Soul Drinkers Assault Marine

I've been working on my Soul Drinkers some more, although I havn't made the greatest of progress.

Still, I got one Assault Marine nearly done, hailing from Tellos' blood-soaked following. To those who havn't read the books, he's basically an Assault Marine who's fallen to Khorne, but hasn't realised it it yet.

I still need to finish up the blood on this guy, but so far I've been focusing on finding the right balance between him being blood-soaked, yet being able to distinguish Soul Drinker heraldry underneath.

There'll be another nine like him when he's finished, acting as Blood Claws in an allied Space Wolves detachment led by a Wolf Lord representing Tellos himself. I'm thinking of doing the Tellos conversion next, before finishing off his following, but I'm not sure yet.

More soon!

Soul Drinkers Tactical Squad WIP

While I'm waiting for bits and pieces to arrive for my Song of Ice and Fire project, I turned my attention to my Soul Drinkers, stripping the paint off the few remaining models from my previous attempt at them and repainting them.

There's still bits to do, including the mutated head on the guy in the front centre, the basing and freehanding chalice symbols on to their shoulder pads, but I'm pleased with them so far.

What do you guys think?

Thoughts on the new codex

With pre-orders going up last night, then the chaos of trying to access the site today, my mind's been firmly focused on the new Space Marine codex today and how I'm going to make use of it. I thought I'd post up my thoughts.

Ok so far, I've got three forces planned, all of which I've been had in the works on and off for years now:

1. Soul Drinkers

These guys are going to be my main SM force and my go-to army if I want a game using the codex. In keeping with the background laid out in the novels, I'm not including any vehicles in there save for maybe a counts-as Stormraven to represent the shuttles they use to get around in.

It'll be a very fast moving, rapid strike force, albeit using Imperial Fists rules (it's only fitting, considering their origins), probably led by a Tigerius counts-as to represent Sarpedon.That's subject to change though when I read the full rules for him. If the rules don't match up to what I want, I may end up using him as a Chapter Master or allying in some BA allies in order to gain access to Fear of the Darkness to properly represent Sarpedons psychic power: 'The Hell'

Model-wise I'm stripping, rebuilding and repainting my old force to match my current painting skills (my old scheme looks awful by my current standards). On my painting list atm are:

Sarpedon's Force Axe
Chaplain (Iktinos) - probably the new Chaplain with conversion work done
Terminator Captain
Lightning Claw Captain (Luko)
2 x Librarians
10 x Marines to represent Iktinos' "Flock" (to be used as Assault Marines on foot)
20 x Tactical Marines
10 x Assault Marines, including a Tellos conversion
10 x Vanguard Veterans
9 x Scouts
8 x Sternguard

I'm aiming to get these guys done by early next year at the latest.

2. Thousand Sons


Due to the fact that the Sons of Magnus don't have their own rules from FW yet, I thinking of using these guys as a Sternguard-heavy force (to represent their powers), backed up by another Tigerius count-as and maybe some counts-as Centurions to represent Mechanicum support. This is of course, in games where I can't use FW rules. Most of the time, they'll be fielded using the FW Legion list

Having been building them very slowly for over 2 years now, I've got bits and pieces done for this force, but nothing fieldable yet. On my painting list for these guys are:

Ahriman conversion, made from the new Librarian model
2 other Librarians
18 x Scarab Occult Veterans
15 x Spireguard Support (scouts)
6 x Terminators
1 x Land Speeder (FW Javelin - still to buy)
1 x Contemptor (still to buy)

The fact that GW is releasing a Mephiston Red spray will considerably speed up progress on these guys. Even so, I'm putting a longer time scale on these guys. I'm hoping to get them done by summer next year

3. Ragtag RenegadesThe idea for this army came partially from 'Dead Sky, Black Sun' by Graham McNeil and also from the fact that from time to time I like just painting up random marines that don't match my main armies, just to keep things fresh.

The idea behind the army is that renegade and outcast marines from various different chapters have banded together for mutual protection and survival. They aren't chaos yet, but they're renegades who straddle the edge of 'good', surviving in the harshest areas of the galaxy. They still fight the emperors wars, just not as part of their parent chapters any more, stealing and raiding to survive.

It basically allows me to paint single or small groups of models whatever chapters I like and still have the chance to use them in-game. I used to play this force years ago, but the marines got siphoned off for other projects. It was the first army I played with the 5th Edition codex, so I felt it was only right and good that I resurrect it for the 6th Edition book. I'll probably use them as either allies from other codices for my Soul Drinkers, or as a stand alone army using whichever traits I feel like trying out at the time.

