World Eaters of the Great Crusade: Here comes a New Challenger..

[Pacific81]

Legion Destroyers

 

It was said that the purpose of the Great Crusade was to liberate, not destroy; to illuminate, not plunge into darkness. And yet on occasion the foes encountered by the Legions were so terrible, so deadly and so utterly inimical to the presence of humanity that they could simply not be allowed to exist. At times these foes were species of alien, system-wide empires numbered by the billion that required the presence of multiple legions to subdue. At other times they were descendents of humanity, off-shoots from before the Age of Darkness or even from before, their subsequent divergence from humanities genome so great that their compliance and inclusion in the Emperor's great plans was simply impossible. In instances such as these sometimes the use of bolter and chain-blade, even for such a Legion as the 12th, was not enough. In these instances the Chapter Masters (for on no less authority could these weapons be utilised) turned to their Destroyer cohorts and with it the most destructive weapons in their arsenal: Forbidden chemical and biological weapons as well as tactical nuclear weapons, the application of which would leave the site of warfare utterly blasted and unsuitable for life. 

 

 

 

 

The 3001st expedition was no exception to this requirement and carried within it a Destroyer Company numbering several hundred marines. Although they saw little use during the invasion of Zeta-Five-Zero, with the defending Orkoids defeated through more conventional means, their application would later become essential during the Legions expeditions to the inner planets of the Kvort System and the terrors that awaited them there. 

 

 

 

The Miniatures

I thought one of the biggest missed opportunities in the 28mm Forge World range of Heresy miniatures was the Destroyer squads. You have this amazingly powerful description of what the Destroyers are and how they are equipped, and then the miniatures themselves are armed with... pistols(!) Not having the same WYSISWYG restrictions at Epic scale, I thought it would be cool to go to town with their armaments. I've used a mix of miniatures from Vanguard miniature range (including some 40k chaos proxies) to represent all of the horrible chemical and prometheum throwers, bio launchers, forbidden plasma-type weapons and nuke-launchers you can imagine them being armed with. 

In the future I plan to create some kind of nuke-carrier, which is carried by Destroyer death squads who take the vehicle to a particular spot before triggering it (they aren't intended to return!) - this might be cool as a scenario against the protagonists I've mentioned a few times enigmatically thoughout this blog

 

Any C&C very welcome! A short break now while I attend to some other hobby projects but will hopefully be back before too long. 

 

 

 

[Pacific81]

++ Record file: Planetary Invasion force of Zeta-Two-Zero, 3001st Expedition ++

 

++ [ [ File security level Epsilon Theta # ]] ++ //Any access without required security clearance will result in dishonourable discharge and/or mind scrub 

 

++ Recording of D-day plus 19 - Audio/Pict recording of Heavy Weapons unit within the 168th World Eater Chapter "Gaster's Gladiators", VII Cohort, 2nd Company, during an assault on an Orkoid defensive compound/military base. 

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

"Remind me, what happened to our Rhinos again?" Bhurak asked no-one in particular. The majority of the nine other MKIV helms before him showed no acknowledgement, either looking down or engrossed in final checks of ammunition and enquipment.

"I told you. Withdrawn for maintenance. The replacements haven't arrived yet" Kazmir, another marine sat further along the cabin, spoke above the din of the engine roar. "And put your helmet on. These vehicles are tough but the greenskins can still hurt them."

Bhurak grinned, an impressive site of metal dental-work amongst the duelling scars that cris-crossed his face. "Yes Sergeant." He paused, momentarily rocked against his restraining harness as the vehicle's driver turned suddenly. "I'm not complaining. Got twice as much ammo as we can usually carry." A helmeted marine next to him, busy checking the load status of a missile rack, nodded in agreement. "That's if we get to use it".

