Leisure Suit Sven

Sven Axegrinder in Power Armor.

Just over 2 years ago I got a few models from Da Masta Cheef that originally belonged to Necronbob. One of them was the Vindicator tank that I repurposed into a World Eater aligned vehicle for my Chaos force. One of the other models was a very old (1991 I think) Space Marine Captain. He was rare even in those days as he was the limited edition Games Day model that year. Clearly he is based off of the classic Terminator Captain from the first metal Terminator boxed set. And with that model being the basis for Sven Axegrinder, the continuity between the two models is too obvious to not make a second Sven Axegrinder model.

The original Sven.

Although this model doesn't have the rebreather mask, and the terminator model doesn't have a bionic eye, a lot of the other details are fairly close.

After rebasing the model, applyng the grit to the base, the model was primed and ready!

Primed.

Base coated.

I used my old, '90s era, Shadow Grey for the base-coat. It's not as dark as the millennial version though but I like the rich tone it has.

Base coats of Shadow Gray, Fiery Orange and a dark brown.

I decided to match the Terminator model's non-metallic gold scheme on this model even though it's a pain in the ass to paint, I usually like the final results enough to feel that the effort is justified.

      Bugman's Glow as the flesh basecoat.

I decided to try something different with the skin on this models and used Bugman's Glow for the basecoat instead of my traditional choice of Dwarf Flesh. I then put Dwarf Flesh over this. I think the colors work very well together.

Horizon Blue and Dwarf Flesh.

The mid-coat which I use for my Space Wolf color is called Horizon Blue and it's from the old Epic Battle paint set. I cherish this paint and I hope to find a good analog for it once I eventually exhaust my supply.

Next, I dabbed on watered-down Space Wolf Grey. Then I put the Space Wolf Gray on the edges of the armor but I kept it thick and straight from the bottle.

Bronzed Flesh and Space Wolf Gray.

Bronzed Flesh was put on top of the Dwarf Flesh before adding a final highlight of Cadian Flesh. This is my first time using these colors in this sequence for caucasian skin tones and I like the results.

Skull White.

So far this model has come along quickly. after adding a few conservative Skull White highlights to the armor, it was done!

I next painted the bone colored icons and added Averland Sunset followed by Sunburst Yellow to the shoulder plates and the winged icons.

I decided not to use the cloak/backpack that came with this model as I felt I needed to make the model a bit more "wolfy". I ordered a few Wulfen Backpacks from a bitz store online, which arrived super fast. It fits great and the bone totems on top of it give the model a greater sense of menace. I painted it using the exact same steps above with one notable exception: I didn't prime it. It was simply far too cold outside and since it's plastic anyway the likelihood of the paint chipping is minimal.

Backpack basecoated, no primer.

Here it is finished and ready to be mounted.

Backpack finished.

But not before applying the decals. Afterwards the backpack was added and Power Armored Sven Axegrinder was completed. After I flocked the base of course.

Finished model! 

As followers of my Space Wolf projects know, I use the origional Space Wolf icon, from the Rogue Trader days, as Sven's Great Company badge. I was bummed that it didn't return with the pseudo-retro iconography that GW/FW have been doing with 30K, but then again, it does make my army feel a bit more unique for it.

Original Space Wolf icon.

On both leg greaves I added some more iconography. The right leg in particular has the 2nd edition-era campaign badge. This was added as a bit of an afterthought really, but enough of my finished models have this badge that it makes sense to me to continue to uae it.

Campaign Badge on right leg.

And here are both incarnations of Sven together:

A pair o' Svens.

I'm pleased with the results, and now I have two alternatives/options for using Sven Axegrinder in the game.

Sven's House.

"Sven's House", is a clever nick-name for an Imperial Bastion that I built with a Space Wolves theme. This is a post that I simply forgot about. Not sure why, it just happened that way. So while reviewing some older posts I found a pic of this thing and remembered that I never actually wrote about it. I guess I was hoping to finish it, and then do a single post chronicling it's creation. However either I have lost some of the photos, or I just never took them to begin with.

