Tag: Space Marines

Quite a quick unit to finish.  I know I haven’t painted all the details that these figures have on them but I don’t think I need to.  I never aim for more than a good TABLETOP finish.  They are playing pieces for a game in the end…

Occasionally one unit or figure might get some more attention but an army needs grunts.  The poor bloody infantry that don’t get such a detailed finish so as to fill the table.

So these guys are done.  Primaris figure from my Kill Team added as he was the basis for the colour scheme.

A veteran 5 man squad with the sergeant front and centre.

And the newer recruits with slightly more up to date helmets.

After a few decals they are now ready to mount up and get going.

If only their ride was ready.

As I no longer have access to the original blueish grey that was used for the first half of the army, and as a close but not close enough match would REALLY bother me, it was always going to be a yellow base coat for these guys

With their black power packs and shoulder pads though, it at least keeps some ties to the original half of the army.

With base coating done its either weapons then wash or wash then weapons…

In the end, it was weapons wash and back to weapons again…  All because I was going daft painting ten silver swords in a row over that vivid yellow colour.  After dumbing it down with a yellow/orange ink wash it was much easier on the eyes.

After so long painting Green Space Marines I thought it would be nice to do something a little different…  But what to do? I know! How about some Space Marines…

These ones will NOT be green.  In fact these bits of them look almost silver in this photo.  I shall correct you though…  They are newly sprayed, BLACK power packs and shoulders.

The power packs are for these guys.  A full 10 man squad (made up as 2x 5 man combat squads) of Assault Marines.  This time without jump packs as they will be either bussed about inside a rhino or delivered to the game in a drop pod.

I picked up a pack of normal Tactical Marines and dug out enough chain swords and pistols, from the old bits box, to kit them out.

Quite why they came with slotta bases is beyond me but, we will overcome and all that…

Now, some of you may note the use of Chaos space marine arms and weapons for a few of these boys.  My whole Space Marine army is made up with an odd relic of the Chaos wars thrown in (along with a couple of bionics and Space Wolves parts).

The back story, devised a decade ago, was of a decimated chapter that had to compromise on some codex guidelines in order to ensure their survival. Therefore they were not to picky about welcoming the odd renegade that had been returned from the other side (penitent marines and lost brothers) back to the fold.

This unit will be painted using traditional paints but the sergeants head was always destined to get some contrast skin tone.

Not bad for one thick coat.

With the test scheme done I should be able to plow through the last 4 scouts with ease.  The only thing that might slow me down is my own inability to slow down.  In my rush to get them done and away, I started adding a wash to these guys and started washing off the not quite dry silver.

They say patience is a virtue.  It certainly saves time…

When I had waited for the silver to dry properly (not just sitting them in front of a small fan heater for 5 min) the wash went on much easier.

My final collection in all its glory.  12 bodies. A 10 man squad can be played with differing heavy weapon options in games of Warhammer 40K (or two squads of 5 each with their own heavy weapon).  About 8-9 will make up a Scout Kill Team with the option to vary the weapon selections slightly.

Well, the drying rack has been invaded by green skins so those last few scouts had better scarper, sharpish, as they are now out numbered…

My issue with these last few scouts is, as always, matching new miniatures to older paint schemes.  I guess these are far from what could be classed as new miniatures as they were purchased at the same time as the originals. Needless to say, they still need a paint scheme that matches the touched up camo scouts seen recently.

To get the ball rolling, and in hopes of not cocking up all four figures in one go, I started with a test model.

With a game of Kill Team now planned (my first since before the start of December it would seem) a useable chap would be best to start with.

I suspect that the yellow, with an orange wash, is slightly too orange when compared to the original (which might have faded with ages spent, unused, on the display shelf) but it will do for my needs.

I have managed to match the badly drawn green camo stripes very well (obviously a talent inherent to my natural painting technique) and copied the slightly worn, black weapon choices of the originals.

All in all not too bad…  Now for the other three…

The latest batch to come under a paintbrush in the shed are these Space Marines and Scouts by Games Workshop.  The first of the Scouts were an easy batch to touch up and finish off.  The slightly more time consuming figures were a small Kill Team of six Space Marines.

The last of the scouts have now also been started, but are currently sitting quietly on the shelf awaiting my return…

The focus of this post are the first of my Space Marines that were not originally undercoated in the, now unavailable, Shadow Grey. Two of them are older originals, from my return to wargaming back in the early 2000s. The remaining four are Primaries Marines from the Warhammer Conquest part-work magazine. Two of the early editions of this magazine featured packs of three Primaris Marines on the cover.  I am unlikely to ever collect full squads of Primaris Marines for Warhammer 40k, but a few figures will do very nicely for our smaller Kill Team games.

Two Intercessors each armed with trusty bolt rifles, and one holding an Auspex that might help me hit things if they do ever make it into a game of Kill Team.

Two Reivers each with bolt pistol and combat knife.

An original metal Space Marine Captain and his flamer weilding plastic friend.

The yellow paint scheme of these guys is very different from the majority of my, blue coloured, army but with a left shoulder pad painted in black, they should have something in common with that force.

Not too bad for a half days work…

I managed a half day in the shed again this weekend.  I must try to get in there for an hour or so of an evening if I can.  I’m not sure I am back to full swing though, as I’m still just pottering about (grandad style) and grabbing whatever catches my eye to be done.

This time it was something useful at least.  A small batch of figures that might just find a place in a Space Marine kill team.

The simplest batch to complete, amongst this small collection, were a set of already painted Scouts with Sniper rifles. Originally painted in the early 2000s in a base of bright yellow, and given a camo pattern using the old original GW green ink.  These were definitely gaudy and, with the gloss finish from the green ink, very shiny. To finish the terrible effect, they were based using a summer flock called ‘meadow flowers’.

The repaint was minimal, as the age chipped areas were just repainted in a drab mix of black and browns, and then the whole thing was doused in a dark green ink wash.  With the old bases ripped off and new ones done in the black/ grey flock, sand and stone chip mix I  have been using for this army, the job was done.

These are all older metal scouts that had been originally planned as the start a full scout based army (I have about 20 more in yellow undercoat that I should really sell on to someone who will make better use of them than I will).

I can’t remember why I only painted 7 of them, but it was likely due to their points cost in an older codex.  Frustraitingly I can only use five or ten of them in a squad in the current version of the 40K rules.

More importantly I suspect, in Kill Team, I can make up a full 100 point force using eight scouts.  Either way I need to paint more of them up and sadly that means I have to try to match the original gaudy paint scheme… Hence the scarily bright blobs of yellow and green that can be seen in the first photo.