The Montgisard Crusade

[Lippy]

After posting my first few questions here, and reading around like a good Neophyte should, I've filled myself with enough ZEAL to embark on my Crusade.

 

I intend for my Templars to be fun to play first, with competitiveness coming second. Therefore, I'm going to choose the models/units I want to play, rather than what the Meta says I should.

 

So here it begins. - And just in time for the Imperial Fists Expansion V too!

 

I've decided start as you should, building from troops up. So I bought the Start Collecting! Space Marines, and begin with my Crusader Initiates.

http://i.imgur.com/6PALBw0.jpg

I intend on building these guys as two separate 5man squads (to start).

One will have PowerSword, Flamer, and 3xCCW. Then the second will have Lascannon, Plasma, and 3x Boltgun. I've ordered the Lascannon, and some loincloths from Bitsandkits.co.uk, over a week ago now and they've still not arrived. I hope they arrive soon as I want to get painting!

 

 

Doing things properly, I've bought the BT Upgrade kits, and the first most annoying thing I've found is the below:

http://i.imgur.com/uiaIuUd.jpg

Why have GW changed the locating nodules for both the front and back torso to be Male... I mean come on! So annoying having to chop bits off that should just work... almost as bad as mould lines!

 

 

After an evening of gluing these guys together I'm almost ready to start priming and painting... I just have to make the decision on bases. This is where I need some advice.

 

I'm going to go Purist Templars, so black (or v.dark grey), Whites/creams, and Reds. Lots of Capes, Lots of loincloths, and never enough swords!

My idea for bases are the below:

http://i.imgur.com/6M6JVwi.jpg?1

I want them all to look like they're never far from the Reclusiam.

These are just testers, hence 25mm bases. But I think I'll go for Red and White as they should complement the details on the models.

 

My question is, Should I prepaint these bases, then prime my models (and possibly paint them) separate before gluing together, or model the base, then glue the unprimed Templar on and prime/paint together? (probably not that great a decision, but it seems a big one at this stage!)

 

[Sigismund229]

Welcome to the ranks of the Eternal Crusaders! Looking forwards to seeing this project developing 

[Quixus]

My question is, Should I prepaint these bases, then prime my models (and possibly paint them) separate before gluing together, or model the base, then glue the unprimed Templar on and prime/paint together? (probably not that great a decision, but it seems a big one at this stage!)

If you pin the model to the base you can build and paint the base first. Just don't forget to make a little hole in the base for the pin before painting it to avoid the risk of breaking off paint..

 

You can also glue the model('s legs) onto the built base and prime and paint everything. Do whatever feels best.

[Honda]

First off, welcome to the Eternal Crusade brother! Do make yourself at home.

 

I intend for my Templars to be fun to play first, with competitiveness coming second. Therefore, I'm going to choose the models/units I want to play, rather than what the Meta says I should.

 

 Very wise approach. Have fun painting what you like and no matter the result on the table, you'll enjoy what you play with. Also, it's kind of nice to figure out how your army plays with things that you like.

 

These are just testers, hence 25mm bases. But I think I'll go for Red and White as they should complement the details on the models.

 

This is a nice touch for your army and will be distinctive.

 

I would off for consideration, that instead of going with a basic red, add a touch of brown to your red to get a terra cotta color. This will still give you a reddish tile to work with, but because it will be less contrasting with any red on your figures. Something to consider.

 

My question is, Should I prepaint these bases, then prime my models (and possibly paint them) separate before gluing together, or model the base, then glue the unprimed Templar on and prime/paint together? (probably not that great a decision, but it seems a big one at this stage!)

 

 

If it were me, I'd paint your figures and bases separately, then glue together. I'd definitely pin them (paper clips are a good cheap source for pins) to the bases after finishing them.

 

Reasons: You mentioned having capes, loincloths and other whatnots on your figures and given the preciseness you seem to be seeking with the checkered floor pattern, that will be a real pain in the neck to paint around.

