Painted up in the February Painting Window!

Finished some more figures for my armies (Skaven, Chaos & Imperial Guard). But once again the photographs make them look worse than they are in real life, (honest guv!). Well, on with the waffle, I suppose!

Skaven Musician

I finished this musician as I've been looking at my two 50 (ish) strong slave units and only one has a 4 point muso. Well that problem is now well and truly solved! I painted this with the idea the drum skins are manskin and the drumstick is warpstone. Maybe the next one I do will have cat fur drums.

Skavenslave drummer

Stormvermin

I painted up another six Stormvermin for my arsekicking unit! These were Stormvermin created when I was boycotting GW and in fact gaming in general. I picked these up on ebay, nice sculpts, I'm sure a unit of 50 of these would look awesome.

Semi-new Stormvermin

Three older type Stormvermin, I love these poses as the Stormvermin models don't fit well behing the command group, and now with the couple of other 'guarding' stormvermin there is far less chance of scraping paint off each other.

Oldish Stormvermin

Chaos Blokes

Stabb the Acolyte (on the left) has spent approximately 17 years undercoated black, skulking around various tabletops looking uninteresting. All that has now changed! With his sharkskin gloves and shiny red hooves, he is sure to set tongues a-wagging on battlefields all over my Warhammer Universe. The other model is an old citadel Werewolf that spent a similar length of time being uninspiring. His new career as a Chaos Marauder champion should hopefully make his long commute to work, worth spending so much time away from his family, as the extra wages might allow him to buy some clothes. If you look closely you can see his dog like genitals on display, this is one of those time when I thought to myself decency should have trumped anatomical accuracy.  

Stabb the Acolyte & a Werewolf

Next are a couple of chaos hounds. These are Marauder models that came with a rather tasty Chaos Beastmaster that is somewhere on the production line, I originally planned to use the Beastmaster as a chaos slaver for Necromunda and these two were to be his ever faithful Sump Hounds. Until then they can go and kill in the name of the forces of chaos (probably Nurgle - The Plague Lord seems to be in vogue at the moment).

Chaos Hounds

From an ever-so slightly different angle

Profile

I have also finished Redmaw, a particularly tasty sculpt who is Khazrak's pet. I have the original Khazrak model, but it will be a uneventful day in the Realm of Chaos before I start painting beastmen again! The model is great, lots of detail (although I sculpted a pair of balls for him) even if he seems to have disappeared from the fluff. He will just have to spend his time being a chaos hound champion (even though there is no such thing) or a rather dangerous death world critter. I'm sure that whatever way I reassign man -or indeed, hound- power, Redmaw will enjoy his new role as model murderer.

The beautiful Redmaw

Lovely teef

Finally Super Viper Assassination Squad got two new members for their nefarious schemes, these were I Kore models. The scale is comparable to GWs so no problem there. I actually got them from ebay with some Necromunda models I did want, then I started looking at the new Imperial Guard codex and realised Super Viper Assassination Squad could be hitting the battlefield as veterans with the Grenadier discipline.

Two new members for Super Viper Assassination Squad 

Shotguns & Swords

The Raising of Krablokistan I

Well I've been musing over my Imperial Guard and how to make an interesting regiment and I've come up with the following, Krablokistan finest! The idea came from my ongoing mutant project and a conversion I have made. Basically I cut the head from an old 2nd edition gretchin from the 40K boxed set and replaced it with a metal acolyte of the Light College of magic. This gave me a rather short autogun armed yahoo that is currently undergoing painting.

Then I'm wandering the internet, lonely as a cloud and find these:

Thinking that I can remove the Gretchen heads and replace them with some of these, I can make around 40 guardsmen that will have a uniform look. With a little bit of help from my trusty Dremel I can make an interesting few units for my already swollen imperial guard army. Below is the test model for the project, but I see him as one of these villain type henchmen who is associated with the big boss and due to his small size is rather sadistic. Also due to my inexperience with sculpting has a slightly longer than is normal neck and a raggedy scarf so perhaps he is the survivor of a botched lynching?