 

++ A red light flicks on within the vehicle cabin, casting the blue and white armour of the marines in a crimson hue. The driver's voice is audible over the radio feed. ++

 

"Two minutes. I repeat, two minutes"

 

The unit sergeant's voice broadcasts, "Final equipment checks." He pauses, wracking a bolt into his pistol. "Vovag and Urdik on point. Rest of you, you know the engagement protocols. We're at two-hundred metres elevation and flanking. Launcher teams, you should have a direct site on those defensive turrets." The marine sergeant pauses again before raising his fist, his voice amplified by his helmet's speakers. "For Bodt! For Gaster!" The rest of the marines raise their fists and repeat his salute. 

 

++ Pict-feed switches to an outside vehicle view. The Land Raider, with another to the right of it, has slewed to a halt sending a cloud of dust and gravel flying. The vehicles appear to be high up on a ridge with a steep face in front of them. The front ports of the vehicles open, within seconds the marines emerge, taking firing positions along the edge. A compound of some description is visible below them. The Land Raider's sponsor weapons swivel and aim towards the buildings within, opening fire a moment later ++

 

 

"Mother of.. " Bhurak's voice mumbled over the unit intercom, followed by an expletive. "Sergeant.. someone change the plans and not tell us about it?" 

There was a pause before Kazmir's reply came over the intercom, frustration evident in his voice. "No, trooper, they did not."

 

++ The Vehicle camera adjusts towards the compound in the distance and the narrow valley leading up to it. Numerous bodies, both Marine and Orkoid, litter the landscape, evidently the scene of intense conflict. Pillars of smoke issue from a number of defensive positions, many of them surrounded by the bodies of Legionnaires. ++ 

 

"Sweep completed. No targets of opportunity visible." A pause. "Our Objective has already been destroyed."

The marines stay in position, continuing to scan for targets, before Bhurak's deadpan delivery. "Did no-one tell 4th company that they are supposed to assault, after the defensive positions have been hit by krak missiles?"

There is a murmur of ascent on the comm-channel. "There are a fair few that won't be in any position to learn for their mistake" one trooper comments, gesturing towards the Legion bodies that litter the approach to the compound. 

Sergeant Kazmir's voice cuts across the discussion. "Silence, everyone. Continue overwatch for targets of opportunity. We will await further orders." A pause. "Everyone knows why 4th company charged into the guns and I want no further talk on the matter.."

 

 

Legion Heavy Weapon Squads

 

Nearly every company within the World Eater contingent of the expedition included Heavy Weapon support squads. Although the Legion were famed for their aggression and increased volume of Assault squads, Legion tacticians understood that an assault was far more likely to succeed when a defending enemy was suppressed under a barrage of incoming fire. In this example, a Heavy Support squad, armed with missile launchers, are supported a pair of Land Raiders. While not as fast as the Rhino and presenting a greater target silhouette, these vehicles could lend their considerable firepower to their transported squad and were also considerably more durable. 

 

 

 

The Miniatures

 

The Land Raiders are the classic (1st edition) GW Epic plastic miniatures. The Heavy Support marines are from the Vanguard Miniatures 'Novan Elite' range.

 

 

Any C&C welcome

 

 

[Pacific81]

Hey folks - sorry it has been a while since the previous update! 

 

Firstly, a bit of news. There has been a really cool looking new Ruleset released, from the creators of NetEpic Gold named Imperius Dominatus. This is a 30k (crusade and Heresy-themed) ruleset based on 'Epic Space Marine'. This means a little less abstraction than Epic Armageddon, with order tokens, cards for units, Titan hit charts and the like. 

 

You can see the ruleset here, with all of the rules and unit selections/cards free to download: https://imperiusdominatus.org/

 

While I love Epic Armageddon, I have to say the 30k focus (with an Ork army book coming soon) has meant it's ideal for this project. Of course, one of the beauties of Epic is that I can continue to build and use the army for both systems. 

 

So I'm now busy 'upgrading' some of my units for use in Imperius Dominatus - which usually just means adding a command stand or two, with a little bit more work for the companies. (Some of these are a bit mad - 11 rhinos needed for a Legion Tactical company for instance!)

 

A couple of examples of how the unit cards work below. I have got some new miniatures painted, so will hopefully post these soon!

