On the Workbench [April] - Titans and tiny tanks!

 

Hello and welcome back!  Today I'm sharing what I've been building this month.  Painting the Legio Ignatum Warlord got me motivated to get the last of the large titans built.  And so I give you Messorem Tormentorum of Legio Tempestus:

All the weapon options and arms are fully magnetized following on the pattern of my prior titans, with the exception of the flamers (I know it's a HTH titan, but no...) and the shorter range weapon in the fist.  It was going to be a pain to dig the little circles out if magnetized, and the titan needed some ranged capability anyway, even if short. Plus, in the end you can't even see it so I could play the titan with whichever fist weapon I want as long as the card is right, for casual games at least.

All of the armor is still on the sprue ready for painting.  It's going to be interesting applying the dazzle camouflage to this beast.  There are a lot of small panels here and there, so I think we're going to get a lot more Tempestus cobalt blue armor showing when all is said and done.

With the big beast built, I moved on to assemble the latest Legions Imperialis releases.  Above we have some Basilisks and below a bunch of soon to be Dark Angels stuff...

So many transport options for the Space Marines! First Rhinos, then Spartans, now Land Raiders and...

Drop Pods! I will likely pick up a second box of pods at some point. These four won't exactly drop a game changing amount of troops anywhere.  For now the hobby budget is stretched about as much as can be expected. Here, I have to pause and share the pure joy that is modern plastic molding technology.  Not only are all of these models perfect shrunk down versions of their 28mm counter parts in almost every detail, but the precision with which they are able to create these tiny pods with doors that can open and close is astounding. I entered this hobby in the 90's during 2nd Edition 40K when everything was a lump of lead and tin roughly approximating what it was meant to be and often warped and miss-cast. And plastics were as bad or worse in terms of sharp detail. I never would have imagined this level of precision and sharp detail in plastic.

To round things out, I went out to eBay for two more Sicaran tanks to fill the slots in my Battlefoam trays. 😂.  Speaking of which, I now need to plan out what new trays to get for this lot.  It's getting harder to economize space here.  There are drop pod trays, for example, but for 2 -3 times the number of pods I want. Same with the Basilisk/Medusa trays.  Might have to see if the custom tray creator has LI cut outs so I can plan out a custom tray for the collection...hmmmm...
 

Anyway, that's what's been on the workbench in April. It's getting on time to choose what to paint next.  I don't want to lose momentum on the titans, but I've been looking forward to painting tiny dudes and armor so, that's a thing. Check back next week to see which way I go.

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

Warmaster Titan for Adeptus Titanicus - TO DONE

 

The Warmaster is finally DONE!  It's been a loooong summer project (with a 2 week family vaca in the middle, to be sure), but I'm pleased with the results.  There's always more that can be done with large, detailed projects like this.  In the end, I got some highlights on, applied the weathering powders, touched up a detail or three, then called it complete.

Now on to the Horus Heresy - and maybe some tiny planes...and other stuff...I have a few workbench items to share for Heresy Dark Angels, then I'll be back with a 2021-22 hobby season wrap-up post.  Lots of good stuff accomplished this year.

 

Here's the Legio Ignatum battle group as it stands today. If interested, you can check out the rest of the Warmaster completion pics after the break below.

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

WIP - Warmaster Titan for Adeptus Titanicus - part 8

 

 

Welcome back!  Just a short progress post today.  I can imagine that things won't look much different than last week.  Such is the way with the project at this point.  I worked primarily on additional cleanup and highlights - none of which stand out in the photos. I did add a message on the large scrolls across the front carapace. It would have looked much better in some fancy ancient Latin script, but that's just not my forte...so we have a hastily scrawled message applied by the serfs prior to engagement during the heresy on Mars.

 

 

The first highlights were a lighter gold, followed by a chrome silver on just the highest/sharpest points.  Both seem mostly washed out in the photos. Clicking through the full size images helps some.

I then sprayed on a good coat of flat lacquer to seal things and protect the paint. This has dulled the gloss coat on the armor and added a unified fit and finish across the model.

Next, I'll be applying the weathering powders on the base and touching up any last issues that stand out on final inspection.  Then this big lad is done and I'll post a final set of photos from the light box to call it quits.

It's been a great, if long, project and I'm psyched to be finally drawing to a close here.  I love the results at this point.  There is always the opportunity to come back to these tiny titans and add additional weathering and what not.  For now, I've invested an appropriate amount of time in them and it's time to move on!
 

So one final Warmaster photo shoot next week and we're on to the Horus Heresy! I'll hopefully get two posts up next week too and get things hopping around here once again.  There really hasn't been enough material for two posts per week most times as I've been working on the Warmaster.

I wish you all the best with your own projects.

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

WIP - Warmaster Titan for Adeptus Titanicus - part 7

 

So many subtle changes...welcome back to my on going series on painting this beast. I did make more progress on the Warmaster this week.  We're at the point now that these details and subtle shading changes are easy to miss upon casual inspection.

