Stargrave 3 - Captain Aesir Vortag

We all have our favourite champions. Tiny metal, plastic or resin protagonists that we've become unreasonably attached to as they've battled in our name down the years. This is one such mini, a venerable warrior that has been leading my renegade hordes since I was a teenager. May I introduce Captain Aesir Vortag, formerly of the XII legion.

Vortag has a much storied history, mostly from some decades ago. Back in the late 80s and early 90s the Captain (though in his hubris he was Lord Vortag back then) led his renegades warbands against all comers. Myself and my buddies at the time gamed A LOT back then. We were all about Rogue Trader and then 2nd Edition 40k, and we played the bejeezus out of them. We built our own rudimentary, but enormous, campaign system. We even recorded many of our games in a large ledger, complete with maps, drawings and army lists. I have it to this day, and I get quite the warm fuzzy feeling when I look back over it. I was very close to posting one of my early doodles of Vortag in action from the ledger, but I will spare you that.

The Captain and his heretics butchered his way though Ork warbands, Tyranid hordes, loyalist Astartes, Imperial Guard detachments and assorted Eldar pirates. He accrued favourite enemies, and they harried one another over many a tabletop. 

Aahh... such days. 

But, eventually, the guns fell silent. Vortag's enemies took ship into the void (or college, as it was known on some worlds), and with no wars left to wage, the Captain and his warband made for the stasis pods. It was to be a long sleep.

Years passed, and other heroes came to the fore. Games came, games went, but I always had a tremendous soft spot for the infamous Captain.

 And so, when a plan for some of my gaming brethren to gather this Spring for a Stargrave weekend, I decided it was time for a new chapter for my slumbering hero.

Vortag is one of the Jes Goodwin Warhammer Fantasy Realm of Chaos champions. One of the curious set that seemed to be blessed with 40k weaponry and technology. Back then, chaos champions could indeed be gifted with rewards from the 40th millennium. They make very fine fallen legionnaires.

At the risk of getting overly maudlin, I found it quite an emotional experience finally getting paint on the old villain. I used mostly contrast paints and medium over metallic base coats. His tail and sword were blended and stippled, before getting a unifying glaze or two. I had been using Flesh Tearers Red mixed with medium for red chaos armour, but I wanted to turn up the vibrancy on Vortag so I added some Blood Angels Red to the mix to make it roughly 1:1:1. It was extremely satisfying finally getting him painted. He's one of four great heroes of my early days of gaming that I wanted to give such treatment to. The other three are still awaiting their turn.

Space rippled and shivered as the space hulk translated back into realspace, or rather, most of it did. Sections of the hulk tapered off into translucent ghost-shapes and tatters of best-forgotten memories. The hulk, the Odyssey of  Devotion, was never truly in one place, and it's labyrinth of ancient passageways could lead a traveller to an infinity of destinations and times, whether they willed it or no.

One such lost soul shivered into existence in the stillness of an abandoned gunnery deck, the dim lumens barely casting enough light to lift the figure out of the darkness. It stood there, in the silence. The darkness seemed to deepen, shifting and reaching out before suddenly recoiling as the warrior heaved a long cackling exhalation. Captain Vortag of the World Eaters Legion addressed his ship:

'Finally. Finally. You see, Malum? I told you. I told you I would find my way back.'

Around the speaker more figures coalesced, similar in aspect. The grim ruin of fallen Astartes, only barely recognisable as once noble space marines, but no less dangerous, and infinitely more wrathful. Some had clearly had to make battlefield repairs. Others seemed no different than moments, years or centuries earlier, when they had been scattered across the void. Others had had to abandon their armour entirely, and wore archaic or primitive replacements. Yet more had simply not returned at all. 

They regarded their leader expectantly. Vortag did not give the expectation time to fester into recrimination.

'My brothers. Let us see what has become of both ship and crew in our absence. Let us see what gifts Inquisitor Balthazar Malum has left us.'

For now, Vortag leads a mob of the Odysseys mortal crew, but I do have some of his legionnaires in the painting pipeline.

Genestealer Cult - Macrocosm Space Dwarf Bikers Kickstarter

Today, amid the turmoil of the rapidly changing world we now inhabit, I have some rather unusual delights for you. A while ago I became aware of a new project from Macrocosm, some space dwarfs, including bikers. There were parts to convert them into mutants, which look very much like genestealer cult squats, so naturally I was most interested.

