The Hounds Imperialis

[Grim Dog Studios]

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THE HOUNDS IMPERIALIS

 

+ First Sergeant Borsus, 3rd Company +

 

 

Chapter Designation: The Hounds Imperialis

Founding Chapter: Imperial Fists

Founding: Unknown - Active since at least M35

Homeworld: Orios - Feudal World

Fortress Monastery: The Argos

Codex Adherence: Codex Adherent - Minor Deviations

Chapter Master: Tallius Ironhelm

 

The Hounds Imperialis are an unknown founding of the Imperial Fists, although records show them in action from as early as the 35th Millenium. Although founded from Imperial Fist Geneseed, The Hounds Imperialis show little in common with their Primogenitors, preferring Speed and Shock Tactics to the Siege Warfare implemented by the First Sons of Dorn.

 

The Chapter is largely Codex Adherent, following the Structure of having 10 Companies at 100 Space Marine strength. Eschewing Company markings and colours, aside from the First Company that retains its Codex-Compliant White Trim and Helmets, each Battle Brother is outfitted in Turquoise Power Armour, with Black Trim. The Chapter also does not observe the practice of Reserve Companies, with Companies 2 through 9 being active Battle Companies with squads of varying battlefield roles within them.

 

Although The Hounds Imperialis have had a degree of success in keeping their numbers close to the 1000 mark outlined by the Codex Astartes, following the Destruction of Krippilia Prime 300 Standard Terran Years ago, The Hounds Imperialis stand at a strength of just over 300 Battle Brothers. 

During the Destruction of Krippilia Prime, exterminatus via Cyclonic Torpedoes was carried out by the orders of Lord Inquisitor Victus Tarrax, whilst the main strength of the Chapter was defending the planet's Capital against the Plague Hordes of Lord Pestus. Due to the absolute destruction of the planet, the gene seed of hundreds of Battle Brothers was lost and The Hounds Imperialis have made countless demands for gene seed from the Genebanks located on Terra, to no avail. Some believe this is tied to the sudden disappearance of Lord Inquisitor Victus Tarrax following the end of the Krippilia System Campaign.

 

Due to the loss of much of the Chapters wargear, The Hounds Imperialis have been forced to rely on their Chapter Relics in recent campaigns, and it is no longer a rare sight to see ancient tanks and Dreadnought Chassis' used in battle by the Chapter. Of note however, is the Chapter as a whole has been seen equipped in a variant of MK IV Maximus Power Armour, believed to have been manufactured by the Astartes themselves in their Fortress Monastery on Orios. How the Chapter has come about a rare STC such as this is undetermined, but they have been known to trade this ancient suit of armour on occasion for much needed wargear with other Astartes Chapters.

 

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With the upcoming release of the Indomitus Box, and inspired by the likes of Apologist, St. Lazarus, and Chapter Master Valrak to name but a few hobbyists on these boards that have done fantastic things with the Primaris line of Space Marines, I have been bitten by the Primaris bug that I have long since resisted since they were first released. My 30K Ultramarines project is currently on the back burner having hardly gotten started, but I will be going back and forth between the two projects as and when I feel like it. The main downside to the 30K Ultramarines is that I have very few friends that play Warhammer, and none that show interest in 30K, so I have no opponent for that part of the hobby. I do however have friends that play 40K, and so this is my main project going forward.

 

I have always wanted to do a DIY chapter, accompanied by lore and history written by myself, and with the release of 9th Edition very close now I felt this was the perfect time to get started. The Project itself is hopefully going to be part of a wider narrative I hope to write, with other armies eventually added that I am slowly writing lore for as well, but that is a while off yet, at least until I have fleshed out The Hounds Imperialis to a point that I'm happy with, and I have a fully painted 2000 points army.

 

The Marines in this log are going to represent True Scale Space Marines rather than Primaris Marines, with the Wider Narrative being set in the 38th Millenium, following the near destruction of The Hounds Imperialis at the hands of a power-mad Lord Inquisitor. Hopefully the future lore I write pads this out and is easy to follow, as I have a head full of ideas but I struggle to put it into words that others may find legible.

 

Anyway, I feel like this was a lot of text, so I hope to have more pictures to show over the following days and weeks as I work on The Hounds Imperialis!

