2nd Edition Malefactor TO-DONE!!!

 

Hi folks,

This month I have been working on a Tyranid Malefactor for 2nd Ed. 40k. The Tyranid army list of that era was conspicuous in its lack of transport options for Tyranids. Many players at the time were ok with this, as transports were considered to be rolling coffins anyway, except perhaps for Landraiders, which were very expensive. Armorcast released this beauty, which is capable of transporting a mid sized brood of beasties into the heart of combat. 

It has some lightweight point defence weapons, which have the tendency to nibble away at a few models that get too close. It can also attack in close combat, which elevated it above the level of other transports in my opinion. It is like having a Rhino with two powerfists!

Of course, in 10th Edition, every transport can make close combat attacks with its tracks, etc. But in 2nd Ed. it was a real novelty to be able to hit back.

Painting this model was a real joy, though all the orange/brown blending did drive me a little crazy. It is just a great old sculpt, well worth headhunting if you are an old school Tyranid collector. I particularly love the gills/spiracles at the back, where the Nids can probably chill out during transport.

With one month to go in the painting challenge I can feel myself running out of steam. My health has been declining as well, which means I am going to have to make the final push to finish a little earlier in the month than usual. 

See you across the table,

Marc

2nd Edition Gargoyles and Friends TO-DONE!!!

 

Hi folks,

Month 4 of the 2nd Edition Army Painting challenge is done and dusted. My slice has been many months in the making, with the construction of these Gargoyles completed in 2023.

I have been quietly dreading this paint job, the Gargoyles have such tiny features where the flamespurts meet the mouth and hands. I think I managed to do them justice in the end, but it really was a real challenge for me. The flamespurts in 2nd Ed. use the flamer template, so a brood of Gargoyles can really disrupt enemy squads and open-topped vehicles (the driver is going to take a hit). 

To top off the slice, I painted 8 Spore Mines to use with my Biovores from last month. I used some older models which I feel have a little more character. I think they look like little see creatures. I really love how they turned out; the extra time I spent on blending in some lighter green shades was worth it.

I have already started on my June slice, which includes another massive Armorcast figure. The Maleceptor can be used to deliver a brood deep into the heart of an enemy formation, or... It can burst into goop and take the brood with it; them's the breaks in 2nd Ed.!!

See you across the table,

Marc

2nd Edition Exocrine and Biovores TO-DONE!!!

 

Hi folks,

During April I spent some time painting some fire support units for my old school Tyranids. The large one is an Exocrine, produced by Armorcast. I think the Hive Fleet Proteus scheme works on it quite well, particularly the bright green ribbing. It was yet another exercise in "trusting the process"; I was really sceptical about painting the eyes yellow, but heavy black shading around the edges helps to differentiate them from the orange armour.

In 2nd Edition, Biocannon has a whopping 4d6 + 8 armour penetration. On average you are getting 20, which is enough to penetrate the track on some of the heaviest tanks. You still need to roll well to penetrate the hull or turret, but it can manage it with a maximum penetration of 32! The front hull of a Landraider, it's toughest value, is only 22. Penetrated locations continue to take damage every turn, which makes Exocrines the bane of vehicles.

Biovores are only 20 points each, but limited to 1 per 750 points of Tyranids. The reason for that is that they are very effective. Spore mines can mess up infantry, and have a solid armour penetration of 2d3+d6+10. An average of 17 will chew through a track nicely. The kicker is, once penetrated, the hit will continue to do damage, to random locations. So a penetrating hit to the track may lead to a crippling hit to the hull or turret. This makes them excellent!

Next month is going to be tricky, with a bunch of spore mines and gargoyles to do. I am not sure if I will be able to get it all done, but I will give it a shot.

See you across the table,

Marc 

Dark Angels Techmarine TO-DONE!!!

 

Hi folks,

In between 2nd Edition projects I have been trying to keep up some momentum with my urban Dark Angels. I was wondering what my old Deathwatch RPG character would look like if he crossed the rubicon Primaris, so decided to have a go at kit-bashing him. I experimented with mounting the forge bolter and servo arm on a backpack, but decided modelling a separate servitor would look less "busy".

The body is from a Lieutenant model I got cheaply from a magazine. The plasma pistol was a spare I had left over from the Zakariahl model. The other arm I pieced together from the Deathwing champion's halberd, a random upper arm and a Deathwatch shoulder pad my son gleefully donated from his growing collection. The head is from the old Ravenwing upgrade sprue. The backpack is a Devastator sergeant's signum. I figured that would be good for designating targets for the servitor. I tried to paint some kind of lightning motif on the axe-blade, but, well... I have never been particularly good at lightning.

The servitor was made out of an older robed Dark Angels veteran, with the head swapped with a Sicarian Infiltrator, which I thought looked suitably servitor-like and gribbly. Both the heavy ("forge") bolter and servo arm are from old servitor models, with a trimmed down heavy bolter ammo pack to finish it off.

With this pair done I am only two models away from completing my target 1000 point army, with plans for another 500 points of Ravenwing support. Well worth a big stamp!

Now my sights are back on 2nd Edition, with an Armorcast Exocrine well on its way to completion before the 25th April deadline.

See you across the table,

Marc