I put some work into the eye lenses.  Not sure if I'll stop here or go back in with some highlights to help things pop a bit.  I painted in the gold frames around the hourglass shaped intakes to either side of the head and added some additional shading with GW Nuln Oil to the carapace behind the head, including the intakes.

Then I looked at a few of the details on the carapace.  The void shield generators were highlighted with a little gold, and the muzzle brakes on the autocannons were painted black. Also there was a touch of clean up and some additional shading to the metal deck areas.

There's a close up of the autocannons and a couple void shield generators.

The lascannons in the knees also got painted to match the autocannon. It probably didn't show up in prior pics all that well, but these were still primer back up to this point.

Then I painted in the details on the plasma weapons.  The cabling was painted grey and shaded with GW Nuln Oil.  Then various metal details were painted either bronze or gold to add some interest to these ancient weapons. All of the metal was shaded with GW Nuln Oil as well.  This was thinned a bit with medium so it wouldn't be too heavy handed, while still adding some contrast.

Last up, I painted gold into the gears in the elbow and knee joints, where they were visible.  This is also an attempt to make the machinery of the titan a little more interesting to look at. The rear door got more shading, as did some bits and bobs here at the back that seemed to need it.

Here's a look at an elbow joint with the gold added in for the gear.  The gold gears in the joints were also shaded with GW Nuln oil to increase the contrast.

And that was really it for this week. I've no doubt forgotten, and therefore left out, a bunch of other little bits and bobs touched up, detailed, and what not.  But I think I hit all the main points.  I've really stretched this project out and I appreciate your patience in coming back week after week to basically see the same material. I will absolutely wrap this big boy up and move on to Horus Heresy shortly.

I don't have any gaming or challenge deadlines for this project.  I'm really just using it, like any hobby, to fill in my free time in the evenings before heading to bed.  I find I'm more motivated to make progress when there is some form of deadline in front of me. Eh, it is what it is!

Stay safe out there.

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

WIP - Warmaster Titan for Adeptus Titanicus - part 6 {The Story Continues)

 

Here it stands, fully assembled and on it's new base. Nothing too fancy, just a little something more than I put on the bases of the smaller titans to make this one stand out a bit as the largest (so far?) in the battle group.

I used a few plastic bits from an old OOP sprue of Titanicus terrain from the original game which I had picked up on eBay some time back.  This isn't the original card stock terrain - and maybe it's from some epic set, to be fair.  But it is standard plastic terrain of administratum style buildings.  It's going to sit a bit odd on my Mars theme bases (something Mechanicum would have fit better), but whatever.  This big guy needed something fun to stomp by way of telling a story about it's size and presence in war.

Vallejo Black Lava was used for the ground cover.  As standard for my bases, I apply the ground work around a model's feet so the model won't appear to float over or gently rest on the terrain when glued down. Whether trooper or titan, I prefer to have an element of weight to the composition.

Here's a better angle showing off the style of these plastic ruins. Once this had all dried, I set about the typical paint recipe, as documented on the appropriate recipe tab above.  The building was a new addition to the scheme, so that isn't documented yet.

The ruin is painted in a basic light gray from Pro-Acryl then washed first with Nuln oil, then just at the base with Agrax Earthshade. The rubble was made by cutting up one of the ruin pieces somewhat strategically to form (hopefully) believable chunks of the original building, busted up by the giant STOMP. More likely, the beast sorta dragged his foot into it...it's not a tap dancing Knight Gallant after all!

I'm happy enough with the results, even if they won't be winning any awards.  Once the weathering powders are laid on (my final step) I think things will look pretty cool.

Here's how things look from the rear.  I may put some more nuln oil, or something else dark on the inside walls to get a sorta pre-stomped, burned out look.  We'll see. The pic above was taken out of order with the rest, so you get a look at the messy base before I cleaned up the rim to tidy things.

And now we're back to how things actually look now.  Not much else was accomplished on the main titan, that shows off anyway.  I painted in the laser range finders on the weapons, and started some highlights on the front of the main torso. Oh, and prettied up the missiles which had become drab with wash during earlier phases. You can see all that in the main title shot, but really it doesn't stand out much from earlier photos.

Now that the torso is glued to the legs, and the legs are glued to the base, I'm in the home stretch...which realistically means another week or two of detail painting and highlighting before I'm done. I like to have everything fully assembled before I look at highlights so I can see where the natural shadows exist on the model. This prevents me from highlighting surfaces that are actually in shadow once the model is viewed in its final assembly.

That's it for now - sure, I'd be further ahead if I didn't waste a session or two a week on building Horus Heresy Dark Angels. But I'm OK with that.  No competition or challenge going on with this project, nor any impending battle to field it in, so I have some freedom to putter a way a bit.

I hope your projects have been going well - or at least that your summer has been full o' fun!

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

WIP - Warmaster Titan for Adeptus Titanicus - part 6 (A New Hope)

 

Greetings!  More progress on the Warmaster to share today.  With transfers finally applied, I feel reinvigorated and motivated to complete the project. It's been a bit of a challenge to focus on this beast coming back from vacation with my head full of 28mm Horus heresy projects.  No worries, however, because progress was made. Above, the glorious declaration of a Warmaster of the Adeptus Titanicus can be seen center stage on the carapace, just below the missile launcher.

