Ultramarines: Stalker/Hunter

This Stalker (and Hunter) is the second tank I finished in time for last week’s Inquisition event.  It’s the new anti-flyer tank added in the 6th edition Space Marines codex from last year.  I guess this isn’t really a new kit anymore, but I still haven’t seen one in the wild.

Space Marine Stalker

I went a lot heavier on the Secret Weapon weathering powders on this model than I did on the Land Speeder.  On this one, I started with the darkest earth tone I have (Dark Earth), covering maybe 60% of the area along the bottom that I imagined would be dirty.  Then I went lighter and covered the remaining 25% and 15% (plus overlap) with progressively lighter tones (Terracotta and Dark Yellow).  I think it worked pretty well.

Space Marine Stalker (side)

I also put on some Exhaust Blast around the smokestacks.  I think I should have applied it to a smaller area.  There’s also a touch of Exhaust Black applied to the end of the gun muzzles, which I think turned out well.

Space Marine Hunter / Stalker (front)

I used Secret Weapon’s fixer, dabbing it over the parts that I applied powders.  It then spreads itself out.  It did leave quite a bit of a sheen as tide marks, since I didn’t cover the full model.  I hit the whole thing with dullcote after, though, which pulled this back pretty well.

Space Marine Hunter

I tend to try to make all the stuff out of the box.  This gives me lots of options, although it does keep stuff from making it into the bits box.  I don’t really intend to play this as a Hunter much, but I do love how the lenses turned out.

Of course, since I had just finished this, I had to shoehorn it into the games I played on the weekend.  In the first, I was one of two players attempting to rescue a Inquisitor which had been taken hostage.  The defender got a bunch of fortifications (two bastions, an aegis line with two quad guns, and a couple of bunkers).  That left little room for flyers.

Space Marine Hunter (turret detail)

The Hunter/Stalker doesn’t have Interceptor, so it can only fire at full BS at flyers and skimmers.  Fortunately, I knew the defender was playing Eldar, so I figured he’d probably have a couple skimmers.  Unfortunately (for the Stalker), the one Fire Prism on the field was destroyed before I had a chance to shoot.  It spent the rest of the game taking BS1 potshots at random units.

Updated September 2018 with improved images.

Ultramarines: Land Speeder

Just in time for the second Inquisition War event on Saturday, I completed a set of three Ultramarines vehicles.  First, I’ll talk about this Land Speeder.

As usual, it’s all magnetized up.  The missile launchers are swappable for plain hull walls, and the hull/pintle weapons can be added or removed.

Land Speeder

The U on the top is from the Ultramarines brass etch set from Forge World.  Most of the VII decals are actually from a very old Space Marine Bike Squad decal sheet, purchased in about 2000.  They still work pretty well, although I ended up using Future to get a couple of them to stick well.

Land Speeder (top)

This is also the first time I’ve used weathering pigments.  I went for a pretty minimal look on this one.  Since it’s supposed to be a skimmer, I figured there wouldn’t be so much dirt on it. I just put a bit on the grav plating and along the bottom.

Updated September 2018 with improved images.

Random Rursday: Goblins

On Thursdays, I like to take a break from my army projects.  Instead, I try to do something that I can start and complete all in one evening.

My three-year-old daughter picked out these Reaper Bones Kickstarter goblins for me to paint up.  She told me they should be purple like her dress.

I’m fairly happy with these guys, although I’m not in love with the red of the cloth.  I used the same purple wash (Secret Weapon’s Amethyst) as I did on the skin, to try to tie the model together.  I think it may have ended up without enough contrast.

I guess I the Kickstarter came with three sets of these guys, so I can always try again later.

Updated February 2018 with improved images.

WWII Egg Planes

Just before my first kid was born a few years ago, I decided to make a mobile out of some egg planes made by Hasegawa.  I figured I should do the same for the second, born earlier this month.

The first set was modern-era fighter planes (F-14, F-15, F-16, and F/A-18).  For the second set, I focused on WWII-era planes instead.

As with the first set, I wanted to skip any of the dangly bits which might break off and become a choking hazard.  This means landing gear, missles, etc.  I filled in the holes with putty and sanded them smooth.

These were all pretty quick builds, since the kits are just a few pieces.  I experimented a bit with airbrushed camo, hand-painted some details, and applied decals as directed, although I did end up skipping the swastikas.

Fw-190A
Fw-190A
P-47 Thunderbolt
P-47 Thunderbolt
P-51 Mustang
P-51 Mustang
F4U Corsair
F-4U Corsair

I’m pretty happy with the results.  I ended up hand-painting the struts on the canopies, which means they don’t quite match the rest of the plane.  I should have masked it off and painted it with the rest, but that’s a lot more work.

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