Chris from Macrocosm was kind enough to send me a selection, and I set to work. They are modular, so there are a variety of arms, heads, weapons, packs and so on. Along with the number of regular squat parts, there are several hybrid heads along with some mutated arms, and a dedicated hybrid biker body with an extra arm.

I used that very biker body here, on Dagur Griefkin, Atalan Jackal of the Kabeiri. The set was sculpted by Bob Olley and Alessio Cisbani. I'm quite the fan of both sculptors, and as Bob has sculpted so many genestealer cult minis before they fit in nicely.

The bikes are metal, so have quite a bit of heft to them. I recommend pinning where possible.

Here we have Baerdal Clawhammer and his gunner, Lythur Griefkin on a Wolftrike. (A very fine proxy for the Atalan Jackal Wolfquad) The trike is a charming mini, perfectly at home in a retro Bob Olley heavy cult. I do recommend painting it in sub-assemblies though. I tested out my scheme for vehicles for the Kabeiri on these bikes, and I'm quite happy with it. I think it'll work well on ridgerunners and goliaths.

The faces on the hybrids were a joy to paint, with lots of nice detail. I used mostly contrast paints on the skin, and essentially washed in all the colour over a Pallid Wych Flesh basecoat, with only one set of highlights over the washes.

There is also a set of infantry available. So for anyone wanting a nice squad of modular hybrid squats, now's your chance. The claw arm on this guy is a conversion, using the hand from the mutated arm in place of a regular squat hand. There are heavy weapons as well as melee and ranged arm options for these.

So, if you fancy some of these, head over to the kickstarter which is due to start any day now, and see what tickles your fancy.

Genestealer Cult - Brother Medlock

Not every cult member gets fancy power hammers and swanky mining lasers. Some of the brethren just have to make do. Vyrion Medlock here has to put up with a simple, ah, halberd? Machete stick? Knife-pole?

Anyway, whatever it is, it pales in comparison to the magnificence of that cape. Stylish, high collared, shoulder length AND it has a beautiful gold clasp. So impressive is brother Medlock's cape that he has chosen to leave his top off so as not to distract from it's glory. Buck Rogers would be green with envy. Check it out:

With a cape like that the 3rd generation are in the bag.

I've been meaning to paint this fella for ages. Sculpted by Bob Olley, he's based on the original unreleased hybrid that, let's be honest, I have no chance of acquiring. Unless you have one. If you have one gimme it.

In any case, this guy is pretty hard to come by as well, so I was delighted to snag one. I've been pushing him higher and higher up the painting list, and finally, with BoYL coming up he made it. I fancy having him run down the corridors of a space hulk splitting terminators open with his sword-broom.

Medlock is part of a little subset of the cult I want to paint up, a wee family with juvenile hybrids and their parents and ah, pets. The gorgeous Asslessman has already painted up some of them, which you can see here.

For now though, Medlock joins the cult as another aberrant, ready to show those power-hammer wusses how it's done.

Why is he smiling like that? I think you know.

Genestealer Cult - Cult Mindslaves

Leading on from my musing on cult mindslaves, I fired two of these revolting meats-sacs under the brush. In case you missed my thrilling justifications for adding these to my cult force, here it is again. Previously (read in 80s American TV voice) on Mr Saturday's Mumblings:

The holy ones of the Wyrm-Forged spread the blessings of the Star Gods under the direction of the grandsire himself. There is one blessed one however, who is only unleashed under the most dire need. One whom even the faithful are wary of, for they sense its wrongness innately.

Known as the Chimera, this scion of the cult is unique. It is an anomaly, its asymmetric form at odds with the perfection of those of the 5th generation. Its body shifts and alters over time as the genetic legacy of the hivemind boils within. New claws grow even as old limbs wither and are re-absorbed. Eyes disappear under chitinous armour which sloughs away to reveal new flesh. In this way the Chimera is a constantly evolving microcosm of the hivemind itself. This is as naught, however, compared to the fate of those the Chimera bestows it's blessing upon.