Owing to the way I'm building this force, I don't have a set painting list for these guys, aside from a few bits and pieces I already have tucked away in the depths of my hobby cupboard. The following are definitely going to be in there:

5 x Black Templar Sword Brethren (I picked up a box on ebay just in case they went OOP with the merger)
1 x Imperial Fist Sergeant
13 x Tactical Marines of various chapters (to be decided on later)
1 x Dreadnought of indeterminate origin (at the moment)
1 x either Blood Angels or Blood Raven Librarian

With a bit of luck, this should put a crimp in my 'new army itch' as well, saving me money and sanity. I'll only be painting up models I already own, save for a few particularly nice bits and pieces I might pick up through trades or on Ebay (the Iron Hands Sergeant in metal for a start)

So as you can see, I've got big plans for this codex, but it's mainly making use of what I already have and setting myself goals to get it all painted.

I'll still be working on my Sons of Horus and Hochland force alongside these (plus another side-project which I'll reveal soon), but I won't be making any major purchases model-wise for a while,. Obviously I need to keep up with current rules, so the new SM codex and the FW 'Massacre' book are on my 'to buy' list, but those are separate and justified really.

Hopefully I'll get on well with this new plan. We'll see though...

Soul Drinkers WIP

I mentioned last week about how I'm resurrecting my Soul Drinkers for use with the new Space Marine codex. Well after a few days of feeling rather downhearted over the rumours of overpowered Ultramarines chapter tactics that outclassed the Imperial Fist ones in every way (Soul Drinkers are IF Successors, so I'll be using those), the rumour mill calmed down a little and started talking about more balanced rules, reigniting my enthusiasm for the new book.

So I started painting up some models.. First of all,  I was working on a Vanguard Veteran:

It's a pretty standard model atm, but I'm focussing on painting each one in stages. This guy's going to have a mutated left arm and a jump pack, but those come later.

The other model I've been working on is the start of a Terminator captain:

It doesn't look like much, but it's quite an important model to me. The Soul Drinkers only possess one suit of Terminator armour, which is worn into battle by their Master of Recruits. This gives me the opportunity to go to town and make a really unique looking Terminator character. As the eagle-eyed amongst you may have notice, I've put a FW Cataphractii torso onto normal Terminator legs.

Now I'm not going to do much more than paint the body of this guy until the book's out. Then I can see how closely chapter tactics are related to certain characters and what load-out a character using the Imperial Fists rules would benefit most from. This guy may become anything from a captain with a Storm Bolter and Relic Blade to a counts-as Lysander.



Also, with rumours of being able to ally with other chapters within the same codex flying around, I'm thinking of digging out some Sword Brethen models which I have stashed away and painting them up, along with some Imperial Fists, making a 'Sons of Dorn' alliance on the tabletop. Should be an awesome sight to see. I reckon. More on that soon though. For now, I'm off to paint some more stuff...

Stormraven Conversion WIP

The battle report from last weeks campaign game is still on the way but unfortunately it's very time consuming and time is something i really don't have enough of at the moment.

Instead, here's some WIP pics of my Stormraven Gunship i've been meaning to put up for a few weeks now. It's made simply through a rearrangement of parts from one of my Valkyries (it broke after taking a tumble from a high shelf, hence the reason why it seems already painted) and the addition of a little plasticard.

I'm aiming to give it interchangable weapon mounts, so it can be switched between a counts as Valkyrie and Stormraven at will (also the reason why it's crewed by a Scout, who can pass as a Imperial Guardsman too)

What do people think so far?

Soul Drinkers returning

Looking at the latest batch of BA rumours,it's sounding more and more like my quest for the perfect codex for fielding my Soul Drinkers with is finally at an end.

I'm aware,this is all working from rumours, so it could be completely different when the book's actually out, but this is what i'm thinking, working from the most recent stuff i've heard

5 Reasons why i'm liking the New BA codex

- Sarpedon

Whether i use Mephiston or a generic Librarian, i feel that Sarpedon will live up to how i imagine him under the BA codex. Blood Stasis looks alot like I imagine The Hell to be, slowing down the enemy and making them hurt themselves in their fear.

Also, using Quickening makes him a Beast! (literally, not the metaphorical combat kind)

One thing's for sure though. I won't miss Sarpedon dying every single game!

-Stormraven Gunship.

A flyer without a model - a converters dream! The Soul Drinkers often used captured fliers in the books, even some of Xenos origin and this is seems the perfect way to bring that element into my Soul Drinkers army

- Chapter Master Seth

aka. Tellos . Current rumours point to him having a Canis Wolfborn-like ability to boost his attacks when there's more models in contact with him, plus additonal hits if the enemy miss him as he takes advantage of their mistake. Perfect for the down and dirty fighting style of Tellos.

Plus, i don't have to put Tellos on a Canis-sized base to field him, woop!