This is one of those models that I painted on the sprue first. I painted it quickly and somewhat feverishly, and the assembly went fast as well. The first pic shows me beginning the process of assembling the 2nd level.

This pic shows my complete painting of the front door and the gun sponsons.

Next I assembled the 2nd story and used rubberbands to hold the whole thing together while the glue was curing.

The top level was fairly easy to paint, and it makes sense to paint this model as you put it together, as there are some areas that are just easier to paint this way.

Finally the walls on the roof were added, and the whole thing has come together rather nicely.

I am surprised that I don't have pics of one of the side joins that I messed up on and had to fill in with Green Stuff. No matter, it looks good now, and one really has to seek out this mistake

 It has some rust streaks and a few other details, but other than that, I haven't done much with it. I used it in maybe two games, and I was grossly unimpressed, and even deflated, by the rules for it, and apart from a few photo shoots...

"Home sweet home!"

...it hasn't gotten much attention from me. I just preferred the rules in the original Planetstrike book, and rules for it in both 6th and 7th edition, have quite frankly, made the thing a point-allocated deathtrap.  So until the day that fortifications are able to fire at multiple targets, this model simply doesn't have rules based in common sense. Still, I like the model and I want to one day finish it.

The Wolf and Treachery Transmissions

While poking around on my computer a few nights ago I stumbled upon this old file that contains an example of the type of background immersion that some of us like to do locally. What follows is a series of 'fluffy' e-mails sent back and forth between Da Masta Cheef and myself, revolving around getting me and my Space Wolves into battle (Ok, to get me to show up to a game!). This was during the 5th Edition of Warhammer 40K (probably my favorite of the post 2nd ed era) and the Space Wolf codex had just come out and I had yet to get a game in with them. We've gotten a kick out of writing these kind of things, this one in particular, and Cheef still brings up the humbling of poor Sven every chance he gets. We were scheduled to have a battle against Warfrog's Eldar, but circumstances (once AGAIN) prevented me from going.

Cheef started this whole exchange off by rubbing in the fact that I abandoned him, and well, I took the bait and the ball was rolling from there...


From: Da Masta Cheef
Subject: ATTENTION!
To: Neverness
Date: Wednesday, October 7, 2009, 8:10 PM

You, the deluded follower of the so-called 'Corpse-God',

The accursed Eldar have issued challenge to the Mighty Guar Sek (He who's voice drowns out all others), and he has demanded their annihilation! Even now my forces muster @ the 1500 point mark. Our spies have become aware of your approach and I laid plans for a multi-pronged assault. However the vile Xenos have arrogantly declared (as they are want to do) that they can 'easily match' our combined assault! To fight along side followers of the Corpse-God is an abomination! However there is rumor of the recent publication of a tome, in which it is said your Space Dogs fought alongside the blessed forces of demon-kind. So such actions are not without precedent. As an act of 'good faith' (such as it is), I ordered the ritual sacrifice of one of our Preachers (his entrails were feasted upon by our rogue psykers this very day). In his place shall stand the infamous Rogue Inquisitor known as the Khorne Dog. His appearance will be quite familiar to you and the mutants you call Wolfen. Attached to my command squad he will forward my communications to you, saving me the disgrace of having to directly communicate with so-called 'Loyalists' on the glorious field of battle. The Stinking Bishop (also formerly of the Inquisition) has also offered to grace us with his presence should it be required, along with a 250 point contingent of his followers.

May your closed minds be opened to the righteousness of our cause! May you turn from the Corpse-God to follow the TRUE Gods of War! The Gods of CHAOS!

