Genestealer Cult Su-76 Salamander - Done With Only Two Caveats!

I just put the finishing touches on my Chimera Su-76 conversion and I'm extremely happy with how it turned out. The only thing missing at this point is the crew and the radio antenna. I wasn't able to finish up the crew because I'm missing a couple of arms that I need, and I wasn't able to finish up the radio antenna because I can't find my piano wire (and I'm not sacrificing any guitar strings at this point!). So without further ado, on to the photos!

Conversion Corner - The Cult Gets an Su-76-ish! Part 3 - Bringing it All Together

In this third installment of the series covering the Genstealer Cult Su-76, I've essentially gotten most of the vehicle together (sans a couple of the track guards) and it's ready to paint. There's not a lot new on the construction, but I'll point out where I ended up snagging many of the details I used on the kit from. Overall I'm extremely happy with how it came out, and I can't wait to see it painted up!

Conversion Corner - The Cult Gets an Su-76-ish! Part 2 - Fighting Compartment and Gun

In the first installment of this series I detailed assembly of the track units and lower hull of my Chimera Su-76 conversion. In this installment we throw caution to the wind and start building up the fighting compartment. I then move on to the gun which was another entertaining exercise. Since on of the clear defining features of the actual Su-76 is its prominent fenders, I decided to go with the track guards from the Astra Militarum Tank Accessories sprue. The fit on these isn't perfect, and I ended up needing two sets to do what I really wanted to do with the tracks. I ended up sawing off one to create a double row of rivets on both sides.

Plan view of an early Su-76

Conversion Corner - The Cult Gets an Su-76-ish! Part 1 - Track Units and Hull

If you've been following my growing Genestealer Cult army, you'll be aware that a lot of its background is very much inspired by Soviet Russia in terms of its vehicles, uniforms, and iconography. My local Warhammer store, Warhammer Hillsboro, is having a store Anniversary Conversion Contest. Not being one to pass up an opportunity to stretch my model-building skills, I decided to go through with an idea that I'd had in the back of my mind for a while - convert a Chimera into the Warhammer 40K equivalent of a Second World War Soviet Su-76 self-propelled gun. Although it is now a legend, I figured I could just use the stats for the Salamander Scout Tank with its autocannon main armament and actually field it on the tabletop (along with my old Imperial Armour Salamander once I actually get it done!).

Su-76 on display in Nizhny-Novgorod, Russia

Converted Genestealer Cult Armies in Warhammer 40K - How Far Down the Rabbit Hole?

Warhammer 40K has always been a creative hobby. While Warhammer 40K is a game, it is a game where the player has to at least build the playing pieces on their own. Most people paint the playing pieces as well (and this step is generally required for major tournaments). However, some players don't stop there, they heavily convert or even scratch-build forces to create a truly unique army. I've frequently posted my converted Astra Militarum forces that I run alongside my Genestealer Cult as a separate Brood Brothers detachment, but why stop at just Astra Militarum?

The Subversion of Hive World Novgorod - Genestealer Cult Army Background

Hive World Novgorod lies in the outer reaches of the Segentum Tempestus, deep in The Veiled Region between Gryphonne IV and Bakka. The history of the original colonization of the world during the Dark Age of Technology, when humanity poured into the galaxy by the billions, has been lost to the ravages of time. With the coming of the Imperium, the planet became an important mining world with rich deposits of rare elements and a relatively small population. After the dark years of the Age of Apostacy, the role of the planet was modified to include not only mining, but manufacture of tanks and other weaponry for the Astra Militarum. While its production was low compared Forge Worlds like Gryphonne IV, its proximity to that world allowed it to share its unique Standard Template Construct designs. The resulting massive influx of workers soon outstripped available space for settlement and large hive cities were constructed over the mines and forges to house the burgeoning population.

The Galaxy (as of 9th Edition) - with Novgorod in green

Biophagus and Primus for the Cult

I figured while I had my Armies on Parade board up, I may as well snap a couple of photos of some of the miniatures I'd finished up for the entry, but hadn't featured here on the blog. Among those are my finally finished Biophagus and Primus. These were some miniatures I'd picked up ages ago, but could never quite get to come together the way I wanted them to. I finally bucked down over the past month or so and got them painted up. I especially wanted to get the Biophagus painted, as my army background is based on the Twisted Helix concept, and his research and experimentation (originally as a Chief Medical Overseer Markow in the Astra Militarum) was the vector by which the whole cult started.