 

Thanks for looking!

James

Edited July 23, 2020 by Centurion Jay

[Brother Dallo]

That’s a solid beginning. I imagine a lot of people are in the same boat as you, starting projects for 9th edition.

 

Have you got any units you’re particularly looking forward to?

 

Keep up the good work.

 

Dallo

[Yosef Hausakluif]

Great backstory and color scheme! I really like the re-use of the old school SW symbol on his chest. I think a Chapter fighting against the odds fits wells with all that goes into the background. Sounds like the Inquisition maybe a problem though in the future for your battle brothers (SEE Celestial Lions background)

[Doghouse]

Very nice start and very nice colours. :tu:

[Bjorn Firewalker]

You're off to a good start. In your mind, is the Chapter actually an Imperial Fists descendant, or

a World Eaters descendant- possibly of the 13th Founding- as the name suggests? (The XII Legion was originally named the "War Hounds", before Angron changed its name.)

[Grim Dog Studios]

That’s a solid beginning. I imagine a lot of people are in the same boat as you, starting projects for 9th edition.

 

Have you got any units you’re particularly looking forward to?

 

Keep up the good work.

 

Dallo

 

Thank you! I've got a squad of Veteran Intercessors in the middle of being built now, but I'm looking forward to getting my hands on some of the Assault Intercessors from the Indomitus Box. I'm thinking about putting Jump Packs on them so they can portray Assault Marines, even if I'll still be using Assault Intercessor rules for them!

 

Great backstory and color scheme! I really like the re-use of the old school SW symbol on his chest. I think a Chapter fighting against the odds fits wells with all that goes into the background. Sounds like the Inquisition maybe a problem though in the future for your battle brothers (SEE Celestial Lions background)

 

Cheers, and good eye! I love that old RT Wolves Decal and knew I had to use it. It's going to be the Chapter Icon, managed to get a fair amount of them off Ebay for a decent price! The background isn't fully fleshed out yet regarding their problems with the Inquisition, so I'm not sure where I am going to take it myself yet. I just wanted a reason to explain why the army is going to have a few of the more fancy Forge World tanks in it than you'd usually see, and I've always loved stories about Chapters fighting against the odds to remain in existence such as the Crimson Fists, Scythes of the Emperor, and like you mentioned the Celestial Lions!

 

Very nice start and very nice colours.

 

Thank you very much! I consider this high praise as I have been a fan of your work for years, going all the way back to your first attempts at true scaling with stuff like the Chaos Warrior legs and that fantastic sculpt of True Scale MK IV armour you did!

 

You're off to a good start. In your mind, is the Chapter actually an Imperial Fists descendant, or

a World Eaters descendant- possibly of the 13th Founding- as the name suggests? (The XII Legion was originally named the "War Hounds", before Angron changed its name.)

 

Cheers! I settled on them being Imperial Fist descendants after a lot of thought as it was one part of their lore I was struggling to decide upon. My other main army is my 30K Ultramarines and originally I had planned to tie this force into them, but these guys are doing to have a bit of a Roman theme so I changed my mind on their geneseed as I didn't want them to just be Ultramarines in a different shade of blue. Whilst I love the idea of using Traitor Geneseed for loyalist chapters, it isn't something I really wanted to go into myself as I find the lore required to make it believable above my talents unfortunately!

 

 

I'm currently working on building some Veteran Intercessors, so I should hopefully have some pics to show over the coming days once they are built. I am an incredibly slow painter but hopefully I can speed things up a bit as it a reasonably simple scheme to paint, and I have foregone battle-damage that I usually paint on my miniatures this time, with the only weathering being the dirt around the boots and lower greaves.

 

Thanks for looking!

James

[Doghouse]

Very nice start and very nice colours.

 

Thank you very much! I consider this high praise as I have been a fan of your work for years, going all the way back to your first attempts at true scaling with stuff like the Chaos Warrior legs and that fantastic sculpt of True Scale MK IV armour you did!

 

Well I think you've genuinely done a really nice job on this guy and look forward to seeing more, The colours are great, painting is really nice with great subtle weathering and a great use of the old school Space Wolves icon. The background is very nicely thought out as well.

