Screaming Eagles WIP

[RWJP]

Easy Company fought in and around Bastogne, as well as Foy, and Neuville. Although there are plenty of other built up areas they fought in (albeit not in the snow) such as Neunen in Holland. Just a thought, but if you are doing a large number of these chaps, why not do some different bases, perhaps one style per company... I'm pretty sure it would be possible to do some brilliant Normandy Beach style dioramas for example.

 

Other than that the model looks cool, and this is a brilliant project.

[LoneWolven]

Sounds good LoneWolven. I may just use that tutorial myself...

 

I think it was the battle for Foy more than anything that Easy took part in when doing the battle in built up areas during the Ardennes. Surely you must include in the chapter's history the captain of the 4th (Dog) running through the enemy lines to contact the 6th (Fox) company behind the enemy?

 

Are you going to have the markings from the helmets of the 101st anywhere? (ie the spade on Easy's helmet and the circle for Able)

 

Cambrius

 

Cambrius, love all the ideas you are giving me. You are correct that it was the the forest near Foy that Easy saw the most action. You are just more specific than I am ;). There will for SURE be a Lt. Spears who makes a heroic run through enemy lines to link up with the other company. Probably my favorite narrative in the entire series. He also ends up becoming the leader of Easy Company after replacing Lt. Dyke aka Foxhole Norman. Lol that might be a funny character to do for fun, if Space marines actually had bad commanders.

 

And yes, I will be including the Spade, not sure if on the helmet or somewhere else. I'll paint up an idea and see how we like it.

 

@Corus Belial: Sorry mate didn't see your post at first. I kinda like the idea of doing different bases for the different squads. While all the units I am doing will be from Easy Company (so no company variation) it still might be fun. However I do like the idea of keeping it consistent through the whole army. On the other hand it will give me a chance to break up from repeating the same bases 40+ times... And a side note, Easy Company never fought on the beaches, they flew over them and landed in the rear, which was hedgerow terrain as well as marshes flooded by the germans. Lots of colorful base ideas there, but I wanted to stay away from the green based areas that wouldn't compliment the armor :)

[Brother Cambrius]

I think on the knee-pad would do best for the Spade. Perhaps an honour marking?

 

Cambrius

[LoneWolven]

I think on the knee-pad would do best for the Spade. Perhaps an honour marking?

 

Cambrius

 

I like that idea. I'm going to move the squad number to the right shoulder pad, mixed in with the Tac Squad symbol. Then put the spade on the right knee. This will give me:

1 - Division Marking (Screaming Eagles chapter name)

2 - Regiment Marking (506th which is the Spade)

3 - Company Marking (Still need ideas for this. I might do the squad marking just to the right of the squad type mark on the right shoulder, then perhaps an "E" just to the left of the squad type for company)

4 - Squad Marking (Number on right shoulder pad)

5 - Rank Marking (Chevrons on right knee pad - other indications for officers will exists on helmets too)

 

For the officers I want to do white helmets. Or at least a white top stripe.

[Brother Cambrius]

Just remember when you've got a commander, you want to make him much more visible and noticed by his battle brethren so that they can find their leader and follow him. Same with the sergeants as finding who people are beneath full face helmets can be tricky. :P

 

Cambrius

[LoneWolven]

Very true. Thats why I was thinking perhaps just the top 'vent' thing white for squad officers (NCO's) and then full white helmets for upper ranking officers like commanders. I was about to say for Veterans as well but they may just get a white helmet stripe. Also thinking of doing white shoulder pad borders for the officers.

[Brother Cambrius]

Yeah I would reccomend perhaps changing the colour of the shoulderpad for sergeants etc. Perhaps white for veteran, gold for command and a khaki colour for the sergeants.

 

How does that sound? It would help the guys spot it better than looking for a stripe which could be hard to see in the smoke etc.

 

Cambrius

[Midas]

Go 101st, love it.

[LoneWolven]

Ok have been busy with a big accounting project but have some pictures of my free-hand Division, Squad, and Company markings. I really like the chalky look the white gives. Really looks like it was drawn on by the soldiers. This soldier is from 1st Squad, Easy Company, 506th Regiment.

