Project Draftdodger: Part 10

See here for part 9.

Well, the convention went OK. I should have a write up on that posted on Sunday. In the main time: Pictures.

 

As I spoke a lot about the Artillery last week, I only have so much to add today. The gun barrels remain removable for ease of transport, and for potential use as a Heavy Mortar. My initial experiences suggest that might be the way to go, as while one of these did take down a War Walker in one go, its a fairly inconsistent weapon even if its the best looking one.

With the Artillery Teams done, I feel Project Draftdodger has come to a natural conclusion. I've expanded my forces, and built a few of the new units. I have 100+ assorted infantry, and a brace of vehicles. My guard force is complete enough that it is now a tactical experience more than a modelling experience. I will likely add to it further, but its no longer a weekly thing. What I need to do now is actually play a 2k game, but that will happen when it happens.

 

As to what I'll do next? At time of writing, I dunno. I've been tempted back to Orks again by that new More Dakka detachment. On both first impression and deeper analysis, its fucking broken in at least two ways, and somebody ran the numbers, so I'm not rushing to build models for it. I am however doing an inventory of my forces to see how easily I could field a 1k army. Its looking to be far easier than I thought, but there's a lot of stuff either obsolete or in need of repair. I've avoided doing this as I feared it would both be a slog and uninteresting from a modelling perspective, but there might something in this as an interim activity. Or as a trip to a charity shop.

 

But I also need to do real life stuff, so who knows?

Project Draftdodger: Part 9

See here for part 8.

OK, let's talk about these Artillery Teams, now that the missing parts have arrived. The models here are “Heavy Siege Artillery for 28mm Wargames” by Watcorp designs, a 3D print enterprise akin to the much-missed Culverin Models. They mostly do their own thing, designing seemingly in-house, but do more in the way of overt proxies and add-ons. These models are a well-timed alternative to the new GW Artillery Team, coming in at about 38% of the price. Admittedly, these lack crew and two of the weapon options, but those are the unpopular guns and you'll likely be kitbashing anyway. Its a mixed resin affair, and generally good in terms of detail, and basic design. Its somewhat less good with respects to parts fit and the brittleness of the resin. Think something close to Ramshackle Games' product, but 3d prints. You will have to do prepwork and work around imperfections, and I had a hard time trying to get things level. I've been back and forth as to where these sit on the "cheap & cheerful" versus "you get what you pay for" spectrum. Had these arrived complete the first time, I would have likely declared these to be 3 stars out of 5 and been more forgiving of production flaws.  At present, its been less fun than I might have liked. Would I buy again from Watcorp Designs? Possibly. They did make things right, and I think there's reason to keep an eye on them, but maybe try one of their vehicle kits first? As long as none of these start weeping uncured resin, they're probably fine.

Now, due to time constraints and complexity, I didn't quite get these finished in time for my cut-off. While the actual guns are done via the spraycan method, there's three crewmen, sandbags and other accoutrements that need to be painted separately. I used some leftover Bulldogs for the crew, and decided not to texture the bases as I needed flat surfaces, and there was gonna be enough crap on those as it was. I tried to get the sandbag looking like the same material as the rags I have on my infantry; the rationale is that it you're on a battlefield wearing hi-vis orange, you have to improvise a cloak from something. I hope to get these finished off next week, although I am away that weekend.

 

In other news, the March Balance Dataslate landed, and certain negative stereotypes are at play with respects to GW's rulings. There have been various changes to hamper the over-tuned and over-achieving Bridgehead Strike detachment, which would be fine if this didn't hamper the other detachments too. Like by making Heavy Weapon Teams more expensive. Oh, and Krieg Engineers got worse, but remained the same price. It was a very blunt experience from the Guard perspective, all stick, no carrot, and doesn't help with the impression that quality control was lacking for the codex. Still, these things happen, and suspiciously the new artillery teams I’m painting were untouched....

Up next: the home stretch.

Project Draftdodger: Part 8

See here for part 7.

 

This is gonna be a shorter update than usual. Partially because I was doing another unit of infantry, and partially because something went wrong.

I don’t have a huge amount to say about the infantry. I’ve done a lot lately. An odd thought stuck me though: painting and modelling a bunch of battleline infantry has given me a new perspective on the whole Super Prototype trope. You do inevitably simplify and streamline the process. Because, frankly, if you're doing a big number of something, fiddly bits that look good have severely diminishing returns. Thus this new Krieg blob is less impressive from a painting/modelling perspective, but they don't look worse for me omitting the hoses. They came out OK, and were much less of a slog than I feared. These are built to use the Death Korps of Krieg rules, and will probably see combat once I get around to playing a 2K game.

