Welcome back! Wadey here with the 2nd instalment of the III Legion Emperor's Children. I left you last time with every ones favourite Heavy Support choice, the Sicaran Battle Tank. Today we are going to have a look at the II Squad Tactical Marines and their Rhino Armoured Personnel Carrier.
All of the materials I have used for these models are outlined in my first post but for those who may have missed it or want a re hash here is the link: http://agalaxyinflames.blogspot.com.au/2014/09/iii-legion-emperor-children-part-1.html?m=1
Let's start with the Tactical Squad. The idea behind this unit including Rhino is that their main role is almost that of a QRF or "Quick Reaction Force". The unit is tooled fairly basically with the SGT having a Bolt Pistol, Lightning Claw, Melta Bombs and a Sonic Shrieker. The Idea of this squad is that they can quickly jump on objectives, cross into enemy lines for a cheeky line breaker grab and also be able to lay down some support fire or help in close combat if need be. Given that EC can give their characters Sonic Shiekers for a cheeky 5 point Initiative bonus it only seemed right and brutal to equip my SGT with a Lightning Claw.
I decided on MkIV power armour for my Tactical squads as it was the main armour worn by EC during the Isstvan campaign. For this squad I assembled torsos and legs, shoulder pads and arms then back packs, rifles and finally heads and put each piece on to toothpicks. For the shoulder pads I used the proper EC shoulder pads for their left arms and then using the smaller Roman III from the EC etched brass kit I glued a III onto each blank right shoulder pad.
Once everything was glued and tooth picked it was time to paint. The whole unit was undercoated black then all with the airbrush, based with Xerxes Purple and highlighted with Genesteeler Purple.
I then used Mechanicum Grey for the soft joints in their armour and Gehenna Gold for the gold trim of their armour and any heraldry. I then used Leadbelcher for the pipes on their back packs and armour and also parts of their rifles. I did the SGT Lightning Claw in Caledor Blue and gave it a white dry brush. The same blue was used on the rear globe on the Nuncio Vox. I added Abbadon Black to their rifles and Caledor Blue to their eye sockets followed by white highlight. Finally using a fine tipped marker pen I drew II squad symbols on their right knees. Once all of the details were complete I sponged on some battle damage using Mechanicum grey base then Fortress grey highlight.
Once they were ready for gloss I popped them to the side so that I could work on their bases. Trying to keep with the Isstvan III theme and in particular the Precentors Palace I went with the "Ruined Temple" bases from our mates over at Secret Weapon Miniatures. These bases are amazing and suit the theme perfectly (so I think anyways). In order to individualize my bases just a little I mixed up some different grades of sand and crushed rock and some of the small bricks by Juwella. I then randomly glued different amounts of the mix to each base. After the bases dried I pinned each one then I undercoated them black, then base coated them Mechanicum Grey, Heavy dry brushed with Fortress Grey the light dry brushed with Terminatus Stone (GW).
I then went through and glued everything together. Once all my models were glued together and on their bases it was time for gloss. After the whole lot was glossed I simply mixed up more black oil wash and applied to rivets, heraldry, pipes, grills and weapons.
After giving them 24 hours to dry (and a little more Destiny) I gave them all a hit with the Tamiya TS-80 flat coat. From there I glossed the Lightning Claw blades and the Nuncio vox globe then added some weathering powder to their legs and the rubble on the bases.
Next, their ride!
The Rhino was painted in basically identical fashion to the Sicaran save for a few minor differences. The first and foremost of those was the interior. Now I would dearly love to tell you all just what paints I used but there is one fatal flaw… I actually assembled it and painted it (the interior) over 12 months ago for my Lamenters 40k army and cannot for the life of me remember what colours I used.. sooooooooooo here are some pictures!
As you can see the rear hatch of the Rhino has been magnetized so that when it is derping about the battlefield trying not to get whaled by Keepys Castellax or Bradens… well everything, it doesn't keep popping open. With out going into huge detail and sounding like a broken record.. I mean Macca.. I mean repeating myself too much the build went like this; Assembled, etched brass glued to front under view ports, undercoat black, Xerxes purple base then Genesteeler Purple highlight, white panels, Gehenna Gold panels, trim and rivets, minor details on lenses, headlights etc then weapons and tracks..
It is at this stage I did differ a little from the Sicaran. As you will all remember from my first post I did the Sicaran tracks with Runefang Steel and a Dwarf Bronze dry brush. This time around I did the tracks along with the Bolters on top in Leadbelcher. Once they were all done I added some sponged battle damage. After glossing I washed all the important parts of the model inc rivets, Bolters, tracks and in between panels. Then after 24 hours of drying time I layed the flat coat down and added the brown weathering powder.
That's for now gang, will bring you more over the next few days. Thanks heaps for checking in, I'll back soon with more of the III Legion Emperor's Children for you guys!
Cheers,
Wadey
