Rogue Trader Space Marines - Tactical Squad complete.

 

 So with the last pair of rogue trader space marines finished this week, I've rounded off my five man tactical squad. 

 I've gone for Brother Leanman and my favourite heavy weapon marine miniature for the final two in what has been a very economical project as all five models were spares from when I finished painting my space marine army several years ago. 

 I've been delighted with the amount of positive response on various social media platforms regarding the colour scheme that I've opted for. I spend a lot of time working out colour schemes on all of my projects (more than the actual painting sometimes) so it means an awful lot!

 There is always the chance of adding to this chapter at some point but a tactical squad was all I'd set out to achieve for now but it's been an enjoyable little project so it's pretty likely you'll be seeing more of these guys down the line.

 As these guys are part of an Inquisition aligned chapter, the plan is to include an Inquisitor in terminator armour so I'll be working on that in the near future but also I'll be making a start on the next project which is a Chaos Renegade warband which is something I've wanted to take on for a long time but never quite found it to be the time.

 

 

Rogue Trader Space Marines - two new additions to the Tactical Squad

  So I've added a pair of classic Rogue Trader marines to my planned five man tactical squad. Accompanying the sergeant is one of my favourites of the RT space marine range, Brother Slater (with scanner) and Brother Quiff.

 Slater, another Mark Copplestone model is an all round belter. The helmet has a really nice shape to it. Quiff, sculpted by Aly Morrison, has a face only his mother could love, which has also doubled up as both the faces of Inquisitor Augustus and the Traitor General from the Rogue Trooper range.

 Brother Quiff, like his sergeant, is sporting a hairstyle befitting the time period in which he was sculpted. 

 Next up with be the final pair to complete the squad, including a heavy bolter marine before tackling the main man, the inquisitor in terminator  armour. 

Rogue Trader Space Marine Sergeant - my first 40k paint job in 5 years

 

 If someone said to me after I painted my Rogue Trader warband back in 2017 that I'd not paint another 40k model for five years, I'd have probably laughed in their face. If someone had said to me years ago after painting my space marine army that I'd never paint another one again, I'd probably have agreed with them.

 So, here we are. I'm not aiming for anything to big here, just a tactical squad to accompany an Inquisitor in terminator armour. 

 I've opted to kick off with my all time favourite space marine model, Brother Napier. Sculpted by Mark Copplestone, who is my favourite of the marine sculptors, Napier captures that classic 80's RT aesthetic, especially with that hairstyle. Like the army, I've gone for a made up chapter/colour scheme. No chapter name finalised yet, I'll probably wait until the squad is finished. 

 I wanted the armour to be predominantly grey and pale blue and decided to break it up with a small amount of orange. Also, he's sporting a classic rogue trader marine backpack with banner poles which aren't too easy to find these days. 

 I've nearly wrapped up man #2 with man #3 ready to go and the Inquisitor is currently being stripped so I'll hopefully post another update next week, all going well.

40k Rogue Trader Warband - Complete

 So here it is; I've pushed on to get the remaining members of the warband done - a hive worlder, an alien mercenary, a ventolin pirate and a conqueror class robot.

  I wanted the group to be as diverse as possible but still all tying in together (if that makes sense). I had intended to write up some fluff for them all and I will at some point (probably) but that sort of crap takes me ages and I haven't got the time at present as I'm keen to take on the next project.

 The Hive Worlder is one of my favourites from the 40k adventurers range with some really nice touches and detail. The alien is a conversion using a the head of a C48 gargoyle with the body of a 2000ad Klegg and the ventolin pirate is another nice sculpt but a tad rough in places. However, there is plenty of nice detail to him. Finally the conqueror robot who was the last I painted; I found him a bit of a chore actually and was a relief when he was eventually finished. I found the highlighting of the legs quite awkward where there are so many angles to them.

Hive Worlder

Alien Mercenary 

Ventolin Pirate 

Conqueror Robot

 So having managed to chalk a rogue trader warband off my list, I'm now focusing on what will be my 100th blog post which has been an idea for about 10 years or more now. It may take me some time and to be honest there has been some teething problems in its planning stage.

40k Rogue Trader Warband - Space Amazon & Space Pirate

 Funny how you can suddenly get on a roll....
 I've managed to bang out the first of the two followers of my converted rogue trader in reasonably quick time. Up first are two of my favourites from the 40k adventurers range - well actually all the members of this party are among my favourites from the range.

 So here we have the Space Amazon and Space Pirate.

 Like the rogue trader there'll be names and background to come; probably once all seven members are finished and I do a group post.

 The Space Amazon appears to be one of the more sought after models from this range. I'm not even sure who was responsible for sculpting her. I'm sure someone will help me out on that one.

 The Space Pirate is a variant of the Talisman counterpart (not sure who came first). I like the funny beaded necklace he's carrying; I'll probably give this some significance in his background when I get onto it.

