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Hello, everyone! Been a looong time since I posted in the WIP section of the board -- I'm not too good about sticking to regular updates at all, but a speciifc project should be doable for me, I think. I hope. But you all know what they say about hope.... :P Anyway, in the last couple months I came into possession of the Third Edition space marine codex, grabbed for seven bucks and change at a half price books, purely for historical reasons, since it's kind of useless to me game wise as I've never played any edition earlier than sixth and never read a rulebook earlier than fifth. In it, I saw the brief 'hey here's how to scratch build a watchtower' blurb and I thought, 'Hey, that's kinda cool. I should do that at some point!' Then, a few weeks ago, I came across another old book--The Games Workshop How to Make Wargames Terrain, for eight and change at, again, HPB. Not exactly sure which edition it is, because the cover doesn't match the one referenced in the marine 'dex, but still chock-full of great stuff that I plan to use. Now, I have a painting competition I'm currently participating in, and the organizer has approved the use of a small terrain piece to enhance the entry (which will hopefully get me out of basing a couple of my models, or at least the fact that they're coming from different parts of my army that will need to be based separately). So I thought, why not build one myself? Inspired by the watchtower in the SM codex, I mocked up a very rough draft for what I want it to be: A corrugated iron watchtower and gate, and little tiny battlements. Anything with a squiggle drawn in it is a solid piece, though I do plan on having a couple 'reinforced' aspects that are just the boxes on the drawing. The gaps in the watchtower are a firing port and the gap between the tower's battlement and roof. The next step is going to be dimensions, and maybe a bit more drafting, since I haven't done a lot with that yet. After that it'll be materials acquisition; thankfully I already have a cardboard box or two to cannibalize so I'll just need plasticard for the battlements, door, gate latch, and ladder. Does anyone have any tips for gluing cardboard together? My first thought is a hot glue gun but I don't think I'm allowed one in my current living quarters and I don't know if there are hobby shops that have them for free use--maybe a library might have some. Would superglue work? Anyway, I'll try and post here to keep people updated--please feel free to guilt me if I leave this untouched for a bit, since I'd hate to disappoint anyone (as a matter of fact that's largely how I pushed through my ETL's, not wanting to disappoint my subforum!).

Ok, running on fumes and with no formatting whatsoever, but I finally got commissar Muran finished last night and the slates written up. Let's get started, shall we? HQ. Power: 6 Colonel Zevan Zenara: 70 points points: no: Name M WS BS S T W A Ld Sv 1 Col. Zenara 6" 3+ 3+ 3 3 4 4 9 4+ weapon: range type S AP D plasma pistol 12" Pistol 1 7 -3 1 (overcharged) 12" Pistol 1 8 -3 2. an unmofified hitroll of 1 with this profile destroys the bearer after shooting this weapon. power sword - melee U frag grenade 6" grenade d6 3 No wargear options Abilities: Voice of Command Hatred (Orks): may reroll all hit rolls against Orks Refractor Field Senior Officer Regimental Commander: This Model must be your Warlord, unless an <Imperium> <Supreme Commander> is in your army. This model grants a single Command Point if your army is Battleforged Mechanized Commander: This Model can issue orders while embarked in a <Cantorellian 23rd> or <Cantorellian SEAL Team> dedicated Transport (measuring ranges from any point on the vehicle) and is treated as being within 3" of a Vox-Caster. when doing so, these orders can only be issued to friendly <Cantorellian 23rd> or <Cantorellian SEAL Team> units. Warlord Trait: Old Grudges A consummate commander, and a lifelong mecnanized infantry officer, the Colonel was recently wounded in action prior to the attachment of my company to his regiment for the upcoming campaign. His current augmetic is of fairly high quality, and has not much diminished his reputed swordsmanship skills--which are only fair-to-middling by my own standards, but against his own men and other mortals, he seems to do fairly well. His strategies are also decently competent, or at least not glaringly incompetent. I trust his command instincts, and while a part of me chafes at submitting to an authority