All of our Geckos have had a busy summer, painting away in the safety of their homes whilst their family and friends have been out enjoying the sun – but don’t feel bad for them, look how beautiful their painting is! (and if you want more, each Gecko’s insta tag is in the description!)
What a beautiful bunch of minis – let’s see what the gang can cook up this autumn!
After the devastating loss for the Dark Angels in the last report, the Rout have encountered a new foe on Mausolia Angelis…
Mausolia Angelis, fiefdom of the First Legio Astartes. The Vlka Gungnir stand triumphant on the field of battle, the Dark Angels relic seized. Defensive positions are taken up as atmospheric storms render any communication other than short range VOX impossible. The First Jarl orders Jarl Sigurd Fraegr and his Great Company to scout the rest of the planet and search for further Sons of the Lion.
Sigurd leads ‘NIDHOGG’, translated into low Gothic ‘the dreaded strikers’, making up the scout and fast attack packs of the Vlka Gungnir. Famous for striking without warning deep behind enemy lines causing chaos and destruction.
What the First Jarl and the Vlka Gungnir do not know is that a transmission from an interrogator chaplain, giving his last known coordinates was intercepted by the strikeforce ‘Tears of Sanguinuis’. The Blood Angels have set up an armoured column, with assault troops in reserve at the end of an abandoned Dark Angel checkpoint… The Wolves and Blood Angels draw unwittingly close…
Appalling atmospheric conditions make anything other than intra pack communication impossible, Jarl Sigurd sends the veteran long fangs to take up firing positions. Infiltrator packs Hati and Skoll advance through the 1st Legions fortifications, hellblasters following providing fire support. The Vlka Gungnir sense something ahead, growls accompanying their advance. Scout packs on foot and bike range ahead of the main force as eliminator pack Volsung take the high ground.
Bolter fire rakes the air, the Vlka Gungnir seeping their foe through the gloom. Wolves drop, threads cut by unknown assailants. Jarl Sigurd orders the scouts further forward and streaks of lascannons lay down covering fire.
The roar of a predator smashes through the gloom, fire raining upon the Rout not from the foul Dark Angels but angels clad in blood red, the sons of Sanguinius! Howling jetpacks signal the arrival of the dreaded Death Company, blasting wolves with bolt before charging headlong into combat. They slay wolf scout pack Uvaer before charging into the mighty form of Haakon Draugar. The redemptor dreadnoughts shell impervious to any attack’s, the ancient warrior backs away keeping the savage urge to rip the enemy to shreds in check.
+++ Open fire brothers +++
His distraction allows Pack Hati to rip through the bewildered Death Company, the howl of wolves on the trail of jet packs as suppressor and inceptor packs join the fray, their firepower blasting the Death Company into the jaws of Morkai.
Reeling from the onslaught the Captain of the Tears of Sanguinus orders a general advance, the massive shape of a leviathan and redemptor dreadnought stomps past the dug in Intercessor squads. The earth shakes as they open fire, packs slain in an instant.
Long fang pack Ulfred take aim at the massive shapes approaching, first reducing the Baal predator to molten slag they then blast the redemptor into oblivion. The other packs surround Lemartes and the sanguinary priest as Haakon Draugar obliterates them in a hail of fire.
The Vlka Gungnir open fire with everything trying to stop the relentless advance of the leviathan to no avail, packs slain under a hail of fire. Finally the steady aim of the long fangs strips some of its armour as the blood angel captain orders a fighting withdrawal.
Haakon Draugar fires Into the retreating Blood Angels. The Rout stand masters of the field!
And Alan’s wolves have bested yet another defending space marine force – how much longer will this miscommunication continue? Find out in the final round, where Blood Angel and their Dark brothers come together to attempt to quell the Hunt!
Last month Alan and Eliot had a chance to fire up a classic rivalry on the table top – the Angels of Caliban vs the Wolves!
Orbital Search
Mausolia Angelis, fiefdom of the First Legio Astartes. Now held by the Dark Angels Chapter, vital fortress monastery guarding supply routes from forge worlds oathed to Caliban.
Strike fleet Morkai, led by the First Jarl, Bjorn, called the Fell-Handed. Leading the Vlka Gungnir, awoken to judge the primaris by Jarl Grimnar himself. Thrown from the warp requiring repairs, Mausolia Angelis, offers no replies to hails.
Scanners locate a powerful energy source, as the First Jarl orders planet fall to investigate, the Dark Angels issue dire warnings, the planet is oathed to the Sons of the Lion and is no place for the dogs of Russ.
