A. Mechanicus... Darkly

[Subtle Discord]

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++ COROT-Exo-7b ∙ Atrum Laboris ∙ The Dark Works’ rotation is tidally locked to the orbital period of the planet; temperatures and geologic conditions on the sides of the planet facing towards and away from the star are dramatically different. Where the night-side hemisphere plunges to -350°F forming a stable planetary surface of desolate splendor, in stark contrast the day-side hemisphere is as hot as the tungsten filament of an incandescent bulb, resulting in the formation of a vast ocean of lava. The only natural atmosphere of this planet is produced from the vapors arising from the molten silicates in this vast ocean, causing weather events comprised of stone, as pebbles and rocks condense out of the air to rain down into the molten hellscape below. A round world made ostensibly flat, the division between the hemispheres is referred to as Horizon, and revered it as a sacred divide; the population of The Dark Works understand that while their world is a sphere it also has a very real edge, beyond which a hellish oblivion lay, but from that oblivion their power is drawn, quite literally.
 
++ The Mechanicus of The Dark Works have taken the concept of Forge World to a literal culmination with the construction of Mundis Fornax ∙ The World Furnace; where other Forge Worlds might hollow a planet for raw materials and build massive structures upward into the sky, the vast majority of The Dark Works burrows carefully into the night-side crust surrounding the molten mass that comprises the majority of the planet. Constructed over several millennia, with further progress continuing, a linked series of colossal geo-thermal extraction complexes of unparalleled scale harness essentially the entire planet, producing the massive amounts of thermal energy and motive force required for large scale production, power a multitude of experiments and explorations, and to maintain the remarkable equilibrium that has been created. The planet itself is considered so sacred by its population that it is never used as materials in common manufacturing, with the vast majority of any extracted material being ceremoniously returned to the molten ocean; only very small portions of specific constituents are extracted and reserved for the production of exceptional wargear and deeply sacred objects. A tiny sealed ampule containing a few grains of stone precipitation, presented to those servants of Atrum Laboris who have distinguished themselves in some significant way in their service to The Forge, is one rare and revered example.
 
++ The extremely close and rapid orbit of COROT-Exo-7b around its massive Blue Giant host star provides other pronounced advantages that have combined to make The Dark Works essentially unassailable, permitting it to assert its independence. Any spacecraft attempting to reach the Forge World has no choice but to follow a very small corridor, using the planet itself as a solar shield as it approaches; any attempt to flank the planet at ranges close enough to launch a meaningful attack must contend with solar energies and gravitational forces so intense that a fleet would be twisted, mangled, and turned to carbon cinders plummeting towards the star in short order. The intense gravity in particular, which was somewhat crudely compensated for during the construction of Mundis Fornax, became a force that could be carefully studied, experimented with, and ultimately harnessed, once the output of The World Furnace was online and able to internally sustain the required gravitational stability for a habitable environment.
 
++ In turn the Mechanicus of The Dark Works applied their uniquely deep understanding of gravity to construct a trio of Super-Heavy Graviton Cannons of unprecedented proportions to act as the ultimate gatekeepers to the planet. The brilliance of this Graviton Array lay in the way it operates; not only can it produce and manipulate its own gravity field, it can also create a form of gravity well to act as a giant amplifier that can harness, focus, and project, the massive gravitational forces of the star itself to catastrophic effect. Approaching craft that are expected will have the extreme gravitational forces of the massive star carefully compensated for, providing an effortless approach to the Forge World. Should anything undesirable attempt to close on the planet a series of options are afforded by the enormous Graviton Array; simply denying to compensate for the natural gravitational forces of the star is generally enough to stop an unwanted approach. However, the colossal array can easily use its effects to twist, sheer, and/or implode, dense or heavily armoured targets into so much raw material ready for harvest and re-purposing. Alternately, lighter targets that may attempt to rapidly advance on the planet can be effortlessly deflected out of the small safe-approach corridor and be forced to contend with the unrelenting solar energies of COROT-7. Given the abundance of motive force that can be directed from Mundis Fornax to the Graviton Array at a moment’s notice, it can be charged and ready to activate remarkably quickly for such an enormous device.
 
