Iron Warriors The Iron Enclave

[madlibrarian]

Lord Desmoterios

 

Lord Desmoterios was a recent convert to the machinations of the Iron Warriors. His homeworld had been plundered and pillaged by raiders and pirates for decades after it was trapped behind the cosmic veil of the immaterium's tempestuous storms. His one proud household order of knights having been picked off, one by one. Now, he was all that was left. The ancient vistas that once gazed upon a proud and stoic civilisation, instead laid their eyes upon a husk of what once was. 

 

Lord Desmoterios had never ceased his vigil however, patrolling the streets, the slums, the avenues and promenades of his former capital. The great towering war machine he ensconced himself in his only place of safety. His refuge. 

 

His prison. 

 

And so, when the IVth legion had mustered an assault on the world so as to strip it off its resources and remaining populace, who had been there to mount a tenacious defence? Lord Desmoterios had waded into the thick of the fray - his mighty war steed churning through daemon engine and legionnaire alike. In the end, it was a combination of helbrutes and sorcerous magicka that crippled the bucking engine. 

 

And so, the warpsmith of the invading army had offered the Lord a token. A chance to live. A chance to survive. 

 

Lord Desmoterios is reported to have stood upon the broken back of his might engine, surveying the carnage he had wrought. He is said to have nodded, just once, at the warpsmith, before offering his hand up in a custom of his people. 

 

That is reportedly how the Lord lost his right arm, much to the amusement of the Iron Warriors present. 

 

 

I built this model as a surprise for a friendly match with one of my local gaming group. 

 

I'm always tempted to magnetise my models, but at the same time, I view each one as a piece of art, with their own stories, backgrounds and characters associated with it. 

As such, whilst easily doable - particularly in this case - I don't really like to. I know it will probably ruffle a few jimmies of people here, but what can I say? 

 

Really enjoyed leaving this model fairly stock in terms of parts etc. I think this is the first model in a long time that I haven't felt the need to kitbash / alter in some way. It's just such a great kit! The only thing I made my own really was the base. I've left the model unattached to the base, so that when it falls in battle, it can be laid down as a piece of terrain / cover.

 

For someone who hates painting, this is one of my favourite models that I've done. So much so that it pushed the spartan back! 

 

Thanks for reading guys - hope you enjoy!

[madlibrarian]

The Twins

 

Testing Log. Entry One:

 

I've received two new participants for dreadnought internment. Of interest to my colleagues and I, was the fact that the pair are twins. Olympian twins. Reportedly they are both veterans, and have been with the legion for a century at least now. Skimming through their notes, it appears as if one was injured, and the other went to their aid, before falling victim to the same attack. Foolish. Choosing the bonds of family over the kinship of the legion? I am surprised they have not been left to rot. No matter. We shall see if they are suitable candidates, and if their bodies can withstand the process. 

 

Testing Log. Entry Nine: 

 

Amazing. It is as if there is some metaphysical connection between the pair. Twice now, twice one of them appeared to falter as if to perish during the ordeals, and twice the other twins' heart rate and cortisol levels would spike. When these spikes occurred, the one who was floundering would somehow pull through. In addition, both of their respective stress indicators become elevated, and rise further still, the more distance there is between them. Cross-referencing this data with that of the biometric telemetry from their power armour logs, it appears as if it is this same connection that enabled their survival upon initial catastrophic injury. Is this why the second twin went to help? Did they know that distance and space would be detrimental to the first twin's survival?

 

Testing Log. Entry Seventeen:

 

My theory has been confirmed. Both of them were successfully interred into their respective sarcophagi. Contemptor chassis. Utilitarian and highly lethal. I went to place one of the pair into suspended animation. The other, despite having no possible way of knowing this, became agitated. They killed one of their attendants. Pulped him. I am loathe to report the incident however, as such an opportunity for study of what appears to be genuine metaphysical interactions is an incredibly rare gift. Indeed, I may have to carry these tests out in private now. 

 

Testing Log. Entry Nineteen:

 

Those cretins. Those insufferable fools. What benefit will two additional contemptors bring for this assault?! The twins are worth infinitely more to the legion - nay, humanity - as living examples and test subjects for the study of the metaphysical. Instead, instead they're being sent down to assist in pacification of another numberless and nameless world. I can only hope the action they see does not render one of them inoperable or dead. 

 

 

Decided to keep these guys deliberately basic. I want them to represent what I envision as the common contemptor style loadout.

 

The Spartan is progressing well. Just an all over oil wash to do, then highlighting really. I'll be happy to get that one off the books!

 

[madlibrarian]

Chariot Hephaestus

 

"History. Duty. War. These are some of the vaunted responsibilities of the remembrancers to catalogue, document, and chronicle for all eternity. During this presentation, you will be privy to a rare and venerated piece of history for the legion. This fabled machine has been spared the shackles of conflict for the forseeable, owing to it needing multiple system recalibrations. However, that being said, it is a perfectly suitable candidate for our lecture today. For you see, my fellow remembrancers, Perturabo has sought to share with the rest of the wider human race some of the tools that experience a high replacement rate, owing to their habitual use by the Iron Warriors.

 

The Spartan is a formidable land transport and assault vehicle. It boasts a complement of highly destructive las weaponry - yes yes, we've seen first hand the impacts these sobering weapons can have on flesh and steel. It also provides substantial protection for its occupants, with armour surpassing that of many of the mainstay battle tanks, with communications and monitoring equipment similarly well fashioned. 

