TOEMP #5 - Complete! ...Also, Clowns!

It's been a rather productive week painting-wise, and I managed to polish off my entries for the Tale of Even More Painters challenge - On the troops side a unit of Pathfinders, and a Warwalker for the heavy support choice.

I wanted to incorporate some of the tips and tricks that I've picked up from the other participants in the challenge, and I tried out a couple on the Pathfinders. I felt that the bases for the Eldar definitely needed a bit more 'zest' than what I've been doing for most of the 7th, and as such I've added a bit of turf to the bases, and I think I'm going to experiment with some static grass, once I get a chance to swing by the FLGS. I also tried my hand at a more intricate camo pattern on the cloaks, taking a cue from several exellent examples. I'm not 100% pleased with the final result, but it turned out okay for a first try - I know a little bit more than I did before!

The Warwalker's mottled camo turned out somewhat muted following the sealant, but I kind of like it. I realize now that I missed a number of gemstones on the weapons, so I've gone back and rectified that situation. Definitely a fun model to assemble - I'm looking forward to building two more to round out the squadron.

I'd picked up a unit of Harlequins back when the new set was released, and had painted up three for use in a 40K:RP campaign I ran a while back. Since I had enjoyed painting the other Eldar models so much, I dusted off the remainder of the squad and set to painting them. Three painting sessions and 36 colors later I basically had to say enough was enough!

I have to admit for as arduous a process as these were, it was rather enjoyable nonetheless. I found myself actively trying to find the most clashing colors I could, and worked to ensure no model had exactly the same mix of colors. The three 'Characters' all have more distinct schemes; The Death Jester is of course primarily bone and black but I added some green and purple panels on his sleeves to give him a splash of color. The Troupe Master has a horribly clashing checkerboard pattern on his jacket, and is the only model to have all of the various colors on him. On the Shadowseer I decided to go a bit different from the 'feel' of the other models - the bodysuit is a solid deep blue with small star patterns (sort of), and I spent some time working on blending the hood and sashes in a red-orange-yellow scheme that turned out more or less as intended. I was trying to capture a more 'otherworldly' look to go along with his obscurement powers.

I picked up an Eldar battleforce on ebay which arrived today, which gives me a little bit more to build and paint. With that in mind, I made a painting chart for the budding army, which also helped me decide exactly what the final army was going to contain. Only this, and no further!

...Well, maybe a little bit further - I would like to pick up a FW Nightwing Fighter. Alas, that way lies madness!

TOEMP #5 - Veering wildly off course...

I've come down with a moderate case of Army Painter's Fatigue, as is the case for me from time to time. While the Tale Of Even More Painters competition has helped me to make great strides in completing the guard, it also means that I've spent the last several months doing nothing but painting a sea of grey and red, and I felt I needed a little change of pace. Of course, I can't leave well enough alone and a 'little change of pace' turned into 'hey, I should start a new Eldar army'.

Darnit.

The current challenge is to paint up a Heavy Support and/or Troops choice - instead of slogging through another squad of guardsmen I thought I'd root around in the Closet of Doom and see what I could come up with. I returned from the depths bearing the handful of Eldar models I'd purchased to accompany a Radical Ordo Xenos Inquisitor and his retinue (another half-realized project). There were several models in boxes and blisters: a Farseer, a squad of Rangers, and a Warwalker, and on a shelf I found a Wraithlord that I'd originally painted up in Iyanden colors on a lark years ago. Some superglue, a hit of primer later and I dove in. Though at the time I had no batteries for my camera and I wasn't able to get in progress shots until the following day.

I decided I rather liked the look of Alaitoc, the blue and yellow on the vehicles was what originally caught my eye. I'm going to try my hand at the stippled-blue look, and the War Walker got to be the initial test model. I think I need to add one more slightly lighter blue stipple layer yet. At the moment there's quite a lot of work still to go, but I'm more or less pleased with the overall effect, and the Blue/Yellow/Bone seems like a nice change of pace, palatte-wise.

I also started work on the Rangers squad, again just up to the base colors stage. I'm planning on adding a camo pattern to the cloaks, but I'm undecided whether to go with the lighter khaki scheme as shown in the codex, or with a green or grey scheme instead. I'm leaning towards the green though, as I intent to add a fair bit of grass to the bases for this army.

So far they've been fun to paint if just for being something new and different. One of the things that I'm looking forward to is the fact that many of the Eldar units, particularly the Aspect Warriors, all have separate and distinct color schemes - You're never really painting more than 15-20 models in the same colors. Not quite like the guard where it's 100+ models all in the same fatigues...

