The Plague Marine Titan Metzora

Hey Chaos Followers! I'm back- and its an oldie (3 years now) but a goodie... I'm going to show off my Chaos Warhound Titan!!!

Now, how did I acquire said Titan, I hear you ask? It's damn pricey, that's for sure, and I wouldn't have been able to afford one just like that. I assure you, I didn't steal from a bank or sneak it out of Forgeworld (or did I?). Here's how it went down: When my friend Pete turned 30, we got together and decided to buy him an iPod (RIP Steve Jobs). Now, back then (yes, it feels like a while ago) iPods were quite new. They were larger than the current iPods and such. Pete had wanted one, but it was too costly. So, I got his friends together and suggested that we pool our money together and get him one. We even got it engraved on the back too!

At any rate, we gave it to him at his birthday dinner at his favorite diner (complete with the owner singing off key "Happy Birthday Dear Customer")- and boy was he surprised. At that point, giving a big present at 30 became a tradition (will we do that at age 40- who knows?). We pooled in and Joe got an X Box 360, my bro got a Foosball table, etc. And, guess what I got... hehe! A Titan!



  
But it got even better! Not only did they get it for me... Pete was kind enough to put it together in several large pieces. Pete knew that I might have been put off by all the really small pieces (and he was right), so he took it upon himself to put it together. At one point, he discovered that a piece of the leg assembly was missing. As he explained to the Forgeworld rep the situation, the rep told him in effect "it happens. And there is NOTHING we can do. So eat it". Pete said that he wasn't trying to jimmy a new weapon or something out of them- it was just a piston of the leg, but the rep was adamant that despite paying $400, you MAY or MAY NOT get all parts. Sucks to be you. Truth be told, that was the worst experience any of us have had with Forgeworld or GW customer service. Normally, we get what we need fixed/addressed.

Luckily, Pete is an expert modeler (putting my efforts to shame) and was able to improvise. To look at it, you wouldn't even notice! However, getting that Titan together was tough, and Pete swore "Never Again!", though he did help Joe put together his Eldar Titan...Ha!

So, on my 30th- the guys got together and gave me 3 boxes. Pete had assembled it in large sections, so that I could paint it efficiently and then just glue it all in place. Excellent! I now had a Titan. Now- I'd have to paint the monster...

Of course, I painted it in my typical Plague Marine scheme- rotting flesh to give it that off-white, sickly look. The metal parts I did scorched brown and orange, with metal stippling. I am most proud of the interior detail- to this day I can't believe how I did that tiny work in the cockpit. Nevertheless, it all came together quite well. It took me months of work, but it is one of the best paint jobs I've ever done. That's not boasting- I just think that it's one of my best works. And my works are certainly on a sliding scale.

But, there was one last catastrophe awaiting my Titan. I received a call from my brother one Saturday afternoon while I was out. He told me he had done something terrible- he had accidentally knocked over the Titan onto the floor! He said a couple of the spines broke and a few other cracks happened! He was so upset, and figured I was about to reach through the phone and kill him. However, by this point, I was dating my future wife, so I was  quite happy and all, so I just told him "I'll fix it, no problem". To this day I still don't think he realizes why I "let him off so easy"...

I repaired the damage, finished the painting and concluded the work in April 2009. Now, to name my Titan... doing some research, I decided I'd go a bit different from my usual (names like Pandemicus and the like) and dug a bit into history. I chose the name "Metzora". In ancient Hebrew, Metzora means "one being diseased" and is referenced in the Old Testament book Leviticus. This part deals with being "ritually impure" and why God brings disease, and how God wants man to deal with it: “I will defile My sanctuary, the pride of your power, the desire of your eyes, and the longing of your soul,”  “And he shall look on the plague, and behold the plague”. Biblical impurity and plagues, Leprosy, wrath of God... yep, that's the kind of thing I was looking for. So Metzora works quite fittingly as a name for my Titan.

 

I have played several games with my Titan over the past few years. Obviously, I don't use it for pick up games and the like... hehe! I've squared off against my brother's old Armorcast Imperial Warhound Titan (how my brother acquired that is a tale in and of itself), Joe's Eldar Titan, and Pete's Tyranid Bio-Titan. And of course, I took on all three at my "Bachelor Party Apocalypse" contest, but that is another story for another day...


Hope you liked this one, and the pics. Until next time...