
Edited by Ryltar Thamior, 17 June 2018 - 12:46 PM.
Edited by Ryltar Thamior, 17 June 2018 - 12:46 PM.
I have no idea what you are doing, but in the immortal words of James Bond, "All in."
<pushes all of his chips to the center of the table>
"A hall I saw, / far from the sun,
On Nastrond it stands, / and the doors face north,
Venom drops / through the smoke-vent down,
For around the walls / do serpents wind.
I saw there wading / through rivers wild
Treacherous men / and murderers too,
And workers of ill / with the wives of men;
There Nithhogg sucked / the blood of the slain,
And the wolf tore men; / would you know yet more?"
- Völuspá, the 'Prophecy of the Seeress' , related to 'Herjan'; of uncertain original age, Henry Bellows translation c.late M2
[Archivist's Note: 'Herjan', an Auld Nordik term, is here used as a theonym - perhaps renderable as "Imperator" : that is to say, a 'War-Chief']
"But it is worst in Hvergelmir:
There the cursed snake tears
dead men's corpses. "
- Snorri Sturluson, a Remembrancer of Fyalkonan , Sagaøya [Thule?]; Gylfaginning, c.early M2.
Vitoð ér enn?
Churr for positive feedback, all. A few weeks back, on another log, i made a pledge that the next time i had something 'finished', i'd instead of WIP all over the place, do a proper 'thematic' upload instead, replete with mood-music, fluff, quotes etc.
This is also a bit of a test-chassis for some of our future publications on our already-running Inq28 etc. logs. ; and I have to say, it's quite an interesting gear-shift in that regard. Even if it means that I don't upload nearly as frequently because I wind up spending hours trying to take the 'right' photos with the right lighting [generally at about 04:55-ish a.m .. I'm not kidding] and composition to get that 'comic-book' style or movie-frame effect, and finding all the quotes, allusions, and other material to flesh things out.
Now as for what's going on here ... wellllllll, it's going to be interesting to see who puts together the 'clues' to actually work it out
Good job kitbashing the models- I like the axe blade on the grenade launcher- but their helmets make the guardsmen look like members of the Carmine family, from the 'Gears of War' games. Is that intentional?
Churr And as applies the axe .. like i said above - it's definitely aesthetic, although jury's out on its functionality
Haven't really played Gears of War [beyond a brief experience at a mate's place almost a decade ago] so don't know enough of the background or anything else to comment about that point, perhaps I should look into it for aesthetics [I did briefly consider using chainblades from either the Forgeworld uh .. i think ti's either phobos bolters or some Mk.III kit?; or from the FW tartaros chainfist bitz, to do the close combat attachment on the grenade launcher ... that probably would have added to a Gears of War vibe, had I gone ahead with it, i suppose :P ]
The Scion helmets were, funnily enough, actually wehre the design effort for these miniatures started - I kept 'seeing' in my mind how they'd look done up in Harii colours; and after some abortive efforts using other base-miniatures here and there for another combat role, these just kinda flowed togehter from there. I noticed with some interest during my Infinity range trawling that ther were some of their offerings which had similar, but that was about the extent of the cross-polination form other sources.
Operation Psychopomp
Cellblock Thurisaz, Inquisitorial Watch-Fortress [codename: 'Hanging Mountain'], Undisclosed Location
Berkano-Minus Three Hours, Fifteen Minutes.
It appeared to his jailors that The Prisoner had lost all sense of time. This was not unusual in a place like this - and while it had occasionally interfered with the ability of interrogation to provide reliably useful outcomes ... the common position of his jailers was that such disorientation represented a "a feature, not a flaw".
But as with so much about him, this was a lie.
In truth, The Prisoner had indeed lost track of the days and weeks. He even possessed only the most haphazard sense of the hours; with the minutes seemingly varying and slithering in scope, undulating on a case-by-case basis.
This was helpful. In conjunction with his Purpose, it had allowed him to exist in something of a 'timeless' state within his cell; almost immune to the sorts of existential boredom which had so consumed other denizens before him.
Also helpful had been the lack of distraction which might provide a 'false grounding' for him within Time's flow.
There were no bricks in the walls to count, to name, to deliriously begin to converse with in order to "pass the time". (It sounded silly, but The Prisoner had read of this occurring in a book once - The Jarl of Hangifjall)
If there were guards or guard-shifts outside his cell, he saw them not. And the provision of such nutrients as were required to keep him from the brink of starvation appeared to come with no set regularity.