The unfortunates so infected are reduced to roiling, pulsating sacks of flesh within days. It is as if the patient procession of the normal cycle is overtaken by a berserk haste to evolve. Flesh splits and organs burst as the hyper-active alien DNA rushes to proliferate. Those few whose bodies manage to endure are reduced to less than animals, oblivious to all except the erratic sparks of the broodmind's imperatives. They form a particular bond to the Chimera who can better compel them to serve the cult, albeit in the most rudimentary fashion. They are herded into battle ahead of the main force, their unnatural resilience and senseless fury making them brutally effective shock troops.

They were a hilarious amount of fun to paint. The are naked, bar the disgusting mutations, so once the skin was done they were almost finished. My skin recipe for the cult is very simple. It's all washes diluted to varying degrees with Lahmian Medium. Once I am happy with that, it gets once layer of highlights from the base colour and done.

Did one of you guys fart?

They are pretty tall, so 32mm bases seemed best. I considered using them as aberrants, but in the end the mindless frenzy they would attack with seemed better suited to purestrains, so that's what they will represent. Their 'leader' will be a particularly mutated genestealer, to give my opponents a cue as to what they are in-game. I think 'The Unworthy' is a nice name for them within the cult.

These painted up so quick I think I'll crack on and do some more soon. I'd like ten eventually, a nice wee unit.

Brother Faust uses two of the unworthy as convenient meat shields.

Genestealer Cult - Mindslaves

Lately I've been mulling over the old tyranid list from White Dwarf 145. There are several entries in there I'd love to paint. Zoats, mindslaves, squigs and the old plastic tyranids. Seeing as I'm already doing a genestealer cult this list has caught me by the hobby. You know how it is.

I can run many of these units in modern 40k or Killteam. The first unit that piqued my interest was the mindslaves:

In its larval stage the parasitic Mind-Slaver feeds upon the Tyranid's captives. It burrows into the victim's skull and searches for the brain stem. Here it clasps in place with its legs and attaches itself to the base of the brain.
At first the immature creature is not powerful enough to influence its host but, as it feeds from the blood stream, it becomes stronger, allowing it to take over and direct all of the creature's higher brain functions. These victims are known as mind slaves. Although they are captives, their actions and thoughts are completely controlled by the Tyranids.
If the ship is attacked, the mind slaves will be amongst the first to move to its defense, especially if they belong to an armed warrior race whose fighting skills may be usefully employed by the Tyranids. Invaders will find themselves being attacked by sentient beings controlled by the Hive Mind including Space Marines, Chaos Space Marines, Imperial Guard, Orks and Eldar.

I guess this was originally a way to pad out the proto nid forces, but I love the idea of tyranid infested creatures. I wanted something a little more gribbly though. Happily, I had these boys:

From the Assimilation Alien Host Kickstarter from Trollforged Games, these fellas have been kicking their heels for a few years now in storage. Like a bolt of lightning the idea struck me as I flipped through the old list that they would make superlative mindslaves. The already look like something horrible is writhing inside them, and the missing heads are perfect for late-stage mind-slaver parasites. That said, I may go a different route with their origins.

The holy ones of the Wyrm-Forged spread the blessings of the Star Gods under the direction of the grandsire himself. There is one blessed one however, who is only unleashed under the most dire need. One whom even the faithful are wary of, for they sense its wrongness innately.

Known as the Chimera, this scion of the cult is unique. It is an anomaly, its asymmetric form at odds with the perfection of those of the 5th generation. Its body shifts and alters over time as the genetic legacy of the hivemind boils within. New claws grow even as old limbs wither and are re-absorbed. Eyes disappear under chitinous armour which sloughs away to reveal new flesh. In this way the Chimera is a constantly evolving microcosm of the hivemind itself. This is as naught, however, compared to the fate of those the Chimera bestows it's blessing upon.

The unfortunates so infected are reduced to roiling, pulsating sacks of flesh within days. It is as if the patient procession of the normal cycle is overtaken by a berserk haste to evolve. Flesh splits and organs burst as the hyper-active alien DNA rushes to proliferate. Those few whose bodies manage to endure are reduced to less than animals, oblivious to all except the erratic sparks of the broodmind's imperatives. They form a particular bond to the Chimera who can better compel them to serve the cult, albeit in the most rudimentary fashion. They are herded into battle ahead of the main force, their unnatural resilience and senseless fury making them brutally effective shock troops.

