Necromunda 73rd Armored Regiment [WIP/Display Thread]

[Flash Git jimmy]

Hello all,

 

This WIP log is, for me, a pretty momentous occasion. I had to give up 40k for about four years during my time in the military due to a number of reasons, but now that I'm out, I'm back in force, baby.

 

I've wanted to create an army using the Imperial Armor Vol.1 armored battlegroup list for some time, and these models represent years of anticipation and wait on my part (long enough for the Salamander recon vehicle to come and go from forge world's inventory, RIP). And now, I'm pleased I get to share them with Bolter and Chainsword, one of my favorite 40k forums on the internet, that I have lurked for years, waiting for the day I'd finally get to show off the fruits of my labor.

 

Without further ado, here are the vehicles I have made for my fledgling armored list.

 

Command Salamander 'Thunderbolt'

 

This guy was a labor of love. Turned an old, broken, gluebomb of a chimera into a usable HQ unit for my armored battlegroup. This guy was a lot of work for a 75 point model, sheesh.

 

Destroyer Tank Hunter 'Return to Sender'

 

This was another 'gluebomb savior' conversion, I'd had a leman russ vanquisher that had been totaled by my own improper care of it, so, using the parts I could salvage, I turned it into a casemate tank destroyer, and I think it's a pretty passable destroyer tank hunter.

 

 

Autocannon Chimera 'Wildsnake!'

 

A pretty simplistic autocannon conversion, this one was just the barrel from a heavy weapons team gun filed down to fit into the gun mantlet of the chimera. Simplistic but works pretty well.

 

---

 

These guys below are just pretty standard vehicles built according to spec. They were the first vehicles I attempted for this army, so their paintjob is noticeably rougher than the others.

Leman Russ Exterminator 'Aces High!'

 

Leman Russ Exterminator 'Sump Rat'

 

Leman Russ Battle Tank 'Boozehound'

 

 

Units I have planned:

 

- 2 Mars Alphas pattern Vanquishers

- 1 Leman Russ Battle Tank

- 1 reconnaissance salamander

- 1 more destroyer tank hunter

- 20 armored fist guardsmen

- 1 Tech-priest dominus (allied detachment)

- 5 Kataphron Breachers w/ Heavy Arc Rifles (allied detachment)

 

Thank you in advance for looking through all these images, and I hope you'll stick with me while I work through the rest of my army.

[The Acid Dog]

Welcome back to the hobby!

 

Loving the camo scheme for your tanks, and the Salamander conversion!  Can't wait to see more.

[Flash Git jimmy]

I appreciate it, thank you. The camo scheme actually was an accident - I'd gotten khaki paint on my originally grey tanks, and after a few days of despair, I tried a black border around the khaki 'spot', and it ended up looking really good, and well. The rest is history.

 

Thanks for the kind words!

[nismogrendel]

Awesome work, I really like the salamander and the tank hunter.  The autocannon on the chimera is really cool too!

[Akrim]

Nice tanks, like the camo. Welcome back, the game has certainly changed quite a bit while you've been away.

 

Armoured Battlegroup is sort of an aged rules set, though I think it still works. You may want to reconsider some of your planned projects though:

 

-Vanquishers aren't great unless they are command tanks (for BS4)

-You could certainly use some infantry killing firepower. Beyond the Russ MBT... Maybe consider Thunderers.

-Avoid sponsons on ordnance armed tanks as it causes them to snap fire.

 

Looks like a good start though, keep rolling!

[WarriorFish]

Welcome! Looks like we have much to look forward to :) I also like the conversions and camouflage, sometimes accidents are happy ones :P

[Guilloom]

Great work but... this Salamander... Love it ! How did you managed to build that upper armor part, I wonder. I may steal... I mean borrow the concept for my own Chimera's, if you don't mind ;)

[Flash Git jimmy]

Whoa, I got a lot of responses. Thanks everyone, I'll just go down the list one by one then.

Nice tanks, like the camo. Welcome back, the game has certainly changed quite a bit while you've been away.

Armoured Battlegroup is sort of an aged rules set, though I think it still works. You may want to reconsider some of your planned projects though:

-Vanquishers aren't great unless they are command tanks (for BS4)
-You could certainly use some infantry killing firepower. Beyond the Russ MBT... Maybe consider Thunderers.
-Avoid sponsons on ordnance armed tanks as it causes them to snap fire.

Looks like a good start though, keep rolling!

I appreciate it. Thanks for the warm welcome. As for the vanquishers, they are going to be BS 4 tanks, one will be a CCT, the other is a commissar's tank, both with all the gubbinz (co-ax stubber, beast hunter shells, etc). S'why I splurged on the FW models, since those guys are gonna be 'visual centerpieces'.

