Mendi Warrior's Legions Imperialis project log

[Mendi Warrior]

Welcome to my humble project log.

 

As I did with my Adeptus Titanicus project log (which can be found here: Mendi Warrior's Adeptus Titanicus project log), I intend this project log as a placeholder for all my Legions Imperialis modelling and painting endeavours. It will also feature tips and tricks.

 

Without further ado, let's start 

 

Like many here, I took the plunge and bought a few things on release day.

 

Here is a shot of what I currently have built. For those who don't have seen my AT plog yet, you'll notice I have a tendecy for some chainwork.

 

 

I usually unclip parts from the sprues and clean them before assembly. In the building phase, the cleaning part is usually what takes most of my time. I'm a bit obsessive it seems. Building the Rhinos, I slightly altered my modus operandi after finding out that I risked removing too much material and hence damage some details from the side elements (parts 2 & 3 in the building instructions). The following annotated picture illustrates my reasoning.

 

 

Those who have seen my AT plog know that I enjoy working with magnets so as to try to maximise flexibility in weapons' loadouts. So, quite naturally, my mind went into considering the use of magnets for LI models. For instance, Kratos, Sicaran and Predator all come with a choice between lascannons and heavy bolters for lateral weapons. That would be cool to be able to swap from one to the other. It would have been nice if the number of pieces to which the weapons attach (pieces 11 & 14 for the Kratos, 16 & 19 for the Sicaran, 8 & 11 for the Predator) had been doubled on the sprues (to be honest, if there is some room left on the Sicaran sprue, that is not the case for the Kratos or Predator). That would have allowed for using 1mm magnets: one in the side of the hull, the other on the weapon's attachment part. But that is not the case and the dimensions of the attachment points between the actual weapon and their attachment part are 0.5mm at the largest. So, even if I'm convinced that 1mm magnets can be used, that would be a lot of work and require very precise drilling. Also, that would mean using 6 magnets per model. And there are potentially dozens of models ...

 

 

So, I decided to glue the weapons. I choose to equip my 4 Sicarans with lascannons. I used the rivet shown in the following pic to align the weapons on both sides, so they have the same angle from the "ground". 

 

 

My 4 Sicarans are now built. Neither the turrets nor the Space Marine crew members are glued (two more Space Marines with bolter are not pictured). Actually, I think the construction booklet has a mistake, numbers for the Space Marines (25 & 26) seem to be inverted - not really a problem in view of the Space Marines' poses.

 

 

 

[Mendi Warrior]

Charonite Ogryns: 4 models per sprue, 2 builts if you follow the construction booklet to the letter. Adding a bit more variety is not too difficult, but it takes a bit of time.

 

Let's have a look. There are 2 sets of legs (31 left leg forward, 35 right leg forward), 2 related torsos (32 & 36 only difference is in the form of the joint making them attach to a specific set of legs), 2 arms with close combat weapon (33 left arm, 38 right arm) and 2 arms with ranged weapon (34 right arm, 37 left arm). The arms seem similarly positioned. According to the construction booklet, first built combines elements 31, 32, 33 & 34, second built combines elements 35, 36, 37 & 38.

 

First possible variation is a simple swap of the arms. They fit perfectly. The two variations are therefore combining elements 31, 32, 37 & 38 and 35, 36, 33 & 34 respectively.

 

Second simple variation is to remove the guide at the joint between the legs and torso and tilt the torso differently. This gives more diversity.

 

Then a bit more work can be done to reposition the arms. First step is to cut the arm so it can be free from the gear and cables. You don't necessarily need to cut the long cable. Sometimes it doesn't break when cutting the arm, sometimes it does. The pairs of arms in the first row are untouched, the ones in the next three rows have all been cut. I managed (at this point) to avoid breaking half of them. I made the cut starting from top to bottom along the gear and from bottom to top along the small cables, this to keep the cables relatively intact.

 

 

Here are close-ups of the arms

 

 

And now you can have some fun repositioning the arms. The long cable is slightly flexible, so you can gently bend it into a new position. If it has not already broken it might at some point but sometimes you'll be able to keep it from breaking.

 

Here is an example. I wanted the Ogryn to have a "charging attitude" with the arms extended. This kind of pose creates a gap between the body and arm so I added some paper towel and superglue to fill it (it is a quick & dirty alternative to greenstuff). A toothpick is quite handy. In this case I glued the shoulder gear to the torso as can be seen for the arm with ranged weapon. It is not necessary per se. A lot of dry fitting is recommended, especially when the cable is initially broken to ensure both ends meet without a gap.

