Dark Angels' Dark Shroud and Vengeance Speeders

I wanted some of the new iconic Ravenwing speeders to add to my force. Picking up two of the kits to make one of each, I constructed them and painted them at the same time. Painting them simultaneously allows me to keep a uniformity among the two. I am able to keep the same coloration of certain parts, namely the window.

Land Speeder Vengeance

This Vengeance was built with magnets holding the plasma cannons in place. This allows for them to be removed and for it to be used as another Dark Shroud should it be needed.


In combat the Vengeance has been hit and miss. I was able to cause some real damage to a Tyrannic Exocrine once. It has damaged itself once which did not help its survivability. Being that it has only two hull points is a real downer. I tend to stick with the large blast template when I do run it.

Honestly, I love the concept. My opponents get scared crapless about the potential of what it CAN do. In practice, it rarely carries out the threat. Still, when running nothing but Ravenwing, it fills a heavy slot.

Land Speeder Dark Shroud

This speaks volumes of the Dark Angels and their dark gothic background. The relic of a statue being used to project a shadowy field around the craft is a pretty cool visual to me. The art from GW accompanying the craft is damn sharp too!

In-game, the Shroud is quite effective. It definite gives the enemy something to think about. How much effort do I put into taking down the portable cover save over the approaching bikes? Unless you are playing Tau, the Shroud should at least make it long enough to deliver the bikes safely. As you do have to keep the other units somewhat close enough to get the saves, large blast weapons can be damaging.

 As for painting, the glass on both of the speeders was done as one large pane of glass as opposed to many individual ones. The blue really stands out among the black. These two are some of my favorite vehicles because of that.



The stone was painted grey, with some slight darker streaks added for a marbling effect. Then a light dry brush over it. I gave it a very watered down wash to tie it all together.



If you are a Ravenwing fan, the Dark Shroud is a must item simply for the fluff feature. The shrouding effect is just an extra bonus giving it a nice use. Also, the assault cannons that you get for cupola gunner can be used for the gunners on your other speeders.

Dark Angel Speeders

I am showing off two Speeders for my Dark Angels 2nd Company, The Ravenwing. One is a Typhoon to give me some long range punch. The other is Sammael's personal speeder, Sableclaw.

Like many of my models, they had been sitting in storage awaiting construction. In the process of making space, these two got put together. Only to take up a different form of space by being on display now, much like kernels become popcorn! I am trying really hard to complete what I already have. Trying my best to avoid picking up new boxes of goodies.

If you follow my blog, you know when these two were originally painted up just by looking at the bases. A simple paint job, slight highlighting, a wash over the metal, sealed and ready to go. Black models are almost unfair to paint at times, too easy... until you have to highlight or show shades. The interior controls were painted too, no shortcuts there.

Sableclaw is a build from a standard speeder with the parts from the Ravenwing Accessory Pack available from GW. Being an avid Dark Angels fan, I grabbed several of these sprues, and whenever a friend didn't want his, I gladly accepted them. Besides, to use the original metal bits that GW offered before, would have made the model impossible to mount on a stand, it would have been so heavy. Imagine a metal twin-linked heavy bolter and a metal twin-linked assault cannon. Not only would they never properly stay attached to the model; it would be enough to require a warning should you ever fall in the water with the piece!

Being that this is an HQ choice, I took a bit more time detailing the piece. Giving the book some extra attention can be time consuming, but it makes a huge difference on the table. The head and shoulder pads are from the Black Knights sprue. The script decal is from the Sororitas decal sheet. 

The focus grabbing book was relatively easy. Paint the pages bone white first. Add the writing with either watered down black or to really ease it out, use a micron pen, love these things! A general square of yellow was added. It does not have to be perfectly squared. Once you outline it with the black, any mistakes disappear. A letter of choice was carefully added to the inside and voila!