Your other points, not gonna lie, i've been considering the pros and cons of each almost on a nightly basis. I've wanted some demolishers or thunderers, but the biggest thing that puts me off the 'knockout' russes from having fielded them before is their incredibly short range - positioning is very important with those types of vehicles, and it always seemed to me they would either get a shot and then die or spend the whole game in a safe spot with nothing to shot at - though perhaps as a troops choice, that would be ideal, wouldn't it? Pretty good objective sitter... I do intend to build a thunderer or two though (far into the fuuutuuure), which may become a priority project if I decide that once I start playing the lack of AP2 template is a huge strategic gap.

and the sponsons, well. The reason I told myself i'd put them on all my leman russes, I tell myself, is to provide extra security in case of a weapons destroyed result (yes yes a pintle stubber would've done the same thing!). The real reason is that I think they look cool, and that i've always wanted sponson russes. The homogeneity of the hulls will also make it easy to swap turrets later if I want to try out new russ combinations, that kinda thing. It makes ordnance russes a little more points-inefficient, and that is a definite downside, but, it's a price i'm willing to pay for models I want to look at, essentially.

I appreciate the advice though, thank you - all very well considered, and delivered with the best intentions. Hope you stick around for the rest of the army!

Welcome! Looks like we have much to look forward to I also like the conversions and camouflage, sometimes accidents are happy ones

Thank you, thank you. And in this case, it was lucky I left the model master's khaki open and knocked it over, that's all I'll say.

don't leave your paint pots open though that's bad

Great work but... this Salamander... Love it ! How did you managed to build that upper armor part, I wonder. I may steal... I mean borrow the concept for my own Chimera's, if you don't mind

Sure. In fact I got some WIP images of it, lemme link them so you got a better idea of how I made it.

there weren't a lot of clever bits, aside from the front gunshields, which were made from sawing in half one of the hull components on the chimera sprue. It's the... sort of..

I'll just take a picture of it.

The rest of it was the usual cutting out plasticard, filing it down, and using Tamiya putty to fill in the joins.

Also, with the fighting compartment, you want to pose everything you plan to have in it out with blu-tac beforehand. Treat it almost like a mini-diorama, like you would an imperial guard heavy weapons team. The heavy bolter swivel mount was also made from... one of the pistons for the dozer blade on the vehicle acessory sprue, and a sentinel foot, cut to about the right height for the crewmen. Other than that, it's not a difficult project - just tedious.

[WarriorFish]

Ah yes, we know that bit. The Unamed One, Confuser of Guard, Neverused... it goes by many names but sadly its intended use was lost in the Dark Age I think Very good use for it, a nifty little conversion

[The Acid Dog]

Ah yes, we know that bit. The Unamed One, Confuser of Guard, Neverused... it goes by many names but sadly its intended use was lost in the Dark Age I think Very good use for it, a nifty little conversion

To jump off-topic just for a sec, here... Either I'm a heretek, or I've rediscovered the STC for the part.

Fits beautifully under a Basilisk's gun platform, and doesn't leave that unsightly gap. I blame GW's crappy Basilisk directions.

Back on topic, seeing this painted up Salamander is giving me an itch to go and paint my own conversion. Might have to include it in my next batch of painting projects.

[WarriorFish]

Hmm, just checked my Bassies and it looks like the same bit. I did assemble them many years ago so I can't remember - I guess the Bassie sprue didn't have the room for it then? Mystery solved! :P

 

What's next on your list Flash? Will your infantry share the same colours?

[Flash Git jimmy]

Seems that way, although for my own sanity they probably won't have the 'splotch' camo. (The Admech guys definitely won't!) To represent the rag-taggedness of the Necromundan recruit pool my infantry is being cobbled together from the numerous Cadian and Catachan bits i've acquired over the years. Painting will be a slow process, since almost all of the twenty i'm fielding are unique from the other - why not spend some extra time on them, since I only have to paint less than a platoon's worth?

And, well. I like modeling tanks more than infantry. Seems to be a common thread of people who do treadhead lists...

Ah yes, we know that bit. The Unamed One, Confuser of Guard, Neverused... it goes by many names but sadly its intended use was lost in the Dark Age I think Very good use for it, a nifty little conversion

To jump off-topic just for a sec, here... Either I'm a heretek, or I've rediscovered the STC for the part.

Fits beautifully under a Basilisk's gun platform, and doesn't leave that unsightly gap. I blame GW's crappy Basilisk directions.

Back on topic, seeing this painted up Salamander is giving me an itch to go and paint my own conversion. Might have to include it in my next batch of painting projects.

Ah, now that makes sense. guess that shows how long its been since i built an earthshaker, sheesh.

[Akrim]

Hah, we seem to be cut from the same cloth. With the release of the new IG Mont'ka formations Ive been rolling out long dormant vehicles.

 

If the Vanqs will be BS4 Ill say no more. Demos/Thunderers are certainly short ranged, I like them as a center field tank, where they will likely find a target turn 1.

 

Not sure what sort of armies youll be facing, you may want to consider Heavy Grav Destroyers as they give you something to combat Gargantuan Creatures or even just multi-wound monsters in general.

[Flash Git jimmy]

Yea, they excel as midline 'durability' units, and without a doubt the one or two shots they do get are extremely potent. And Thunderers are hard to truly dislike - cheaper than a demolisher and with the new rules they're little different in terms of true battlefield capability!