 

 

 

Here is an example where I managed not to break the long cable.

 

 

And here a few shots of the results. I only glued one Ogryn per stand so it will be easier to paint at a later stage.

 

 

 

Group pic, with a bunch of angry Ogryns ready to smash faces.

 

 

The four stands on the right.

 

 

The four stands on the left.

 

 

I am quite pleased with the result. 

Edited December 14, 2023 by Mendi Warrior

[Mendi Warrior]

Malcadors come with several options: 3 choices for the primary weapon, 3 choices for the sponson weapons and 4 choices for the secondary weapon at the front.

 

Focusing on the the primary weapon, you can equip your Malcador with a Battlecannon, a Lascannon or a Vanquisher Battlecannon. But why make a choice when you can use magnets and keep the flexibility? Actually, magnets are not even needed, it is sufficient to remove the protuberance under the actual weapon (elements 20, 21, 22). The weapon fits nicely into its emplacement. Anyway, I went for using magnets 

 

The following picture shows the whole process.

 

On the top left, you'll see the existing recess for the gun, it is about 1mm deep and 3mm in diameter at the bottom. A 3x1mm magnet is therefore perfect. I followed my usual rule for magnets: "the body attracts the weapon" (I used my special AT knight for that, it allows me to avoid making mistakes with the magnet's polarities). On the right, the result with the magnet glued into place. Note I used one of the guns, after removing the below protuberance, to ensure the magnet was flush with the hull.

 

At the bottom, you can see the different states of the guns. From left to right, (1) unclipped and cleaned, (2) below protuberance removed (watch out for your fingers ... I made a small offering to the Blood God in the process), (3) 3mm diameter hole drilled in the centre, and (4) with the magnet in place and some superglue.

 

The gun's magnet is simply positioned on top of the one in the hull (no risk of making a mistake with polarities that way). Then I put the gun above it and push it down so as to insert the magnet in the hole. It fits nicely and tightly.

 

Repeat the process for each gun. Per Malcador, you need 4 3x1mm magnets.

 

 

It is quite easy and doesn't take a lot of time.

 

Now, I am left with the choices for both the sponsons and the secondary weapon at the front. First question being: to use magnets or not? To be clear, imho, it is absolutely not necessary to use magnets. Let say the following is more kind of some crazy fun. I might go that way or not. It would definitely take more time and effort than for the main weapon.

 

Sponsons: choices are between Autocannon, Lascannon, and Heavy Bolter. Ideally a magnet centered at the top of the sponson's recess would have allowed for rotating the guns.  But the tracks are 5mm wide and the sponson's recess is about 5mm deep, so if you drill vertically at its center, you go through the tracks, which I would rather avoid. Drilling from above is a definite "no go", drilling from below a "maybe". Before assembly, there might be some possibility drilling diagonally, drawback is that attraction can result in some funky positioning. Alternative is to drill horizontally, but then the weapon cannont rotate. But you can swap the weapons. Position the magnet so that the weapon is oriented forward. I guess 2x1mm would fit the bill, maybe 1x1mm magnets for the weapons.

 

Secondary weapon at the front: you can go for a Demolisher cannon, made of one piece, or for Autocannon, Lascannon or Heavy Bolter which go on an armored plate. This means a magnet in the the hull, one in the Demolisher cannon, one in the armored plate and one in each of the other weapons. Probably 2x1mm and 1x1mm magnets again.

 

Anyway, these are just thoughts and I might end up making a choice and gluing the "little" guns. My crazyness has some limits  

[Mendi Warrior]

I have been building some Spartan Assault Tanks. Their assembly is quite straightforward and very well thought. I just wanted to share the following two attention points.

 

When removing the sponson weapons from the sprue I initially bent a couple of the guns due to the pressure of my pair of clippers. I even broke one. Hence I would advise to use both a cutter and a pair of clippers in a specific sequence of cuts:. The following picture shows this (I forgot to remove one red line at the top right of the sprue's close up).

 

When assembling the laser destroyers, there is a small notch on one of the sides of part n°23. The side with the notch must be facing downwards. It is a very small detail that can easily be missed.

 

[Mendi Warrior]

A long, long time ago, I acquired a few Forge World models ... many moons later, I have eventually taken them out of their boxes, cleaned and glued together.

 

There are two cute little Arvus Lighters, two Mechanicum Questoris Knights Styrix, and four Mechanicum Cerastus Knights Atrapos. You'll notice they are on LI bases, 40mm and 50mm respectively. I checked GW's website quite often as they are regularly out of stock and seized the opportunity when I saw them back in stock to order them. Next day they were sold out again.