Little Nug as I have decided to name him

Also going to be part of a guilder gang in Necromunda!

Another thing I found on the Maxmini website that I have the serious model horn for is this Confession Machine. It look just the sort of Gothic ATM, self dispensing chemist, or Report-A-Heretic device. It's on my list of things I want so if any benevolent reader fancies making me happy just get me one of these!

Or indeed one of these:

This looks like the sort of thing an ever-so powerful underhive crime lord would have, as he avoids capture from the Enforcers or a rival. Looks like my mind has gone off on a terrible Necromundan tangent! 

The Slagstas

As I'm getting back into Necromunda, I thought I'd share an old gang that I had an immense amount of fun with. Though not as successful as The Bushwakkers the Slagstas were to me a more fun gang to play. So without further ado here is my gang of Goliaths that sort of terrorized Slag Valley & the surrounding area with wild abandon!

The Slagstas 

Here are the remaining members of the Slagstas. A Goliath gang that reside aound Fornication Gulch, which is in turn near Slag Valley. I had mixed success with them but I enjoyed immensely the carnage they created, so here they are:

Masha-The Slag King II

Masha took over from the first slag king by default, as the previous monarch fell foul of a Van Saar gang called the Psi Judges. Since he took over the fortunes of The Slagstas have gone into a steady decline. Despite this Masha has vowed to own the entire Fornication Gulch area, or at least amass a huge amount of wealth in the process.

Masha - The Slag King II

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
4	4	4	3	4	1	4	1	9

Skills: Body Slam
Injuries: Head Wound, Bitter Enmity Grrr gang (got this result twice, so he REALLY hates them), Impressive scars, Old battle wound.
Equipment: Flamer, 2x plasma pistols, Knife, Grapnel.
Cost:180 Exp:92

Shootah

Shootah is Masha's right-hand-man, as the rest have all been killed, but as he is the most experienced member of the gang he actually deserves the position. His abilities make him a suitable hand-to-hand fighter but until some funds are forth coming he'll have to settle for his trusty shotgun.

Shootah

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
4	4	3	3	4	1	6	2	8

Skills:True Grit, Weaponsmith.
Injuries: Old Battle Wound.
Equipment: Shotgun,Knife.
Cost:80 Exp:243

Hoppa

Hoppa is quite a competant fighter except that a blown out kneecap makes him rather slow. When he does get into hand-to-hand look out, as he has a habit of hurling people off high buildings and then laughing at the meaty thump sounds. But the laughs are all the louder if the victim is from The House Of Redemption.

Hoppa

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
3	4	4	4	3	1	5	1	7

Skills:Iron Jaw, Counter Attack, Hurl Opponent.
Injuries: Leg Wound (left), Old Battle Wound, Bitter Enmity (House Cawdor).
Equipment: Shotgun, Hand Flamer, Knife.
Cost:90 Exp: 122

Mukka

Mukka fancies himself as a bit of a pistoleer, despite the fact there is no evidence to support this. Recently he has been telling everyone that will listen that he should be the leader of The Slagstas and it will only be a matter of time before there is a challenge to Masha's throne.

Mukka

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
4	4	3	4	3	3	4	1	9

Skills: None.
Injuries: None.
Equipment: 2xAutopistols.Knife.
Cost: 65 Exp: 152

Ratt

Ratt is a young Goliath juve who joined the gang looking for excitement recently. So far he has developed a single tactic in hand-to-hand combat, a headbutt. He is still naive enough to beleive that The Slagstas are a awe inspiring gang. He is due to be let down, hard.

Ratt

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
4	2	2	3	3	1	3	1	6

Skills: Head Butt.
Injuries: None.
Equipment: Laspistol, Knife.
Cost: 40 Exp: 9

Not-So-Lucky Bogi

Lucky Bogi (as he was named prior to his accident) joined the Slagstas as a juve, with high hopes of wealth and fame but a horrifc fall from a gantry has left him a ruin. Despite his considerable catalog of injuries (including having lost an eye), Bogi is a very good shot. He like nothing better than to limp to a prominent piece of cover with good fields of fire, and then proceed to pick off enemy gang members. Masha is very fond of Bogi and has promised to "sort him out" with bionics if he strikes it rich, but until then Bogi has to take out his frustrations on enemy gangers.