 

Perhaps the most interesting of its features however..."

 

Remembrancer Kyphoth rolled his eyes and yawned at the lecturer. Truly, nothing could be as a awful as these lectures, could they? 

 

 

 

Finally done! Woohoo! 

Really pleased with how its come out overall, that being said, if anyone has any tips for removing some of the frosting around where the matt varnish spray has gone onto the pigment powders, please let me know. I've tried a matt varnish applied with a brush, as well as agrax earthshade, and they don't seem to be doing the job. 

 

Tips appreciated!

[NinjaBadger7]

@madlibrarian Can I ask what your general armour paint recipe for your IW is? Really awesome work :)

[madlibrarian]

3 hours ago, NinjaBadger7 said:

@madlibrarian Can I ask what your general armour paint recipe for your IW is? Really awesome work :)

 Absolutely my friend.

 

there are two recipes I use, one for infantry and one for vehicles.

 

for infantry, it’s chaos black primer, lead belcher dry brush. This is then followed with black Templar contrast wherever I want black, and averland sunset for the yellows. The yellow is then toned with seraphim sepia.

 

Once the above steps are done, I’ll apply contrast wyldwood diluted down with one part wyldwood to three parts contrast medium. I sometimes do it two parts medium instead if I fancy a darker and grittier tone. Details and highlights are then added.

 

for the vehicles, it’s chaos black primer, and then depending on the size, it’s either brush on leadbelcher, or spray can leadbelcher (the spray can often leaves strange dotting and weird textures even with humidity and temperature accounted for - maybe just a different can will fix this). Blacks are done with abaddon black, yellows the same as the infantry.

Once the large sections are done - including the bronze - I apply burnt umber oil paints across the whole vehicle, often in stages so I can grip it properly. The excess is then removed with make up buds. Details are then added. Finally, pigment powders are added and then a Matt varnish applied all over.

 

Definitely not a perfect system - I still need to find a way to apply pigment powders without the frosting from the varnishes.

[NinjaBadger7]

20 minutes ago, madlibrarian said:

 Absolutely my friend.

 

there are two recipes I use, one for infantry and one for vehicles.

 

for infantry, it’s chaos black primer, lead belcher dry brush. This is then followed with black Templar contrast wherever I want black, and averland sunset for the yellows. The yellow is then toned with seraphim sepia.

 

Once the above steps are done, I’ll apply contrast wyldwood diluted down with one part wyldwood to three parts contrast medium. I sometimes do it two parts medium instead if I fancy a darker and grittier tone. Details and highlights are then added.

 

for the vehicles, it’s chaos black primer, and then depending on the size, it’s either brush on leadbelcher, or spray can leadbelcher (the spray can often leaves strange dotting and weird textures even with humidity and temperature accounted for - maybe just a different can will fix this). Blacks are done with abaddon black, yellows the same as the infantry.

Once the large sections are done - including the bronze - I apply burnt umber oil paints across the whole vehicle, often in stages so I can grip it properly. The excess is then removed with make up buds. Details are then added. Finally, pigment powders are added and then a Matt varnish applied all over.

 

Definitely not a perfect system - I still need to find a way to apply pigment powders without the frosting from the varnishes.

Thank you for the detailed explanation!

 

I think the thinned Wyldwood was the part that was looking for :)

[madlibrarian]

Squad Dekatria

 

They say history is written by the victors. But what if there are no victors? What if there are only victims and the dead? 

 

During the siege of Terra, thousands of Iron Warriors would be deployed to operations seeking to infiltrate behind enemy lines, and laying waste to whatever they could. Squad Dekatria was a small fragment of one such task force. Used by the forces of the Warmaster to try and manifest as much mayhem and madness as possible. None of the squad would survive the siege. 

 

Posthumous records recovered just prior to the end of the siege indicate that at least half of the squad were killed prior to even getting to their expected rendesvouz, with the other half eliminated prior to successful completion of their mission. Logs indicate that they had become embattled with a contingent of Imperial Fists, who had the benefit of resupply, familiarity with the defensive routes and positions, and fresh (comparatively) wargear.

 

Such failures were common during the siege, with the Iron Warriors often employing a practice of making enough attempts at their goals that eventually, whether through luck, good fortune, skills or tactics, one of the attempts would succeed. Squad Dekatria is one of those attempts. 

 

 

Another 10 man squad ready for the field. I've had a productive last few days, managing to complete the above squad, as well as a 10 man tactical support squad of volkite chargers, and a 5 man melta tactical support squad. Just need to finish my master of signals, jump pack lord, and at some point finish a 5 man recon squad with shotguns.

 

With the release of 10th edition I'm saddened at contemptors etc. going to legends for 40k, and I'm finding myself increasingly drawn to 30k. 

 

I'm particularly happy with the hazard stripe down the middle marine of the bottom pictures face. A small detail, and a nod to some of the Rogue Trader art.

 

Will post pictures of the other two squads soon!

[madlibrarian]

Squad Etnarius

 

The air hummed as super-heated air churned in a miasma of turbulence. Luntius sprinted for the cover of a nearby archway, just as more blistering beams of volkite death boiled the air where he'd just been. 

