More Grimdark Future

We played another game of Grimdark Future, Marines (Dextra Manus) vs Chaos Marines (Red Corsairs). We rolled up a random setup and mission, which gave us only one objective- to be the last man standing in the centre! Clearly vital intelligence was on the body in the crater.

Red Corsairs approach the objective, but there are
lurking loyalists...

Both sides hastened to the objective, abandoning some degree of caution in the rush. I knew that the Dextra Manus Invictor Warsuit would be a tough nut to crack, and had craftily added a lascannon to my traitor squad with a clear view over the battlefield.

Mutual exchange of fire between marines...

Lascannon keeps trying to blast the Invictor Warsuit

What I hadn't expected was... cyberwolves!

No-one expects cyberwolves.

After they tore up one mob of cultists, the lascannon accurately blasted a hole in one. My Sorcerer flamed a second, and the third gloriously charged my daemonically possessed marines. After a tough fight, they took the wolf down.

Lascannon kills one wolf.

Sorcerer kills another

The last wolf has a glorious charge into the Possessed.

I then kept missing with the lascannon, and my possessed were gunned down by the Warsuit. Victory to the loyalists.

Deja vu as the Invictor guns down the Possessed.

I will need to build up a reliable anti-armour capability for this campaign, and maybe look into some mobility.

The wolves have to be shot; fighting them in hand-to-hand is a losing proposition.

Grimdark Future: Chaos vs Marines

I've started to dabble with Grimdark Future. This is a ruleset by One Page Rules, and is available for free here*. GF is a very light alternative for 40K (or other similar games of around platoon- company size). It achieves this by removing nearly all the strategems, rerolls, auras, exceptions, shenanigans, errata, updates, and other special rules that really bog 40K down and prevent it being a casual game. GF remains tense with competition for objectives, and interesting with alternating activations. There are buckets of dice, and units getting destroyed/ routed frequently makes for a quick game! Not to forget it isn't spread across multiple books, and is free.

I lined up my Red Corsairs against my opponent's Space Marines, the Right Hands. The Right Hands all had hand-painted markings on them- respect! We played on a 6'x4' table with three objectives. We chose 1000 points as a smaller game as it was our first with these rules.

Red Corsairs:

• 2x squads of Chaos Marines
• 2x mobs of Cultists
• 1x pack of Possessed Marines

Right Hands:

• 1x Assault Squad
• 1x Infernus (flamethrower) Squad
• 1x Tactical Squad
• 1x Invictor Warsuit

Right Hands Invictor Warsuit

The Right Hands advance on the refinery facilities.
Chaos taint is suspected.

The Warsuit and Assault Squad cover the Marine right.

Here's an overview of what happened. I advanced over a broad front, and my Possessed Marines went loping around from my right. The Right Hands tried to stop them, and did a similar sweep with their Assault Marines on my left.

The Battle. Objectives are numbered.

Right Hands Tactical Squad holds Objective 3

My traitors try to gun them down.

My terrifyingly fast Possessed rip the Right Hands apart.

On my left, cultists face off against Assault Marines...

...and the melee unsurprisingly goes the way of the Astartes.

The Possessed leap onto the Warsuit, and
damage it but cannot take it entirely out.

Final result was a 2:1 win to the Red Corsairs. The cultists were weak and the Warsuit was strong, but the number of bodies gave me an edge. I am going to need to up my anti-armour capabilities...

We're going to try this as a light campaign**, with experience, wounds, and a slow trickle of reinforcements.

The objective markers are Wargames Atlantic Zombies with the bases cut off and limbs reposed. I can see myself making more with era-specific weapons and accoutrements as required. They're on 40mm MDF bases.

*An expanded and still free version of the rules can be found here, and the excellent army builder is here.

** Campaign rules here. They're free as well...

40K Lamenters: Reivers

I painted five Reivers. These are behind-the-lines terror troops with their signature skull helms, massive combat knives, and grav-chute wings on their power packs. I used 3D printed pauldrons- and I prefer my hand-painted ones. I may even try to pry them off and redo them.