 

So do the bases separately, as well as the figures, and then assemble them. Do make sure that what ever you use for your tiles is flat as that could cause issues later on when attaching.

 

Another possibility for the tiles is to glue a section of sheet plastic on, then score the grout lines on. If you look around you'll see there are different ways to get that effect. While you're practicing now, try a couple different methods and see which one fits you best.

 

Cheers,

[Lippy]

Thanks for the welcome and the advice guys.

So I'm an impatient little so and so some times and I decided to prime the models and bases seperate but didn't want to faff with pinning so I'll just superglue them once done.

 

Here they are ready and waiting

And bases

I like the idea of adding a bit of brown to make terracotta. I'd considered that with a dark grey instead of the white (feel like I've seen it somewhere before. Will give it a go on a test base first.

 

Like I said, I've been impatient and thus a bit silly in that the boltgunners shouldn't have been glued until after painting, but I'll see how I get on and learn lessons for the next lot (which won't be too far behind)!

 

Looking forward to painting my first Brother tomorrow. Plan is to complete one test model first.

[NoPityNoRemorseNoFear]

looking forward to seeing your work brother.

[Lippy]

So I've managed to complete 2 Templars so far.

 

http://i.imgur.com/P1tCuhd.jpg?1

 

In the length of time it took me to paint the first guy (on the right of pic) I would have normally have finished a whole squad. The only highlighting I've ever done is Drybrushing, practically all over! Let alone any edge highlighting. And Washes would normally be used to cover my poor skills rather than darkening the recesses.

 

http://i.imgur.com/ZKMekoJ.jpg?1

 

All in all, I am very happy with them so far. I'll post one of my previous models for comparison one day.

 

2 down, 8 more to go for my Vow...

[Lippy]

Yeah, so I bet you guys were wondering if I was eve going to finish those ten guys, eh?!

 

Well... I did a thing:

 

http://i.imgur.com/pEdXWnn.jpg?1

The guy on the far right has a power sword, but unfortunately my photography skills aren't up to much..

 

http://i.imgur.com/QqQgpKx.jpg?1

Guns!

 

http://i.imgur.com/9BK35TP.jpg?2

I'm particularly pleased with the lense.. Normally I'd just paint it one colour and be done.

 

Next up is my Ven-Dread, maybe with my terminator castellan.

[Marshal Mattias]

Nice job, congrats. Particularly like your attention to the lens/coils/blade with your power-effects etc. Also your basing scheme is cool, and it's going to look so awesome if you put together a massive 20-man crusader squad ;)

[Brother Christopher]

Congrats on the finished models. While those are some cool-looking crusaders, I think the bases are just awesome. As you mentioned in your first post, they do bring the reclusiam to mind.

[Lippy]

Thanks for the comments guys!

 

 

I brought my fledgling crusade out to play last week. Only a small lot of 500pts (borrowed a droppod and razorback to bump up the Start collecting lot) backed up by 1000pts of IG tanks.

I danced the dance with some harlequins and was royally laughed out of court!

They Immobilised my Dreadnought straight away, wiped out my Leman Russes and then pulled the limbs off my Crusaders.

Looking back I didn't use my Templars aggresively and ended up pinned in a corner so I'll give it another go.

It was also a 'fluffy game' and he used invisible bikes and rolled to seize on a 2+ AFTER my deployment, and wouldn't take my hint when i said i Might've deployed differently had I known he was going to do that!

Anyway, I will not be deterred and the Crusade will march on...

 

Up next on the paint station is my Venerable Dread and Terminator Captain.

http://i.imgur.com/mcn9FU0.jpg?1

 

Venerable Dread first.

 

As you can hopefully see, I've made up four Ranged Weapon arms. I nabbed a MultiMelta arm off a SpaceWolf player at the club, and took great pleasure in scraping the Wolf symbol off. It's now been replaced by a Maltese Cross.

http://i.imgur.com/0Pf7FHpm.jpg

 

I also Magnetized the Powerfist arm to be able to swap between StormBolter and HeavyFlamer. It's a little bit wonky but you'd only notice if you looked hard. And by then you'll have seen way more issues than just that!