[deathspectersgt7]

Man missed your work Doghouse. Been awhile looking forward to more.

[Grim Dog Studios]

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The only Companies to remain unscathed during Krippilia Prime's destruction were the 3rd, 6th and 7th Companies, with small elements of the 1st and 10th spread amongst them. Chapter Master Talius had remained aboard the Chapters Flagship Blade of Orios with his Honour Guard to oversee the defence of the planet, and so was unharmed when the planet's crust was shattered. With the loss of the majority of the Chapter, The Hounds Imperialis have been forced to reduce the overall strength of each Battle Company. The Chapter currently operates with 6 Battle Companies, most at half strength, rebuilt via splitting the remaining Companies in two. 

 

Due to this, in recent time The Hounds Imperialis have not operated in Campaigns that require them to deploy any more than a standard Companies' worth of Marines at a time, preferring Spearhead strikes to remove the head of the enemy to lessen the chance of a drawn out battle that could cost the Chapter any more lives. Fortunately, this suits the Chapter's style of warfare, and recent losses have been minimal, with what little recruitment they have performed filling any holes in the Chapters current strength. This has left the Chapter in a Status Quo for near 300 years, and without the assistance of the Genelabs of Terra it is unlikely The Hounds Imperialis will ever fight at full Chapter strength again.

 

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So I haven't painted anything in the past few days but I have been busy with building some Intercessors and a few Character models for my army which I'm quite proud of.  With my late arrival into buying Primaris, I'm currently trying to snap up all the various Limited Edition figures that I thought looked cool when they were first released, but thought I'd never use so didn't bother buying them. I'm regretting that decision deeply at the moment, and paying through my teeth for some of them. So far I've acquired Lt Amulius and Lt Calsius, and I'm waiting for Sgt Jovan to arrive in the mail. I'm also currently keeping my eyes out for the Lt with his helmet in his hand, and the Plasma Pistol/PF Captain.

 

+ Chapter Master Talius +

 

+ Captain Jaht, 3rd Company +

 

+ Company Champion Jay, 3rd Company +

 

+ 1st Tactical Demi-Squad, 3rd Company +

 

I've gone back and added a few extra details on Chapter Master Talius as he was looking a bit "Bare" for somebody of his status, I'll post him up again once he is painted! Waiting on some bits for the Champion too, he's going to be a Chapter Champion in-game with the Blade of Triumph relic, simply because that unit profile to me looks like an absolute beatstick at such a low points cost. Probably rubbish in-game, but that doesn't really bother me.

 

 

Very nice start and very nice colours.

 

Thank you very much! I consider this high praise as I have been a fan of your work for years, going all the way back to your first attempts at true scaling with stuff like the Chaos Warrior legs and that fantastic sculpt of True Scale MK IV armour you did!

 

Well I think you've genuinely done a really nice job on this guy and look forward to seeing more, The colours are great, painting is really nice with great subtle weathering and a great use of the old school Space Wolves icon. The background is very nicely thought out as well.

 

 

Thanks a lot, I really appreciate the kind words! Writing background isn't my forte, my head is swimming with ideas I think are cool but I really struggle at putting pen to paper to speak and make it sound good.

 

Currently have a few more Intercessors built on my desk, and Leviathan Dread Culln waiting to be washed, shaved of Scorpion iconagraphy, and built. 

 

Thanks for looking!

James

Edited July 28, 2020 by Centurion Jay

[Torbenos]

Quite an enjoyable read, the background you have written that is. And I do love the colour scheme you have chosen, a very striking and unique blue. I have fallen in love with the mix-match primaris look myself after following Apologist's and other peoples versions of it and you are doing it very well. Tempted myself to try and so something like it. What successor chapter tactics do you imagine the Hounds will be fielded with? If you intend to play with them, of course.

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Your models are well-customized and posed. I hope to see them painted and completed soon.

[Grim Dog Studios]

+++

 

+ Chaplain Varus, 3rd Company +

 

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No lore written today, just wanted to post this guy up now I have received him. Seeing the Chaplain from the Indomitus box is one of the biggest factors that pushed me into starting a force using the Primaris marines. He's a stunning model and one of the best GW has released in a long time in my opinion. Had to put my own spin on him of course, I've had Sevetars backpack and the Night Lord upgrades helmet sat in my bitzbox for a long time from a plan I had years ago of starting a 30K blackshield force. Swapped his Primaris pistol for a Vanguard Veteran pistol as well.