Indeed, about the only reminder he had yet found that there even WAS a world, a galaxy, a universe outside of his cell were the almost-imperceptible micro-gravity fluctuations which had told him that his gaol was not terrestrial in nature.
Yet this did not at all mean he now lacked a sense of time.
Only that it had become clearer - much clearer, now - what his actual relationship with Time was.
For a free man - although The Prisoner had never, truly been one - Time marked the passage of a being from a starting point; or measured the distance between events.
In the absence of any real surety of when his incarceration had begun, or any occurrences worthy of note or recollection once the interrogations had stopped, [once his captors had ceased their interrogations of him in frustration], The Prisoner had instead come to view Time as something entirely different.
At first, the inexorable counting down toward something which could not be changed.
And then, simply, what it actually was:
An Inevitability.
For The Prisoner knew that there would be only one way a figure such as he would ever leave a facility such as this.
In death. The 'final' liberator of all Men; whereupon the Prisoner's previous status as Hangatyrman would become altogether literal.
He had no idea when this might occur; and so it was no longer an idea with any distance between him and it. Any distance worth measuring, certainly.
Just a reality. A free-standing concept.
His only real companion, here in this small cube of what yet remained of "real".
Yet even in Death, his Duty might not end.
And perhaps, if he had demonstrated both amply and aptly his ferocity - his dedication, his zeal - in the commission of his Calling ... he would be Selected. Judged 'Worthy' by the Chooser of the Slain to be received into His Halls. Carried 'forward' to fight the War Eternal by more direct means than he had been afforded thus far.
Trade this present Hangafjell for Helgafjell, he mused - before the Fire at the End of Time came and consumed all
For that was the *other* means by which he might yet leave this asteroid -
"Come the Apocalypse".
After so long, he had almost come to view Time as a friend.
For one day, one way or the other, Time would End him and his captivity here.
And, as always struck him at this point in his ritualistic cycle of reverie, this meant he was literally living out the Imperial Proverb - "Life is a Prison; Death, a Release".
Except, in a sense, 'dying' meant failure. And The Prisoner did not believe in failure.
-----
Sentry-Post Newun, Inquisitorial Watch-Fortress [codename: 'Hanging Mountain'], Undisclosed Location
Berkano-Minus Thirty Minutes.
"Shouldn't we ask him to remove his mask?"
"Why bother? Geneprint already confirmed he's exactly who he says he is."
"But-"
"Look, do you really want to bother Inquisitor Geirroth with this? He is who he says he is - and who he says he is is right here on the manifest."
"Yes, Serje ... but it's your funeral if the Master has an issue with this"
Behind his Mask, the figure smiled.
------
Cellblock Thurisaz, Inquisitorial Watch-Fortress [codename: 'Hanging Mountain'], Undisclosed Location
Berkano-Minus Six Minutes
A knock at the door jolted The Prisoner out of his reverie.
Wait, that couldn't be right. Guards did not knock. They simply entered. It was, after all, their place.
Only a guest need knock. To signify a desire for entry. And guests, here, were rarely of the "voluntary" variety. "Kicking-and-screaming", yes - but "knocking"? The Prisoner could not recall such an occurrence.
Something was up.
---
---------------
Cellblock Thurisaz, Inquisitorial Watch-Fortress [codename: 'Hanging Mountain'], Undisclosed Location
Berkano-Minus Two Minutes Thirty Seven Seconds
"What should I call you?"
"You may call me .. "the figure paused a moment, as if in thought (damn hard to tell behind that bloody mask) "Kahrl."
It was the prisoner's turn to pause: "As in, 'a Man'?"
"Yes, that'll do."
"A fine pseudonym. Now who are you really, who knows of both me and my present place."
"It also means 'Time'. And "Death", if you prefer. Albeit with slightly different pronunciation and in a related language."
The prisoner stiffened. "Have you been reading my thoughts?"
"Not yet. We are just .. acquainted with what runs through the minds of men in your .. predicament"
------
Secure Comms Channel, Inquisitorial Watch-Fortress [codename: 'Hanging Mountain'], Undisclosed Location
Berkano Minus Two Minutes, Twelve Seconds
"What do you mean 'my guest'?" the voice dripped a deep and restrained rage.