CHOOOOOOM! 

 

The sound of a volkite weapon unleashing its deadly energy. A sound Luntius was all too keen to leave well enough behind him. He checked the power reading on his lasgun, and dared to steal a look around the corner of his safety. Almost immediately he came to regret it. His mad dash into the archway had been shielded by smoke and other debris, but that was starting to settle now. He could clearly see the armour marks of the enemy who were advancing down the street. The street he had been assigned to protect. The street his platoon had been assigned to protect. There was only him left now. 

 

He breathed in the sooty air, and clenched his lasgun to his chest. An older pattern, a relic of the early days of the great crusade. It was amazing that it had survived this long, especially given its storied history and vast journeys across the cosmos. The company armourer had reckoned that the staunch weapon had probably seen more of the galaxy than most astartes. Luntius felt a pang of anguish as he realised that its journey would probably end here, today. 

 

He pulled the pin from one of his grenades, and threw it round the corner without looking. Fast, pounding footsteps could be heard running to avoid the blast. Luntius didn't waste any time. Head down, gun slung over his shoulder, he sprinted for what he reckoned was the rough direction of the last known safe zone he'd been informed of. He ran round one corner, then another, hurdling over ruins and debris, his uniform catching and tearing on jutting rebar and jagged glass. He cursed as he rolled his ankle, stumbling and falling. His lasgun slid off his shoulder, sliding a foot or two in front of him. 

 

Luntius gave a quick sigh and made to stand. As he did, he looked up, and saw the foot of an astartes resting upon his weapon. The metal protested the giant's weight.

 

"Pathetic." were all the words the giant said, before raising his weapon at Luntius. The noble lasgun buckled and snapped as the Iron Warrior pressed down hard.

 

"No! Ple-" were all that Luntius managed to scream out, before the deafening CHOOOOOOM! that ended his life. 

 

 

The aforementioned squad emerges!

A squad I'm happy with regarding the poses, but less keen on regarding the paint job. I unfortunately made the shoulders in particular a shade or two darker than I intended, relative to the rest of the army. As its uniform across the entire squad, it appears more uniform, but, if I have a spare few days in the future, I may repaint them at some point. Guh. 

 

Oh well! On to recent games played, I've fought tyranids twice recently, and have been fielding an abaddon conversion I'm in the process of finishing.

 

Both games have been a thorough dismantling of the nids - they seem to have really received the short end of the stick this edition thus far. Both games the nids were tabled turn 4, with turn 3 they had barely anything left. I'm not sure what to recommend regarding them, as they seem to lack punch and survivability. 

 

Abaddon is a melee monster, and giving his unit all the chaos marks is wonderfully obscene.

 

I've got 5 converted leviathan terminators to finish making and painting, then a deimos predator and a few touches to some bikers, but that'll be it. Just 2-3 odd small sergeants etc to finish painting, and I'll have removed by Iron warriors backlog! 

 

Oh yeah, when I post my Abaddon conversion I'll also show my Azrakh the Annihilator model that I finished today. Very different paint job, but I thought he deserved something special.

[Prot]

Looing really good. Nice and gritty. Looking forward to seeing  Abaddon and the Termies. :)

 

[madlibrarian]

On 7/14/2023 at 2:22 PM, Prot said:

Looing really good. Nice and gritty. Looking forward to seeing  Abaddon and the Termies. :)

 

 

Well good sir, wait no longer!

 

First up is my version of Azrakh. I used a gold metallic chrome paint on this guy, and I'm not entirely sure which varnish will be best to preserve the lustre of the model, as currently the gold does appear to rub off / become less shiny / reflective if handled too much. Wanted him to stand out from the normal terminators / iron warriors, befitting his status as a legendary figure amongst CSM artwork.

 

 

Second up is my counts as Abaddon. Not an overly complex conversion, but one I'm happy with. To be honest, this was a slightly rushed job to get a useable Abaddon proxy on the game mat before a friends birthday later this month, whereby we're all going to warhammer world for a massive game. Converted out of the leviathan captain, some genestealer bits, some MK III bits and other oddities, I present "Abaddon".

 

[Prot]

Love the look of these guys. A very nice... oily metallic. 

[madlibrarian]

Katolisthisi

 

The ancient and venerable machine, so adorned in adamantine plate and Iron Warriors iconography that it could never be mistaken. Thrice it spearheaded the assault on the subsequently named Broka's Demise, and thrice it survived the withering fire directed upon it, even whilst its human cargo perished before they could achieve their mission. It would eventually come to be called 'Katolisthisi', or, translated into High Gothic, 'Landslide'. 

 

It would eventually find itself as part of a mass assembly of transport capable vehicles for the assault on the Eternity Gate. Whilst all others around it suffered catastrophically at the hands of the human defenders, the corrupted machine spirit inside refused to be baulked. The mighty tracks powdered bone and rubble into dust, before, after rolling over an IED hastily assembled by the loyalist scum, its tracks sheared and its journey came to an unceremonious end.

 

It would initially be recovered by a swiftly departing contingent of the Sons of Horus who, after moving it off world, would barter it as part of an exchange for warp capable transport, provided by the Iron Warriors.

 

 

Rapid Reaction Force 'Bronte'

 

"White Scars. Jetbikes. Two clicks out. Closing fast, Sergeant."