 

 

 

 

[Pacific81]

Legion Fulmentarus Strike Detachment

 

Some thirty years previously Commander of the Fleet Borya (then a Captain) had stood by his counterpart within the Ultramarine Legion and watched as specially equipped Terminator units had launched hellfire upon the squirming masses of maggot-spawn upon the death world of Contrax IV. Though the Catephract armour worn by the units, designed for operation within the most inhospitable environments known to mankind, had kept the acidic atmosphere and relentless insect attacks at bay, the cleansing of the world had required a novel approach. While Raptor and Thunderhawk aircraft dropped mass napalm and Admech-designed bio-weapons on the seething alien hordes, it was the Terminator units that were able to take the fight to the enemy and finally exterminate their vile foes. 

 

Previously assault troops had disappeared into those masses of squirming insectile maggots, life beacons pulsing briefly before extinguished, and Borya had realised the value of the Fulmentarus weapon as they launched wave after wave of fragmentation missiles, burrowing a hole in the alien battle-lines until they reached the queen caste that lay within. Borya's own honour guard as well as accompanying Ultramarine troopers carrying out the final assault that would destroy the queens and turn the remaining insectoid warriors into mindless animals that were to be easily butchered. 

 

 

Many years later, as the 12th Legion began it's assault upon the heavily defended Orkoid factory city of Urkhammer, Borya was to think back and remark upon the fortune that had allowed his Legion to fight alongside the Ultramarines, but also to thank that Legion's willingness to share their technology with several armoured suits provided that their own Mechanicum and Techmarine staff had been able to replicate. 

In this instance extremely powerful forcefields prevented artillery or orbital bombardment, and the use of the Legion's own detachment of Fulmentarus allowed great splits to be wrought in the city walls, masses of krak missiles allowing accompanying assault troops and seige weaponry egress to the defenders within. The barrels of their launchers growing red-hot, ammo-load vehicles speeding back and forth behind them, the detachment was able to weather defending fire and complete their objective. 

 

 

The Miniatures

Like many of this force, these miniatures are from the Novan Elite range of Vanguard Miniatures. 

I also mixed in some of the 'command' miniatures to help identify the Decurion unit.

 

 

The Rules

As mentioned in the post above I've build this unit for use with the Imperius Dominatus ruleset. These have the really cool unit cards which you can print off, and include the formation info as well as a handy rules reference on the back of the card.

 

I'm not that knowledgeable about the rules themselves yet, other than their saving throw is pretty good (ID uses a D10 format rather than D6) as you would expect of terminators, and that save modifiers for the missile launcher is pretty effective!

 

 

As always any C&C very much appreciated

 

[Pearson73]

That unit of Fulmentarus look solid, what an awesome idea to have a big wedge of those chaps, striding through the battlefield, laying waste to all they see.

[Pacific81]

Sorry for the delay in the updates guys! Had gone off sideways on other hobby projects for a while, but hopefully now some more Epic & Great Crusade updates over the coming weeks. 

 

More Inhabitants of Zeta-Five-Zero

 

"This is recon force Epsilon reporting in..."

*comm-link signal breaks, sound of revving engines and wind noise can be heard in the background* 

"..Greenskin resistance encountered, heavily mobile..." *sound of crunching metal* "...keep ramming our Rhino, near-side track unit is heavily damaged. It looks like they are.. " *static*

"Repeat force Epsilon, the Greenskins are doing what?"

"..It looks like they are trying to... trying to race us sir... "

- Final report of Sergeant Kustov & recon unit Epsilon, while on a mission across sector 18b, known as 'Death Highway'

 

 

Boyz and Battlewagons of the Evil Sunz tribe.

Miniatures: Vanguard Miniatures 'Skinners' range, some GW Epic Space Marine 1st edition Ork boyz.

