First Completed Scion

Astra Militarum Tempestus Scion Showcase

     I've completed my first Tempestus Sci... BAH nevermind that silly name... STORM TROOPER! HAH! Yes I've completed my first Storm Trooper from the new kit.  I'm not planning on cranking this squad out just now, as I've got bigger fish to fry.  I really wanted to completely assemble and paint one of these new models, however, so I could learn a bit more and give you guys a more detailed review of the model.

Assembly

     This kit, more than any other infantry kit from Games Workshop, demands that you follow the instructions.  On my previous post concerning this kit, I mentioned the instruction booklet (which it actually is, not a single sheet but an actual little booklet) and how impressed I was with it.  After completing the first model, I now know that the amount of detail they put in there was absolutely required.  The power cords coming off most of the weapons require that you match them to certain arms and backpacks.  Test fitting your model before you start gluing is mandatory too.  The backpack's power cord needs to meet up with the weapon's power cord and that determines the angle of the arms.  I would recommend plastic glue for assembly over super glue.  As long as you check and double check the fit of everything prior to gluing, you'll be fine.


Painting

     Games Workshop released a two part video tutorial on their YouTube channel (you can find part one here).  I want to first point out that this recent trend of them releasing these tutorials to coincide with their recent releases is actually really smart.  The videos are easy to follow, and well produced.  Even a 6 year veteran to the hobby can still learn some things from these.  I decided to follow their basic path to completion, but I altered colors to match with my existing guard.

Here are my other Imperial Guard Infantry... sorry... Astra Militarum *sigh*

     I tend to fully assemble infantry models before painting as I figure that if it's difficult to get my brush there in order to paint something, it's generally difficult to see that area.  That said, if I were looking to paint this figure up to a competition standard, I would have left the weapon off to better paint the chest armor.  There are some very fiddly details on these models so I also recommend just base coating pretty much everything first, then coming back to clean up prior to applying washes.  This should be pretty standard practice, but with all these fine details (like the metal trimming all over the armor) you want to make sure your base coats are nice and clean, carefully going over all the edges where two colors meet.

     One thing that stood out as I neared the end of painting on this model: no decals.  I wasn't a fan of transfers when I started in the hobby, but after becoming more familiar with all the tips and tricks in applying them, making them blend into the model, and weathering them, I've come to quite enjoy them.  My guard veteran squads all have transfers, each with a meaning as to the organization of my particular regiment.  I like these little visual story bits.  The new Storm Trooper kit does not have a transfer sheet at all, which isn't a surprise because there isn't any actual real estate on which you could apply them.  I decided that I would copy the GW style of paint job on their box-art Temestus Scions and have an arm stripe, but instead of a brighter shade of blue, I would incorporate white, as that can be seen as a common color across my existing guard.  This decision turned out to be a wise one.  Once I added this stripe, the figure seemed to be complete.  If you are planning on following your own custom theme for your Scions, and perhaps you were on the fence about the arm stripe, I am here to say that it's a good idea.  Here are some pictures followed by a few last words.  Enjoy:

Conclusion

     I like these models, but I actually like them a slight bit less than I did on first impression.  These models are perhaps too detailed.  With hardly any larger open surface areas, I found it difficult to express the same amount of freehand blending and weathering.  Weathering seemed to busy up the model a bit too much given the existing level of physical detail.  I'm going to try more edge weathering on subsequent Scion models.  I still like the models, just not quite as head-over-heels as I was when I saw those first leaked pictures.

Base

     The base used for this model can be purchased from the fine folks over at Secret Weapons Miniatures.  This is from their "Urban Streets" bevel edged resin bases line found here.  I like the fine detail that Secret Weapons Miniatures has on their bases, but I have a few points of contention with this set.  The first complaint is that they are a bit "tall" which resulted in this Storm Trooper being about a head taller than my other guard on standard bases. The second complaint is that the beveled edge was rather rough and required a good bit of clean-up.  Both of these complaints certainly aren't deal-breakers, and I will most certainly continue to use them for my Tempestus Scion squads.

Retribution impression, Forgeworld, and my Finger.

Dawn of War 2 Retribution


     I don't know that I've mentioned it before on this blog, but I love me some Dawn of War 2. Hand on heart: It is what got me into Warhammer 40K. Now I'm sure that warms the hearts of both Relic and Games Workshop, to know that their marketing synergistic approach to licensing has paid off. Perhaps that sounds a bit cold, but I'm not pretending I don't know what's going on here: Unadulterated Capitalism! AND I LOVE IT!