I'm not giving up or setting aside the guard by any means - I just needed a little change of pace to keep my enthusasm up. I'll be returning to paint up the Stormtroopers and King Russ tanks in short order!

Utilizing a painting chart to track progress.

Following Admiral Drax's lead (the guy is a constant source of great ideas), I sat down and worked out a painting chart to help me visualize where the army stands today, what's been painted/what's being painted, and what's left to build. I started to build out the chart following the original Mordian 7th's FOC, but it became unwieldy so I reverted back to the standard HQ/Elites/Troops/Fast Attack/Heavy Support breakdown (though I kept the various platoon numbers intact).

Unfortunately it appears that I'm not as far along with the army as I'd originally thought - though to be fair I have completed the lion's share of the infantry at this point (barring a unit of beastmen and a couple rough rider squads) which I find to be the hardest units for me to do. There's a lot of work remaining in the Heavy Support category, but those shouldn't take too much time once I finish the builds and get them primered.

I included the Leviathan on the chart, which will bring the army up to just a touch over 8,000 points. I've been gathering bits to make the beast, and I'm slowly gearing up to take on the construction. My initial plan was to build the superstructure out of wood, but I've subsequently changed my mind and decided on using insulating foam and plasticard for weight considerations.

I plan to keep this chart updated as I make progress on the army - a big thanks to Drax for this idea, I really think it'll help me stay on task (something that I can always use help doing)!

TOEMP #4 Complete!

I managed to finish up the Valkyrie for the Tale of Even More Painters challenge #4 -Since most aerial assets used by the Imperial Guard are generally 'on loan' from the Imperial Navy, I decided to go with the sandstone color scheme I used on the Thunderbolt.

I went with a grey color scheme on the underside similar to the Thunderbolt as well. I plan to add some waterslide aquilas and various decorations, but I couldn't find the Micro-sol and I need to wait until I get more before I start that process.

I have an Apocalypse game coming up in a couple weeks, so I spent some time building several units that I need to make the points requirement, first up is another flyer - a Vulture gunship armed with twin punisher cannons. The model was just too cool to pass up!

Next up is a squad of Stormtroopers - made from a mix of Scouts (half 'vanilla' scouts and the other half are from the Land Speeder Storm kit), Catachan lasrifles and FW Cadian upgrade bits. I'm not 100% happy with the way the Hellguns turned out though, I'll likely sell these guys off once I get them painted and do a rebuild using the shotguns from the Scout sprues as a basis for the weapon, adding the scopes, cabling and lasgun muzzles. These turned out a bit more like Hellcarbines, I think.

Last up, and what will likely take the most work to finish in time for the game - the six remaining King Russ variant tanks. I decided to go with one squadron of 3 Vanquishers (led my a Knight Commander Pask proxy), and one other squadron including a 'vanilla' Leman Russ, a Punisher, and an Eradicator. I'm still figuring out how/whether I will add side sponsons to the tanks - they're designed to utilize the Predator sponsons, and I'm trying to figure out how to best use those in conjunction with the various weapon options included in the new Leman Russ Demolisher kit.

When all is said and done the addition of these models will bump the army up to just shy of 7,000 points. I think that should probably be enough Guard for most purposes!

TOEMP #3 - The Mordian 7th Regimental Command, part 3

Success (sort of)! I managed to polish off the command squad last night for the Tale of Even More Painters 3rd challenge. The qualifier is in reference to the Commissar Lord who I managed to drop onto a tile floor on the way out to seal the figs. Going to have to do some serious rework on that one. Curses!

Part of the contest was to come up with a background and history for your own special character, and as such I fleshed out some information regarding the Mordian 7th Regiment and Commander Evin Eldro:

++THE MORDIAN 7TH REGIMENT++

The Mordian 7th Regiment can trace its history back to the days of the expansionist era as one of the original ten Guard regiments raised from the hive world of Mordia. During a recent refounding the regiment's D Company was formed from the "Night Rippers" hive gang, which had led a rebellion against Mordia's planetary governor, Commander Varren. The rebellion was put down, and its leader, Mahagon Jhume, executed. His followers were considered a potentially valuable fighting force and rather than being executed, they were inducted into the Imperial Guard. The "Night Rippers" continue to use their gang symbols and use Jhume's image on their banners. In 984.M41 the regiment was assigned to pacify the newly rediscovered human world of Flotis III. However due to an Adeptus Munitorum scribe's error on their regimental manifest, the unit was mistakenly recorded as the "Mordion 7th", and as such found themselves cut off from support and resupply from Mordia for nearly five years. Eventually the error was corrected, though in subsequent years the Mordian High Command has attempted to distance themselves from the 7th Regiment, claiming "they've spent so much time on the front lines they no longer represent the Mordian ideal", and it has been quietly speculated that Eldro's association with the Night Rippers hive gang has compromised the principles that the majority of the Mordian Iron Guard hold dear. Indeed the Mordian 7th is unusual in the fact that they do not fight in the dress uniforms and tidy ranks the Mordian Iron Guard are known for. Regimental Commander Evin Eldro dismisses these claims and points to the phenomenal successes the regiment has accomplished over the years as proof that his men are as capable as any other regiment hailing from the Mordian Hive World.

