Filling out the officer corps...

...not for any of the same factions mind you. 

This is kindova shotgun blast of random post covering the various army, or rather 'contingent' commanders that I've painted here of late. As you can see in the pic above, two are for Imperial loyalist factions. One is...debatable, capable of being used as either a loyalist Imperial or traitor astartes Lt. depending on whomever their allies are on that given day. Whereas the Cavalry officer in the back is definitely a traitor (loyalist IG don't enter battle half-naked).

First up: Buccaneer Captain Tharkins. 

I hate this guy's face. I painted it three times before giving up. I still think it looks kinda meh.

Clearly Tharkins doesn't see much combat, or rather maybe just PT. 

Guardsmen of the Buccaneer (pronounced: Byoocaneer) Battalions (their home world is too sparsely populated to offer up whole regiments for Imperial Guard tithing requirements) have a perpetual chip on their shoulders. Mainly as every 'off-worlder' who reads their regimental name, pronounces it as anyone logically would: BUCKaneers. 

No amount of barroom or mess hall brawls will ever change this fact either! Thus, Buccaneer Battalions rarely operate in conjunction with other Guard units, instead often serving as isolated garrison troops and other solitary unit deployments.

Second up we have: Ordo Hereticus Inquisitor Tibadaux

Not too fond of how her bald head and face came out either. She might suffer a head swap at some point...

Her [Legends] Null Rod with integral whip. I have a feeling that My Beloved Wolfy would have commandeered this mini as one of hers.

To date, Tibadaux is my only inquisitor based to match my Silver Drakes. Perpetually fighting the Nids, the Drakes would likely be better served by an ordo Xenos inquisitor, though we can surmise that she's just rooting out Genestealer Cultist activity and the like.

For the second year in a row, my principle miniature for the Inquisitorial Conclave hosted by Neverness, Tibadaux was finished almost to the same day as last year's offering! I thought I'd try something a little different with her in that once painted, I 'ard coated all of the black paint on her armor. I'm rather pleased with the result, giving her armor a glossy black, almost patent leather-esque appearance. That combined with the whip gives her a bit of a dominatrix look, don't you agree? 

'Yes Mistress...'

Turning debatably towards treason, we next have my Soul Drinker's Lieutenant Amenadiel.

I LOVE this model!

Armed with a bolt pistol and Goliath Renderizer power maul, he is NOT to be fucked with!

Lieutenant with Imperial Fists successor chapter traits? Check. 

Chaos Exalted Champion with renegade traits (whatever they currently are)? Also check.

I've been debating 'ard coating his skin to give him a glistening with sweat look. Not sure how that would look, though I guess if it sucks I can just matte varnish him again. Also wish that there was a relic that I could give him out of the Marine codex that would befit his massive close combat weapon. Undoubtedly, I'm sure Chaos has something suitable...

Lastly, we have this guy: My Renegade IG (Counts as) Death Rider Squadron Commander 

Somewhere there's a gamer who just looked at this and is now pondering the idea of turning their pet parakeet into a mount for 40k!

I'm thinking that the beak will be a worthy substitute for the hunting lance, whereas the mount's 'savage claws' will apply as normal. 

No idea if that's his piss, slop, or sandcastle building bucket. 

I got this 3D printed mini off of eBay and am quite pleased with it. Didn't like the original head though, so swapped it out for one from the genestealer cult bitz I ordered when I went shopping for Tibadaux's henchmen. This mini alone has made my renegade IG fall under the DKK regimental doctrine. Tis' okay though, they'll provide Zzzzz with the necessary insurgent excuse with which his MASSIVE collection of Guardsmen can use to lay siege to yet another warzone.

The Tau Muppet Auxilaries enter the fray

"Kids, today's letter is "G'. 'G' is for the Greater Good..."

Or rather they would have last weekend, but everyone else bailed ceding whatever planet we would have been fighting for to the Tau Empire with nary a shot fired. 