Gamewise, when I have used Sammael, he is quite the terror for enemy squads or anything with an armor save of 4+. As long as you keep his front towards the enemy and out of combat, he should be fine. Just remember, he only has two hull points, so he is quite a glass hammer. Keep him sitting next a Dark Shroud won't hurt either. I'll show pics of that in next week's post.

Thanks for looking!

Blight Wheel Staghounds

Troopers shouldn't just walk up the field to get into contact. They need to have some kind of transport. Fortunately, Blight Wheel makes these vehicles called Staghounds. They are a 4 or 6 wheeled vehicle, your choice, with an entry point on the rear of the truck. They look awesome and are a great replacement for the Taurox. 

A word of caution on construction, the side skirts are very fragile and are only held in spot by a line of glue. They would best be served by using a small plastic strut, or three, underneath to give them some support. Hindsight being 20/20, I didn't do that. Also, the kit is all resin and the tires were a tight fit. So tight that the the resin cracked where it fit over the large pin on the undercarriage. They have updated the kit since then, I'm not sure wha has changed if anything. I used a large brass rod as a pin/axle to hold them in place. 

Blight Wheel has further updated the kit with new weapon options. The Staghounds now come with missile launchers, a new cannon, and new wheels for the 'Hound. 

 

Much like their troops, these are really easy to paint! A grey scheme, some slight color modulation by lightening the grey on the panels. Added the decals and painted the details. Sealed it with a gloss coat and applied the oil washes. Another great set of figures to add to my collection. I ended up with three of them!

Other Choices

I wanted to show off some guys I picked up from Blight Wheel Miniatures some time back. I believe Blight Wheel is out of France. Anyway, they make some great third party Astra Militarum figures. These guys are not a 'cheaper' alternative to the GW figures. But they are a 'standout' alternative to GW and FW. They are detailed resin pieces allowing for some really nice detail.

Admittedly, they were a bit finicky to construct. I ended up putting a pin all the way across from shoulder to shoulder for the arms to stay. Not very difficult overall, but somewhat time consuming. I will say, once they are glued, they won't come off, unless you are really pissed at them.

This ranges is Blight Wheel's Britanic Hell'ington figures. Very dark looking guys, and quite similar to Forge World Death Korps of Krieg, as in trench warfare style. The best part is, they are extremely easy to paint. All you have to worry about is the armor, the clothing, guns, and maybe some straps and what not, no skin involved. So if you are one of the guys that hate painting flesh, these guys are for you. They are not as hyper intricate as the Forge World pieces, but they still have some features.

Beginning with a black primer, I painted the clothing Steel Legion Drab added some decals, and gave it all a thorough dry brush with Baneblade Brown. Next step was a wash of Agrax Earthshade on the clothing only. By just applying the wash to the clothing, you get a dirtier appearance. This was followed by another dry brush of Baneblade over the entirety of the model, then a lighter dry brush of Kommando Khaki on top of that. I added one more wash of Agrax over the whole model, and a last dry brush of Baneblade, and that was all I needed.

To add extra bits, I painted on some armor nicks, stippled some Steel Legion and Baneblade onto the armor for effect and they were done. A very effective paint job that can work great with Cadians or Kreig. 

Really quite simple to paint up and get done fast. I may incorporate them into the Kanaks as a Veteran squad possibly with shotguns. I know shotguns suck, but they look cool and fit the models.

Destroyer Tank Hunter

More tanks that I found in storage that needed to be completed. I have been a huge fan of the Destroyer Tank Hunter when Forge World first came out with them almost fifteen years ago. I bought one originally, and that was sold with the rest of my Mordians to a friend of mine. I then bought another one along with a Thunderer siege tank. Another few have been collected via eBay and are yet to be put into production.

The paint scheme is a pre-digital camo used by the British Berlin Brigade back in the 80s. Surprisingly it is very effective when it comes to urban terrain. It's probably why most militaries have adapted the current digital style to their modern battle dress uniforms. This is not a one-to-one recreation of the British scheme as the vehicle shapes are too dissimilar. I tried to carry over as much of the scheme as I could. 

