+ inload: Bludgeoning force +

+ More Gatebreakers +

+ Having rested on my laurels for the past few days, I picked up a brush while chatting with the PCRC last night and polished off a few new Gatebreakers. +

+ Adding new figures to a playable force can sometimes be a bit of motivational challenge; particularly when you've taken a break in working on them. I felt a bit rusty working on these, but soon got into the swing of things. +

+ Emblem WIP +

+ One figure that gave me no hesitation was Emblem [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+], who is ticking along nicely. Although the basing is done, the model himself is not quite complete – I just wanted to complete the base while I was doing a small batch. +

+ The mysterious sigil-blade (probably not that mysterious if you've been following the Endworlds story)was painted using the same method as K0rdhal's Necrons; namely working red into the recesses of a dark metal. +

+ I like how he's coming along overall; the additions will be minor – working up the coat more, and adding a few markings. Not quite sure what to put on his right pauldron... As a wandering Eremite [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+], he doesn't really have a rank per se. Perhaps I'll have a play with some freehand. +

+++ 

+ Members-Ordinary +

+ The standard 'battle-brothers' of the Chapter, the Members-Ordinary are always fun to paint. The squads are a mongrel mix of Chapter 333 Primaris Intercessors and uplifted Astartes of the original Chapter; so to represent that I've included a mix of armour marks, helms and boltgun types led by nothing other than random whim while building. This is probably not the clearest on the field, but then I've got other armies for that – the Gatebreakers are an unapologetically freeform project. +

+ This marine has a Mark II 'Crusade-pattern' helm. Up to this point I haven't used too many bits that are so old in-universe; instead sticking with a preponderance of shiny new Tacticus helms [vizref: below] punctuated with the occasional Mark VI and VII helms. That's deliberate – I want the army to visually reflect that the Gatebreakers have either willingly adopted the new armour, or have been forced to do so through damage and disrepair. The scattered few non-Mark X helms are thus presumably either owing to battlefield necessity or the wearer's stubbornness. +

+ However, a select few older bits here and there – there are so far just two marines with helms so old – also help reflect the patchwork nature of the Gatebreakers. More importantly, they add some visual flavour, which is really the important bit. The cycloptic Crusade helm is lovely, and it's been a treat to paint it up in the grass green and sun yellow of the Chapter. +

+ The Tacticus helm is, after all, a lovely design. It combines the cool grille of the Mark IV Maximus with the batlike ear-coverings of Mark VIII; design features that give it a simultaneously novel and familiar impression. This marine is built using one of the new Assault Intercessor models – the easy-build ones from the Indomitus box set. As with different armour bits (like the shoulder pad), varying the poses within squads helps to give a slightly less-disciplined impression that fits with the Chapter's demeanour. +

+ Speaking of Chapter style, this marine is a Member-Cardinal; an equivalent to a sergeant. I've built two of these; and will add them to the existing squads. I've taken a rather (dare-I-say?) chaotic approach to building this army; simply making individual models without planning out how they'll fit into squads and so forth.  Partially this was just to provide me with a break from the extremely formal and structured approach I was taking with the Blood Angels [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+], and partially it was because I think this is going to be my primary 'Crusade gaming' army for a while. I therefore wanted to make sure that it was game-legal. +

+ Having bought the new Codex: Space Marines (more on this in a future inload, I think), I'm pleased to see that the Successor Chapter Tactics – that is, the Chapter's special rules – I picked for the army's first game, Massacre at Phen Mun [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+], are still there. These are, for the record, Rapid Assault, which reflects the Chapter's mobile small-arms-led approach, and Stalwart, which represents their historical desperation to endure in the face of extinction. +

+ Coming back to the Member-Cardinal models, I think I will eventually come back to the squads to add some squad and rank markings and organise them more permanently. I really like adding these markings and details, and I think that it'll be a lovely way to reflect their growing history: picking out new skills learned and battle scars endured. +

+ I promise I'll stop banging on about the minutiae of Space Marine helmets soon, but this last group picture shows how much personality a few select pieces can add to a uniform group. The simple inclusion of different helmets, weapons, shoulder pads and similar details really helps them to look a bit ramshackle and hotch-potch, without making them look out-and-out orky. +

+ Mark X is exctiging and new; Mark VI has retro appeal; Mark IV is perfect for fans of clean sci-fi; Marks II and III look pleasingly crude; and Mark V is wonderfully brutal... but having been the default for so long, Mark VII is rarely celebrated in the same way as the other armour types. The Mark VII helm on the Member-Cardinal is a reminder to me of how much I like Armorum Impetor. Now that it's starting to be phased out, I've realised that the bulldog snout and frowning mask is the classic image of Astartes for me. I'll have to make a mental note to include a few more of these. +