Scraping for enough points to bring my Dal'yth Tau list up to 1k., I rediscovered these Muppet Auxiliaries (I dropped the 'f' in their name, thus they are simply the: Jaloo) in a recently unearthed box from the move. 

No doubt there are educational PSAs continually scrolling by on their packs' little screens

Like my Hogziliaries, I'll be fielding these critters as another counts as strike team. With downgraded stats of course. Their strength and toughness has been reduced to a 2, though they'll not be doubled out by bolter fire thanks to their guardian drone. Their pistols and smaller carbine-esque guns have been reduced to strength 3, whereas the longer guns are stock Tau Pulse rifles. 

I experimented with this little bot's paint by forgoing primer and applying yellow contrast directly to the bare metal in hopes of making a metallic yellow. However on the finished mini, the 'metallic' torso just looks duller than the head and bottom. Experiment result: FAILURE.

Clearly the Jaloo's antigrav technology isn't as advanced as that of the Tau, meaning it only keeps this top heavy little drone upright, and still needing its little legs to move around. Thus I reduced it's speed to the squad standard of 6", and removed the Fly ability.

These painted up quite easily thanks to the yellow contrast paint. By the time I finish their squad I'll no doubt have painting yellow technique perfected and will be ready to start on my squad of ANGRY MARINES!! Mwuhahaha!

In a fit of stubborn nostalgia, rather than wear appropriate camo as the rest of their allied Tau brethren do, the Jaloo insist on only wearing colors that would blend in on their home worlds (prior to being devoured by the Nids). 

Disappointed by this, the Tau have simply vowed to keep them out of the vanguard so as not to give away any positions. Once battle is joined, Fire Caste commanders are resigned to the obvious conclusion that the Jaloo will inadvertently draw fire due to their ridiculous, brightly colored uniforms. 

Ultimately, it's all For the Greater Good, and thus is accepted.

The entire squad on the workbench.

2022 Inquisitorial Conclave post #1

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I had to 'rearm' this mini as the china-cast arms kept breaking during assembly.

Hello folks. It's time for another of Neverness' Inquisitorial Conclaves where bloggers get together and pledge to paint Inquisitors and their assorted cronies and hangers-on for the month. 

This is actually her 3rd set of arms. The 2nd necessitated the removal of her cloak which was unfortunate.

This year's entry for me Ordo Hereticus Inquisitor Tibadaux. Orphaned as a child, she was raised in an Adeptus Sororitus convent in hopes of someday achieving the rank of battle sister. Despite excelling in all fields of devotional and martial study, Tibadaux's hopes were dashed when she started to display uncontrollable psychic abilities as she entered puberty.

Tossed in a cell to await the next passing Black Ship, she was rescued from her fate by an Inquisitor who saw use for a half-trained Sister of Battle with psychic talents. 

Her null rod-whip.

Eventually rising to the rank of Inquisitor herself, the irony of a psyker serving an Ordo whose motto is 'BURN THE WITCH!' is not lost on Inquisitor Tibadaux. Indeed, one of her preferred weapons is a null rod (an abhorrent weapon to pyskers) that has been combined with a whip. Accompanying that is her wrist-mounted needle pistol with an integral bayonet.

The partially primed acolyte is the longest surviving member of her retinue. As such he's modified his kit a bit and doesn't look as if he just stepped out of the mines like his compatriots. 

Coming from humble origins herself, she prefers to recruit acolytes from the bottom of Imperial society. Often miners, and industry which weeds out the weak quickly. More hired muscle than anything else, Tibadaux gives these humble souls a chance (and an autogun) to serve the Emperor for a higher purpose for the rest of their (invariably brief) lives. 

The primed acolyte has stripped his kit of the mine specific safety gear (questionable as that stuff is in a grim dark universe), allowing for better movement and flexibility along with a bit of extra ballistic protection. His back up weapon is an axe, whilst the others prefer pistols. He's also upgraded his autogun to have a drum magazine, because having to reload in a firefight is a rookie mistake! 