Disrespectfully yours,

Colonel Extra-Hand Straken

728th, Sabbat Irregulars


From: Neverness Date: Friday, October 9, 2009, 11:18 AM

++++
FAO: Master-General Styker of Departento Munitorium
TRANSMITTED: Colcha
RECEIVED: Scintilla
DATE:4911997.M41
TELEPATHIC DUCT: Astropath-terminus: Loki
AUTHOR: Wolfpriest Jorvik
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: The sharpest tooth gnaws the hardest bone.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
First off, let us apologize profusely for our impending tardiness to the war zone we were requested to support. Our navigator, being of stout constitution for one of his kind, thought he'd join the Long Fangs down in the cantina of our Battle-Barge, the Kraken's Maw, for a few rounds of mead. Not fully comprehending the strength of a beverage that can actually cause a buzz in even a Space Wolf, the navigator was still highly inebriated when summoned to duty. This is how our Battle Barge is stuck in the wrong Segmentum, awaiting the passing of a minor warpstorm, which should get us to the battle about a fortnight from now. Still reasonably quick as far as warpstorms are concerned, but we feel this may greatly impede your progress in the campaign so we wanted to alert you to the reason, and fact, of our tardiness so you don't start off on some foolhardy campaign expecting us to make a dramatic entrance on the nth hour; This will not happen! So, hold the lines you have, we are coming, just not on the night you expect.

*A scene from the cited battle with Warfrog's Eldar

I would also like to enlighten you about these xenos, the eldar. We have engaged this particular craftworld before, and unlike the rest of their skippy and dancey brethren, this is a vile and tricky lot. Be particularly aware of their snipers, fore they brought low many a wolf brother in our last engagement*, Also beware of two sets of warriors, the Dire Avengers and Swooping Hawks. On the former, they have the firepower to obliterate any unguarded foe who stands before them. Of the later, be aware of their bombing runs, as they can wipe units of guardsmen with a single pass. Make sure they grasp the concept of `going to ground' or else you will forfeit their asset to you entirely. 

A further note if you will; Wolf Lord Sven is concerned with a communication sent out by your field general, whose sense of humor disturbs us greatly. Signed `Col. `Extra-hands' Straken, this prankster has unwittingly sewn his own demise with a missive laced with heresies, blasphemies, and plain insults. Find with this transmission a copy of said missive and review. We expect that this individual will be removed from the theater of battle prior to our arrival, or by Russ we will be forced to take matters into our hands.

From: Da Masta Cheef Date: Saturday, October 10, 2009 12:28 PM
Awww, you're bailing? BAD Puppy! No biscuit! lol, too funny actually. I knew you'd be 'geek' enough to appreciate my preceding message.


From: Da Masta Cheef Date: Saturday, October 10, 2009, 10:44 PM

."...work damn it! ....is Serg....Mossad, 728.......at Rifles. This is f......he Mighty Sek wh.........ioce drow......others........been aveng.....!! Eldar Comma......dead, enemy inf.........lling back to their li......walkers out ther..3 or 4......issiles..... All our Inf.....ead, all dead. I'm the only o.........rtillery still entren.........op firing to save amm.......no idea wher.....onel Strak......maybe dead or captu.....t our line holds, can'........other enem....ttack. Will fi.........last!

....geant Mos.....acting Com.........r 
728th Sab.........fles......."


From: Neverness Date: Sunday, October 11, 2009, 10:27 AM

FAO: Master-General Styker of Departento Munitorium
TRANSMITTED: Colcha
RECEIVED: Scintilla
DATE:4916997.M41
TELEPATHIC DUCT: Astropath-terminus: Loki
AUTHOR: Wolfpriest Jorvik
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Eateth not the yellow snow.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Good news the warpstorm has passed, and we are now in orbit above the battleworld. We will engage the enemy as soon as Wolf Lord Sven's Thunderwolf gives birth to her pups. We're all gathered in the ship's kennels awaiting their arrival. Should be any day now, hold the line a bit longer and we will descend upon your alien foes and crush them. We've received fractured communications from the planet below, but while adjusting our receiver unit, Iron Priest Woton found a channel that plays nothing but old concerto standards. We believe these sounds will help sooth the Wolf Lord's Thunderwolf during her birthing, so we have it piping through the whole ship.

