Monthly Vox: 11 (March, 2022)

 Hey all! Has it been a month already? This month saw a lot for me in the way of kitbashing. Mostly by rolling torsos around in my bits box and seeing what stuck. Through slapping glue and plastic together I was able to create 5 custom(ish) HQ character models. So, let's get into it!

Modelling and Painting

This month had very little actual painting done and was mostly me kit-bashing together various characters and alternate wargear loadouts for existing characters. Kit-bashing and converting is honestly more fun to me than painting as I find have to be in a particular mood to get the paints out but can casually assemble models and stick various bits together pretty much whenever I like with my only limit being my tacklebox full of left-over kit bits.

Chaplain w/ Power Fist and Jump Pack

Going into the start of this month I realised a lot of my HQ units lacked any fast and hard-hitting anti-vehicle options, hence where this little kitbash spree began. The first guy I put together was a Chaplain. I borrowed one of the Jump Packs from an unpainted squad of Vanguard Veterans (they're primaris-ized. click here to see how) to give him the mobility needed to get up the table quickly since I don't exactly have many bikes lying around. I then snipped the head off a Thunder Hammer and used an Iron Halo and a skull from the Black Templar upgrade sprue to create a nifty-looking Crozius for him. Stuck on some more religious gubbins and he was good to go!

Captain in Terminator Armour w/ Chainfist and Combi-melta

Based upon the updated Marneus Calgar model kindly donated to me by Ian from the GTGC, I was able to create this Terminator Captain. I shortened and attached a Chainsword to one of Calgar's power fists after removing the attached bolter to create a Chainfist. I then shaved the joint barrel off of a Storm Bolter and attached a singular barrel from a Bolt Pistol. I was unable to find any actual Melta Barrels I was willing to use so, instead, utilised one of the tubes from a Smokescreen Launcher I must have acquired from a Dreadnought or something and used that instead. 

I'm particularly happy with the Combi-melta and how I made use of the left over cables from a box of Necron Warriors to give it an exposed and techy look. I added a tilt-shield as a buckler, as well as removing/hiding the Ultramarine symbols and replacing the head with one a bit more expected from a Terminator/Templar, and he was done. 

Primaris Captain w/ Heavy Bolt Pistol, Relic Shield, and Master-crafted Power Sword

Now this was more of an adjustment than a kitbash. I painted this model up a while ago but was never really happy with how he looked. My painting has improved greatly since then and I feel more could have been done to make him appear as the Templar he is. So, I opted to replace his pauldronswith those found in the Black Templar upgrade kit as well as his sword. I gave him the Sword of Judgement and while I don't think I'll be running him with one, it looks too cool not to put on him. I can't wait to give this guy a nice new lick of paint.

Primaris Lieutenant w/ Master-crafted Stalker Bolt Rifle

I wanted this guy to be a long range threat, taking down heavy infantry from afar. As such, I gave him the Stalker Variant of the Bolt Rifle and the head of an Eliminator Sgt for a suitably tactical look. As his distance from the melee made giving him a Power Sword redundant (I know, I know. "Bad Templar Player"), I opted not to give him one. This meant that his left arm was going to be empty. I figured any Templar not wielding a melee weapon with his free hand should at least be carrying some sort of relic or icon. As such, I opted to give him the Skull of Cacodominus bit from the Templar upgrade kit. While I probably wont run the relic on him in games, it looks too cool not to give it to him.

Captain w/ Storm Shield, Thunder Hammer, and Jump Pack

I always hear so much praise around "Smash Captains" and I figured I should probably have one. I borrowed another Jump Pack from my Vanguard Veterans, as well as one of the Bladeguard Veteran bodies from the same squad I turned into the Lieutenant and Chaplain (I rarely run more than 5 and these guys were just sitting in a draw), and got to work. I gave him one of the Bladeguard Storm Shields, as well as a Vanguard Thunder Hammer and some Templar Upgrade kit pauldrons and presto! A very quick and easy job. 

Final Thoughts

Now I know there wasn't much painting this month but I hope the kitbashes were sufficient. I'm currently in the process of saving for a move that will allow me the space to have a real hobby setup for painting, writing, and even filming. I plan on being a lot more active with the Fistful of Beans YouTube Channel in the next few months once I have things set up. Over there I plan on doing short-form content like commentaries and tutorials as well as painting-timelapses and possibly live-streams so look forward to that!

Until next time...

Cheers, 
Ryan