New player, looking for all manner of advice

[golfdeltafoxtrot]

I'm returning to 40K after nearly 13 years, and I was hoping to ask the Ravenspire for some advice.

 

8th edition has dragged me back into a game I haven't had contact with for a long time, thanks to the fancy new models and my friends all starting to play again, and a box of Astartes that have been partially assembled since 2005 are calling to me to be completed. The Raven Guard fluff and their abilities in the new codex have drawn me towards creating a small Raven Guard force, as we'll mainly be playing small scale games and looking into the Heralds of Ruin expansion for kill team style narrative play, which is how I prefer to play 40K. I'm a story-oriented player foremost, and I like to create armies with a strong sense of narrative cohesion. I also prefer shooting over melee, so I tend towards guns over swords.

 

My current plan is to create a small infiltration force based around the principles of stealth and precision, which feels very RG-esque, likely pulled from the 5th Company of Shadow Captain Kyrin Solaq. I've sourced a number of bits from the excellent Anvil Industry - mainly scopes, new magazines, black ops heads for my Scouts, and a couple of the very cool raven helmets - and will be assembling my force in the coming months.

 

So far, I can find in my collection:

 

Most of the parts from the commander kit, with the nice bird-of-prey power plant

A librarian, with a converted force halberd which I'll probably use as a force axe in-game

A 10 man tactical squad with bolters, which I aim to convert to look more like Stalker-patterns with scopes and suppressors for extra stealthy goodness

A 5 man Scout squad with sniper rifles who are getting helmeted heads

Two 5 man assault squads - one with jump packs, one without - that I haven't got plans for yet other than maybe swapping out noisy chainswords for quiet mono-molecular swords (same rules, more stealth)

A 5 man Devastator squad with two missile launchers and two heavy bolters

A retro Predator which will need stripping and repainting, possibly a new Predator, another undefined Rhino chassis and a Dreadnought with twin lascannons and missile launcher

 

My questions are these:

 

1) I might paint up/convert one of the assault squads into vanguard vets, but adding a lot of white paint to a stealthy RG force seems incongruous. What are people using to signify veteran status among RG that doesn't involve a big white helmet or big white arms?

 

2) I'm considering adding a squad of Reivers to my force - what are people's experiences with them as part of a Raven Guard force, and what loadout is likely to be more effective than any other?

 

3) With regards to painting pouches/scout fatigues, etc., has anyone got any advice on using mid-to-dark grey as an alternative to all the black I'll inevitably have to paint?

 

Thanks for reading my ramblings!

 

[Race Bannon]

Welcome back AND to the Ravenspire (and specifically to the 5th [my own choice as well])

 

So, a quick response:

1) Although I totally agree with the idea that a lot of white on black armor for a "stealthy" Chapter seems incongruous, there are a few ways to look at that.

• Veterans are so awesome at their craft, that they don't need to be all black to get the job done.  In other words, by the time you see them, they are all over your lines and causing havoc.
• GW wanted a way to distinguish the RG veterans from every other black-schemed army/unit (Black Templar, Iron Hands, Death Company to name a few at the tip of the fingers)
• The white veteran arms originated from the 3rd edition Index Astartes article on a "Commander".  Recall then that the only "Veterans" in a Space Marine army wore Terminator Armor which typically copied the scheme used on power armor.  So, over the next editions the white arms became adopted as the Veteran unit became fleshed out.

 

Having said all that, if your goal is to stick to the Codex pattern, then white arms are what you should do.  BUT this is your army too and you should have the freedom to do what you want.  For my part, I have decided to only use the shoulder trim to show veterans from the first company.  Leaders will get the whole white arm treatment and only Captains will get the white helmet.  That's my plan, but you can do whatever makes sense for you

 

2)  Reiver loadout will sort of depend on your local gaming meta.  For my part, I ignore that and tend to go with "Rule of Cool", so I have 10 dudes planned: 5 with pistol and 5 with carbine.  Yet, I can always proxy one for the other if I want a bigger unit because ... I can.  Admittedly, I have not played with them yet

 

3) I recommend experimenting before you settle concerning greys as there are a lot of variability.  Maybe use Codex Grey with Nuln Oil wash?  Again, test that first

Edited November 27, 2017 by Race Bannon

[golfdeltafoxtrot]

Thanks for the welcome Race, and for the advice.

 

I'll have to think about the white armour issue. I'm considering using the Anvil Industry raven helmets as a mark of veteran status, so that might be as far as I go with that. It would minimise the amount of white on the armour but still provide a nice focus.

 

The Reivers are still some way off - I've told myself that I need to finish kitbashing and painting the models I already have before I buy anything else (but we all know how long those vows last!).

 

You're right about the grey - when I get round to painting I'll try some stuff out.

 

With regards painting, any idea when the next painting challenge (like HHotE) will be? Accountability is very motivating for me, and as someone that always used to dislike painting it's the sort of thing that would help me get my arse in gear painting wise.

[NiceGuyAdi]

One thing to consider with the white arms thing is how you’ll feel about your army aesthetically when it’s on the table: will you be glad your veterans look much the same as regular troops, or wish they had something that made them ‘pop’? That’s not meant to be a leading question of it, if it reads as such.

