Painting Updates

I am getting to the point that there is nothing left to do on my Deathwing Terminators.  There are a few lights and wires that I need to paint as well as highlighting, flocking, and sealing their bases.  I need to pick up the paints to actually complete the lights.  I am extremely pleased with how these are turning out.  They have far exceeded any expectations that I had when I started painting them.  I was extremely worried about how painting something a bone color and feared it would come out either look too messy or just off.  Instead, they've turned into some of the best looking miniatures I think I've ever painted.

With this boost in confidence I started on a small batch of Tactical Marines.  I am using the robed models from the Dark Angels Chapter Upgrade sprue.  So far, I've painted and highlighted the armor and put the base coast and an ink on the robes.  The results look promising.  I've followed the color recommendations from Games Workshop for the Dark Angels Green scheme and it is actually a nice look.  It contrasts nicely with the robes.  My only complaint with the models is that there are some areas that are extremely hard to get to, so I will need to do some touch ups after I've completed everything.  Seeing how these guys have turned out really makes me excited to paint my Ravenwing Bikers.

Also, my local GW is holding a painting competition for March.  The entries must be chosen from the Elites FOC.  It can be an entire unit or a single model.  I had originally planned on painting a Dreadnought or a Dark Angels Veteran squad; however, in order to keep things interesting, I decided to paint a Chaos Space Marine Terminator.  I've played a lot of games against a father and son who have a Chaos Space Marine army.  They've become my favorite opponent(s) and every game we've had has been enjoyable.  The son with the help of his father has come up with a great background for their Legion and has dubbed them the Claws of the Forgotten.  In an homage to this, I am going to buy the Chaos Terminator Lord kit and put together a suitably sinister looking Terminator using the Lightning Claws.  I plan on using one of the hooded heads that I have from my Dark Angels and then paint him up using my take on their color scheme of red, blue, and gold.  After the contest ends, I plan on gifting the Terminator to the son.  He seems to really enjoy my Deathwing Terminators so I think he'll take a liking to this guy.  Pictures will be posted as work progresses with this guy.

One final thing of note, the nerds have been pressuring me to get into Fantasy.  With my slow painting style and a large inventory of WH40K models to paint, I've been very hesitant.  I've been feeling the itch to play so I decided to give it a go and try my luck at Ogre Kingdoms.  If I don't enjoy playing them, I know I will certainly enjoy painting them.  I have no issues at all painting skin, which OK has a lot of, and it's possible to field a 500pt army with only ten or eleven models.  It sounds a lot like playing a Deathwing force.  So, once my change jar fills up, I'll be picking up an Ogre Kingdoms Battalion.

One Month Down

The first month of the Warhammer 40,000 Escalation League at my local Games Workshop comes to an end tomorrow and the point limit goes up to 750pts.  I have to say, I was very impressed with how I fared for not having played in a long while.  I ended first month with a record of 1-0-1.  My first match against the Iron Snakes from Codex: Space Marines was a win.  My second game against Chaos Space Marines ended in a tie.  I learned a lot from those two games and I'm confident that I can carry on what I learned into the next stent of the league.

My 500pt list consisted of the following:

Librarian - 65pts
Mastery Lvl1(Divination), Bolt Pistol, Force Sword

Tactical Squad - 150pts
Heavy Bolter

Tactical Squad - 150pts
Heavy Bolter

Ravenwing Attack Squad - 80pts

Ravenwing Attack Bike - 55pts
Multimelta

Here are my thoughts on my list and what I would change or do differently.

First, in regards to my HQ, I don't think I could have made a better choice, especially at such a small point level.  The Librarian and his squad worked wonders in both games that I played.  The sheer amount of accurate firepower that they were able to put out really allowed me to dominate my backfield.  Almost every turn I was able to cast Prescience.  Prescience alone makes it worth taking a Librarian.  I plan on keeping at least one Librarian in my list as I progress the league.  Again, I have nothing but good things to say about the Librarian.

In regards to the troops that I selected, I feel comfortable with what I selected.  They've done exactly what I intended for them to do, and that is to sit back and hold my objectives.  They're armed to take on infantry and put out a high number of shots.  Combined with the Prescience psychic power, they did this very well.  If I were to go back again, the only thing I would consider changing is the Heavy Weapon from a Heavy Bolter to a Missile Launcher or a Plasma Cannon.

On the the Ravenwing components of my list.  These were the most underwhelming units in my list.  That it not to say that Ravenwing Attack Squads are not good; however, they did not mesh well with my list at this low of a point level.  The Ravenwing Bikers really serve two main purposes.  They act as a very mobile Teleport Beacon for Deathwing Terminators and mobile anti armor when they're toting Meltaguns.  I had neither of those in my list so they really felt like they were a waste.  The Attack Bike did well.  It took out a Land Speeder, helped take out a Techmarine and Nurgle Lord which were both on bikes, and kept a Hellbrute at bay.  The only downside is that I had to invest in an 80pt biker squad to unlock it.  If I were to go back and do things over, I would have traded the RAS in for a Dreadnought or a tank.  Two Whirlwinds or a Predator Destructor comes to mind.  Any of those would have provided good long range fire support which is was the list really lacked.

In summary, I was happy with everything in my list except the the RAS.  The points spent on those could have been allocated to something more useful that worked well with the list at this level.  If I were to start the league over again and wanted to do something different, I would try for a mechanized list.

Until my next entry, thanks for reading!

Terminatus

As I've mentioned before, I am a terribly slow painter.  I've been working on a squad of Terminators for the Escalation League.  I'm very close to completing these guys.  I'm happy with how they've turned out so far.  Here is a taste of things to come.

Dominions: A Dark Angels Successor Chapter

Chapter Name:  Dominions
Primarch:  Lion El'Jonson
Chapter Master:  Nuriel Ignatium
Homeworld:  Empyrean
Colours:  Olive Drab
Specialty:  Negotiations and Siege Warfare
Battle Cry:  "In the light of the Emperor, we find truth!"

Dominions

The "Dominions" (lat. dominatio, plural dominationes, also translated from the Greek term kyriotites as "Lordships") or "Dominations" are presented as the hierarchy of celestial beings "Lordships" in the De Coelesti Hierarchia. The Dominions, also known as the Hashmallim, regulate the duties of lower angels. It is only with extreme rarity that the angelic lords make themselves physically known to humans. They are also the angels who preside over nations.

The Dominions are believed to look like divinely beautiful humans with a pair of feathered wings, much like the common representation of angels, but they may be distinguished from other groups by wielding orbs of light fastened to the heads of their scepters or on the pommel of their swords.

The Dominions have made a name for themselves deposing planetary governors whom they have deemed corrupt or ill suited to govern.  This has earned them several enemies.

More to come. . .