Enjoy...

[Marshall Costello]

I like the markings that you've chosen to use.

 

Nice work.

[AngryJohnny]

Agreed! I really like how you've done the markings & your green. Would you mind sharing you technique/recipe? What color are you using for the base green & the highlights & how exactly are you thinning your paints? My chapter is supposed to use the same green that you've got on your marines but mine aren't coming out as well as yours are (gallery in my signature) I like how even your paint has come out & would appreciate your pointers.

 

I might also have to snag your rate/rank marking on the left knee to denote my Squad leaders. :ph34r:

 

Very true. Thats why I was thinking perhaps just the top 'vent' thing white for squad officers (NCO's) and then full white helmets for upper ranking officers like commanders. I was about to say for Veterans as well but they may just get a white helmet stripe. Also thinking of doing white shoulder pad borders for the officers.

I think doing a white stripe on the helmets for the sergeants & veterans & a full white or gold helmet, or maybe just a gold helmet stripe, for your officers would look really good with your current scheme. I think if you did the shoulder pad trim in white it would start to look busy on the shoulders because your squad & company markings are in white. Having the green shoulder trim helps to have your existing squad marking stand out. My suggestion would be to either do the helmet stripes or just continue with the rate/rank markings on the left knee. My $0.02

 

*Edit - Spelling & after thoughts

[LoneWolven]

@ AngryJohnny: Thanks for the props man, I am really pleased with how they are coming out. For the green I first base coat in chaos black spray. Then I paint Catachan Green over all the armor. I really water this first coat down, not to the point of being like a wash, but to where it is very fluid paint. After that coat dries, I go back with Catachan Green again, generally with the same consistency. That usually gives me the coverage you see in the pictures. I then wash the crevices with Chaos Black, and touch up anywhere the wash went astray with Catachan again. For hi-lighting I did a custom mix of Catachan Green and Camo Green. However I think the pot of Camo Green I have is slightly brighter than it should be. Either way just mix it until you are happy with the contrast. I had to try 3 times before I liked it.

 

For my markings I first lay down a basecoat of Codex Grey in the shape of the icon I am painting (chevrons, spade, squad number, ect.) This lets me sketch out the idea, and it is easy to cover up if I mess up. Once I am happy I go over it with Skull White or Golden Yellow. I try to thin the paints pretty well on these and sometimes it takes a few coats to get it right. However the result is a nice 'chalked-on' look that fits my WWII theme perfectly.

 

For the rank markings I actually really like your idea and agree with you. The white on the trim might over do it. I'll try the first officer without it, cuz I can always add it later. I'm going to stick with white head vent for NCO's and white helmet for Commissioned Officers. The rank will always be on their left knee. Going to be fun painting the stars on my commanders :tu:

[Brother Cambrius]

Nice LoneWolven. I look forward to the sergeant and the commander. Will there be the stars of honour on any of the marines (based on the Bronze and Silver stars)?

 

Cambrius

[RWJP]

Wow, sorry about the beaches mistake... I dunno what I was doing there... Having done a project on them recently for School I shouldn't have made that slip of the tongue...

 

Meanwhile, back to the model. The insignia is perfect! I might have to steal this and create a few marines of my own in this scheme :P

 

Keep up the good work, I can't wait to see a commander...

[LoneWolven]

Alright, finished my big accounting project which gave me some time to finish another marine. The real challenge for me here was getting the icons close to identical. Quite a task. I think they turned out pretty well. I also added ammo pouches and a nice bit of scroll to the back of this guy. I am loving how my scribbled text is looking. Never anticipated it would turn out this well. I may start adding some armor writing here and there, just for character.

 

Anyway I think this guy is much better, cleaner lines, better highlight on the gun and he took less time to do. I was able to combine 4 steps into one by waiting to wash the armor, all the metals and joint piping all at once. Next I will be building the rest of the squad, without the heavy weapon choice, and painting them all at once. This way I will get a better idea of how long this will take me and you guys will get to see a finished squad sooner. For the sergeant I am giving him a bolter, plasma pistol and a power fist.