"His craft entered our exclusion zone a little over an hour ago. Long-range hound-defences failed to engage. We assumed technical malfunction; but when it came closer, our augurs stated it had been sent with the highest authority; and further, that its passenger was here on your hospitality."
"Why was I not informed?"
"With respect, Sir" - this voice had attained all the delicacy of one who is painfully aware that he's gone from 'treading on thin ice' to 'treading water' ; and with what had at first appeared to be an island on the horizon, now instead rather more overtly resembling an potentially approaching fin - "We received hand-prepared permits of entry and arrival bearing your personal seal and the requisite authorization codes. The visitor was even gene-logged ahead-of-time in our systems as an expected and anticipated personal guest. There was simply no way we could have kno-"
The choking silence which abruptly ensued, mid-word of mid-sentence, suggested that the Gravitas-bearing voice rather forcefully disagreed.
"Other than, of course, actually thinking to *directly ask* your Lord, to confirm? "
The choking silence, continued.
A sigh. "Look, I appreciate that the Schola Progenium does not necessarily positively select for intelligence nor critical thinking ... but you might, perhaps, have noticed over the previous eight spans we've been here, that while we *do* occasionally have "guests" over for "social calls" and such "conversation" as my "hospitality" doth regularly tend to induce ... they *never* turn up "under their own power". And *always* clad in irons."
A third voice - quavering, but clearly of similar rank to the now-silent second: "T-th-that's just the thing, Sir."
"What."
"He *was* in Iron!"
There was a crack of discarding tension; soon-swift replaced by mounting terror. This time, from the one who had at first seemed so derisively [self-]assured.
"SEAL THE LANDING BAY!"
---
Cellblock Thurisaz, Inquisitorial Watch-Fortress [codename: 'Hanging Mountain'], Undisclosed Location
Berkano-Minus Fifty Four Seconds
"How could you find me? I thought that the-"
"Being chained between two Star-sized pyres is a neat trick, it is true. But I am a patron of prisoners. I keep one eye on That Which Is Hidden."
"Who are you?"
"I am thine Brothers' Keeper. And the Finder of Lost Children."
The Prisoner noticed a blue-frost luminous rune had appeared upon the device mounted on the Iron Mask's arm : blinking - pulsing - with increasing rapidity.
"Are you an Angel?"
"Only in a manner of speaking. And as much as I enjoy the riddle-game, our time here is now at an end.
You may perhaps think of me as a 'Valkjosandi'."
"...a 'Chooser of the Slain'?"
"Exactly. Now if you could just step about three meters to the right..."
"For what purpose?"
"Life."
"But I thought you said-"
"-Slain? Yes. This is where the part about 'Angels' comes in."
The Prisoner obliged.
Several seconds passed.
During which conspicuously nothing happened.
The Masked Man looked down slightly at the device mounted on his wrist; tapped it; "Ah."
Where The Prisoner had been standing less than a minute before promptly exploded with a howling prismatic light, wreathed with sound-that-was-not-sound - felt altogether somewhere else than the ears, and 'seen' by senses beyond his eyes .. but definitely resonating rather discomfortingly somewhere in the inner ear's vestibular system.
Somewhere off behind the meters-thick reinforced ferrocrete and otherwise-impenetrable plasteel blast-door that bounded the room, alarm klaxons began to sound.
After a moment, the weft-skein seemingly 'stabilized' into a portal; bone-ringed and with a shimmering iridescence where the aperature's contents made contact with external reality.
Within, a most curious shade of purple. And, it would seem, Destiny. Or at least, Death.
"Release", at any rate.
Fists began to pound with a frantic urgency upon the exterior door to the interrogation room - which shouldn't have been lockable, much less from the inside, the Prisoner noted.
"Step astride the Steed of Ygg"
"Do I have a choice?"
"Only in principle"; the Mask seemed to beam.
"Who are you, really?"
"Haptagud. Now get in the Portal."
Mere moments - which had passed like a lifetime for those on the outside of the door as they desperately attempted to gain entry - later, armed men bearing the insignia of the Master of this place burst in, their weapons firing with the precision of well-trained and well drilled men in a blind panic at the space where the rapidly-closing portal appeared almost to blink out of existence.