++ Given its uniquely defensible position, Atrum Laboris has chosen to carefully assert and maintain an autonomous standing. Understandably (and justifiably), there is considerable suspicion surrounding the nature of the research, experimentation, and development, undertaken in the darker recesses of this secretive Forge World; the Fabricator Generals, Locum, and High Priests of The Dark Works understand only too well that they must walk this path carefully and are therefore very adept in the manner of their negotiations with any given outside party. Great care is taken to conduct themselves accordingly through a selection of appropriate representatives who can engage in negotiations with a wide range of clientele, who in turn have a wide range of needs. Despite having a broad selection available that is absolutely unsanctioned, the care with which transactions are conducted has kept direct links to the Forge World well protected and obscured. With appropriate tithes consistently delivered, and quality legal munitions, weapons, armour, and wargear, on offer to those who can accommodate the price, suspicion alone has not been enough to warrant an attempt to test the intimidating defenses of this entrenched Forge World.

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Edited February 5 by Subtle Discord
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[Subtle Discord]

Designer’s Note: To start, there will be a fair amount of overlap in content between Legion Rising, Is it a bad thing…?, and A. Mechanicus… Darkly. For now, the intent is to have Legion Rising be a general information p’log that will provide work-in-progress insight into all of the projects I’ll have on my various workbenches, for studio and personal ventures; it will show overlapping content with the other threads, but will focus more on the design, build process, and other technique; as GW finishes their rolling revamp of the Chaos Marine line, Legion Rising may turn focus back to that original intended Chaos subject emphasis, but time will tell, and maybe a new p’log will be better if/when the time comes.

The focus of, Is it a bad thing…? will be on a Renegades & Heretics Dark Mechanicus ‘militia’ force constructed from Imperial Armour 13. A second spawn of the same muse, A. Mechanicus… Darkly will follow the creation of a force constructed from the formal Adeptus Mechanicus Codices. Both will concentrate more on complete models, design inspiration, painting progress, and fiction; they will overlap more in the beginning, and all three p’logs will diverge more as content for each begins to find its stride.

I also understand full well that the impending release of 8th edition appears to be poised to make some significant changes to many aspects of the game. While this may require a recalibration of the projects when the time comes, I can’t see it changing the core inspiration and direction I’m setting for each of the p’logs, so I’m not really that concerned about the approaching release of 8th edition. Now, should GW release some form of official Dark Mechanicus rules at some future juncture that would prove an interesting turn of events likely to change some plans. For now, welcome to my muse, I look forward to seeing where these winding paths will lead, and taking you along for the journey.

[Magos Takatus]

This is a really memorable planetary description and must be a difficult place to live. It reminds me of the planet Mordia only more severe. I like the idea of the unique graviton array being able to nudge hostile ships into the unsafe gravitational fields or flat out crush ships. It makes the planet a difficult one to assail.

[Subtle Discord]

Additional ∙ It should be noted that COROT-7 and its planetary bodies actually exist within our galaxy; they are some of the first rocky earth-like planets (in composition, not habitability) to ever be detected and confirmed. A few small cosmetic changes have been made, (placing it farther away from Earth/Mars to better suit the scale, and changing the star from Yellow-Orange to Blue) but most of the information mixed with the fiction is based on some light research of the real COROT-Exo-7b and its siblings. Despite many more Exo-Planets being found since, COROT-Exo-7b is still considered unique, due to its combination of large mass and remarkably close orbit around its parent star.

[ninjasuperspy]

Following. Can't wait to see some SD Dark Mech stuff.

[Subtle Discord]

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Tech-Priest Dominus = 141

Omnissian Axe, Eradication Ray, Macrostubber, Solar Flare

 

 

Tech-Priest Dominus = 139

Omnissian Axe, Volkite Blaster, Phosphor Serpenta

 

 

Tech-Priest Enginseer = 52

Omnissian Axe, Las Pistol, Servo Arm

 

 

Cybernetica Datasmith = 52

Power Fist, Gamma Pistol

 

 

Kastelan Robots x2 = 220

Twin Hvy. Phosphor Blasters x2, Hvy. Phosphor Blasters x2

 

 