So, that's my take. Here's a mockup of the Chimera.

I might add some more bits, flesh-hooks or spines perhaps. Ultimately I plan on a unit of ten, nine slaves led by the Chimera. They'll count as purestrains in most games.

After that, well, adding some zoats, tyranid warriors or squigs would be the next choice. I still have a good few cult minis to paint, so I'll add a unit here and there, leading up to tackling the big lad, the screamer-killer.

Genestealer Cult - The Saviour

The blessed ones are revered by the Wyrm-Forged, as it should be. They are purity of form made manifest, unburdened by the weaknesses of mankind. They are, in the whole, aloof, and unconcerned by the travails of their lesser brethren. However, some do appear to favour their kin more than others, none more so than the one known as the saviour.

The Yogoth kin are well known among the Kabeiri. Many of their number bearing the unmistakable mark of the coiled hunter. (This variant of genestealer is known as the Ymgarl strain to the adepts of the Ordo Xenos.) This particularly strong trait is even known to appear in the 3rd generation. The Saviour is broodfather to the current cycle of the Yogoth, and through some quirk of the gene-cycle is uncharacteristically protective of its hybrid offspring. So much so that it famously interposed itself between its great-grandson, Eldir, and the plasma pistol of Inquisitor Krasek. Leaping in front of the gush of plasma, one of the saviour's arms was incinerated in the blast. Eldir himself lost much of his own third arm as he tried to push the holy one clear. To Eldir, it was the duty of the kin to protect the blessed ones, not the other way round. 

Eldir's shame was immense. Though Krasek was defeated and his skull offered to The Watcher, his great grandsire had been mutilated. Driven by his guilt, Eldir petitioned the cult's metasurgeons to construct a worthy replacement limb for his great-grandfather. The surgeons laboured diligently and constructed a new forearm worthy of the holy one. For its part the saviour seemed cognisant of what its kin were attempting and allowed the procedure. Though lacking in elegance, the new appendage took, and the saviour soon realised its new limb's killing power was every bit the equal of it's chitinous claws.

Since I decided on a more mechanical iteration of the cult as my take on things I fancied doing a cyborg purestrain. I didn't want to go too far as no doubt openly mucking about with the God-beings would be tantamount to heresy, so a minor alteration appealed more. A claw from the ever-useful Kataphron Destroyers kit and I had my part. I'm not certain where the stealer comes from, possibly one of the tyranid kits.

I had seen an upright stealer online and I liked the pose. I can't recall where though, so I can't credit the person that made it, apologies! I altered the stance, having the creature leaping up an old pipe. I had to re-position the head a little, which required a little greenstuff work on the neck. The conversion on the arm was very simple, just an arm-swap below the elbow. I tried to show the stealer compensating for the weight in the pose, but I don't know how effective that was.

Painting took a while with other projects butting in. I used my standard scheme. I strikes me that while I used purple glazes on the flesh here, hybrids from other races might benefit from keeping the same scheme as the human hybrids but swapping out the purple glaze for green, blue or whatever the host race requires.

Groust and Eldir Yogoth flank their grand-sire, the saviour.

Genestealer Cult - Jackal Alphus

I've loved the idea of mounted hybrids for ages. Ever since I read the story about the raiders unwittingly attacking a caravan packed with cultists. Worst raid ever. (Edit: White Dwarf 115, Page 70)

Oh FFS, the raiders wailed.

With the advent of the new cult bikers, an opportunity presented itself. Added to that I needed a 40k racer mini for an upcoming BoYL game, and lo, it was time. Kol Renko, jackal alphus of the Wyrm Forged cult was born.

Now, my cult is placed in a corrupted adeptus mechanicus temple, so yeah, biked would make more sense. But to that I say FMEH. Instead of rationalising this I'll just put up another picture of Kol here.

I used one the the excellent mutie horses from Gorkamorka for the genesteed. It's perfect. For the rider I used admech, scion and cult parts, as well as a couple of fan-made bits. I used an acolyte body for Kol as I wanted him to be three-armed, and hence a 2nd generation hybrid. I did consider adding reins, but then came to my senses as rider and mount were painted separately, so it would have been crazy hard. Sometimes cost vs result needs to be employed. Also, the rider controls the mount using the broodmind link. There, SOLID explanation.