I would like to have talked about my new artillery teams today, but there was a problem. Certain bits were missing, to the point where one could not be assembled. This caught me on a bad day, and the seller is making it right, so I don't want to go off on one about it. I'll talk about them as actual models next week, by which time I'll be over the inconvenience and more pragmatic about the experience. As first impressions go though, its a little going to shake a man's hand, only to trip, fall, and headbutt him in the dick on the way down.

 

That wonderful image aside, these artillery units were intended to supplement or replace my existing indirect options by focusing on what is probably their most desirable weapon, the Siege Cannon. This splits the difference between an Earthshaker and a Lascannon, and should be a useful tool. Assuming the bits arrive soonish, I might be able to play test them in time for next week.

Cross your fingers.

Project Draftdodger: Part 7

See here for part 6.

With today's instalment, the end is in sight. I've deviated from my initial plan with respects to the Krieg Heavy Weapons, yes, but otherwise its largely done. This leaves me with the somewhat mundane matter of my new battleline unit that I last mentioned in part 4. Its not especially interesting as a model making experience, nor is it opening up anything new from a gameplay perspective. But, boys before toys. Or girls before toys, in this case. This unit will bring my basic infantry total to 90, or 9 battleline units, which is likely all I'll ever need. For these, I've opted for a simplified gasmask style that I’d previously used for my Stargrave Cadians, as well as some Iron Brother heads I had spare. This is to speed the process, as I'll likely spend two weeks on these as it is. There’s not much to say otherwise, its the dull part of the project, its not gonna be difficult, its just a matter of maintaining motivation. Doing the first four main colours on Sunday afternoon for example was an hour’s work, the tricky bit was getting going. And once they’re done, 2000 point battles will be within comfortable reach.

Providing most of today's actual pictures: I also finished off the quad guns, plus assorted hangers-on, from last week. My previous difficulty aside, the guns came out well. I even did up the assorted screens and sensors with a mix of technical and contrast paints. With the parts I have left, I can likely make a trio of flamethrowers as originally planned, although as I’ve yet to resolve the wheel issue, that’s still on hold. I did field this unit, along with the Ratlings, on Monday night to mixed success. The quad guns survived and dakka-ed some Swooping Hawks to death, while the Ratlings established a locus and then died. For that game, I played against type, and left all my tanks at home. Did it work? Short answer: I won the game so there's probably some potential there, but I want to see if I can repeat the experience before making any judgements. EDIT: Also I need to read up on reserves, I've gotten rather confused.

What I’m planning next is to move away from infantry a bit, and add more artillery. I’ve found a suitable proxy for the new Krieg Artillery, although at time of writing these models are still in the post. I'll talk about that more next week. All being well, Project Draftdodger will come to a natural conclusion circa part 10.

Then I have to figure out something new to do...

Project Draftdodger: Part 6

See here for part 5.

 

I did manage to get a game in last week, although that was after my cut-off so I didn't talk about last time. Having had a few days since to process, I'll talk about the experience a bit now.

This was a 1000 point battle against Aelderi, and we were both new to our armies, although we played against each other a lot previously. I lost 70ish to 50ish, forgot to note the precise number, but a result I can live with. This was a learning experience all-round, and if I were to highlight the area where I made a bad call, it would likely be playing as the attacker, in addition to not getting ideal missions. My army list is also in need of further refinement, as my list wasn't that different from my typical index list. Now, the trick here is to not overreact to a single game. Or indeed two games, as I managed to work in another the evening before this post went live, and in that one I tabled my foe and felt very bad about doing so. Its too small a sample size, and in the absence of something clearly unambiguous, its too soon to tell. I would however make some small observations. First off, the Siege Regiment is a more involved affair than the Index, you need to think a turn or so ahead, but the stratagems and enhancements are worth using. Krieg Combat Engineers seem pretty good. They do similar objective/mission work to Catachans, but with an aggressive number of mortal wounds dispensed. They die easily, but what’s new? I’m not super impressed with Krieg Command Squads, at least in conjunction with big Krieg blobs. There’s still things I want to try, but I’m beginning to suspect the new Krieg units in general haven’t been “pushed” as it were. That’s good, it helps with internal balance, but I suspect the meta hasn’t settled yet. That might mean me reworking my infantry again, <sigh>, although I have built in some redundancy, so that shouldn’t be too annoying.