By the way, we want to know if that heretic Straken has been dealt with yet? If not, we need meat for the wolf pups...

Wolf Lord Sven, ready and willing to assist in puppy birth.

From: Da Masta Cheef Date: Sunday, October 11, 2009, 7:44 PM

FAO: Wolfpriest Jorvik
TRANSMITTED: CLASSIFIED
RECEIVED: Colcha
DATE:4916998.M41
TELEPATHIC DUCT: Astropath-terminus: CLASSIFIED
AUTHOR: Inquisitor Kemp, Ordo Hereticus
CLEARANCE LEVEL: Magenta
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: It is not your right to question, only to obey.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
There is no Colonel by the name of 'Extra hands' Straken, nor a 728th Sabbat Irregulars listed within the ranks of the Emperor's most glorious Imperial Guard. Further inquiries as to the identities of those you have mentioned above has garnered the attention of the Ordo Hereticus. As such I have taken command of this investigation and am aboard my cruiser 'Interrogator' which is en route to rendezvous with your strike cruiser for further investigation. You and your crew will stand down and submit to MY authority upon my arrival, and will cooperate fully with any 'cleansing' operations should they be necessary. The thought of the Astartes being so easily misguided by, if not outright consorting with the ruinous powers is one that shall be quashed with much haste & vigor!

The Emporer Protects.

Inquisitor Kemp

-Ordo Hereticus-


From: Neverness

FAO: Inquisitor Kemp, Ordo Hereticus
TRANSMITTED: Colcha
RECEIVED: Scintilla
DATE:4918997.M41
TELEPATHIC DUCT: Astropath-terminus: Loki
AUTHOR: Wolfpriest Jorvik
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Men can be replaced, data is precious.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lord kemp, we are not surprised to once again bear witness to your witless observations and shortsighted determinations with regards to imminent threats to the Imperium we hold dear. Of course "There is no Colonel by the name of 'Extra hands' Straken, nor a 728th Sabbat Irregulars listed within the ranks of the Emperor's most glorious Imperial Guard." It's what they have come to call themselves! Do you honestly think to believe that a group of traitors would resubmit to the Departmento Munitorium a name change after they turn traitor? No, why, in their current guise they can continue to seek requisitions and supplies thus not only draining the Imperial Guard of resources, but by also acting in a manner counter-productive to the aims and wishes of the Administratum. Besides the obvious act of subterfuge, if such a group were bold/stupid enough to attempt such a request, it would take decades for the change to actually occur! We both know that the Administratum is not known for expediency. For example, we're still waiting to hear back on our Request of Censure against you for that decision you made six years ago to pull back the Imperial Guard that we were sent to support against a combined Tau and Necron assault. You stated on the Voxcast that the regional Governor's botanical gardens were to be protected at all costs, leaving us to pursue the routing Tau (we're still happy to have crushed the Necrons in the campaign). When advised against this decision, you had the Guard fire upon our force. If the Tau were not a bigger threat at the time, your bones would be lining our wolf kennels.

Back on the point, `Extra Hands' Straken, and his 728th Sabbat Irregulars, regardless of whether or not you can produce a record of their existence, will be pacified. We welcome you to join us –from a distance- in monitoring their destruction, but if you intend or dare to assume that the sons of Russ will heel to a paper-pushing simpleton, you better not show up with a pack of women this time.

Chewing up Treachery,

-Jorvik.

From: Da Masta Cheef
Subject: Casualties were heavy.....
To: Neverness
Date: Saturday, October 31, 2009, 11:46 PM

...but the 728th Sabbat Irregulars still managed to hold the accursed Eldar to a draw. The line holds, with the famed Eldrad fleeing before the might of Straken!

It is no wonder that the cowardly Space Puppies, fled before us, refusing to come to battle.

wtf?


