Shadow Force Dragomir - A Raven Guard Army

[Meatman]

Looking good as always :lol:

 

Personally I'm very much looking forward to the rhino :lol:

[SCC]

Now, just for Gillyfish because he asked so nicely - I present Combat Squad Atanas:

I have to say looking at this combat squad I'm pretty darn happy with how things are turning out, these guys don't tell as much of a story as Argos' Iron Hands (and boy am I jealous of that) but they look and feel like RG to me and that's really what I was aiming for - an RG army I could paint fairly quickly and distinctively :D

@ Juan: Yeah, straps for bolters are always fun, it's a nice simple way to add some colour and movement to a model, especially when it's part of a kit!

@Vassakov: Thank FW for the CC helmet, it's their idea I just stole it and showed folks how easy it is to do. I've bought loads of FW kits and I've been pretty happy with all of them. Sevrin Loth & his HG are to die for, SL in particular, lovely model, lovely. I've had no problems with my casts to date (knock on wood) and I was pretty happy to receive a Command squad sprue with SL, that gives you enough plastics to make a full 4 Marines for the HG which is nice.

@Meatman: be warned the first Rhino is a re-tread - it used to be a UM Rhino, I just primed over it black and started painting it as an RG vehicle - and it's my first vehicle in years so it's something of a rather plain test-bed. I've got some FW parts and other gizmos for the follow vehicles though that should liven things up...

[Cyrox]

Very nice - i wish i could paint Black like that

 

What i like about them is they do indeed look like a stealthy unit

 

The 4th Company heraldy looks great, and nice use of FW bits too

 

Great job!

[celes]

I've just noticed how well the green of Atanas's laurel leaves sits with the green heraldry. He works perfectly as a focal point for the squad.

 

I always have a little excitement spazz whenever I see a new update from you in WIP.

[Captain Juan Juarez]

Thank FW for the CC helmet, it's their idea I just stole it and showed folks how easy it is to do. I've bought loads of FW kits and I've been pretty happy with all of them. Sevrin Loth & his HG are to die for, SL in particular, lovely model, lovely. I've had no problems with my casts to date (knock on wood) and I was pretty happy to receive a Command squad sprue with SL, that gives you enough plastics to make a full 4 Marines for the HG which is nice.

 

Nice to see this, because alot of people seem to question FW and their quality control recently - particularly in the case of Loth.

[Brother Nihm]

They look great <_<

The bases as well!

 

But when are we going to see that Heavy Weapon trooper painted up?

[Gillyfish]

Now, just for Gillyfish because he asked so nicely - I present Combat Squad Atanas:

 

[laughs] I feel honoured! Thank you!

 

They look very good - dark and dangerous, the way good marines should.

 

Regarding the vehicle, I actually find drybrushing to be a good way to do things (I'll see if I can get some good photos of the vehicles I'm working on up at some point), especially with dark colours as you can always paint back in the original colour.

[Flarack]

Great work!

 

But why does the right guy not have yellow lenses and a different base?

 

cu

[SCC]

@Cyrox: Thanks, I like the 'low visibility' look I've got for them too.

 

@Celes: Yeah, Atanas works nicely as a focus, I'm trying to make my combat squad leaders and Sergeants stand out in that way, nice to see it's working.

 

@Nihm: Yeah, um, about that heavy weapon...the ML just wasn't working for me so he's going to carry that bolter for now. I'm thinking about building a new Marine with a heavy bolter, but I may just go Sgt + 8 bolters + special weapon for the squad.

 

@Gilly: I should thank you really, group shots are a real motivator, seeing a unit come together is always nice. I'd love to see some WIP photos of your vehicles if you've got them, I've been drybrushing the Rhino but I'm finding it hard to balance keeping it subtle, like the Marines, and it not being all that effective.

 

I've highlighted the model in Adeptus Battle Grey first, it's subtle and from the angle I was using the brush at works nicely but disappears from any other angle. I'll have to highlight from a different angle or two I think and maybe use Codex Grey for the highest/brightest points. All without taking away from the blackness. So yes, WIPs of your vehicles would be great :D

 

@Flarack: The eyes were a misguided choice, I was going to have a different lens colour for each squad but a whole lotta people pointed out the yellow was more distinctive so I switched back. I need to fix that up one day. And his basing is actually consistent with the rest of the army, he just happens to be the only Marine in this squad who's standing on big chunks of rubble so far. If you look at the first squad you'll see that several of them are elevated in the same way and a couple of the guys left for this squad will be too.

