Ye Olde Trip to Nottingham

No painting to show off in this post (well, no painting of my own anyway) but I wanted to put up a few pictures taken on our recent trip to the UK. Needless to say, it was awesome, and started off with a few days in Nottingham, the spiritual and temporal home of British wargaming.

I do have a very loving and indulgent wife but wanting to keep it this way, I planned only two serious wargaming stops here - the first of course being Warhammer World. We'd visited here before, on our first trip to the UK in 2009, but that was before the big makeover and expansion of the WHW museum. Fortunately Pam told me she was happy to sit in Bugman's Bar with her book and coffee while I explored the expansive new museum space.

 Outside of course is the M113 made up to look like an Ultramarines Rhino... cool...

 We arrived bright and early, just before the 10am opening time. Not excited or anything...

 In we go!!

On the way up to the museum space, the infamous Golden Daemon Slayer Sword!

And right away, you get a dose of Warhammer history. I love the nostalgia factor of this stuff, takes me right back to my own beginnings in the hobby as well.

The dioramas are just great too. If memory serves this one's by John Blanche his own self.

Dave Andrews contributed this excellent piece depicting a Bretonnian tournament scene. Please excuse the reflection - you'll be seeing a few of those.
 

Another diorama just full of old-school detail.

Had to take a couple pics of Mike McVey's iconic depiction of the death of Sanguinius and the final confrontation between the Emperor and Horus. EPIC!!

What I wouldn't give for a cast of the figures in this piece, or even a conversion recipe. Although the current Forge World Primarch models are no doubt amazing, I love these ur-depictions of the characters we've known for 30 years as part of the Heresy mythos.

We'll come back to some old stuff soon, but the newer dioramas were most impressive as well. Here's one featuring World Eaters mustering for campaign.

Models in this one were straight-up Forge World pieces.

Mixing it up... a scratch-built Thunderbolt fighter by Dave Andrews, Golden Daemon winner.

Yes, the Squats still exist at Warhammer World. Good to see GW embracing this controversial part of its past :-)

Another giant dio featuring over 300 specially-cast Cadians on parade. Pretty impressive.

"My ships may lay at anchor, but my foes know full well that BIG GUNS NEVER TIRE" (or something)

The burning of Prospero - Space Wolves vs. Thousand Sons - with terrain completely bespoke for the diorama.

How about that - even Space Wolves can look cool ;-)

The centrepiece of the museum had to be the "Battle for Angelus Prime."

Over 5,500 models, parts from 1,200 scenery kits, 23 feet long, 12 feet wide and over 20 feet high... wow.

Back to reality for a sec... some of the original 40K models in this case. The museum space was chock-a-block with painted armies from Warhammer Fantasy Battle (R.I.P.), Warhammer 40,000, and Age of Sigmar - too much to photograph, but I got one more pic:

BIG HATS! My first WHFB army - Chaos Dwarfs. Still have 'em, and these guys are fantastic.

McVey contributed another classic diorama.

Forge World's big boys were well-represented too.

Love the weapons on their platforms! Honestly, there was so much cool stuff to see in the museum, I could have (and did) stay for hours... I think I nearly ran the camera out of memory I took so many photos.

Back out in the gaming hall a school tournament was in progress. Good to see the future of the hobby here. Of course there's also lots of opportunity at WHW to partake in some retail therapy... plus, models are eligible for VAT refund if you have the retailer fill out the correct forms for you, and remember to claim it back before you leave the UK. I did the first thing, but not the second... boo. In any event, I have a nice Adeptus Titanicus battlegroup and some great modelling books to remember my visit by.

I'd mentioned above that we made two wargaming stops in the area. The second was just outside the village of East Stoke...  

A bit off the beaten track but WELL worth the visit, Wargames Foundry HQ sits in a cute little farm complex.

Inside, a lovely gaming table and even more lovely racks upon racks of wargames models. Kid, meet candy shop...

One cool thing was the display cabinets all about the place, each rammed full of beautifully painted Foundry and Citadel models. I had to get some close-up shots...

 Genestealer Magos and friends.