 

"Acknowledged. Herald the crew, let them know expected spread and force disposition" came the curt reply from the sergeant. He checked his ammo reserves, and hunkered down as best he could in his terminator plate. No match for the bikes on an open field, their defensive positions should minimise the chances of the Vth legion being able to perform a mordhau with their hurricane assault, he mused to himself. They'd been stationed here after the last desperate sally by the sons of the Khan had broken the backs of the legionnaires posted here. They'd been killed almost outright, with three cowards having been caught on their way back to more defensible lines. They had not reached those lines before the sergeant had reminded them of the price of cowardice from the Lord of Olympia. 

 

 The predator rolled into its bunkered position, its turret cresting the mound of earth and rubble, its sponsons angled outwards to the side, ready to welcome the bikes as they sought to strike from the rear. 

 

The sergeant could see the turret tracking its prey, before the boom of its main cannon started to interrupt the low hum of the bikes. Two, three, four shots were fired before the rounds started slamming into the bikes. At such ranges, the crew's accuracy was commendable, and the terminators of RRF Bronte silently praised it. Then the hum grew louder. And louder. And louder still, until it was as if ten thousand Olympian wild hornets were swarming, generating a raucous cacophony that was impossible to silence. The sons of the Khan were unrivalled masters of the jetbikes, and flew with such dexterity and skill that it stopped being warfare, and instead became art. 

 

Then they were among them. Bolter and plasma rounds smashed into the rockcrete all around the staunch terminators. In response came the torrential roar of storm-bolters and the proteus assault cannon. As the bikes screamed past the front of the predator, its sponsons opened up, zig-zagging as they chased their prey. Rippling explosions lifted dust into the air, plastering the Iron Warriors in a grey-black coating of humanity's fall. The sergeant emptied his magazine into a bike that was coming right for him, destroying its stabilisers and sending it hammering into the ground as if some uncaring god had pressed their finger into its front, squashing it like an ant. The rider, either flung from his saddle or having launched himself, flew towards the Iron Warrior terminator, blade in hand. 

 

The crackling energies of the power blade the White Scar wielded danced and flickered off his armour. He held the blade across his forearm, a swordsman's pose. A fool's pose. The sergeant activated his power fist, and flexed his fingers. 

 

It was time to see who was the better killer. 

 

 

 

 

Super happy with how the terminators came out - the leviathan models are gorgeous! Hope you enjoy guys :)

 

Edited August 13, 2023 by madlibrarian

[Tallarn Commander]

Superb models!

 

And now when you use your Land Raider you can just sing Fleetwood Mac's lyrics "And I saw my reflection in the snow-covered hills
'Til the landslide brought me down"

 

:)

[madlibrarian]

9 hours ago, Tallarn Commander said:

Superb models!

 

And now when you use your Land Raider you can just sing Fleetwood Mac's lyrics "And I saw my reflection in the snow-covered hills
'Til the landslide brought me down"

 

:)

Ah cheers bud! Big compliment coming from yourself.

 

next game I play that music’s coming on haha. Will see if it’s a boon or not!

[madlibrarian]

Heavy Support Squad Delta-Echo-77

 

"The pict captures below identify one such squad that the IVth legion employed during the siege of Holy Terra. Their utilisation of supportive gun-lines to complement their advancing elements ensured a modestly increased rate of survival for those pushing the breaches. Furthermore, rapid relocation strategies employed by limited elements of such squads helped pivot engagements into their favour via the use of cross-fires and pinning fire. Please note the unorthodox pauldrons having been adopted by this squad. Perhaps as a result of scarcity of parts, or owing to prolonged contact periods, they show signs of significant degradation, with at least two that our mechanicus friends have estimated would have had a 73.6% probability of structural failure under further minor assault, at the time of this pict."

 

"And what of their arsenal, sir?"

 

"Standard Kalibrax pattern autocannons. Well maintained. Easy enough to find ammunition for given the plethora of militarum munitions depots and vehicles that utilised such rounds. Whilst sub-optimal in the vehicle heavy engagements of the siege of Holy Terra, against both their fellow astartes and the human elements they were battling, undoubtedly very effective."

 

"Sir, I notice a conspicuous absence of tactical markings or squad identifiers?"

 

"Indeed. This is a more curious element, one that we attribute to the reality distorting effects of the warp during this period. Friend and foe identifiers - certainly on our side - were regularly false-flagging, mis-reading, or more often than not simply failing to provide any information. Arguably this would have made the need for such visual cues even more important, however, given that this absence seems to be an established practice amongst the IVth legion, we speculate they had either an alternative system of identification, or, more likely, the machinations of chaos simply allowed their systems to function as they should."

 

 

One of my favourite squads I've put together. I got the pauldrons from mastercrafterminiatures - Ben there is great, and always provides top notch products - highly recommended. I also think the pose and proportions of these models just scream "Iron warrior" to me.

 

 

 

The Chosen Men

 

The great metallic clang sounds dull,

A beating heart against them all,

It yearns and claws and snaps its fangs,

Sweet air it tasted and of it sang,

All around miasmas swirl,

Coalesce, manifest, and then unfurl,

So many blossoms of golden brown,

Creep their way towards the crown,

Red satin rivers flow to the sky,

Pulled forth and upwards by furious might,

Sweet temptations that stifle cries,

And appease and then release pleasured sighs,

A question master who jealously holds,

And mocks and teases before unfolds,

Righteous valour that stoically guards,

A thousand more still beating hearts,

The raucous throng of wailing spectres,

Passed on their feet walk in direction,

Salvation found in a grain of sand,

Burning hot and violent for one final stand.

