Knights of House Cydonia, Taghmata Omnissiah and Skitarii

[GhostMalone]

Nice!

 

My library beats yours though

[Battybattybats]

Of 40k and WHF novels perhaps Kurama, as i'm only recently been getting the Horus Heresy books (3 of which are leant to a friend and my Ian Watson books haven't been re-shelved yet and the warhammer fantasy which admittedly is also only a small amount so long as we aren't counting Inferno issues and the Warhammer Monthly comic is on another shelf), but overall? It'd need to be a very impressive library.

I have 5 bookcases of books, i recently bought the 5th (the one in the pics) because 2 of the others were stacked 2 books deep on most shelves and i had too many stacks of books on the floor and too many books in boxes. I'm still in the process of reorganising and won't have enough room for all the books in boxes, but at least i've been able to get the last 8 years of White Dwarf (I've almost every issue from the 140's on) off the floor stacks and onto a shelf. Of course the magazines and comics also occupy the lower shelves of 2 of the DVD-filled bookcases as well as the bottom shelf of my current-miniature-projects % hobby tools bookshelf.

Though Mum's library beats mine (even if i don't count the books of mine i left in her library when i moved out). Back when i was still living at home we bought out all the bookshelves of a bookstore when it closed... we still ran out of shelves before 5 years were through lol! We had to get a new (extra sturdy) one just for my Mum's dictionary.. she's a Linguist and decided to buy the Complete Oxford Dictionary.. all 20 encyclopaedia sized volumes of it!

[Battybattybats]

Ok Kurama, so here's most of my Library :)
Bear in mind i'm reorganising still, so it's all much less organised and tidy than it will be.
So here is the new bookcase rapidly filling

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0022%203_1.jpg

Goin from bottom to top there's the most recent white dwarfs and vissions, then it's got most of my 1st ed and 2nd ed D&D and Cthulhu books including the Chaosium one with the Cthulhu Scenario i wrote published in it, (though not the books for my current 2nd ed D&D campaign or my current Call of Cthulhu campaign as they are in a series of travel-bags as they get used so regularly) then there's most of my 40k novels which is indeed a small lot and the warhammer above it is even smaller.

Next to it in is this one
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0023%202.jpg

So that's older white dwarfs, paranormal, most of my mythology and classical horror, Lovecraft and Circle, Verne and Burroughs, most of my War of the Worlds Collection and cut off at the top is my scifi classics shelf which is double-stacked to maximum capacity.

Then around the next corner in my bizarrely shaped hallway we have another

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0025%202.jpg

So at the bottom is modern horror and modern fantasy, double-stacked of course, then it's mostly modern fantasy for the next couple double-stacked shelves, then there's Frank Herbert, Gordon R Dickson and the gap where all the Black Library novels and old classic GW novels had been stacked and finally Battletech Trek and Dr Who at the top.

Then, also in my nearly Lovecraftianly angled hallway and buried under stuff as i rearrange rooms is the smaller bookcase

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0026%202.jpg

So that's tall hardcovers of a variety of subjects and a scattering of unordered books. And there's more books in the boxes in front of it.
Then finishing a circuit of the hallway we come to a sample stack and box of books that's about half of the hallway floor-books (but not counting the stacks in the bedroom or the boxes of books in the spare room)

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0027_1.jpg

From there it's to the living room for the last of the dedicated to books bookcases

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0029.jpg

So there we have some scattering of Dragon Magazines not yet moved, Conspiracy x 1st and 2nd edition and Battletech rules and readouts on the bottom left, right of that is all sorts of things that didn't fit other shelf sizes including some old art clanders, Giger's Alien book, years of RPG campaign notes and character sheet folders, Star Wars Vault, Collecters edition of Jeff Wayne's musical of War of the Worlds, Batman vault and of course the treasured Deathwatch Rpg Collectors Edition. Then we have several editions of WHFB and WH40k rules, army books, codices, campaign supplements, sidegame rulebooks and artbooks, then Trek RPG and useful books for background details, Robotech, Shadowrum, Champions, GURPS, the movie-tie-in Aliens RPG and Kryomek and above that some choice nice hardcovers from Frankenstein' Diaries and Harry Potter to Tolkien, Dumas and M.R, James etcetera with stacked beside them all the copies of GW's Inferno short story magazine and the Warhammer Monthly comic (except for an annoyingly large portion of the comics borrowed and lost by a friend).

So Kurama, let's see your Library!

