THE IRON CHALLENGE!

[Firedrake Cordova]

Those tracks are properly caked, aren't they?

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

 

Those tracks are properly caked, aren't they?

Indeed. A future project will be to introduce a couple of Death Guard and World Eaters to join my IH models in order to have a small Shattered Legions force. I am sure the DG in particular will feel threatened by the IH because the sons of Ferrus are already so dusty and dirty. It will be tough competition for sure. Although the WE will have it easy to stand out because in addition to the dust and grime they will be spattered with dried blood applied via an old toothbrush. 

[Firedrake Cordova]

Sounds like a fun project  

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

Work has begun on the 20# Tactical squad. They will camp in the deployment zone and wait for the vehicles to do their outflanking theme (Head of the Gorgon). So far only five marines have been built because I loathe building models. As a consequence doing five models per day sounds like a good compromise as doing twenty in one session would be torture for me.

 

https://ibb.co/album/WNsLSd

 

They are going to have chain bayonets to be tactically flexible. So if I want to change things up and want them charging out of a Spartan in other thematic lists then they won´t hit like a wet noodle. The models have been modified with IH specific heads and shoulder pads. I wanted to get hold of the melee pack but James Workshop decided to thwart my attempt in getting one. This means the Sgt. will be stuck with the plasma pistol which comes in the box and won´t receive a bolt pistol. At least he will look snazzy with the OSL plasma effect before he blows his own lights out when his gun overheats like my Chaos Champion often did twenty years ago despite having Chaos Armour (2+ save) when leading the rabble of the Legion of the Damned.  

Edited December 4, 2024 by Deus_Ex_Machina

[Firedrake Cordova]

Sounds like a good plan.  I couldn't imagine assembling 20 marines in a day - 5 is a good compromise  

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

Building process finished today:

 

https://ibb.co/album/WNsLSd

 

The arms aligned badly despite having grooves. So I was cursing the hell out of this hobby project as modern GW kits just SU?#! I would gladly go back to the 90s where you had monopose marines in which you just stuck in your bolter. You even had a three part power fist for the sarge and the legs were often two parts. :cuss:?! I am glad this is over and I can start painting them tomorrow. The goal is to finish them in a week. And now I need to maim & burn in SM2. See ya!

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

Armour has been finished:

https://ibb.co/album/WNsLSd

 

Stuff left to paint:

- Pouches.

- Legion Symbol.

- OSL Eye lenses.

- Specific gear (e.g. Auspex Scanner, etc.).

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

All details have been painted with one exception:

A final dash of white in the centre of the eye lenses. Then only decals, bases and weathering needs to be done:

https://ibb.co/album/WNsLSd

 

It´s now 21st of December and I won´t be able to finish the AoD box this year as trying to force myself to quickly do another 20 guys will result in failure. Instead I will finish the Space Hulk game and do a couple of solo games which was honestly my good intention for this year although sadly painting stuff took precedence before gaming. 

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

Done:

 

https://ibb.co/album/xhLjqG

 

Looking at my post history it took me twenty days to do twenty marines. Not good but also not terribly bad either. My reluctance to work on them on a consistent basis stemmed from the fact that doing twenty lenses at once was very discouraging. So in the end I just did one layer for all of them at a time. In retrospect doing 20 figures reminded me of the 90s when I did twenty guys for WHFB for quite a few armies.

 

The one guy without the helmet is carrying the augury scanner. This decision has been made by me to quickly single him out in a squad otherwise it would not be possible as the kit lacks a hand in which a scanner can be put as was the case for the vintage marines from 3rd 40K.

 

I am satisfied with the result overall although here a few cons which the new Primaris don´t have which may sound weird coming from a grognard like me:

 

- Separate hands and arms is pure CANCER! Despite the grooves aligning both arms to the torso AND aligning the hands to the arms AT THE SAME TIME is something which could have only been thought up by a someone creating minis on the computer because it is a pain in the butt to assemble. I bet they never had the hassle of building their own fine work. 

