The Penitent Spectres

[Xanthier]

Considering my first update for this call is spposed to be due in by tomorrow, I figured I'd actually get round to taking, editing and uploading all the pictures. Since the start I've also written up the full IA, which is still awaiting any comments of criticisms, here: Index Astartes: Penitent Spectres. They're renegades, so in Apocalypse use the happy combination of both the Chaos and Imperial Marine codex.

 

To recap, my current list of 'to do' is slightly different from what I posted in the call as I felt like making a squad raptors, giving the 'tactical squads' rhinos and realized a single attack bike is illegal, though the army is still 3,000 points. Here's the list:

4 x Rhinos.

1 x Death Guard Rhino.

3 x 10 Raptors.

4 x 10 Chaos Marines.

1 x 10 Death Guard.

3 x Obliterators.

2 x Attack Bike.

1 x Land Speeder.

1 x Daemon Prince.

 

The whole lot

This is the whole list above aside from the Daemon Prince which needs to be sculpted, though if this lot gets finished I'll start work on another 2 and a half foam sheets of marines, half a sheet of terminators, 3 Land Raiders, a Baneblade, around 40 Rogue Trader era marines, a foam sheet of Death Guard, a Defiler, plus anything else I buy this year (probably being plastic Dreadclaws if they come out, and a Thunderhawk).

http://img124.imageshack.us/img124/9303/armygb9.jpg

 

That's the progress I have so far, which isn't too bad in a month I reckon. All the grey is done on the armour, and I chose progressive layers of careful drybrushing rather than harsh edge highlighting. The highlights don't come out as well as I'd like in the pictures, but they are there, heh.

 

As ever, comments, suggestions and criticism are welcome, and I'll update this thread with pictures at least once a month, and possibly more should anything momentous get done.

 

Edit: I removed all the rather rubbish blurry pics, as my new camera allows me to take pictures that are actually in focus. As such I'll post them up next.

[Xanthier]

Aha, new camera time. My photo setup is still quite rough, but hopefully these pics will convey what the army is looking like so far. I've also updated the colour scheme, adding a white helmet and arm. This will probably quadruple the time needed to finish them, but oh well, it looks nice.

 

http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/9637/marine2us3.jpghttp://img212.imageshack.us/img212/9250/marinesar2qn7.jpg

 

Here's a WIP of adding snow to a chunk of the army. It was tedious. In all the following pics with snow on the figures, I still need to drybrush it white, to get rid of any colour leaks, and seal it with matt varnish.

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/19/snowingco3.jpg

 

Raptors

There's still quite a bit to do on these guys, such as the Icon Bearer figures (using parts from Apothecary figures) though I mostly just need to paint all the white arms and helmets. I don't intend to do any edge highlighting in my army for this challenge unless I really get a surplus of time, as I'm doing my best to speed paint this lot as I have a fair chunk to do... The second picture of the 4th Raptor was taken using flash, just to show the colour difference. In real life the figures are a lot closer to the flash-induced result. As shown in one picture, the changed colour scheme, adding the white, helps the figure look finished, which is always a good thing.

 

http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/4645/raptorsqb8.jpg

http://img128.imageshack.us/img128/192/raptor1ah0.jpghttp://img128.imageshack.us/img128/3066/raptor2bg9.jpg

http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/6568/raptor3kg5.jpghttp://img161.imageshack.us/img161/7551/raptordetail1gb7.jpg

http://img128.imageshack.us/img128/7663/raptor4wk1.jpghttp://img128.imageshack.us/img128/3151/raptor4flashyn6.jpg

 

Tanks

The snow on the Death Guard Rhino needs to be inked, drybrushed and what not, to make it incredibly dirty. Currently white snow looks quite odd on it.

 

http://img128.imageshack.us/img128/9900/tanksag3.jpg

http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/9708/dgrhi2xf0.jpg

http://img161.imageshack.us/img161/6238/dgrhi3ed7.jpg

 

Speeder and Bike

I'll be using washes to tone down the weathering on the bike's wheels, but aside from white arms and heads, the first Attack Bike and Land Speeder are essentially done.

 

http://img161.imageshack.us/img161/2982/atbike1qw6.jpghttp://img128.imageshack.us/img128/4272/speeder1qg3.jpg

http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/7575/atbike2gk7.jpghttp://img161.imageshack.us/img161/8666/speeder2mv7.jpg

 

This was pretty much my first update, but this time with snow, and in focus. Cheers all for looking, comments and criticisms are appreciated.

[Ardus]

Great looking army. I really like the old turbofan jump packs mixed in with the newer style. The blue acents are done very well.

 

cheers,

 

Ardus.

[Mac Gal]

You did those in a month? Daaamn. Impressive sight. It has been three weeks and i stil can't get myself to complete my 10 termies ^_^.

[Xanthier]

Cheers for the comments Ardus, Mac Gal. Out of the 3 Raptor squads, the first is entirely in robes with the old jump packs, since I like the overall look. As for doing them all in a month, that's why I like drybrushing, and so far have chosen not to highlight armour edges, heh. By my next update I'm hoping to have finished all the tanks, the bike, the Land Speeder and all the Raptors entirely. That's a lot of white to paint, but if I manage it I'll have cut my 3,000 point pledge by about 1,310 points.