From: Neverness
Subject: Incoming transmission
To: Da Masta Cheef
Date: Sunday, November 8, 2009, 12:19 PM

FAO: Master-General Styker of Departento Munitorium
TRANSMITTED: Scintilla
RECEIVED: Aten III
DATE:4919997.M41
TELEPATHIC DUCT: Astropath-terminus: Loki
AUTHOR: Wolfpriest Jorvik
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Negotiation is surrender.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
On this day were able to confirm the treachery of Lord Kemp on the field of battle. He had allied himself with the despicable heretic Col. ‘Extra’ Hands Straken and the 728th ‘Sabbat Irregulars’. Lord Kemp is often referred to by his own troops as the ‘Khorne Dog’, a sobriquet in and of itself that is affirmation of treachery. Although soundly defeated, during the calamity that ensued on the battle field we were unable to confirm the kill as the pack of wolf brothers that brought down their command squad was subsequently violated with a pungent brew of the most heinous of chemicals ever introduced to a theater of war. Even the heightened metabolism of a Space Marine cannot withstand exposure to this dirtiest of tricks. Beware of this most crude of battlefield ingenuity, as this foul noxious chemical is capable of overwhelming the stoutest of men, and hardiest of respirators. So do put out the alert that we believe these traitors to still be at large, although they will most likely lay low for a while to regroup and heal, they are still undeniably dangerous and corrupting.

To add further insult our Wolf Lord Sven Axegrinder was brought down in close combat, but instead of killing him honorably, they took to stripping him of his sacred armor and applying female undergarments and face-paint and tying him to a statue of the Emperor in a nearby square. They then took to broadcasting this image throughout the local planetary network’s entertainment frequencies. This insult has invigorated our chapter, and we won’t rest until these traitors are forever exterminated.

We’re still looking for the so-called Xenos threat that was the original intent of our dispatch to this system. We’re waiting for more intel, but it would seem that this was a ruse to draw us into an ambush.

And as an aside; To assist in rooting out other potential traitor regiments, do be on the look out for requisitions for large quantities of feather boas; we’re alarmed at how many were found on the corpses of these traitors, and alarmed further that they seemed to have been given as standard issue. Surely tithes could be better allocated to improving the basic wargear of the Imperial Guardsman?

-Jorvik.


From: Da Masta Cheef
Subject: Incoming transmission
To: Neverness
Date: Sunday, November 9, 2009, 12:43 PM

FAO: Master-General Styker of Departento Munitorium TRANSMITTED: Carcaradon Cluster RECEIVED: Aten III DATE:4919104.M41 TELEPATHIC DUCT: Astropath-terminus: CLASSIFIED AUTHOR: CLASSIFIED THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Interrogation through torture always nets results. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ General, The attached transcript was recorded by an Obsolescent Temple Assassin that is tracking the Heretic unit known as the 728th Sabbat Irregulars. It is believed to be from a command briefing of the Rogue Colonel 'Extra Hands' Straken. Though he survived the encounter, the Assassin's position was compromised, leaving us with only a scrap of dialogue. I have sent a copy of this to my Master, shall I also forward this to the sons of Russ? -Interrogator Snipes- +++++Recording Begins+++++ Cheef's Obsolescent Temple Assassin? '...that screaming all about? I thought you executed the howitzer crews for their incompetence?' 'Eases the mind doesn't it? I did, although I did leave one to feed to the Psyker. His power grows by the day, he needs to be watched. Our friend the Inquisitor is in the medicae. Apparently the followers of Khorne feel pain, thanks to the Blessings of Grandfather Nurgle, I do not.' 'Indeed Colonel. So are they taking the Dog apart or putting him back together?' 'Not my concern, the medicae's saw bones is a devotee of Khorne as well, so either way their god is being sated. What do the spies report?' 'The Wolves have landed again, don't think its the ones we fought, its the others. The ones that fought the green Astartes. Who were they anyways, Death Guard?' Don't know, don't care, they killed plenty of themselves, and added enough collateral damage to send droves of new refugees to welcome the Glory of Chaos and to refill the ranks. What of our armor?' Only one Bane Wolf is back in service, they're emptying the latrines into it now, and the PDF turned up another Battle tank as well.' 'The Bastion laser?' 'The Dark Mechanicus's adepts have retrofitted some of those recovered Xenos grav engines into its support stabilizers. There's not enough power to fire it on the move, but it will serve as a crew portable weapon.' 'It'll have to do...ok, here's the plan: Sergeant Mossad, you will take the platoon to the...' ++++++++Transmission ends++++++++