other than my Shogun, the more rational part of me makes it clear to me that he is capable of overseeing strategic command of our operations. Commissar Nykkole Muran: 5 power, 60 points No Name M WS BS S T W A Ld Sv 1 Commissar Muran 6" 2+ 3+ 3 3 4 3 9 4+ Wargear: Plasma pistol (see Codex: Astra Militarum) power lance: S+1, AP-3, 1 Damage. This weapon has D3+1 damage if the user charged or was charged this turn Abilities: Aura of Discipline, Refractor Field, Summary Execution (see Codex: Astra Militarum) Bionic eye: this model may reroll a single failed hit roll of one per phase. As I have previously noted in other dataslates, the senior commissar is not overly...anything to anyone in the regiment, except perhaps somewhat harsh. She maintains good discipline of herself and her troops, practices martial exercises as laid out in Imperial handbooks, and keeps mostly to herself. In my few interactions with her--mainly disciplinary in nature, dealing with minor pranks and inconveniences caused by her men--she has been curt, but there is something behind the facade of duty, which I am unable to discern. Perhaps her aide, Lieutenant Cythos, would be willing to discuss it with me or a Scout operative. But then perhaps not. And I have little reason to pry. Techpriest Dak-323/mk12: power: 3 points: 45 No Name M WS BS S T W A Ld Sv 1 Enginseer Dak-323/mk12 6 3+ 4+ 4 4 4 3 8 3+ wargear: laspistol, omnissiahan axe, servo-arm (see Codex: astra militarum) abilities: bionics, Master of Machines (see codex astra militarum) Sentinel Caretaker: when performing the Master of Machines ability, if the Target is a <Cantorellian 23rd> Sentinel, then you may treat a roll of 1 or 2 on the D6 as a 3 (so the model would regain 2 wounds). One of the more field-deployable enginseers the regiment employs. I am given to understand that Dak-323/mk12 (hereafter referred to as Dak-323, or they, by their own request) is one of the few remaining enginseers from the Dolrunus regiment. While they are a capable techpriest, I find that their most pleasing quality is their obesience to those they percieves to be above them in the pecking order. After three and a half centuries of being snubbed by all but a scant few Mechanicus personnel, I find an irrational pleasure in having one show me and my company the respect we deserve. Dak-323 has already, on my orders, effected repairs on thirteen percent of our current armoury, blessed and improved seventy four percent of our armours and weapons, and ensured of their own volition that a portion of fuel and ammunition reserves be transferred in excess of required Astartes-Mechanicus treaty. Of all the Cantorellian troopers and personnel, I think that I find them my favorite (aside from Pvt. Mellenkamp, who is growing on me like some kind of fungus).

I've got my Iron Gauntlet batrep ready to go! I will be sharing a game I played against myself between my Guard and my Necrons. I played somewhat fast and loose with the rules (no dynastic codes, no CP, none of the silly little command protocols, I barely touched orders, i ignored minimum game board size as you will likely see) as this was mostly a narrative game. The two rhinos are proxies for basic-loadout chimerae, which I felt were needed for both balance purposes and lore reasons. But first, lore! -- “This moon is barely habitable to all life, Warden,” grated Disgraced Prince Rakszan. “How are these...hew-mons...making battle upon it?” Cryptwarden Merisekh shook her head. “It is unknown, Prince. Perhaps they have adaptations.” “Adaptations? For a planetoid with a thin atmosphere and radiation blasted? They must be exceptionally strong adaptations. The Necrontyr, they would have died here quickly, weaklings that they were. Tell me, how did your master claim this place prior to biotransference?” “Our master,” Merisekh said, emphasizing the nature of the new relationship between Rakszan and her Phaeron, “Acquired this moon when it was still in orbit of a secondary coreworld and therefore held a stronger atmosphere. 