She hopes that eventually she'll find some who will serve long enough with her to enter inquisitorial training. However, for the time being the mines at least provide an endless recruitment pool. 

At the very least the Inquisitor will be painted this month. Her retinue ought not be hard to accomplish either, and if I'm feeling really ambitious I'll try and finish off her partially painted Rhino too!

Fighting to the last ham!

That title will make sense in a bit...

I was pleased to find that my Day'lth army really blended in quite well with the terrain!

Rather than the usual, multi-player free-for-all, this past weekend I played a more traditional 1 vs. 1 game of 40k vs. Rob. We fielded 900ish points each as I was fielding my Tau which are still unable to reach the 1k mark. Rob on the other hand was fielding his shenanigans-laden Death Guard as usual.

Triangular table end deployments, 4 objectives worth 5pts apiece, secondaries (like the Maelstrom cards, I don't much like these as the random draw can radically sway a game's VP total in one way or another, often with little rhyme or reason). 

Here's the recap.

Rob caught like a deer in the headlights! Death Guard are on the right, Tau the left. 

As my infantry horde is geared towards short-ranged firefights, turn one was more or less a general advance with limited firing.

The fan favorite (don't deny it) Hogzilaries advanced a whopping 12" a turn for the first two turns. Run little piggies run!

Typhus and the Death Shroud amble forth, confident in their own invincibility. 

Or at least they were until the Fire warriors killed one and wounded another after slinging 20 rounds down range!

Turn 2: Piranha deep strikes, shoots, (minorly wounds) the Dread, then dies. Moving on...

Curiously, nobody ever wandered in to view the Necron crystal garden. 

The Termies deep strike into my backfield, intent on killing the Pathfinders, or more specifically their rail rifles. 

The good ol' Pulse rifle equipped fire warriors dished out a respectable amount of fire all game.

The carbine equipped squad however, was pasted by Typhus' leprosy-something BS psychic power that SPAMs mortal wounds like nobody's business! 

The Swine take their first casualties, however after THREE games, they finally got to open fire, killing several of the pox walkers that were camped on an objective and racking up VPs without any effort. 

The Breachers double back, intent on defending the Pathfinders.

Rob jokingly said 'charge' and was surprised when Commander Firestorm did just that!

The hogs get all but obliterated by Typhus' OP spell! Seriously, WTF?

If you ever wanted to know what overkill looks like, this is it. 

Armed with his Thermoneutronic projector (flamer from hell that's usable in both ranged and melee combat) Firestorm drops the front rank of Plague Marines much to Rob's dismay. That said, he took a few licks as well. 

Massed combined fire starts to thin out, but not stop the Termies. 

Eventually the commander falls, Inspired by his sacrifice, the Hogzillary Soo'ey defiantly vows to fight on to the last ham! After a pained groan at that declaration, Rob's dread vaporized my last Hog with it's twin-lascannon!

The Termies charge the pathfinders and kill most of them. They stand their ground then fall back to allow the breachers to hose the 'em down. Deathguard termies in cover however, are all but impossible to shift.

Thus, a last turn suicide charge was in order, which took down one Termie though the fight was ultimately a draw.

I believe the final VP tally was something like 35-40 VPs for Rob, vs. my 25 or so VPs. Trying to shift Death Guard off of objectives with -1 to hit, -1 toughness to me if I get close, cover saves, armor of contempt, disgustingly resilient, etc., etc., is all but impossible. 

The armor of contempt really stings, for regular marines of most all stripes its alright, but T5 buffed all to hell and back marines? Why in the hell do they need that?!? Nerd rage aside, it's always fun to play Rob. 

Anyways, my Tau are a bit of a softball list, though some air support arrived in the mail today for 'em. Not going to call the remora drone a game changer, but rather more of an irritant. I got two, but in our usual 1K games, I can only field one. I may pick up some stealth suits eventually (or something) to finally round the points up to 1K.

One last note, whilst not actually in my army list, my Harbinger was seen wandering across the table side, but the pic I took was blurry as hell. 