- Chaplain Lemartes

aka. Chaplain Iktinos. The move to from HQ to squad upgrade character makes me very happy, as the mysterious Chaplain can now be fielded alongside Sarpedon and Tellos - together these three characters define the Chapter.
Using up to 4 characters was the main motivation behind me trying to make the force work with the SW codex in the first place. I'll most likely lose Luko with the switch to BA, but it's a price i'm willing to pay if the main three are still there.

Plus, him being a Death Company Squad leader means i can use the DC to represent his 'Flock'

- Troops Choice Assault Marines

These give me a little flexibility in the kind of Soul Drinkers force I can take, theming it towards different Soul Drinkers 'factions'.

I can put Tactical Squads in there to represent the bulk of the chapter, or i can go all-Assault Marines, led by Tellos/Seth to represent Tellos' followers who were left behind on Stratix Luminae (an awesome idea in my opinion!)

what do people think?

Oh my good god!

Hear that sound? That's the sound of my Soul Drinkers rejoicing, for in april the Blood Angels get their long-promised new codex.

I woke up about ten minutes ago to an newsletter from GW confirming it. Looks like they get assault marines as troops and lots of deep striking units now.

I've always wanted to use my Soul Drinkers as BA, but the pdf codex and the quite frankly awful librarian rules put me off. But this looks like it could shape up to be truely awesome. I'll be keeping a close eye on this

Degrees of 'counts as' - Being reasonable?

Played two games today. One in the ongoing WHFB league i'm in and the other with the space wolf list today. Lost horribly in both cases, but i didn't mind too much. But the second game threw up issues of 'counts as' and reasonability.

Basically, we both wanted to test the new space wolves codex. Neither of us own the 'official' models, so there was a lot of 'counts as' being used.

First up, he put a Black Reach captain, a Terminator Chaplain and a Dreadnought down and said 'that's A Wolf Lord, A Rune Priest and Bjorn'. Now i'm a reasonable guy (not that i'm saying he's not), so i said, yeah, no Problem.

I then unpacked my stuff and put Sarpedon and Tellos down and said "That's Njal and a Wolf Lord". Instantly, he blurted out, pointing to Sarpedon "but he's on too big a base, you can't use him!", followed by a retort from me. I'd been using this guy for months as Tigerius (who's on a small base), with no problems, yet the moment i wanted to use him as a new character, (who is more or less the equivilant of Tigerius, but sold on a terminator base), it was apparently bang out of order, just because he had some apparently powerful special rules, which had yet to be run through the local gaming mill, so the hype over them was still believed.

However, in his new-codex-oh-my-god-it's-overpowered, he chose to ignore the fact that Tellos, my Wolf Lord, for exactly the same fluff reasons as Sarpedon, had chainblades for hands(count-as wolf claws), no chest armour (but highly mutated, so counting as runic armour and belt of russ) and no representation of the jump pack i gave him (inhuman speed). If i'd wanted to make an overpowered list, i could have classed Tellos as Canis Wolfborn, who is very Tellos-like, in that he's also fast, tough and kick-ass in combat.

It's not like i was wanting to gain an unfair advantage by using Sarpedon on a bigger base, i was merely wanting to represent one of my favourite BL characters in a fluffy manner, as well as make use of the model i'd commissioned off Ron.

If i'd really wanted to be picky, i'd have said in that case, he couldn't use his Chaplain as a Rune Priest, but instead i took the cowards way out and bargained with him. I let him use his missile launchers from his tactical squads (being thrust into the role of grey hunters) as plasma guns in exchange for him 'being reasonable' about Sarpedon. In the end, Sarpedon was vapourised by a lascannon with the opening shot of the game and those extra plasma guns cost me the match, taking out my drop pod troops as they landed. The game was over by turn three.

I wouldn't have even been bothered that much if his force hadn't consisted of a mis-match of several other SM armies, including Dark Angels and Codex Marines, with no consistancy of colouration, whereas, i'd taken the time to paint every model in Soul Drinkers colours and model things like Mark of the Wulfen clearly (mutations). The only reason why Sarpedon isn't on a terminator base is because when building him, Ron suggested that he'd look better on a bigger base, else he'd look ridiculously squashed in on a 40mm one.

Speaking to Colin, the club organiser afterwards, he said it was a little unfair considering it was a friendly game and if he was in that position he would have let me use Sarpedon without forcing concessions upon me. But unfortunately there is a fair sprinkling of competitve players in my local gaming group, whereas me and Colin are more in favour of balanced or fluffy lists, so there's often clahes of 'gaming personalities'

So, who would you favour in this situation. Me or him?

How far should people reasonably take 'counts as'?