Note: While scouring Da Masta Cheef's blog, I was unable to locate any pics of the "Khorne Dog" or "Col. Extra Hands Straken", No doubt a cover-up on the highest levels is occurring.

Note2: Thanks to the Cheef for providing a link to an image of Col. Extra-Hand Straken. (And no, you can't have my 1st born...)

Where (Blood) Angels Dare

Good weekend! Although my painting/modeling output has been slow over the past fortnight, I have made some progress that will soon materialize into some posts. Speaking of materializing...

Materializing onto the field of battle, ready to engage the foe!

Last night I did get in a game with Jim's Blood Angels. Fresh from his recent victory he spotted me upon walking into Hobbytown, slapped me with his blood encrusted gauntlet and challenged the Company of Sven Axegrinder on the field of battle! To make things more appealing, a relic of importance to the Space Wolves Chapter was at risk of being confiscated by the Blood Angels. Sven, being of both a stubborn and noble character (and, it must be stated, a naïve sort of fellow), was quick to launch the Thunderhawks.


The army assembled.

The Relic is a yellow base with a Space Wolf icon on it. A rather basic objective marker that I made for the a previous edition that occasionally still finds a use. The field of battle was 2/3 wilderness with a 1/3 of ruined city. I imagine that this fight is taking place at the edge of an old habitation zone, long torn asunder by the state of constant war that besets the Imperium of Man.

 

Space Wolves deployed 1st. On my left flank, my venerable Landspeeder Tornado (the Chairlift of Death) lurks behind a rock column. In the distance behind a rocky outcrop (that's what those turd-looking things are supposed to be),

I place the Long Fangs on the high ruins on my side, while the Vindicator is placed behind a tree line to get a bit of cover.

In the ruined streets to the right of the Long Fangs is a rhino with more Grey Hunters riding in it and the Lone Wolf, sitting in the shadows mourning the loss of his comrades and humming the catchier melodies of Piotyr and the Wolf to himself as he works himself up in preparation of a heroic death.

Nice dilapidated bastion huh?

The Blood Angels deploy and the bulk of their battle-line is shifted to where my forces are lightest. He has the best chance to grab the objective 1st as his Death Company are all jump infantry and the objective is directly in front of him

 Failing to seize the initiative the Blood Angels watch as the screaming roar of the Space Wolf drop pod tears down from the heavens. The screaming is actually Wolf Lord Sven, raging at the horribly miscalculated scatter that sent the drop pod 12" off target and in between the woods! More infuriating is the drop pod blocks most of the Long Fang's LOS to the relic and the bulk of Jim's Blood Angels.

 Two dreadnoughts ambling over in the BA deployment zone seem pretty threatening to me, so a concentrated krak missile volley eliminates the Death Company Dreadnought. As you see in these pics, and as I mentioned in a previous post, Jim loves to make cool effect for this game. Seen here is on of the explosion plumes he made. He has his dreads made so that the torso can separate from the legs, and when we wrecked the dreadnought we separated the two halves and placed a plume in between them. It makes in interesting pic for a battle report and makes for a more interesting battle to play in.

First Blood goes to the Space Wolves as the Death Co. Dread is reduced to scrap.

 That was First Blood, my Land Speeder zipped up and tried to slag the BA Predator with a multimelta shot but missed. My Vindicator would announce itself by sending 4 Deathcompany marines to their graves. Not a bad 1st turn for the Space Wolves.