[Crimson Fisting]

Really nice looking force, dude. I like that you're putting the effort into individualizing every battle brother, kudos!

[SCC]

As part of my Librarium Painting Challenge vow I committed to painting a Rhino. Primarily I did this as a motivating tool as I've been putting it off for a while now and focusing on Marines instead. My draft army list however includes quite a few Rhinos or Rhino-based vehicles so I figure I better learn to paint 'em right? And what better way than by promising to do so in front of everyone and having to face the consequences of failure if I don't?

So, here's the Rhino in it's current state:

Front on:

Side on:

As I've mentioned before this Rhino was originally assembled and painted in UM colours when the new Rhino kit came out many years ago. As such it's very plain and lacking in any particularly distinctive RG-ness. Hopefully a few decals will alleviate at least some of that but either way this is going to be a very 'plain Jane' Rhino. I also need to find a storm bolter for it as the original broke off in transit a few years ago and was ground into small plastic pieces ;)

I was talking to Gillyfish in my RG thread earlier and said this:

I've highlighted the model in Adeptus Battle Grey first, it's subtle and from the angle I was using the brush at works nicely but disappears from any other angle. I'll have to highlight from a different angle or two I think and maybe use Codex Grey for the highest/brightest points. All without taking away from the blackness.

This Rhino now has a second layer of very lightly drybrushed ABG highlights from a 2nd angle and it seems to have helped a little. I've also dabbed a little bit of Codex Grey on the high points, but even I'm having trouble telling where. The detail on the front is basecoated, if that and the metallics are too. I can see a few point where I need to tidy up both the black and the metallics in these photos, another reason I like WIP photos aside from getting advice and tips from you guys.

You can also see the left-most viewport on the right-hand cupola where I've tried to re-create the lens effect normally seen here. I think the bottom half needs to be a touch brighter, especially at the bottom and the top 1/3rd needs to be closer to black. Still, it doesn't look too bad.

Finally, the five hour rule has been extended to 7.5 for vehicles simply to account for the size increase. So far I'm at about 2.5 and a lot of that is faffing about so we'll see if the extension is about right or needs to be adjusted a bit one way or the other. Again, I note this is a very plain Rhino and no kind of centrepiece so it's getting the basics and then being put on the tabletop. I have some FW RG vehicle stuff, a bit warped and one door badly cracked, my first bad FW experience sadly, that I'll be using on some of the Rhinos and RBs to come. I've also got Aquila doors and some extra armour etc. to bling up another vehicle or two.

So, C&C more than welcome, I'm confident I can paint Marines but any advice you've got for vehicles would be more than welcome guys B)

Oh, and I'm also accepting suggestions for good names for RG vehicles (especially Rhinos, RBs and Predators)!

[kapturowski]

I like that even though they're all pretty much just black, they still look interesting.

[Race Bannon]

Hmm, nice coat on the tank. A few questions:

 

You spray-painted directly over the blue?

Was the UM tank coated with any sealant?

What black spray are you using?

[Blindhamster]

smooth even paint job, looks very good, though maybe a little more white on it? or some campaign badges? might help to 'bling it up' without going overboard ;)

[Gillyfish]

It's interesting you mention the highlights disappearing - I showed Argos a couple of my photos and he said much the same thing about mine. However, I still kind of like the effect - it's far more subtle than the extreme highlights I use on my marines and I personally rather like that. A vehicle is more likely to catch the light on an entire facing, so if you wanted to go to extremes, you'd vary the colour (or tone in your case?) in each facing to incorporate that.

 

I think if you paint on squad emblems, mud and paint chips you'll have a vehicle that looks much better. Ultimately it's what you're after I suppose. I don't aim for GD standard on my vehicles - I prefer a quick and easy approach that still looks acceptable. Anyway, I'll see if I can post something up tonight for you (will make a nice change from preparing for tomorrow's job interview! ;) ).