Meanwhile on the Mausolia Angelis…
5 days. 5 more days and the Chapter Master makes leave for The Rock once again.
Interrogator-Chaplain Izkeil has been almost 2 weeks chasing rumors of Fallen activies on Mausio Angelica, and nothing. Nothing but a few weak minded Cult leaders to ‘converse’ with. The secrets held here are safe, for now.
Izkeil knows that if the word gets out as to what the first company has contained here gets out, the Chapter Master will be the least of his worries.
A flair across the sky draws Izkeils attention, and he tears himself away from the viewport of the fortress. A hail on his vox.
+ Brother-Chaplain, we have visitors. Battle stations ready, possible fallen activity. Take no prisoners +
Izkeil replaced and locked his skull plate onto his helm.
+ No secrets will leave this place Master Azrael+
It began to rain.
Taking up formation the Vlka Gungnir vector into the energy source, an ancient mechanical relic from the Age of Darkness of unknown STC provenience. As the Wolves advance to claim the relic, proximity alerts sound… the Dark Angels have revealed themselves.
+++ Hail the First Legion Astartes +++ The First Jarl orders his Wolf Guard. ‘They fail to answer hails Jarl’. The hails are finally answered as bolt, plasma and lascannon erupt from the Dark Angels lines.
+++ Engage protocols active, slay the enemies of the Allfather+++
The landraider ‘Wrath of Morkai’ surges forward towards the objective, the howls of the blood claws inside accompanying the roar of the engine. Bjorn surges forward, ancient pistons driving the mighty war machine forward, blood claws surging around the Old One, desperate to fight with the living legend who fought with the Allfather and Russ himself. Long Fangs open up with lascannon and missile, covering the advance of the Rout.
The Dark Angels respond with devastating affect, long fangs obliterated as the feared Ravenwing roar forwards. A mighty redemptor and predator supporting the assault directed by the Chapter Master himself.
Pack Hati charge from the ‘Wrath of Morkai’ hurling themselves in a berserk charge at the enemy lines. The wolf guard surge forward in support, power fists crackling in anticipation of the slaughter. A crack of energy as the mighty Arjac Rockfist arrives on the field of battle, a beastial roar as the berserk wulfen charge into the field, Azrael himself the subject of their rage.
Blistering fire overwhelms the DA redemptor dreadnought, the ancient warriors duty has come to an end.
Azrael is mortally wounded in a flurry of blows and the wulfen surge into the predator. The DA infiltrators and intercessors are cut down by chainsword and fist and the relic seems secured.
Energy cracks stun the Wolves as the dread Deathwing arrive in reinforcement. They slay long fangs with ease with ancient power weapons.
Bjorn the Fellhanded charges into the Deathwing as Intercessor pack Torvigsson rush to assist. The Ravenwing are destroyed in furious combat leaving only the Deathshroud and a last tenacious surviving Deathwing Sergeant.
With the unknown Relic claimed by the Rout, the remaining Dark Angels retreat into the darkness.
Looks like an ancient rival is rekindling!
It has been a while since the last report – the Geckos have been busy wargaming and hobbying! Today Matty is sharing with us his battle report from a facedown between the rotting horde of Death Guard and the heroic Deathwatch!
The air was thick with the smell of the warp, almost so thick one could taste it. There was no sound aside from the wail of the wind, like a banshee it howled; almost as if the air itself was dying from the plague. Beatriz knew the enemy would not be far away, and the objective seemed close. Kill Teams Graemond and Darius readied Frag Cannons, checked suit ventilation systems and boarded the Blackstar. They were the recon team, sent in to scout the area; Auspex scans had identified a small rigging platform, with fuel reserves and thermal output still showing as active.
As soon as the corvus entered the area of operation (AO) the pilots screen howled in warning as the auspex screen lit up with a horde of contacts. “Initiate Assault Drop and secure the LZ” voxed Beatriz. The machine spirit within the blackstar surged as the pilot urged it onwards, perhaps feeling the thrill of an oncoming battle. The Kill Teams were silent, they were already prepared for war, nothing left to do now but pray the combat would be substantial. The Watch Captain dropped the teams into the middle of the semi ruined installation in a daring flyby maneuver and then proceeded to engage the enemy, a sweeping gun run with autocannons booming and bolters shaking as they emptied their drum magazines. From his position, he could see the putrid and diseased forms, the shambling undead huddled around a foul monstrosity that once was a machine. However the auspex relayed a more sinister force behind this, “Master, immediate forces are small, Graemond and Darius will dispatch easily, however the Emperor demands more of us this day, sizable enemy contact will be in the installation within minutes”.
