So close now...

Green/C is done. I can almost taste how close I am to being done my infantry. One more infantry squad, one more Heavy Bolter squad and two Command Squads... It's good to be making solid progress on these guys again!

Running out of post title ideas...

Didn't get any work done yesterday, as we had the office Christmas party. I realized about halfway through the night that I was drinking with the guy who made Hot Coffee, as well as one of the guys who invented GTA. I love my job.

Anyways, here's tonight's efforts, finished the fatigues and pouches, etc on the second half of Green/C.


I also did some work on Green Platoon's piper a day or two ago, but forgot to post the pic. I'm not as happy with how these ones are turning out for some reason, even if I am building them better...




I was also doing some thinking about counts-as Yukoni versions of all the Special Characters. Straken is in my 2000 points list as Major Michael Brown, as is Marbo who I'm thinking of basing on "Mad Jack" Churchill. I'm thinking his background might be a high-born Praetorian adventurer who couldn't take the starchy discipline of the Praetorian regiments, got adopted by a Yukoni Highlander regiment and eventually became one of the founders of the Yukoni special recon division, or something to that effect.

Creed and Kell were easy: Major-General Sir Isaac Brock, a personal hero of mine, and John MacDonnel.

Pask I have no idea about. I guess I need to do some research into accomplished Canadian tank commanders...

Bastonne will, I think, become Captain Brian McMourn (virtual cookie if you can guess the origin of that one), last scion of a Riatan (I've decided that the Yukoni Highlanders' world is called Van Riatan's World, and is home to Byzantine politicking between all the various houses over trade, etc) who is seeking to regain his family's honour on the battlefield.

Harker, Yarrick and Chenkov don't really interest me in terms of their rules, so I may not bother with them. Al'Rahem looks like he could be fun, and I've been considering inventing a Riatan/Highlander character for him, as there aren't any historical Canadian figures that spring to mind. Mogul Kamir I'm on the fence about, as his rules don't really seem, to me, to fit with the Canadian cavalry in WWI.

More grist for the mill

First half of Green/C painted. Yay!


Just because I felt like, here's an army shot. I can't believe it's taken me over a year to get this far...






And, finally, I decided to have another go at sculpting faces. Here's the result. I'm pretty proud of it, but I'll let you judge for yourselves.

Inching closer

Three weeks of 80-90~ work hours slowed me down a bit, but I've got Green/C built, and a bit of progress on the platoon command squad as well as planning out the platoon HB squad.

Here's the built squad, all reposed to be running.





And here's Commissar Hakes-Exeter, who definitely subscribes to the 40k school of thought on weapon sizes...

Everything is better with space pirates!

Okay, I'm exhausted and have to go back to work in a few hours (that's what I get for staying up building minis), so I'm just going to let the pics speak for themselves, mostly.

Here's Green Platoon's Command Squad. The officer and basecoated trooper (armed with a hakapik and skinning knife) are not new, but the rest are.


New Platoon Sergeant Major:


Very WIP piper:


Their Commissar, the legendarily unkillable Bryn "the Blessed" Hakes-Exeter, sole survivor of numerous charges and artillery strikes and who once destroyed an enemy Titan by shouting at it (according to regimental legend). Internet Points to whoever can guess what two people he's based on.


According to the army list, he's got a power weapon, but I can't bring myself to carve off his power fist. Ideas, anyone? Right now I'm contemplating either having him holding a big power mace or turning the fist into a power claw.


And now, a little side project where I give into one of my life-long obsessions (not, not kilts): pirates! In this case, space pirates, as so unsubtly foreshadowed by the entry title. The 40k universe is perfect for piracy, and it's much mentioned in the fluff. However, the prime examples, Dark Eldar and the Red Corsairs, just aren't pirate-y enough for me. The Dark Eldar are space elves, and I have an unreasoning prejudice against elves of all types, and the Red Corsairs, especially in their new look, strike me as just another renegade Marine warband. I've wanted to do 40k pirates for a long time (I even wrote some background), but I could never figure out how, mainly because I was thinking about Pirate Marines, which probably would've either had the same problem as the Red Corsairs or descended into cartoonish-ness quite quickly. However, I think I found a way. You be the judge.

Red Platoon, ATTEN-SHUN!

There it is, Red Platoon in all its glory. 52 soldiers, and that's less than half my infantry! Bwahahaha! Tremble and despair, enemies of the God-Emperor of Mankind!


...I'm so doomed.


In the taking of this photo, I realized that the Sergeant from A Squad and the whole of D squad still need to have their shoulder pads done. D'oh! Guess I know what I'm doing tonight...

One Troops Choice...Complete!

Wow, it's been a while. If anybody cares, the delay was caused by swine flu, a new job at Rockstar and snapping the pin vice bit I need to make Yukoni lasguns. Anyways, I am still working, and here's proof: pictures of Red Platoon, finally complete. That means I know have almost half of my infantry done, and Green Platoon is almost completely built, even if I am stalled on them until I get to a Canadian Tire and replace that bit.

Red Platoon Heavy Bolter Support Squad:


Their shoulderpads are numbered by gun, rather than by squad. Here's a detail on the loader for No. 2 Gun, complete with product placement for my wife's place of employment.


Here's the completed Command Squad for Red Platoon, a detail of the piper. Best tartan I've done yet. And yes, I know, that's not saying much.




And, finally, the only mostly-built members of Green/C, the last I did before the snapping of aforementioned bit.


I'll get some pictures of the full platoon for the next update.