++COMMANDER EVIN ELDRO++

Following his successful persecution of the Orks infesting Flotis III, Commander Evin Eldro of D Company was elevated to the rank of Regimental Commander of the Mordian 7th. The time spent fighting the Orks honed Commander Eldro and his men into fierce fighting form, and it was due to Eldro's tactical acumen that the 7th Regiment (and notably the men of D Company) were able to not only stem the green tide, but eventually repel the Ork invaders from the planet Flotis III. Eldro was able to exhort the men of D Company to perform acts of insane bravery in the face of the alien menace, and their actions saved thousands of Imperial citizens from a fate as slaves to the cruel Ork taskmasters. On more than one occasion, surprised orks were massacred by waves of enraged, bayonet-armed guardsmen charging into battle.

Commander Eldro is unusual in his open-mindedness towards abhumans, something that has caused friction between the Mordian 7th and other Imperial forces. During the action on Flotis III, D Company included squads of Ratlings and Ogryns which are still seen on many battlefields, but also included a small force of Beastmen - an abhuman strain that is regarded with extreme suspicion by most. No one is quite sure of the history behind their association, but packmasters Org and Raakt are fiercely loyal to Commander Eldro, and their abilities in close quarter fighting were instrumental in repelling several Ork incursions on Flotis III.

A Company Commander may be replaced by Commander Evin Eldro for an additional 100 points.

	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Sv
Commander Evin Eldro	4	4	3	3	3	3	3	10	4+

++EQUIPMENT++
Carapace Armor
Refractor Field
Plasma Pistol
Frag Grenades
Close Combat Weapon

++SPECIAL RULES++
Supreme Commander: Eldro can issue up to four orders each turn. He has a command radius of 24". Eldro can use the Bring It Down!, Fire on my Target! and Get Back in the Fight! orders described on page 30, as well as the First Rank, FIRE! Second Rank, FIRE!, Incoming! and Move! Move! Move! orders described on page 36. In addition, Eldro can use the following unique order:

For Mahagon Jhume!: Through a combination of inspiring diatribe and threatening bellows, Eldro exhorts his soldiers forward to glory! If the order is successfully issued, the ordered unit is inspired and immediately charges into the fray with little thought for its own safety. Until the end of the turn, the ordered unit gains the Fearless and Furious Charge special rules - place a counter or other suitable marker next to the unit to show this.

Beastmen Attack Squads: Commander Eldro is unusually tolerant of Abhumans and any army he leads may be accompanied by 0-2 Beastman Attack Squads. They are chosen following the rules and points values for Penal Legion squads, however their Desperadoes specialist skill is always assumed to be Knife Fighters, and they must discard their lasrifles, preferring the exclusive use of their swords and axes. Although Beastman Attack Squads are considered a Troops Choice for purposes of holding objectives and deployment, they do not count as mandatory choices for Force Organization chart selection.

Regimental Command: Commander Evin Eldro is always accompanied by his regimental command staff. If Commander Eldro is included in the army, he MUST be accompanied by a full complement of Advisors, including a Master of Ordinance, an Officer of the Fleet, an Astropath, and two Bodyguards.

I based the rules for Commander Eldro on Creed, removing the Tactical Genius rule and replacing it with the Beastman Attack Squads rule, and adding the caveat that he must be accompanied by a full set of Advisors. In addition I removed his twin-linked hotshot laspistols and gave him a Plasma Pistol and Close Combat Weapon (the swagger stick) instead.

I realized after I'd built them that technically bodyguards are supposed to be armed with Laspistols and Close Combat Weapons, but as in most of the army entries there is no points cost difference between a Lasgun and the LP/CCW, my opponents rarely kick up much of a fuss. I enjoyed building the 'casualty' model, it's somewhat hard to tell, but he's dropping a live grenade, I shaved the pin and added it to the base, which makes the other bodyguard's wide-eyed look a bit more understandable, as he's no doubt expected to throw himself on said grenade...

Another fun unit to paint - this time around all the figs were mini-characters in their own right, I tried to build as much personality into the command squads as I can, and that makes them much more entertaining than the blocks of regular infantry so common to the Guard.