Soul Drinker SW list 1

Here's the first draft of my Soul Drinkers SW list. No idea how it'll play yet, but i'm hoping it's going to be fast and hard hitting, with Tellos and his Assault Marines spearheading the charge. I've deliberately restricted the Mark of the Wulfen to the Skyclaws, to represent the fact that the worst mutated marines would be sent forward in search of a glorious death.


Commander Sarpedon - counts as Njal Stormcaller

Sergeant Tellos
Wolf Lord with Twin Lightning claws, Jump Pack (representing his inhuman speed), Runic Armour, Belt of Russ, Saga of the Warrior Born and Wolf Tooth Necklace.


Chaplain Iktinos

Wolf Priest with Saga of the Beastslayer and Wolf Tooth Necklace


Iktinos 'Flock' - Blood Claw Pack

9 warriors, meltagun, Powerfist, Plasma pistol

Drop Pod with Deathwind


Squad Zeon - Grey Hunters

9 men, plasma gun, power weapon

Drop Pod with Deathwind


Squad Luko - Grey Hunters

10 men, 2x meltagun, Power weapon

Drop Pod with Deathwind


Squad Tellos - Skyclaws

10 men, plasma pistol, power fist, mark of wulfen


Squad Greavus - Skyclaws

10 men, plasma pistol, power weapon, mark of wulfen


Squad Eumenes - Wolf Scouts

5 men, Boltguns, melta bombs, meltagun, 2 x power weapons


Squad Rilke - Wolf Scouts

5 men, sniper rifles


Squad Nisryus - Long Fangs

4 men - 2 x missile launchers, 1 x multi-melta

Note: Pack Leader in the Long Fangs represents the pre-cog psyker, Nisryus who's directing the chapter's few heavy weapons to where he predicts they're needed.

Still trying to work out how to fit Captain Luko and Techmarine Lygris in there, but for now i'm happy with this. All i need to buy are a few more Assault Marines to convert into Iktinos 'Flock'

Space Wolves for the right reasons?

Having bought and looked through the new SW codex, i've decided to collect a small contingent of space wolves to accompany my Soul Drinkers force. It won't be huge force, just enough for me to have fun with it. But i plan to use the SW codex in a few games.

Many may say i'm jumping on the bandwagon here, but i'm no powergamer or army junky, so i don't care.

These are the main 3 reasons behind my decision:

1. Epic models.

I love the new space wolves sprue that's come out. So many modelling possibilities have opened up it's unbeliveable. I plan to get a few of the basic SW boxes to make a few squads Blood Claws and a Wolf Lord at the very least. I'll probably make a lone wolf too, but in general, SW's will feed my love of making character models like no other amry will.

Plus, i reckon a few SW heads scattered through my IG army will look awesome.


2. Fluffy Soul Drinkers.

So many options in the SW book are just perfect for representing many of the unique things in the Soul Drinkers books,something my Raven Guard-based Soul Drinkers have struggled with. eg. Njal and his Lord of Tempests ability is just perfect for representing the effects of Sarpedons 'The Hell' psychic power, whereas before, i've had to make do with a 'count as' Tigerius since the loss of Fear of the Darkness from the SM list

Also, a Wolf lord with twin lightning claws and saga of the warrior born just screams the name Tellos at me. Maybe even the Mark of the Wulfen instead. Eithe rof these two would convey the 'frenzied killing machine with chainsaw hands' thing he's got going on.

Only downside to this idea is that assault squads are only ws and bs 3, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem, with their +2 attacks on the charge making up for it.

3. Play style.

I play very gung ho with SM's anyway, often favouring glorious charges and creating epic combats, when i really should be focussing on objectives. With this in mind, the army i envisage me having at the moment is an army based around blood claws, impeteous and foolhardy, out to prove themselves and start their sagas with a bang. I'm aiming to avoid any really cheesy or broken choices/ combinations in my list (so no Wolfwing, Thunderwolf Cavalry, etc), as i know many players who are starting SW's just for the chance to use this stuff, which smacks of powergaming.

So, as you can see. I have very valid reasons for wanting to start SW's, other than just 'because they're new'. I've wanted to do them for years, ever since i saw the 13th company in the EoT campaign, but various other projects kept getting in the way.

What do people think?

Have I chosen SW's for the right reason, or do you think i'm just another army junky latching onto the latest thing.

Too many projects!

I have far too many models to paint. This is the view of my hobby table at the moment.





Once i've built my mutant psyker squad, i'm planning on painting my Dark Elf Cold One Knights and Crossbowmen (finally, hurrah!!), then build the Drop Pod. After that, it's a matter of what grabs my attention.

I figure that if i lay everything i need to do out across my workspace, then it will motivate me to get it done. Hopefully.