Some of the original Chaos Warriors.

Titans from the original Adeptus Titanicus.

New obsession: the second Barons' War. I picked up the new Osprey on Lewes and Evesham 1264-65 while in the UK and a visit to Lewes Castle and the ruined Priory did not help matters...

Gotta have a close-up of those knights. Sweet! Of course the credit card was exercised here a bit as well, another great thing about Foundry HQ is that standard packs are only 10 pounds instead of 12 by mail order. Can't afford NOT to indulge!

Oh, and we did some other stuff in the area as well, including having a drink in (what's claimed to be) the oldest public house in Britain, "Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem", 1189. Pretty awesome. Can't wait to go back!

Iron Hands Land Raider

Ready roll out in defence of The Emperor (pointlessly, of course).

The summer of 2019 continues to see brushes bending to the Loyalist cause in the 30k setting - this time some serious armoured firepower in the form of an Armoured Proteus Land Raider for the 10th Legion, the "Iron Hands".  It can carry a squad of Medusan Immortals to battle, and provide them with heavy fire support from its batteries of twin-lascannon on either sponson and the twin-heavy bolter mounted on the front of the hull.

WIP photo from the painting table out at the lake.

The "Armoured Proteus" is a Forge World kit, a variant on the classic "Land Raider Proteus" design from the Rogue Trader era of 40k.  The Land Raider is an iconic piece of Space Marine kit. Going back to the time of the first "Space Marine" game, which followed the original "Adeptus Titanicus" and brought in Epic and gaming the Horus Heresy alive, I remembered you got a whole bunch of plastic Land Raiders with the game. I loved the original "Space Marine" game and associate Horus Heresy battlefields with the image of Land Raiders zapping each other on the table in no small part because of it.

"Gaarsak" - a name only a Medusan could love, I suppose? It was on the FW decal sheet...

The GW designers have expanded the collection of 30k vehicles to an incredible extent - adding many variants on the Land Raider, Predator and Rhino chassis, new vehicles like the Sicaran tanks, and even super-heavy tanks like the Fellblade and its friends, not to mention assorted bikes, jet bikes, speeders, flyers and landers.  Your 30k Legion forces have a lot to choose from!

Twin lascannons in a heavily armoured mount.

The classic Land Raider Proteus is a favourite, of course, but the Armoured Proteus always looked super cool - even better in person after Dallas painted one for his Howling Griffons back in 2012.  The Armoured Proteus has the unique, bonkers, classic look of the Land Raider, but with features that resemble a bunker on the Atlantic Wall. For many years I hoped to add one to my 30k collection.

Another view of the top - and the definitely-not-carbon-neutral exhaust system.

Of course, I do not do well modelling these resin vehicle kits.  With Land Raiders, the challenge is always the tracks, getting them lined up, hoping they fit etc.  Well, once again, Steve B here in Winnipeg was willing and able to assist with the assembly for me.  He did fantastic work getting the kit built for me. Thanks very much Steve!! 

Another view of the front.

Chipping on the armour here and there, amid the FW 10th Legion decals.

I started collecting 28mm 30k stuff back in 2014.  As you can tell from a scan of the blog, I sure love the setting and really enjoy the painting, collecting and gaming.  But over more than five years of painting 30k in this scale, my bias has become pretty clear - I have more than 120 infantry, six or seven tanks and APCs painted for my Sons of Horus alone.  But the other side of the conflict is not so well-represented on my shelves - I have collected and painted loyalists in small groups, and this is the first tank I have ever painted for the loyalist side!

Some Medusan Immortals from the 10th Legion on test maneuvers with their new ride.

My "shattered Legion" Loyalist force is coming together nicely - they now have some tough armour to back them up on the table.  But one tank alone, even a formidable Land Raider, won't last too long in many games, so watch for further reinforcements to appear at some point.    

Summer Painting Cont'd - More 30k Iron Hands

Another squad of Medusan Immortals for the 10th Legion, the "Iron Hands".