 

-"Of Beating Hearts Made Still" - Attr. Legionnaire Cuzco, 52nd Grand Company, Iron Warriors

 

 

Built these guys just to pad out my existing Chosen and legionnaires squads, enabling the use of heavy melee weapons. Loved the work that I think TrawlingCleaner had done with his two handed chain guys, it inspired me to make the above. I'm a bit sad about the face on the axe guy - other faces I've done in the past have turned out ok, but this one looks like the victim of a one sided boxing match, with his puffy face and swollen eyes, ha. 

 

 

Heavy Support Squad Whiskey-66

 

"Fire on my mark!" came the order. Legionnaire Doru steadied his breathing, and sighted his target. 300 metres. Imperial Fist. Predator destructor. Krak missile loaded.

 

"Fire!"

 

Five thunderous hammers smoked their way through the dark and smoky city streets, before plunging into the side of the wounded beast. It bucked and churned, before detonating in a violent eruption of unfettered hatred and loathing. Doru smiled to himself, before checking his weapon had another missile racked, ready to fire. He had been fighting now for 37 hours straight. Cracks in his armour allowed the stinging radioactive air to seep in. He could feel his skin changing, becoming scaly and blackening to resist the atom-denaturing elements that now assailed him.

 

"Gunship, 700 metres, sector gamma-3, closing fast!" came the next bark. Doru adjusted his aim, and found his mark. White Scars. Thunderhawk. Krak missile loaded.

 

"Fi-" the order was abruptly cut off. Doru spun round to find the source of the disturbance, and found his squad leader skewered on the blade of a custodes. He would not have time to turn his weapon to aim at the golden clad warrior. His head spun, then stared up at his own torso, as it slowly toppled over into the dust.

 

 

A generic missile squad. Also useful for 40k legionnaires that need the missile launcher. Definitely not meta, but cool :cuss:. 

 

Primus Medicae Iatrocles

 

Iatrocles had been with the legion since before their primarch had been found. He'd long ago been given the vestments that lead to his rise to the vaunted ranks of the apothekarion. During the siege of Terra he'd been given the rank of Primus Medicae, and fulfilled the role to the best of his abilities. He was killed during the final moments of the siege, after Perturabo had issued the order for his legion to withdraw, his detachment had been encircled by loyalist legion and titan elements, ultimately being erased from existence by the plasma fire from a warhound titan. 

 

 

A fairly simple Leviathan indomitus conversion, I'm overall quite happy with it. I'm not sure if I'll keep the white as it is, as I'm not sure if there's either too much, or too little of it. I welcome your thoughts and opinions. 

 

 

GH-0-57

 

GH-0-57 was a specially constructed automaton of the IVth legion, the Iron Warriors. Inspired by Perturabo's Iron Circle, various warsmiths and mechanicus elements were involved in the design and refitting of this machine. It had servo-dampeners to reduce friction and noise, as well as increasingly robust suspensor elements so as to enable quieter movement. Furthermore, unique foot treads were installed that both muffled its advance, as well as enabled greater weight distribution and more specific weight allocation. GH-0-57 is pictured below with two recon legionnaires, who were integral in the successful deployment and retrieval of GH-0-57 .

 

 

I run this guy as a double fist helbrute in 40k, and I must say, he's done well so far. He managed to wipe out an entire squad of the necron tripods with their big blades, leaving just the necron lord left. I was also pleasantly surprised by how easy this forgeworld resin was to work with compared to my previous experiences, and also how little work was needed to clean it up!

 

Well, there you go guys, been a while, but hope the update was worth it!

[TrawlingCleaner]

These are all ace looking additions librarian!

I'm loving those Iron Havocs with the autocannons, it's such an iconic Iron Warriors look

Great looking chosen too, I'm glad to see more people using those bits!

[madlibrarian]

Rapier Carrier - 238th Muster - IVth Legion Iron Warriors

 

The humble rapier carrier. A stalwart and stoic piece of equipment, synonymous with many detachments of the legions during the great crusade. Often seen as an unsung workhorse of the legions, with a plethora of weapons and utility equipment being able to be placed atop its humble frame. This one utilises a quad bolter configuration of an unknown format. This was not uncommon, given the logistical nightmare that was the siege of Terra, legions often made do with what they could scavenge, or create. 

 

 

Ajax and Undulon

 

Ajax lowered his storm bolter, smoke drifting upwards from the barrel. His armour was heavily damaged, pitting and scarred from days of prolonged combat. At least, he thought it was days. He couldn't be sure. Not anymore. Not since ... wait, not since when? His chronometer hadn't moved in what felt like days. His internal body-clock screamed at him that something was wrong, his instincts and animalistic senses urging him to run, to get away from whatever it was that was causing this temporal disruption. But he was an astartes. Made of iron. Iron. He didn't care from whence the disruption came, he only knew that he would do his duty, as would his fellow muster-mates. Death was honourable and defensible, cowardice and failure was not. 

