New Necromunda Goliath Gang - The build

Another completely out of sequence post here, this time with my work in progress Goliath gangers!

Sadly, I think I went too small with the axe.

Like a lot of people, I'm really excited for the release of the new Necromunda in November. So much so that I asked Blazmo over at Tabletop Apocalypse if he wanted to split the box set for Christmas. The answer was a resounding yes and, after some discussion, we decided that he would take the Escher gangers and I would be left with the burly Goliaths. Just kidding, there's nothing I like better than a muscular guy, festooned with piercings and slathered in baby oil...........but maybe that's a discussion for another time.


At any rate, I figured it would be nice to get a quick game or two in on Christmas day rather than just sitting and building miniatures. So I hatched a plan to build and paint a small gang before Christmas so that we would be ready for our first games on the day. These guys are the result of that plan.

The beginnings of a gang - you only need 3 models!

Obviously they are based on the Age of Sigmar, Khorne Blood Reavers but with various bits and pieces added. In terms of weaponry I am left in a bit of a quandary, I don't want to build anything that will be illegal under the new rules but that leaves me with limited options. The miniatures that have been leaked so far seem to be armed with peculiar things that didn't exist under the old ruleset. The one thing we know for sure is that a plasma pistol will be legal, so I've used one for my leader (even though it's illegal under the old rules!)


I've also gone for a ganger with a massive chainaxe (with pistol back up) and a juve with a stub pistol and axe (and maybe some frag grenades). I'm playing it pretty safe (and pretty short ranged) but I don't want to end up with miniatures that I can't use. After all, that would defeat the object entirely.

The leader, as yet unnamed.

Rear of the year!

I'm pretty pleased with how they've come together so far. They look more like a group of Unity era techno-barbarians than gangers but maybe those are one and the same thing?


I'm determined to paint them in bright, clashing colours in honour of the classic 90s style of the original game. That's going to be a challenge for me as I'm much more comfortable with GW's modern 'grimdark' style. Stay tuned to see if I build any more and if I get around to actually painting them!

BERSERKERBLADE - Now on Instagram!

The post title pretty much says it all. That's right, you can now keep up with my seemingly random hobby exploits on Instagram. Isn't technology wonderful?? Seriously, that's not rhetorical, go answer in the comments....

That plasma cannon also includes a camera.

In an increasingly busy life, it's becoming more difficult to keep posting quality content to this blog. So if you want to see some more of my exploits, click the link! https://www.instagram.com/carnage_x_scissors/

Hobby Butterfly - Horus Heresy Night Lords Legion Praetor

As some of you may have realized by now, I am a bit of a hobby butterfly. Despite my commitment to building and painting Tyranids for 8th edition I have gone somewhat off piste and started fiddling with my Night Lords again. What can I say? Sometimes a project just calls to you and I am always too weak to resist.

Ahriman?? Never heard of her!

I've had the Ahriman miniature from Burning of Prospero hanging around for a long time (since the release day in fact!). I had a few ideas of what to do with him but nothing that ever materialized into a plan. However, on a whim, I started cutting the parts off the sprue and before you know it, the terrifying vision above was born! The tricky part is that, unlike the other miniatures from the Burning of Prospero, this guy screams 'Thousand Sons'. The miniature is absolutely covered with scarabs, runes, scrolls and other sorcerous paraphernalia. Perfect for the planet of the Sorcerers, but not very fitting for a son of the Eighth Legion! This led to a great deal of cutting and scraping with the hobby knife to remove the symbols from his shoulder guards and chest. I also removed the scarabs from his staff and replaced them with a couple of skulls. Thank you polystyrene cement!!


The larger bits of conversion are more obvious. I cut away the kopesh blade from the top of the staff and replaced it with a thunder edge pattern chainsword to make a massive Nostraman Chainglaive. The reaching hand was replaced with a bolt pistol and the head was replaced with one from the ancient GW Night Lords conversion kit.


I'm not quite finished with the build just yet. A few areas need a bit of green stuff and I want to add a few more grisly trophies. However, I am looking forward to getting some paint on him to really bring the model to life.


Stay tuned for the next installment where I will undoubtedly have gone off on another tangent and be kitbashing some other random miniature.

New 8th Edition Tyranids - The Red Terror

Continuing with my updates to the new Tyranid army I am creating for 8th edition, I proudly present The Red Terror!

So old, so metal!

It seems funny to have built and painted a classic model from third edition specially for eighth but I couldn't resist. Generally I don't care for the style of Tyranids from third edition, they were going through an awkward phase and most of them looked decidedly peculiar, even at the time. However, the Red Terror has found a special place in my heart, and my army.


I didn't buy this model intentionally, he just appeared in a bundle of cheap Tyranids I bought on Ebay. As with most Ebay purchases, it appeared he had had several previous owners and was caked in layers of 'interestingly applied' paint. However I must have seen something in the model as I soaked him in Dettol for a couple of months (probably unnecessary but I always forget to take things out of the Dettol.) After the paint was stripped and I had picked the plasticene out of the joints (why do people do that!?) it was a pretty simple job to rebuild and get on with the painting.

Love that tail.

As for the rebuild, I have recently acquired a set of sector Imperialis bases so it seemed criminal not to use one. Especially as the model is a bit big for the 40mm that it was originally supplied with. I was pretty pleased with the base, going for a brassy effect alongside my usual concrete rubble look.


As for the Terror himself, it's my standard scheme again. A dark red, some black wash, a light blue and a bit of scorpion green. So simple it should be illegal! But I'm happy with the result.

