Sci-Fi Terrain - GW's Crashed Shuttle

Crashed Aquila Lander and pilot from GW's "Battle for Macragge" Box Set - FINALLY painted after years, and years, and years...

Another overdue finished project from the late summer to share - here is a crashed shuttle, along with pilot. This model of the wreckage, and the pilot, are plastic sci-fi terrain from GW's 40k setting. The shuttle is a crashed version of the Imperial "Aquila Lander" (a flyer model that was, at one time, available from Forge World, although I think it is gone now). 

Rear section - one engine has detached.

Another view of the smashed components.

This terrain set is quite old...it came from a box set called "The Battle for Macragge". This was back in the time of 40k's 4th Edition...which was quite a while ago - and back in a time before GW issued a new 40k edition every other year. The box set included Tyranids and Ultramarines - neither were of interest to me at the time, but I do remember seeing the crashed shuttle and the pilot, and thinking they were cool. Downed craft and pilots always make for great scenarios, and I thought it would be great to have these items for my collection. I went to eBay (remember, this was a long time ago) and just ordered the bits for the downed shuttle. I recall at the time regretting that I did not get the pilot...just the downed shuttle...but I never did follow up to get the pilot.

"Any landing you can walk away from is a good landing - right?"

The eBay order arrived promptly, and I promptly...did nothing with it. Unpainted miniatures and models are a fun thing to joke about, but wow, did this ever sit. For years. I am terrible when it comes to painting terrain. Just terrible. I think this thing was sitting in my pile for like...13 years? Something insane like that. I would come across the bits, determine that I would paint them, them promptly get distracted by something else. At the same time, I would never throw the components away either...in fact, they moved house with me in a primed, unpainted state - TWICE. Sheesh.

Another view of the pilot...probably hoping to scavenge something else from the wreckage...

So, it's 2021, and I have had the crashed shuttle bits primed, but not painted, for more than 10 years. A participant in Curt's Painting Challenge named Stuart L posted a submission which included a copy of the pilot figure from the Macragge box set. I made a comment about how I wished I had picked up the pilot figure back when I had the chance all those years ago. A few weeks later, totally out of the blue, a small package shows up in the mail - from Stuart L himself, and inside was a spare copy of the pilot figure!

This was a rather solemn signal from the hobby gods. So I painted the pilot, then dug out the crashed shuttle, and finally painted it too. Here are the components, completed at last.

Some detail on the front section. Many similarities on the nose design between the Aquila Lander and the more common Valkyries.

Most of the port side wing assembly is still attached...emphasis on the word "most"...

GW really does do a great job on their terrain, and there are many neat terrain kits and models out there. Several continue to...sit on my shelf, as I promise myself I will paint them one day (hello Void Shield Generator box). I wish I wasn't so useless at getting terrain painted, but this shows that I can, in fact, get it done - it is more than a theory! Hopefully it will inspire more terrain work later this year.

The crashed shuttle terrain and the pilot nice addition to my collection. Useful as an objective, or just an extra model/piece of table flavour for a scenario. Anyway, a BIG thank you to Stuart for the generous gift - I hope he sees this blog post. I also hope this terrain can be part of a 30k or 40k game with friends some day - the hobby spirits among these bits will add a bit of extra fun, I expect. 

That's all for now - cheers!

Battlefleet Gothic Ordnance and Light Cruiser

I finished a set of ordnance markers for Battlefleet Gothic. In the game there is an entire phase dedicated to launching torpedoes, breaching pods, fighters, bombers and for space marines, Thunderhawk gunships. These allow you to land spacemarines on enemy ships and they proceed to wreak havoc all over the ship. All the models are from Vanguard Miniatures cast in pewter and they have excellent detail. I especially like the not-thunderhawks. I also added a light cruiser to the Imperial fleet. The model is also from Vanguard and comes with various weapon options including gun batteries, lances and fighter hangers. I magnetized for maximum customization!

I have plans to paint up some more fighter and bomber stands and add a 2nd strike cruiser to the space marine fleet. Thanks for visiting!

Minotaur Tactical Squad #3

 Here's my 3rd and last Minotaur tactical squad. I have more units of Minotaurs left to paint, but this is already a big enough army to game with...eventually. I'm going to switch gears again and finish off the Alpha Legion and the last few units for my Imperial Militia Army. I'll probably circle back to the Minotaurs and maybe some Bonereapers in the fall. I guess it depends how much painting I get done this summer.

Thanks for visiting.

Minotaurs Chapter Vehicles

 For Fathers Day I competed 2 vehicles for my Minotaurs Space Marine Chapter. The majority of the army consists of models I already owned and stripped of their previous paint job. However, these two vehicles are new additions to my collection. The Rhino was bought online used and already assembled (there was just one issue that couldn't be corrected). It was missing a few parts, but luckily I have an ample supply of Rhino bits! The second vehicle is the Vindicator. It sports a demolisher cannon and massive dozer blade. The Minotarus are supposed to be siege experts and well supplied with vehicles, so the Vindicator fits the bill. In the current Space Marine meta, I don't think vehicles rate all that high, but since my army is already disqualified from GW events due to every model being covered in 3D printed bits, I don't think the meta matters much.