 

 

I had a bit of an issue with the Base. Now I do appreciate the moulded base supplied by GW, both in that they've tried to help you to theme your model, and also how it actually looks.

http://i.imgur.com/8ib4lm7m.jpg?1

However, It doesn't suit my army, and I want them all to match, with the Reclusiam theme on my Crusaders above.

I was going to beg a 60mm base off someone at the club, but I kinda felt bad on GW's efforts to supply me with the moulded base (I know right). So here's my new plan:

http://i.imgur.com/KmAvzDem.jpg?1

 

This is pre-cutting and gluing and obviously prepainting. But I've since cut the square and glued it all into place and I think it has the same effect

Looking forward to painting it tonight.

I've also nearly finished the body and legs of the Dread himself, so will get a little pic of that.

[Lippy]

Pleased to announce that I finished my VenDread's Torso and Base last night, and have made a start on the interchangeable weaponry. Photos will be uploaded later.

 

I started to look at my Terminator Castellan/Marshal.

He is the standard StormBolter/Powersword model that is thrown into every box set going.

Initially I thought about magnetising his arms to be able to swap out for TH/SS to taste. But it then seemed a little too much effort for a model I may not use all that much.

So the Sword arm (left) is glued in place - the cloak is attached to it and I didn't want to ruin the model.

 

Having read around a bit, I'm now debating whether it's worth trying to include a shield (eternal or storm). I'm wondering if I might try to cut his stormbolter off at the wrist, magnetise, and use a FW Templar Shield. I know it's the wrong arm, but I think I can make it work.

 

So my question is really, Is it worth the pain and angst to try and make it work, so I can use either SS/BurningBlade or PwrSwd/ShielEternal?

My meta is quite varied, in factions/codex, and power levels. One week I could arrange a FNP tooled up Medusa Strike Force (or similar) and the next i could play a beer and pretzels game against a mass of Firewarriors...

 

Does anyone ever use either loadout for Terminator Captain or ChapterMaster...? Does anyone even use a Terminator Captain/CM?

[Brother Christopher]

Oh man, the problem is there. It really depends on what you want - to to think about it tomorrow, maybe a break will help you take a better decision. This is a complicated thing, but in order to provide an advice other than "it depends on what you want" I'll simplify things a bit.

 

I'd say, it really boils down to aesthetics and how you like your commanders. A Terminator Marhsall/Castellan does not seem like a good choice from a gaming perspective: it is expensive, it offers an inferior invulnerable save to what a Marshal already has and it prevents from doing sweeping advances. An Artificer's Armour appears to be a much better choice from a gaming perspective. But! TDA is iconic and cool and it's worth having a TDA HQ. Having said that, at this point considering any options for the guy to gear him for a competetive game is kind of pointless - this is my 'aesthetics' argument. Choose what you like and ignore the game and pick an option you like. And, if I were to suggest something, swap the storm bolter for a storm shield (either magnetise it to pick something else, or glue it in place). A sword and shield Templar HQ feels right - and for a Marshal/Castellan, in terms of epicness, a sword is even better than a hammer (imo).

 

When trying to make the shield work, make sure you take a look at combat shield from the command squad which is a source the 'right' hand holding a shield. This is something I did with my Marshal.

[Lippy]

Thanks for your reply Brother.

It definitely does boil down to my personal taste, and I agree that the ZEAL in the Shield/Sword combo is unmatched.

After a chat with my buddy, I decided I'm going to magnetize what I can. My preferred loadout for game reasons is the TH/SS combo. But I'm early into my Crusade, so I don't have a lot of options, otherwise I'd have a Commandsquad set and I probably wouldn't be worrying about it all as I'd already have Castellan/Marshal in PwrArmour anyway.

Thankfully the BT Upgrade pack has a PowerFist, with Chains... Chainfist? :)

 

Here is after being brutally chopped...

http://i.imgur.com/dStT33tm.jpg?1

Now I need to be brave and take a knife to the rear of the StormShield and spray it.