 

- There is no dedicated backpack which comes with a FIXED & STURDY pole for the nuncio vox or vexilla. Instead the kit provides you with a special backpack which features a slender groove in which you can attach said items. As you can already imagine you will need to handle both models with EXTREME care or both upper parts will snap off as it already has happened twice in the case of the vexilla.

 

- The studded pauldron comes in two parts and they don´t align in a very smooth fashion like a COMPLETE studded vintage pauldron would do. Yes, they had those in the good old days too. You would need either to fix it with Green Stuff or cover it with weathering material. As the squad did take me quite some time to complete my thought on the matter was: F#?§ it! 

 

So would I recommend this kit to someone starting in the hobby? A clear: NOPE! Too much of a hassle. I still need to do 20 more of them wielding gatling guns and missile launchers respectively and I already dread the building part. They could have attached at least the right arm straight to the gun to make things easier like it was done in the past (e.g. vintage marines from 3rd 40K) but they thought instead to annoy their customer base with this sloppy kit.

 

Will I purchase more of these kits to build new squads in the future? Another nope. I now have two Tactical squads which satisfies the minimum requirements of fielding a legal force. As in the case of the modern Necrons the same attitude persists here:

 

You steal my time and nerve in the building process and I will loathe the notion of buying another one of your kits.

 

Rant over and have a merry Christmas.

Edited December 24, 2024 by Firedrake Cordova

[Firedrake Cordova]

At least the assembled models look good.  

 

Those split shoulder pads look like they were annoying, though (it's the kind of thing I use acrylic putty for to fill the join).

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

The Space Hulk battle report has finally been finished and I had time to improve the pauldrons. I added Green Stuff and put a bit of weathering powder on it while also adding dust to the overall mini as it would look odd, if the grime accumulated only on the pauldron. However I did this sparingly otherwise it would obscure the oily metal effect on the armour.

 

https://ibb.co/album/X7WHrV

 

I also stored away the Mars battle mat so the background is now a Magic mat which I so far never used once in a Magic game. Hmm, maybe I should do this tomorrow...

 

 

[Firedrake Cordova]

That seems to cover up the worst of the join, without it being obvious that it's there to cover up the join  

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

5 hours ago, Firedrake Cordova said:

That seems to cover up the worst of the join, without it being obvious that it's there to cover up the join  

The remaining Green Stuff which is heaped over the closed gap can now be mistaken for dried dirt. It looked jarring when it had a metallic colour. I guess my decision of doing the Iron Hands dirty is a plus when dealing with modern miniatures.

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

I revamped the CTA Praetor and the Chaplain yesterday. Why? Those were the first minis with which I tried my oily metal paint scheme. Sadly I foolishly applied a bit of Nuln Oil as a final step to darken the metal but the only thing it did was to ruin the overall effect. Besides that I also applied the Ungavarr clan symbol and removed the previous one. Furthermore I removed the Eye of Horus symbol. Back in 2022 I didn´t have access to the AoD book so I didn´t know that this symbol was an exclusive traitor sign. 

 

Praetor CTA:

https://ibb.co/album/bsHsFn

 

Chaplain:

https://ibb.co/album/XZ3brG

 

And last but not least I will celebrate with this pic finally my legal 30K Iron Hands army. This project started in 2022 and it took me more than two years to assemble an army for the tabletop. Now you know why people prefer to collect Epic back in the day as you can more easily field an army and not labour years to have a force ready.

https://ibb.co/album/RzKMh5

 

In regards to the Fembot in the Army pic:

She will be part of a story arc in creating a special character. Think of it along the lines of Captain Tycho from the BA in 2nd 40K when a humble Cpt. got scarred by an orcish psychic blast and became a named character. In that battle report he was of course unintentionally created. Although my scenario will be geared towards a specific outcome the fickle dice gods will have final say, if it will come to pass. 

 

Edited January 1 by Deus_Ex_Machina

[Firedrake Cordova]

I like the coil glow on the plasma pistol  

[Deus_Ex_Machina]

Going back now to the 9th 40K Command & Recruit boxes. Two minis left to do: 2 Primaris Bulwarks.

 

WIP of the first one. Should be finished this week:

https://ibb.co/album/TWfTJP