Iron Warriors and Astral Claws

[Hushrong]

Greetings ladies and gentlemen, I bid you welcome! In this thread I want to chronicle the building and painting of both the Iron Warriors and the Astral Claws together. You will laugh, you will cry, and you will even do that nod that says “I understand everything”, so let me share a few more words and then onto pictures (or just skip to the pictures, I am not forcing you to read. Lord knows I have been pretending to know how to read since the 1st grade).

So with my interest focused on 40k once again I am happy to be building, painting, and actually playing Chaos Space Marines and soon their somewhat-loyal counterparts. With the possibility of new Chaos Glory being released in the “kind of” near future I eventually started using the CSM Codex (amongst all the crazy codices out there), where I intend properly to represent the IV Legion. Currently, most of my army is bare plastic in need of time and glue. So in an unorthodox fashion I will be starting this project log with my future secondary army, the Astral Claws.

Over a year ago I had started the Astral Claws after enjoying their fluff and liking their silver and blue scheme. I did not get too far and had sold off those marines and most of my 40k stuff, so now I am starting from scratch. The marines shown here are mostly cobbled from left over bitz I salvaged from my once glorious bitz box.

To begin, the Demi-Cohort I assembled:

They’re going to need friends. There are actually two more I forgot to post now that I think about it.

Leading from the front is Centurion Victrus Hellstrom:

“We had grown unaccustomed to defeat.”
I like him but I eagerly anticipate making a Mk. 2 version one day. There are a lot of other bitz I would like to use for an ideal kit-bash/conversion.

And now one of the earlier marines you saw whom I painted last night:




I’m pretty satisfied with him except having taken this picture I now see hideous mold lines. OCD compels me to get rid of this right after I post this. He’s got Table Top Quality written on him but I am always looking to improve. I just need to finish the bolter and attempt to do even better on the next marine.

So far I plan to build a 500pt force while my friend figures out where to start his future Blood Angels army at the same point value. My list:
SM Capt (Centurion): Artificer Armor, Power Weapon
Dreadnought:Exchange Multi-Melta for Twin-link Autocannon
Tactical Squad (Cohort): 10 Astartes, Meltagun, Plasma Cannon
Scout Squad Sniper Rifles

So a few more minis and I will have this in the bag. I do plan on expanding this force and I am even tempted to make a proper Tyrant’s Legion one day…depending on how awesome any new Chaos stuff is. Also, if I get back into BFG I would like to make a small fleet for this army as well.

That is it for now. On Friday I will have a big Iron Warrior update so stay tuned folks. In the meantime I will be trying to paint more Astral Claws. Thanks for stopping by and know that C&C is always welcomed!

[Hushrong]

Sorry, I lied. The Iron Warriors update will be tomorrow (waiting for when the contestant entries are posted). In the mean time I have been painting Astral Claws and having mixed results with painting.

Here's one old AC and four more I have worked on since my last post:

I had a rough patch using the new paints, namely Runefang Steel, Leadbelcher, and Nuln oil. They actually look decent in these pics.

Some more pics of the Troops:


When/if the time comes these boys will be getting a simple green bath followed by a better paint job.

And work done to Hellstrom:

After shaking the proverbial hell out of my new paints and the new glaze I got it all working a lot better (I feel super dumb for not having done that in the first place). This is just Leadbelcher with Nuln Oil (I forgot to highlight the edges with Runefang Steel before the wash).

*I also apologize for the large pics. Photoshop isn't cropping my photos for some reason.

[Drazhk]

Looking pretty good, I like the posing on your Centurion

[Red Scorpion]

Lovely work - the Centurion is nice and the purple purity seals are a nice accent!

[sigur]

Nice work so far. I like your list and that Centurion is pretty badass and comparatively simple and down to earth in terms of bling. Very neat.

[Hushrong]

Thanks Drahzk, Red Scorpion, and sigur! Glad you guys are liking this and also like the Centurion. I am collecting bitz for a new model...but there are so many random little things that it's going to take a little while to gather everything.

Now I would like to present the main bread and butter of my log, Iron Warriors. I’ve always had a spot in my heart for the IVth and with the possibility of a future Chaos Legions release I knew what army Legion I had to play. I’ve been playing a mostly Berzerker list with the current codex (yep…that codex) but with some reevaluations and a recent purchase of a battleforce box I plan to assemble the majority of any future force I will deploy.

So now we’ll check out the best part of any thread, pictures of minis.

First up are the Traitor Marines themselves. I plan to have three full squads built forming a backbone for the whole army. I still have some Berzerkers…but as I do not like the current GW kit those will serve as back up and conversion bits.


This venerable piece of plastic was gifted to me by my friend that I have tried my best to get functional. It was a Baal Predator (I have the metal side sponsons too) that I tore apart and rebuilt. I have some of the pieces to make it into a standard rhino but I would risk breaking the plastic trying to remove some parts. This Blood Angel beauty was captured and repurposed during the Siege of Terra. It needs a bit more work and defilement.


Here’s my Termicide squad. I hate this squad so incredibly much. They have laid waste and crippled enemy armor with great pride and fury but they have a greater habit of deep striking right into rock formations, buildings, and even their intended targets. They are ancient, venerable, and malevolent but they deep strike like they’re cross-eyed.


This here is my Obliterator. I saw the cover for Siege of Castellax and despite the work itself being weird I could not help but love how the IWs looked, especially one bare-headed, gapping maw Obliterator. This is as far as I have gotten:


Lastly, the piece de resistance: a random Iron Warrior. He was built as the beginning of a Sons of Malice berzerker army but has found a place among the Iron Warriors. I painted this marine for a painting competition on the IVth Grand Company Forums. This mini marks a special occasion for me as he is the first mini I have painted 100%.

Here are pics of him from different angles:Left Side, Back, and Right Side.