This fella gives me a nice HQ choice for 40k, and a sweet addition to the cult. Here's the obligatory 'new guy plus mates' shot I'm so exceedingly fond of.

Kol and his brethren aid biophagus Scrivello in his duties.

Now, back to that purestrain.

Genestealer Cult - Neophyte Icon Bearer

Looking positively dashing in his ascendance day finery, Rauss Arnatt, neophyte of the Kabeiri, raises his icon for his brethren to cheer and whoop at. Arnatt is feeling good, and he's sure the magus gave him a little wink earlier.

A neophyte icon bearer is a super useful addition to my cult, usable in Warhammer 40k, Necromunda and Kill Team.

These days there is a huge store of bits available for the genestealer cult fan. Once, arming up the old Bob Olley hybrids might have been a chore, but no longer. They fit suspiciously well on most of the vintage boys. This particular, rather beefy 4th generation hybrid is one I think well suited to hefting a big heavy cult icon, and I've wanted to paint this one for a while. After some consideration I gave him a nice big phosphor blast pistol, which also fits neatly with the adeptus mechanicus flavour of the Kabeiri. He should be carrying an autogun or shotgun, but rule of cool won out.

It took a fair bit of sanding and cutting down on the arms to allow for his unusually wide shoulders. Even so, he's still very broad. I'm okay with that as he's meant to be a bit beefcake. As with many Olley sculpts, his face was a delight to paint. I do love painting faces.

With Arnatt done, I have two more minis to paint to finish my Kill Team squad. A purestrain, which is halfway there, and a neophyte with a heavy stubber. The heavy stubber can also go toward getting my neophyte squad up to ten models. Utility!

Rauss shows off his shiny charge to his mates. Everyone is impressed.

Genestealer Cult - The Watcher

In the heart of the principal Kabeirian forge temple on Thelema stands the watcher. Raised as a symbol of vigilance and eternal patience, this huge statue gazes up to the heavens awaiting signs of the coming of the Star Children. For generations the faithful have made pilgrimage here in order to pay homage and lay devotions and trophies at it's feet. The histories of the martyrs and heroes of the Kabeiri are attached to the stone with wax seals bearing the wyrm form. The skulls of notable enemies are also laid here to bear witness the the resolve of the cult and show all the fate of those who stand in it's way. Inquisitor Johann Krasek, Warlord Gornak Worldburna, The Ethereal Aun'La Auta and many others pass the ages under the watcher's gaze.

As the centuries have passed, the restlessness of the cult has found a focus in the watcher. So much psychic energy has been soaked into the stones that now the watcher is rumoured to shift it's gaze almost imperceptibly from time to time, as if searching. Deep in empty space the frozen, lifeless hulks of hive fleet Hephaestus drift silently through the void. It is the destiny of the watcher to hold vigil eternally for Gods that will never arrive.

The watcher began life as a pile of broken statuette parts. I set them aside with thoughts of making them into terrain at some point. Then, some time later the idea of a large cult statue struck me. When I saw the giant statue of a patriarch in the new codex it fired me up and I set to work.

The hybrid parts came from a spares bin at my local game shop. I'm not 100% sure what tyranid kits they come from. I cut them up, attached them, worked away with some green stuff and added a cult icon. I wanted to create a sense of scale, so I added the scripts, seals and trophies. I added orc and Tau skulls as well, as the cult has spread far and wide, and I intend to add hybrids of other races in time.

With the painting, I wanted a pale stone so the weathering and grime I added would show easily. The cracks from the original breaks in the statue showed up nicely once it was painted too, which was a groovy bonus. I stippled on the pigments to the lower third of the statue, as this would have been the most touched by devotees. I also used my trusted Typhus Corrosion to add some more grime and dirt to the rocks and such on the base.

With that, I have a rather fetching cult terrain piece/objective marker. You can see here how big he is compared to the two hybrids. 

Now, back to that neglected icon bearer.

