The Ultimate Siege Challenge (Project Thread)

[spiros14]

Ahoy!

 

Just to update on my building, painting situation to keep me focussed on the project at hand!

To start with, I managed to finish off the predator, which you can also see in the Call to Arms thread. As I've said on there, really happy with how the stripes have come out. 

 

I want to add a Predator Destructor to the army at some point this year, and I'm not sure if I want to copy this pattern to it or vary it up. The way I see it, the Chaos Legions, as a part of the Crusade and Horus Heresy, should have had squadrons of identical tanks of the same class, likely as an escort piece to a Fellblade or similar. So there's a justification to copy-pasting the markings on the tank. On the other hand, because these legions have gone through both the Heresy and the long war without serious Mechanicus Support, these squadrons feasibly should have been whittled down to pieces on forgotten battlefields or even scattered to the winds as other warbands have taken them for their own cause.
It may be a couple of months before I make a decision, I have plenty of models on the to-do list to occupy my time.

 

Also on my list this month are some cultists, and these have also been vowed to the Call to Arms thread to be done this month. I have four new cultists and three old autogun cultists to do. I had wanted to get the Blackstone Fortress cultists to replace the old moulds in the mob, simply because they tie in with the newer guys better and they include the special weapons, but GW have very recently put that unit as "no longer available online, denying me access! A big disappointment, but in the grand scheme of things, a minor setback: good equipment on a single band of mortals will not make the difference in this battle!

 

 

Finally, I've built up a squad of chosen and a terminator sorcerer, to be part of my painting quota next month. I've said it before, but I do like the chosen models, especially the backpack weapons, and the extra fleshy bits that help them stand out from regular legionnaires, and I'll be looking forward to getting them painted.

 

The Sorcerer was a bit of a meta choice, my plan is for him to be in a full squad of ten brothers and teleport down with my two obliterators and cut down the Imperial dogs in shooting. I tried to pose him a lot more open armed than my Terminator Lord to break the silhouette and help differentiate the two, though the likely scenario will be that these characters won't be close to each other during the battle, as my Lord will start play in a land raider on the front lines, while the sorcerer will start in reserves. 

 

With that I've cut down my "to build" list to seven models (five terminators, a land raider, and a predator). I hope by my next post I will have cut down my "to paint" list just as much (I'm currently sitting on 31 models for the army).

Until then!

[TrawlingCleaner]

Amazing work Spiros, I'm looking forward to seeing how the Chosen come out!

[spiros14]

Howdy guys,

It's been almost a month since my last update, mainly because a lot of what I was doing was quite insignificant on its own, but now I can hit you with a more impressive piece.
To start with the more simple stuff, the rest of last month's quota, the cultists, were done in fairly quick order, which was put on Grotsmasha's painting challenge over the weeks. 

 

I've mentioned before, but I used a more generic villain purple and green scheme on the clothes of these guys because I wanted them to be quite generic without the more bland black and reds used by other evil characters. I also had a good bit of enjoyment putting in some different skin tones on the models.

I was also able to get the blackstone fortress cultists on Ebay. one or two of the models need some greenstuff cleanup, but the rest have been undercoated black and ready for the paint table.

 

My recently built marines have also been undercoated, and will be the focus for this month, alongside two of the above cultists.

 

On the terrain side of things I'm happy to announce that I got two of the terrain kits that I was after, allowing me to decorate half of my castle map. I feel really proud of this, as it makes the playspace much more immersive for the armies fighting, and it gives me a huge boost of confidence to get this terrain done admittedly, I had been slacking on that last month, and had moved on to a little bit of painting for my Necromunda and Age of Sigmar armies) So here's an overhead of the Medicae unit, the Control room, and the Library. It's useful for me to have an overhead shot like this, as it'll make it easier to reference as the moths go on.

 

So to start with the control room, this will be where my Chaos Lord, Champion, and Chosen are going to start the battle. These pieces are from the Soulshackle killzone box, and do a great job of filling the space without making it too cluttered. 

 

The library uses shelves from terraincrate's arcane library. I think I might have shown this setup before as part of my proof-of-concept, but this is on a larger scale. I wanted to make three larger blocks of shelves to funnel troops into my legionnaires and hinder lines of sight, but I also made a point to keep the corridor to the side clear for a bit of realism.