Skitarii Rangers x8 = 121

Galvanic Rifles, Omnispex, Transuranic Arquebus x2

 

 

Skitarii Vanguard x10 = 145

Radium Carbines, Taser Goad, Omnispex, Plasma Caliver x3

 

 

Skitarii Vanguard x10 = 115

Radium Carbines, Taser Goad, Omnispex, Arc Rifle x3

 

 

Skitarii Vanguard x10 = 115

Radium Carbines, Taser Goad, Omnispex, Arc Rifle x3

 

 

Sydonian Dragoons x2 = 148

Taser Lance x2, Phosphor Serpenta x2

 

 

Onager Dune Crawler = 140

Neutron Laser + Cognis Hvy. Stubber, Cognis Hvy. Stubber, Broad Spectrum Data-tether

 

 

Onager Dune Crawler = 140

Neutron Laser + Cognis Hvy. Stubber, Cognis Hvy. Stubber, Broad Spectrum Data-tethe

 

Onager Dune Crawler = 135

Icarus Array, Cognis Hvy. Stubber, Broad Spectrum Data-tether

 

Void Shield Generator = 190

 

Total Points = 1,853 

 

Ok, so it seems as good a time as any to resurrect this thread, because this is going to be the starting point for a sequence of projects. Now that the dust has settled from 8^th edition being introduced, previously sidetracked plans can start to be recreated within the new 40k ‘ecosystem’. The considerable changes to the entire system have forced me to rethink, well… everything (as I’m sure is the case for many others) but I think I’ve got a good fresh direction now.

 

This thread with focus on Atrum Laboris’ fiction & background, creative inspiration/direction, list building, hard data collection (This army will see tabletops, damnit!), reasonably complete build & paint progress, and other creative musings. For those who are more interested in information about more focused build & paint progress, converting, kit-bashing, scratch building, and other work-in-progress information in regards to this (or other) projects, have a look at Legion Rising for that type of content. There will be an overlap in some images between threads, but they will be discussed from these different perspectives (Inspiration vs. Execution) of the project.

 

Case-and-point, Atrum Laboris will be built using the Lucius dogma/stratagem/trait; it seems a good fit in both fiction and rules to represent the exotic nature of the Forge World itself, the troops it would field, and the rare technology at their disposal. Given the secretive nature of what will ultimately be a Forge World with two very different faces/persona, warp-centric technology like teleportation seems rather appropriate.

 

Most of my projects going forward will be one part army building with the game-table in mind, and one part building a collection that is meant to look good in a display case and potentially as a backdrop for some studio images. For example, for now this list is using full sized Skitraii squads for the sake of the appearance, and they may or may not evolve to smaller squads once I can finally get some models on a table and throw some dice in the near’ish future. I have no idea what my local meta is like, so for now I have no idea what to expect. While I’m not seriously competitive, I always want to put a force on the table that hopefully stands a chance if played competently, but also looks good and 'feels' reasonably balanced doing it. For me, I have no problem painting a few extra models that might not see play that often to get the best of both worlds. It’s just an excuse to build and paint more models, and that’s what I’m here for!

 

The mass manufactured nature of the Ad Mech offers a great opportunity for decals with repetitive symbols and sequential numbering.

 

 I should have taken some screenshots of the iteration process I did to finally arrive at this design; what start with the ‘A’ and ‘L’ letters outside of the cog symbol and another element splitting the cog, creating something too complex, was refined down to this. It retains all of the elements but with less complexity. Enshrined in the cog, the blue circle represents the host star Corot-7, the split circle within that symbolizes the split nature of the planet, and in turn the ‘AL’ resides within that symbol just as Atrum Laboris resides within the planet. Finally, more hidden within this symbology the icon hints at the stark contrasts that are Atrum Laboris.

 

Naturally the central cog design can be removed from the surrounding square element, depending on how it’s going to be used on the model and how much space is available. I’m also pleased with how well it works with different colour treatments; it works well with an inverted background, but also as a simple single colour. Personally I prefer the center version, showing the base colour through, but retaining the blue circle to add a bit of interest as well as meaning.

