A Hodgepodge of Adeptus Mechanics

Hey there everybody! Welcome back to yet another scintillating edition of Chaos Corner. Old Man Chaos is back with a bit more from the world of Warhammer 40K. First, I had a 2K point match at my local store this week. I played my Knorne Daemonkin, and my opponent was a general Space Marine army. The game was a good one, as we played with the Tactical Objectives (Spoils of War Mission). I ended up winning 10 to 6. It was a close game for a bit, but as it went on the brutal combination of 3 Maulerfiends, 20 Flesh Hounds, and 8 Chaos Bikes really put my opponent in a pickle. My bikes did get killed, but did a great job harassing. The hounds just couldn't be killed fast enough, and the Maulerfiends ran straight across the table and wrecked havoc on his rear lines. I also took allied CSM- Kharn, 1o cultists and a Heldrake. They all did very little- I started Kharn on the far edge in a Rhino- but I just coudln't get him into the battle fast enough. The Cultists were ignored, which helped me when I got the card for that objective they were sitting on. The Heldrake I equipped with the Autocannon, fearing flyers. But my opponent went man heavy- if I had taken the Baleflamer I could have toasted his whole army. Despite the win, I had 2 rather sad moments. I had tokens to call in a Bloodthirster- and I rolled 12!!! Yikes! And my Daemon Prince took 2 turns to kill a Rhino due to lame rolling. Even though the forces of Khorne won, I suspect he'd like to have a serious talk with this under-performing warband- Lol. Oh, and while I was at my local I saw they're doing a 40K Tournament in September- I know where I'll be going! 

I also managed to finish more Ad Mech stuff. I must confess I haven't gone about this methodically. I have a hodgepodge of models from both books (why is it two books again? Makes no damn sense). I couldn't field any type of real force yet (unless I did unbound and with an Imperial Knight). But, I have been going after models that I like (I'm not a fan of the Electro-Priest models, for example, and I don't know if I'll ever get a box).

For example, I love the Ironstriders- both the Dragoons and the Ballistarii. So I picked one up. I was really torn as to which version to build. I opted for the close combat oriented Dragoon with the Taser Lance. I had this vision of them standing near my Imperial Knight, ready to charge to protect him (or kill any leftovers that his cannons didn't finish off). The idea of them charging in like old knights on horseback intrigued me. Now, I know that only one doesn't look like a huge charge, but I'm sure I'll pick up some more in the next couple of months.

Again, I did him to look like my Imperial Knight. Just briefly, I painted the plates Stegadon Scale Green, with half the plates done in Thunderhawk Blue, followed by highlights of Russ Grey. The trim was done with Balthazar Gold, with Brozne over it. The machine parts I did in Leadblecher, with Nuln Oil wash, followed by highlights in lighter metals, followed by Earthshade in key spots, to look oily/dirty.

The second model I'm showing is the Dunecrawler. This model is amazing, though some of the tiny bits broke on me (one ladder rung, one thin antenna, and the first cannon I was building). It was a comedy of errors- I don't normally make that many mistakes, but I managed to figure it all out. I gave him the Neutron Blaster I believe (tried to build the other one, and the dish section snapped).

Despite the few breaks, the model went together quite quickly. I really like the look of it- part enclosed sentinel, part spider. Again, I painted it the same as described above. There are a lot of wires on this one- I did them in various colors, Khorne Red, Caldor Blue, Yellow/Black.

I know they can be in squads of three, so undoubtedly I may have to get one or two more. I could field them individually or in one unit that way, so I could be tactically flexible. I'll certainly build one to be anti-air, just in case, as Ad Mech have no other anti-flyer capability (and no flyers for that matter).

The final model for today is the Tech-Priest Dominus. I absolutely love the model. It is an absolutely perfect rendering of a higher up Tech Priest, with so many wires, mechatndrils, and servo skull. The model is just brimming with detail. It gave me the opportunity to have several different looking energy weapons (one I did with red as base up to orange highlight, while the other was a buildup of greens- which I decided to use for their eyes too).

The robes I kept slightly darker- I did all the same steps as before, though I used Nuln oil for the recesses and only did some touching up. Thus, the robe looks darker and deeper than the Datasmith's cloak.

 Of special note is the ridges of his metal back. I did the edge and his axe with the new gold paints-  Retributor Armor, followed by highlights of Liberator Gold. I must say the new golds are amazing, with Retributor being a very rich color that goes on very easily. I think that both golds will be useful for future projects too. At any rate, the Tech-Priest came out fantastically, and he looks just fine with the rest of my Ad Mech forces.

I have so far enjoyed working on my Ad Mech forces. They have been a lot of fun to put together and paint (despite my mistakes on the Dunecrawler). I still have to get a few more elements from both books if I am to field any kind of force at all, let alone a battle effective one. Plus, I want to make sure its playable with and without an Imperial Knight. I want to use him more (the whole reason I got Ad Mech to begin with), but I'm sure there will be some games where we don't want super-heavies, so I have to make sure they are viable on their own (I could always ally them with my Ultramarines or my brother's Imperial Guard if he lets me).

I am looking forward to future Ad Mech models. I think I may get a few troop options from both books- this will enable me to field them even if I don't have everything else.

Until next time...