Rawr!

 In game terms, the Red Terror acts as a force multiplier for nearby Raveners allowing them to hit on 2+ with their close combat attacks. Although I have yet to field the Red Terror, I have found that this is a powerful ability for Tyranid Warriors and Primes as they can re-roll hit rolls of 1 with their scything talons. Basically ensuring that all your attacks hit all of the time!


The Red Terror also has a funny bonus ability called Swallow Whole. Essentially if you score four or more hits in melee then you can exchange all of those attacks to roll a single dice. If the result is equal or higher than the highest wounds characteristic of the target unit then one of them is killed instantly. This seems like a nice bonus ability that probably doesn't have too much of an application in game. You could probably use it to pick off heavily armoured two wound models (terminators, primaris marines etc.) but realistically it's never going to be a game changer.


The observant amongst you may notice that this model isn't part of my planned fifty power level list. Unfortunately I had started painting him before I figured out the list and it just seemed a shame to stop. Rest assured that my next post will be squarely back on Target as I'm working on some Tyrant Guard for the new army.


If you want to read my previous post you can catch up here.
  

Fugly miniature Friday - Amon of the Thousand Sons

I just got the Forgeworld newsletter including this guy.




Mah name amm Amomm!

Amon of the Thousand Sons, the latest effort in the Horus Heresy character series. Now, in my humble opinion, the Horus Heresy characters seem to run the gambit between very nice detailed models and very hideous detailed models. For me, this guy certainly falls towards the lower end of the spectrum. There's nothing really wrong with the pose or most of the miniature but seriously, that face! He looks like some sort of bio-engineered weasel man!! So much so, that it prompted me to use another recent Forgeworld release (who shall remain nameless) to make the following thing of beauty.

I think it's an improvement

Actually I think this looks so good that I might buy both models just so I can build the conversion.

New 8th Edition Tyranids - Stone Crusher Carnifex

As promised, I'm back with an update on my new Tyranids for 8th edition. Earlier this week I posted about my plans for a new list and got all giddy about the new edition of 40k, you can read all about it here. Things have gone well so far and I'm proud to present my finished Stone Crusher Carnifex.

So spiky!!

This has been my one concession to new miniatures within the new army. I was picking up Imperial Armour: Index Xenos from Forgeworld and I just totally caved. The next thing I know, I'm the proud owner of a Stone Crusher, but on the plus side, at least I managed to paint it!


As far as painting goes it's my standard Tyranids colour scheme. The scheme is horribly basic as it was my first 40k army and I needed it to be easy to paint. Essentially, all the fleshy parts are painted red and then washed with Nuln Oil. All the chitinous parts are painted white and the given a heavy wash with a pale blue (1:1 Ultramarines blue and white). From there, a few details are picked out in scorpion green and some in pink and it's done. Incredibly simple but it gives a nice result for the amount of time spent, it's an immensely rewarding colour scheme in that way.

I love the wrecker claws.

I've been painting Tyranids like this since 2008, shockingly that's almost ten years and I don't have nearly enough painted models to show for it. It does mean that next year is my Tyranniversary so I should probably plan something special for that!


As for the stone crusher itself, it looks good in the new edition. The paired wrecker claws allow it to re-roll hits and wounds against vehicles and with strength 12 and an AP of -3 it should be putting down some serious damage! Not only that, it's one power level cheaper than a standard Carnifex. I'm not sure if this is an error or if it works out cheaper because you can't change the weapon loadouts much.

Anybody remember these old paint pots?

As you can see I went for the paired wrecker claws instead of the bio-flail option. I hadn't seen the rules when I placed the order but I've always loved the look of the wreckers so I was pleasantly surprised to find out that they're quite decent on the tabletop.


Unfortunately, the photography isn't that great. A couple of things contributed to this. Firstly, the miniature itself has awkward dimensions. The carapace rams and the large scythe tail make it incredibly long and so it was hard to find a focused perspective. Secondly, I've had some building work done at home and so my hobby area is in complete disarray. The photo set up was a bit rushed together.


Nonetheless, I hope you've enjoyed seeing my first efforts on the new swarm. Hopefully I will have something more to share in the next few days.

New 8th Edition Tyranids - A new edition, a new swarm

So the new edition has well and truly landed (and disembarked, guns blazing!) and I'm feeling truly reinvigorated. Seeing the new rules inspired me to drag out my old Tyranids and after a couple of games I'm well and truly hooked.

The Tervigon - back from the grave!

 So hooked in fact that I've decided to build and paint a new Tyranid army from scratch using my old colour scheme. Last week I've had a frenzied week of building using only old models I had lying around. I've put together a new Hive Tyrant, two Carnifexes, two Biovores, three Tyrant Guard and hauled a  swarm of Gaunts out of retirement. I've also begun painting in earnest, making good progress with my Stone Crusher Carnifex and the Red Terror.


The planned 50 Power list will look something like:


Tervigon
Hive Tyrant (Stranglethorn cannon and boneswords)
3 x Tyranid Warriors (Boneswords and devourers)
10 x Termagants
10 x Termagants
3 x Tyrant Guard (Rending claws and Scything Talons)
Stone Crusher Carnifex (2 x Wrecker Claws)
Biovore
Biovore


I'm not sure how effective that will be on the table, but given that I've enjoyed playing the Tyranids so much, I'm sure it will be a blast.

Also Tervigon

Stay tuned for more updates this month as I try to paint the swarm of freshly undercoated gribblies that have invaded my painting table.