Not-so-lucky-Bogi

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
3	1	4	2	3	3	5	1	9

Skills: Hurl Opponent.
Injuries: Blind in Left Eye, 2 Fingers missing from right hand, Arm Wound (right), Leg Wound (left), Chest Wound.
Equipment: Shotgun with Hotshot, Bolt, Manstopper and Flechete ammo. Knife.
Cost: 75 Exp: 91

Flat Nose

A few members of this gang are not armed with weapons appropriate to their skills, Flat Nose is not one of these. Armed with a single autopistol, he is regularly seen racing into combat where opponents soon find out how mean he is. Coupled with the fact he received a severe head wound early in his career means Flat Nose can as often be found tearing lumps out of unsuspecting gangers, as staring around slack jawed and docile.

Flatnose

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
4	3	5	4	3	1	3	1	7

Skills: Combat Master, Body Slam, Crushing Blow.
Injuries: Head Wound.
Equipment: Autopistol, Knife.
Cost: 85 Exp: 103

Bluey

Bluey is a recent recruit to the gang and is striving to gain recognition and status. His main role is supporting attacks and sniping at enemy fighters. Bluey has recently discovered he is ambidextrous and is now trying to steal a pair of handguns.

Bluey

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	LD
4	3	3	3	3	1	3	1	7

Skills: Gunfighter.
Injuries: None.
Equipment: Autogun, Knife.
Cost: 75 Exp: 38

Territories

The Slagstas have a guilder contact (called Bent Beni), two expanse of slag, and the settlement called Slag Valley.

Stash

The Slagstas have picked up 3 sentry guns (a lasblaster, flamer and missile launcher), which they use to defend their territories. They have gained a contact who can get them Slaught (Dribbly Bod), and have one dose in their stash. They also have a bottle of wildsnake and 72 credits.

Gang rating

The has gang a rating of 1760.

So there they are, the Slagstas. Great fun to play but now on the wane. Maybe in my next campaign they might see a bit of a revival!

Note; flechete ammo is shotgun ammunition that used the flamer template to hit.
Sentry guns are fixed semi automatic weapons with a 180 degree field of fire that are used for defending installations (or in this case the Slagstas base).

Slaughter at the field of screams.

The following is Scribes report of a vicious clash between Wood Elves & Ogres received from Heironimous Karsk, third son of Bludfeld Karsk Count of Soutberg.