 

 

Unknown Apothecary - 0014.M31

 

This pict was taken of a IVth legion apothecary during the siege of Terra. The Iron Warriors made heavy use of the apothekarion, utilising these warriors just behind the front lines, so as to ensure that as many battle brothers as possible could be immediately returned to combat. With the attrition rates of the IVth being monumentally high during the height of the siege, the apothekarion was stretched to its limits, and often utilised mechanical augments to assist in lieu of a more formally trained assistant. This had the side effect of lowering the quality of the remedy provided to the beleaguered marine on the operating table, however, it did prove more expedient.

 

 

Hey guys! Been a few months, I've been very busy sorting out a wedding, amongst social and family commitments, but here are a few odds and ends I've tied up. Actually had these done for a few weeks, but work and life got in the way of posting. 

On the bench, I've got two knights that i'm working on - one Knight Valiant - can't resist the harpoon - and a despoiler, which I'm in the process of magnetising the weapons for. 
I've also been making 40 cultists utilising the spacenam sets - these are amaaaazing btw! Highly recommend, and I've got two deredeos which are about 95% finished. They'll probably be the next things I post, all being well!

[Dr_Ruminahui]

Looking good - particularly like the rapier.

 

Be sure to drop by the chaos knights subforum and share your work on your knights there.

[madlibrarian]

Ancients Kheimas and Bublios

 

"Kheimas and Bublios. Ah, now they were two formidable warriors. Kheimas, so named for his wintery disposition. Bublios, for his love of literature and scholarly pursuits. Alas, neither would receive the fate they deserved. 

 

Kheimas would often adorn his helmet with a singular white stripe. It was said this was to honour his terran ancestry. A reminder of his past. A token, perhaps, of a family whom he can't quite remember anymore. I never really did get to the bottom of that particular practice. Regardless, he was a prodigy amongst the IVth legion, and rose swiftly through the ranks, reaching the lofty heights of the position of praetor. He was famous for being a methodical and pragmatic individual. He knew the arsenal of the Iron Warriors was unrivalled, and thus, he rarely found a need to get close to the enemy, opting instead to bombard them from afar. 

 

Despite what others said about him - only behind his back mind you - I was always fond of him, and, whilst not friendly, we both seemed to tolerate each other well enough. The same however, cannot be said for Bublios. Bublios was positively enamoured with the vast labyrinthine libraries that followed the IVth legion's primarch everywhere. From a guide on the inner machinations of terran aristocracy, to the habits of Fendrathi foxes, nothing was too pedantic or small a morsel of information that he didn't wish to consume it. Bublios was a prolific reader, and could often be found perusing such works of art. Some amongst his brethren mused that he was actually of IXth legion ancestry, given his fascination and attunement with the softer sides of the great crusade. Whatever his pedigree, him and I were good friends before his fall, bonding over our love of the authors of humanity.

 

As alluded to previously, the fates of these two great pillars of astartesian virtue would both end at the same destination. Kheimas, his spine severed, limbs torn asunder and larynx pulped by the thrashings of a dreadnought of the Ultramarines chapter, would be interred into the chassis of a deredeo dreadnought. Bublios on the other hand, suffered a perilous fall following the gantry he was firing from having been blown from its moorings by high explosive rounds. He survived - barely. From what I remember - and you must excuse me if my memory fails me - the apothekarion detachment had initially passed him over as viable for restorative efforts, only granting him their bored indulgence on their journey back. 

 

Now, great Kheimas and my dear friend Bublios serve as heralds of the end. Wailing machine spectres that placate their enemies with missile and bolter and autocannon round. Ah, such a shame. Maybe one day the Warmaster will find some way to recompense the souls such as these two who serve, and serve again, and are denied the bliss of death. But I fear he will not. I fear that such small acts of compassion will be too minute for the Warmaster to notice. Time will tell."

 

---Attr. Remembrancer Seventine Nix 

 

 

So here we are! The two aforementioned deredeos to provide some long ranged firepower! Love these models - truly one of my favourites in warhammer. Shame they're legends now, but still have a blast fielding them. Last two games I ran them in I fielded the plasma, and both more then pulled their weight. That being said, I've always been a fan of the dakka nature of deredeos, so will probably run the autocannons going forward (the fact I suck at painting plasma may or may not have anything to do with it!).

 

10/10 would deredeo again.

 

On the other side, I've completed two chaos knights - a despoiler with magnetised ranged weapons, and a knight valiant. 

 

Oh my word. They are such fun. The valiant has consistently harpooned land raiders, repulsors, lancers etc. and those 12 dev wounds on 4+ are an amazing moment - especially the first time it happens. Haven't lost with my knights list so far, although I have only played blood angels in various detachments thus far. Will see what the future holds - next on the agenda is a Knight Lancer.

[madlibrarian]

And yet more come!

 

I've had the below models on my backlog for several months now, and it feels good to have gotten them done! It's amazing what a few days off can yield. 

 

The bikers are conversions based on Goliath Maulers, with a friend having 3d printed the legs and torsos, as well as the arms that are gripping the handlebars. The handlebars on the original models have the goliath hands attached, so I had to carefully snip these off, then drill in small brass rod to replace them. After that, it was simply a case of cutting down the backseat to make room for the backpacks, and then glueing the models together. 

 

Paint job wise, it's not my best (but then again I'm not a keen nor very good painter), but it suffices for tabletop play. 

