In the Shadow of Mighty Wings; Exousai Issedonei

Exousai Issedonnei 12;14

Amongst the choirs of the 9th, the Exousiai were a caste of Assault Marines known to exemplify the high intensity warfare practiced throughout the legion. Squad Arcellus (thus Exousiai Arcellus) has been the main stay veteran assault company of the 133rd expedition fleet, having taken part in the purgation campaign of the Nictatine Doctorate and ruination of the Empire of Ludd. 

The Heresy war took a heavy toll on the Exousiai, equipped as they were for xenos and light infantry purgation protocols. They found themselves woefully ill equipped to tackle Legion forces and suffered a high attrition rate throughout the rebellion. Archive photographs shows us varied range of armour marks throughout Exousiai Arcellus with battlefield scouring of the dead being a common practice to replace damaged equipment. 

Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush Airbrush: Iwata Hi-Line HP-CH Airbrush Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes, Windsor and Newton Series 7

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In the Shadow of Mighty Wings: Choir Exousiai Arcelllus

Amongst the choirs of the 9th, the Exousiai were a caste of Assault Marines known to exemplify the high intensity warfare practiced throughout the legion. Squad Arcellus (thus Exousiai Arcellus) has been the main stay veteran assault company of the 133rd expedition fleet, having taken part in the purgation campaign of the Nictatine Doctorate and ruination of the Empire of Ludd. 

The Heresy war took a heavy toll on the Exousiai, equipped as they were for xenos and light infantry purgation protocols. They found themselves woefully ill equipped to tackle Legion forces and suffered a high attrition rate throughout the rebellion. Archive photographs shows us varied range of armour marks throughout Exousiai Arcellus with battlefield scouring of the dead being a common practice to replace damaged equipment. 

Finally, an assault squad painted and ready to hit the table! I'm not happy with the photographs as they have a slightly blue hue that post editing couldn't quite get rid of. These photographs don't show the vibrance of the armour, or the shifts in tone and contrast, so another photoshoot for Arcellus and his boys are on the cards. That will teach me for playing with the camera settings. But I thought I'd show you these today as it's been a while since my last update. 

The models still need decals (I'm waiting for Forgeworld to release it) and the sgt. needs some kind of freehand on his shield, but I'm undecided what to do at this moment. For now they are ready to kick the traitors heads in. I just need to find a game...

Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush Airbrush: Iwata Hi-Line HP-CH Airbrush Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes, Windsor and Newton Series 7

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In the Shadow of Mighty Wings: Contemptor Dreadnought

This is the very early work in progress shot of my Contemptor class dreadnought. The red and black sketches have been done and I have a vague idea of what I'd like to freehand onto the carapace. At this point I only have the idea of 'thrones of angels', nothing more specific or helpful. 

Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush Airbrush: Iwata Hi-Line HP-CH Airbrush Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes, Windsor and Newton Series 7

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In the Shadow of Mighty Wings. Dynameis Terminators

Dynameis terminator squad.  

The vaunted Dynameis formed the shock core of boarding actions of the 33rd assault division sequestered to Belarius' command. Specialising in zone mortalis actions, the Dynameis were recorded to have fought in the Sol System at the time of the siege. Infamously the surviving members formed [REDACTED]. 

My first batch of terminators are now complete. After reading the rules for Blood Angels I doubt these will see much action in games of 3k points of lower but they make perfect members of a Zone Mortalis force. The models themselves are created from the Emperor's Children Phoenix Terminatos and the Cataphractii resin kit. 

Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush Airbrush: Iwata Hi-Line HP-CH Airbrush Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes, Windsor and Newton Series 7

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In the Shadow of Mighty Wings Land Raider Proteus Astrophel

My Land Raider Proteus Astrophel. This was a big project incorporating many advanced weathering techniques that I have been experimenting with one the past couple of years. I know from the outset that my Blood Angels would be ornate and decorated with freehand. With lots of open flat surfaces, this gave me the opportunity to practice a little freehand then break it up with battle damage. Having now seen the Forgeworld colour plate I have a few ideas of what I'd how I'd like to paint my next vehicle.

Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush Airbrush: Sparmax MAX- 4 Airbrush Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes, Windsor and Newton Series 7

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In the Shadow of Mighty Wings: Terminator Sgt. Eremiel Showcase

Sgt. Eremiel leads the vaunted Dynameis Terminator Squad earning battlefield promotion during the ill fated Varidonne cleanings. Hailing from the Southern Urals of Terra, Eremiel is a rare example of amongst the Legions of a second generation of recruitment from the Home World after the founding of Baal as the IX base of operations. Baal's barren climate has made for a notoriously meagre crop of recruits, despite the high conversion rate into Astartes. 

No mention is made of Sgt. Eremiel beyond the Siege of Terra (where he is listed in the Honour Roll), however the Blood Angel's custom of changing their name when they attain a greater rank within the Legion makes his ultimate fate unknown. 

I had just watched Guardians of the Galaxy and I was flicking through IMBD's trivia pages when I came across this:

Dijon Hounsou took the role of Korath for the sake of his son: "I have a son who loves superheroes from Spider-Man to Iron Man to Batman. One day he looks at me and says 'Dad, I want to be light-skinned so I could be Spider-Man. Spider-Man has light skin.'

How tragic is that? I can't quite articulate why it disturbs me so much, or how I feel it connects to my own work. All I can say for certain is that I had this in my head when I started my Blood Angel project. I feel that I, in my small way in a niche hobby, am contributing to this problem. I want to represent the broad spectrum of ethnic groups that must be out there in the 31st millennium. So I will be painting many more skin tones than the traditional caucasian.

And so I present to you Eremiel Honsou.

Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush

Airbrush: Iwata Hi-Line HP-CH Airbrush

Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes

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