My "Vostroyan Legion"

[tvih]

As in, my Astra Militarum army which is a combination of Vostroyans and Steel Legion

An army nearly 4 years in the making, yet only just a couple of weeks ago I painted a model for it (I have had a few battles with them though "years ago").

Here's what I have now or already ordered:

Steel Legion:

Yarrick

Commissar

Officer with power sword

Sergeant

14 lasguns

2 plasma guns

Grenade Launcher

Heavy Bolter

Lascannon

Missile Launcher

Vostroyans:

Officer with Power Fist

Officer with Chainsword

2 sergeants

12 lasguns

4 plasma guns

2 Flamers

2 Heavy Bolters

Lascannon

Not that I had many to begin with, but I've managed to sell all my vehicles as I was supposed to focus on marines/Sisters (yeah, good job with that), so I'm looking to ordering some. So far my immediate shopping list is looking like (still open to changes on last moment whims):

Start Collecting Militarum Tempestus

Leman Russ Demolisher

2 Chimeras

2 Sentinels (I like how they look - so sue me )

For the metal infantry the idea was to have enough figs to run a Company Command Squad as HQ, a veteran squad and infantry platoon with two heavy weapon squads (so 6 heavy weapons total - one squad with the heavy bolters and the other with the rest) and then I'd have enough leftovers to run a 5-man special weapon squad as well. The plastic tempestus will make up the elite slot - I do have 10 ratling I could use elite-wise too though, but I never seem to kill anything with them anyway.

Not really looking to build anything overly competitive, and they're mainly an ally to my marines and Sisters.

Here's the only two figs I've almost finished so far:

I'm not sure how I'm gonna paint the vehicles. Haven't seen much examples of Vostroyan vehicles, and the Steel Legion ones don't look all that nice. But gotta be either or, or most likely a mix like infantry, I guess.

Edited October 13, 2018 by tvih

[Brother Dallo]

Looks like a good start. I'd reccomend a slightly watered down wash of Nuln Oil all over the models to give them a bit more definition.

 

Keep up the good work.

 

Dallo

[WarriorFish]

Vostroyan vehicles are predominantly an off white if I remember right, but there's nothing stopping you from altering the scheme if you want Have you given the models a wash? That's normally a good way to top a model off, especially metallics and even more so on models with lots of detail

[tvih]

The metallics and browns were washed with Nuln Oil (except the officer pistol which hasn't been yet), though I reapplied some of the bronze color because it ended up too dull/dark. The bounced flash I used to take the photos make them look a bit flatter than they look in person.

[WarriorFish]

I quite like Agrax Earthshade on brown(ish) colours, gives them some depth without too much darkening maybe that's worth a try on the armour?

[tvih]

Started working on a Steel Legion Plasma Gun dude, the first SL model I've started to paint. Not really sure how I'm gonna paint the trench coat. The paint suggestions on the GW webstore don't look like they'd result in how the models look. I've only done Steel Legion Drab as a base now, but obviously that's just pretty much brown despite the name and nothing like the rather yellow tone in the model pictures.

[WarriorFish]

Try this scheme - older paints but you can find the updated names here

[tvih]

Hmm, that'd be doable as I have both Tausept Ochre (used it on my Lysander) as well as Bleached Bone (and the newer Ushabti Bone, BB is a bit dried out). Testing time! 

[tvih]

http://www.tvih.net/stuff/wh40k/sl_plasma1.jpg

 

Hmmm... should still highlight blacks and browns I guess, but it's so annoying to work on metal models when you always manage to rub off the paint from the edges while working on them :P Also too darn many layers due to the originally different basecoat, so ended up with a bit of an orange peel effect on the coat. Oh well.

[WarriorFish]

Looks good though, a wash of Agrax would probably finish the colours off neatly?

[tvih]

It has been washed once already, except on top of the trenchcoat after the highlights (still can be seen in the deepest recesses though). Need to put some nuln oil on the metallics though.

[tvih]

Ah, the reinforcements have arrived. Only ended up getting one Sentinel for now, though. Might test paint the Sentinel at some point in the near future if I have the appropriate paints, but I'm not sure when I'll get around to painting to more of my AM figs though. Gotta get them Sisters up and running first, dividing my efforts between several armies is really slowing down overall progress of getting new armies onto the fields of battle.