 

I've also managed to finish off building the entire first tactical squad, and have just finished building the second over the weekend. I'll get some pics up of them soon hopefully. I've sprayed the first squad and the champion and have started to lay down the basecoat of Sotek Green on them. Currently building a squad of Assault Intercessors in between painting as well. I'm replacing all the arms on them as I didn't like the large vambrace on the left arm, and wanted to put MK III Shoulder pads on them all as well.

I still have Culln sat in the box at the moment, really need to start building him!

 

 

Quite an enjoyable read, the background you have written that is. And I do love the colour scheme you have chosen, a very striking and unique blue. I have fallen in love with the mix-match primaris look myself after following Apologist's and other peoples versions of it and you are doing it very well. Tempted myself to try and so something like it. What successor chapter tactics do you imagine the Hounds will be fielded with? If you intend to play with them, of course.

 

Thank you for the kind words! I'm currently thinking of using Whirlwind of Rage and either Hungry for Battle or Rapid Assault. I want it to be an army that gets stuck in, with Intercessor squads with Auto Bolt Rifles and squads of Assault Intercessors. I'm not a power gamer, and neither is my main opponent who plays Orks so I just want to get into combat with his mobs of Boyz for fun.

 

Your models are well-customized and posed. I hope to see them painted and completed soon.

 

Thank you! I'm not happy unless every model in my army is somehow customized! Hopefully I can get them painted up relatively fast, I'm a notoriously slow painter because I'm not that good so I have to take my time on every model to get them to a decent table-top standard I'm happy with. Because I have a tendency to convert everything and spend hours doing it, I don't want to give them a paintjob that I'm not happy with!

 

Thank you for looking!

James

[Grim Dog Studios]

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The triumphs and deeds committed by 1st Tactical Squad Borsus of the 3rd Company would have seen them promoted to the ranks of the 1st Company if they were part of any other Chapter, but The Hound's need for Battle Brothers requires them to remain amongst the front-line within the battle companies. Unwavering and battle hungry, they have held the line countless times where even other Astartes would have retreated to consolidate their position. Veteran Sergeant Borsus has seen more campaigns than some of the Chapter's Command Staff, but his bellicose character has seen him passed over for higher command. Unphased by this, Borsus knows he and his Brothers belong where the fighting is thickest, and leaves tactical analysis to those more suited to the role.

 

+ 1st Tactical Demi-Squad Borsus, 3rd Company +

 

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So I've been working away at The Hounds Slowly, I am unfortunately an incredibly slow painter but I'm getting faster the more I do it. I've written a 1000 Point list that I am currently aiming to achieve before anything else, but no doubt I will have to change it up a bit when the new codex is released. I'm not a power gamer or anything so my list building is pretty simple. The list I am currently working towards:

 

Primaris Captain [5 PL, 95pts]
Selections: Master of Snares, Power sword, Warlord

Primaris Chaplain [4 PL, 85pts]
Selections: 6. Canticle of Hate, Litany of Hate, Strike off the Head

Assault Intercessor Squad [5 PL, 100pts]
Assault Intercessor Sgt
Selections: Plasma Pistol

 

Assault Intercessor Squad [5 PL, 100pts]
Assault Intercessor Sgt
Selections: Plasma Pistol

 

Intercessor Squad [5 PL, 105pts]
Selections: Auto Bolt Rifle  Power sword

Intercessor Squad [5 PL, 105pts]
Selections: Auto Bolt Rifle  Power sword


Company Champion [3 PL, -1CP, 53pts]
Selections: Blade of Triumph, Combat shield, Master-crafted power sword, Stratagem: Chapter Champion

 

 

Contemptor Dreadnought [6 PL, 153pts]
Selections: Combi-bolter, Dreadnought combat weapon, Kheres pattern assault cannon


Contemptor Mortis Dreadnought [9 PL, 185pts]
Selections: 2x Twin lascannon

 

 

Got a load of other marines basecoated and a lot in grey plastic still. On my desk at the minute I've got 15 more Intercessors/Tactical Marines, 5 Assault Intercessors/Assault Marines, a Contemptor, Leviathan and about 8 various characters I have built. I'll try and get a picture of it all tomorrow so that this WIP log has a bit more substance to it!

