. For one thing, I had to improvise a standard pole by using one of the warding staves from the Grey Knights. Then the Black Consul's chapter badge and scroll work looks okay. However I'm not sure how I could make it look better, I think that might be just beyond my current skill level.

Forge World Boarding Captain

I was lucky enough to have a friend go to Adepticon this year, and he was able to procure one of the show exclusive Forge World models for 2011, the Boarding Captain. I've had the model for a while now, but was stuck on what Chapter I wanted it to be. In the end, when in doubt, I go blue, so he became an Ultramarine.



The model comes with the option of the thunder hammer, storm shield, and a bolter with auxiliary grenade launcher, but I chose to go with the storm shield and thunder hammer. I then primed the model black with Duplicolor sandable primer, and that's how the model languished for quite a while.



The blue was painted with Regal blue, Ultramarine Blue, a 50:50 mix of Ultramarine Blue and Ice Blue and then an extreme highlight of Ice Blue. I did the silver Boltgun metal, Devlan Mud and Chainmail, and the gold is Dwarven Bronze, Devlan Mud, Shining Gold and Burnished gold. Originally, both shoulder pads were blue, but I decided that perhaps this Captain was the originator of the Sons of Guilliman heraldry and founded the chapter during the Second Founding, though I did reverse the colors a bit in the process.

Storm of What?

As some might know, I have no real enthusiasm for Warhammer Fantasy. However, the sorcerer of Tzeentch did catch my eye. With a nice new round base, I figured it would make the perfect Herald of Tzeentch. I used a resin base that I had in my bitz box to give it a 40k battlefield feel. Otherwise it was assembled right off the sprue with no modification.



I wanted to stick to a similar palette as the other demons in my Tzeentch army, so the gold and silver were base coated with Boltgun Metal and Dwarven Bronze respectively, and then given a wash of Devlan Mud. I then gave the silver areas a coat of Chainmail, and the gold areas were given a coat of Shining Gold and then an extreme highlight of Burnished Gold.



For the blue, i did coats of Regal Blue, P3 Meridius Blue and then a final layer of Ice Blue. Finally, the eyes and cloth were painted with a layer of P3 Menoth of highlight and then a coat of Morrow White.

Grey Knights Purifiers

My initial purchases for my Grey Knight's army were pretty straight forward. I bought all of the kits released. I then added a second Interceptor squad because I like the concept of the personal teleporters. Having gotten that far, and being short one troop choice, a GW employee suggested I take a squad of Purifiers since I already had Crowe. On reflection this seemed like a good idea, and eventually I plan to bring the squad to ten marines, and add a dreadnought so they can all ride in a Storm Raven.



To distinguish the Purifiers from the Interceptors a little more, I went all out with the purity seals, and used everyone that came on the sprues. I also kept to the theme of fighting Nurgle demons, and gave the justicar the plaguebearer head impaled on the sword bit.



In painting the Purifiers, I kept to the same pallet as I used on Crowe. All of them have white shoulder pads and helmets, using P3 Menoth Highlight and Morrow White. I'm not sure how apparent it is in the pictures, but all of my Grey Knights have received Arthurian names. For the Purifiers, I used the names of the most prominent Grail Knights to show their purity and devotion within the naming convention I chose.

Darius Hinks' Sigvald

I started reading Darius Hinks' Sigvald over a week ago, right after I finished Atlas Infernal. I feel a bit guilty, as soon after I started it, my new Kindle arrived, and I dove into reading Conviction, by Aaron Allston (the latest Star Wars novel). Now, I must say, I don't feel that guilty, as at this point I'm about halfway through Sigvlad. I intend to finish it, however I feel quite bored by the novel. There are two story lines, one surrounding Sigvald and a baron from the Empire who wishes to make the Empire stronger and searches the chaos wastes for aid. The other, a tribe of Norsii who have fallen on hard times and seem cursed. In truth, while the novel is decently written, it lacks that certain something to draw you in and make you want to turn the page. While, it seems to have good reviews offered up by the Black Library. It just doesn't work for me. Perhaps that will change as I read on, but personally, a novel needs to grab you from the start to be good, and this one doesn't.

Completed Razorwing

Every now and then, you come across a model that looks so simple on the surface but ends up being a huge pain in the neck. This is how I feel about the Razorwing. To start off, I assembled the model in seven different pieces. This may sound like a lot, but it really isn't. Essentially, there are four missiles, the tail fin (which is already one piece), the bottom fuselage and the top fuselage. This was done so that i could glue on the canopy with canopy glue and not have to worry about fogging from the sealant or super glue.



Next, I primed everything black. The parts that are silver were painted Boltgun, given a wash of Leviathan Purple, and then given a coat of Chainmail. The rest of the model was painted with a coat of P3 Beaten Purple, a 70:30 mix of Beaten purple and P3 Murderous Magenta, and then an extreme highlight of Murderous Magenta. For the cockpit interior, I did a coat of Chaos Black on the monitors, and then used some Scorpion Green for faux writing. The base was painted with P3 Rucksack Tan, Sulfuric Yellow, and Moldy Ochre. Then I sealed everything.



Now comes the part that took the fun out of this model, assembly. First, using canopy glue, I glued on the flying stand to the base and the canopy to the upper fuselage. After they were dry (it's best to wait 24 hours) I then attempted to glue together the top and bottom fuselage, using the tail section to put them in place properly. Here is where things turned nasty. For one, the layers of paint created such a tight fit I had to try to shave away the primer from the track on the top of the model, and then shave away the paint on the tongues as well. In the process of this, I stabbed myself with an Xacto knife. In the end, I was able to fit it on (took about twenty minutes) and then use clamps to glue the front down.



Unfortunately, the manhandling required me to go back and retouch the model with Beaten Purple. In retrospect, i suppose it would have saved me a lot of grief if I just skipped the canopy, but the final effect is worth it. However, I do not believe I will ever build one of these models again, as I was contemplating an air heavy Dark Eldar army. I think it is now safely off the table.