60 million years is sufficient for such things to degrade, especially when coupled with Aeldari interference,” the Cryptwarden spat. “They are truly detestable,” Rakszan agreed. “Still, we must repel these invaders from our lord’s holdings. What appears to be their objective?” Merisekh conjured a display, showing the strategic situation of the matters at hand. “A techno-viral listening strain has confirmed that what appears to be the main thrust of their assault is targeting this secondary tomb complex entrance;” she indicated with a gesture, “and there are harrying strikes occurring here, here, and here.” Rakszan leaned forward from his throne--a vanity, perhaps, but such was a thing all but a very rare few Necron nobles were prone to--and reviewed the map. “Our forces do not appear to be mounting much of a defense.” “Our forces are limited, Prince. Whoever is commanding these hew-mons is intelligent, and grasps well the concept of attacking where the enemy is not. We cannot respond to all of these attacks at once.” “And why not?” he demanded. “Because whatever lord or lordess fished you out of the hyperspace hellholes wasn’t completely in our Lord’s favor at the time, and therefore he was predisposed to dislike you. As such, you were given limited resources, which were in no particular order, two legions, a hunting party, three raiders and a light cruiser, and oversight. That is the extent of your resources, my lord, and if you are incapable of fulfilling our master’s demands then I am well within my rights to sever this partnership.” Her claws drummed pointedly on the hilt of her relic gauss blaster. “Now, if you do not wish to have that happen,” Merisekh growled, “you will listen to my advice like a good noble, and not whine when things do not go your way. “...What. Do you. Suggest.” he ground out. “I recommend pulling our forces away from the outlying defensive posts. They are spreading us too thin, and this mechanized force is capable of smashing through them. A more concentrated stand at the tomb entrance should better allow us to withstand the assault.” She cocked her head. “Of course, even then, you will be required to stand in defense of this complex yourself.” It was almost said as a challenge. “Of course.” He wasn’t going to rise to it, however. Rakszan had enough problems without adding the anger of his watcher to them. And now, the army shots. I may misplace a couple shots, but I think I will largely get them in chronological order at least. I was also certain I had a deployment pic but I guess not. Turn One Guard: The Cantorellian 23rd took the first turn as slaves to narrative. Chimeras advance. Limited Leman Russ fire and sentinel lascannon support kill one scarab. Turn One Necrons: The Necrons advance. The Guard thought they were facing the bulk of the remaining defenders, but they were all deceived, for another entrance to the tomb was made. Another phalanx of necron warriors appeared in the heights above, where ancient ruins once stood. They opened fire, their weapons plinking off the armor of the Leman Russ. Their comrades were more successful, dealing concerning but not serious damage to the chimera with the help of the ascendant prince. The scarabs closed the distance and encircled a Chimera, eating into its armor.

Heeeeeey Everybody, with the advent of ETL I've decided to open my own ETL plog. So, some background. I've been collecting for several years, playing off and on as I've found time/opponents. Space marines were my first army, and my first model was a land raider redeemer. It took me a year to build and paint the bloody thing (chassis assembly, mainly), by which point I had painted at least a few other models. Soon after, necrons followed, led by a catacomb command barge. Soon after, they expanded, then everything kind of hit a halt for a while, both marines and necrons, but my love of lore-writing certainly did not. Somewhere in here I discovered the Bolter and Chainsword, joined, accidentally...well insulted isn't right, but had a very awkward moment with a mod, attempted the Iron Gauntlet (we're still waiting on that judgement, Olis, if you see this), and then that took me to day. Dark Imperium was purchased when it came out, which prompted a flurry of new lore-scribblings about my chapter and the primaris, painted up, and has mostly sat dormant for lack of games to play. ETL has inspired me to majorly expand my necrons, with a possible out-of-competition marine vow to finish a half-painted unit. I'll try to be documenting everything from here on out. Photos of my collection in detail will follow, for now i will post my 'forum Christmas card' for a majorly out of focus shot. Anyway, here's my current WIP progress vow for ETL. One single character, this is my Deathmark Vizier Rezak the Executioner. I'm rather proud of the conversion work I've been able to do on the model, despite the fact it's mostly been done on his gun XP. I won't always think to update this in future, so some prodding from anyone who reads may be helpful. Cheers, D-P Lenoch.