 

I also think I may have gone a little overboard creating variety in the different squad/unit markings I made to the right. I’m still not sure if I want to use a unique symbol and number for each squad/unit (hence the variety), or have similar squad types share a symbol and number them differently/sequentially; in the second case I’ll have to trim the selection down to a top 10-15 favorites. One has a little more variety while the other seems to reinforce cohesion. *sigh* Am I overthinking this?

 

If you’re assembling an Ad Mech army, it’s all but inevitable that you’ll end up with several Tech-Priest Dominus models.

 

As mentioned here, I plan to start by making at least two unique Dominus models using the provided GW kit. The first, pictured here, will get a modest kit-bash to make it more unique, but it will retain the original pose for the most part. While looking good so far, I think I want to do a bit more to take the change further, without making too much work for myself. That’s what the second Dominus will be for, as I plan to turn the head of the model to the left, and make much more significant changes to the appendages; more ambitious and more work, but there’s so many great bits in the Ad Mech line, along with others, that I’m confident I can make it work.

 

Skitarii Vanguard x10 ∙ Radium Carbines, Taser Goad, Omnispex, Plasma Caliver x3

 

Skitarii Vanguard x10 ∙ Radium Carbines, Taser Goad, Omnispex, Arc Rifle x3

 

Skitarii Vanguard x10 ∙ Radium Carbines, Taser Goad, Omnispex, Arc Rifle x3

 

Skitarii Rangers x8, Galvanic Rifles, Omnispex, Transuranic Arquebus x2

 

While I don’t expect huge returns from them, I gave the Vanguard Alphas Taser Goads because they’re simply signature Ad Mech weapons that look cool. Who knows, they might even surprise me from time-to-time, and the exploding 6 might prove useful. I also went with the Omnispex over the Data-tether because I think I’m going to get more mileage out of removing the cover modifier from every shot the units put out, than rerolling failed moral checks. Even with the +1-to-Hit Stratagem, the Data-tether gives you +2-to-Hit that’s still effected by enemy cover, and the Omnispex +1-to-Hit that ignores enemy cover for effectively +2-to-Hit. I also suspect that the squads are going to be easy enough for the enemy to remove them from the field, even with a Tether, so yeah, more offense for as long as they stay alive is my logic.

 

The initial ~40 Skitraii needed for this list are all mostly prepped and built, with the 20 pictured below already receiving paint. Originally I had planned to stop it with 40, however, I’ve been slowly collecting for this project for a few years now, and managed to get 50 already. So, I’ve decided to accept my fate and aim for a round 60 Skitarii; 20 Vanguard with 6 Plasma Calivers, 20 Vanguard with 6 Arc Rifles, and 20 Rangers with 4 Transuranic Arquebus’. I don’t intend for them all to see the table at the same time very often, but it will offer options in list building, and provide nice throng of troops to stand at the feet of future mechanical monstrosities I have planned. But, before I permit myself to be distracted by ideas like those any further, I’m forcing myself to finish the daunting task of completing the large block of Troops.

 

If it wasn’t already evident, I will not be using the traditional red in my colour scheme for Atrum Laboris.

 

Having a soft spot for a cold-centric colour pallet, blue will be dominant in the scheme. I will not be using red or orange, and yellow will be used very sparingly. In this case yellow actually makes for a good compromise; it contrast extremely well with blue, and there’s simply no way to avoid it if you want to do hazard striping and/or chevrons. And as much as they can be frustrating to paint, this is an Ad Mech force, I want to try to add some chevrons and hazard stripes in a few locations.

 

Ok, thread resurrection complete, and I think this is a respectable wall-o’-text-n’-images to get things started. With actual hobby workbench time finally becoming available, it is my plan to keep this project moving forward as quickly as I can manage. I’ve got so many other wonderful ideas and creations lurking in the back of my brain, I need to get this done so I can start on those. However, grand projects are best served by a solid foundation, even if it is a bit tedious to lay down.

 

Thanks for reading. As always, input, suggestions, comments, questions, and general musing are always welcome. And now that I finally have more hobby time, I should actually be able to respond more often and regularly.

[Magos Takatus]

That large heap of Skitarii looks a bit intimidating queued up like that but it's a gorgeous blue you've chosen. What paint(s) have you used?