Armies on Parade 2020 - The Fall of Hive World Novgorod

Well, it's done and dusted! My 2020 Armies on Parade entry is entered and photographed with the good camera. This article includes all of the the photos and video I sent in to Games Workshop for my my entry. So, enough of the buildup - on to the army!

The Cult arises!!!

On the Road to Armies on Parade - Part 6 - The End of the Line

We're finally at the end of the line for Armies on Parade 2020. The board is done and as many miniatures as I think I'll have time to actually finish are completed as well. Photos have been taken (not only of my entry, but my son's too). This blog entry will be the teaser where I go through the final set up of the board for photos, and hopefully get the photos of the "real thing" up tomorrow using the photos that actually went to Games Workshop. Now I sit and wait for the results. I honestly have no high hopes, I'm a good painter, but I'm not Golden Demon quality by any stretch of the imagination. My board also tends to stretch the 2'x2' limit to the very reaches of credulity in hopes of telling a good story (speaking of which, you'll be getting a full army background in a future blog entry as well). The bottom line is I had a lot of fun doing this board, and I learned a lot of new techniques that will continue to serve me well in the future. 

All of the photos in this entry were taken with my Galaxy S8, whereas the photos for my official entry were taken with my Nikon DSLR. You'll likely see the difference in quality even from the thumbnails. I also set up an actual photo shoot area with a real white backdrop for these as I wanted to get the best possible photos for the contest itself.

The bare bones board ready to accept terrain

On the Road to Armies on Parade - Part 5 - A Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy

I'm finally getting into the home stretch on the board of doom, but I've got a bit of a ways to go yet. The first pass of the surface is good to go, though I'll be adding a little bit of static grass to the corners to just provide some additional interest. I'm hoping to get the trench line done, but if it doesn't happen, I won't be broken hearted. It's a neat piece, but the compromised detail on some of the surroundings makes it a beast to paint. The ground effect is made up of fine and medium soil and dirt ballast, with a little bit of Ammo of Mig Kursk Soil (AMIG1400) pigment thrown in.

Surface with crater-ponds and trench line placeholder

On the Road to Armies on Parade - Part 4 - Workin' in a Coal Mine

I've made quite a bit of progress on the lower levels of the board since the last installment. The mine level is nearly done, and now you can see all of the extra bits I've added to bring it together. I used one of the old resin Forgeworld 12" x 12" floor tiles (now OOP) to create a raised platform with a couple of Plastruct truss structures and some cut foam so it looks like the wrecked Goliath drove onto its platform from something. You can also see the test fit of the fragdrill in the upper quadrant. Also reealed is the reason for the green LED lights that were in the "effects package" for the mine level - they're glowing green crystals of course! I epoxied some quartz crystals together in order to create them, as if you've got a mine, there should be something exotic down there to actually extract!

Lower mine level - nearly done!

On the Road to Armies on Parade - Part 2 - Onward and Upward!

In the first entry of this series on my 2020 Armies on Parade, I went through the basic set up of the lower level (mines) and the middle level (underhive). In this entry, I'll go through the next steps on both levels, including installing the permanent lighting in the mine level and starting work on the ceiling lights on the underhive level. As I've gone along, I've tried some different ways of wiring up the LEDs, though they're all parallel circuits. I'll include full circuit diagrams in a future entry.

Ceiling grid sitting on the top (surface) layer board

On the Road to Armies on Parade - Part 1 - First Steps

Of all of the great experiences I've had playing and painting miniatures for Warhammer 40K, last year's Armies on Parade was one of the highlights. I've always loved not only building, converting, and painting the miniatures, but telling a story with those miniatures. I'd also managed to make it to Warhammer World while vacationing in the UK last year and saw the amazing dioramas on display there realizing I was not the only one who wanted to take that storytelling to the next level (or in the case of the displays at Warhammer World, the next 50 levels or so!). Last year I didn't win a medal at our local shop, but I did take home best painted for my "Uprising" themed entry. With that great experience under my belt, I immediately began planning this year's entry.

New Cult Russ - Gryphonne Pattern Vanquisher!

I'd finished this particular model a few weeks ago, but I've been super busy working on some other items, and never got around to posting the photos. This is yet another of my "vintage" kits that had been lying about the house for ages that I finally decided to re-purpose to the Cult. These kits are from the days when the plastic Leman Russ kit didn't include the vanquisher option, so the only way you could get it was through Forgeworld. This is the Gryphonne IV version of the turret on a Classic Russ chassis. Unfortunately it looks as if the turret has been discontinued, which is a real shame because I kind of like them more than the current plastic offering.