 

Tactical musings aside, this week was characterised by real life taking priority, and a subsequent desire to catch up with painting. I worked on the Krieg Commands, where upon I had what I'm choosing to call a happy accident. I failed a spot check, and I used dark green where I should have used dark grey. This was an easy fix, but I decided to leave it as-is on places like the Officers great coats. Its not massively out of place to have green military fatigues, so we shall just assume that these were "liberated", plus it helps models stand out versus the rank and file. Speaking of fuck-ups, I also worked on the quad guns. I opted to use the same green there, but in doing so I noticed some assembly mistakes that were a nuisance to correct. I just seem to have had a hard time in getting these together, although I’m glad I didn’t paint these in sub-assemblies. Yes, it would have made some things easier, but I think I would have lost my temper trying to glue these only to find that things didn’t fit.

 

I managed to get the Krieg Commands finished, while the quad guns (plus a few hangers-on)  are a few steps behind.  I’m not 100% happy with the Grognard style heads, the lenses don’t really stand out, but they are entirely tableworthy.

Up next: finishing the quad guns, and that battleline squad, but I think I’ll need to mix things up soon for variety’s sake.

 

Project Draftdodger: Part 5

See here for part 4.


Well, this week I was finally able to make my force codex compliant. Although, it was more I got things built, than actually painting them.

While I waited for bases, I made a start on some big guns. The Grognards Heavy Weapons are by and large another good example of the Deathfields series. Not perfect, for reasons I will go into,  but highly useful as a kitbashing resource. One box easily produces two squads of heavy weapon teams; with three easy proxies for 40K use. The odd one out is the bizarre and honestly compelling quad turret affair, which has no direct equivalent. You may not like these; they appear to be off a WWII bomber. I kinda love them though, and against all practicality I decided to field these as Krieg Heavy Stubbers. Unfortunately, getting them together is a mild nuisance, as they should probably be painted in sub assemblies, but mine didn't want to fit together right, and the whole affair is obviously top heavy. This is probably just a me problem, but I ended up snipping off toes to get the gunners in, before opting to just glue them and have done with it. This would not be an issue with the other guns though, so its self inflicted annoyance. The second team will be a more thorough kitbash with the carriage modified to feature wheels, although I'm still trying work to that out. Progress on these was however paused, as I took a brief getaway to Skegness.

 

When I returned from the windswept tackiness of Skeg-Vegas, I decided to start on a third aspect of the project, the Krieg Command Squad. While I am loathe to to have more than one plate spinning at once, getting that squad assembled was going to be essential if I wanted to use the new codex. As mentioned last week, such units are now tied to specific regiments, so if I wanted to run my infantry as Krieg, I'd need to have one of these. And a second if it looked doable for Monday. It took me a long time to settle on a look for these, as I wanted something that A) easily said to a foe what it was, B) fit in with what I had already, and C) could possibly proxy as another type of Command Squad. I opted for a mix of basically whatever I had to hand, but mainly Bulldogs with certain key pieces from the Grognards sprue mentioned above. Assembly proved to be relatively swift, which should not have surprised me, and so I proceeded to make up a second. I've got a lot if painting to do, but at least I can game easily with the new book. There's a few time saving things I did here. I had ordered in some 3D print meltaguns from Scourge Scenics, (Remember them?) which unfortunately proved too big. So I snipped the barrels and mounted them to the energy weapons from the Bulldog kit, a trick I've used a few times now, and it just works. I also opted to use some old scenery bits as Servo-Scribe tokens. Yes, I could absolutely make better versions with green stuff and wire, but they would be titchy and fragile. The terrain bits, previously used for remote bomb parts, have skulls and speakers on them, so its not really a stretch for relaying orders in the Imperium.

Up next: painting I hope.

Project Draftdodger: Part 4

See here for part 3.

Well, between waiting for stuff to arrive, the codex arriving, and waiting for stuff to go on pre-order, I didn’t get that much finished. Mainly I did busy work, and read the new rules. So there’s gonna be less actual models today and more commentary.