[Vel'Cona]

Glad to see this one starting up again!  That is a brave amount of Skitarii indeed but I feel that Mr. Discord is up to the task :)

[Subtle Discord]

Thanks for the encouragement. Being a newer range I respect that Ad Mech lack a bit of depth right now, but I'm completely taken by the faction for the time being, so finding motivation is somewhat easier. It's Ad Mech after all, so you've got to do assembly line production if you're going to do it right.

 

"... Upgrade, complete. Candidate 4,278... enter the chamber. Initialize preliminary augmentation. Implantation commencing... Upgrade, complete. Candidate 4,279..."

 

I agree, it can be completely daunting, but it's a realization I came to back before I got sidetracked with all that self improvement I recently completed. Put simply, many/most army lists have a core block of Troops that the entire build hinges on, and I force myself to address that hurdle first, before getting too distracted with other elements of an army that are less central to the list. (at least, I try) If I can get past that initial glut of work, the idea of taking on pretty much any of the other projects becomes much less daunting. For me there's two main motivating factors. Once I've got the Troops done I know that each completed project will get added to an expanding functional core of the army, opposed to having a selection of Elite/FA/HS units with nothing to tie them together. And after completing a block of 30-50 Troops, focusing attention on 'just' a 5-10 body unit, or a vehicle or two, becomes much less intimidating by comparison.

 

As for the Blue colour, it's very straight forward so far.

• Two layers of Vallejo Magic Blue over a Black prime.
• Two layers of Blue Wash; the first over the entire area with some quick wet blending to keep most of the shading up near the torso, and a second selective application to reinforce the shade effect at the top of the model. I didn't worry too much about getting a perfect blend or if any shading dripped/drooped too low, because the final Blue application cleans it up nicely.
• After that I used an airbrush to blend the Magic Blue back up from the bottom.
• From here I will be using Vallejo Magic Blue combined with Vallejo Electric Blue to work up the highlights.

The plan is to finish them up reasonably clean and bright, before I weather them down a bit to make them look dirty, covered in grease, grime, carbon, and soot. 

[Yoda79]

I enjoyed reading all you made all concept and progress keep it up! I see a great effort and is exactly how I approach the game. In have my story a booklet making my armies . Loved it won't ruin your post with my pics but I LL read it .

 

 

P.s I will steal the idea of the breachers arm on my new second in command creation it suits my fluff if you agree. And I ll give you a nice tip for your units.

Edited November 2, 2017 by Yoda79

[JeffTibbetts]

Love the logo, my dude. I can’t wait to see where you go with this. I’m moving house and my wife and I just had another baby so I’m on a bit of an involuntary hiatus. If I had to hobby vicariously through anyone of my choosing, it would be you. Let’s do this!

[Subtle Discord]

Holy crap Jeff, congratulations! Yeah, isn't life a trip? It keeps you occupied, don't it? We'll talk when we can talk, when it makes sense. I'm still getting back on track myself. Please, feel free, tag along on my magical mystery tour. I'm glad you approve. I'm stating on the little critters but things are going to get big and stompy! *Insert maniacal laugh*

 

Yoda, I do all my p'logs to share ideas with the gaming community and I encourage anyone to take anything I've done and run with it. In turn I'm always happy for discussion, ideas, and input. Doing something like this is as much about showing what you're up to, as much as getting some outside perspective, feedback, and exchanging some ideas.

[anarchistscourge]

I have to say I completely agree with building out a core and getting that done first. Does mean you dont get to make and paint all those "pretty" models, but exactly as you say you'll be adding to a coherent force instead of trying to get cohesion out of the disparate models. 

Unfortunately for myself this i ignored this tidbit for more or less every army i every bought and its a royal pain in the arse, building an army that way.

 

Looking forward to see how all your core troops turn out. It's not often you see blue done so well in Admech. Keep up the good work buddy!

[Magos Takatus]

I have to say I completely agree with building out a core and getting that done first. Does mean you dont get to make and paint all those "pretty" models, but exactly as you say you'll be adding to a coherent force instead of trying to get cohesion out of the disparate models. 

Unfortunately for myself this i ignored this tidbit for more or less every army i every bought and its a royal pain in the arse, building an army that way.