 

 

Anyway, Here's my WIP Dreadnought. He's a little more straightforward.

http://i.imgur.com/7UOOgAZm.jpg?1

http://i.imgur.com/nBw59VVm.jpg?1

Again it's all about the base 

His arms are next:

http://i.imgur.com/tgFza7k.jpg?2

The white's looking a little like tip-ex at the mo, but it's coming along.

[Lippy]

Big update this evening...

 

Finally got round to finishing off my Venerable Dreadnought:

 

http://i.imgur.com/a4NL9yIl.jpg?1

I know that being a venerated brother he should have more bling, but I opted for a more modest coffin.

 

http://i.imgur.com/Zt4b4axl.jpg?1

I'm really enjoying the black at the moment. I find that any colour I use contrasts against it nicely.

 

http://i.imgur.com/e92Ex9Bl.jpg?1

I have magnetised all the right hand weapons, but right now only the Melta and Lascannon are done.

 

http://i.imgur.com/LK9Imjtl.jpg?1

I'll probably get the Assault Cannon done as a priority over the Plasma Cannon, but will still get both done at some point.

 

http://i.imgur.com/KamxmSEl.jpg?1

And again, both underslung weapons are magnetised. But I opted to glue the Fist over the Claw thing. I prefer the idea of him smashing skulls rather than crushing them.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Next is my Terminator Marshal/Castellan.

 

http://i.imgur.com/uyqQAvJ.jpg?1

He was a lot of fun to paint. I really enjoyed the little details on him.

 

http://i.imgur.com/KcFT5hB.jpg?1

Having said that, I reached a point where I couldn't do any more on him and wanted to move on. This close up shows some touchups I missed... I'll go back to the some day.

 

http://i.imgur.com/xKxoAxU.jpg?1

I cut him at the wrists and magnetised some options.

 

http://i.imgur.com/KiTN4ERl.jpg?1

The bright ones amongst you will spot that the Shield is on the wrong hand.

Due reasoning above, I wanted to have the option for a Shield/Sword or a Power Fist.

 

http://i.imgur.com/dL8yjyml.jpg?1

And a rear view for completeness.

 

When I get some Assault Terminators I'll magnetise a ThunderHammer so he can play properly. Maybe then is when I'll sort out the slips of paint.

http://i.imgur.com/EL4owGsl.jpg?1

Here they are together.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Next up:

 

http://i.imgur.com/kajJlh7l.jpg?1

 

Again, I've magnetised the Deathwind/StormBolter on the DropPod and given the Razorback the ability to switch between Lascannons, Lascannon/Plasma and HeavyBolters.

I have a Crusader kit waiting with Assault Cannons, but I'm sure they'll be used elsewhere more often than not

[Brother Christopher]

Generally cool stuff. I really like the commander with all the little additions (like the holy orb and heraldry shield and auspex). My only gripe is that the power fist, as it is, looks a bit awkward.

[Lippy]

Thanks for the feedback Brother.

It might be the angle of the photo, or perhaps the twist on the powerfist magnet, as in reality the powerfist is a much better fit than the sword is due to the angle it was cut.

[Brother Christopher]

It might be. After all, close-ups of miniatures tend to show weird angles (and also mercilessly expose all imperfections).

 

Keep up the good work! Do you have any plans for the paint scheme for the transports, like adding some colour, or are you going with an all-black look?

 

Also, though I haven't played the game for a long-long time, I'd say that the weapon options you've chosen for the Razorback are optimal.

[Tekman]

Thanks for the feedback Brother.

It might be the angle of the photo, or perhaps the twist on the powerfist magnet, as in reality the powerfist is a much better fit than the sword is due to the angle it was cut.

Probably just the angle/twist. Looks like it fits well enough but turned upwards which gives the impression of a double jointed elbow or a very awkward gene defect.

Otherwise nice stuff, I like your lens work and plasma/sword handling. Work on getting your highlights slightly more crisp and straight and you're golden.