 

The final room I have on show is the medicae unit, which uses terrain from the Gallowfall Killzone set. This is an important room, as this will be where the hostage will start, and it will be guarded by more legionnaires. The killzone set really helps sell the theme, with both a surgical and an autopsy table (I've tried to separate the chamber into two suites dedicated to each) and I'm confident this will look great once finished, but the downside, at least in my opinion, is that the size and number of the pieces makes the whole thing a little bit cluttered. 

 

I plan on getting another terraincrate set to fill out the other rooms, which I should order sometime this month. I'll be aiming to get those chosen done for my next update.

 

Until then!
+Spiros14+

[spiros14]

Hello again,

 

I had a bit of a two-month hiatus on my plan, having had to redo my painting room for a few weeks and then getting completely sidetracked with Necromunda minis (I've been on quite a long campaign with my friends) as well as a fair bit of A song of Ice and Fire (whose simple design work as an excellent palate cleanser for GW minis), but I'm ready to get back on the horse and work some more on this project.

The last couple of days have had me work very hard on my chosen, and I've gotten three of the five done (or at the very least, ready to have the transfers put on when I finish the whole squad). This puts me down to twenty minis for the army to paint, plus my terrain, and the navigator model from blackstone fortress, who acts as the mission's captive.

 

 

My original deadline for this army was early 2024, when the Chaos Space Marines codex released, but that's probably going to be pushed to springtime. We'll see how things go.

 

+Sprios14+

[Lord Abaia]

Great looking chosen! I particularly like the face on the guy in the middle. I would not want to run into that guy in a dark fortress.

[spiros14]

Some great progress has been done today, brothers.
To begin, I've completed my latest box of chosen, who are ready to rumble and cause some casualties.

Just because you're in the middle of a crowded firefight doesn't mean you can't smile for the camera.

 

This in itself means that I'm down to 19 models to paint for the army, and it completes my ten-man chosen squad with a Lord and Champion attachment. I've mentioned before that these marines are set to be in charge of the castle garrison, and will be deployed in the room I've designated my command centre while my Warsmith sallies out with his terminators in a Land Raider.

In terms of walls, I'm down to the last eight. I'm aiming to get those done by the end of the month so stay tuned for that.

 

Speaking of the Terminators, I've made a build plan for my latest box. I already own two squads of five terminators, but when it came to building them, I just kind of threw it all together with small regard to combat weapons and who gets what ranged weapon. While this isn't something to be condemned, it does slow down game-time when you have to choose which squad member you're killing, not to mention needing to separate your attacks one at a time or by using different dice sets, which can really make it a slog, especially in large games.

 

 

What I ended up doing is mixing and matching so I had a single squad I used for my normal games, and a second squad of the leftovers. I wanted to change that a little bit, and in this game I have one squad in a land raider ready to get up close and personal, and a larger ten man team with a sorcerer in deep strike. I also wanted to be able to split these again down the line into three distinct squads for any future games that might warrant fifteen terminators striking down the enemy in a three-pronged attack. With that in mind I'm going to make squad three as shown in the left table, then mix up my squad members so I have the configuration on the right.

 

For now though I have six cultists on painting handles ready to be started. I'm aiming to get the completed and my terminators built for the next post.

 

Until then!

+Spiros14+

[spiros14]

Hey gang,

 

Just a small update here. As promised, I've gotten my cultists painted up (fifteen down, five to go) and I'm very pleased with how they've come out:

I'm really happy with how this mob has come out so far. Cultists are the lowest form of life in the heretic astartes toolkit, but you've got to love a madman who showed up to a battle with armour they made themselves and an autogun too rusty to be considered salvage.

 

I've gotten my terminators build and (not pictured here) undercoated. As said previously this "squad" is going to be painted then split up to augment my existing terminators into three reasonably coherent squads, so I'm eager to get these done so I can sign all three as "completed"

 

Even in an unpainted state, there's something impressive in seeing a block of terminator armour. I've played more than a few team apocalypse games, but I think my favourite parts in them is when you see a mass teleportation of twenty-plus terminators strike in, either made up by several players in a colourful parade of death or one select player who brought most of the first company and the chapter's high command to match (my fondest memory in that regard involved Grimnar, Arjac, Stormcaller, and a lot of their friends). My final plan isn't quite at that level, not is it likely to be, but I can take pride in having this many terminators on the field.