 

Looking forward to see how all your core troops turn out. It's not often you see blue done so well in Admech. Keep up the good work buddy!

 

It's very true that when you start a new army it's best to get the mundane core painted quickly before it becomes too samey and then reward yourself with something different. I find that quite helpful personally.

 

As for Discord's models, they make me want to try airbrushing the cloaks new time I need some more Skitarii painted. That gradient is really nice.

[Yoda79]

Ggg https://photos.app.goo.gl/jwH8zz7agl2Sq9uG2 head turned round made glass and you can add copper trees. Enjoy.

[Subtle Discord]

Progress! Actual measurable quantifiable progress! Slowly... they are coming to life!  Ok, maybe not alive, but progressing! *Lightning flashes and thunder claps* Damn, that kinda' lost some of its... dramatic flair.

 

I'm writing up a much more significant ramble about painting progress over in Legion Rising, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to toss the images over here as well.

 

Considering that this is roughly 2.5 painting sessions, I'm quite pleased with the progress. As someone who usually works in batches of 5-10 models sitting down to a group of 20 is indeed a bit daunting, However, I refuse to let that get to me and I'm simply focused on making real progress each time I can find time to put some paint to plastic. Time is still a bit limited right now, so I'm hoping things will gain momentum as time progresses and I can schedule more time at my painting bench.

[Vel'Cona]

Really interesting blue!  What colour are you planning for the "glow" effect on weapons?

[Subtle Discord]

Thanks! From what I can tell, it's very close to Process Blue, which is basically an absolutely pure blue used in printing; a touch darker then Cyan and very close to Ultramarine Blue but a bit lighter. At first, I was considering doing them in a darker shade but gaining access to an airbrush and fleshing out the fiction of Atrum Laboris to include a bright blue sun changed the plan. That said, I also plan to dirty them up considerably with soot, carbon, and grease, once they get close to finished, so I decided the brighter base would better contrast the darker grit and grime they'll eventually be covered in. At least, that's what I can see in my mind's eye, I hope I can pull it off convincingly without making too much work for myself. But I'm not going to worry too much about that yet; got to get them to that point first.

 

Optics/lenses and 'glow' effects are going to be in a strong Green to keep the colour pallet cool. I know, "What a shocker!", but I really wanted to get away from typical Red for my Mechanicus to be visually distinct and reinforce the independent Forge World narrative. I’ve seen examples of it being used to very good effect. Being directly beside blue on the colour wheel, in colour theory green is an analogous colour to blue and as such it can less successful when you try to work with them together; complementary colours have an inherent vibrant look, where analogous colours can fall flat. Analogus colours generally work best when one is dominant and there is good contrast between the values (lightness vs. darkness) of each colour. Even if I hadn’t already viewed examples that I like, I had a good idea how I hope to make it work.

 

Wow… an answer to a simple question just turned into a colour theory lesson. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

[Vel'Cona]

Wow… an answer to a simple question just turned into a colour theory lesson. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

 

In-depth answers are pleasing to the cogitation units.  I believe the Omnissiah would approve!  :D

[JeffTibbetts]

Great to see more progress. You made a good choice with the Sotar, by the way. I love mine. I recently added a Patriot but there's a lot of overlap between them. As for your blue, it's so much brighter than the dusty blue I've been using for mine. I can't wait to see how they come out on the other side. It's interesting that I've seen a fair number now of blue Ad Mech. Not to say it doesn't stand out, but rather I wonder what it is about blue that makes them look so good in it. I've seen one green and maybe two yellow ones, but the rest are some form of official scheme or blue. 

 

Anyway, I really want to see you get on with some of the vehicles.

[Subtle Discord]

Really, how on earth could you get confused comparing airbrushes?  Yeah, there's simply too much choice with only slight variations between offerings; after I had committed to the Sotar I was looking at the Renegade and wondering if it was better suited to the small work I'm guessing I'll be doing most often, but having a nice large 0.5mm needle is actually more useful then I expected for larger/faster work like basecoats. The small cup size of the Sotar is my only niggle really. Not a deal breaker by any stretch, but I didn't expect the paint to go so fast in some cases.