My initial impressions of the codex are broadly positive, with some rough bits around the edges. Things feel a bit slipshod; I don't think the folder it comes in is any good, with the day one patches and removed units being well-documented at this point. With the game being so reliant on digital updates currently, which is a net positive don't get me wrong, I find myself questioning the point of hardback rules tomes like this, but it is what it is. The tome does justify existence by having meaningful and worthwhile differences from the index. Krieg got some nice additions, but the Cadians and surprisingly the Catachans got needed work done. The assorted detachments are a nice selection too, although as the tournament scene has yet to break any of them, I reserve final judgement. Recon Element for example has been quickly adopted as the three million infantry one, even if that feels contrary to its theme. I suspect a nerf. Mechanised Infantry looks OK at first glance, but its detachment rule only triggers if your boys dismount, so that’s either a bit underwhelming or there’s something about the wider detachment that’s so niche I'm just not getting it. The tankie one looks alright, favouring speed and utility over brute force, while Siege favours infantry and a fun artillery mechanic. Meanwhile, the revised Combined Arms detachment just stands there with a sign which reads "would that work better with Lethal Hits?". Overall, a pleasant selection on first impression.

 

 The main difference, and one that gave me some pause for thought, is how we effectively have three armys in one due to Krieg, Cadia, and Catachan regiments each having their own squad variants, but no generic one. There is a lot of overlap, and on inspection I doubt you'll have issue a finding a suitable proxy for your preferred regiment, but the differences are as strong as they are subtle. Catachan, even as it looses its character selection, is at worst a sleeper hit. Its heavy weapon teams are arguably the best available, and everything has Scout, including it's command, so these musclemen have some flexibility they've sorely lacked. Cadian options end up as the generalist/defensive choice, with lots tying to objectives, and having the best character selection for Orders. Krieg obviously get a lot of new toys, although not everything is a slamdunk. Their command squads are the least flexible, obviously favouring the meatgrinder, and I'm not super enamoured with their horses, but the Combat Engineers and heavy weapons look good. As all three regiments are compelling, I found myself questioning my stated plans, at least until I remembered that if I got the kitbashing right, I wouldn't be forced to choose. I'll build them as Krieg for now, and my pre-existing Platoon Command Squads have an easy way to go. I just need to settle on a look for the Krieg Command.…

 

 

Meanwhile, with the release still unknown some weeks away for the new Krieg units, I decided to work on the bread & butter stuff: the Krieg battleline option. As I mentioned back in part 1, I feel the need for additional infantry, and my existing examples need some modernization. Confusing this matter is the very obtuse wording of their data sheet. A casual glance would lead you to think that you'd be able to field a squad with 4 special weapons per 10, but then you see the mess of footnotes. While I would greatly appreciate some clarification from GW on this, Ive decided to follow a conservative interpretation of 2 per 10, with the Vox Unit option counting towards that ratio. I assume that is is a reflection of a (new?) sprue layout, and I have a dark suspicion that you aren’t intended to have both melta and plasma in some cases, but its not totally clear. So that's 20 models for the new squad, plus 4 additional models for the existing ones, medpacks & lasguns. I am however taking this a bit slow, if only because I’m awaiting some meltaguns in the post. The ones pictured are intended as replacements/add-ons for existing squads, and will be batch painted with the rest… whom currently exist as imcomplete bodies glued to bases. I’ll spare you a picture of that. 

 

On Saturday, GW finally stopped playing coy about its new Guard releases, and stated the base sizes for two units, the afore mentioned Krieg Command, and the Krieg Heavy Weapon Teams. I had a lot of what I needed, but not all, so I worked some of the HWTs on the Sunday and Monday. I will however talk more about that next time,

Project Draftdodger: Part 3

See here for part 2.

 

In part 1, I described Krieg Combat Engineers as something adjacent to Kasrkin or Scions, and on reflection, that’s a touch misleading. Combat Engineers do have a similar statline to those elite units, and a similar position as a small specialist squad rather than the rank & file. Engineers however end up a bit more low tech by comparison, and regular Krieg have more direct and more diverse firepower per point, depending on how you count. What Combat Engineers have instead are a number of otherwise uncommon weapon types and an obscene amount of explosives. These are basically trench raiders, with a Scout move and are technically capable of being equipped as a mêlée unit, but are actually known for putting a significant amount of mortal wounds on something.

 

Having decided that Bulldogs would be a good basis for such a unit, I decided to experiment in kitbashing a minimum sized squad and its weapons. The combat shotguns were an initial problem, as the Bulldog rifles where the wrong shape, and I struggled to source an alternative I liked. The Stargrave Mercenaries sprue did present an option I would later return to, but in the meantime I opted to modify some cannon fodder guns with new barrels and drum mags. These looked pretty good, and this gave me confidence to try making a handflamer, but I really should have remembered how delicate such work is. This is why you start small, so you can catch bugs before you go all in. With the remote bomb and operator I got a bit silly. The bomb is a glorified token, so it doesn't matter too much what it looks like, while the operator just needs a remote. Thus I built a crude carriage with a skull on it, (sourced from old Imperial Strongpoint terrain IIRC,) and then plonked a resin bit that resembles artillery shell on top. Yes. This is oversized and dumb. But it's clear what it does. The operator meanwhile got a PDA to control it, and a cup of tea to enjoy.