 

 Hopefully I can get enough done between now and next Monday to warrant another update, but if not, I hope you all have a very happy new year.

 

+Spiros14+

[Dr_Ruminahui]

Your cultists, just like your last bunch, are fantastic.  I think you would do well to photograph them with a different background, though, as the bright reds and oranges of this one kind of washes out the minis.

[spiros14]

Happy new year to you brothers. I hope your 2024 has been fruitful so far!

I've reached a small milestone in my army today by getting all of my cultists painted, based, and ready to be meat shields for the Iron Warriors  and I wanted to showcase them all for you today.

First up thank you Dr_Ruminahui for your advice. I don't have much of a skill with photography, and tend to just pick backgrounds willy-nilly. I hope the more muted blue of my boarding action walls act as a better backdrop for my cultists.

Here's the full unit in their twenty-strong glory! I made a point of painting the leader's horns red to help him stand out a little from his fellows, as that bolt pistol is quite hard to pick out in a press of bodies. As I may have mentioned before, I love how disorganised and characterful these models are (more so than the stoic astartes in the warband) and painting them have been a real treat.

 

The important characters of the mob. I'm really happy with how the flames have come out on the big man. Some contrast paint and gradual drybrushes are all you need to build up a great flame effect on models, which is always fun to apply. I also like how my grenade launcher and heavy stubber have come out too, and I'm sure they'll find their way into a few Necromunda scenarios to play with the group as enemy NPCs. Those weapons can be lethal in the underhive!

 

This unit is the culmination of three different cultists boxes, which give them all a unique loadout and pose - there are no twins in this unit! While this made it a slow process to paint (more than a couple of months on and off) I feel suitably rewarded by seeing them finished (hopefully they return the favour by doing really well in my games).  

The basic cultists kit

The Children of the Abyss expansion for Blackstone Fortress, minus leader.

The three easy-build cultists introduced by the Dark Vengeance boxset in 6th edition.

 

My model count to paint for my apocalypse army is currently now eight, however, I'll be taking a small hiatus from painting my Iron Warriors warband in favour of some smaller projects for other game systems. I hope by my next post I have some pictures of either my completed Terminator squads or a fully painted boarding action layout.

 

May the dark gods sweep over the galaxy in a menacing tide!

+Spiros14+

 

[spiros14]

And I am returned brothers!

 

While I have still spent the last two months painting, it has been units for non-GW games like Star Wars Legion and A Song of Ice and Fire in a bid to get some of my pile of shame in order. I am now back with fresh bitterness in my heart and a sense of purpose to crush the loyalists!

 

As promised, I have gotten my terminator squads all painted and ready for deployment. Perhaps my favourite bit about team apocalypse games are the mass terminator assaults that happen turn 2. Because everyone tends to have a terminator squad or two in their collection, and they were shoe-ins for apocalypse games, so you'd end up with games where roughly two dozen terminators would teleport onto the field and wreck face in a parade of death. or you'd  have someone bring a demi-company's worth of termies with character (I know I was guilty of this with captain Karlean back when I played Blood Angels, and I recall another player in my LGS doing so with at least Arjac, maybe Grimnir and Stormcaller too) and they'd have almost a last-stand moment straight from the artwork. I've always considered it a great spectacle in games.

 

My main squad I intend to use for my everyday matches.

 

My second squad, to be attached to the above squad to make a ten-strong unit and a terminator sorcerer lord and put in reserve for apocalypse games.

 

My third squad, to be put in a Land Raider with my terminator lord for apocalypse games.

 

It's a little funny that today we also saw the teaser for the upcoming Veterans of the Long War box. While I love the new Chaos Lord model, a collection of twenty-five terminators isn't something I want right now, so I'll either wait for his blister release or split the box with someone (my hobby group are quite the chaos enjoyers).

 

My army to-do list has taken a bit of a change lately. While I still want to and will eventually play this siege mission, it's designed to be a one-on-one affair. I had a sudden urge to play a team apocalypse game with my Iron Warriors to test the waters a bit, and so have begun organisation of a casual team apocalypse game in July. I've given those in my group who are interested the general instructions of "3,000 points, maybe bring something big" and to follow that I've changed my own list slightly...