 

I still need to either strip the Death Guard or put together one of my unbuilt squads, not to mention sculpting the Daemon Prince over an Obliterator core... there's still a hefty insane load to do.

[khalaek]

Wow, good job, especially the freehand on the assault marine!

 

But if they are supposed to be renegades, have you considered removing the Imperial iconography? Just looking at them makes them look loyalist, so when they are paired with the DG it won't make sense unless you tell the other player(s). and simply filing off the aquilas and stuff (not desecrating, just removing) could fix that.

 

But keep up the good work, and may your forces find victory in all they do!

 

Khalaek

Lord Blitzkrieg

[Xanthier]

Thanks Khalaek. I did consider removing all the Imperial iconography, but I didn't see much of a reason to. As they don't worship Chaos (per se) there would naturally be no Chaos symbols bar those on the cult troops. However even though they're separated from the Imperium doesn't mean that they've gone against certain ideals it stood for. They'd clearly know they're not loyalist, but why desecrate the battle spirit of their armour by removing iconography? If anything, looking vaguely Imperial would quite likely help them should they run into any unwitting Imperial forces without much knowledge on them. If anything it would allow them to either make a quick escape or fool the Imperial force long enough to get what they're after and leave. In my mind such a tactic would be safer than fully posing as blatant renegades with no iconography at all.

 

Of course, it's a good suggestion, but I feel it'd severely cut their overall life expectancy, getting recognised as renegades almost immediately. In a (much) previous background I was working on, they got their equipment by visiting Imperial worlds only barely controlled by those in charge, posing as Imperial Marines and inciting civil war, then leaving with as much as they could plunder and letting the planet fight itself. It was one of the methods I envisioned renegades using to maintain their wargear when lacking the support of the Legions or Adeptus Mechanicus.

[Xanthier]

So, with University fully hitting hard in the second term, my productivity took a hideous dive. Since the last update I've painted 3 marine heads and a single arm. That does, however, bring me up to 2 completed marines (sans base drybrushing, edge highlighting which I won't do till the whole lot is done and matt varnishing).

 

So, here's how the two look, followed by the newest member in question:

http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/7778/completedsy2.jpg

http://img46.imageshack.us/img46/4063/champsideqs8.jpghttp://img46.imageshack.us/img46/2613/champarmrm0.jpg

 

I most likely won't get much done for a while, but, come summer, everything should start rolling along nicely.

[Xanthier]

Oh em gee, an update. I managed to get around to finishing up another Raptor Aspiring Champion, and I've confirmed my dislike for painting white helmets and arms. Oh well, only another (insert ridiculous number here) to go eh? At any rate, here's the champ himself:

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/4167/thirdchampks2.jpghttp://img213.imageshack.us/img213/9994/thirdchampsidehu6.jpg

 

I also converted up a Chaos Dreadnought to make it look just a tad more Imperial, as my force is Renegade, not wholly Chaos. At any rate I'm pleased with it, even though it took a bit of time to make sure everything was smooth and flush and filed neatly for crisp edges. I particularly like the hammer. It's not really part of my call, but meh, may as well:

http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/4460/dredfrontih0.jpghttp://img206.imageshack.us/img206/708/dredsidehb1.jpg

(Oh, and yes, that centre 'eye' will be painted with a silver rim and a mostly black lens blending to a bright point of red in the centre. It's name is Hal'kurin. Oho ho ho...)

 

I also managed to procure a nice litre bottle of Simple Green from the UK site, so now I can actually strip large batches of old figures in one go, rather than relying on some rather old, and exceptionally black, Fairy Powerspray. Huzzah!

 

http://img162.imageshack.us/img162/2790/simplegreenyc8.jpg

 

Also, I much prefer taking photos with a darker background, as it helps the contrast of my already dark figures stand out a lot more. All the pictures I took with a white background I had to lighten as no highlights or tone on the dark gray armour was showing, yet on a darker background it does. As such, it'll most likely be a dark background from now on.

[KiltedMarine]

I like the "renegade, but not Chaos-worshipper" feel you've captured with them. At lower points totals, what do you usually play? Loyalist or Chaos, or still a mix?

[Xanthier]

In lower points non-Apocalypse games, mixing codexes is 'a bad thing'. Even in Apocalypse I ask my opponent if they mind. I play them as Chaos for smaller battles, as the logic is that they wouldn't risk all their valuble Imperial 'relic' gear, such as Attack Bikes and Land Speeders, in smaller engagements.

 

Also, cheers for the complement.

[ephrael]

I like the look you have here too. Is the hammer head on the dread arm a missle launcher from an old epic reaver titan?

[Master Toddius]

man, that hammer is just brilliant. The dread is so well done. Love this project to death. Seriously, great stuff. *golf clap*

[Xanthier]

I like the look you have here too. Is the hammer head on the dread arm a missle launcher from an old epic reaver titan?

Thanks, and yes indeed, that's exactly what the business end is made of.