They were followed soon after by the hulking figure of Inquisitor Geirroth - the Master of this place, a Master no more. Presiding over only emptiness where once there had been a treasure. Left to marvel, and to curse in spite at the inevitability with which 'time' confounds us all.
Before it vanished completely, words from two disparate voices seemed to hang amidst the air:
"Where does this lead?"
"The War Eternal."
----
Epilogue:
Ordo Mazdayanos Oubliette-Class Containment Facility [ Codename: Vara ]
"Are you an Angel?"
The masked figure seemed to smirk : "You know, I think I've heard that somewhere before..."
---
"Wield Truth like a Sword, and Scribe Reality Anew With The Blood-Threads Of Thine Prey"
"A Mind Without Purpose Will Wander In Dark Places
A Mind With Dark Purpose Shall Fear That Which Wanders In Dark Places Behind Him"
Primaris are looking very atmospheric, I really like the grittier colours and also the pale gold.
Story. 10/10.
Minis. 10/10.
Painting. 10/10.
Conversions. 10/10.
My jealousy. 11/10.
Fallen Dark Angels.
http://www.bolterand...a-fallen-angel/
"You don't know the things I dream. No one does, no one ever cared enough to find out."
- The Primarch Perturabo.
Thanks for the positive feedback, all Really helps to keep the motivation up.
If you've enjoyed what you've seen thus far [and going by the comments .. that'd be a yes, then - glad it goes up to eleven for some ] , then maaaaaaaaaaan ... what's presently on the converting, painting, and writing tables [it's er .. it's all the same table] , is going to keep things intensifying.
it's taken me awhile to start to get a 'feel' for the Primaris plastics - and while I'm still slightly annoyed by the regrettably monopose nature of the legs+torso, I'm now finding it a bit easier to come up with what i feel are 'realistic' , but also 'characterful' , and more in-line with how the Harii operate, than the regular line marines of other chapters.
Same goes for the Van Saars i've been using for the Serpent's Tooth commandos.
And, slowly but surely, a variety of non-Astartes miniatures that're coming together pretty well.
Plus, of course, another few short stories to flesh out a bit more of 'what's actually going on'. Which've been stalled a bit by the necessary effort to properly research, internalize, and then cunningly weave together the authentic real-world mythological threads which go into those. [in fact, my self-imposed high-standards have kept much of *all* of the above on that same table in various stages of near-to-finished assembly/painting/writing etc. for varying lengths of weeks up to *months* at a time, til sudden flashes of inspiration enable me to put the last few bits of belt-stowage, or pick out the right head, or finish editing a paragraph, or try a new colour here and there, and actually get things up onto the photography table in the pre-dawn darkness for a shoot and an upload ... once i've found the appropriate quotes :P ]
So keep an eye out for all of that, and more, in the days and weeks to come.
Vitoð ér enn?
Excellent work on the Primaris Marines.
Churr
Primaris are looking very atmospheric, I really like the grittier colours and also the pale gold.
Thanks; it's been an interesting exercise getting more out of the Primaris plastics; and I'm rather keen on how the colours've come together, particularly for the overall vibe.
Helping with it, of course, is the shadowy murky photography I'm deliberately doing - I wasn't kidding about waiting till the pre-dawn darkness for every shot And it's remarkable how much it makes what i reckon myself to be rather .. room-for-improvement paintjobs seem a lot better. I'm going to try and do more 'comic-book' style photos [as somebody on another board referred to them as] ... which is half the reason i keep fiddling around attempting to get 'dynamic' and 'realistic' posings to begin with
As for the gold - it's actually sycorax bronze over a black undercoat. At least I *think* that's what I used, most of the time. Definitely the last few. It's probably looking more gold-y and less orangy-pink due to the low-light er .. saturating? the exposure in a more yellow-y way for some reason.
Now if you like that ... one of the characters i'm just about finished painting'll hopefully keep your enthusiasm up
Story. 10/10.
Minis. 10/10.
Painting. 10/10.
Conversions. 10/10.
My jealousy. 11/10.
Oh wow, thanks for that! I've just taken a look at your log, and it's very legit as well. I am quite a fan of people who tell stories with their project-efforts; especially with actual fluff-pieces, and doubly so when it goes with absolute parts-melange well-conceptualized conversions and personalizations.
I'm glad somebody's read the story - it was pretty well received around the research institute and other circles, but i was worried it was a little long for forum-consumption. Like I said above, there's an array of carefully interwoven real-world mythological threads that've gone into this project [I was going to say "all that you see ... but most of it hasn't been seen yet].