 

For grenades I had a fun idea. Frag will of course look the same because it is close enough. However for Krak and/or Melta Bombs, I'm going to model small sticks of TNT charges like they actually used in WWII. Here is a link to an image for the idea. I figure just a squared stick of green stuff will be easy to do and add a lot more character.

 

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q291/beckatusc/Private2a.jpg

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q291/beckatusc/Private2b.jpg

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q291/beckatusc/Private2c.jpg

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q291/beckatusc/Private2d.jpg

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q291/beckatusc/Private2f.jpg

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q291/beckatusc/Private2g.jpg

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q291/beckatusc/Private2i.jpg

[AngryJohnny]

Well done! It looks very sharp. I really like your marines & think that the minor imperfections on the squad markings give it a more personal feel as if the marine pridefully applied his squad & unit markings to his own armor. That being said I would actually say that maybe you shouldn't try so hard at having your icons close to identical.

 

For the Krak grenades I like your idea of the TNT stick. You could also go to the hobby store & pick up some styrene rod & just cut those to size rather than messing with GS (unless you like using GS) Also, I've seen weapon accessory pack for WWII dioramas at the hobby stores, that might have some TNT plastics like you're going for already made - not sure about the scale though.

 

BTW - thanks for the input on how you paint your green. I'm going to try to not thing my paint quite as much as I think I may be thinning too much. Each coat I put on my marines is about the consistency of a wash & takes me about 4-5 layers to get coverage. I've got another question if you don't mind, how are you doing your black lining on your models, it really looks good on this latest marine. Are you leaving bits of black from your base coat or are you going back & applying some paint or ink?

[LoneWolven]

Thanks for the input Johnny, I actually already have some styrene that I could use, But we will see which works better: GS or Styrene. I like that with GS it is going to be easier to get the rounded edges as well as that slight rim at the top and bottom but we will see.

 

Going back to what I said about adding personal icons, slogans and such to their armor, I agree with your idea of not making the markings 100% identical. A little stress off my back as well :geek:

 

No problem for the green method. As I said it only takes me 2 coats for mine, and the 1st one gets pretty decent coverage, the 2nd is to just make it even. So it does sound like you are thinning a bit too much if it is taking that many coats. That being said, don't let it get too thick. When I do mine, the paint is just runny enough that any brush marks I leave are gone by the time it dries as the paint has settled.

 

For my 'black lining' it isn't really black lining at all. I paint the whole marine green, crevices and all. This really speeds up the process as I don't have to make sure I don't hit the tiny little lines. After I have painted the green, metal on the bolter, gold on the chest eagle and grey on the joint piping I go back to shade. I just use chaos black watered down to ink consistency. The first marine I was timid and over thinned. While you are applying it, the ink will look way darker than it will end up being. Do a test first, let it dry, then try it again if you don't like it. Also when I go over everything in the ink, I don't hit absolutely everything. I just hit the cracks, joints and recesses. This keeps the green the way I like it. I even go back over the open areas with green to cover any ink residue that is left over. This gives you a much cleaner black line effect without messing up your surfaces. I find it is faster, easier and has a great effect. In my book that is 3/3 so it is what I will be using for the whole army.

 

 

On a side note I have decided for a Bastogne/boarder of Foy base style. Lots of muddy/slushy snow ruins for Bastogne and muddy snow/exploded trees for the area around Foy.

 

Also @Brother Cambrius: You were right about Foy. The 101st participated in the Battle of the bulge initially by holding the area between Foy and Bastogne. Then they were stationed overlooking Foy, clearing the forest east, then west of Foy before spearheading the assault on Foy itself. This is when the infamous Dyke lost his nerve and lost his position to Lt. Spears. I was liking the idea of naming their home planet Foy but am holding off on making that my final decision. I want to have The Assault on Foy be a fluff story about Lt. Spears introduction to Easy Company. Just too good to pass up. I may be stealing a bit of the narrative from First Sergeant Lipton in his episode of Band of Brothers. Plagiarism be d@#^$d.