My summer painting continues - at a pretty slow pace, since the summer weather has been nice, but I am still making a bit of progress at the portable painting station after the sun goes down.  Here is a second squad of Medusan Immortals, loyalist Space Marines from the 10th Legion, the "Iron Hands". They will complement a squad of similar troops I painted earlier in the month.

I painted the right shoulder pauldrons white on this squad, just so I could tell them apart from the first squad, and to make them a little easier to keep track of on the table.

The equipment on this squad is a little different from the first one - instead of the bolt gun, universal weapon of the Space Marines, these troops are carrying volkite chargers instead. It's an upgrade option available to this unit selection, and I do love the look of the volkite weapons on the table.  With these models in particular they add nicely to the bonkers OTT look of 30k that appeals so much to me.  Together with the embossed boarding shields, embossed shoulder plates, the wide assortment of bionic bits (legs, arms and heads) and the grenades and ammo spare clips tacked on everywhere, this squad looks ready to party, 30k-style!

Vox trooper visible in the rear of the photo...not an elligible upgrade, just there to look cool.

Another view of the vox trooper, and some comrades, all sporting deadly volkite chargers.

I dropped a couple of other small modifications among the group - the sergeant's helmet is actually a command helmet from the Mark IV armour plastic set, and he is sporting a plasma pistol from the 40k range - it has a crazy over-sized scope on it, I loved the look and I thought it helped make the sergeant look a little nuttier. There is also a comms trooper, wearing a helmet and vox-unit from the Mark III command set (I think).  He is just there to look cool, as I don't think the vox-caster upgrade is something this particular squad-type is allowed to take.

Squad sergeant - helmet from a plastic Mark IV set, plasma pistol from the current 40k plastics range.

From this angle, you can see his left leg has been replaced with a bionic limb. You can also get (a bit) of a glimpse of the crazily-embossed shoulder plate.

Last, but not least, there are two special weapons supporting this squad as well - more graviton guns! Ah, the graviton gun - a Rogue Trader-era classic!

The Graviton Gun 

Remember this cool thing from Rogue Trader???

The GW folks plotting out the 28mm version of the Horus Heresy did many things very well.  One of those was to go back to the "Rogue Trader era" and pull the odd bit here and there and put it back into action for 30k gaming.  The graviton gun is one of those classics!

Graviton guns to the front!

In those original rules, the graviton gun added mass to anything it hit.  Hit something enough times with the graviton gun, it would be stuck to the ground.  This was bad news for anything walking around the table, and fatal to anything hovering or flying. My Rogue Trader-era Imperial Guardsmen once killed a stupid Eldar Avatar in this fashion, pinging it several times with graviton guns, then wandering over to stab it at their leisure! Ah, the whackiness of Rogue Trader...

Keen to zap those who betrayed their oaths to the Emperor and the Great Crusade...

The rules for the graviton gun in the 30k setting are no longer so nutty.  The weapons are meant to be somewhat rare support-type weapons.  I thought the rare-tech nature of the weapon fit well with the Medusan Immortals.  Between these things and the volkite chargers, the followers of Horus will be in for a zap or two...

20 Medusan Immortals, perhaps "relaxing" at the lake for now, but rest assured they are plotting revenge against those who betrayed their comrades in the Isstvan system...

That's two squads of Immortals now to join my scattered collection of Loyalist "Shattered Legions" for 30k gaming.  Together with the very small base elements I painted during Curt's most recent Painting Challenge, the Iron Hands can be safely upgraded from "small pests" to "minor nuisance".  It will take something a little more serious to take this small collection to the next level, however, and make them into a real force for the gaming table.  Hopefully that will be something I can share later on. But in the meantime...

A view of the setting sun from my Kayak in Whitefish Bay.

Thanks for visiting the blog, and I hope everyone is having a great summer!  

Summer Painting - 30k Iron Hands - Medusan Immortals

Some Medusan Immortals for the 10th Legion - loyalist troops for 30k gaming.