 

 

Look engineers are builders, right? Same thing. Builder’s tea is a thing. They are already wearing high visibility orange. What more do you want? For me to take the setting seriously?

Anyways, As I noted last update, I wanted to batch paint my models, so I made another squad of five along largely the same lines. I used the aforementioned stargrave option for shotguns, something that eased the process. There aren't many of those per box though, so as and when I make more, I'll probably have to go for cannon fodder kitbash anyway. I'm not planning to make more immediately though, as I want to playtest them a bit first. One concern I have is diminishing returns on a third squad, as you can't use a stratagem twice in a phase, and if you're running three sets of engineers, that’s a limitation you will feel. There's also the somewhat unusual way these squads scale up to 10; you don't get more bombs or specialist weapons, but you do get 5 shotgun dudes for a piddling 25 points. Its not mandatory, but I can see a case for extra bodies for improved objective play. Some minor tweaking to both sets on the Wednesday was then followed by leisurely painting over the week. The plasma pistols proved a recurring problem though, not staying on or together, prompting modifications rather late in the process. While I did attempt to sculpt some additional armour in places, I don't think it came through very well. That said, they turned out OK. I don't think I’m really getting better as such, but I am getting more efficient. At the very least I was glad of some new brushes I got recently, tiny ones help with the goggles and such.

Speaking of rules and play testing, I am still impatient for my copy of the new codex. In the absence of a general release, I decided to source a loose special edition example from eBay. At time of writing, I have yet to receive it, but assuming nowt goes wrong, I'll be in the position to play test in time for the next update. The continued absence of a release date and base size for both the Krieg Command and Krieg Heavy Weapons is also an irritation. I have ideas with respects to these, and I may deviate from my original plan. I find myself leaning towards the "Castellan Command Blob" as a backfield option, but we'll see. I don't think I need two Krieg Commands if I properly modernise my existing two Platoon Commands. Of course, GW would post a preview for a pre-order a few days after I ordered the codex, mere minutes after I finalised this paragraph.

 

I thought something like that might happen. 

Still, I don't think I overpaid, and I should have the last of the information I need by Sunday.

Up next: Krieg battleline.

Project Draftdodger – Part 2

See here for part one. Today’s subject: Ratling Snipers.

 

As is my custom, I would like to provide context towards these models in a somewhat informal manner. Ratlings share a similar origin to Ogryns, both in and out of universe. They are also transplants from the old Warhammer Fantasy setting, justified as a stable human subspecies rather than mutants, the product of technology or chaos bullshit. Whereas the use of Ogyrns by the famously xenophobic Imperium makes some sense, there is no other dumb muscle as beefy or as available, the hobbit-inspired Ratlings are a much harder sell. In fact, I keep visualising some Imperial recruiter weeping openly into their recaff at the sight of them. Ratlings tend to have the physical prowess of an obese child, and the mentality of a Midlands farmer whom grows unspecified "herbs" as a secondary income. Its harder to imagine a people less suited to the GRIMDARK of 40K, and I would not be surprised if a lot of them ended up as servitor components. However, the lore says these people actually end up in the guard as regimental cooks, or as snipers. They also have a reputation for petty theft, hence their inclusion in my Chem-Dogs force. Mechanically, this is a unit GW seems to be pushing of late, with a recent Killteam box which happens to include a delightful doggo. I was tempted, but I digress. This means that they have a few more gimmicks than it used too, but there still seems to be something of a cost/performance issue. They are the only Guard unit with the Infiltrators rule, are effective with sniper rifles, and get a shoot & scoot rule, all of which is good. They however die very easily, don't do that much raw damage, and are competing with heavy weapon teams. It remains to be seen if the new codex will see them overcome that perception. Which, incidentally, is why I'm only making 5 of them for now.