As I traveled through southern Breton sampling many of the exquisite wines from the region, my companion and excellent guide, Paresseux Du Quorelle informed me that the peasants had spotted a large force of Ogres inside the outlying borders of the Forest of Loren. My guide then suggested we venture to the area to see if there would be any sport watching the secretive fey spirits of the woods repel these unwelcome invaders.
So accompanied by a mere 50 or so of my retainers and servants we sallied forth to search for entertainment. Barely half a days travel saw us on Le Plateau de Merde which I was reliably informed by Paresseux that in the local dialect meant The Hill of Nobility, and therefore an ideal place for us to make camp. It also gave us a fine view of the Ogre camp without getting close enough to smell them. Once an adequate supper was prepared my valet Jardis I retired to the pavilion for cognac & pipeweed.
I was awoken by Jardis informing me that an Elven host had been seen exiting the forest and now seemed intent on repelling the noisesome invaders. The Ogres formed themselves up into a semi orderly array, whilst the  Elven host disciplined ranks clustered around a large wood in the centre dozens of archers with arrows nocked, I also saw strange willowy maidens more akin to trees than elves mustering. A cluster of Fey riders with a wild look about them stood in the centre also. 
The Ogres were not so numerous but were many times louder. Huge hulking brutes, but more fearsome were three enormous Ogres riding even larger beasts (which I later found out were called Mournfangs), to my amazement I also saw an even bigger beast with a massive cannon strapped to it's back! Even larger than the Great Cannons of Nuln. 
While the elves were still arranging their battle lines three huge tusked hounds were released from the ogre lines whilst at the same time another 8 or so Ogres (these ones even more heavily armed the the rest) seemed to appear from the flank causing much consternation among the forest dwellers. A huge booming noise signified the ogre cannon's first shot where it struck a dryad but amazingly failed to harm it! The rest of the ogre force rumbled forward. From the elven lines two previously unnoticed eagles flew to attack. One engaging the flank of the massive cavalry, the other swooped upon a lone warhound type beast (which I later discovered was named a Sabretusk). The elven cavalry also engaged a Sabretusk. From the central woods a beam of shadow struck a unit of ogres, seeming to weaken them without causing any actual damage, barely a split second later flew a storm of arrows into the same unit slaying several of the smelly beasts.
The cavalry wounded the Sabretusk causing it to flee, they gave pursuit but failed to catch the elusive beast, the two eagles fared less fortunately both becoming embroiled in vicious combat. The ogre force then rumbled forward and another sabretusk charged into melee with the giant eagle battling his whelpmate. From the elves rear two misshaped brutes appeared. Then the Ogre cannon issued forth a projectile on the wood elf astride a giant eagle striking him squarely, with a flash of light the terrible energies of the cannonball was nullified. Both riderless eagles were slain by their enemies, blood and feathers crushed into the earth.
Things were looking bleak for the forest dwellers. The wood elf eagle rider (I later found out, only the mightiest of elven heroes ever rode to battle atop great eagles) flew into the flank of an oncoming ogre unit. The elven cavalry spurred their mounts into their enormous ogre counterparts, and two units of elven archers, turned on the spot, each one killing the ogre type creatures threatening their rear. The wood elf hero slew an ogre with ease forcing the entire group to flee, scrambling over a rocky outcrop that the brave elf was unwilling to traverse. Both units of cavalry were locked in bloody combat, though in truth from my vantage point the elves were suffering all the more.
The ogres to the elven flank (who seemed to have been singing the empire marching song 'she was only the fishmongers daughter') charged into the unit of tree spirits, virtually annihilated them and chased the survivors into the nearby woods. The wood elf cavalry were slain to an elf. A hitherto unseen unit of tattooed elves charged out of the woods to give battle to the ogres, slaying two but receiving grievous hurt themselves. The eagle rider flew over the battlefield aligning himself with a band of ogres that seemed to contain an ogre magic user. The battle was reaching it's pivotal point! 
The ogre force it had seemed reached their desired distance from their and charged en masse into the beleaguered elven lines. Two units of elven archers were pulped beyond recognition, as were the tattooed elves. The eaglerider flew to slay the ogre mage in single combat only to see him slink to the back of the unit, the thwarted elf wounded an ogre only to be crushed under an flurry of blows from ogre clubs. The last two remaining units of elves were butchered before nightfall. The singing (or to be more accurate the caterwauling that approximates ogre singing) went on long into the night. I thought it expedient to pack up camp before first light and return to less dangerous, and more civilised surroundings.

On the return journey my captain Siegfeldt Knauser discussed the battle and I informed him that the fragility of the elves were their downfall. Knauser was under the impression that the canny ogre general had lured the elves out by sending the Sabretusks ahead forcing the cavalry and eagles forward, whilst at the same time outflanking with the maneaters and gorgers. This he stated, gave the elves too many threats from too many angles, making their position far too vulnerable. Perhaps I need to find another captain as this one seems to have little grasp of the finer points of battlefield tactics and could prove a liability in my further travels.

  Heironimous Karsk, Junker of Soutberg.

Wardancers, more rats and a comatose Dwarf.

Progress!

So I've finally gotten some figures finished this year so I'll show them off. Firstly here is my Black Tree Design shadow elf. He's an elf in plate armour with an awful fringe. Just another of my started-fifteen-years-or-more-ago. I suppose he might make some sort of elf paladin in WHQ.

Black Tree Shadow Elf

More Rats!