 

I really wanted to add that storm bolter in case the Demolisher doesn't do the job!

The left track guard was misaligned due to imprecise fitting of the top hull to the sides. The savings on the used rhino didn't justify ripping the vehicle apart to fix it. I'd have just bought a new rhino in that case.

3D printed bits everywhere!

Thanks for visiting.

Primaris Lieutenant for Raven Guard

The (relatively) new(ish) Primaris Lieutenant from GW.

Here is a "Primaris Lieutenant" from GW's new range of Space Marines for Warhammer 40k. This is a "28mm" plastic figure from GW, sporting a shoulder icon from Pop Goes The Monkey. This figure comes from the "Indomitus" box set, released last year to go along with (yet another - the 9th, I think) version of the Warhammer 40k rules. It was an interesting effort, released in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, and I picked up a box from the FLGS here in Sault Ste Marie last summer.

Skulls on the shield? But of course! You can also see the nice shoulder emblem from Pop Goes The Monkey.

The Indomitus box includes quite a haul of plastic multi-part goodies - you get a number of new "Primaris" Space Marines, and quite an assortment of Necron bad guys as well. While my own personal painting interests tend toward 30k more than 40k when it comes to GW, my curiousity was piqued at the time - and I painted up a small assortment of Primaris Marines last summer and fall.

The Indomitus box takes the evolution/replacement of GW's Space Marine lineup further along, with new officers, a new brand of basic troop type, some new elite-types, bike-riding Marines and some other characters. Overall, the Marine figures are pretty interesting, with the possible exception of the "Judiciar", who looks like a LARP-reject who has been kicked out of his parents' basement. 

"Sure, I'm carrying a power sword that is like half-a-metre long, but still, take THAT!"

In particular, the Marine elites/officers in this box have a bit of a pseudo-medieval touch to them...there are tabards, swords, relic bits and big shields. And skulls and skeletons of course :) This Lieutenant figure is an example of all of these aspects...he has a tabard, a huge sword, a fancy shield and lots of trinkets and purity seals etc. For all that, it should be noted that he still has a nice gun too...a "neo-volkite pistol" - nice to see the 30k volkite weapons getting a shout-out in the new edition of 40k.

Lots of character on this character figure. Fun to paint.

Most Indomitus fans have already painted all of their Indomitus box set miniatures. Me? Well, having had the Indomitus box for a year, I thought it was time to finally paint at least ONE of the miniatures inside, so I put him together a couple weeks ago. I have to say, he was fun to paint! I also have to vouch for the stuff from "Pop Goes The Monkey" - there a lot of great accessories available there, with many that will work perfectly with the new "Primaris" marines. It was great to be able to slap a Raven Guard icon on the shoulder guard of this figure - looks so much better than a decal, especially considering all of the other schwag/flare this fellow is carrying around. 

One thing I learned is that I need some new white paints...you can see the finish on the helmet and shield looks pretty streaky/chalky...something to sort out over the summer, as I slowly assemble more figures from the Indomitus box and get them ready for painting. I haven't even decided if I will paint the others as Raven Guard figures, or something else...who knows? Something for my hobby brain to worry away about.

Thanks for visiting - hope you are somewhere the COVID restrictions are able to be relaxed!

Minotaurs Dreadnoughts

 More progress on the Minotaurs despite the Provinces best attempts to abolish public education! This offering is two more space marine dreadnoughts. These aren’t the fancy new primaris redemptor dreadnoughts or the relic Contemptor. Just plain old classic walking coffins. Back in the time of 4th and 5th addition these guys served me well. The twin lascannon and missile launcher combo was particularly effective. Subsequent additions were less generous. 9th edition has juiced up dreadnoughts considerably and should provide some solid support for the tactical squads. Unfortunately, their shiny new paint job probably means they have to get that first game out of the way! Whenever that’ll be.

The multi-melta and plasma cannon are both from Pop goes the Monkey as are the Minotaur icons. All the weapons are magnetized and all the polarities match so the weapon arms can be swapped between dreads!

The one on the left was painted a few months ago

Thanks for visiting.

Minotaurs Tactical Squad #2

 Painting progress has been slow since the Province suspended in class learning for elementary school kids. Despite this challenge, I've managed to complete another tactical squad for my Minotaurs Chapter. This includes a Multi-melta, meltagun and flamer alternative. The sergeant is armed with a plasma pistol and power fist. I also gave him a Mark IV helmet. The boltguns are from the Mark III space marine box. I had dozens of them left over from my Imperial Fists.

 Thanks for visiting.

Imperial Marauder Bombers for Aeronautica Imperialis

Marauder Bombers for Aeronautica Imperialis - plastic kits from GW.

Some more Aeronautica Imperialis content. Now that we have some Ork ground targets for the players to bomb, it would be good to have some bombers to go after them! These two aircraft are just the ticket - many 40k fans will recognize the silhouette of the Marauder Bomber. These are plastic multi-part kits from GW, and came as part of the "Wings of Vengeance" box set GW released with their re-boot of the rules a couple of years ago.