 

 

 

 

 

Project Rules Update

After delving back into the classic Epic Space Marine ruleset, I've decided to opt for a 3rd(!) ruleset for the games to be played representing the Great Crusade and World Eaters vs. Orks, in this case the NetEpic Gold rules (can be found here: https://netepic.org/core-rules/ )

These rules are essentially a fan-driven version of the 2nd edition Epic Space Marine rules. The only changes are a few of the more egregious balancing issues and rule misprint corrections, but the core of the game is pretty much identical. Most importantly, the Epic rules from that period were based on the tail-end 40k 1st edition rules for Orks (most notable the 'Ere We Go' and other reference books) meaning that they are so much fun! So all of the individual clans have their own 'out of command' rules (Goffs will charge, Evil Sunz will try and race across open space etc.) but their are also lots of special rules for things like the Mekboy creations (bubble chuckas, lifta-droppas), Squig catapults, Pulsa Rokkits and things of that nature that all serve to make the Orks an incredibly fun and characterful force to play (at least if you like that sort of thing - I know some people back in the day absolutely hated it!)

As great as Epic Armageddon is as a ruleset, a friend of mine commented when we were playing that it felt like a fine-tuned weapon measuring exercise, and a lot of the more random and fun side of the rules (for factions like Orks and Chaos especially) aren't present. Great for tournament play and as a strategic exercise, less fun for the more casual, narrative driven games that we will be playing when this campaign (eventually!) gets off the ground. 

 

So going forward most of the rules references will be for NetEpic. This does mean that some of the very specific Pre-Heresy rules from Imperius Dominatus and EA won't be present, but instead these will be represented by proxy units (for the Marine artillery we will sub in an imperial guard equivalent support card, Berserkers will be the Chaos unit etc). We wouldn't obviously be able to do this in any kind of tournament setting but it suits the play-at-home casual narrative just fine. 

 

Any other thoughts or comments on this or the minis very welcome!

Edited May 7, 2021 by Pacific81

[Hungry Nostraman Lizard]

Very glad to have discovered this thread! I'll be sure to take some time to go through that rule set you posted. Love the graphics.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah, these are so cool. 

[Prim]

An awesome project so far. 2nd Ed. Space Marine/Net Epic is a very fun set of rules, and your models look fantastic.

[Pacific81]

Sorry it has been so long, but a quick update - I've continued with some work on the Orks and have finished off some Nobz and their transport. 

Next up, I've decided I've done enough work on the little guys, and have bought a certain box set (with the initials 'A' and 'T') and that the invasion of Badruk's place is going to need some heavy support! Can't wait to get started 

 

Ork Nobz of the Evil Sunz clan

 

 

 

 

[malika666]

Yay, you're back!!!

[Pacific81]

Reaver Titan Castigator Rex

 

++Extract from the written and auditory records of Remembrancer remote surveillance/audio log device of the 3001st Expedition. Vol4. XR- Delta++

++ To be restricted from public record - clearance level Beta-3-Maximum. Any in contravention of this restriction to be immediately moved for mind-scrub and dishonorable discharge.++

 

“Well, the plan worked. It looks like they’ve deployed their heavy armour!” Borstov gingerly pulled himself to his feet on the lip of the crater. His warplate had the appearance of a sheet of paper crushed into a ball and then unravelled, the blue and white almost scoured clean by close-range concussive blasts.

“Keep your head down you fool!” Sergeant Yustid barked on the comm, while motioning furiously from some bombed out building remains across the causeway. As if on cue, a fat projectile shell glanced off Borstov’s helmet, knocking him back down onto his seat so he fell back into the crater. Someone else on the intercomm snorted with laughter. “That hurt!” the big marine grunted a moment later in response. In the distance, the crude but monstrous outline of the Orkoid tanks could be seen through the smoke, grinding their way through the ruins.

“So what happens now sir?” queried Gorges, a new marine in the squad, just recently promoted from the training units. He stepped out of the building ruin and snapped off some bolter rounds at some red-clothed Orks that had started to pick their way past the tanks and were making their way towards the squad’s position.

“We take cover is what!” the sergeant replied, grabbing the other Astartes by the collar guard and pulling him back into the shelter of the building. “Everyone, noise cancellation up to maximum!”