The pattern itself required several steps of painting/taping/repeating. I didn't even try any color modulation. Just went right into weathering. I did keep the colors in line with my Skull Takers though, dark grey, Dryad Bark, and white.

Other examples of the camouflage, with the middle one really showing how effective it can be. You can see something is there, but it's extremely difficult to tell what it is exactly. Here is a link to explain the theory behind it.

Painting Tutorial: Skull Takers

You want an easy way to pain some Guard/Astra Militarum guys quickly? Need to have a large number of troops ready for next month or so? Here is a very simple solution that can be carried over to other colors, or schemes, or even armies.

Colors I used:  GW Paints Link 

Pants/Jackets

Mechanicus Standard Grey Base

Dawnstone           Highlight

White

Celestra Grey        Base

Ulthuan Grey        Highlight

Belts/Straps/Boots/Rifle Butts

Charadon Granite or Dryad Bark

Wooden Handles

Baneblade Brown

Heavy Weapon
Steel Legion Drab

Skin

Reaper Olive Skin

Reaper Olive Skin Highlight

or

Ratksin/Bestigor Flesh /Ungor Flesh

Bugmans Glow/Cadian Fleshtone/Kislev

Metal parts

Ironbreaker

Misc

Desert Yellow, Black

Shade

Army Painter Quickshade: Strong Tone

After priming in white this time, I painted the ground and all the terrain first. This is where you can be sloppy without fear of messing up your guys. I then applied the Mechanicus Grey to the pants and jackets if they had one.

Using Dawnstone, I then highlighted any folds in the pants or anything that would appear raised. If these guys had jackets on, I would follow the same steps.

Most of the time, I paint any skin first following the inside-out technique. The first layer of flesh was applied to all of the skin. This layer should be the darker of the two skin tones. If you want, you can just paint the second tone to cut out a step. Just remember, each layer you add gives the model more dimension.

Here you should be able to see the second layer of flesh added to all the raised parts. You just want to get the higher portions, any part that may be seen from above. Neatness helps, but it's not completely necessary in this case.

I followed the same technique for the whites on the shirts, any Imperial Eagles, and the horns.

Then Dryad Bark/Charadon Granite was added to boots, straps, rifle butts, anything that you want to contrast or look dark, even hair.

Steel Legion Drab was added to most of the hardware, heavy weapons and the shovel.

Ironbreaker was used to get buttons and any shiny parts of metal, like the helmet or rifle.

The hair was painted desert yellow. You could also use bane blade brown, black, etc.

I wanted to get everything basecoated with a nice layer before I moved on to the next step, the shading. Before you begin the next step, ensure you protect your clothing and/or furniture with an apron, extra paper layer, or what not. The varnish will stain anything it contacts!

The figures and weapons were then covered with a liberal coat of the Quickshade Strong Tone. Army Painter has a video on how to apply it nicely. The wall and the ground did not receive the Quickshade, just the figures. Ideally, you want this to sit for 24 hours. It should be dry to the touch in twelve hours.

Already you can see how it sits heavily in the corners, creases, and crevices throughout the piece, while also adding a nice tone to the rest of the figures. This is a thick coat that doubles as a gloss, adding a layer of protection to the model. If needed you can use some thinner to make it easier to move around or clean up.

Once it has dried, they were sprayed with a dull coat; Testers, GW, or Army Painter works fine, whatever you prefer. This concludes the painting.

The process allows for a full squad to be painted up very nicely in one night. The Quickshades allow a fast effective finish to help you get a large amount of guys onto the table fast.

This technique (aka dipping) can also be changed around to what ever color combination you want. You can utilize this with greens, blues, yellows, or whatever you need. Just realize that you may need to start with lighter shades to get the colors you want, as it will darken the overall piece. Dark colors will work with the Strong Tone, but not as well as the lighter colors. In addition, this will work great with any vehicles you have. Just be sure to add any decals before the shading begins.