The Blood Angels return the favor, with the Predator noting the Landspeeder's immediate threat and swatting it from the sky with a single blast from a Las Cannon sponson. We noted the event as "second blood", More calamity would occur with the Green Dreadnought shooting it's twin-linked lascannon at the Rhino on my right flank, turning it into a smoldering crater and killing one of the Grey Hunters inside of it.

"Weren't we in a tank a second ago?"

 On Turn Two, my force would concentrate it's fire on eliminating the Death Company with the Vindicator landing another direct hit that would finish off all but the Chaplain, and even he was left standing with a wound. On the BA turn 2, the Terminator's would beam in along with the BA Commander, and the two Terminator squads, each with the respective army commander joined to it, staring each other down behind a hail of Storm Bolter shots. I lost a Wolf Guard to this attack. Note that the Chaplain joined the Terminator Unit.

Beaming in. Note that we had a flashlight above them for the added glow effect.

 The BA Tac squad moved into the dilapidated bastion and fired a krak missile at the last SW Rhino, but it missed.

Jim's firing missile marker.

 Turn 3, and it was time kill stuff. The problem with teleporting in is that you don't get to spread out, which makes the Vindicator's Demolisher Cannon giggle with glee as shoots another directed hit on of the BA commander's head. The entire Terminator squad is wiped out, including the BA commander (Slay the Warlord point) leaving, once again, the Chaplain alive. This left us to wonder it maybe the Chaplin is a curse the units he joins? As he stands their contemplating this, he is felled by a snapshot from the Vindicator's Storm Bolter. Shooting through cover, the Long Fangs manage to blow up the Predator with some surgically precise krak missile shots, leaving another flaming crater in the BA deployment zone.

BA turn 3 saw the Green Dreadnought getting some revenge for his fallen Commander. A well placed shot at the Wolf Guard, and a failed Look Out Sir roll, would see Sven instant-deathed by a twin-linked lascannon shot.

Turn 4, the wolf guard press on taking the fight to the Blood Angels who had just made a mad dash out of the Bastion in a desperate gambit to find some way to get the relic, while my Rhino zips up, deploys a unit of Grey Hunters and they manage to take the relic in triumph!

Lined up for a perfect shot the Vindicator was set to shoot the green dread. Having spent the whole game charging up the field, the Long Wolf was poised to charge the green dread (his Beastslayer oath ment that he was born to engage this foe!), when suddenly, surprisingly, the rhino fired it's hunterkiller missile and it actually hits, and actually penetrates, wreaking the dreadnought! We all looked around in shock, having rarely seen one of these actually work so well!

"...! AH! You bastards! That was going to be MY kill!!!"

Reduced to one unit, the BAs at the bastion fought back, but to little effect.

Turn 5 saw the rhino make it's escape with the relic, while the wolf guard moved in for the kill. The vindicator sent more Blood Angels to their grave, but they held on, refusing to be pinned.

 

Finally, it all ended, as the Wolf Guard charged in and finished off the Tactical Squad in the assault phase in the game.

 

 

For the 1st time in a long time, the Space Wolves tabled their foe! And with few casualties.
Still, the Blood Angels got a few well placed licks in as well.

We had a fun game, and despite the game turning grim for him quickly, Jim remained a good sport all the way through. In fairness to Jim, his dice just didn't want to be there and were just begging to be shot off into the lake with a sling-shot.

He earned 2 VPs (One for his Slay the Warlord kill on Sven, and another quite humorously from my Lone Wolf surviving the game!)

I claimed 6 vps, all 3 secondary objectives as well as the Relic which was worth 3vps.

Afterwards we went to work on improving his army list. He has some models that he has yet to build which I think could make his force far more competitive than it currently is. Including an assembled Rhino and an assembled Razorback. Also he has a Baal Predator model somewhere I think could bring some hurt if he were to use it. So, like all of us in our circle, we take these kind of games and we weigh our strengths and weaknesses vs. our playing styles and make adaptations for the next list. Jim is fairly new to 6th edition and hasn't played consistently since 2nd, so he's learning a lot still, and regardless of his dice, he's having a good time escaping with us to a place where there is only war...