[GhostMalone]

Well now I'll need to beat you so I'll dig out all the books from the boxes, a whole Bloody room full since they were packed away since my house was crashed into last year.

 

I've got everything from a - z warhammer 30k and 40k wise and comics galore plus encyclopedias through to hard bound trilogies and series of every kind from ts elliot through to Eric van lustbader and even Marianne curly

[Battybattybats]

So long as doing so won't cause too much stress unboxing all of that then by all means do defeat me :) For a collection of books greater than mine is always glorious to behold!

[Battybattybats]

Ok enough of my bookcases for now, back to miniatures! Here's the extra bit of work on my first Knight Quod Erat Demonstrandum thanks to the new decal sheets.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0013%204.jpg

The Skitarii Alliance symbol on the other knee. Once i saw what this symbol was in the Imperial Knight Companion i was annoyed to find the Knights extra decal sheet with it was already sold out, it would only have provided a couple anyway, but thankfully as they put these on the Skitarii large decal sheet and the Mars Cult Mechanicus one i should have enough for all the knights i have in progress and have planned (for now at least).

Next up was a decal i spotted on the tiny leaked preview pic of the Skitarii large decal sheet and knew just what i wanted to do with it.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0015%204.jpg

The back of Quod Erat Demonstrandum's banner has gone from an annoyingly blank state to carrying an ancient archaeo-script litany. Something for the Vanguard and Rangers to meditate on as the follow at the Knights heels towards the foe.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0018%203.jpg

The maker plate is a smidge too large, thank goodness for microsol at dealing with the rivet that overlaps the edge on the right. I was unsure about using it but need to keep the smaller yearless makerplates for the Styrix (and possible future Mageara) and showing manufacture by Mars shows some of my own fluff for the house. Besides, how could i not use the oTo reference! (i also need to touch up the gold on the eagle heads and give it an ardcoat layer dulled back with some medium, because the gold seems to wear off there in handling)

Lastly i had the kill banner on the back of the reaper that i hadn't got around to doing the script on. Having thought the work on the Dragoon Alpha's purity seals too dark and think i tried extra hard to be subtle using thinned rhinox hide and went for it, and i fluked the result.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0021%203_1.jpg

Yep i won't be repeating a result as good as that in a hurry!

[Flint13]

That's awesome! Those little decals add such a good bit of character.

 

Have the new Admech decal sheets been worth the purchase so far? I was thinking of getting one myself shortly for my Cerastus-Acheron and his little Skitarii maniple followers.

[EdT]

Lovely stuff! I really need to get to grips with transfers- they've always intimidated me and I worry about making a mess of them. They really add a lot to the knight there though- particularly like the archaeoscript on the reverse of the hanging banner.

[Battybattybats]

That's awesome! Those little decals add such a good bit of character.

 

Have the new Admech decal sheets been worth the purchase so far? I was thinking of getting one myself shortly for my Cerastus-Acheron and his little Skitarii maniple followers.

For me yes, even though i've only started using the large skitarii sheet (i got two of those) and haven't used any off the cult mechanicus sheet yet i've planned the use of a fair number of symbols thus far. The only odd thing is they put a small number of the symbols for the Ordo Reductor and Ordinatus on the cult sheets but no Collegia Titanicus (lucky i have those old epic decals!) or the Skitarii gauntlet holding lightning symbol.

 

It all depends on what symbols you want and how large you want them, the small decal sheets that come with the Skitarii is quite useful on it's own but with a large number of units you'll run through the squad numbers fairly quickly on those and as I was also wanting key specific symbols the large sheets have definitely been worth it for me.

 

If they don't sell out too fast before my cash recovers from limited editions and mechanicus BFG ships i intend to get a second Cult Mechanicus sheet just for the yellow cogs to ensure i have enough to make House Cydonia emblems for any more forgeworld knights i might buy, and i never know what uses i might find for the rest, after all i'm using those leftover titan decals from the 90s now. I'm thinking that once i'm sure what decals will be spare some of them might end up on my Explorator Fleet...

 

 

Lovely stuff! I really need to get to grips with transfers- they've always intimidated me and I worry about making a mess of them. They really add a lot to the knight there though- particularly like the archaeoscript on the reverse of the hanging banner.

I was like that at first but really enjoy them now. Sure i still stress out over getting the positioning correct, nudging the decal around with my brush, over-correcting and nudging it back for ages before i get the position just right, but now i find it exciting rather than intimidating. I owe that to following a friends advice that i get Micro-set and Micro-sol.