[chaplain mortis]

i really have to commend you on such a superb ravenguard army that has been growing steadily!

 

and kudos to you for setting yourslef realistic goals with this army to keep yourself motivated :lol: ...a very hard thing to do when ever starting new armies/ projects..

 

best bits for me are how you have achieved such a fantastic "ravenguard black"...these guys seem to suck the shadows into them, no easy feat by any means to achieve such a fine black! and looks so menacing

 

moving on to your first rhino...personally i cant see whats wrong with it as the highlights seem to show up fine in the pics,

 

i think maybe your having a problem with it at the moment as it just looks like a black box???... (please dont take that offensively), a bit of weathering and damage will add a wealth of detail to a vehicle and draw the eye nicely!...and once you have the decals in place the whole thing will come together...

 

keep up the good work in making alot of us jealous :lol:

[Meatman]

Thank FW for the CC helmet, it's their idea I just stole it and showed folks how easy it is to do. I've bought loads of FW kits and I've been pretty happy with all of them. Sevrin Loth & his HG are to die for, SL in particular, lovely model, lovely. I've had no problems with my casts to date (knock on wood) and I was pretty happy to receive a Command squad sprue with SL, that gives you enough plastics to make a full 4 Marines for the HG which is nice.

 

Nice to see this, because alot of people seem to question FW and their quality control recently - particularly in the case of Loth.

 

 

No complaints about the upgrade kit, it was Shadow captain Korvydae that came to be with amazingly bad mould lines and disfigured! His right leg looked like half had slid off!

 

Luck of the draw I guess.

[SCC]

@Kapturowski: Thanks, I think. That's the good kind of 'interesting', right? :P

 

Hmm, nice coat on the tank. A few questions:

 

You spray-painted directly over the blue?

Was the UM tank coated with any sealant?

What black spray are you using?

Yes, straight over the blue.

Yes, it was Dull Cote'd .

Citadel Chaos Black.

 

I think the Dull Cote is the reason why the over-undercoat (so to speak) worked so well, but then I think Dull Cote walks on water so I would, I have no real basis for that assertion to be honest. The underlying paint job was pretty smooth and I prepped the model well all those years ago before painting it then, so that probably doesn't hurt.

 

@Blindhamster: For this vehicle I'm going to add white through Chapter/squad insignia decals. My hands shake a fair bit these days though so I want to get the highlighting etc. done before I decal anything up, there's nothing worse than madly scrambling to clean a decal before the paint you just sploshed all over it dries :P

 

@Gilly: I'm not sure I can bring myself to weather the Rhino, my Marines are all lovely and clean and I want my vehicles that way too. So I'll have to rely on markings to relieve the drabness of the overall paint scheme I think. For some of the more venerated vehicles I might try white panels, that will also break things up a little. On the highlights, I think, after sleeping on it, I'm quite happy with the level of highlighting on this tank, I just want to make sure that the same highlighting is applied evenly across the whole vehicle so I just need to tidy up I think. I have added some 'Raven Guard' black highlights to some of the more obvious panels (like those at the front) since this photo was taken, then washed them with Badab Black and it gives them just enough relief to not fade into the rest of the panels. I'll play with that and see if I can find a simple way to get the right levels I think...

 

@Chaplain Mortis: Thanks, glad you're liking the RG Black, it fits my idea of them just right. Most of the credit is due to Dull Cote though, it knocks any shine off and gives them that light-absorbing B-2 type 'stealth' look to them. You're also right about the vehicle being a big black box and some decals/detail breaking that up but as I said earlier, I have to allow for the usnteady hands of middle age these days so they're still a step or two off.

 

@Meatman: You can always try calling FW, emails aren't much good but phone calls are supposed to get a good response. I'm debating whether I can be bothered over my cracked RG door or whether I'll warm it, warp it straight and putty it up...

[kapturowski]

@Kapturowski: Thanks, I think. That's the good kind of 'interesting', right? :)

 

That is definitely the good kind of interesting. Having examined them a bit further, the bit that I really like about them is that the highlighting doesn't make them look like painted toy soldiers, rather they look more "real".