As applies the painting .. sir, you're far too kind. I'm actually a pretty ... not-great painter; largely because the nerves in my hands don't work correctly [so I can't viably write, for the most part, etc.] . I've still got aways to go; but taking a look at my work at the start of this project and beforehand, and then how things have managed to improve in recent months [there was a rather substantial break in there somewhere, during which things went very backwards, very quickly :P ] - I'm pretty pleased with how things're coming along
Although part of the reason for those pre-dawn photo-shoots , in addition to the 'mood lighting' working out quite well for the Harii's overall vibe and them 'comic-book panel' shots i was trying for earlier on ... is that it actually gently covers in a blanket of darkness a multitude of mistakes and imperfections, which i keep telling myself i'll get back to at some point in the ineffable indeterminate near-to-middling future.
But yeah uh. Thanks for the positive feedback, again, all. I'll try and keep living upwards towards expectations.
And maybe indulge in a little explication as to what's really been happening, in them shadows
"A Dagger In The Dark Is Worth A Thousand Swords At Dawn" - Maxim of the Officio Assassinorum
"I am Ripper...
Tearer...
Slasher...
Gouger...:
I am the Teeth in the Darkness,
The Talons in the Night:
Mine is Strength...
And Lust...
And Power!
I am Baleyggr
And I am Terror Incarnate."
"Fjarri þú gekkt, meðan ek á Fáfni rauðk
meðan þú í lyngvi látt."
Fafnismal, Codex Regius ['Book of the King'] ;; the Macht of Dhanu, Terra, Mid-M1
"Better is heart | than a mighty blade
Though dull his blade may be."
Ibid. Bellows Translation, Terra, Late M2.
"Yes, but why bother with a dull blade, when Smash of Hammer shall kill just as cleanly, and with twice the subtlety?"
- Response-Intercept; Origination Unknown;
"We are are the Hammer of the Emperor, by the virtue of fighting wars as unforgivingly as a Hammer strike to the face." - a Maxim of the Imperial Guard
Baleyggr and the others are well done, but are they all meant to be blackshields, i.e., those who forsook their oaths to their Chapter, or were forsaken for some crime/sin/transgression?
Good question! The answer is .... something that I'd intended on seeing how long it took people to work out ; and, for that matter, see what people came up with along the way.
We do have a particular identified origin and story for these Marines and associates [and by "we", I mean the three guys behind all our Vox Stellarum logs], and how they 'fit in' to the overarching Vox Stellarum ten thousand years plus supra-narrative.
Many of the clues are already up in plain sight, enough to make a reasonable inference that's at least somewhat accurate. Although I've stil got to get around to finishing the conversion-work and painting on a few more miniatures [mostly human-sized , this time] that'll help to set things into further context.
"They are also called JyotirLinnorm - The Wyrm that Encircles the Stars"
"Þar kømr inn dimmi
dreki fljúgandi,
naðr fránn,
neðanfrá Niðafjöllum."
"The Fires of Creation; Fuelling Stars and Thence Life; Bring Also Men-Svara's Doom"
Vitoð ér enn?
![]() |
+ LORE + →
+ THE LIBER + →
+ LIBER IMPERIALIS + →
AdamantiaStarted by Ryltar Thamior , 17 Feb 2021 ![]() |
|
![]()
|
|
![]() |
+ OTHER GAMES + →
+ OTHER GAMES + →
Poll Systems used for Inq28/InquisimundaStarted by Brother Tyler , 20 Oct 2020 ![]() |
|
![]()
|
|
![]() |
+ FORGE + →
+ WORKS IN PROGRESS + →
Vox Stellarum: Truescale Horus Heresy ReduxStarted by Ryltar Thamior , 09 Oct 2020 ![]() |
|
![]()
|
|
![]() |
+ FORGE + →
+ HALL OF HONOUR + →
"Ghost", Savlar Chem Dog VeteranStarted by Dam13n , 27 Sep 2020 ![]() |
|
![]()
|
|
![]() |
+ FORGE + →
+ WORKS IN PROGRESS + →
The Hounds ImperialisStarted by Centurion Jay , 23 Jul 2020 ![]() |
|
![]()
|
0 members, 1 guests, 0 anonymous users