The Disciples of Nurgle were if nothing, resilient. Graemond and Darius unleashed volley after volley of bolter shots with air superiority thinning the herd, but wounds that would put down mortal men, even Astartes, simply slowed the horde down. They needed to hold out until reinforcements could arrive. Then they would show these traitors what the price of straying from the Emperor’s light would be. The Shambling mass had no end, the more they killed, the more strode over their pus ridden, decaying corpses towards them. Giant demon machines that spewed filth and fired explosive rounds were detected entering the AO.
“We, We are here soldiers. The might of the Emperor. Stand firm”, the sombre voice of vetern Warrior and elite Librarian M’Batu could be heard over the vox channels. And arrive he did, along with him a sizable chunk of the deathwatch forces. M’batu appeared on a rooftop, alone, unaided and began firing his bolt pistol down into the hordes, drawing their attention away from the kill teams. The undead saw an easy kill, a single marine, no matter how skilled, that was a dead marine. “Come Forth and face judgement, be put down in the holy light of the Emperor’s wrath!” his battle cry revealed his trap. The hum in the air rose to a fever pitch and then with a flash, Mbatu was surrounded by Kill Team Thracymachus, their bolters raised and spewing death. The horde was thinned, the battle cried loud.
However, the Plague Father also sent reinforcements the poxwalkers used their own dead as steps. Clawing and moaning, they rose the building until they surrounded the Warriors, forcing them to fight off clammy hands ridden with disease, the slime beginning to corrode the ceramite of their armour.
It was late in the day, the bodies of Nurgle coating the installation in a green ooze, the smell rancid, even the super human organs of the Astartes were now no match for the infection seeping into reality. The Deathwatch held, but it was costing them dearly, and Papa Nurgle had not yet thrown his most powerful tool into the fray. With lightning bolts of green and joyous singing from the plague warriors, the warp spewed two warriors forth. Typhus, lord of contagion and bringer of despair. And Putrificus, Demon Prince of Nurgle, 749th favoured of the grandfather. The strike was co ordinated, Putrificus struck for the throat, seeking the head of the Watch Master, whilst Typhus rallied the horde and sought to dismantle the front line. Neither were prepared for the wrath to come.
With Kill Team Darius being besieged by a demonic Plague Burst Crawler, along with the Horder of Poxwalkers, the Deathwatch surged with new confidence, inspired the Watch Captain, whose battle howl could be heard even among the roar of engines, and the banging of boltguns. He charged the Crawler, wielding his thunder hammer with precision swings. Then, his greatest challenge, Typhus.
All the while, Purtificus was busy with Watch Master Beatriz. The stoic leader showed no emotion through his death mask. His eyes simply stared the foul beast back, his spear coming into guard position, with no fuss or glory, no warriors to witness the deed, He charged the creature. The Guardian Spear wielded with the grace of centuries of service, limbs moving in a ballet of cuts and thrusts. Trusting in his ancient ceramite to protect against the cursed and diseased talons that struck out to wound him, and they tried. But the 749th favoured of Nurgle would not be favoured this day, Beatriz struck truly and sent the demon back to the warp.
The Man Reaper cut the reality of fabric as it was, but the Light of the Emperor gave the old wolf Captain courage, and the pair duelled. The thunder hammer cracking as it surged with power striking the warp cursed terminator plate that Typhus wore. Again and again the pair fought, when finally and heroically, the captain struck home, a concussive strike with the Thunder hammer threw Typhus back 15 feet and knocked him on his back, looking up and seeing the wolf charge toward him, the 2nd favoured of Nurgle called the warp, and slunk away, letting the warp feed him and regain his strength. But it was enough, just.
The raging battle had seen the medivac of a number of soldiers, the few still fighting, Graemond of the Templars, Kill Team Tzuka were making headway. And the retreat of the General and the ‘slaying’ of the Demon Prince was enough. Beatriz rallied the remaining forces and sought to put down the reaming plague marines. Crucially however, they controlled enough of the facility to warrant the damned and diseased to withdraw, as traitorous and plagued as they were, tactically lacking they were not. If only for a moment on the besieged planet, The Deathwatch had won a narrow victory.
Excellent report Matty – A close victory for the Emperors servants today!