Erik Axegrinder: Deathwatch Marine

Presenting: Erik Axegrinder of the Deathwatch.




Die Xenos scum!

 

Erik Axegrinder didn't begin life as my typical named Warhammer 40,000 personality would. No, in fact, Erik was created on paper as a Deathwatch RPG character for the Doctor's Deathwatch game. I knew he would be a Space Wolf and I wanted to tie him in with my Space Wolf army, so I decided he should be kin to Sven Axegrinder

 

His origin is somewhat meek, one really sort of limited to what elements were randomly generated for the role-playing game; but I did decide that the reason his battle-brothers forced --I mean, bestowed the honor of joining the Deathwatch to him, was because he was found siting alone during a Great Feast with his nose in a data-slate and heard to say, when questioned, about his lack of participation that he was reading up on some "great ideas for us in this book"; the book turned out to be the Codex: Astartes. Two weeks later he found himself swearing new orders to a new Commander (Talltree, I believe, a character associated with the Doctor's legendary Rogue Trader era space marine chapter), and being requisitioned a bunch of sweet new gear.

It was during our 1st game, that Erik came to the realization that "What was I thinking?! The Codex Astartes is crap!" as the unit was getting thrashed by a Thousand Sons Dreadnought! It was brutal and epic! LOL

It was a short 2 session game that we played while I was in town for a business trip. All of us decided it would be cool to actually make a miniature of our character even though we rarely use miniatures for the Doctor's games (in fact, it might actually be never). One of the guys (Brian) got his done up really quick, and even though I had gathered together all the elements to make him and primed him almost immediately, I only dabbed at the model for about 2 years... in fact if you look through past blog posts you might see elements of Erik scattered about on my painting table.

While working on some Long Fangs and Land Raider bits (all future blogs in the making) I kept throwing color on the Erik model. This (pic to the right) is the point I was at with him last week. And yes, I prefer to paint as I assemble...Yes, this makes it slower to get them done but I am far more satisfied with the end result.

While working on the Long Fangs earlier today, I was a bit vexed with one of the models that didn't have anywhere to put his chapter icon. The solution was to put it on the back plate on a back pack. I simply grabbed a micron, and drew it on. So pleased with how that turned out, I repeated it for Erik's backpack as well.

That's right, hand drawn!

 After that, I decided it was simply time to finish Erik. And finish him today! After a series of touch-ups I decided he needs some grenades. I have a bin with a lot of extra Imperial Guard grenades that I just love. So stuck those on after I was finished with the right knee guard.

Next I put on his arm, then the knife and finally the shoulder pad. A note on the shoulder pad, this is one of the original Rogue Trader era decals, and I discovered that these are bit brittle with age. The semi-circular bit on the lower right the icon tore off while handling, but I was able to fix it with a micron. Surprised at how easy that was to do considering that when I thought of the solution I was sure I would go mad in the attempt.

Next I added the Deathwatch plate then I applied some additional ink washes to the wolf pelt which I wasn't pleased with at first as I thought the head kept blending into the over-all pelt. I'm satisfied with it now.

And ta-da! He's now assembled! I fixed the base a took a few photos and now, here he is! 

Just needs some flock for grass (and yes, the base looks great with the top image, but that thing needs some grass too!), and I might stick a decal on his right leg but that might be more trouble than it's worth at this point... I shall ponder it.

In my 40K games, Erik will be used as either a Wolf Guard Squad Leader or as stripped down Lone Wolf. Which is why I chose to use the yellow and black claw markings instead of the red and black of a typical Grey Hunter. I have no doubt that Space Wolves returning back to the chapter would be anything less than a Wolf Guard for the experience! Or perhaps to find their original pack has perished or maybe his mingling with other chapters now puts him in a weird 'outsider' status? -Lone Wolf!



Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed!

 

Bring on the glory!!!!


 

 



Update:

Now with flock