40K Tyranid Combat Patrol

The Tyranid slippery slope continues... so here's my Combat Patrol. I'm thinking of calling it Splinter Fleet Glaurung.

Tyranid Combat Patrol

They're led by a winged Tyranid Prime. I'm neither a huge fan of winged big 'nids, nor this sculpt's original pose with the wings down like a walking bat. It was an easy conversion to a wings-up pose.

Winged Tyranid Prime

The big beasty is a Psychophage, a gribbly that loves to feed on psykers and releases a corrosive ash from its digestive vents on its back. The original model has the smoke effects modelled on- it is easy to carve them off.

Psychophage

There are three Von Ryan's Leapers, named after a throwaway line in the 3rd Edition Codex (2001). They look pretty cool.

Von Ryan's Leapers

Another new gaunt variant is the Barbgaunt. There's a ganglio-parasite that pilots the main beast as it carries around a RPG-like organism that fires transfixing barbs. Targeted units are slowed down. Not my favourites, but nice to have them done.

Barbgaunts

Barbgaunt

Finally, twenty termagants. I 'merely' had to paint another thirteen after my initial brood of seven. These are the old sculpts, not the nice new ones.

Termagants

I've just acquired Jon Hodgson's Sci-Fi Backdrops book, which you will be seeing more of.

Behind the scenes of the VFX at 20th Century Barks Studios

40K Sisters of Battle vehicles and Combat Patrol

I pulled my finger out and finished off the last miniatures to make a Sisters of Battle Combat Patrol- a Rhino and a Penitent Engine. I used some of the new-ish Army Painter metallic speedpaints, which were like using a watery metallic. They'll do better with a busy textured surface, and you could get some interesting effects with different undercoats. I used AP Dark Tone to add more contrasts to the silver.

The Penitent Engine has a lot of detail behind its tortured pilot- I just left it black and hope the shadows hide the omissions. I do like the overkill of combined circular saws and quad flamethrowers on a top-heavy mech. I like the subtly buried skellie on the base.

Penitent Engine

The Rhino is a GW classic shape, and I've never had a 28mm one. There were a few gaps in assembly which I could have done a better job of rectifying. I tried a bit of a wash, but it turned into a horrible grey mess. I think I was able to salvage it with drybrushing and edge highlights. I used a bristle to make an antenna- it is subtle, but adds a satisying something.

Sisters of Battle Rhino

The rare white Rhino

These two vehicles give me a bona fide Combat Patrol, ready to burn out heresy!

Sisters of Battle Combat Patrol

Twelfth Bloggiversary

 The blog continues for another year!

My Five Parsecs campaign has slowed as I try to reach a narratively satisfying climax within the random dice rolls, but I will knock it over. I'm keen for more Nordic Weasel games, as Ivan Sorensen has a good handle on what makes some solo games better than others.

A bad day for the crew

I make no apologies for tumbling back to the 40K from my teenage years. Now I can afford paints and have amassed a bit of scenery, the setting calls strongly. The latest 10th edition of 40K is more beginner-friendly. I wryly acknowledge the long game GW has played on me over the last few years- well done.

I've really enjoyed writing the battle reports

So many gribblies.

Lamenters! I love their unlucky streak.
The new terminators are great sculpts.

I even got a half of the 'new' 2020 Blood Bowl in last week. I wasn't sure if I would appreciate the changes to a venerable game, but it gets a grudging thumbs up from me.

Elven Union vs Imperial Nobles

The Analogue Challenge remains a highlight of the hobby year, and I hope to participate again next month. Contrast Paints and the new Speedpaints 2.0 are getting much more of a outing as I try to paint faster, sacrificing some perfectionist traits for model quantity.

So glad to finish this SST Brain Bug after many years

Really enjoyed some Lord of the Rings work.

There's more than a few lifestyle changes coming my way next year, but I can't see the underlying hobby itch going away.

Thanks, as always, for following along- the community is a great part of the hobby.

Hurrumph.

How to paint chequers

40K more Sisters of Battle

The Canoness- I tried to get an aged appearance to her face. You can't really see, but her leg is bionic- she's seen some action.