 

Thanks for looking!

Edited September 23, 2020 by Centurion Jay

[BadgersinHills]

Love your work, excellent painting and modelling. Looking forward for more! Where is Captain Jaht's body from? 

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Good job on Demi-Squad Borsus. Edited September 24, 2020 by Bjorn Firewalker

[Grim Dog Studios]

 

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Unique to The Hounds Imperialis Chapter are the Venatarii. Marines chosen for their exceptional tracking abilities and indomitable will, they are paired with a Cyber-Mastiff and operate independently of The Chapter during conflicts. Tasked with hunting out and eliminating key opposing individuals, many wars have been won without a full scale assault due to the actions of these individual Astartes warriors. The Venatarii are usually sent on missions unaccompanied save for their Cyber-Mastiff, striking out into the Galaxy on an Astartes Escort Vessel crewed by Chapter serfs, although it is not unheard of for them to be assisted by a squad of Veterans depending on the scope of their mission. Outside of the Chain of Command similar to the Chaplaincy and Librarius, the Venatarii receive their orders directly from the Chapter Master himself, relayed to them by the lead Venator, The Master of the Hunt.

 

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+ Chapter Venator Jay +

 

So, I’ve had this Ltd Ed forge world cyber mastiff for years now but was never sure what to do with him, so with a little bit of fluff it allows me to plug him into my army. The mastiff itself isn’t likely to see the field, simply because I am not sure how to make it work, but he’s there for display purposes! The marine is likely going to be used as a Chapter Champion, reflecting his role in hunting out enemy HQ units. The mastiff is still currently WIP whilst the Venator himself is finished.

 

 

 

Love your work, excellent painting and modelling. Looking forward for more! Where is Captain Jaht's body from? 

 

Thank you! The body for my Captain is just the standard Primaris plastic captain, with his chest eagle shaved off and his loincloth replaced by some pteruges from a chap on Instagram called @beyondthetabletop, where I got all the pteruges from that have been used so far in this army!

 

Thank you all for looking! Comments and criticism welcome!

 

James

Edited November 4, 2020 by Centurion Jay

[Shovellovin]

Another excellent post. I really like the Venator and hound. No need to have rules for the hound, just field him as a cool addition to your Chapter. 

 

Looking forward to seeing more of your models. Very inspiring stuff.

[BadgersinHills]

Lovely work!! Thanks for the information. The conversion you did really changes the model, excellent work. 

[SvenIronhand]

Loving the lore! 

[Bjorn Firewalker]

The Venatarii is an AWESOME idea, giving your Chapter a trait that distinguishes it from other IA Chapters.

 

The model is well done. How will you decorate the Cyber-Mastiff's base? A skull with green stuff gore added to it, to show the Cyber-Mastiff just tore it off the Venator's quarry, allowing the Hound Imperialis to return victoriously to the Chapter planet?

[Yosef Hausakluif]

Great painting and modeling to fit your chapter’s theme and original lore is GREAT!

Look forward to seeing this theme continue to develop.

[jaxom]

 

The marine is likely going to be used as a Chapter Champion, reflecting his role in hunting out enemy HQ units. The mastiff is still currently WIP whilst the Venator himself is finished.

 

What about as a Judiciar and the hound marks the unit that has to strike last... because it's being harassed/attacked by the hound?

[Grim Dog Studios]

Thank you all for the comments, it's greatly appreciated!

 

The Venatarii is an AWESOME idea, giving your Chapter a trait that distinguishes it from other IA Chapters.

The model is well done. How will you decorate the Cyber-Mastiff's base? A skull with green stuff gore added to it, to show the Cyber-Mastiff just tore it off the Venator's quarry, allowing the Hound Imperialis to return victoriously to the Chapter planet?

 

Not too sure yet, he was just going to be based similar to the rest of the army but I like your idea and it would add a bit more character to it!