 

I've cut out most of my base infantry in exchange for vehicles, including a Falchion super-heavy tank, which has just arrived for me to build. My build/paint list for this list change is four models (the sorcerer, predator, land raider, and falchion) but with four months before deadline I am hopeful I can get through it all. I am partway through building my Land Raider, and I aim to get that built (and maybe undercoated) for my next post.

 

Until then, brothers!

+Spiros14+

[Tallarn Commander]

The termies look wonderful. Have fun at the July Apocalypse game. May there be massive Terminator Mayhem on the field!

[TrawlingCleaner]

Absolutely lovely Terminators spiros, great work!

[spiros14]

Thank you for the compliments. I'm very excited for some terminator madness to mosh-pit in the middle of the table!

 

Speaking of, I finished off the last of my terminators with my sorcerer lord! My original plan was to paint up the robes in purple and green like my regular sorcerer, but I was having so much fun with the red on his crown I went with that instead. As said previously, the plan is to have him in a big unit of terminators (and close by a unit of obliterators) in deep strike so I can get the most out of his Warptime and Death Hex abilities. 

 

As promised, I built and undercoated my proteus carrier, which will act as my Warsmith's command vehicle in games. I grabbed a set of 3d-printed side doors on ebay to personalise such an important tank (it's a pity GW don't sell their legion land raider doors any more). While I love some of the design elements of the new land raider model (such as the detachable sponsoons and the smaller-yet-easier-to-build interior) I think the way the sides assemble together can leave some horrible lines on the mini that are hard to remove,

 

I like to think that while the rest of the battle is happening, my Warsmith is stood completely still in the Land Raider, using his armour's HUD to direct the battle to an obsessive degree. Only when his bodyguard send him a teams message that they're in charge distance of the enemy does he ready himself to engage.
I have a tendency to leave large gaps in projects like these without showing any work, so I'll be making an effort to post some progress in a couple of weeks time, regardless of how far I've actually progressed.

 

Until then!

 

+Spiros14+

[spiros14]

A progress report as promised, brothers!

 

I just about finished the land raider a few moments before posting this and I wanted to share the results. I did try this out in a game recently and while it greatly underperformed (all of my tanks did, mainly due to some very lucky saving throws from my opponent) I am eager to try it on the tabletop again!

Warsmith Khragan's personal pimpmobile on the battlefield.

 

I've found painting a fully metallic tank to be a dull affair, so I added some markings to colour it up a little. I was inspired by the Grey Knight's own Land Raiders, which have those heraldric emblems along the sides, so decided to add my own take on that. I also added a red band at the rear of the tank, partly to add colour, and partly to hide a line on the hull from where the parts were glued together. Perhaps it's to show it's a command vehicle, perhaps this is my warsmith showing his devotion to Khorne in the best way his pedantic brain can allow, or perhaps it's a campaign or honour marking of sorts.

 

For the hull I used a heavily mediumed Basilicanum Grey (4:1) to wash my tanks to get rid of the streaking issue I was having with my predator. I also used Agrax Eathshade wash over the tracks to differentiate them from the hull. I did end up weathering the top of the tank with watered down Mournfang and Skrag brown in the recesses to again add some colour. I then added a load of transfers to the front hatch. 

 

Finally I started work on my Falchion. This is the first resin kit of this size that I've worked on, and it's quite daunting. I did find on delivery that the left hull had snapped in transit, and while GW customer support quickly sent me a replacement, it hasn't arrived yet. Still, I intend to get the right hull and whatever extra details I can glued on for my next update.

 

My invitation for a July apocalypse game has gotten my hobby group hyped up quite nicely. One player has gotten himself a secret super heavy that he's been happily working on for his World Eaters, and another (The Imperial Fists player this siege project is being designed for) asked if he could go a little over the points limit of 3,000 to bring his Warlord Titan. Not only did I allow it, I urged him to take another 2,500 points on top of that, and signed on a seventh player, so we could have two equal sides of 12,000 points! We are here to Rock!

 

I'll again try and make another update post in a couple more weeks. I'll be aiming to do some more building on my Falchion, as well as building an Iron Warriors contemptor dread I got a couple of years ago before they were discontinued.

 

Until then, brothers!
+Spiros14+