The party begins to take shape

 The plan is to post the four remaining members of the gang in one hit which will be my 99th blog post so I can work on something special for the century.

40k Rogue Trader Warband Project - Underway

 I wouldn't call it a lost mojo exactly, more the case of trying out a few ideas and them not working. Over the last few weeks I haven't quite managed to get going with anything.

 The I decided to tackle something that has been sat on my desk in a resealable bag for about six months.

 For some time now I'd been keen on creating my own rogue trader and then his retinue. So here he is.

 I always found it odd that there was never an actual specific model made to represent one (stop me if I'm totally wrong here). There were one or two that could be used as ones of course but I wanted my own take on one.

 After a degree of trial and error I decided on using Erekose from the Eternal Champion range as a base model. The legs are from an Elf warrior. The right hand is from an Adeptus Arbites fig. His pet is of course one from the Chaos familiars range.

 As you can see from the WIP pics below I took quite a lot of lead off Erekose then it was a case of using my moderate modelling skills to sculpt the hair, greatcoat etc. The skulls on the boots are a mold press from the cap badge of a commissar.

The original Erekose figure

 Then with all the hard work done he was chucked in a bag and forgotten about, until now. I haven't decided on name or background yet but I'll get on with that as I work on his followers.

40k Warband Update (finally) - A Renegade's Best Friend

 I think it's been a mixture of things; work has just been through the roof (12 hours days) The Isle of Wight festival (can't hack 3 days of boozing anymore) and a bit of the dreaded painting burn out/lost mojo (we've all suffered from that I think more than once at some point) but I've finally managed to post my long overdue Rochie collaboration project update. It's not a particularly special, stand out post but it's an easy one to get done in a period of poor form.

 This week then it's the turn of Kalrath's Chaos rewards; a pair of Chaos Hounds. I actually painted these a few days ago but have just been too braindead to get round to posting them.

 Ambushed and pinned down. Kalrath's pursuers had finally reached touching distance. All hell had broken loose in docking bay 17 as The Raven was being prepared for it's impending journey. After receiving a tip off, a five man tactical unit of Star Reavers marines had intercepted The Raven had begun a direct assault. Kalrath had himself to blame after he was spotted hacking the heart out of an unfortunate maintenance worker which had caused obvious unwanted attention but his master's bidding was paramount and blood must be regularly spilled. Here he now found himself cornered and with his followers running his personal 'errands' he was in serious lack of support. Or was he? The air was suddenly filled with predatory snarling snapping and howling. The marines were under attack from something. Siezing his moment, Kalrath leapt from cover to see that a couple of the members of his former chapter was being savaged by a brace of large hounds. One sported a row of long spines down its back while the other was too headed. The latter had ambushed the bareheaded Sargeant from behind and tore out his throat while the other savagely mauled its opponent while the Khorne renegade took him out with a head shot. Del Core and two of his hoods were now on the scene and opened fire on the three remaining marines who now distracted were caught in the open while the two Chaos hounds leapt to attack with Kalrath ready to pick his former brothers off. The brief, savage skirmish was over; Kalrath beheaded the Sargeant while his faithful new beasts sat obediently at his side. These were gifts from Khorne, with the sole purpose to obey their master, to fight for him with savagery and ferocity until death take them....

 To be honest I didn't find them particularly enjoyable to paint. I guess a lost mojo won't help matters there but as sculpts they were lacking in quality somewhat. So it's over to Rochie again for his next installment and meantime I go large with my Tzeentch warband.

40k Renegade Warband Update - The Drug Lord

 With another top drawer post from Rochie it's time for the next installment of my 40k warband. I was planning for two or three figures for this post but I've been held up a little with a busy work schedule so for now it's just the one addition.

 This one is a basic head swap; the body being that of the Traitor General figure from the 2000 AD Rogue Trooper range and the head (the second time I've used this for a conversion) from a Blood Bowl Chaos player.

 Notorious baron of the Red Star drugs cartel on Samson IV, Deverell Del Core monopolised  narcotic activity on the planet. His face permanently concealed with his trademark hood, Del Core's fearsome reputation preceded him although an unexpected audience with a renegade of Khorne with promise of untold Chaos power proved too tempting to resist. Agreeing to accomany Kalrath off world with a small crew of his trusted henchmen, Del Core ordered his personal Endeavour Class Light Cruiser, The Raven to be prepared for imminent launch. The drug lord rubbed his hands in anticipation at the prospect of a successful alliance and the opportunity of aspiring in the service of The Blood God.
 Kalrath of course, merely saw Del Core as a means to an end; an accessory for the greater cause but for now, the ball was rolling and the renegade had began to make plans for a  destination....

So that's it for now, time for Rochie to deliver the goods with his next contribution for his warhammer Nurgle warband. It should be another classic!  I myself will be making a start on my next Tzeentch warband installment which I hope to unveil next week.