Winter Is Coming...

I decided right back when I first started my Vostroyans that they would have urban bases and pretty quickly came to the conclusion that instead of spending ages on every soldier's base (there are almost a hundred of them!) I would add snow to help break up all the grey. My hope was that this would help brighten the models up a bit and unify the army as well as saving some time to make the bases of the characters stand out with some extra detail.

Last night I put together a typical base on which to test out my homemade snow effect. I went down the Bicarbonate of Soda and PVA mixed together with a little water. It took a little while to get the mix to the desired consistency but I am pleased with the results.

From bare base to winter wonderland!

I then repeated the process adding small patches of snow to the bases of my Vostroyans. I also added an extra highlight to their red uniforms, as I discussed in my previous blog, in an effort to brighten them up a notch. 

 Before... and after...

The finished trooper ready for the battlefield.

Here is a group shot to demonstrate how they look en masse.

A priest leads an infantry squad to war.

The view from above.

In other news I have finally got around to using my airbrush. I have a bit more work to do on the undercoats of my tanks and a squad of conscripts but I'll save that as it is worthy of a post of its own!

"What I cannot crush with words I will crush with the tanks of the Imperial Guard!"

Lord Commander Solar Macharius

For Vostroya!

As I mentioned in my last post I have been working on my Vostroyan Imperial Guard army this month and finally have an update for you. I love the 'grim darkness' of the 40k background where no one quite understands the technology, superstition is rampant and the life of a guardsman is cheap. I wanted to reflect the background in this army hence the darker colours. In hindsight I feel that the colours are a little too dark for them so I will be adding an extra highlight to the red on all these models. I will also be adding snow to their bases soon to contrast with their darker look (this will hopefully make them 'pop' a little bit more on the table).

 

Completed Infantry Squad

 

 Work in progress (I've been painting these guys in groups of four)

 

My approach to the fluff carries over into my army selection. For example, I have only included one plasma gun in the army as they are meant to be a rare sight. I don't think that limiting selections like this will effect the army on the battlefield much and am trying to put together a competitive list. More on that some other time.

 

Converted Missile Launcher Teams

 

One of the problems faced when collecting a metal army such as the Vostroyans is that they do not have models for all the different options you can take. This isn't too much of an issue as with a bit of work, weapon swaps and little conversions can easily remedy any missing options as is the case with my missile teams above.

 

My two Lieutenants, each will lead a platoon of guardsmen

 

I have added some height to the bases of my characters to help them stand out from the crowd of guardsmen. I have tried to keep the options limited on them mainly to save on points, these guys are in the list for their ability to use orders not go toe to toe with Greater Daemons and the like. The Lieutenant on the right is my one ezception, I see him as highborn and he wields a plasma pistol and power sword (no doubt aristocratic heirlooms)!

 

Ministorum Priest

 

The idea of hundreds of guardsmen following some slightly unhinged priest into battle was too good to miss. He will be placed with a 30 strong  conscript squad and between himself and a commissar will be responsible for keeping them running in the right direction! I did a little freehand on the banner and am particularly pleased with the glowing coals on the top of the standard.

Close up of the top of the standard

 

I struggled to find a model that I could use to represent a Primaris Psyker. The one that GW do looks a bit naff to me and I again wanted something a little more 'grim dark'. In the end I went for one of the rogue psyker models from Forge World. I haven't finished him yet but he isn't too far off.

 



Work in progress shot of my Primaris Psyker









 

Finally no Imperial Guard army goes to war without a full complement of armour to support the footsloggers! I have another tank to add to these below and eventually, to cap it all off, an Imperial Knight Titan!

Command Chimera (with Forge World Autocannon turret)

 

Leman Russ Eradicators

 

There you have it. Progress so far. I intend to try my new airbrush out painting up all four tanks at the same time. I will also make use of an airbrush to get my 30 strong conscript squad done quickly. I'll post my progress up here. Other than that I will be continuing working through more Vostroyans. The army is going to end up at 1850pts so I have plenty to paint still!

 



 

"The Victor lives in honour; the Vanquished dies in shame.'

 

-DEPARTMENTO MUNITORUM STRTEGIC PARABLES 27:2-

In Germany....

Well, I haven't updated my part of the blog in a while - mostly due to laziness and distractions. Yea.... PC Gaming due to Wildstar being released sucked me in again.

I have to admit, I'm still struggling to keep concentrated on this project. I love the figures, I love the way I've created moving trays for them, and I really can't wait to play Lasalle.... but the eternal problem of lacking an opponent I think is one of the primary factors thats killing it.

I'm currently on a two month mission here in Germany, so I wont be back in France between the end of August. I did however, bring my napoleonic minis and my paints with me to work on this while I am here. Through in retrospect, I do wish I had brought some Flames of War Germans as well, because I'm actually in the mood to paint some Fallschirmjagers.

I think the key to make myself motivated to paint more Napoleonics to watch the 1970s classic, 'Waterloo' again.

Its crazy to think that I've actually managed to paint up two divisions in 6mm, but I'm struggling to complete even a brigade in 10mm! 6mm being FAR more tedious and annoying to paint up!

Again, I think it just comes down to people in France where I live, are just not really into Napoleonics, and considering it was already hard enough to find the few people interested in playing and painting Flames of War, I should be happy....

This line infantry battalion I painted about a month or two ago. Made them more rag-tag, a couple mismatched uniforms here and there, and some shako covers to give the overall feel of being battleworn. I find making them battlworn and a bit rag-tag to be far more interesting than if straight out of the factory - then again once can only look through my images to see that this concept applies to just about all my miniature painting :)

I'll try and work on some more napoleonics while I'm in Germany.... but I need motivation ><