 

I hope to post some of the preliminary fluff and background for the army at my next break from studying. I'll just combine this WIP thread into the whole chapter being WIP so it will include painting, modeling as well as fluff and background.

[LoneWolven]

Ok so here is a bit of background info I have worked up for the Screaming Eagles. I plan on putting it i more formal and fluffy format later but this is just a rough draft. Let me know what you guys think and any ideas you have:

 

Origin

In the year 942.M41 the High Lords of Terra passed on the will of the Emperor, a founding of a new Adepts Astartes Chapter. Following the outbreak of the Second War of Armageddon in 942.M41 there was a growing need for additional strength in the sector. While the new Chapter would certainly not be ready in time to have any sway in the battle, the precaution was still taken.

The order was transmitted to the Adeptus Mechanicus on Mars. The geneseed was selected from the Ultramarines tithed gene stock and cultivated into what would be the first of the new Chapter: The Screaming Eagles.

The Screaming Eagles maintain their fortress monastery on (Foy?). They however are known for participating in engagements far from their home word, often surprising their opponents with their arrival.

Because the chapter was formed at such short notice and in a faster than normal manner, many customs and organizational differences arose in the first few years of the chapters growth. The exact source of the deviations is unknown and agents of the Inquisition have been dispatched to learn more. It is suspected that many of the ‘liberal interpretations’ of the Codex can be traced to the battle strategies and philosophies of the Chapters first Chapter Master.

One of their largest organizational differences is their company organization. Like other Chapters they still maintain the usual 10 companies. They however are named instead of numbered. In addition, instead of keeping their first company reserved for veterans and the tenth company for scouts, each of the ten companies has a cross section similar to that of an entire chapter. Each maintains their own veterans, scouts, tanks and support vehicles.

 

Combat Doctrine

The Screaming Eagles are known for their highly mobile style of combat. They move quickly from engagement to engagement. They are often observed using orbital strikes via drop pods and infiltration. They are also known to move large distances by armored transport. They are always either at the end of the combat line or entirely surrounded, holding an important objective. They refer to themselves as Paratroopers. This traditions origin is not known as are many of the chapters customs. From what I have learned it seems that a paratrooper is a warrior that is an army unto himself. In the words of Colonel Winters, “We are paratroopers, we are supposed to be surrounded.”

 

Companies

Alpha

Baker

Charlie

Dog

Easy

Fox

George

How

Item

Jig

 

Battlecry

“Currahee”

[Brother Cambrius]

Looks good LoneWolven. Plagriasm??? The damn thing is fact so I don't think you'll need to worry about that bit brother. :geek: Although if you do the loss of "Foxhole Norman" be sure that he doesn't lose his nerve in the history as marines don't do that. Have him blasted to pieces by artillery during the assault as that kind of fits the marine bill a lot better.

 

Cambrius

[LoneWolven]

Oh don't worry. Foxhole Norman will be in the story, but he will die valiantly or some such nonsense. Feels like a shame to glorify him tho.

[Brother Cambrius]

I would say that he gets shot by a krak missile and dies instantly or perhaps a vindicator shell. After that Veterna Sergeant Spearon takes over valiantly and leads the elements of E company into the fortified defences of the Iron Warirors (since Foy was full of heavies and tanks) and hooks up with the rest of E company and destroys the chaos enemies.

 

How does that sound. I'd recommend making a thread in LIBER on this lot (just beware of the Liberties :P)

 

Cambrius

[icallitsoda]

well done, but lose the grey parts at the joints... black would look better

[Frost Knight]

i say metal for the joints with black wash over it. (also if you get tired of hand painting the spade i think a Cadian transfer sheet has it although it is smaller).

[Marshall Costello]

Perhaps a homeworld of 'Toccoa'?

[Brother Cambrius]

Perhaps a homeworld of 'Toccoa'?

That wins I think. ;)

 

Cambrius