The deep summer has arrived in Canada! When July and August roll around, my wife and I try and spend as much time as we can at our cabin in Sault Ste Marie, Ontario. We have a little place on the eastern side of Whitefish Bay of Lake Superior, and it is probably my favourite place in the world. It's a great place to relax, visit with family, and do cabin-type-things like swimming, kayaking, riding ATVs and other stuff.  But it's also a great place to paint! I don't paint as much during the summer, as the outdoors take precedence, but I do try to bring a nice stash of stuff with me to make progress on.  This summer I thought I would try to get some more 28mm 30k stuff painted.

Bionic arm visible for the trooper on the right...meanwhile the fellow on the left is going action-movie-style...one arm with the bolt gun, shield down...

And I have made some progress! Here is a 10-man squad of "Medusan Immortals" from the 10th Legion, the Iron Hands. Yes...some loyalists! 

A lot of character and detail on these fantastic sculpts...I loved painting them.

The Medusan Immortals are troops who have, in some way, failed the Iron Hands (I assume this failure somehow occurred in battle, but maybe they just brought Ferrus Manus cappucino when he had wanted a latte).  These disgraced warriors join the ranks of the Medusan Immortals, and as part of these units, embrace the toughest battle assignments, hoping to win back their honour and place in the Legion.

For the sergeant I swapped in an officer's head from a Mark III power armour suit.

The Medusan Immortals are kitted out as breaching marines.  The sculpts are excellent, with a lot of character.  They have embossed shoulder plates, and really snazzy embossed boarding shields. The figures also show a lot of bionics - there are many replacement legs and arms, and several of the helmets have cable connections pointing to some bionic replacement bits on the warriors' heads.

The level of bionic replacement is consistent with the background of the 10th Legion - supposedly noted for their near-mechanicum-level familiarity and favour of technology.  It could also be meant to show the "failure" that led the Legionnaire to join the ranks of the Immortals in the first place involved heavy battle damage...sounds like a rough gig!

Flamer-armed legionnaire ready to support his fellow Immortals.

The figures also have lots of spare ammo clips and grenades attached - overall, they are a menacing sort of forlorn hope.  I really liked these figures, and I'm glad I have another 10 to paint. 

Graviton gun can be seen on the trooper in the middle...

This first squad is equipped with bolt guns, and supported by a flamer and the whacky graviton gun. They will give a tough fight on the table (doomed, of course, because they are loyalists, after all), and will join the small force I started painting during Curt's most recent painting challenge once I get back to Winnipeg.

Summer Reading
 

The Siege of Terra begins with "The Solar War" by John French...

I've also got some summer reading going too.  The Horus Heresy novel series is finally, after what seems like about 378 books,  moving to the story at last to the Siege of Terra. I picked up a copy of "The Solar War", the first book touching on the siege, written by John French (author of the amazing "Praetorian of Dorn").  It was...OK...a solid 'C+'.  YMMV.  There are many cool parts to the book - I love the description of Terra and the situation in the Solar System during the heresy. But there are also too many Primarchs and their assorted silliness. And while I hope I don't give anything away, the big plot twist is not at all a surprise if you have read "Prospero Burns"...it was easy to see coming.

But hey - we all have different things we like, so I still encourage you to check out the novel.  It will help inspire 30k and 40k painting if nothing else!

I do sort of wonder why GW doesn't have any other Siege of Terra stuff out to accompany this book though...nothing special from Forgeworld, or another Horus Heresy box game...like, the Siege of Terra is THE penultimate moment of the Horus Heresy...that should be a bigger deal.  GW is strangely siloed, it seems...why would you have a box game for the stupid Ultramarines, but no game for the actual Seige of Terra?

Hey, wait, there is something new coming for Adeptus Titanicus! Oh, wait...just more Knights... 

But GW has released something else kind big this summer...

New Edition of Apocalypse
 

Some new rules from GW to contemplate...

Some other summer reading - GW has issued another set of "Apocalypse" rules for 40k. I'll say more about this in a separate post but...while the price is, of course, appalling, these rules look really, really cool...yes, that's right...I think they have something potentially awesome here for us...

Thanks for visiting - I hope everyone is having a great summer, wherever you are!

A sunset at the cabin...have a great summer, everyone!