I chose a few straight forward transfers for the various shields.  Above, the shield on the left (the titan's right) declares this a Warmaster of the Legio Ignatum.  The shield on the right pays proper honors to the Legio itself.  And the three hanging shields pay homage to the Adeptus Titanicus, without which these mighty engines would not walk the galaxy.

The titan's left shoulder declares allegiance to the Emperor of Mankind (eagle), the Deus Mechanicus (cog), and the Adeptus Titanicus, in that order.  The right shoulder rightfully declares this engine as a loyal member of Legio Ignatum, aka the Fire Wasps.  The lower shoulder armor recognizes the machine spirit of the weapons. 

The leg armor makes it clear to all which Legio is stomping you into the dust. After all, these engines tower high over the battlefield where the shoulders and other bits of heraldry are lost through the smoke and fog of war.

Aside from heraldry, I also started to put some work into the body.  Here, I have identified some armor-like panels on the back of the plasma reactor as well as some windowed cloisters next to the heat exchangers and just below the rear shoulder armor.  The rear access door is pretty homely here, so expect something to happen there soon.  I'd love to see hazard stripes in chevrons to match the rear shoulder armor, but a simple tidy red might do. 😁

Of course, I would have made even more progress were it not for spending one night building a new tactical Support Squad for the First Legion. I love painting miniatures; but there one thing I love even more - building miniatures! 😂 I've been trying to get all the MkIII and MkIV marines from the prior two Horus Heresy boxed sets finally built before tackling the new MkVI marines.  Only 30 more MkIV marines to go! For MkIV marines, I'm using the Dark Angels bodies, heads, and shoulder pads from Forge World. I have adopted transverse crests for my sergeants, so I decided to stick with the basic MkIV helmet and crest here.  It's just easier than attaching a crest to the Forge World helmets.  I did that once already for a heavy weapons squad with mediocre results, in my opinion. but enough of that for now.

More progress next week on the Warmaster.  Maybe a new base to show off?  Probably a new squad of Dark Angels for seasoning. We'll soon see...

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

WIP - Warmaster Titan for Adeptus Titanicus - part 5

  

Greetings!  I'm Back from family vacation and back in the hobby.  It was a slow start this week with a lot of other competing priorities taking my time.  But progress was made.There is a lot going on with this Warmaster, and I'm realizing I'll have to put some time in to get all the details painted to my own standards.  This week I poked at a few of those details.

 

 

I base coated and shaded the scroll work on the upper carapace.  I'll be using some fine tip pens to put some test there at some point.

 

 

 

I started the week working on completing the legs, when I noticed there was some small armor pieces on the skeleton that I had missed in my initial paint work.  Two small red sections are shown above to ether side of the groin armor.

 

  

 

Here are the same sections from the other side of the legs.

Then I found these pieces on either side of the ankles.  So not much surface area painted, but managed to fill up one of my weekly hobby sessions (I only manage to fit in 2 - 3 2hr sessions/week typically).  Of course, I would have made more progress if Horus Heresy 2.0 hadn't dropped recently.  I spent one hobby session this week building 5 additional Tactical Support marines with plasmaguns.

These new marines will bulk out my initial tactical support squad to 10 marines. Once the Warmaster titan is complete, I'll be switching into more Heresy era Dark Angels. I have been bulking out my existing collection by finally building the remaining plastic marines I had on hand from the prior two heresy box sets. The new marines will wait until the Dark Angels Mark VI upgrades are released (shoulder pads and heads).  I also have a a lot of armor waiting to be painted, including three rhinos still in the box. So lots of Heresy era projects to look at.  

But back to the Warmaster...I'll be putting decals on soon and then soldiering on with the detail work.  Some days, I feel like the project is almost done.  Other days it looks like its only half done.  Regardless, I'm back in the hobby saddle and progress will be made.

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

WIP - Warmaster Titan for Adeptus Titanicus - part 4

 

Greetings and welcome back.  Here is where Superbia Martis stands today.  I wasn't able to get as much progress done as I had hoped, but this is still a fine engine so far.  Primarily, I had hoped to have the transfers on this week.  However preparations for our family vacation took precedence and I really don't want to rush this project, in any case.

I got the plasma coils painted on the weapon arms and that allowed me to glue on the armor panels.  Here, I realized that I meant to have the angle of the black/yellow stripes match the leg armor. But it's not a thing that needs to be, so I'm not stripping and repainting just for that.

Lots of detail painting left to do here at the back to add some visual interest.  I won't leave it all one color metallic.  I'll probably paint the door at the top red or black too to draw a little attention there.

This titan will have to sit on the painting table for a couple weeks now while I head out with my family on vacation.  I'll be back in July with more progress and then it's back to 28mm and the Horus Heresy!  So many cool things to paint this summer. 

So a bit of a break here for 262Krieg, but no worries.  We'll be back and painting like mad before you know it. Best wishes for your summer plans.

Cheers and Happy Gaming!