Von'Ta Cadre: Project Log

[Narric]

Have your plans changed with 7th? Or will you just ignore the new allies table when playing against friends?

[CoffeeGrunt]

I'm going to see what comes up when I've finished the mandatory Troops and HQ I need. It may end up being a standalone army in its own right.

[CoffeeGrunt]

First pic of my Tempestus Scions in-progress, taking the role of elite Gue'vesa'ui in the Taronian regiment. These guys are probably going to be used a lot like Crisis Suits. Dropping into high danger arenas to cut down important, tough targets with concentrate AP3 firepower.

I've started painting in sub-assemblies, and it's made them a lot easier to paint in smaller details, especially between the gun and chest. These new Scion models are pretty awesome, looking forward to using them on the field. The other guys should have their arms by then!

[Narric]

Looking good ^_^

So are you painting each piece on the sprue?

[CoffeeGrunt]

I'm building them into body assemblies and arm assemblies, painting them, then gluing them together. I used to just build, base, then paint, which got awkward to reach some areas.

[CoffeeGrunt]

As promised, pics of my Gue'vesa vehicles!

Chimera:





And the Russ, who will likely stay in the Executioner setup:

[Narric]

Excellent weathering on the vehicles Mine always end up looking fresh from the production line XD

[CoffeeGrunt]

I knew when I was planning this army that they would be a lot dirtier and weathered than my Tau. Glad you like the results!

[CoffeeGrunt]

Got another Russ built and mostly painted. Still needs work on the finer details though, such as the Searchlight and a couple of touch-ups here and there. Mostly satisfied with it, though. This will be my Pask tank as he was pretty effective when I ran him on Saturday. I wanted it to be a weathered, old war machine. The Regiment's only Vanquisher with a raft of commendations.

[Chris]

Thems so nice looking minis! I like the Storm Troopers, you've done a nice effect on the eye lenses there! and the weathering on those tanks is exellent!
Great job!

[CoffeeGrunt]

Thanks Chris! I've gotten some feedback elsewhere that should help me refine the weathering. Hoping it goes well!

[Chris]

Could I suggest though that you take a look at the spot light on the leman russ? Simply painting it yellow seems out of style with the rest of the army... It look flat and shoddy, especially on the tank...
Even a wash would add a bit of depth...

[CoffeeGrunt]

Oh the spotlight still needs to be done. I got a recommendation on Bolter and Chainsword to try a bluish-white on it, so I'm going to do-over it and give that a go.

[CoffeeGrunt]

After building a Heavy Weapons Team of three Lacannons, I was a bit bummed out by the lack of spare bitz GW supply in Guard kits to build additional units. (Even Fire Warriors stock some extra legs and heads, so you're golden if you buy some torsos.) The answer to these wasted bitz was the Drone-Piloted AutoMortar. Developed in conjunction with Tarosian Engineers, the Earth Caste sought to build a weapon from parts familiar to the Gue'vesa serving in their ranks, but that could be easily and cheaply rearmed and deployed to operate autonomously. With simple parts easily able to be manufactured with Taros' limited production capabilities, the AutoMortar has seen much use in Tarosian regiments, and the Tarosian Engineer Corps are already in talks with the Tau Earth Caste to develop more weapons of this kind.

The AutoMortar uses common parts from the Autocannon much loved by human forces. The Ammo Hopper carries a drum magazine filled with small submunition missiles designed to fragment upon impact and shred lightly armoured foes. The Drone Intelligence that guides this weapon is designed to scan enemy comms to note concentrations of tightly-packed Infantry, before networking with other such Intelligences to unleash a relentless downpour of shrapnel onto the enemy. The Ammo capacity combined with the carefully managed rate of fire and shot placement allows a small team of such Drones to suppress an enemy under fire for days until reinforcements arrive. This has aided in many sieges, both offensive and defensive, removing potential fatigue from operators and allowing personnel to fight at the front where they're needed.

The Drones are also capable of using their Repulsor Jump Jets, allowing them to relocate and reposition if needed, making them a suitably flexible aid to any battle.

[Narric]

That looks pretty damn cool You able to make a full Heavy Weapons Squad?

The Multi-tracker unfortunately looks too bolted on. Perhaps using the end of a pulse Rifle/Carbine to give it a smaller appearence?