Watch Master Beatriz and the Deathwatch faced oblivion on Migale. The hordes of Khorne worshipping warriors held them at the precipice of annihilation. The bravery of a few saved them from that. Like the Spartans of old Terra, it was a numberless horde against the few. But salvation, as for the heroes of the Imperium, was short lived. Aboard their battle barge, on their way to Komodious Prime, Auspex scans identified a number of Chaos shipped in orbital dock around a small, agri world.. Designation…. Draco Minus. Some ships belonged to the traitor, the Despoiler, The Black Legion. Others were more easily identified; their mechanicul, now, organic form was sickly. The God of Disease, Nurgle, had sent his Warriors to this planet.
Beatriz’s thought was interrupted by a short burst of Vox traffic hitting the command deck. Somehow penetrating the required authorisations codes for acceptance:
01010011 01110100 01110010 01101111 01101110 01100111 00100000 01010000 01101111 01101001 01101110 01110100 00100000 01101100 01101111 01110011 01110100 00101110 00100000 01010001 01110101 01100101 01110011 01110100 01101111 01110010 01101001 01101111 01110101 01110011 00100000 01000001 01110011 01110011 01100101 01110100 01110011 00100000 01100001 01110100 00100000 01110010 01101001 01110011 01101011 00101110 00100000 01010100 01101000 01100101 00100000 01110000 01101100 01100001 01100111 01110101 01100101 00100000 01110011 01110000 01110010 01100101 01100001 01100100 01110011 00101110 00100000 01001001 01101101 01101101 01100101 01100100 01101001 01100001 01110100 01100101 00100000 01110010 01100101 01101001 01101110 01100110 01101111 01110010 01100011 01100101 01101101 01100101 01101110 01110100 00100000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01100100 01100101 01101101 01100001 01101110 01100100 01100101 01100100 00101110 00100000 01010000 01110010 01100001 01101001 01110011 01100101 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100101 00100000 01001111 01101101 01101101 01101110 01101001 01110011 01110011 01100001 01101000 00100000 00100000
The coded message, translated by the small mechanicus priest aboard:
Strong Point lost. Questorious Assets at risk. The plague spreads. Immediate reinforcement is demanded. Praise the Ommnissah.
The Emperor Protects, and Watch Master Beatriz serves. Knight assets would not fall to the Plague god or to The Black Legion. Not long had the Deathwatch been out of battle. The furious assault against the Eightscarred of Khorne had taken its toll. But the Watch Master would not sit idly by, he was made for War. His battle brothers were made for War. Whether it was Xenos, Chaos, or Traitors, they were an affront to the Emperor. Kill Teams were readied. Bolters cleansed and machine spirits soothed. The fury of battle awaits those who are worthy
Today, Joseph is sharing with us his thoughts on what it means to be a ‘Fluffy’ player!
Hey guys, it’s Joseph here (@pertinaxpaints) with an article today on the ins and outs on what I believe what makes an army fun, and also ‘fluffy’.
First things first, it’s important for me to say I think that playing competitive is absolutely brilliant, and that this article mainly applies for pick up games at your FLGS’ and casual play. So without further ado, Let’s get into it:
What is Fluff?
It’s not what you find in your pocket, that’s called lint. Fluff is a sometimes-derogatory word to describe the rich, colourful, grimdark, fascinating histories of our wonderful hobby universes and has little to no bearing on the way the game is played. It is not in anyway crunchy – which is also not what you find in your pocket; that’s called crumbs.
Why be fluffy?
This is a question I think everyone knows the answer to already, but it’s still worth talking about. Being fluffy is the reason most people get into the hobby in the first place, either through being enchanted by the cool looking models in a shop window, by reading some captivating lore in a rulebook, or perhaps a black library jaunt. (Horus Heresy books will kill your heart, soul, and your wallet. They’re amazing…)
Fluff can also equal fun. At the end of the day, if you love your army, it means you’ll be playing them as they’re intended to feel. Now whether that’s guard gun-lines pouring out a solid wall of lasgun fire, or hordes of Orks blazing across the battlefield on trukks and bikes, fluffy play creates a sense of spectacle and awakens your imagination.
Another thing to recognise is that 40k, AoS and The Hobbit™ are all dice games. When you play a dice game at a competitive level, essentially you are trying to find ways to mitigate reliance on luck alone. So in ‘fluffy’ play, allowing luck to play a more important role in the game can spice things up. There are powerful stratagems and cool effects that only happen on a 1 in 6 chance, sometimes allowing lady luck to take the wheel can create incredible moments. Obviously both you and your opponent will have to be on equal footing with this reliance on luck, otherwise games could be one sided. But think of stray shots wounding huge monsters, a Land Raider dying a ridiculous death to overwatch, or a single model hanging on for longer than it should. All of these things are made hilarious because they’re unlikely.