Heavy bolters on the rear-facing turrets to keep pesky enemy fighters at bay!

Escorting bombers to a target, and defending fighters and flak guns trying to bring the bombers down, these are classic sorts of air combat missions. Aeronautica Imperialis allows for a trick-of-the-mind where we can channel what are essentially WW2/Korean War air combat missions into the far future of 40k, with fun little models. Of course, there are twists. The "basic" Marauder bomber is already armed to the teeth, but can carry even more ordnance on its wings - these options range from even more bombs, to ground attack missiles, to air-to-air missiles...so enemy attackers will have to watch carefully. Not only will the lascannons and heavy bolters provide protection, but the Marauder pilot could take out an attacker with a missile!

Twin lascannon battery on the front - a long-range defensive touch!

These models are really, really something. They are certainly involved to build, with many, many small parts - watch out for that. But it's worth it, if you are a fan of the setting. I really enjoyed working on these - and it's not like you need loads of them for a game. These two, together with a fighter escort, would keep plenty of Ork fighters and flak batteries busy.

Ready for their first mission. As newly-painted models, nothing could go wrong. Right?

One interesting aspect of the re-booted Aeronautica Imperialis is the hex-based maps...normally I'm not a fan of hex-based miniature games, but in the age of zoom and endless totally random COVID-19 restrictions, I have a new appreciation for them - they allow the possibility of trying the game over Zoom (or similar platforms - if you hate yourself, I recommend Microsoft Teams, and if you just hate the other people, try to get them on WebEx from Cisco, but I digress).  Maybe the Conscripts will be up for a bombing mission sometime soon!

The sun sets over Lake Superior on a cool evening in April, 2021.

I'll leave with a photo of a recent sunset on the shores of Lake Superior. Views like this, and this hobby, help me to stay (mostly) sane. I hope everyone out there has something similar to help them keep going. Thanks for reading. 

Ork Dakka Jet and Ground Assets

Ork Dakka Jet and ground assets - plastic models from GW.

Hi again everyone - my furhter efforts on my WW1 painting have been delayed by a sudden lurch back into GW territory. This is an Ork "Dakka Jet" and set of Ork "ground assets" for GW's 40k-themed air-combat game Aeronautica Imperialis. These have been sitting on my painting desk for months, and when I finished those 10mm Roman Auxilia, I thought I might as well finish these bits too. 

The dakka jet is the basic fighter for the Orks - can be upgraded with extra rockits for air-to-air combat, or given bombs for ground attack missions.

Aeronautica is a fun game - obviously the setting won't be everyone's cup of tea, but I enjoyed the original version of these rules that Forge World released many years ago. The re-booted version, with nice plastic models, is a lot of fun too. The rules are not complicated, and it is fun to have these little combat aircraft from the grim and dark future zipping around, blowing up stuff, and each other. 

A bunch of random colours and patterns...fun little models to paint, although it can be slow going.

The initial model range focused on the Imperial Navy and the Orks, but it has since expanded to include Imperial Army (Valkyries) and the Tau (really cool!). I started painting my initial sets last summer, with the expectation that I would finish all of the models in short order...but hobby squirrels run around in my brain and I get distracted. This is a particular issue when trying to paint Ork subjects...they don't really have a uniform look to their gear and kit, and so each model is something of an individual effort for me, which makes painting Ork stuff a slog. I've always been impressed at how Dallas could paint whole groups of Orks...I can never manage more than one or two at a time.

And so this poor Dakka Jet has been sitting even longer than the Roman Auxilia from my last post. Probably since last November, when I had been last working on Aeronautica stuff...this one Dakka Jet was sitting there at the corner of my painting table, falling on to the ground occasionally, with a couple of base colours already on, waiting for me to finish it. But for months I just could not find the inspiration - I didn't feel like painting check patterns at the time, and besides, I had momentum with some other projects - but I finally just picked up the brush last week, and now it is ready.

Ork ground assets...a bunker of some kind, and assorted flak batteries to protect it.

In the Aeronautica game many missions involve bombing runs - that makes sense, it is a common sort of mission for combat aircraft. You need something to bomb - that is where these "ground assets" come in, both as targets and as additional defences. The bunker-looking thing serves as a target for the incoming bombers, while the assortment of Ork flak emplacements which would protect this and add to the fun in the game. These were all sold in very nice sprue packs - each with a bunker and group of ground defence pieces. Sadly, these packs no longer seem to be available.

Another view of the ground assets...these are in the same "scale" as the models for "Adeptus Titanicus"....

So there we are...my first GW and first sci-fi models painted in many months! Now that I am looking once more at GW stuff under my brushes, my hobby orbit is likely to spend a little more time in that world, meaning the WW1 project may have to take a back seat for a time. We'll see...goodness knows there is still lots of time for painting thanks to f*cking COVID. Thanks for reading, hope you are all doing OK out there. Cheers.