Yustid crouched down in the corner, and although it would make absolutely no difference to the functions of his helmet or armour, put his hands over the side of his helmet. The young marine quickly followed suit, pushing himself into the recess of a wall.

 

A moment later the thud of something extremely large and heavy moving nearby rippled through the building, sending loose masonry falling from the walls. This impression was reinforced by the trumpeting bellow of a war-horn bellowing above them, the sound echoing around the ruins. Gorges couldn’t see what exactly was causing the furor, but he could see the panicked reactions of the Orks that had been approaching them as they suddenly turned and ran; the clouds of smoke as the drivers of the tanks desperately tried to turn or reverse back into cover.

Their efforts were in vain. Moments later the marine squad were enveloped in the concussive blast of the Titan’s gatling weapon as it let rip directly above them. The affect on those so close to the firing of the immense gun were bad enough, but on their foes it was nothing short of catastrophic; where a unit of Orks had existed a moment ago, just a smoking crater remained, with their heavily armoured vehicles flung about like children’s toys by the impacts of the blast.

 

Suddenly silence rang out and the marines gingerly picked themselves up. The noise of machine articulation and another great thud indicated the mighty walker was moving on. Gorges looked out of the building up at the site of the machine for the first time and almost gasped in appreciation at its majesty; The height of a building, it's skull-like head moved from side to side surveying the battlefield; its weapon glowed red hot, the power-fist flexing in intacipation of further encounters with its foes. Thinking about it for a moment, Gorges was glad that the beast was on his side.

“Someone find out what’s happened to Borstov” Sergeant Yustid’s comment on the intercomm broke the marine's reverie. “We’ll move in behind the Reaver and mop up the remains.”

“I’m right here Sergeant!” shouted the giant marine, suddenly materialising out of the gloom and dust in front of them. He’d removed his damaged helmet and had a look of wide-eyed shock from having lain in the crater almost directly underneath the Titan while the Astartes-sized shells fell all around him. “Can’t hear anything except the ringing though sir” he shouted again, despite being only a few metres away.

“You’re lucky it didn’t step on you marine”. The Sergeant's remark was not without an element of humour, despite how serious Borstov's situation had been.  

The large marine took a moment before getting the gist of the comment and nodded quickly in agreement.

“Right, let’s move on. Squad, ten metre spread.” The Sergeant spoke against while gesturing ahead, “I don’t expect we’ll find much sport, but weapons ready. Let's move out.. “ With that, the marines shouldered their weapons and set off on the trail of devastation left by the Titan.

 

 

 

The Miniature

 

Hopefully everyone should recognise this one! It's a Reaver Titan from the Adeptus Titanicus starter set (I do have one more Reaver as well as a couple of Warhounds to complete yet!) I have to say it's an absolutely stunning miniature and I thoroughly enjoyed the build and paint. The paint scheme is based loosely off the old Iron Skulls (Legio Metalica) classic Titan paint scheme. The base has some accessories added, a piece of plastic roadway and some street lamps from Vanguard Miniatures just to add a bit of scale. 

 

 

 

 

In the Game

 

Going from the NetEpic (or 2nd edition Space Marine rules) the Reaver is possibly one of the most effective Titans in the Imperial arsenal. Although it has fewer void shields than the Warlord, it can actually be more survivable on occasion as the vulnerable reactor location can't be hit from the front arc (unlike the Warlord) and with the 4 void shields it has the durability to stick around for a while. In this instance the Titan is armed with a Havoc Missile Launcher (a one-shot, multi template weapon perfect against large mob armies such as Orks), the Gatling Cannon is effective against enemy armour at range while it can close to take on super heavies and other titans with its power fist - you can use this to rip components off of other Titans!

 

Any C&C very welcome, will hopefully have some more miniatures to post soon!

 

Edited August 18, 2021 by Pacific81

[No Foes Remain]

I love the road and the street lights, I really do. Such a small detail works wonders for a model.

[LameBeard]

Beautiful Titan - really love the depth to that red. The stripes are great too.

[malika666]

Hey, I recognise those street lights!