 

I'd only done a tiny handful of decals years ago (mainly on a friends Grey Knight Terminators) with so-so results but i knew for my Knight i'd want to use the decals and remembered that years and years ago when I was building that Klingon Bird Of Prey model on the bookshelf i was told by a modeller friend that micro set and micro sol were worth getting, i never did bother with the decals for that kit (as i planned to get decal printing paper and print out the Klingon for the IKS Rotarran but didn't ever get around to it, though i won the scii section of a local store painting comp with the model anyway) but i remembered the advice so i got the stuff and started on my Thallax first getting practice where i could handle stuffing up by adding more battle-damage, though i didn't have to.

 

I trawled through youtube how-to's and forum posts about using it to get a handle on the concepts and just went for it. I find i usually have plenty of time to shift the decal around till i'm happy with it (probably cause i don't do any of the blotting on tissue paper stuff some recommend so there's plenty of liquid for it to slide on till i'm happy) and once it's set in place multiple coats of micro-sol (let it dry fully first before repeating) get the decal smoothed onto curved surfaces, removes most of the raised surface of the edges and with some careful gentle slice with a knife gets into any air-bubbles and (eventually) gets rid of them. Just don't freak out the first time you see microsol make something go all pruney, when it finishes they smooth back out n their own. Hmm i might be making that all sound more intimidating than it needs to be.

 

Grab some test miniatures it's ok to stuff up on, and some decals it's ok to waste, and micro-set and micro-sol or any other decent brands equivalent, watch a youtube how-to or two and just give it a try following their directions. That way if you stuff up at all you'll have the opportunity to see what you can do to fix it. Considering your superb work with converting you have the raw talent for these things so you just need the skill and confidence building from doing this particular technique :)

[Vel'Cona]

Great job on the IK!  The hazard stripes are really striking without overpowering the model in general, and I like the slightly darker red you've used here.  I'd agree with the general consensus that your use of transfers really adds to the overall model, especially the banner!

[Battybattybats]

Thanks Vel'Cona. :)

Some more Battlefleet Gothic stuff arrived, I have family and friends visiting though so will have to wait before i get to start work on magnetising a Mechanicus Light Cruiser and deciding what bases to use for some Mines that i was able to get relatively cheap. I'll have to check over the rules for mines, ideally i'd rather put one mine to a base to maximise the mines that i've got and use them in other spaceship games too.

I also want to get back to work on my rangers and vanguards sorting out their special weapons. I'm hoping to use a different body for my 2nd Arquebus and use one arquebus body for one of the other special weapons. But the arms are keyed so I'll have to see. I'm going with vanguards with 2 plasma and 1 arc and rangers two arquebus and one arc, not for effectiveness but just because those seem more thematic.

[Battybattybats]

So, working on a Mechanicus Light Cruiser, adding magnets, and i notice the panel for the little mechanicus symbols is a little taller... making something interesting possible...

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0013%204_1.jpg

Just blu-tacked in place as the side ridges on the panel stop it sitting flush so i'll put something behind it so it sits neatly.

[Vel'Cona]

Very nice!  I believe my old BFG fleet is still hiding somewhere in the bottom of my storage unit . . . those really were some excellent models for the time.  Shame the rules weren't tighter!

 

Any plans for an AdMech Battleship? 

[Battybattybats]

I want a battleship, but we'll just have to see if i can ever obtain one!

What problems did you have with the rules?
Some of my friends have been big fans of the rules for years, looking over the Mechanicus rules some aspects don't make sense background-wise. No assault boats or boarding torpedoes? When one of the Quest for Knowledge table results has an enemy ship have possible STC data or material on it? Surely they wouldn't just blast such a ship into a smouldering ruin then examine the burnt-out wreck. And we know they have ships to get the Skitarii down to a planet from orbit as that's diescribed in the novel Skitarius. I could see them perhaps not using assault-boats when there isn't any technology they are after on the enemies ships and instead relying on blowing them up from the outside, but surely when they are trying to recover what may be paper scrolls or delicate recordings and of course delivering Skitarii to the ground they'd use assault boats.

I think i'll be putting in some house-rules to make the Explorator ships a bit more fluff-accurate.

[deathspectersgt7]

MMMMMMM!!!! BOOKS !!!!! I had my whole collection destroyed by a flood. The Knight is looking Great. AS is the LC.

[Battybattybats]

My deep condolences for the loss deathspectersgt7! That would be heartbreaking!