[SCC]

I've been asked a few times what Shadow Force Dragomir would consist of and I've always had a general idea but I've never gotten around to actually trying to write it out and figure out precisely what it will contain.

 

So I've been sitting here thinking about the conditions I'm imposing on my army and that's helped me flesh out a draft list.

• I need a Librarian to represent Dragomir
  
• I want a senior 1st Co Veteran to accompany young Drago on his mission to temper his youth with wisdom
  
• There will be no unhelmeted troops - so no Scouts
  
• There will be no JP or LS equipped units as the pollution precludes them operating at full efficiency
  
• I need some scouting capability, RG don't go anywhere without intel
  
• I want a Sternguard squad - I just want to model them!
  
• Ideally I want a second squad of veterans as well, again, so I can model and paint them up with more flair than my rank & file
  
• I have to include a Dread so I can model that lovely FW RG Dread I have
  
• Lots of Marines armed with bolters - they're the core of any Marine Chapter or force and SFD shall be no different
  

OK, so those are my personal pre-conditions. I know folks will frown at an RG list without Shrike, Assault troops, Scouts or Land Speeders but it's my army so :P Plus it fits the background theme for the army - which will be fighting across a ruined industrialised Imperial planet (not a Forge World or a Hive World, but something like a modern day industrial zone gone wrong - perhaps a Chernobyl-esque place) against Ork Freebooterz. SFD will also be a mobile force, it's small so it can't afford to be trapped by Orkish hordes so I'd like to mount every unit in some way if possible.

 

With all the above in mind here's my draft list, note that the army is designed around my idea of Shadow Force Dragomir and I've not paid a lot of attention to table top effectiveness. I'm more interested in capturing my vision of SFD/the RG and the modelling/painting opportunities units represent.

 

 

Space Marine Librarian

[100]

This is, obviously, Dragomir. As a junior Librarian he gets no extra gear/powers, just the Sevrin Loth model as a base (lucky git!)

 

Space Marine Captain

BP, Power Weapon, Hellfire Rounds

Command Squad

2 x PW, 1 x Combi-Flamer

Razorback w/Hvy Bolter, Extra Armour

[335]

 

These guys represent the senior 1st Company veteran and his squad who'll be riding shotgun on Drago

 

;)

 

Tactical Squad Khalid

10 man Tac Squad

MM, MG

Rhino

[210]

Fifth Squad of Fourth Company

 

Tactical Squad Rhuarc

10 man Tac Squad

HB, Flamer

Sgt w/PW

Rhino

[220]

Second Squad of Fourth Company

 

Tactical Squad 3

10 man Tac Squad

ML, Flamer

Rhino

[205]

Sixth Squad of Fourth Company

 

Space Marine Bike Squad

8 x Bikes

1 x Attack Bike w/MM

2 x MG

Sgt w/PW

[300]

 

This is how the RG will be gathering recon on the ruined planet, bikes give them mobility and firepower, so that should come in handy. They will be drawn from the Eighth Squad of Fourth Company.

 

Sternguard

5 x Sternguard

1 x Combi-Melta

Sgt w/PW

Razorback w/TLLC

[220]

 

This squad aren't actually 1st Company veterans but rather are members of the First Squad of 4th Company (from which SFD is drawn, bar the Capt/Cmd Sqd - even Drago is attached to Fourth as its Librarian), most are awaiting promotion to Sergeant or even the First Company or are being groomed to become part of the Command Squad of the Fourth. Thus they only have a few extra bitz of gear as the 4th Co Captain has equipped them from the Company's own mini-armoury as opposed to 1st Co vets who get let loose in the Chapter armoury. These guys will ride with Drago as a bodyguard.

 

Dreadnought

TL AutoCannon, DCCW

[115]

 

Who can say no to that model? He's too slow to keep up on foot, so in my mind he'll only just have been dropped into battle in this list, otherwise he'd stay in orbit. As a wise and knowing Dread he can also offer counsel and advice to young Drago in his first command.

 

 

Whirlwind

[85]

I have a FW Damocles Rhino and WW bitz I'd love to use for this model, plus long range fire support is always welcome. This vehicle is drawn from the Fourth Company pool and manned by Fourth Company Devastators of the Ninth Squad who are currently serving as the Chapter's artillerists.