 

Also looks like the SC:MT formation has a fairly nice formation bonus rule, didn't know what it was beforehand.

Edited December 21, 2016 by tvih

[tvih]

Since I finally got the Sentinel and it has the autocannon, I tested and found it to be somewhat fitting on the Steel Legion Heavy Bolter team. It even has the shell ejection hole so the loader can feed ammo into it - not that it makes sense as the weapon has a drum mag and it is indeed meant to be an ejector, but anyway All it'd need otherwise is a self-made bipod, which would be easy enough to add. As I will have two Vostroyan Heavy Bolters, I could then run 3xHB or 2xHB+AC. Not much of a difference I guess. I suppose I may have to give up on my "no Cadians" policy at some point and get a heavy weapons squad (and perhaps the SC:AM box). I just wish it was possible to get BS 4 heavy weapons squads

[WarriorFish]

Guard must be due some updates next year, so perhaps a little wait wouldn't be a bad idea to see what happens?

[duz_]

There's always third party miniatures?

[tvih]

I really doubt there will be changes to existing plastic kits such as Cadian infantry. And not a fan of using third parties too much either really for some reason (only third party things on my 40k models so far are some Anvil cloaks on my marines).

 

Death Korps would be nice to have, but so expensive. One heavy weapon costs as much as the whole Cadian HW Squad that has all the different options too  Expensive compared to the already expensive Vostroyan/Steel Legion heavy weapons, though at least DKoK also have autocannons and mortars.

[tvih]

Oh... and while I found a Steel Legion paint scheme that I'm going to try on the Sentinel, I still can't seem to find a "definitive" one for Vostroyans. Many of the pics online have various off-whites but the Codex has this... I don't know, some sort of khaki green with something lighter drybrushed on it as well as edge highlights? Ugh.

[WarriorFish]

What about Rotting Flesh, or whatever the new version is? That might be the sort of colour you're looking for?

[tvih]

Rotting flesh what the old SL tank scheme I found suggested for the "stripes", and the new version would seem to be Nurgling Green. I was thinking of just trying Ushabti Bone. For the Vostroyan base the Nurgling Green would seem a tad... bright? Actually I'm not even sure if the color is green or brown or a mix of the two now that I take another look at it. Haha. Oh well, I suppose I have to ponder about it later, I can make the SL vehicles first (never mind all the Sisters I'm supposed to do first). Right now I'm off to pick up three new plasma gun guys from the FLGS Sadly the Vostroyan Firstborn Squad I also had on order had just gone out of stock so they couldn't get that yet.

Edited December 22, 2016 by tvih

[tvih]

After some drybrushing, which I'm not good at:

 

 

Not sure if I want to go any "heavier" on it than that, though admittedly it is blacker than traditional. Might've been just easier to have the gray primer, do a black wash with an airbrush, and then do highlights... but what the heck, at least it's practise on new methods rather than the same ol' (not that I'd ever have airbrushed washes either ).

 

Gotta wait 'til tomorrow to do the "camo" stripe thingamabobs. Can't run the airbrush compressor at night.

Edited December 22, 2016 by tvih

[WarriorFish]

That looks good to me :)

[tvih]

Right'o, camo applied:

 

http://www.tvih.net/stuff/wh40k/ig-sl-sentinel1.jpg

 

A few finishing touches here and there and it should be good to go. Since I suck at drybrushing and airbrushing, I'd rate the end result as "acceptable"

Edited April 25, 2018 by tvih

[Nicodemus Doloroso]

I really like that Sentinel, very well done.

 

On the Vostroyans, one suggestions I'd make is to hit their coats with a Carroburg Crimson wash, it makes red stuff really look great as it fills in the crevaces and tones down the brighness of the red a little bit. Otherwise they're looking good.

 

Before you painted the Steel Legion guy, I was going to suggest why not try giving them the same colours as your Vostroyans? Red trench coats might actually work, and then do some brass on the gas mask to fit with the Vostroyan masks. But the standard GW colours look good too.

[tvih]

The Sentinel certainly looks very different from anything I've done before. The throughout drybrushing gives it a rather distinct and kinda worn look, while my models in general tend to be modeled to be in "pristine" condition.

[WarriorFish]

Sentinels are good models for dry brushing so this has come out very well. You'll be surprised how good it'll look once you get the details and other colours on :)