Canoness

The Repentia Superior dual-wields neural whips.

She leads the Sisters Repentia and their famous two-handed eviscerators. They are Sisters who seek absolution in battle or their transgressions. They're on these new 28.5mm bases.

The Arco-flagellants are citizens who have been punished by being turned into close-combat cyborgs.

I'm not a huge fan of the sado-masochism and mortification aspects of the Sisters, but here we are.

Skull-o-meter™: 29

40K Sisters of Battle

Sisters of Battle, Adepta Sororitas, nuns with guns… I had the 1997 second edition codex many moons ago, and got some of the new plastics when they were re-released in 2019. I chose to punish myself with a white scheme. I painted the heads and backpacks separately.

Sister Superior

Battle Sister with Storm Bolter

Battle Sister with Ministorum Flamer

Battle Sister with Simulacrum Imperialis

Battle Sisters

Battle Sisters

Heads on sticks

Backpacks

I really liked this limited edition figure and shelled out for her. I converted what she was holding.

She’s based on this art:

Battle Sisters. Anna Steinbauer (2013)

I painted these a few years ago, and there will be a few more SoB posts coming very soon.

Skull-o-meter™: 49

Discworld Witches

These are teenage apprentice witches from Terry Pratchett's Discworld, meant for use with the boardgame The Witches. The 40mm figures don't come with the game, but are from Micro Arts Studio in Poland. I played this on Hallowe'en, and realised I hadn't put these figures on this blog before. I painted them for AHPC XI. 

Terry Pratchett’s witches are a crucial part of his rural communities. Each one brings her own style to their role of combined village doctor, midwife, veterinarian, and defender of the voiceless.

Tiffany Aching

Annagramma Hawkin

Dimity Hubbub

Petulia Gristle

40K Combat Patrol: Lamenters vs Genestealer Cult

So, I played my first game of 40K in about 25 years... We used the Combat Patrol rules, which are slightly pared down and don't require list building. Each side is competing for points over five turns, via objectives which are the 40mm MDF discs. This was a learning game for both of us, and we forgot and likely misinterpreted many special rules. I've spiced up the pics with the LensFX app.

One one side: Lamenters Space Marines. Strengths include short-range firepower and armour, weaknesses include low numbers.

Lamenters Combat Patrol

• Terminator Captain
• Terminator Librarian leading five Terminators
• Five Infernus Squad Marines

Their opponents: the Genestealer cult. Lots of bodies and mobility, but squishy.

Genestealer Cult Combat Patrol

• Magus with ten Neophyte Hybrids
• Ten Neophyte Hybrids
• Five Aberrants
• Five Acolyte Hybrids
• Rockgrinder truck

The forces meet across a ruined mining facility.

The Cult dominate a rocky outcrop and prepare
to advance on both flanks

Merely six Astartes face down the xenos foe.

The Neophytes seize a ruin as the Rockgrinder rumbles forward

The Infernus Squad take an objective

Heavy Stubber fire ricochets off the tough Terminator plate

"Purge with flame!"

Terminators teleport in, but the Rockgrinder withstands
the ambush

However, the Captain leads a charge and the vehicle is torn
apart by powerfists.

The resulting explosion kills a Terminator
and wounds the Captain

The Astartes destroy the remaining hybrids.

The Aberrants seize the opportunity to tear down
the wounded captain.

The marines get their revenge.

A doomed counter-charge.

Behind us! More hybrids emerge from the shadows
and threaten the Astartes' rear.

The pyreblasters eradicate one threat.

The Terminators about-face to eliminate the other.

The Magus desperately leads her troop off the hill
to seize an objective as the marines are distracted.

But the Terminators' firepower is devastating

A charge finishes off the Cult.

A victory for the Lamenters, but they did lose their Captain. The cult will rise up again!

The rules were... fine. Nothing innovative, but they appear to be a streamlined improvement over previous editions. They behaved as expected, and I'm glad they're free. I struggled with all the special rules and multiple weapon types. Bigger games will be very bloody and complex.

The 'buckets of dice and then nothing happens' critique of 40K is reasonable, but as a player-participant it is quite fun. Sometimes it does all swing on a D6.