 

Predator

[60]

I like 'tank' tanks and the Pred is as close as Marines come...This vehicle is drawn from the Fourth Company pool and manned by Marines from Fourth Company's battle depleted Third Squad.

 

That gets me to 1850 nice and cleanly I think with 42 infantry, 8 bikes plus an attack bike, 1 Dreadnought and 7 transports, a nice even total of 60 models including lots of lovely Tactical Marines.

 

So, there we go, a draft list of what you can look forward to from this army B)

[Barn]

This is a fantastic looking army. It really wants to make me put down my Space Wolves and get back into the Sons of Corax.

[celes]

Well, I'm now definitely looking forward to seeing that dread, I've always liked RG dreads for some reason. However, I'm afraid I have just spotted a small mistake in your list there. It seems you've given your captain a Bolt Pistol and hellfire rounds, when it says in the codex that they can only be used in a bolter. It's a real shame to be honest, it's exactly what I would have done with my commander given the option.

[Vassakov]

Interesting army list... I'd implore you to try and find 25 points somewhere to slap some sponsons on your Predator though!

 

As for the Rhino - it looks great at the moment. The highlights are clear and the little sensor nodes on the cupola has worked nicely.

 

If you want ideas about breaking up the main colour, my vehicles use the "depressions" on the sides, near the front, for Company/Squad iconography and then Chapter iconography on the doors. I also usually but something on the top hatch or gunshields for the Razors. It usually breaks up the model quite nicely, and there are somer really good examples on the net around if you want some further ideas!

 

(PS. Please paint Sevrin Loth! :) )

[SCC]

A couple of quick snap-shots:

The lighting isn't great but you can see the highlighting is a little neater but still a touch fuzzier than I'd like. The two decals plus the 'bolts' break the black a bit but the decals are unbalanced, I'm wondering if I'd be better off moving the Tac symbol to mirror the Chapter insignia.

The big RG symbol breaks things up quite well, but the other two are unbalanced as above. I'm also considering, much as you suggested Vassakov, painting the recess where the Tac arrows currently are in green - the Fourth Company colour - then that'll help too.

I've left the roof panels blank for the moment, I thought about a big Tac arrow, but now I'm thinking about two white stripes intead. One on each door, about 1/3rd of the width of the door panel and then decal'ing them with the black, or possibly black outline, RG insignia. I could fit 4-6 on each side I reckon and it'd be different...or maybe nothing for the hatch and stripes down the edges of the top of the roof with the decals instead.

@Celes: Damnit! Oh well, that gives me 10 of the 25 points Vassakov suggested for the Predator sponsons. I still think they ruin the look of the Pred a bit though....

[SCC]

OK, so I was thinking about my last post and what I could do to make my test-bed Rhino a bit fancier and I had a minor stroke of genius. I asked myself a simple question - What Would Brother Argos Do? - and the answer was plain to see - he'd add superdetail :)

Then I thought of all the ideas, methods and materials I've swiped from Argos whilst he's been making his super-cool IH minis and looked around to see what I could see at the modelling desk. And this is what I came up with:

Once I saw the etched brass Aquilas I knew I had a way to fancify the Rhino and break up the black up top. I didn't want to add them to the Rhino directly and try to paint them, I'd just make a mess of what I've already done as my hands aren't steady enough. Painting the white stripe has the same problem - shaky hands do not make for straight lines. So I found some plasticard to mount them to instead, it'll also add some height to them and give me some contours to highlight to make the Aquila panel stand out a little more (and break up the flat roof more to boot).

So, I've gone with the large Aquila in the middle then progressively used smaller ones and added a rivet to the end to show where the panel has been added to the Rhino. Obviously I need to mirror this down the left side of the plasticard strip then repeat it for the other side of the Rhino. I might also add another smaller rivet to the top of the one there just for a little more Argos style hyper-detail.

Now I have to figure out what colour to paint the strip and the Aquilas. A black strip and white Aquilas would echo my RG but wouldn't break up the Rhino roof all that much, still, a little might go a long way. Ditto black & gold, though I'm not sure that's really in keeping with the army aesthetic.

A white strip with gold Aquilas might work, or even black ones, maybe? Suggestions?