[Pacific81]

Way, way too long since I have posted on this blog! I have been working on some stuff, here is the first of it. 

 

Ork Settlement 

 

The Imperial invasion of Zeta-Five-Zero, or 'Badruk's place' as it was known to the Orks, encountered many such Ork Settlements. They were generally not heavily defended, other than for smaller garrisons or Ork units that were passing through, as usually local Warbosses would have begun to congregate their forces within larger fortified encampments prior to counter attack efforts taking place. 

 

A handful of Evil Sunz Clan vehicles are present - one looks to be a recent 'acquisition' from the Invading World Eater legion. As is the way with Ork-kind, the vehicle looks to be being modified to make it faster and to give it bigger guns.

 

Evil Sunz Clan forces move through the Settlement on their way to an engagement with Legion forces. It would appear that they have already encountered World Eater reconnaissance teams which may have been in proximity to the settlement. 

 

A quick note on the representation of Orks in this project:

I've tried to go for a more 1st/2nd edition representation of Orks in this project, so they are more anthropomorphised - with recognisable settlements and buildings that have specific function - rather than the more bestial representation they would become in later editions. 

In practical terms this lets me mix Human and Ork settlements as part of the campaign and mix up the terrain I'm building (the Great Crusade has effectively encountered a world where there are both species present, in alternating states of war or truce). Not sure what people's thoughts on this are but thought it would make it a little different and help distance it from the current background of the 40k universe.

[Pacific81]

A last post on some more Evil Sunz Ork vehicles - these finish off the support units for the Evil Sunz clan, will hopefully be moving on to some more interesting stuff next (Marine characters and also a terrain piece)

 

Evil Sunz Gobsmashas

 

Evil Sunz Spleenrippa and Bowelburna vehicles

[Pacific81]

World Eater Characters

 

A (very!) small update, just a small handful of Epic-scale marines! This time a World Eater Techmarine and Medic (as Apothecary's were known in old Epic Space Marine)

 

 

Apothecary Sobanz

 

World Eater's Apothecary attached to the 168th World Eater Chapter "Gaster's Gladiators", VII Cohort, 2nd Company

 

It was said that the 12th Legion was always at the forefront of any invasion during the Great Crusade, and their presence at any breach, as a speartip on any planetary landing, or as a bulwark against any counter-attack meant that, amongst their fellow legions, their casualty level was nearly always the highest. As such the Apothecaries and other medical staff of the World Eaters were numerous, highly trained and with no shortage of experience or work to complete.

The assault on Zeta-Five-Zero was no different in this regard; the 2nd company took it's place at the forefront of the planetary invasion, and Apothecary Sobanz and his squad joined them in the thick of the action; either administering aid where possible, or harvesting the progenoid glands of the fallen if it were not. Those would be returned to awaiting ships in orbit, placed in stasis and returned to the legion homeworlds for implantation in the next generation of Legionnaires. 

 

 

In the Game

 

I thought it would be fun to include some of the scans for 2nd edition Space Marine cards in this blog. Here is one for the unit, spot the little guy next to the marine in the artwork! (which may be a hint of things to come :) )

 

 

The Miniatures

 

I've used the ubiquitous original plastic marine Rhino, while the Apothecary, Apothecary squad and Techmarine are from Vanguard Miniatures. The androids accompanying the Techmarine are from the old Epic Chaos sprue (The Techmarine is going to be accompanying a squad of robots, which will appear in a further update, so his companions seemed appropriate!)

[Pacific81]

Hello! This project is still alive I am glad to say, lurching along like Herman Munster!

 

I've wanted to do some more interesting units for a while, given the extra breadth of imagination allowed by the setting, and have completed two Beastmen detachments. For any non-grognards reading this believe it or not these were once a unit in the Imperial Guard army; but like the Guard assault units (with jump packs!), rough riders and biker units they had gone the way of the Squat (although perhaps that's not such a good analogy now!) and have been quietly dropped from the modern 40k line-up. Although recently GW has been raiding the treasure trove of old concepts and bringing some of them back into the modern game, and I note that a Beastman miniature has been included in Necromunda. 