To that end, I feel like there are a few definable things that can make an army fluffy:
· Aesthetic: How does the army look? Does it deviate from the background and how? Or maybe it follows the provided iconography and hierarchy to the letter, or is a creation of its own.
· Play style: How does the army list/style relate to their background? Is the list a classic that you’d normally see? Or maybe it’s an interesting new play style.
· Weakness: Most armies have a weakness of some sort. Some have loads, but either way, a good player will be able to cover their army’s weaknesses most of the time, or they’ll plug in another faction/ally that will cover it. Providing an opponent with a clear way to defeat you is fun (albeit risky), but there’s got to be a clear way to defeat them too…
Case example: Orks
Walk up to any Warhammer player and ask them if they’re a fan of Orks. Most will say either that they’re fun, or perhaps they love them. Some might scream “waaaaaagh” signalling their adoration, and a small percentage may be indifferent. So why the love for Orks? Well in my opinion there are a few things that add into their likeability, ranging from their very distinct aesthetic all the way up to their interesting rule mechanics.
Aesthetic:Ork models can’t be confused with any other in the entire range (to be fair I argue that all GW mini’s have their own unique style), their vehicles are eclectic and characterful, their infantry are distinct whilst showing clearly the hierarchy of the army (Nobz are bigger than boyz, Warbosses bigger than Nobz) and also they’re a converters dream: with the concept of looting you can turn anything into an Ork something or other!
· Playstyle: Ork rules are random, whilst there are some tasty things in the codex at the moment (mob rule, da jump etc), Ork armies have an inconsistency that makes them fun to play. Ramshackle on trukks, reducing damage to 1, or the fact that burna bombers explode on a 4+ and do 3 mortal wounds to everything within 6, or the weird ways to wound stuff that arise from Tellyport blastas or the Shokk attack gun.
· Weakness: When the Orks die, they die fast. With the average save of the codex being a 5+ tshirt save, very many bodies are needed to give them a serious competitive edge. Low leadership and a relatively glass cannon nature of the army means high skill is required to weild them well. However, one thing that makes the Ork codex stand out is that there are many ways to build ‘good’ Ork armies. Dread Waaagh anyone?
Now these same things I love, other people could hate, I know for a fact many people dislike playing as Orks because of their unreliability and high model count, but hey, if everyone loved the same thing the world would be a boring place.
How can I be fluffy?
So how does one go about building a fun and fluffy list? Well there are a few things to bear in mind:
· Unless it fits the theme of the army, bringing a lot of the same model/unit can be pretty boring to play against (unless it’s a troops choice) I feel like GW has addressed this with the rule of 3, but it’s always useful to bear in mind.
· Be a Rules As Intended (RAI) person, yes there are a few weird loopholes in some rules, but try not to base an army around exploiting it. Think: “If my opponent doesn’t let me exploit this, would my tactics fall apart?”
· One thing that we saw a lot of in older competitive play was making up weird fluff to explain odd army lists: 9 Tau commanders would never really go into war all together, and you can make up fluff to explain why, but if you’re working backwards and trying to link your army to the fluff, instead of basing its conception in the fluff, you’re going a little off course in my opinion.
· Try not to take a lot of ridiculous auto-include units. These kinds of units I’m talking about are things like Hive Tyrants, pre-FAQ Dark Reapers, Daemon Princes. These units do a lot of work, so setting up to find your opponent has brought multiples of them is quite demoralising, as it means you’re going to be shooting and interacting with the same stuff all game.
Writing a purposely weak list, or one that includes units that people would deem not amazing is all part of the fluffy game in some ways, you just have to make sure your opponent is playing by the same rules. One thing to bear in mind though is that some armies are weaker than others and if you’re playing an army that struggles to put out good units en masse you’ll probably not need to write a weak list per se – just don’t build towards the single strong build the army has. If you’re playing with a top tier army like Aeldari, that’s when you need to engage brain and think of more fun and gimmicky ways to play other than Wave serpent spam, Guardian bombs, more than 1 flier etc…
Overall hopefully this article has given you guys some ideas in how you can build fun and fluffy armies, but obviously these are just my opinions. Heck, 12 eldar fliers in one list can be right up fluffy street! It’s your money after all, if you want 12 aircraft roaming the board go for it!
Hopefully in the next article I’ll be able to elaborate on how to make names and background for your dudes™. Until next time!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts Joseph! Looking forward to learning how to name my boys!
Caught up in the wave of recent Primaris releases, Alan has added some of the new Vanguard units to his Rout…
Seeing the Shadowspear release was a real thrill, GW are knocking it out of the park at the moment with amazing sculpts and seem to have upped their game in relation to social media.