Index Astartes (poor painting skills aside, this is a decent representation of the symbol: red sun with a pair of crossed blades on a field of white.) The Dawn Blades Space Marines Chapter Origins Established as part of the 18th Founding, the Dawn Blades were created as a response to a massive ork Waaagh to retake the subsector of Ocrod in the Ultima Segmentum, and stand watch in the Segmentum in defiance of the Emperor's enemies. What followed was a long and brutal war three centuries long that saw the loss of more than two hundred marines over the duration. Upon the conclusion of the crusade (which had been backed by a multitude of other Imperial forces), the chapter declined the offer of a homeworld, instead choosing to stay fleetbound as they had for three centuries. The chapter's designation sprung from their actions, as a predilection for early-morning raids led to rescued civilians and beleaguered Imperial forces to claim that they had been rescued by the Dawn itself. Over time as the sentiment repeated itself throughout the sector, the chapter adapted to it, and adopted it as their chapter name. In the time since their inception, the Dawn Blades have crusaded throughout the Ultima Segmentum, seeking and destroying the enemies of the Imperium wherever they were to be found, striking at the edge of the sunrise as they have for millennia. Home World/Homeworld The Dawn Blades do not maintain a homeworld, being fleet-based, but they do have a favored recruiting world, Ocrod Tertius, a world of desert wastes and hardy settlements, the central administration planet of the system, subsector, and sector, all named for their capital world. The planet allows the chapter to maintain a recruitment platform and a shipyard in orbit, in exchange for routine sweeps of the planet for feral orks that pop up from time to time as well as continued defense of the planet against any other hostile attackers, a duty the chapter gladly fulfills. In lieu of a fortress-monastery, the lord of the chapter (currently Shogun Kujo Kamakura) has his seat of power aboard the battle barque Shogun's Might as both lord and captain. The battle barque has housing for the entire chapter, though it can only support up to three companies and the Forge in operational matters. Combat Doctrine The Dawn Blades tend to favor overwhelming strikes, committing their entire force to one overwhelming strike, in order to swiftly defeat their foes. The tactic harkens back to the blitzkrieg strategies that the chapter used at its inception to retake the Ocrod Sector from Ork control, executing the first strike and leaving the remaining mess for the Imperial Guard and Navy to clean up. They also have a cultural predicilction for early-morning attacks, as might be guessed by their name. When a swift blow fails to end the war in their favor, the Dawn Blades settle into a more adaptive, calculated operational pattern more favored by their forefathers the Iron Hands. Their stubbornness and tenacity is well-embodied in the Dawn Blades, who are unrelenting in their assault once it has begun. Organization/Organisation The chapter is, for the most part, organized along the lines of the Codex Astartes, with a few exceptions. Fourth Company has fallen out of use as a true Battle Company, instead functioning as the chapter's penitential unit. Its size fluctuates from decade to decade as marines from across the chapter see themselves as fallen from the light, a Fallen Dawn (as they were coined by an unnamed sergeant of Captain Arual Valpas's company when they set out with him to fulfill oaths of redemption sworn after a particularly embarrassing and bloody defeat). The Fallen Dawn operate out of the Strike Cruiser Blade of Martyrs, 4th company's Strike Cruiser. Companies rotate Hearth duty, in which a company returns to the Chapter Barque for several reasons. One is garrison duty--after all, the Shogun's Might is the chapter's home, and needs protecting as much as a fortress-monastery would on a planet. This also allows for the company's vessel to be refit and repaired at one of the many imperial worlds the Dawn Blades have recruitment and resource agreements with, as well as downtime for the company's marines. 