 

 

Although it's not been explicitly described in any official canon for the Great Crusade (as far as I know) I thought the kind of thing is a good fit knowing what we know; The expeditions of the Crusade made use of any and all tools available to them (including soldiery), and as an empire built on 'enlightenment' (even if that was at the end of the barrel of a gun!) they weren't the xenophobic, mistrustful and insular empire that it would become in the 40k universe. So much in the same way that Ogryn, Ratling (even Squat?!) abhumans would have been tolerated as long as they fought for the right side, I couldn't see any reason why herds of beastmen - inducted into the Imperial Army expeditions for their fighting prowess and aggression rather than table manners - couldn't be present. 

This also ties it in neatly with the Epic Space Marine 1st and 2nd editions, and brings things around full circle. 

 

So now the explainer is out of the way, here are the miniatures! 

 

I've added a bit of blue colour to tie them in with the rest of the army visually. There is a Legionnaire present, for the same reason, and also I liked the idea of the unit having a handler to make sure they were pointed in the right direction. Perhaps this was the equivalent of latrine duty for this marine for some misdemeanor? This unit would almost certainly be used for 'operation cannon fodder'-type tactics, taking the brunt of the enemy's fire, while other Legion units move into position. 

 

 

These vehicles are 'counts as' Gorgons - extremely tough and formidable transports that have a high carrying capacity and are ridiculously difficult to kill with fire in their front arc. 

 

All of the miniatures (with the exception of the Vanguard miniatures Legionnaire) are from Microworld Games.

 

Any C&C very much appreciated!

[Raziel-TX]

Love the individuality of all your units as well as the fluff. Great work and keep sharing!

[Cactus]

That's a great concept. Beastman auxilia is something I have thought of adding to my 28mm XIIth legion. There's a section in one of the Forge World books about the muster at Bodt(?) where the most bloodthirsty and unruly forces were gathered to join the Crusade fleets of the XIIth. Beastmen are a perfect fit for that.

[tinpact]

Love these guys! Yet another nudge towards finally doing some epic scale models...

 

The space marine "handler" for auxilia is an idea I've liked for a while; it's definitely fitting for World Eaters, I think.

[Pacific81]

Thanks for the comments guys!

 

Tinpact - give in to the temptation and join the dark (good?!) side! If you want a hand with rules, minis, anything like that please let me know!

 

Cactus - ah thats interesting I hadn't realised there was anything official in the books. I guess it makes sense for Legions like the WE especially not to be too picky about who they fought alongside, more blood for the blood g.. I mean soldiers for the army etc!

[Pacific81]

More than one post in a month, need to steady myself things are moving too fast! 

 

Warhound Titans of the Legio Metalica

Following the dark days of the Heresy, when the Imperium paid in blood, bones and iron, the survivors of that horrendous conflict looked about themselves at their kin to try and determine who amongst them had followed Horus in craven treachery. Although the dust had settled, and the Imperium had little strength left for conflict, there was still to be a reckoning to be had for that butcher's bill. Those that had fought on the side of treachery, on the side of the accursed wayward Son and his brothers, would have to make that payment in full. As such in the years that were to come to pass the behaviour of the Magstrati of the Iron Skulls and the Titan Battlegroups that fought alongside the Traitor Legions, even during the dying days of the Great Crusade, would need to be accounted for. And the Inquisition that were tasked with such investigations gave no quarter, with no mercy given, for any that had taken up arms against their brethren. Even such indomitable weapons of war as the Titan Legions were not immune to their ministrations. 

But those dark days still lay over the horizon, and even far from Terra and deep in the darkness of the galactic north the warriors of the 3001st expedition still fought, bled and died for a (mostly) unified Imperium. An entire Titan battlegroup of the Iron Skulls marched alongside the warriors of the World Eaters and Blood Angels on Zeta-Five-Zero. Two Warhounds, their names long since lost to time and dust, duelled with Orkoid armoured columns and Gargants, staining the earth green and the air thick with the bestial howls of defeated foes.