I managed to pick up two boxes of Shadowspear for the Rout and have utilised the infiltrators, eliminators, suppressors, wolf guard battle leader, wolf lord and rune priest. The sculpts are amazing, really detailed models although somewhat limited with the monopose and repeats within the packs. Mine will be painted as part of my Space Wolf Primaris army, the Vlka Gungnir or in low Gothic ‘the Wolf Spear’ and part of the NÍDHÖGG Great Company.
Led by Wolf Lord Sigurd Fraegr, known throughout the Rout as the ‘NÍDHÖGG’, in low Gothic translated as “dreaded striker.” Feared for his ability to strike without notice or warning causing chaos and destruction amongst the enemy. His Great Company is utilised when a finer touch is needed. They are the spear tip, striking at high value assets, enemy commanders, logistical lines before the rest of the Rout arrive.
Wolf Lord Sigurd Fraegr was created using the primaris captain in phobus armour, a head swap with a KF studios skull helm and a space wolf belt. A forge world cataphractii chain axe was swapped in for the pointing figure, as every space wolf needs an axe!
My favourite model in Shadowspear is the librarian in phobus armour, or in the case of the Vlka Gungnir he is Torrvald Tostig the Rune priest! I found on eBay the most amazingly painted head with tribal tattoos on a deathwatch veteran body, managed to win the auction and have been looking for a suitable body worthy of the head – and here it finally is! The rest of the model was ‘wolfed up’ with an icon and neck charm from the space wolf primaris upgrade set.
The primaris lieutenant was turned into a wolf guard battle leader. The head was again swapped out for a Kf studios skull helmet and an axe from the space wolf upgrade sprue swapped in. I then attempted a first – green stuff-ing a pelt. For a first attempt I’m quite pleased and will try and utilise these through my army.
The infiltrator pack is a lovely kit. It does have a few duplicates, however the models were simple to kit-bash. Heads swapped out with space wolf upgrade sprue from the Grey Hunter kit as well as wolf tail charms and belts used. The pack leader was given a Forge World grey slayer head and axe to separate him out. It’s a gamble arming him with an axe – which at the moment will be his close combat weapon – but hopefully as with the Intercessors, the pack leaders will be able to take a power weapon when the multipose separate kits come out.
The eliminators are stunning sculpts and fit nicely into the space wolf fluff wise, veteran scouts. ‘Pack Volsung’ Grizzled veterans of centuries of war in the Allfathers name. Ulrik Volsung directing his pack brothers to deal death from. Using knowledge and experience gleaned throughout the Sea of Stars, their steady aim and rate of fire assists the young pups on the battlefield.’ To fit them in with my existing army, Forge World grey slayer heads were used along with wolf tails and icons.
The suppressors I left until last, horror stories abound of the stands with not only these but also primaris inceptor set. I resolved then to ditch the stands and mount them on the base, hopefully I will have no problems with modelling for advantage! Again a Forge World grey slayer head was used to denote the pack leader. The right pauldron will be marked with blood claw markings of yellow and red, in my fluff they are brash recruits with an interest in big guns!
Only the infiltrators have seen the battlefield as yet, they did a fantastic job of preventing deep striking genestealers! I’m looking forward to getting the rest on the table soon and finding how they work alongside my current forces. ‘Fenrys Hjolda’!
Nice one Alan, looking forward to seeing how the Wolf Spear perform on the table!
We have a special article for you all today – George is sharing with us how he begun on his journey to start an Imperial Cult!
When the new Genestealer Cults models were announced I became very conflicted. I had always loved the aesthetic of the GSC, particularly their rugged civilian vehicles, but had always been put off by their fluff. As a loyal son of the Imperium, I wasn’t about to join a dark cult obsessively trying to advance the wellbeing of a distant star god, where success would mean that I was consumed by the mindless beast that I had truly been serving.
Before I think too much about that last sentence and get a visit from the Inquisition, I should get back to my story.
My resolve was greatly tested at the Vigilus open day, when I was able to see the Attilan Jackals first hand. They were exceptional models that looked to have a vast amount of conversion potential. I vowed that, even though I wouldn’t be doing a GSC army, I would buy some Jackals for conversion into Astra Militarum Rough Riders. Problem solved, I thought.
And then this happened:
The Achilles Ridgerunner. Everything I had always loved about the GSC aesthetic in a sleek, fast, menacing vehicle. I knew I had to build and paint at least one of these, but how to fit them into my armies? I toyed with the idea of an Astra Militarum Tauros (an idea I have shelved but definitely not dismissed) but then a stray thought crossed my mind. As I gazed at the Ridgerunner I thought to myself: “That almost looks like a 40k police car.”
