Penal Legion

When you are really really naughty in the 40K world you get the joy and privilege of joining the Penal Legion.

Life is very short in the legion. With a lasgun thrust into your hand (maybe some clothes and shoes if you are lucky) you are kicked off the drop ship into the maelstrom of battle and pointed in the general direction of the enemy. If you manage to clog up their tank tracks with your lifeless body for a couple of seconds you will have done your job.

I wanted my unit to look like they were just a rag tag bunch they had been thrown into the fray. The blind nutter with the flamer and torch. The madman in the stocks with two live grenades in his hands. The masked one wielding some massive club. The crazy bearded fanatic with the banner pole and a laspistol.

I also wanted to give them a leader/shepherd who was not a commissar or similar. Perhaps he is also a condemned guardsmen but one trusted enough with all the keys and told that if he can lead his unit through another 10 battles he might earn back some freedom.

I plan on doing a good few more to add to this unit. These were just an idea. I have always wanted to make a Penal Legion unit right from looking at the 'codex' pamphlet that came way back with Second Edition (another unit I always wanted, just from the basic entry in that was the Electro Priests. Somehow the new models for them just don't jive with how I have imagined them the last 20 years).

All Crewed Up

These are the now unobtainable ( I believe) crew for the Imperial Guard.

I love the tank crew models. I believe there were rules for them as well at one point. If the Leman Russ took certain hits the crew could leg it and escape.

I also keep an eye out for the Valhallan models where they sit across the tank, much like what happened in WWII. I think GW missed a trick not producing crew and models to go on and around vehicles for all the different regiments. I think a lot of gamers and modellers would have snapped them up.

Snipers

These are the original Catachan sniper models.

I really like these models and their poses. I also have a couple of the plastic sniper models to make up (from the command kit) with the cape.

The main problem I have is I now have millions of arms and pieces but not enough torsos and legs to go round. It would be nice if there were a sensible option at a sensible price for this (everytime I work out I can get, say, 10 torsos and legs for £15 I think you might as well splash out the extra couple of quid and buy a new box set - this just compounds the problem!

I tried to get a half decent camo effect on these. I am pleased with how it came out. As usual the poor camera and lighting do not help, they do look a little better in real life.

Militia in the IG

These I use as another platoon (I have Cadians, Tallarns, Catachans, Orlocks, old style stormtroopers and a mixed platoon of bits and bobs). They are the original Frateris Militia for the Sisters of Battle.

They are not a bad little sculpt. The only trouble is there are only so many poses.

I think they would make great models for Necromunda as well, especially those with the autopistols. They do not fit in too bad with the Orlock platoon I have as well. You could easily imagine these to be some sort of militia or PDF drafted in to help the IG.

These were among the first models I experimented with edge highlighting once I got back into painting in my old age (previously it was a slap of thick paint on, done... now I am slowly learning how to bring them out a little bit more into a tabletop standard)

Captain Taske

A long, long time ago (but in this galaxy) I did used to actually play Warhammer 40K. It really started properly with 2nd Edition. I used to have regular games with a friend of mine and I liked to develop a narrative for each game into a long running story. My commander used to always be Captain Taske, originally using a metal Commissar model. More recently I picked up the newer model, in finecast (one of the few resin models I have) and decided to paint him up a little better than the original (which had the paint troweled on basically).

The pictures are not brilliant (camera on the phone and poor lighting do not help) but the model does actually have a few highlights and drybrushes... especially on the fur cloak. It is only in my old age that I have bothered to try to learn to paint better and improve, rather than putting down a single layer and calling it quits. This is a nice little model with a great deal of detail. I had no trouble with the resin itself and the paint took to it easily (I use a very simple priming solution - simple cheap acrylic paint watered down and then brushed on all over the model. I have used a proper primer.) The photo makes my attempt at a power sword look worse than it does in real life...however that is certainly a technique I need to try again and put a little more effort into exploring.

The Artillerist

I added this to my collection last year. The model was from Full Borer Miniatures... it very much fits the theme of an Imperial Guard advisor and is perfect for using as its namesake - Artillery Advisor.

The sculpt was brilliant and has plenty of detail (although my painting will never show it to full effect). I believe my one is actually metal even though that link is for a resin version. I think this would make an excellent addition to any IG army. I particularly like the data slate he is holding and the pose is just right, even for someone on a battlefield (you can just imagine him lecturing about the coordinates being slightly off while blast craters are popping up all around him).

Imperial Guardsmen - Armoured Company

I have collected a fair few footsloggers over the year years... as well as a pretty large collection of tanks Some of the ones below are the ones I have bought prepainted (or were painted a long time ago)

I have actually painted more guardsmen in the last couple of years than in all the twenty years previous to that... quite simply my painting was awful when I was younger... now if you squint really hard in a dark room it does not look too sore. I have actually done a few tanks since I collected the above lot... all painted up in a similar scheme... including heavily modified Salamander Command Vehicle. Watch this space while I dig out the pictures.