 

Has a sort of Sturmtiger/engineering panzer appeal too... heck, I might just make one to make one...

 

And, yea. I was considering some stuff like that, but I just can't be sure. I haven't gone down to the stores to investigate my local meta yet, so most lists I make are usually focused on combating what is probably one of the more common armies - the mechanized marine (or MEQ) force with 3-4 rhinos, a land raider, and maybe a drop dread or meltacide squad.

 

The exterminators hit the transports and strip hull points, the battle tanks drop templates on the inevitable 3+ occupants, the vanquishers and arc rifle breachers hit the AV 14 hardcases, and the armored fist squads guard flanks or sit on 'safe' objectives in their transports, liberally applying autocannon to anything that challenges them. That's the general mission of each of the units at 1750 points - when I bump it up to 2000, I want to include an outflanking force for late game surprises that will probably be some imperial navy support (vendettas perhaps) and a few distraction salamanders.

 

And when that framework is established, then maybe some specialists that will sub in for the more generalized forces as need arises, but the general strategy is to commit as late as possible and do as much 'keep away' as I can, because consensus I can find for lists like this is that they're wonderful at range, but fall apart up close.

 

Though, that being said, then I guess those short range russes can also serve a purpose, because they're not gonna want to advance until they're dead...

 

Maybe as a sort of anchor force, right? The anvil to the hammer.

[Flash Git jimmy]

Time for me to double post in my own thread! This time with a 'test' mini for my armored fist squads.

 

Guardsmen 3rd Class Ezekiel Raggs, Necromunda 73rd Armored

 

 

Guardsman Raggs is a typical example of the average mechanized infantryman of the Necromundan 73rd. Colloquially referred to as 'Armored Fist' squads in official paperwork (and ironically referred to as 'Last Mistake' squads amongst the disillusioned soldiers out of earshot of regimental leadership), the mechanized infantry squads of the 73rd are largely made up of tank crew personnel who are awaiting replacement or repair on vehicles that have been knocked out in combat. It is the nature of the Imperium and armored regiments that crews are usually far more expendable than their machines.

 

As such, morale in these squads tends to be low, as well as military bearing and appearance. Guardsmen in these squads in the 73rd are rarely within uniform standards or regulation due to two factors - typical Necromundan defiance of authority (very common amongst all levels of Necromundan military units, since they were almost always petty criminals or gangers before recruitment) and that their uniforms and kit were lost along with the burning hulls of their vehicles. As such, they are a hodgepodge of several different patterns of Guardsmen kit, and all of it is improperly worn - here demonstrated by Raggs's fatigue shirt, which seems to have lost its sleeves somewhere between being issued to him and him wearing it.

[WarriorFish]

Nice colours and model :tu:

[P3AKHOUR]

I love this.  Those tanks have real character and your conversions are all class. Cool fluff with your mechanized infantry too.

[Flash Git jimmy]

I appreciate all the kind words folks. Now that i've painted one infantryman...

 

 

it's time to get back to the best part of the guard. been waiting to tackle the first of two of these forge world mars alpha pattern vanquishers

[Marshal Argos]

I've always loved the Alpha Pattern Russes from FW. Maybe when I get back around to repainting my armor I'll have to convert the rest of my Russes to have them as well. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

[Flash Git jimmy]

I've always loved the Alpha Pattern Russes from FW. Maybe when I get back around to repainting my armor I'll have to convert the rest of my Russes to have them as well. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

Well, today, you're gonna get part of that wish!

Good news guardsmen, battle brothers, battle sisters, and all good imperial servants in between - the tank workshops of Necromunda are in full swing once more! Praise Lord Helmwar and may you all have ripper jack-free ventilation ducts!

Not only am I putting paint on the Vanquisher, we here at the Necromunda 73rd have just gotten Mechanicus approval to manufacture the Thunderer siege tank for field use, effective immediately.

This thunderer started as an experiment to mount a Baneblade demolisher cannon to a Leman russ hull, and I'm pleased to say it was a complete success. Seamless too - to the untrained eye it doesn't even look remotely out of place on the model. It came out fabulously, and once the Vanquisher is all dressed up and pretty, the new Thunderer will be the next tank on the shop floor.

[WarriorFish]

Very nice work :tu:

[Flash Git jimmy]

Quick mini-update

 

 

Spent a little time this morning building the rest of the thunderer siege tank. This thing looks a lot like a metal slug boss

 

 

but look at that elevation though, can I get a skyfire USR please?

 

kiddin'

 

maybe only a little

[WarriorFish]

An excellent conversion, simple but effective like all the great ones :)

[Flash Git jimmy]

Thanks man! Appreciate you commenting, and all you watching the thread. Keep on bein' excellent.

 

Now, that being said, I got some progress for all of you!

 

 

The command tank is closer to being finished. Weathered up the hull today, and I had a great time. Tommorrow, I think i'll start on the turret.

[WarriorFish]

Weathering really tops the model off, was it the GW technical paint range?