 

From a fluff perspective the Raven Guard philosophy isn’t just “we’re all hiding in the inky black shadows”. Some of it is “look at me over here... HERE! That’s it, don’t look at my buddy sneaking up behind you with an armful of krak grenades.”

 

For pouches, beyond Race’s suggestion for the grey, take a quick look in thewarriorhunter’s Vindicet Honorem Detatchment thread in this sub forum. He’s got a nice technique for leather which works well on pouches to break up the monochrome.

[SanguinaryGuardsman]

I'm returning to 40K after nearly 13 years, and I was hoping to ask the Ravenspire for some advice.

 

8th edition has dragged me back into a game I haven't had contact with for a long time, thanks to the fancy new models and my friends all starting to play again, and a box of Astartes that have been partially assembled since 2005 are calling to me to be completed. The Raven Guard fluff and their abilities in the new codex have drawn me towards creating a small Raven Guard force, as we'll mainly be playing small scale games and looking into the Heralds of Ruin expansion for kill team style narrative play, which is how I prefer to play 40K. I'm a story-oriented player foremost, and I like to create armies with a strong sense of narrative cohesion. I also prefer shooting over melee, so I tend towards guns over swords.

 

My current plan is to create a small infiltration force based around the principles of stealth and precision, which feels very RG-esque, likely pulled from the 5th Company of Shadow Captain Kyrin Solaq. I've sourced a number of bits from the excellent Anvil Industry - mainly scopes, new magazines, black ops heads for my Scouts, and a couple of the very cool raven helmets - and will be assembling my force in the coming months.

 

So far, I can find in my collection:

 

Most of the parts from the commander kit, with the nice bird-of-prey power plant

A librarian, with a converted force halberd which I'll probably use as a force axe in-game

A 10 man tactical squad with bolters, which I aim to convert to look more like Stalker-patterns with scopes and suppressors for extra stealthy goodness

A 5 man Scout squad with sniper rifles who are getting helmeted heads

Two 5 man assault squads - one with jump packs, one without - that I haven't got plans for yet other than maybe swapping out noisy chainswords for quiet mono-molecular swords (same rules, more stealth)

A 5 man Devastator squad with two missile launchers and two heavy bolters

A retro Predator which will need stripping and repainting, possibly a new Predator, another undefined Rhino chassis and a Dreadnought with twin lascannons and missile launcher

 

My questions are these:

 

1) I might paint up/convert one of the assault squads into vanguard vets, but adding a lot of white paint to a stealthy RG force seems incongruous. What are people using to signify veteran status among RG that doesn't involve a big white helmet or big white arms?

 

2) I'm considering adding a squad of Reivers to my force - what are people's experiences with them as part of a Raven Guard force, and what loadout is likely to be more effective than any other?

 

3) With regards to painting pouches/scout fatigues, etc., has anyone got any advice on using mid-to-dark grey as an alternative to all the black I'll inevitably have to paint?

 

Thanks for reading my ramblings!

1. There are no rules for painting other than to thin the damn paints!  Who says that vanguard vets cant be painted all black?  Also, who says that pure white isnt hard to see?  Stealth isnt always about sight ... it is about jamming communications, speed, misdirection, diversion, and buggery.  None of those things are hampered by  a white paint scheme.  Denoting veteran status can be done with decals.  The FW Raven Guard transfter sheet is really good for this.  You could also just give your vets the anvil industry helmets and paint them black.  My vets have cloaks and white raven helmets/shoulder pads.  They look pretty nice.  

 

3.  Vallejo Model Color German Grey is a great off black color.  It is a really dark/blackish grey with no hits of any color in it but also very distinct from pure black.  You could also try some other off blacks like VMC Black Grey(slightly green), Secret Weapon Tire Black(slightly turqoise/green), mixtures like pure black with a dark purple... maybe 2 parts puple 1 part black then edge highlight it with the purple.  

 

Also, "10 man tactical squad with bolters" has a spelling error.  It should read "10 man Sternguard Veteran Squad with Special Issue Bolterguns".  

[Claws and Effect]

Here are my Vanguard Vets, to give you an idea of the variety of ways you can indicate veteran status: 

 

[golfdeltafoxtrot]

Thanks for all the advice, really appreciated. I'd reply to all the points individually but my cruddy work computer refuses to use the board's quote function.

 

I think I'll have to have a think about how I want my veterans to look. I do want them to look visually distinct from the rest of my force, so maybe black raven helmets with white shoulder pad trim a la Claws and Effect to break up the black.

 

 

I'll have a look around at alternatives for pouches. thewarriorhunter's leather is pretty good, I'll have to give it a go and see how it all hangs together.

 

The painting is likely to still be some way off, given that I haven't finished assembling all the bits I need for my force yet, let alone put the models together. Still need to acquire some thin plastic tubing for bolter suppressors and some plasticard to start on the urban basing scheme I've got planned.

 

A good point raised about the Sternguard Veterans. My plan is for all those tactical guys to have bolters with scopes, suppressors and stick mags instead of the standard sickle mags. The 'tacticool' look will make them look pretty veteran anyway, so all I'd need is to buy more raven helmets.