For kicks and giggles I present my Count-As Kharn (my conversion entry at the IVth GC Forum) which I have been using for the last couple of games. He is Laborys of the Grand Company of the Thrice-Cursed (that’s a mouthful).

An check out the Right Side and Left Side of this guy for some of the work done to make him stand out a little bit.

I still have a few minis I need to get and the rest needs to be built. In fact I have just built some Fallen to be added to the army. Also, I have a Night Lords Chaos Fleet for BFG that will be getting a new Legion paint job.

Well, Ladies and Gentlemen, thanks for stopping by!

[sigur]

Nice and simple way for making side doors for an old Rhino. I like the Obliterator conversion a lot. Nice work there. What did you use for the tubes on the lower side of his arms?

As for your Terminators: I suggest the following: Try putting a small teleport homing device on the leader's base. Maybe it helps.

[Hushrong]

Nice and simple way for making side doors for an old Rhino. I like the Obliterator conversion a lot. Nice work there. What did you use for the tubes on the lower side of his arms?

As for your Terminators: I suggest the following: Try putting a small teleport homing device on the leader's base. Maybe it helps.

Thanks Sigur! In regards to the doors it was a simple, orky fix. The tubes from the Obliterator are made from wire wrapped around a cord of the same wire. I'm not sure what kind it is though and I can post a picture of the spool I have. I "procured" it from my sisters garden shed in the hopes of using it for razorwire. It is very soft/bendy and easy to work with and when put on a model a dab of super glue holds it well.

I may also take up your advice about the teleport homer. One of those bases are naked and could use some decor and those termies could use every bit of help they can get.

Now for some pictures:

Centurion Victrus Hellstrom:


Next up is my Cohort Veteran Sgt, Mordecai:

Really happy with how the metal came out, though I did go overboard with trying to highlight before washing him.

Now for an Iron Warrior Aspiring Champion.




I built Mordecai and some of those Astral Claws quite some time ago and I used to the banner to help identify the Sgt. I never really used or liked banners but that opinion has changed. So I wanted to do something similar for my Chaos Champs. I decided to use extra bitz of other races as defeated opponents on the base to mark out my champs. In this case, some poor space elf became the victim.

That's it for now. I need to build some Traitors and I'm going to keep trying to improve my painting. Thanks for stopping by.

*Any want to help me out with why Photobucket does not crop any of my images? I crop them using their tools and its fine on their site, but when I post them elsewhere they pictures are still huge and un-cropped.

[Hushrong]

Time for an update so...Picture time!

Started up another marine and trying to work on painting metallic. So far I like him.


Still more work to be done.

Also, the buildup of the Grand Company is coming along, slowly. I got a rhino built up but in need of touch ups to make it uniquely chaos without having to resort to sticking spikes everywhere. I also got my first two squads built.


15 Iron Warriors and 5 Fallen allies. I never gave much thought to the Fallen before but having gotten really into them lately I think they are very fitting alongside Iron Warriors. Especially fs you venture with the idea that both parties feel very betrayed and are hell-bent on some retribution.

Leading my second Squad is another Aspiring Champion.



You can guess what chapter colors that marine is going to be painted as.

Overall I feel he is a bit more boring than my previous champ but he’ll do. I have ten more marines to make. This upcoming squad will be a “foreign legion” squad made up of Red Corsairs, Black Legionnaires, Emperor’s Children, and Flawless Host. They will be led by a Legionary Marshal *the link leads to a forum discussing the idea.

That's it for now. Hopefully I will have some more painted things to show later. Thanks for stopping by.

[Hushrong]

Things have been busy. Fortunately after a month of glorious hunting I have landed a great job and having settled into it well I think I have some time to get back to the hobby. Both gaming and the more fun side of clipping, converting, and painting.

So I’ve only played one game of 6th ed at 500pts of my AC vs. BA. I quite like a number of the changes, some seem silly, and the rest I have yet to come across or understand. The one golden thing that does have my interest is the addition of allies (while not having to play apocalypse sized games). I can now buy and field things that I like alongside a main army I am building up. I like this as I do not have to build another whole army just to play Dark Eldar, or Imperial Guard, or something else that catches my eyes at some point in time.

So my AC will be getting allies in the form of the Imperial Guard marauding as Tyrant Legion Auxilia. I also plan to do some BA down the road painted in the livery of the Lamenters chapter. These are two very fluffy allies to go alongside the Astral Claws. The Iron Warriors will definitely be receiving Dark Eldar allies. Still coming up with good fluff/reasoning for it but it will happen as I have always wanted to try out those sinister xenos. IW may get IG allies (for that sweet, sweet looking artillery and slave soldiers)…but we will see what any new codex may hold for them. Either way, expect to see some allies sooner or later.

Anyway…some pics of the little bit of work I have done and something I am trying to do:

Dreadnought:

Here is mostly painted and still in need of more work. I will also have to scout out Forgeworld’s website and see about getting some TL Autocannons.

In regards to my AC I want to try to buy & paint my 500pt force before moving on to other projects. I still need to get a few more marines, my friend is supplying me with a plasma cannon for one of those marines, and then some sniper scouts. From there I think I will add my IG allies and some Assault Marines for a 1000pt army. Just need to see how the points add up.

Then there’s this bugger, a Space Marine Strike Cruiser.

This is my first ship of a future Secessionist Fleet that will be comprised of the Astral Claws, their Maelstrom Warder Allies, and Battlefleet Maelstrom. This vessel is the Astral Claws Strike Cruiser Talon of the Tyrant. Right now I have to figure out a way to get this precious onto a flying stand as the peg-hole (proper terminology?) is too big for the peg.

[Melchiah]

And by bad i mean in the 90's bad meaning good :P
Cant wait to see some more of your astral claws