     I've only been in the hobby for two years, and since I was introduced to the hobby via this video game, it only seems right that I should mark this second anniversary with a nod to the expansion for the game that made it all possible. If you haven't played Dawn of War 2 before, just know that it's similar to Company of Heroes in that the brunt of this Real Time Strategy is about managing squads. As opposed to the more common Dune 2 model, which was copied into Warcraft, Command and Conquer, Starcraft, and on down the line, you're rarely managing more than about five or six units. It can certainly be more than that, but it is rare, like I said.

"Nice hat, by da way..."

     I'm not going to try and fill you in on the campaigns from DoW2 and DoW2: Chaos Rising as that's something best served either from the Dawn of War 2 website or by a proper review. I'm just going to say that thus far, I love it. They've blended elements of the original DoW2 campaign mechanics with some of the multiplayer mechanics to some pretty awesome effects. The diversity of options you have between kitting out your heroes, choosing to leave the heroes and take special "Honor guard" units, or even which units to build during the mission to enhance your force can be nearly dizzying. Though the campaigns might seem a tad short, there's re-playability simply in the way you spec things out. I know that in the last two interations of this game, I have spent nearly 170+ hours playing and replaying the original campaigns. And those were quite limited compared to some of the meat on the bones that Retribution throws our way.

     The characters and their moments of interplay are awesome. You can pick up on some really established 40K archetypes. Having completed the Space Marine campaign, and nearly finishing up on the Ork campaign, I can say that these characters cover the gamut. If you enjoyed the original DoW2, and are remotely a fan of 40K, you owe it to yourself to give this a shot.

Forge World Cadian Goodies!


     It's like they know! So I've been going back and forth about what to do about my upcoming Storm Troopers. The Kasrkrin were my first choice, but they were metal and didn't come with the weapon options that I wanted, thus I would have to spend a good bit of change on two all metal squads that would have a lot of repeat models. Bleh. I LOVE the look of the helmets and armor. They're exactly what I want them to look like... if they were plastic. Then my next idea was just to get the Forge World Cadians with Respirators upgrade kit. There were some neat grubbins in the kit (whoops! Channeled my inner-Ork) and I did like the look of the helmets. It was still a toss up.

     Then Forge World broke the tie with the Cadian Hostile Environment kits! They had slick backpacks, unique torsos, and the awesome heads that I wanted. Granted they are lacking the grubbins that were in the other Cadian upgrade kit, but I'd make do.

     Then came the Cadian Hostile Environment Command Squad, and boy does that look slick. So I think I can combine the following and get two awesome and unique Storm Trooper squads:

1x Hostile Environment Command Squad
1x Hostile Environment Troops kit
1x Hostile Environment Melta Gunners kit
1x Cadians with Respirators kit

     That will give me plenty of the awesome Hostile Environment torsos, backpacks, and heads, plus all the extra grubbins from the Cadian Respirator kit to make two Storm Trooper squads with two melta guns in each. Not bad! I was really holding out for a plastic Storm Trooper kit to be potentially released for the Grey Knights codex, but that seems to be out of the picture now as it looks like the Storm Troopers were left out of the book.

     Thoughts anyone? Got any other ideas for potential Storm Troopers? I'd love to hear them. It's ages still until I order these. I've got plenty to paint before then. Including a Japanese Bulldozer (for my future White Scars army, of course).

Finger Update (speaking of scars)


     Not that you asked for it, just because it bugs the hell out of me. So as you can see from the picture, it has really healed up quite well, and quite fast. For a two inch gash that went to the bone, I'm happy to see that there doesn't (as yet) appear to be a hideous scar, nor is there seemingly any other repercussions. It hurts a bit when I flex it, but that might have something to do with the lack of motion it has had for the last week being mostly wrapped up in a bandage to prevent me from doing something daft and accidentally ripping some stitches out.

     I expressed the idea that I might take out my own stitches to my wife. Surprisingly she wasn't supportive of that! She mentioned something about me being "... your father's son" which I can only take as a sign of respect and admiration. Given that I'm in the military, I think there might be some official channels I'll have to go through to get these stitches out anyways. My wife can rest easy.

     So to sum things up: I should be painting again very soon. I might actually give it a go this afternoon as I do have some stuff sitting on my painting table that need to be finished. Namely that stupid Vox Caster I keep going on about.