Reivers

Reiver Sergeant

I also finished off a few more of the specialist Infiltrators:

Infiltrator Helix Adept (medic)

Infiltrator Commsman

Infiltrator Sergeant

Skull-o-meter™: 20

My Lamenters two-step-yellow recipe

For the last 18 months I've found myself painting Lamenters. I often get asked about my yellow technique, so I made a little tutorial.

Phobos Infiltrators

Preparation

i. Remove moldlines and assemble. I glue sand etc. to the base now. I prepare and paint the backpack and head separately. 

ii. Undercoat Vallejo Bonewhite rattlecan.

iii. Paint the base.

iv. Drybrush white. I've found this subtle slapchop works well for me.

Okay, here's the real meat.

1. Contrast Ironjawz Yellow

2. SMS Umber Wash. This is an oil-based product by an Australian model paint company. I work it into all the creases...

3. ... then I clean it up with Artists White Spirit and a makeup sponge. I get rid of the worst excesses (e.g. back of the hand, shoulder pad) but it doesn't have to be pristine. That's it! Your yellow is done. No highlighting required.

4. Paint the rest of the Lamenter. The left pauldron (chequered) is hand-painted (previous tutorial); the tactical symbol on the right is a decal.

I appreciate an Australian oil wash paint is a bit niche, but I'm sure a similar product exists elsewhere. The point is that I've found a reproducible way for me to get masses of yellow done without losing my mind with edge-highlighting. I've seen nice things done with pink pre-shading, but I'm committed to this technique now. It doesn't have to be too neat; the rest of the details hide major flaws in the yellow. These figures won't win individual prizes but they're done.

40K Lamenters: Ballistus Dreadnought

 + Even in death, I still serve. +

Some grievously wounded Marines are placed into elaborate life support sarcophagi, which are interred in ancient and rare Dreadnought war machines. Denied death, they are awoken at dire need every few decades to fight on. They also serve as venerable elders, holding the stories of warriors from generations past.

The Ballistus Dreadnought fills a fire support role with lascannons, a missile launcher, and twin stormbolters.

I wasn't initially sold on this model, with its unusual proportions compared to the classic, weighty, smaller boxnaughts. It quickly grew on me, however.

It towers over mere mortals.

The sarcophagus, forever hidden behind the front armour.

I quite enjoyed painting this, despite my usual struggles with painting vehicles. There's a lot of armour plating to leave blank or fill with heraldry and other markings. I used decals from a variety of sources. I tried to keep to the yellow/ black/ white/ red of my Lamenters, and restrained myself from excessive weathering.

Skull-o-meter™: 9

+

I do not want this.

I have served with loyalty and honour...

Throw... my ashes into the void.

Do... not... entomb...me...

+

Final words of the war-sage Malcharion

Aaron Dembski-Bowden Soul Hunter (2010)*

* I know, I know

40K Lamenters: Lieutenant and Apothecary Biologis

I've been enjoying painting my Lamenters recently, and have a pair of characters.

First is the 'Lone Operative Lieutenant' with a combi-flamer. This chap was one of the unique figures released for the 2023 10th 'Leviathan' edition of 40K. I did a light kitbash, changing the base, head, and adding a pointing hand to replace the second knife he was waving around (I wanted to add a pistol but didn't have a left handed one available). He's wearing the lighter Phobos armour. He is supposed to be a behind-the-lines lone operative, surviving with a scavenged Tyranid carapace strapped to his arm and a souvenir claw on his belt.

Lone operative lieutenant

Combi-flamer

Improvised armour. I think I could improve on the gore.

Second is a Apothecary Biologis. He's not a healer- he uses his anatomical and scientific know-how to inflict more efficient injuries on the enemy. Some call him a 'harmacist', or a PhD rather than an MD. He wears the heavy Gravis armour to wade into combat and collect samples. I was going to do a silver chest emblem, but the pale grey looked great so I left it. I tried to get a sloshy liquid effect in his sample canister.

Apothecary Biologis

Of course, the Lamenters don't have apothecaries. Being descended from Blood Angels with their Sanguinary Priests, the Lamenters have Calix Priests. I'm not entirely sure how the Biologis fits into this organisation, but I will find a way.

Skull-o-meter™: 11