Here are three more conscripts for the 50+ strong unit of Giant Rats for my skaven army. The one on the right is my all time favourite ratty model. I mean, you just can't beat a tiny little rat-centaur! Or is that rattaur? Centat?

Three mutated rats, see how they run!

Wardancers

These are some Gary Morley wood elves, that again have been on the painting table for nigh on 15 years. Not bad sculpts, but some incredibly fiddly detail on the belts and legs. Not to mention the figure on the right is definitely winner of Ludicrous Hairdo Award 2014, I mean, it only stays off the ground by his constant head twirling! I'm sure this particular elf spends an inordinate amount of time picking twigs, leaves & birdshit out of his tousled mane. 

Small-handed Wardancers

These four desperadoes are classic Wardancers from the 80's (I think so anyway). Lovely sculpts. They have all picked up extra weapons at the expense of defeated foes. I like to think of it as typical wood elf recycling. The elf on the left has stolen a sword from a chaos centaur, the elf second from the right has a Witch Elf blade and the tough guy on the far right has managed to defeat a halfling to 'borrow' his sword. looks like there is a minimum toll of at least one sword for any visitor to the forest.

Classic Wardancers

Below are two really, really nice models. Glam the laughing elf from the original Wood Elf Regiment  of Renown, and the Warhammer Quest Wardancer. Both bear blue warpaint (or talismanic tattoos, you pick) and lots of swords. Glam can either be my Wardancer hero or an Alter Noble, but I'm not sure if they will be available in the upcoming army book.

Glam the Laughing Elf & Warhammer Quest Wardancer

Glokni Worseforwear

I finished this dwarf casualty/drunk last night and I found it rather enjoyable. I originally thought he could only be used as a Warhammer Quest encounter, but since I've been perusing many battle reports, blogs and forums, it seems to me that he can just be plonked in a dwarf unit to make the numbers up, as well a provide some comic relief. He is also, to my knowledge the only dwarf in my collection with Pixie boots. It makes me want to pick up a few more inebriated fantasy models, but I'm trying very hard to not buy any more toy soldiers until I at least have another 100 painted. Lead addiction is a terrible affliction, and one that needs to be recognized, alongside flat feet and new romanticism.   

Drunk and/or dead Dwarf

Nice pixie boots

So there you have it, 14 models have turned from the dark side (black undercoat) to the rainbow side. Much to the anger of Sodje politicians I bet.

Getting back into 40K

Last week I had my first game of 40K. it was a 4 way free for all with 1000 points each of Imperial guard (me), Tau, chaos and Space marines. well I'm not going to give a battle report as I spent the first half of the game saying stuff like 'what?' and 'what does that do?'. Needless to say, Phil, the Marine player and 40K expert was extremely patient and made sure we all had a good time.
A couple of observations I have made since my last 40K outing (2nd Edition) is that armour in the 41st millennium has come a long way, Tau are bent, lasguns are pretty much the equivalent of stern talking too and Leman Russ battle tanks are my new favourite thing in the world!
Below is the single picture I took, as a rather unfriendly Iron Hands dreadnaught landed just outside my deployment zone who threatened  to do unpleasant things to my squishy guardsmen, but thanks to trooper Bolofski and his trusty meltagun, a thousand year old genetically enhanced superwarrior encased in tons of reinforced armour was reduced to molten slag! Result.

Trooper Bolofski melts a Dreadnaught

Having the game has inevitably made me want to get back to painting 40K models once again so now I'm in the process of seeing what viable forces I have. I think this time round my main area of focus will be Imperial Guard and Eldar. I have sizable collections of both but my painted Eldar army is limited. Very limited. below is in total my painted Eldar collection:

Fear the Xenos!

One Fire Dragon squad, a unit of rangers and fourteen guardians. I have some work to do with them. My Imperial Guard is far better off. I can field 2000 points comfortably but there is nothing in my armies devised after 2001. This blog will now hopefully be populated by my two mighty, if somewhat old fashioned 41st millennium forces.

Cultists or conscripts?

At least I'm sorted for weak assed human scumbags!