And there it was. The solution. I could return to one of my first Warhammer loves and attempt to build an Adeptus Arbites themed GSC army.
After the initial glow wore off (about 4 minutes) I realised that this left me with a number of problems.
Fortunately, the happy confluence of the new GSC Magos model and another of my favourite models that I have never found a place for in any of my armies gave me the answer to the first three of those questions.
I have always loved the Wood Elves, and the Wildwood Rangers kit has always sat at the back of my mind (and, I must admit, my cupboard) as a possible basis for kitbashing. But who, in the 41st millennium, would wear ridiculous capes, like intimidating hoods and have a penchant for wielding massive axes?
And there was the answer. The Inquisition. Another of my favourite parts of the 41st Millennium, thanks in great part to the excellent novels of Dan Abnett. I had always wanted to explore the Inquisition further, and they are an excellent vehicle for conversions as each Inquisitor has a wide latitude for idiosyncrasies. I decided that my Inquisitor would have a penchant for cloaks and axes.
The fluff of my army then began to write itself. One of the roles of the Adeptus Arbites is to defend the authority of the Imperium against its own forces if any local governor or Planetary Defence Force should decide to challenge the power of the Emperor. Many Inquisitors have the same role, including the Ordo Hereticus and the less well known Ordo Militum, who are tasked with overseeing the Imperium’s diverse armed forces. Should a planet rebel or begin to fall under enemy control, the Adeptus Arbites and the forces of the Inquisition might well be the last servants of the Emperor to remain loyal and keep fighting against impossible odds. Likewise, an Inquisitor might be willing to adopt unconventional fighting methods, using their own followers and the local knowledge of the Arbites to lay traps and ambushes, fighting an asymmetric war against the invaders.
And that is how the forces of self-declared Grand Inquisitor Deza and Arbitrator Metus, co-ordinator of the Capital District came to be, at least in theory. How the models for each conversion were picked and how they were then constructed and painted is a story for another day (or two, or possibly even three).
And question four? I’ll let you know if I come up with a definitive answer, although I do have a cunning plan involving [REDACTED].
Nice one George! Looking forward to seeing what you do with your culty boys – George will be sharing with us the next stage in his journey very soon!
Alan has another of his battle reports for us today, with his Rout facing off against the Tyranid horde! See how he fares…
The Valhalla System, Oathed in fealty to the Allfather, the Wolf King and the Vl legion since the days of the Great Crusade. Vital industrial worlds for the supply of arms and munitions to the Chapter cut off from the light of Holy Terra. Threatened on all sides by the spawn of laughing gods.
A desperate garbled distress signal is received by the light cruiser ‘Morkaii’s Axe’, from the Imperial Governor of Valhalla.
Defenceless, weak, dammed, alone.
The silent null of the approach of the tyrannids. Ragankok nears.
The Sons of Russ appear, the lords of winter and war, the executioners, the fury and savagery of a storm, the vengeance of a galaxy wronged, the Allfathers most loyal sons.
This is the grim darkness of the 41st millennium, there is only war in the Allfather’s Domains!
Dawn of War set up with six objectives placed as per the mission ‘the Scouring’. Units are placed alternatively with the player who placed their last unit first getting the first turn, which ensured the wolves would be going first unless the initiative was ceased.
Long fangs take up position on what turns out to be the superior objective.
Blood claw pack and ferensian wolves screen the centre.
The Vlka Gungnir took defensive positions covering the back field, trying to give the long fangs and hellblasters good fire arcs. Two combat packs of infiltrators are utilised to deny any Deep striking Tyranid charges.
The tyranids set up with a large castle as a right hook with lots of units ready to deep strike held in reserve. With the superior objective held by my long fangs and the inferior objective in the tyranids deployment zone, the wolves expected a hard fight against the lightning quick Hive Fleet Kraken.
Turn one, assets of the vlka gungnir advance, the repulsor slaying a horde of gaunts to claim first blood. Ferensian wolves screen the repulsor as the blood claws sprint into the central ruins.
The Hive Fleet prepare to devour the Vlka Gungnir! Deep striking xenos beasts of all descriptions appear with the flying Hove Tyrant and Trygon popping up as a left hook. Genestealers advance through the centre, and the remaining termagaunt brood supported by a carnifex advancing as a right hook.