Kanak Specialists and Theory

I painted up quite a few Special Characters and Regimental Specialists for my Kanak Guard. I may never use many of them, but I had them. They all came out pretty nice and were rewarding to paint up.

The first ones I put together was the Master of Ordnance. There can only be one per Company Command Squad, but I ended up painting three of them. I figured, the Officers would be more 'civilized' than regular Kanak troops. I envision them as being attached to the Skull Takers and not really being part 'of them'. The first one, is a simple creation from Cadian parts, nothing fancy. Now the other two are a combination of old metal Leman Russ commanders attached to plastic legs. I pinned them onto the legs, else one little fall would see the parts flying in different directions. The guy in the middle, I had to extend a pistol holster on the model, down onto the thighs with a little green stuff. Once painted up, you probably couldn't tell if I never told you. I paid a tad bit more attention to these guys as they aren't the cannon fodder that everybody else is.

The Officer of the Fleet figure is a great model from GW. It has a ton of character and even oozes an air of betterment over his earthbound allies. I followed the general look of the guy from the book for lack of inspiration.

The other guy sitting there is 'Good Guy' from Schaeffer's Last Chancers. I've been sitting on that box of minis for the last thirteen years or so. He looked like a strong Commissar model, so, POOF! He got painted up like one. I know he isn't very WYSIWIG. Eh, he hasn't fired a shot in anger yet.

I am going with Psykers in this army. They can be so much fun, especially if I can pull out the Invisibility power for my Astropath. Either way, I love the potential of Psychic Shriek. I was able to take out a remaining nine Salamanders after their Sgt was killed via Interceptor. I was lucky enough to roll a 17 for the strength of the power! Blam! Nine dead marines! I may even push for some Daemonlogy powers later on to really make for some fun moments in the Psychic phase. Anyway, this guy is mostly an Empire Flagellant from a sprue I had picked up when they first came out....about nine years ago. The staff is made from a pair of old Goblin shield add-ons. Sorry about the terrible picture, but think of the Eye of Sauron, and you will get the picture.



The other Psyker in the army is the Primaris. This guy I got from eBay. Another old classic figure from the GW heydays. I really could have done a better job on him. For a 20yr old piece, there is some good detail. You can see the eyes along the hem of the robe with fire flowing up around them. In battle, I pay for the 2nd level of Mastery, and give him the Divination discipline. I place him inside a blob squad for his own protection. The malediction power Misfortune, has helped quite a few times. I was able to wipe out a marine command squad with it. Especially, when the unit was in range of my Punishers!

The Ministorum Priests are carry overs from my Sororitas army. These guys keep my squads from running, leaving objectives, and really help keeping a blob squad stuck in combat. Once in a while, I can get a power off due to their poor leadership. Re-rolling to wound against MEQs really comes in handy. I tend to let the squad sarges take any challenges before I let these guys get in. I just wish I could add an eviscerator or power weapon to these guys.

The last two guys I have this week is Iron Hand Straken and Sergeant Harker. Iron Hand is the older model released with the original Catachan codex way back when. Since my guys are mostly modeled after that style, Straken makes for a perfect fit. I don't think I will ever use him, but this was a perfect opportunity to get him all dressed up. On his left arm, I put a little celtic style arm band on him. It came out really nice. The trick is to just paint the two wavy intersecting lines. Then using the flesh paint, I cut the lines where they met to give it the overlapping effect.

Sergeant Harker is another of the Last Chancers. This guy is known as 'Ox'. He's much like Bragg from Tanith. The set of figures are still available from GW. If you can, I recommend grabbing one before they disappear, as they are metal. They are all so great individually. Anyway, I added a Mom tattoo to this version of Harker.

Painting-wise, I kept to the same general steps and palette as the rest of the company. I will cover the painting steps next week. It's really quite simple and quick.