Petrificus Marines

[Renoster]

Formerly elite of the Emperor's Children, these terminators followed Fulgrim on tainted journey and were at the vanguard of the horrors and excess of the Heresy and its wake. Prideful and lethal, their slaughter and debasement of countless souls on the path to Terra saw a small contingent honoured by their patron with daemonic biomechanical plate and weapons and named 'Soul Tasters'. Bound within each suit, a demanding, unquenchable, sensation-seeking daemon writhed and seethed, making them near impervious to destruction in order to goad, plead and drive them on to acts of orgiastic barbarity outside the ken of mortal men. Looking into their shoulder pauldrons was like viewing the Warp itself, a maelstrom of light and colour, a mirror of the symbiotic sensation experienced by marine and the bound daemon within, and death or madness to all but the strongest.

Once driven into the Eye and under constant pressure to seek new experiences, they attached themselves to whichever band or cause promised the greatest potential for debasement. On one such quest, they were approached by Fabius Bile, who promised them anything their twisted hearts could desire in exchange for their martial prowess. Bile plundered Imperial and renegade alike in his search for genetic material and knowledge and used his hedonistic terminators as a near invulnerable strike team.

Eventually, realising their bargain was one-sided, the Soul Tasters demanded recompense from Bile: enhancements to their physiology that would intensify their sensations even more. Bile seemed more than happy to oblige them, realising their utility to his cause. All was not as it seemed however, for Bile, unwilling to be dictated to and understanding the nature of their daemonic plate, implanted them with his Golem Gland, a tainted, warp-mutated organ which slowly but surely turned their tissue and armour to stone, and severed their ability to sense and experience all but the most basic facets of their blighted lives.

Inexorably, each succumbed to this new affliction, only able to see and hear in rudimentary terms, articulated and saved from death by the daemons within their plate. Denied sensation, both marine and daemon suffer greatly and yearn for combat and the fleeting and uncertain chance to feel anything, if only for a nanosecond. Their shoulder pauldrons are black as the void, now mirroring the sensory famine of marine and daemon.

A single animated eye is often now visible on some part of their plate, the daemon gazing with frenzied wretched hope from within. Now with plate, weapons and flesh almost completely petrified, save but for a few remaining patches of ceramite or adamantium, nothing but disintegration can stop them, and even this does not kill them. Rather they are turned to sentient rubble and dust, a torment far far worse then death itself. Their grasp petrifies all it touches, new weapons and equipment slowly changing until it matches its masters. Areas they inhabit are slowly turned into bastions of rock and dust and the rare enemies penetrated by their weapons who survive, suffer an agonizing fate.

Now the Petrificus seek only the means to reverse their condition, for their patrons grow tired of their lack of tribute. If their daemons are released from their duties, death will be instantaneous. They seek Fabius Bile, but he has evaded far better seekers than they, for far longer. They seek arcane lore and knowledge and will treat with any who can offer them hope of cure.

Perversely, Bile's gift makes them better at what they do. Now unrecognised by bio scanners and sensors, they excel at infiltration and stealth and fall outside of the comprehension of many xeno species. When the Sin of Damnation tore from the warp in 600.M41, Blood Angels were not the only Astartes present.

Remembering Bile's fascination with the Genestealer, the Petrificus waded unimpeded through lakes of genetic material and tissue, sampling for later study. Few minds knew they were there. The Hive was irritated by their presence in its most valuable resources, but could not identify them. Lexicanum Calistarius of the Blood Angels could feel the nagging spike of keening rage of the bound daemons, but was far to busy fighting for his Chapter's survival to take proper account. He will see them again...

Brother Oizus

Oizus was once feared as the best flamer operator in the legion. Upon elevation to the 1st Company and his subsequent taint, Oizus was always found in the vanguard of any action, bathing his foes in cursed promethium and screaming his delight. Once he received his symbiotic daemon, he perfected his art, learning how, where and how much fuel could be delivered to cause varying amounts of pain and disfigurement for their pleasure. Now they long for the stench of bubbled flesh and the rictus of agonies past. Oizus considers himself superior to many of his brothers in the method of his art, finding mere bolter rounds too blunt a means of creating delightful trauma.

[Renoster]

Coralon, leader of the Petrificus warband.

Coralon seeks to incorporate Tyranid tissues in his own crumbling flesh in the hope that it will regenerate his own tissues and allow him access to the inconceivablely massive sensory input of the Hive Mind. If successful he intends to subject the rest of the warband to the same procedure in order to control them and gain access to their sensations.

[Brother Ambroz]

Simple yet effective color scheme. Good so far!

[Volgon]

Great looking and some wonderfully creative fluff.

[AlexCrute]

Interesting effect. I suppose you're going for easy and quick, but still effective. I think it's working. The difference in finish between rough and glassy smooth could be explored further.

[Imperial Deceit]

I like the texturing, they certainly look like they are sandstone. I'm not sure what you are going for with the pool of goo they are standing in though.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

The bad thing about drybrushing is it can really highlight flaws on the model, like mold lines.

[Renoster]

Thanks for the feedback! I'm looking to expand the smooth surface effect to more surfaces, not easy on these models, very few surfaces are suitable but i like the contrast. What my photo skills aren't showing up is the contrast between stone and some metallic elements, trying to signify the last remnants of metal in their armour/weapons.

The puddles of goo are to represent them wading through the depths of the stealer hive on a space hulk. As i don't play 40k, only SH, all my models are based on something that could reasonably be found in a large chunk of war- capable crap! I have regular fights with water effects. I win some, like my burst pipe DW termie in my other post, some I lose. If i don't like them when the squad is finished I'll uproot and re-base on tech bases.

Mold lines, grrr, laziness on my part! Filed the combi-melta.... forgot the other arm and IG helmet. Bad me.

[Renoster]

Demetrax

A connoisseur of short range combat, Demetrax suffers greatly from this numbing affliction. Previously known for his wild abandon, even to the point of letting his opponents strike him to savour the pain, Demetrax now fights with precision and as much grace as his weapons allow, savouring the carnage and viscera of his encounters.

Pellemon, the Scythe of Isstvan

Some joke that Pellemon is unchanged since his petrification. Silent, Pellemon cares little for the brayings of others, he exists simply to wreak havoc upon his enemies. . His reaper cannon has sent millions of souls to the warp in its time, and his winnowing of the loyalist legions during the Isstvan battles brought him to the attention of Fulgrim himself. He no longer bothers to display new trophies on his racks, satisfied that the helmet and skull he removed from Dorn's sons at the walls of the Imperial palace will suffice. His racks are now entirely turned to stone, and he will not disturb them. This does not mean he no longer takes new trophies. His newly defeated opponents are dissected frequently, but not for display; he eats them. The only emotion stronger than his battle lust is is hatred for Coralon, whom he blames for their affliction. He will bide his time, knowing that Coralon is close to finding a cure, and then kill him, savouring his surprise and indignation at being usurped and then take the warband for himself. He was paying close attention to Bile too...