In the shadow of mighty wings; Horus Heresy Blood Angel Sicaran

From my own collection - the mighty Sicaran battle tank! When I think of the outline of a typical Crusade Era force I think of Spartans, Contemptors and Sicaran battle tanks. I haven't had much luck with it on the table top (even though I've suffered an Iron Warrior Sicaran pop my Levithan in one turn of shooting). '

If you'd like to paint this red check out the video tutorial I've made for it:


TUTORIAL 

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Throne Quaphsiel 7:33 - Blood Angels Leviathan Dreadnought Horus Heresy.

Alleluia! May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest,

Alleluia. The Choir of Saints have found the well-spring of life and door of Paradise,

Alleluia. Weeping at the grave creates the song: Alleluia. 

Come, enjoy rewards and crowns I have prepared for you.

Pre Untiy song, unknown. 

This is the project I worked on over the Christmas break. I knew unless I painted it then, I wouldn't have another long stretch off my work load until next year. The inspiration for this piece came from Master of Mankind, an offhand comment by the Bringer of Sorrows to Arkan Land describes Baal's culture resembling that of the Holy Roman Empire. Little details like this provide a context to explore the artwork and develop pieces like this.

Those large open space on the carapace cried out for some form of freehand and mapping it proved to be troublesome. Lots of time was spent just getting the proportions right to begin the paint work.

Enjoy the weekender guys! See you there.

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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: Excelcio Belesarius 1:14, Seraph Sanguinary of the Fifth Host

"Angels are agents of wrath, or revelation."

Unknown. 

Khalu Varrchio, Excelcio Belesarius 1:14, 

Seraph Sanguinary of the Fifth Host. 

"The Encarmine Blade".

"Charting the histories of the legions after the Fall of the Arch Traitor is a problematic endeavour. In an era rife with misinformation, falsifications, mass purging of data repositories and the reformation of Adiministratum, clear, concise scholarship concerning this era is a messy affair. However is it the burden of this humble servant...[text goes into a lengthy essay about the role of the scholar - edited for brevity]

Excelcio Belesarius, named the Encarmine Blade, served aboard the Starfall [Lunar Class Cruiser] scouting the Perditia Veil in the latter part of the Great Crusade, assigned to the protection of Delegates Marcellus Varne. His role of honour includes fighting amongst the First Host at Ullanor, the scouring of Mandax, and is commended by his superior [Praetor Anchious Obirex] for decimation actions against Third and Fourteenth Legion insurgency. 

Belesarius is recorded at the Siege of Terra, but in what capacity and whether he survived is unknown. It is also unknown whether Belesarius in side reel pic captures [attached] is the same as those in our records. Due to the obscurity of Baalite naming rituals [broken down: Birthname, Suggenia {tribe, brotherhood, kinship}, Frater Name, Atrocican name {does not translate, analogous; choir, ring}, Codifier, Legion Title, Company designation. So, he is Khalu of the Varrchio tribe, now of the Excelcio named Belesarius, first of that name of the 14th Choir, Sanguinary Guard Leader, Fifth Host].

From here we only have scraps of legends, the most prominent concerning a Chapter relic [cross reference the Encarmine Blade, Sword of Belesarius] was gifted to the Serpah Sanguinary by Primarch Sanguinius himself. It is unclear whether the blade was given to Belesarius before the Siege or during the assaults against the walls. It is also unclear whether the blade was named or whether it later adopted the epithet in honour of the Legion hero. 

  Further references to Belesarius are scattered throughout the annals of second founding mythology (one cannot call such reorganisation anything other than a mythos). Several documents note  Belesarius as the first Chapter Master of the Blood Angels, contradicting the documented history of Raldoron ascending to this position. If this Praetor survived he would have been one of the Legion's highest ranking and most experienced military assets, eligible for reassignment as Chapter Master of a second founding chapter."

- Myths of the Second Founding; Chapter IXX - The Hosts of Baal, Children with Earthly feet. 

By Adept Historomancer Belquin Levi

I was privileged enough to have been in the hobby when Warhammer Monthly started. As a child I devoured the stories and spent the proceeding month contemplating the story. The episodic nature of the stories made the tales feel epic. Waiting month to month to find out if Leonatos was successful in his quest has left an impression on me. From the very first comic strip printed in White Dwarf I was intrigued as to who Belarius was. All we know of him was that he was a mighty hero of the Legion who was gifted a sword by Sanguinius himself and went on to become the first Chapter Master. 

I knew from the very outset that I didn't want the Praetor's feet to touch the ground, and that his countenance should be angelic. I have a theory that while the gene therapy of other Astartes makes them look bulbous and overly muscled, for the Blood Angels their inhumanity take the shape of otherworldly beauty. I also wanted a larger scenic base for him to stand on, akin to other personalities in Forgeworld's Character series. 

The base is made from the Abaddon and Loken diorama, cut up and repositioned. It is also fully magnetised.  The central fallen cathedral nave made the perfect base to attach Astorath's jump pack to. The model is them converted from Sanguinary Guard parts and the Sanguinor. Because this is a Heresy era piece I didn't feel non metallic metal to be appropriate (it has a slightly cartoony feel, at least when I do it, that is at odds with hyper realistic dirt and weathering look of the Heresy). The metals I used are a combination or Forgeworld's excellent gold paints and Vallejo's airbrush metallic paints. I shaded the metallics with inks for tonal variation and oil paints for the very deepest recesses. 

This is the second rendition of this character. I have refined the lights on the armour, sharpening some details and giving the paint job an overall polish. The naming schemata of his title was lifted wholesale from the Apologist's wonderful blog entry: 

https://apologentsia.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/inload-suddenly-blood-angels.html?showComment=1467372718026#c5546566827755356851

Go check it out, enjoy and subscribe. 

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; Legion Praetor Marcellus Varne

Legion Praetor Delegatus Marcellus Varne

Legion Delegatus Marcellus Varne service record shows mutant cleansing actions on pre compliance Terra when all Astartes were known under the singular title 'Legion'. 

Once the Legion was reunited with the Angel and changes in battle doctrine swept through the 9th Varne found his star falling, many viewing him in the higher echelons if command as an anachronism. Denied the chance for further advancement Varne served the next 100 years in outrider fleets, exploring the hinterlands of the newly expanding borders of the imperium, prosecuting his own campaigns of compliance. 

No honours are attributed to Varne during the Horus Heresy, his fate, like so many of the Legions, go unrecorded. 

I'm delighted to showcase one of my favourite miniatures from Forgeworld's range in the livery of the IXth. Looking at the model I goethe impression that this man was incredibly ancient, having served in wars and taken part in genocides for an Imperial Truth that was only bringing to solidify as a doctrine. The armour is heavy plated, bonded for void warfare. I added the flourish of the twin lightning bolts underneath the Legion symbol to indicate his service on Terra. His sword is notched and abused with no power generating through it.

The yellow power pack is a nod to John Blanche's wonderful box art work for Epic 40K.

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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