 

man, that hammer is just brilliant. The dread is so well done. Love this project to death. Seriously, great stuff. *golf clap*

I'm glad you like it! Encouragement really does help when it comes to motivation to finish this. The only army I've ever has finished for 40k was a 1,000 point Death Guard force, which was entirely painted in about half an hour (I kid you not, drybrushing and inks). Oddly enough, half of that force has been stripped...

[Terminatorinhell]

can i see more dread pics?

[Xanthier]

Sure thing Terminatorinhell, here they are. They're not the best as I took them in a hurry with bad lighting, and as such the 'HAL' eye didn't come out well, but at least it gives a general idea. There will be much, much better pictures when he's further along, whenever that happens...

http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/3603/dread1v1my5.jpghttp://img352.imageshack.us/img352/7254/dread1v2bs2.jpg

http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/2131/dread1v3yk6.jpghttp://img352.imageshack.us/img352/2508/dread1v4li5.jpg

 

I also spent a bit of time thinking about how my non-Chaos renegade force could make use of Lesser Daemons in terms of fluff, as they can occasionally be handy in a game. I figured that it would require a Librarian (Sorceror) and an icon, in a similar vein to Sarpedon of the Soul Drinkers in the novels. Sarpedon conjures forth what appear to be corporeal visions that terrify the enemy, but they have no physical force. The Penitent Spectres Librarian would conjure up flickering images, yet with actual force, as if the expended energy is going into giving such illusions physical force rather than a solid image.

 

As such, and according to the whole ethos of the Chapter name, I present the test 'daemon', a conjured Penitent Spectre.

http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/412/spectre1kj5.jpghttp://img402.imageshack.us/img402/7540/spectre2xq8.jpghttp://img352.imageshack.us/img352/6910/spectre3hr3.jpghttp://img402.imageshack.us/img402/4956/spectre4lr2.jpg

 

Needless to say, I was quite pleased when I made the connection for what to use to represent them, especially as I have the best part of a box of flagellants around. Huzzah and what not.

[Merkava]

Very nicely pulled off. I really like how you didn't go overboard with the chaos stuff. Exceptional painting. The daemon is very well done.

[Xanthier]

Very nicely pulled off. I really like how you didn't go overboard with the chaos stuff. Exceptional painting. The daemon is very well done.

 

Thanks Merkava. I was wondering about the daemon overall, as it looks like a spectre, but it otherwise quite plain. As such, cheers for the encouragement on that.

 

Also, here's a quick picture of the Dreadnought's HAL lens whilst using flash, it shows it a bit clearer, though still with some reflection.

http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/6897/dreadv6vq0.jpg

[Sian]

Man, great terminator. I love the copper/gold HAL lens I think you could get away with making it a bit brighter, really. Your army theme works really well as weird and obviously renegade but not super chaos-y.

[Alpha PTP]

I really like the execution of this army, to be honest. I love the idea of the spectres rather than daemons fresh from the warp.

 

Get more painted, my friend. You'll have a spectacular army, I promise you. ;)

 

 

Alpha

[Grand Master SFDRF]

i like ur style. like the spectre idea as well

the hammer is pretty nice as well, as has been said.

[tybee154]

I like the paint scheme. I also think just the idea of a godless space marine force is cool. Not ever single renegade chapter would automatically start worshipping chaos. The dreadnought is very cool. Cant wait to see more spectres.

[Xanthier]

Man, great terminator. I love the copper/gold HAL lens I think you could get away with making it a bit brighter, really. Your army theme works really well as weird and obviously renegade but not super chaos-y.

Terminator? I'll assume you meant Dreadnought, and thanks! I agree on brightening the lens as with a reference picture HAL's eye actually has a orange/yellow pinpoint, and fairly bright red before fading into black.

 

I really like the execution of this army, to be honest. I love the idea of the spectres rather than daemons fresh from the warp.

Get more painted, my friend. You'll have a spectacular army, I promise you. ^_^

Cheers! I'm glad you like the whole sprectres deal, as explaining the use of daemons for a technically non-Chaos force is, naturally, a tad awkward. Also, a massive thanks for reckoning I'll have a spectacular army, that's immensely encouraging.

 

i like ur style. like the spectre idea as well

the hammer is pretty nice as well, as has been said.

Thank you Grand Master SFDRF, I'm mildly surprised at how much positive feedback that hammer has received actually.

 

I like the paint scheme. I also think just the idea of a godless space marine force is cool. Not ever single renegade chapter would automatically start worshipping chaos. The dreadnought is very cool. Cant wait to see more spectres.

Indeed, godless 'ironically', the respect for Necoho as a Saint and what not. The next update, which will be within 2 or so weeks with any luck, will have 4 or 5 more spectres (including a pose I'm looking forward too) and a couple more white arms finished on Raptors if I can stand it. If not, the Dreadnought will most likely get a lot closer to completion.

[Midas]

Beautiful ideas, nice looking army, and cool excuse to use fantasy units in an army! I love it.

[Commissar Molotov]

I don't comment all that often in the PC+A (fluff is certainly more my thing), but this army really looks very attractive indeed. I very much like a great deal of your ideas.