Genestealer Cult - Acolyte and Metamorph

Ahh, back among my brothers and sisters of the cult. It feels good. Feels RIGHT. Today I present two new members of the Kabeiri, or the Cult the the Wyrm Forged, brothers Groust Yogoth and Aldren Dekker. The acolyte kit is a box of gene-cursed wonders, with so many gribbly bits and pieces in it I spent two nights just playing with parts before I settled on the two fresh-faced lads above. As a wanderer in the outer darkness for many years, I cannot tell you the joy of so many cult kits and parts available now. It's magical.

Brother Dekker is carrying a rock saw. It was always going to be the first acolyte I made. It's so metal. After joyously rooting about on the sprues, I assembled Dekker in three parts, keeping his head and the saw seperate. Woe betide anyone who glues it all together and then tries to paint it. Yes, you can't see the back of the saw for the most part, but now I know it's given as much love as the front.

There's quite a bit of detail on these boys. pouches, icons, tubing, belts, blasting charges and so on. It's make Batman throw his utility belt over a bridge in shame. It's nice how closely the design echoes the old hybrids from the 80s. The backpack is particularly close, but there are lots of design hooks that hark back. They feel like they were made with no little love. It's the best of both worlds for me; gorgeous modern design combined with the nostalgic aesthetic of the original range. Epic win.

Having learned some lessons on assembling painted sub-assembles lately, I used surgical gloves when handling the parts and made sure to re-drill any pin holes to remove any paint that had gotten in. It's amazing how that can make a perfect dry-fit into a nope once painted.

I tried a little spotting for the highlights on the carapace, I think it makes it look a little rougher, more like a lobster or crab shell. I've seen some folks try mottling on the craniums too, I might give that a go next time.

Brother Yogoth has a metamorph claw and hand flamer, plus a big old face of tentacles. I love the Ymgarl strain. I plan on doing a Ymgarl purestrain soon as well, get the whole family together. 

The claw is fantastic. I don't even know what it does in the various games I can use him in. I just want it. I do hear hand flamers are the thing, which is handy as that's what I gave him. It was hard to get a good angle on the claw, and it's a little blurred there. Sorry about that.

With these two done, I'm almost ready for Kill Team, and that also feeds into my Necromunda gang and my modest 40k force. I'm quite keen on getting the bikers box as there are female heads in there, and I want to sprinkle them into my neophyte unit. I have designs on getting some (meaning all) of the new characters, especially the nexos and magus. The new set of characters are a boon to the cult. The kelermorph in particular is one of the most gorgeous miniatures I've ever seen.

Family time is important. 

So, next up I think it's time for an icon bearer, which I require for every game system I can field the cult in. Loving the utility GW. Something old with something new for that guy I think.

A wee shot of some of the clan. I think the new guys sit nicely beside the venerable old hybrids. I may throw up a post on the evolution (eh?) of the cult ranges in the future.

My reckon my hooded Magus is going to change careers to become a Locus, making way for a new lady to take charge.

Genestealer Cult - Brother Sloth

When Overkill came out I all but curled into a ball of mewling joy. After years on the verge of extinction the cult were back in the heart of 40k lore. The attendant plastic deluge was like something from a beautiful dream. Since then the cult has enjoyed a huge resurgence, and as I write this a new wave of Genestealer cult minis are about to hit. I am target demographic man.

With the new cult list for Necromunda it gave me the ideal opportunity to paint an aberrant. I just love these less than perfect members of the cult. It shows even the hive mind makes a balls of things sometimes. You kind of feel sorry for them.

'Sloth luvz Maguz. Heerez magus, Sloth makez maguz a presend. (presents dripping rat) Ah... thank you Sloth. Now, aren't there more rocks you should be breaking? Off you go now, there's a good man.' 

In any case, the image of one of these charging across a gantry before burying it's power hammer in some gangers skull isn't something I was built to resist.

I loved painting this guy. The miniature is just delightful. I'd have painted another right away if I hadn't a new project awaiting attention. I stuck to my cult scheme, but treated Sloth to a nice new Necromunda base.

Here we have Sloth with my original aberrant from 2014, when if you wanted a cult you had to hunt for bits and out of production metal minis. At the time he was a proxy for a weapons team. His auto-cannon is magnetized in case I fancied another attachment someday. Not entirely sure where he fits in these days. Sloth still luvz him though. 