10th Company does not have its own capital ship, but does have several escort-class vessels it uses for recruitment and defensive purposes--a void platform is maintained above the chapter's primary recruitment world of Ocrod Tertius for training and housing purposes, and there is always at least a demi-squadron of ships prowling about it at any given time. The chapter Armory has also operated, sometimes against the recommendation of the Shogun, as its own independent force, especially under the command of Master of the Forge Ceticus Stormmoon, who has always been war-hungry. When the Primaris were added to the chapter, they were assigned to the Forge to test their mettle at the insistence of Stormmoon, who merely saw the new-bloods as tools for war, thinking though they may have been. To mark their status as part of the armory and machines of war, the Primaris of the chapter paint their right shoulderpad a deep red. The 1st Company is called Samurai by internal tradition,(a term whose origin the chapter's history does not record), and paint their armor a gleaming silver. Captains who rise from the Samurai Company are entitled to the title of Daimyo instead of the title of Captain, to mark their status above the others. As a break from the norm, and perhaps the most egregious break with the Codex Astartes, the chapter's honor guard, the Shinsengumi (idiomatically translated from Frensan as 'Arrows of the Shogun') are instead spread throughout the chapter, one accompanying each company as an advisor and champion. The first of these is known as the Saisho-Shinsengumi, and functions as the chapter champion and the bodyguard of the Shogun himself. Each is armed with relic weapons known as an Edge of Dawn as well as their own personal weapons. Beliefs and Traditions The chapter's name for the Emperor, Solis-Imperator, springs from a combination of the chapter's own name, a belief that they are manifestations of the dawn, and several worlds whose local religions of a sun god and the surrounding pantheon were in fact the Emperor and his many sons. This mutated over time to become the current warrior cult of the Chapter as it enters the 42nd millennium. While the chapter does not view the Solis-Imperator as a total deity, they do have a belief in his power and his authority as undisputed ruler of the Imperium. Outside of their warrior cult, the Dawn Blades also have three traditions ingrained in chapter memory from their reconquest of the Ocrod Sector, each taken from worlds that made a particular impression on the chapter. Tradition of the Forge: one of the recruitment trials for Dawn Blades recruits includes the forging of their own blade, which they then use in duels to determine martial prowess amongst the candidates to determine who is most worthy. This initial test teaches a recruit the value of their own wargear, and how a warrior is only as good as his blade. Each Dawn Blade is a competent weaponsmith, and will personally craft, modify, or otherwise be bent over an anvil for hours on end to improve their weaponry. Tradition of the Arts: the Dawn Blades have a curious predilection for beauty in the martial. Many marines will, in the tradition of the forge, embellish and beautify their own weapons, for the Solis-Imperator deserves only perfection in war. Other marines are renowned throughout the chapter and subsector as creators of devotional artwork, as well as more peaceful scenes that are used as focuses for meditation, in order to sharpen the mind for war. Still others pen hymns and poems to glorify the lord of the Imperium. Tradition of Xenia: Whenever Imperial delegates or other Astartes come aboard a Dawn Blades vessel, or the rare occasion when xenos like Eldar seek to make a temporary alliance, the fullest hospitality is extended to them (though very begrudgingly in some cases). This tends to include a welcoming feast, an offer of repair and resupply, and a gift given as proof of openness and willingness to be open. Institutions that have longstanding relationships with the chapter often extend the same courtesies to Dawn Blades personnel, which has led to the chapter and its warriors obtaining some very interesting (and on some occasions unwanted--but never rejected) wargear. Gene-seed/Geneseed The Dawn Blade's gene-seed is very pure for its age, and the only noted deviation from normal gene-seed is a remarkable stubbornness and refusal to give in, which is inherent in the Iron Hands gene-line. It is noted that this stubbornness of mind also leads to the chapter having a simple refusal to die, which results in many marines shrugging off wounds that should have killed them long enough for an Apothecary to reach them, or simply fighting until they keel over from a million and one wounds. As such, the chapter has few dreadnoughts, and those that it does have are treated as practically divine manifestations of the Solis-Imperator's will, due to their rarity in the chapter. Battle-cry "Nam Claritas Solis-Imperator" Idiomatically translated from High Gothic as 'for the glory of the Sun-Emperor'. USING A DAWN BLADES ARMY IN WARHAMMER 40,000 Links to chapter characters: LINK Notes/Admin: 11/1/19: HEY I HAVE A BASIC IA DONE FOR THESE GUYS (reformmated from my Iron Gauntlet entry a few years ago)! Will be updated as time goes on for the LASC, but after I add images I'd say this is good for now, just need chapter symbol.