 

Vehicles? *Sticks his fingers in his ears* La la la la! I can't heeear you! La la la la la!!

 

All in good time. I started building an Onager and then got distracted a wee bit by the Knight but stopped when I chose to stick to the original game plan and get the core Troop units done first. It also gives me more time to consider how I want to assemble them; I think I'm going to add a few more magnets then I had first considered to aid in transportation. But trust me, I really want to get to the vehicles too! I need to make the baby spiders because the momma spider is patiently waiting for me to start transforming her into something that I think the Omnissiah will approve of. I'm forcing myself to be patient as I lay the groundwork for her entrance, I do believe that a titan of her scale and stature deserves a proper guard.

[JeffTibbetts]

Yay for lady Knights!

 

As for airbrushes, yeah the smaller cup can get old BUT you should be cleaning it about that often anyway. After talking with Ken Badger at Adepticon I've started cleaning my airbrush the way they recommend. Instead of stripping it down after every session and scrubbing everything, I now run a few drops of airbrush cleaner through it basically anytime I stop spraying for more than about 30 seconds. It has changed everything, including the way I work since I try to get everything lined up to do all at once, instead of stopping all the time to grab the next piece, etc. Every time you stop it begins drying, so basically I just never stop without flushing it. It works really, really well. I got a Patriot for the larger cup and wider spray pattern, and since I mostly use it for base coating these days it works exactly the way I want it to. I love the thing. The Sotar is still the best for any fine detail work, and in that case I don't mind the smaller cup anyway. 

[Subtle Discord]

Ok, this deserves a refresher and teaser mixed into one. While I can completely understand you're personal affection for Knights of the female persuasion (Long live the Queen!), the momma spider isn't going to be a Knight, she's all Titan. By the size and footprint of the base model, she might be comparable to a Reaver class. Cue ZZ Top;"She's got legs, she knows how to use them. She never begs, she knows how to choose them."

 

Pictured for scale, the Rhino shows that she's going to be a rather large lady, and I like a woman with some curves, so that's good. The upper body can also tilt and it's even removable which will help with future transportation.

 

I received this as a gift a few years ago (as a special request expressly for the purpose of 'build a titan' - my wife is amazing, really) and I showed some images, but I knew it would need to wait until the time was available after college. I'm glad I got it when I did because in North America toys cycle out of production very quickly and as far as I can tell you can't purchase these anymore. Transforming it into a Titan was always the plan, but I also got it before the Onager model was released. When the Onager became available I could instantly see what design lineage it's going to emulate.

 

Her start is still a way off, because as I mentioned, there are several other projects that must be finished first. Once they're done, however, I suspect she'll make a wonderful crown jewel for my Ad Mech army; I can tell already that it's going to consume a lot of polystyrene, but it's going to be worth it. Someday she'll teleport into combat... someday... And if I lose the match, I can shoot nerf darts at my opponent in protest.

 

Now, that said, I can say I do have some plans to do a tri-legged Knight based on one I've seen online. That could easily be considered an intermediately sized spider as a middle ground before I get to tackling this glorious monstrosity. Praise be to the Omnissiah for granting me the sight and inspiration! I have seen the foretelling and I accept my fate to make it real! *Begins to chant Pi in binary*

[Magos Takatus]

That design reminds me of the rumours of a giant Necron walker that was called the crypt walker. The Nerf cannon is a bit like the turret from the Scorpius Whirlwind.

 

I really like where you are going with this. I will have to keep my optical array on this project.

[Subtle Discord]

Yeah, right now it's got a bit of a Necron or even kinda' Tau vibe about it. I guarantee that it won't even be recognizable once I get done with it, and it'll be all Mechanicus; hydraulics, hoses, trim, armour plates, rivets, rivets, rivets, and more rivets and anything else I can come up with that suits the theme. I'm not nearly as intimidated by larger projects as I used to be after some of the models I've fabricated of the last several years, so this is going to to be completely skinned and encased with virtually no original surfaces visible. While part of me is tempted to do 3D modeling for it and have parts printed, I think I'll make it a scratch build project after being inspired so many times by the ambition and execution of Blackadder and the massive creations he builds. One needs to keep in touch with their roots, after all.