Tyranid psychic and shooting turns thinned out a hellblasters pack and the ferisian wolf screen is almost obliterated! The mighty repulsor ‘Wrath of Fenris’ takes some serious punishment, but the Vlka Gungnir stand firm.
Turn two sees the long fangs frag missile the termagaunt brood down to the last few, and the repulsor obliterates the carnifex in a hail of fire. The Vlka Gungnir are feeling confident about holding the left flank and the superior objective with it.
The blood claw pack holding the centre with wolf priest Baldur the Grim fail their charges into the genestealer brood. They prepare to face their wrath and that of the Broodlord next turn. The surviving hellblasters supporting the right flank succumbe to overcharging plasma attempting to slay the trygon.
Tyranid turn two sees the genestealers charge into the bloodclaws.
The hive tyrant sweeps across the battlefield, attempting to down the Storm Hawk ‘Gungnir ‘
Safe from overwatch the Broodlord made a mighty charge into the bloodclaws only for Baldur the Grim to heroically intervene!
The Broodlord strikes first, severely wounding Baldur the Grim – however, the wolves interrupt the combat phase and fight the genestealers with the bloodclaws who in a savage frenzy slew them all!
Turn three for the Wolves saw the blood claws consolidate on the center field objective and rune priest Leif Stormbreaker charging into the Broodlord, smiting the Gould beast before summoning ‘Fury of the Wolf Spirits’ granting six additional attacks with ‘Freki and Geri’. Baldur the Grim is felled before Leif slays the Broodlord in epic combat. The storm hawk Gungnir manages to slay the hive tyrant in a hail of fire ensuring victory for the Vlka Gungnir!
A savage battle sees victory for the Vlka Gungnir, 7-5 on victory points, my opponent shaking hands after seeing his Hive Tyrant, Brood lord and genestealer brood slain. It was a close run match however, and the interruption of combat by the bloodclaws probably swung it for the Vlka Gungnir. I have no doubt they would have been slain to a man by the genestealers if they didn’t fight first.
Alan’s Post Battle Reflection
List wise it was the first time using some units, the repulsor ‘Wrath of Fenris’ was excellent on its debut, slaying a termagaunt brood for first blood and popping a carnifex to blunt the tyranid right hook. I need to utilise its transport capability better as it is a large points sink.
I have struggled with pure primaris lists so have commenced primaris sizing space wolf specific units such as the bloodclaws seen today. This provides cheaper troop choices for list building and helped with getting more bodies on the table. They did an excellent job against the genestealers and claimed the center objective. The Space Wolf chapter tactic allowing +1 to hit when charging or being charged allowed for an awful lot of hits and I would name them the MVP unit.
On the other side of the scale is probably my hellblaster packs, they are expensive points wise and with only one damage unless overcharging didn’t provide the firepower to threaten the tyranid big beasts. I will be working on primaris sized long fang packs in the near future to provide more options in that slot.
Brilliant battle report Alan, that was a close one! Looks like the Wrath of Fenris really put the work in, good floaty tank!
Eliot has been dabbling in the Middle Earth SBG universe and has started a Mordor army – check out his orcs below!
When it comes to geek franchises, I have a natural affinity to naughtyness and tend to side with the big baddies. For Star Wars it’s Vader. In DC it’s the Joker. In 40K it’s… well it’s everyone. In Lord of the Rings, for me it’s always been about the Witch King.
I was a big fan of the Lord of the Rings miniature range when I was young, and I had been looking for an excuse to paint up some tasty models. So when I saw the Pellenor Fields box-set announced with some of my favourite models of all time included – the Fell Beast and the Mordor Troll – it was a no brainer purchase.
I started this journey with a whole bunch of Morannon Orcs – I ended up with 40 in total! I wanted my Mordor force to be super elite, and these black gate bad boys are tough.
One thing about the Morannon kit is that there are only actually 12 poses… So I grabbed my green stuff and clippers and converted the heck out of these orcs. I ended up making sure each model was unique, re-enforcing this through painting. I did 4 different skin tones in this kit, really wanting to show the variety in orcs who are here to defend the Black Gate.
I also saw these chaps as an opportunity to try some free hand painting on shields. I trawled through the Return of the King footage looking for glimpses of the orcs, and then just went ham with the Orc Skulls.
My favourite model in this unit is actually a metal banner bearer from the magazine that I picked up super cheap online. I had loads of fun painting the banner.
Now so far I have actually only painted 20 of these dudes, so I have 20 more ready, but I’m breaking it up with some troll painting. Hopefully I will have some more LOTR minis to show in the near future!
Stay tuned for some more army and Model spotlights in the near future!
HOUSE OF GECKO 