 

 

These Wargames Atlantic SneakFeet are obviously a good proxy for Ratlings, but due to the timing, it doesn't have all the same bits as the killteam box. Notably it has a selection of submachine guns instead, which, thinking about it, is probably a better choice for these titchy fellows if not GW legal, but there you go. There is also a not insignificant amount of character at play; these models look a bit "Santa's Elves" by way of NATO, with pointy ears, but also a frying pan and a pipe smoking head option. I love the frying pan. I did however find the hair tricky, especially on the feet, with the latter being concealed with some mud effect paint. Overall, these are fun models that lend themselves well to my style, although they do come in an unhelpful ratio of 24 to a box, 4 to a sprue. 

Towards the end of the week, I started working on some Combat Engineers. The other Krieg units have something of a question mark hanging over them just now, so I was holding off, and I wanted to take a swing at the more unusual weapon types. Assembly of the initial prototypes went well, and I hope to have more ready for batch painting soon. I will however save the discussion on that for next time.

See you soon.

Project Draftdodger – Part 1

Righty, lets get this going. The new Astra Militarum codex is imminent. Its had more leaks than the UK national water supply, more preview hype than the MCU on a good day, and more day 1 patches than a Bethesda game. I still don’t have it at time of writing. You can't even order it seperately yet; Eldar are instead the big thing for this weekend. And even if I did, it seems quality control might not have been great with this one. But fuck it, I'm done waiting. Thus begins Project Draftdodger, a diary series that hopefully I will post about weekly.

 

 

 A recent picture of my current force

Beyond making my Astra Militarum force codex compliant, the objective here is twofold. First off, I want to make my own versions of those new Krieg units while fitting my theme and budget. I've been making notes and acquiring bits in the run-up for the codex, so those leaks have been a big help. Secondly, I want to use this opportunity to finally take my force to a comfortable 2000 points with a 300ish sideboard for flexibility. Off the top if my head, I'm pretty much at 2000 already, but only flinging everything I've got on the board, which isn’t quite the same as having a balanced force I like. As to which detachment I'm using? Well Siege Regiment is the obvious one, but I'll be trying a few out before settling on something. In terms of plastic, I'm gonna be leaning on WGA's Death Fields line of scifi infantry, which I've been stockpiling in anticipation. With all that in mind, but with big gaps in my knowledge, I'm planning on the following modelling projects.

One Krieg battleline unit, plus oddments to round out existing units

I've found myself wanting more infantry, so this seems a logical direction to go. As the data sheet for these is unusually obtuse with respects to weapon slots, I'm gonna play it safe here, assuming the most conservative reading possible until some clarification is issued, and putting them on the back burner. These will be Cannon Fodder ladies again, to fit in with the rest.

 

One+ Krieg Command Squads

With the demise of the Platoon Command Squad, I need to rebuild my HQ choices. I plan to reshuffle the existing ones into the equivalent Catachan units where possible, the path of least resistance, but I still need something to lead the above, and that means banners and similar greeblies. These will most likely be a mix of sprues, with the <deep breath>, the Les Grognards Command and Heavy Support kit providing the fiddly bits. The base size for these is however unknown at time of writing, most likely 28.5mm but who bloody knows, so I’m holding off.

Two teams of Combat Engineers
The new hotness as it were, these are a rough Scion/Kasrkyn equivalent, so Ive opted to go for the Bulldogs again. I'm undecided at time of writing how big the squads will be, so the leftovers might go onto be other things. The main issue here will be producing the less conventional weapons, although the bomb drone should be fun.

One+ Krieg Heavy Weapons Squad

The other new hotness, this is the main reason why I got that Grognards kit with the long name. Their unique selling point, other than the spite attack, is probably their horrific flamers, which I feel should be an easy kitbash. The second team is something less certain. I probably don't need two burny units, I have plenty of lascannons, and while the twin stubber option isn't great, there's this wonderful quad gun ball turret on the sprue. The base size for these are also unknown, which is annoying.

One small squad of Ratlings

While initially I was fond of the new killteam set, I kinda went off it when I saw the 40k rules. As Ratlings fit my convict army theme, I have however opted for a minimal size to try them out. These will use WGA SneakFeet.

 

You may notice that the above features no new vehicles. Like six Rogal Dorn tanks, for example. This is because I feel infantry are the focus of the new codex, and such models would be a fun thing to do if/when/inevitably I get sick of doing infantry. If I get all this done, I’ll probably have all the army dudesmen and/or women I’ll ever need for the scale of game I tend to play. Because I got impatient, I’ve already made a start on some of this. Like those Sergeants, but also the Ratlings. Those aren’t quite finished yet, and I didn't want to rush them, so expect to see more of those in part 2.

Cheers for now.