[Battybattybats]

I've seen a lot of unusual 40k things, plush rippers and Opus Mechanicum cushions, and I've made earrings and bookmarks from spare bits, i even had a mix-tape of gloomy ambient music i used to play while using my Genestealer Cult (Deploying to The Forge from Peter Miller's album Love Vs Gravity may have been a bit cruel when putting 40 to 60 Purestrain Genestealers on the table in 2nd ed, but it was fun). But am i the first to cross this particular frontier?

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0019_4.jpg

Well possibly not considering there's a company makes the material to do it and i'm just following the instructions, but i might be the first one to do so as part of the wargaming hobby. Yes, that's a bottle of the smell of engine oil. And i'm making incense with it!

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0020_3.jpg

The DPG ensures it burns properly. these are mixed in the right proportions and the unscented incense sticks soak in it for 24 hours.

The tallest test tube i have is a little short but natural capillary action soaks it up anyway. The test tube originally had vanilla beans in it, the smaller ones came with the rack and had chocolates in it. This is the second batch in the picture, the first is currently drying, a process that will take at least 48 hours apparently.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0015_4.jpg

Now while one is drying and the other soaking i have a blackstone fortress, a skitarii ranger and a vanguard to put some paint on :)

[Teetengee]

I run some role playing games and have seen a company that sells smells, so I would love to know what you think of it and if it really does enhance the experience.

[Battybattybats]

Well the first batch still has at least another day to dry (and in this weather maybe several) before i can see how well it works being burnt, but the smell is pretty perfect just working on them and certainly gets me in the mood to work on my models straight away from just walking past them drying.

I already use an electronic voice changer when playing my Rogue Trader RPG Explorator character, i found a deep rumbling robotic creepy setting for the Explorator, and use a higher pitched shrill robotic one for the servo skull. I found it worked extremely well. A few tone-setting props can really enrich a game.

[Teetengee]

Very nice

[Battybattybats]

Not anything to show yet, as most of the projects i'm working on are still in too early a stage.
A dark purplish-red monks robe costume arrived today, now i'm working out what to add to it. I have a new voice-changer that has a cable-connected microphone instead of a megaphone shape so i can put the mic inside a mask, but i do need to decide whether i alter a golden skull-mask to cover the eyes and improve airflow so it's not so stuffy or whether i get a respirator and goggles instead, both of which will of course require added ribbed cables. And whether to add a cog pattern to hems and if so white, white/black or yellow. Lot's of choices so it's going to be a while on that.

As for the incense, well the engine oil scent ends up pretty mild, but it's not too bad. I'm looking at some alternate options with scent especially with the techpriest costume i am going to slowly work on.

And of course miniature work hasn't ceased either, vanguard and rangers are going together, it's just slow as i'm doing them one at a time painting the base colours and shades as i assemble them so i don't get parts mixed up.

[Battybattybats]

So here's some pics of an idea i had while watching Quatermass and the Pit (the black and white original).

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0015%204_1.jpg

(the bridge section is just sitting in place so don't worry, it won't be that wonky when glued on!)
Using the side panels that usually hold lance turrets but that end up unused because some of the turrets have to go onto the tops of Mechanicus ships, and the aerials which end up surplus. I'm picturing it as a noospheric and phylactic upgrade allowing much better data-streaming than usual in-system and between planets.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0017%204_1.jpg

I'll have to work out some fair rules and costs for them, I'm picturing them giving a synergistic buff like a LD boost of some sort in BFG and a doctrina/canticle one for 40k games where the ship is in-system (The idea being used for other things also, like preliminary bombardments or drop-pod usage requiring having ships currently fighting or having won BFG games above the planet at the time) though working that out will be tricky as they do involve dropping a gun from a cruiser which is a big deal, but shouldn't over-buff forces either.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0018%204.jpg

And i'm sure you spotted the cool incense burner i bought to use with my engine-oil scented incense.
I think it might also make a nice piece of scenery for games too.

[Battybattybats]

Been ages and i've not got a lot done for a while as life has been very busy, still here's something new to show :)

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f250/supreme_martian_overlord/DSCF0007_3.jpg

Servitors i've been using as servo-automata for my Techpriest Auxilia unit (though i will get the Forgeworld ones when i can afford it)

[GhostMalone]

Good to see you back batty now get back to work

[Battybattybats]

Well i couldn't look past the saving, and pre-ordered the 'start collecting skitarii' box.
And my holiday haul includes a box of Kastelan Robots, promethium relay pipes and another manufactorum.
Hopefully when back home i'll be able to get solidly back into painting to work my way through all that... after i've finished the half-built stuff waiting at home.