+ inload: Painting in sub-assemblies +

+ Continuing with the Gatebreakers +

+ Not a colossal amount of progress, but slow and steady wins the race. With 9th edition looking like a July release, I reckon these soldiers will be ready and waiting to deploy. +

+ Painting in sub-assemblies is proving a double-edge sword. It certainly makes getting at details easier, and there's a fun novelty in seeing painted elements laid out on the sprue (as shown below). On the other hand, it's harder to visualise how the lighting should work, and I'm not looking forward to the amount of 'repair work' when they're removed from the sprue prior to assembly. +

+ One of the things that has been really nice about sub-assemblies is the sense of completion. Having the heads all done in one fell swoop has been brill, and it's also a good chance to compare. I want to include as diverse a variety of skin tones in the Gatebreakers as possible – Warhammer's for everyone, after all, and representation matters. In addition to the obvious arms, pads and stowage, still to complete here are the chest icon – I'm in two minds about whether to simply pick out the skull and leave the wings in the split colour, or paint the whole thing – and some cleaning up of the shading and highlighting. +

+ While far from finished, the figure above is coming together nicely, I think. The repeated layers of varnish and paint make keeping track of things complex, but there's a certain satisfaction in polishing off five elements ready for the next stage, before picking up the next set of elements. I had a plan of having swappable bare heads and helms for every model in the army, but this is already proving a logistical and practical headache. I'm very tempted to bin that particular idea. +

+++

+ What's next? +

+ The sixteen figures pictured below will form the core of the Crusade force I'm planning. We don't know any details yet, but basic troops are something I definitely want to include, and expect to be a shoe-in to appear. Story-wise, I want to represent the Gatebreakers a few decades after the appearance of their Primaris reinforcements – hence the presence of a proportion of 'Firstborn' Astartes in the ranks. I think the background disparity in height is a bit silly, so I'm ignoring that – space marines have always been giants in my 'head-canon'. The Astartes and Primaris thus stand toe-to-toe. +

+ The arms have been placed on temporarily, for the picture. +

+ There are lots of differences of opinion within the Chapter on how welcome the Primaris are. While the appearance of the Primaris has stabilised the Chapter's genepool somewhat, the original Gatebreakers aren't necessarily all that welcoming of these strange new allies – and nor are the Primaris newcomers that respectful of the old guard's way of working. +

+ Pragmatism remains their watchword, however, so all the Chapter's strikeforces field them – either as separate detachments or integrated within squads, as here. Model-wise, this will hopefully make a nice-looking group on the field. +

+ The one-time arrival of Gatebreaker Primaris hasn't solved the underlying logisitical problems of the Chapter, however, so while they received lots of shiny new toys, not all of it is proving easy to maintain, particularly as the Chapter still refuses to allow techmarines into the Chapter proper. +

+ As a result, the marines are carrying a variety of patterns of bolt-weapons, ranging from ancient heirlooms to the most modern designs. This is mostly background-led, but it is also intended to make things a bit clearer on the table. Long-barrelled guns will be bolt rifles, anything else will be auto-bolt rifles. +

+ The models that have turned up in the previews on Warhammer Community look lovely, and will be a perfect complement to what I've got here. I'm particularly excited for the chainsword Intercessors – those dynamic poses will look great mixed in – the melta-gun guys, the Chaplain and the Ancient. +