Doin' the Neutron Dance - The Cult has a Valdor

I honestly can't believe it is already August, 2020. If you'd asked me what I would have been doing at this point, normally I'd have been getting ready for my son's Scout summer camp - of course with all of the COVID insanity, that's been canceled. Honestly most of 2020 has been canceled for all intents and purposes, and sadly it looks like that it isn't going to let up anytime soon. I'm still working toward Armies on Parade for this year, but I'm not sure that will actually happen either. Hopefully it will at worst be postponed for a few months, but in the meantime I've got a lot of miniatures to get painted!

I've always loved the Forgeworld line of resin kits and conversions for Warhammer 40K. I came to 40K from a background in static model building, and in the early 90's built and even cast some of my own resin kits. I've continued to keep my hand in the game with some of my 15mm projects as well. When I saw the Valdor Tank Hunter on the Forgeworld site, I knew I had to add one of these beasts to my burgeoning Cult Brood Brothers force.

Armies on Parade - Wrecked Goliath (And How!)

As mentioned in previous blog entries, I'm really trying to put together a great Armies on Parade entry this year. To that end I've been planning out the uprising of my Genestealer Cult and how to turn that into a fun and dynamic board. I'm not ready to go into the full details at this point, but I do have one of my set pieces finished. As part of the board is going to be set in a mining area (complete with tectonic fragdrill), I wanted to include at least one Goliath. I'm still finishing up a Goliath transport for my cult, which will likely make its appearance on that level - but to add some drama to the board (and as I needed a few Goliath wheels for another project - keep watching this space), I decided to build up a wrecked Goliath on a disused heavy equipment lift platform. However, just having a derelict vehicle on the platform didn't seem to be quite enough... so I took it one step further.

The Cult Goes Ballistic - the Deathstrike Missile Launcher

The industrious cultists down at the motor pool have managed to stea... errrr, requisition a brand new unit for my Astra Militarum Brood Brothers detachment - the Deathstrike Missile Launcher. This particular unit sort of appears to have taken eighth edition off, as it only fires once per game and "blast" type weapons were a bit underwhelming in that edition. However, with the new ninth edition blast rules, Games Workshop promises that "your favourite ICBM is getting EVEN DEADLIER." I'd already had one going just because I loved the look of the vehicle and figured it would go well with my Master of Ordnance.

Atalan Jackals - Mad Max for the Genestealer Cult

One of the newer units available for Genestealer Cult armies in Warhammer 40K is the Atalan Jackals. They provide the cult with a much needed fast attack/scout force, though their primary use in 8th edition has been as a fast drive by demolition charge delivery service using a couple of key stratagems. Of all of the units I've assembled and painted recently, these Jackals are easily some of the most complex. Not only can they be equipped with a fairly dizzying array of weapon and stowage combinations, but to paint them effectively the entire miniature has to essentially be disassembled. This first unit of five represents half of the Jackals I need to eventually finish, though I'm waiting a few weeks to start the other half and the Jackal Alphus HQ figure.

Brood Brother Basilisk - No Chamber of Secrets Required!

About a year and a half ago I finished up an Armageddon Pattern Basilisk for my Death Korps of Krieg force (which isn't done yet, but I'm hoping to get back to it next year). It was one of the models that got me back into Warhammer 40K, and is an absolutely amazing kit. If you haven't built one and you have reasonably good model building skills, I still recommend it. That was the last Basilisk I'd done, though. I'd build a few of the plastic ones many ages ago and had done some minor conversion work, but I hadn't touched a new all-plastic Basilisk in years. That changed a couple of weeks ago. My son and I went down to Guardian Games, which had just re-opened in social-distancing mode, and each picked up something new for our armies. He picked up a new Hammerhead, and I snagged a Basilisk.

Hail Hydra! Anti-air Support for the Brood Brothers

The Hydra Flak tank is a newer (though not exactly new) vehicle based on the ubiquitous Chimera chassis for the Astra Militarum. It appears to draw inspiration from several real world anti-aircraft tanks such as the Gepard and Shilka, though it uses an open topped turret more reminiscent of earlier vehicles. I honestly liked the look of the vehicle, and thought it would fill a niche as an anti-flyer vehicle in my Astra Militarum Brood Brothers detachment, so I decided to take the plunge.