My current works in-progress (for this past week)

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I have a bat rep to do from this weekend's game, but it is late in the evening I'm not feeling too motivated at this particular point in the day. Instead, I'm just going to post pics of the random smattering of projects on my desk that I've been working on this week. 

First up, I built this impulse buy that I bought from Models and Minis back around Christmas (it's a good kit, I recommend it). Having three separate little IG contingents (loyalist and otherwise) to fight with, don't expect this wheeled Russ to get painted anytime soon. 

Speaking of otherwise, I painted up my Rogue Primaris Pskyer from the Servants of the Abyss set this week. 

He could qualify as a Rogue Inquisitor, but I already have another mini in mind for that role. 

For my renegade Iggies, I'll be using the DKK regimental doctrines just so I can have this guy as my Warlord. He'll serve as a 'counts-as' Death Rider Squadron Commander (albeit with a lasgun rather than plasma pistol and power sword). The savage claws of the mount still applied, and in lieu of a hunting lance, this clearly has a hunting beak! 

Lastly, I finished literally rearming my Soul Drinkers contingent. These few will likely be allied to the renegade Iggies as an Imperial Fist successor chapter (which they are). Note the Lt. with the huge power maul. I'll have better pics of him in a future post. 

The Harbinger of the Old Ones

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Let's see...hmmm, theguide book says its best to bypass this particular planet due to a severe infestation of humanity. 

Here I go, bringing tourism of all things to the Grim Dark. 

While not a tourist per se, it may be more of just an interplanetary traveler perhaps? Regardless this critter is never seen in the same place for very long. Wandering the galaxy, from world to world, cataloging all that it sees for its final expeditionary report when it eventually makes its way back to...well, wherever it came from. 

Walking stick spear-check, fully filled, yet orderly backpack-check, cloak-check, gun-check, rope, clothing, power armor and bedroll-check, check, check, and check!

When asked and translation of languages is somehow achieved, it (I keep saying 'it' as the gender is unknown) ominously calls itself the Harbinger of the Old Ones. It says its task is to travel the galaxy taking stock of the current 'child' species who have risen to prominence in their absence. Inscrutable as this may be...so far, the only 'child' races this Harbinger has been known to have encountered have been the Eldar and the Tau. 

This critter will be used as a 'counts-as' Jokaero Weaponsmith in most of my armies. Fielded as an Auxiliary Support Detachment, costing me 2CPs and 'Battle-Forged' in most cases. 

In the case of the former, it first appeared in the hidden realm known as the Black Library. The vast majority of communications that it has had, has been with the Harlequins with whom the Harbinger has been witnessed to have held extensive conversations. It's language apparently known to the followers of the Laughing God.

In fitting with the background, I've created for it the Harbinger will have its own mission of simply getting off of the other side of the board. If left alone, it will return the favor. However, should one try and interfere with its plans, the Harbinger will fight back aggressively. One would be wise not to threaten it.

Since departing the Black Library, and traveling via the Webway with natural ease, the Harbinger has since had at least made passing contact with the Craftworlders, Exodites, Corsairs, Ynarri and the Dark kin as well. Indeed, the arrival and apparent mission of this Harbinger has caused quite a stir amongst the Farseer community. 

Taking its leave of the Eldar, the Harbinger next appeared within the Tau Empire. Welcomed with open arms as is the way of the Greater Good, the Ethereal Caste has been quite taken by, yet perplexed with this curious creature. It has traveled their Empire extensively, often as a passenger aboard Tau vessels, visiting the homeworlds, Orbital cities, the frontiers of the Empire, and most recently the battlezones along their border with the Imperium. 

Here it is standing atop it's Temple...for a selfie, as suggested by my bemused fiancé. 

The Tau have been trying to convince this traveler to stay within the Empire, no doubt in hopes of fostering relations with whomever The Old Ones are. However, the Harbinger is growing weary of their hospitality and will likely be soon on its way. Perhaps using the confusion of the battlefield to give its 'clingy' hosts the slip!