[Lippy]

Thanks guys!

 

It might be. After all, close-ups of miniatures tend to show weird angles (and also mercilessly expose all imperfections).

 

Keep up the good work! Do you have any plans for the paint scheme for the transports, like adding some colour, or are you going with an all-black look?

 

Also, though I haven't played the game for a long-long time, I'd say that the weapon options you've chosen for the Razorback are optimal.

 

Yeah I'm going to go for these schemes for my vehicles:

http://www.astronomican.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=8754 (don't know who's this is, but kudos)

 

Like this but with a bit more edge highlighting. And droppod is black, with white on the plates on the fins (you know the ones), and metallic engines, interior etc.

LandRaiders will be like the razorback above. Although the all Black ones look the nuts, I think going full black may kill it for me. I need some colour to break it up.

 

 

Thanks for the feedback Brother.

It might be the angle of the photo, or perhaps the twist on the powerfist magnet, as in reality the powerfist is a much better fit than the sword is due to the angle it was cut.

Probably just the angle/twist. Looks like it fits well enough but turned upwards which gives the impression of a double jointed elbow or a very awkward gene defect.

Otherwise nice stuff, I like your lens work and plasma/sword handling. Work on getting your highlights slightly more crisp and straight and you're golden.

 

 

Yeah definitely the angle.

Thanks for the comments, this is kinda my first venture into edge highlighting. But tha slip on the dreadnought was awful wasnt it? I've sorted it now

My first army (guard) was done using just base colours and all over washes. My tau were a little more varied, but every model is highlighted by dry brushing.

I've learnt a lot already whilst just painting the models above, and i know that by the time I get to 1850 pts, I'll be a completely different painter.

[AndrewChristlieb]

I've done most of my tanks like the Razorback you posted above. I've got a couple rhinos that are all black and they look terrible imo, unfinished... Something I need to correct at some point. I've also done one of my LRCs with red instead of white trim and it's okay... still not as nice as the white on black though. I've been batting around the idea of doing my third LRC in white as the primary color to see how that looks too.

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Excellent works thus far.

[Lippy]

Thanks guys.

 

I've seen some of the White (or more Off-white) Templar stuff. Looks really nice, and would be great as a contrasting piece. But, there's a lot of surface area to cover there.. I'm not quite sure I'm up to the job just yet!

[Lippy]

Aha, so I've finally got round to finishing my DropPod and Razorback.
I say 'finally' even though it was only two weeks ago, as I'd hoped to have been another step ahead by now. However, when it came down to it I didn't have as much hobby time as I'd thought. That and I ended up spending a little more time on details than I should have considering they're just transports!

Anyway,
Razorback.
http://i.imgur.com/nBp2iUFl.jpg

I enjoyed getting back to painting an imperial vehicle. The squareness of the panels bring a 'basic' feel to them and that they're built to a cost rather than to a standard!


I also really appreciate the BT upgrade bits and even though there's only a small amount on there I feel they add a lot of character. I'm really looking forward to decorating my LRC.
http://i.imgur.com/shc4WXal.jpg


As with most of my models I made sure that the turret was interchangeable and that includes the LasPlas variant.
http://i.imgur.com/CN67VN0l.jpg

It can also be a rhino as you'd expect, but I didn't take a picture of that.


Next my first droppod
http://i.imgur.com/DGAZwwWl.jpg

I really enjoyed painting his and wasn't expecting to. I was tempted to go even further with the detailing but eventually felt that enough was enough.

http://i.imgur.com/DF3w6d7l.jpg
Again, the storm bolter and missiles are interchangeable, but no picture of that.
http://i.imgur.com/Sn6SOFtl.jpg

 

Next on my table are another 10 Crusaders.

[Psykic_scribe]

Chuffed re your post #20 above.  (Most of my later armour models do have highlighting)

 

Your whites are coming on nicely - they are a pain to put on with very thin coats.  Alternatively, a little cream (e.g. Ushabti) helps the flow but I prefer pure White Scar on top of a thin Ceramite base.