 

 

I enjoyed cleaning and building them. As someone put it recently about cleaning models, it has a somewhat therapeutic effect. That is indeed the case. It helps me focus and relax.

[Cactus]

Oh wow! I didn't know Mechanicum Cerastus were a thing. They're lovely.

[Mendi Warrior]

They are very lovely indeed 

 

I have started building my two Dire Wolf heavy scout titans. As I mentioned elsewhere the legs can not be easily swapped without doing some surgery. I had a longer look at it and decided cutting and repositioning would require too much work. You could cut the round part at the top of the leg but then you are still faced with repositioning the thigh's armour plates which are also specific to left and right legs. So a lot of work and the potential for butchering your models ... But there is one little thing that can be changed quite easily.

 

The one on the left is built according to the building instructions. For the one on the right, I decided to swap the feet. In order to have them "flat" on the ground, you need to remove the pegs that insert into the pelvis so the legs can be positioned to achieve the expected result. The left leg will end up higher than the right one, so you need to insert something between the stand and the left foot (e.g. a raised platform, ruins, ...).

 

 

Looking at the instructions and the parts required to build each leg, a couple of rather simple changes could have allowed for more flexibility. Instead of 4 components per leg, 6 would have been necessary. The two additional ones would be the round part with rivets that comes on the exterior side of the top of the leg and the plate at the interior of the thigh. Both are moulded into parts 4 and 8. If they had been separate, you could then easily swap the legs.

[DuskRaider]

I do think it’s a bit odd that they didn’t allow or plan for different walking poses for the Dire Wolves, however I attribute this more to the fact that you can only take one (at this time) per Maniple so perhaps it wouldn’t be as noticeable unless you’re fielding two smaller Maniples. The thing that annoys me more is that they didn’t design the model with magnets in mind, so it requires drilling or dremeling in order to properly utilize some. 

[Mendi Warrior]

I think you might be right. Still, that is a pitty.

 

Actually, the Ardex Mega-Bolters have recesses for magnets. Are they planning for other types of secondary weapons? Maybe for another type of scout titan? Not holding my breath though ... In the above picture, they are not glued, and I haven't put magnets yet.

 

What surprises me is that there are no other parts of the model that are designed to accommodate magnets.

 

The primary weapon, whether conversion beam dissipator, volcano cannon, or neutron laser, sits nicely on top of the carapace but the supports (element 35) would definitely benefit from having magnets. Otherwise it seems a bit difficult to swap between the different weapons.

[DuskRaider]

Wow yeah, you’re right… I never noticed the Ardex are capable of magnetization. Not really sure what the logic is there, they’re kinda meh considering they both count as a single weapon profile instead of two individual arms. For that matter, I can’t even imagine what you’d replace them with when taking that into consideration. 
 

I had considered leaving the carapace weapons unglued and unmagnetized and utilizing the pistons to kinda snap them in, but I’d be afraid of damage over time. Still something to consider, even if I personally prefer the Neutron Laser over the other two. 
 

Odd, I tried posting this last night but it never went through…

[Mendi Warrior]

Not sure about the logic neither. Maybe missile pods could be a possibility?

 

I would most likely glue the lower extremities of the pistons and put magnets to the upper extremities connecting to the weapons. Alternatively, since there is a pair of pistons per weapon, put magnets at the lower extremities and glue the upper ones to the weapons. I'll check which one seems the easiest.

 

Maybe another magnet or a metal rod to replace the peg of the carapace weapon, although I think this would not really be needed.

[DuskRaider]

Yeah, I ended up gluing the upper pistons to each weapon and snipping the tab off the lower one. I actually just finished magnetizing my first one, still have to assemble the second. For each weapon, I just used a dremel to bore out a large enough slot to place a magnet in, easy peasy. I magnetized the Ardex as well, though I’m not sure why…

 

I could see Missile Pods being a swap out “arm” for these, but that’s about it. Maybe a plasma, but it would be hard explaining how two plasma cannons would equate to a single template or whatever. I think they kind of pigeon-holed themselves when they created the (very odd) rules for the Ardex and now it’s kinda hard to come up with any sort of alternative without completely nullifying the original option. 

[Mendi Warrior]

I did like you. I used magnets that have a diameter of 2mm.

 

I then moved on to the Land Raider Proteus and started assembling them, they are quite enjoyable to build as well.

 

I noticed that steps 2A and 2B depicted in the instructions are actually unnecessary as the components 8 and 10 are already moulded into the Land raider sides. Less work, so it is nice 

 

[DuskRaider]

Looks like an accidental carryover from the Spartan instructions.