 

 

The praetor below was made originally as a 30K HQ / character, but I'm not sure what I'll do with him now tbh. The practice with the lava effect swords was good, and, whilst not perfect, I'm happy with how they came out overall. Likewise, the jet pack glow was a quick experiment, and again, is passable.

 

 

Ever have those old school models that are very nostalgic for you? The old metal chaos sorcerer was one of those for me. I knew i had to try and modernise its proportions, and so, after much hacking and sawing, I was able to get it to the below state, with the head having been relocated onto a tortuga bay miniatures body. 

 

I'm probably most happy with this guy out of all the ones I'm posting today, as he's straddling the line between Iron Warriors practicality and the influences of chaos starting to show through. In hindsight, I should've probably put miliput on the edge of the axe to make it into an actual edge, as with it being stock, it's more like a hammer / maul with its large flat edge. I'm not so bothered however that I'll strip the model again (already did it once when I tried OSL and it went awfully!).

 

 

Hope you enjoy guys - I'll try and post the knights in the near future!

[madlibrarian]

The Dominator Cohort

 

They served. They served until they were replaced. Replaced by hulking automata that towered over them, replete with monstrous shields of metal and engineering artifice. The Lord of Iron was not a generous, nor a forgiving master. When the Dominator Cohort failed, they were replaced, and - according to Perturabo - improved upon. This left them in an unusual position. They were born to protect a lord, but their lord did not want nor need their protection. Instead he sought their penance. He wanted them to pay the iron price for their failings, and used them as sentient battering rams to weather the worst the enemy could bring to bear. 

 

Their armour is scorched, battered and beaten. Their banner bears injuries and wounds of its own. Their weapons are pristine.

 

 

These guys have been a long time coming, with my knights having played wonderful distractions to my more conventional foot slogging iron warriors. These guys use the Tortuga Bay bodies, and the standard cataphractii arms / forge world special weapons set, as well as the forge world iron warriors heads. An expensive 10 man unit, but they look great on the table top. 

 

I decided to deliberately keep the melta non-specific in its look, that way it can be used as a flamer in 40k with no issues hopefully. 

 

In other news, there will be no more hobby purchases for me (barring paints and brushes) for the forseeable. I've recently gotten married, and my lovely wife is pregnant, so all hands on deck saving for the new arrival!

 

That's not to say there won't be updates - I've a decent backlog to work through (Knight lancer to finish as well as castellan weapons and magnetisation, 40 x space nam 'cultists', 5 breachers, 5 multi-melta marines, and a few dreadnought conversions I'm tinkering with). More than enough to keep me busy!

 

Hope you enjoy guys.

[madlibrarian]

Praetor Kyrios

 

Antos threw his head back and laughed at the absurdity of it all. Penned in by the mongrel dogs of the VIIth legion, he and his squad were fighting a losing battle. For three days they'd been engaging in hit and run gambits with the Imperial defenders, never staying in one place long enough for a concerted counter-attack to pin them down and eliminate them. Unfortunately however, their luck and skill could only serve them so well. 

 

With the death of Tybarr, the squad's comms specialist, their ability to circumnavigate the Fist's machicolations had been diminished. Within two hours of Tybarr's passing had the Imperial Fists been able to start closing the noose. Antos had suspected his enemies had been trying to corral the Iron Warriors into a kill zone, something which they'd sought to avoid at all costs.

 

Bolt rounds slammed into the plascrete above his head, as Antos ducked back behind cover. His ammo reserves were running dangerously low, and several of his muster-mates had already discarded their weapons, and drawn combat blades. Daring a look over his defences, Antos could see the inevitable approach of the Imperial Fists. They walked in lock-step, shields held in front of them, an impassive and indomitable wall of ceramite approaching with the finality of death. 

 

"Iron within brothers" Antos shouted to his squad. 

 

"Iron without!" came the fierce reply. 

 

With a final few bursts of gunfire, Antos' men mounted the parapets and charged at the fists. Immediately two of them went down to the co-ordinated gunfire of the breacher squad in front of them, bolt rounds puncturing through ceramite and pulping the flesh within. The distance was close however, close enough that the IVth legion could get into close quarters. As ceramite slammed into ceramite, and the Imperial Fists began to throw back the desperate last charge of the Iron Warriors, Antos noticed a ripple of disruption from their back line. 

 

Antos wrenched aside the shield of the warrior in front of him, slamming his combat blade into the opening beneath the warriors helmet, and wrenching it sideways and free. The Fist slumped to the floor, spraying thick arterial blood down the inside of his shield. More Fists were turning now, trying to fight this new threat, in turn exposing themselves to the blades of the remaining members of Antos' squad. 

 

That was when Antos saw him. Praetor Kyrios. 

 

 

Heavy Support Squad Omega-5

 

Survivors of the Siege of Terra, HSS Omega-5 had a distinguished and proud service history from long before the commencement of the heresy. They were notable for having exceptionally high survival rates, with expected service life of the marines therein approximately double that of a standard IVth legion astartes. With the onset of the Horus Heresy, the squad were heavily involved in the dropsite massacre, and further analysis of their comms logs indicate a level of enjoyment and alacrity synonymous with early stage corruption. 

 

Post heresy, the squad were part of the IVth legion's contributions to the 13th Black Crusade, and were believed lost at the fall of Cadia. 