 

Warhound 1

Armed with twin turbo-laser destroyers, this Titan is designed to flank enemy armoured vehicles (and titans) and hit their vulnerable side armour from range. Her speed and durability allow her to withdraw to a safe distance if opposed by anti-titan weaponry or concentrated assault. 

 

 

Warhound 2

This Titan hunts down enemy vehicles and titans, ideally flanking any that are approaching her sister Titan. The plasma blastgun will make a mockery of enemy armour while the vulcan mega-bolter can be used on infantry or weaker side and rear armour of enemy Gargants, where weaker armour makes it vulnerable to volume of incoming shots. 

 

 

 

 

 

[Cactus]

Oh my, that zig-zag pattern...

[Pacific81]

A bit longer than I was hoping it would take but here is my latest, an Airport terrain piece. Details about the terrain/miniatures and usage in the game are at the bottom of the post.

In the opening weeks of the invasion of Zeta-Five-Zero (or Badrukk's place as it was known to the Orks) the Imperial Forces were quick to establish airports and landing zones, which would be used to move troops and supplies from orbit, or elsewhere on the planet, to where they were needed. These followed a standard construction pattern and the Imperial construction crews had been involved in building its like on hundreds if not thousands of similar worlds, throughout the galaxy, since the start of the Great Crusade. 

 

Imperial Valkyrie crews prepare for a sortie, with a Legionnaire and Imperial Army officers providing a briefing. 

 

Imperial forces had not yet achieved air superiority,  and the airport was well defended from Ork air power by missile and other surface-to-air systems. 

 

However these did little to protect the Airport from a Goff Armoured assault, which had somehow approached undetected. The small Legion garrison was quickly overwhelmed, the aircraft and defences destroyed. 

 

The Orks quickly put the airport to their own use, introducing their own 'safety measures' and utilising it as a base for a squadron of Bad Moon Bomberz.

 

A Bomber crew prepare for a mission while Grot 'self guided' bombs are loaded onto the aircraft.

 

Unfortunately it looks like a Mekaniak may have plugged the wrong coloured falange into the square wotsit. An engine fire has broken out, one of the Orks realises what is about to happen and has decided to make himself scarce.. 

 

But the Mekaniaks needn't have worried. The invading Imperial Forces know the importance of the airport and will not accept it being in enemy hands. An entire Land Raider Armoured company, as well as supporting Tactical detachment from forces stationed nearby, are deployed to retake the airfield. The bomber which was not grounded was on a mission, and so manages to escape the destruction. 

 

In the game

During the game the airport functions as an interactive objective. I remember playing a Command & Conquer game on the PC some years ago and quite liked the way that certain buildings would change their representation depending on which side controlled them. So in this instance it will start the game as a neutral territory, but if it is captured by the Orks or Imperium, different components of terrain will be swapped out to indicate which side is in control. It will then bestow a modest benefit on whichever side controls it, such as the ability to bring in a supporting barrage/air strike each turn. 

 

Terrain & Miniatures

The terrain is a mix of different bits with a few conversions. 

The large hangers and control tower are from Blotz 6mm range (very reasonably priced MDF terrain Blotz Cityscape - I added a 40k Crozius Arcanium from a marine chaplain to the tower and added a few decals to make it more appropriate for the setting. The smaller green hangers and gun emplacements are small resin kits from ebay.

The runway itself is a Galeforce Nine Team Yankee modern roads set, with some extra markings to denote it as a runway (that game is 15mm so roads at that scale look just about right as a runway).

The miniatures are a mix of GW Aeronautica Imperialis for the Valkyries and Ork Bombers, classic GW for the Marine Land Raiders/Rhinos and Ork wagons. The infantry and other vehicles are most Vanguard Miniatures Novan and Skinner ranges. 

Any C&C very appreciated, am trying to plan an Epic event at the moment featuring the forces used in this blog so hopefully will be fairly active! :) 

Edited July 10, 2022 by Pacific81