 

 

 

The marine is likely going to be used as a Chapter Champion, reflecting his role in hunting out enemy HQ units. The mastiff is still currently WIP whilst the Venator himself is finished.

 

What about as a Judiciar and the hound marks the unit that has to strike last... because it's being harassed/attacked by the hound?

 

 

Hadn't even thought of that to be honest, definitely one to consider. Currently I was working him into my lists as a Chapter Champion with the Blade of Triumph relic. Talking of army lists, I wrote my first 1000 point list for the army out of the models I currently have built/WIP. Not super competitive, but the few opponents I actually have aren't competitive either and we just play for fun.

 

**Chapter Selection**

Selections: Rapid Assault, Whirlwind of Rage, White Scars Successor

 

HQ

Primaris Captain [5 PL, 95pts]

Selections: Master of Snares, Master-crafted Power Sword, Warlord

 

Master-crafted auto bolt rifle

Primaris Chaplain [5 PL, 85pts]

Selections: 6. Canticle of Hate (Aura), Litany of Hate, Strike off the Head

 

Troops

Assault Intercessor Squad [5 PL, 100pts]

4x Assault Intercessor

Selections: 4x Astartes Chainsword, 4x Frag & Krak grenades, 4x Heavy Bolt Pistol

Assault Intercessor Sgt

Selections: Heavy Bolt Pistol, Power sword

 

Intercessor Squad [5 PL, 105pts]

Selections: Auto Bolt Rifle

4x Intercessor

Selections: 4x Bolt pistol, 4x Frag & Krak grenades

Intercessor Sergeant

Selections: Power sword

 

Intercessor Squad [5 PL, 105pts]

Selections: Auto Bolt Rifle

4x Intercessor

Selections: 4x Bolt pistol, 4x Frag & Krak grenades

Intercessor Sergeant

Selections: Power sword

 

Elites

Bladeguard Veteran Squad [5 PL, 105pts]

2x Bladeguard Veteran

Selections: 2x Frag & Krak grenades, 2x Heavy Bolt Pistol, 2x Master-crafted Power Sword, 2x Storm Shield

Bladeguard Veteran Sgt

Selections: Heavy Bolt Pistol

 

Company Champion [4 PL, 80pts]

Selections: Blade of Triumph, Chapter Command: Chapter Champion

 

Contemptor Dreadnought [8 PL, 150pts]

Selections: Kheres pattern assault cannon

 

Relic Contemptor Dreadnought [9 PL, 168pts]

Dreadnought melee weapon

Selections: Dreadnought combat weapon, Storm bolter

Twin lascannon

 

I know the Mortis Contemptor looks like its going to be dropped from the FW IA, so I've put a relic contemptor in with a single lascannon atm. It's only a WIP list and will have to change come the release of the IA book to see what I can and can't do concerning relic contemptors, but this is what I am currently working towards. Little to no Anti tank, but my main opponent runs hordes of ork boys so that isn't something I'm generally worried about to be honest. We play for fun, not bragging rights.

 

Heres the current WIP state of said list though:

 

 

 

Close up of my Bladeguard Vets. Lorewise they are the Company Command Squad, I have a WIP Apothecary and Standard Bearer as well for use in larger games.

 

I've also got this guy sitting in the corner of my desk, waiting for some greenstuff work where I have removed the Scorpion iconography.

 

 

Thank you all for looking, I just wanted to show you where I was currently at with the army and what my current goal was. Once the first 1000 points is fully painted, I'll start moving onto expanding it to 2K points, where I can have another break and do some work on my other projects I have sidelined currently.

 

Cheers!

 

James

Edited November 8, 2020 by Centurion Jay

[BadgersinHills]

Love the Bladeguard. I'm excited for more progress .:)

[Grim Dog Studios]

Let this thread die whilst I was focusing on other projects, but I have a small update! Currently working on a killteam that is more how I envisioned my army, using 3d Printed MK IV parts upscaled to fit the Primaris miniatures. Love how they look compared to my other "fake MK IV", however for the time being I'm only going to be making a killteam like this as I'd like my main force to remain GW Legal for now!

 

 

 

 

 

Hopefully I'll have finished over the next couple of days, just his base and barehead to go with a few touchups to some mistakes I can see now I've taken pics!

 

Thanks for looking!

James