 

 

Breacher Squad Hamartias

 

MK VII suits plundered from a loyalist cache were quickly adapted and rolled out to relevant personnel. Hamartias were some of the first to adapt and make use of the modern armour, reporting that it lacked the durability of MK III, the ergonomics of MK IV, and the advanced optics and stealth capabilities of MK VI. That beind said however, with the siege dragging on, such complaints and observations were quickly moved to the bottom of the proverbial pile. 

 

Hamartias were infamous for their rapid redeployments, using their breacher shields to storm objectives and secure footholds, before rapidly relocating, relying on their supporting units to secure what they'd just taken. 

 

 

Heavy Support Squad Theta-Theta-Four

 

Proselytos hefted his melta into place. His target slowly trundled forwards, great clods of earth and ash and concrete being cycled by its great tracks. 

 

One.

 

Two.

 

Three.

 

Proselytos applied pressure to the trigger. Feeling the heat generation and hearing his power pack increase its output to match the newfound demand. 

His target was a Fellblade. More specifically, the rear left section of said Fellblade. His aim was impeccable as ever, and he noted with fascination how the paint blistered, the armour bloomed with heat, before peeling back, layer by layer, to reveal the delicate inner workings of the Fellblade's tracks. 

 

Four.

 

Five.

 

That was all it took. Two seconds. Two seconds to penetrate some of the greatest armour the Imperium had ever fielded. Two seconds from a fatally close range, with one of the most deliciously destructive weapons ever conceived. 

 

 

Hope you all enjoy the above - apologies for the delays, my partner and I were away travelling! The praetor was one of the free minis of the month I managed to acquire, which I in turn cleaned up and kitbashed using some leftover bits from my bits box. Really love the scale of the new terminators. I'm sorely tempted to get a new squad of indomitus terminators, and use the weapons from the Deathwing Knights kit to turn them into horus heresy appropriate thunder hammer and shield terminators. I'd probably replace the heads of the Deathwing knights' hammers with ones from the GSC aberrant's kits - the power picks specifically - as I think that'd provide a rugged and suitably distinct look.

 

The rest of the kits are fairly simple, but I wanted to see how MK VII looked in my Iron Warriors scheme. I appreciate it's stretching the lore a bit, but hey, I enjoy them! 

 

At some point I need to go and put pigment powders on every model's base, and then matt varnish them all. That'll be a concerted effort at a later date. 

 

I'm also a little bit frustrated at the removal of autogun cultists, having just built and primed 40 Spacenam infantry to act as said cultists. Can try running them as guard I guess, but it's not the same for me. 

 

Not sure when the next update will be, but it'll probably consist of 5 terminators I'm repainting and a whirlwind scorpius.

 

[madlibrarian]

Wow, time sure flies! I've been keeping tabs on what's been going on on the forums, and have been meaning to post some updates on here for a while, but hey, a heavily pregnant wife, job demands and the inevitable nesting phase of house preparation prior to baby's arrival have kept me busy! 

That being said, some friends and I did manage to get a 5 way FFA match at Warhammer World. We only completed three turns, but please see below for some glamour shots of the knights I've made. 

 

 

Lancer faced down Angron, tanking the charge from him, Lord Invocatus, and a unit of jackals.

 

 

Rampager busts down the walls to get through to the juicy Blood Angels that were hiding inside.

 

 

Armiger runs up to suppor the Lancer. Amazingly, the lancer survived the charge from Angron and co., managed to skewer lord invocatus, flunked on Angron, before the Armiger runs up, and melts Angron's face. It was a wonderful display. 

 

 

Long range fire support from the Despoiler managed to obliterate one of my foe's repulsors / lancers (whichever one has the two shot massive lascannon), and soften up plenty of infantry.

 

 

And a lovely little precursor shot from a week or two beforehand, where Angron charged my Valiant, missed / failed to wound with everything, got hit for 4 damage from his meltas in the following shooting phase, before being unceremoniously harpooned and insta-killed via the 12 devastating wounds. 

 

 

What else do I have going on? Well, some lovely Tortuga Bay MK VI truescale miniatures for Horus Heresy. Love the proportions the Tortuga Bay bodies / bits give, much more imposing. I also have a whirlwind scorpius on the go, that's been primed black and then leadbelcher. These will all get done... eventually! As I said before, the baby and prepping for their arrival is all hands on deck, leaving not much time for hobbies!

 

Below are some terminators for Horus Heresy also. 40 Indomitus terminator bodies, the new deathwing knight arms, with the mace heads clipped off and replaced with Genestealer Cult Aberrant sledges, and finally some 3rd party Greek Hoplite shields, along with heads from Archie's Forge. These guys are going to hopefully crack some skulls / be an implaccable wall in any Horus Heresy games. 

 

 

As a far off background project, I'm also building some space hulk modular tiles using 2mm cardstock, plastic pipes, bits and gribblies etc. etc. Maybe some of the above terminators could be used for that too? Hmmm...

 

Well, there you have it - hope you enjoy! Not sure when the next post will be.

 

 

[Tallarn Commander]

Congrats on the upcoming new Iron Warrior who shall be joining your family!

 

Thank you for the wonderful photos. Your Armiger held its own in a difficult situation. Truly a case of Iron within, Iron without.

[SirTainly]

Awesome looking army! And seconded best of luck with your new arrival.