For my Oldhammer bros here's how he sits next to one of the original metal Jes Goodwin 2nd generation hybrids. I love that the new plastics have kept and expanded on the original aesthetic of the cult with the mining suits and a more industrial than military feel. At this stage I have more cult minis than a man could ever want, and still I await the hybrid gunslinger and ultra-aberrant with bated breath. 

Mr Saturday luvz cult.

Genestealer Cult - Ancestor Relic

It's been a while since I added anything to my genestealer cult, the Kabeiroi. With the release of the rules for the cult in White Dwarf I decided to paint a few new additions to get the family Necromunda ready. I've wanted to paint up this gnarly gun-toting alien skull for a while. It's a long OOP fan sculpt I've had in the 'must do' box for ages. It'll be a good proxy for a familiar in the game. As my cult are a corrupted Adeptus Mechanicus temple I think he'll fit in just fine.

It's pretty big for a servo skull so it makes sense that it'd be the remains of a revered if unlucky purestrain. I initially just pinned it to the base with steel rod, but it looked a little lacklustre. I bent some more rod into shape and wound pewter cabling around it and pinned it all to a piece of sprue. I added the connector cable to the back to add a little motion.

I've got the cult love now, so I have a big old aberrant on the painting table. After that I might tackle an acolyte. He's a selection of the crew thus far.

Brother Yogoth hangs out with Grandad, brandishing his illegal plasma pistol.

Nothing like a nice family outing. Hierarch Mijur is a wizz with the googlemaps.

Space Pirates - Captain Saturday and Mister Mumble

Today we have something a little different. I present Captain Saturday and first mate, Mr Mumble. Neither of these dubious gentlemen were painted by me.

For reasons, my excellent compadres Axiom and Asslessman took it upon themselves to convert, paint and post a space pirate version of me. That's right, two takes on space pirate Mr Saturday right here, complete with parrots, tricorns and stripey pants. One couldn't but be humbled by such gestures, though Axiom's version has been at the biscuit tin, or that armour is adding a few pounds.

Both are fine examples of the respective fellow's work. You can see Asslessman's post on Captain Saturday here. Both lads were canny enough to leave the basing to me, so I added my standard sci-fi bases to tie them into my existing collection.

I'm delighted to have a mini from the hands of both hobbists, they'll be yarring into action at the earliest opportunity.

Saving Brother Victor - The Last Wolf

What's this? A space marine? A space wolf at that. What's going on here then?

Well, I have almost no interest in space wolves, but brother Victor here, he's special. He was rescued from the edge, this one.

 About a year ago, I was trawling the Wargaming Trading page on Facebook when I see the most forlorn looking minature. He has seen some action in his time. This was the poor fellow as he was then:

Yeesh. The post with it read thus: "Ey up, I just found this thing in the pond at Victoria park. I washed the mud off and it looks like a vintage space marine? I think it has been based with cat litter, and painted with Dulux emulsion. Anyone interested?"

Something stirred in me. I have a terrible need to rescue old broken minis. I instantly sent a PM. It turns out perhaps he may just have been in a box for the last twenty years, but in my mind he had been recovered from the deep, and soon he was on the way to me. This is the image I had in my head for him once he arrived:

So, our fallen brother soon came tumbling through the letterbox. I set to work stripping and carving off the literally centimetres of glue gumming up our brave marines battered armour.

Just look at that. Jeesbus. Any man with sense would have administered the Emperor's mercy and sadly moved on. Not this guy. By the throne, this marine would see action again. Victor's left arm was a loss, so I thought it would be fitting to equip him with a new prosthetic. So, after carving, scrubbing, whittling and sanding, Victor was back on his feet.

And so he remained for many months. Other projects took my attention away from our veteran and he sat on the to-do shelf. Recently though, I was in the market for a 40k hunter, and who better than a forlorn son of Fenris? The final stage began and Victor hit the painting table. Some brush tickling later, and our space wolf was finally ready to return to the grim darkness of the far future.

Wow, Bolt pistols were small back in the day. It's like a derringer.

With Victor back in action and the current events on Fenris, I think it could be fun to have this lone wolf leading a warband of serfs and Fenrisian survivors. A servitor, couple of hairy tribesmen, Fenrisian wolf, maybe a chapter serf. Could be interesting.