Dreadtober 2025, Fire in the Void - part 4.

 

Fire in the Void

The chronicled account of Brother-Sergeant Kael'en Dra'vok, Salamanders 4th Company

---

Part IV – The Enemy's Face.

Through the smoke and ruin stepped a figure of dark command: Captain Malric Veyden, a cunning warlord of the Astral Claws. Unlike.his liege, Lugft Huron, he did not rely on charisma or spectacle. His strength lay in numbers, strategy, and precision. Behind him, a tide of Silver and Blue-armored warriors spilled forth, bolters spitting death, chainswords revving in mechanical glee.

Veyden’s eyes glinted with malice as he surveyed the battlefield. “The Salamanders bleed,” he whispered through vox, each word a blade of taunting ice. “Yet they will not fall until the last breath is spent.” His command brought coordination to the chaotic corridors, every reinforcements deployed with terrifying timing.

Bray’Arth raised his weapons, feeding flames through the hallway. Bolter fire and close-combat fury tore through Veyden’s forces, but the sheer weight of the enemy pushed back the Salamanders. Kael'en’s squad found themselves isolated, flanked on both sides. The narrow corridors became deathtraps, and every step forward demanded the courage of Imperial Heroes.

Malric Veyden himself struck with deadly precision, a whirlwind of sword and bolt, carving through space and flesh. His presence unnerved even the most stalwart Salamanders, forcing them to recognize the depth of the threat. It was not merely a battle; it was a crucible of attrition and will.

The Salamanders braced. Even in the face of staggering numbers, even in the shadow of a cunning warlord, they would not falter. The fire of Nocturne would find its mark.

*****

So the end of Dreadtober approaches, and I've not gotten Bray'arth Ashmantle completed.

Le sigh...

In spite of my best efforts, I've had to put the hobby down for a bit and take care of the Mrs who is having health problems.

I have managed to get Bray'arth's right arm completed fully to give an idea of where I am going with him eventually:

And the full Dreadnaught for the deadline and how far I got:

I had to ditch the printed base as it warped for some reason, so I'll scratch build starship bases when I get into Project Badab fully.

*****

The Hall of Flames

The munitions corridor was a death trap. Ammunition racks stretched for fifty meters, volatile promethium tanks lining the walls. Kael’en hesitated for a fraction of a second—but Bray’Arth did not.

He ignited both flamers, the streams merging into an inferno that devoured the length of the hall. The Astral Claws screamed as fire rolled over them, detonating shells and fuel in a chain of explosive purgation. The shockwave washed over Bray’Arth’s armor, bathing him in a glow of righteous fury.

When the smoke cleared, the corridor was gone—transformed into a twisted, glowing passage of melted steel. The few survivors stumbled through the haze, their armor sloughing from their bodies. Bray’Arth strode among them, claws striking down the fallen like an executioner in a temple of flame.

Kael’en’s voice came softly over the vox, reverent, almost prayerful.

“Ashes to ashes. Fire to fire.”

Bray’Arth’s response was a low, mechanical growl.

“Thus the forge is purified.”

He moved onward, unyielding, as the fires of his wrath continued to burn behind him.

---

Until next time, have nice day...

Dreadtober 2025, Fire in the Void - part 3.

 

Fire in the Void

The chronicled account of Brother-Sergeant Kael'en Dra'vok, Salamanders 4th Company

---

Part III – A Setback

A scream echoed down the metallic corridor, a sound of terror and finality. Brother-Sergeant Kael'en Dra'vok dropped to his knees beside the motionless form of Chaplain Xav'ien impaled by a power sword from some unseen assailant. The hallway smelled of burnt ceramite and the metallic tang of blood. Silence fell, a deadly quiet over the remaining Salamanders, even as Bray’Arth’s flamers ignited in vengeance.

Xav'ien had been a beacon of morale, his voice a hammer of faith. Without him, hesitation flickered like a candle in the wind. The Astral Claws exploited the moment, pressing with reinforced squads, storming from concealed passages. The Salamanders faltered, retreating to more defensible positions.

Bray’Arth’s fists tore through enemies with unchecked wrath, but even the Dreadnaught’s might could not hold every breach. The corridors were narrow, the fire deadly, and the shadows teemed with foes emboldened by the loss of the Chaplain. Kael'en gritted his teeth, rallying what remained, but every step forward demanded blood, every corner held ambush.

For a brief, horrifying moment, the assault threatened to stall entirely. A secondary breach tore open a side corridor, and more foes poured through, their armored forms gleaming black under emergency lighting. The Salamanders’ advance faltered; the cost of Xav'ien’s death became grotesquely clear.

Yet even in setback, there was resolve. Kael'en’s voice rang out with the Canticle of Nocturne, steel in every syllable, rallying and calling the warriors forward. Bray’Arth’s systems hummed with the promise of retaliation. The Salamanders would not yield. They were fire made flesh, and fire consumes all.

*****

This is the latest third installment of Dreadtober 2025.

I've been very hit and miss with this project as I've had a busy month with work and running the Mrs around to hospital appointments, so obviously hobby related guff has taken a backseat so far.

With a good week and a half of leave from work and nothing hospital related (fingers crossed) for the foreseeable future, I managed to sit down and have a good painting session this past couple of days and get some serious progress done on Bray'arth.

Firstly I managed to get all the basecoats down, inspire of having lost my pot of Runelord Brass for an entire afternoon...

A lot of the metals are Runelord Brass, mainly for trim on the edge of armour, and Leadbelcher which is for all the mechanical bits and pipes, etc.

Retributor Gold was used for the chapter symbols and the written plates which are riveted onto Bray'arth's chassis in various locations.

The Flames have been started with Averland Sunset and the black panels are Corvus Black, as I wanted a really dark black-grey as opposed to a pure black colour.

The main colour everyone is probably wondering about is the green, which is Waaagh! Flesh. I nice rich dark green, which I feel pulls towards that 30k look without having to go out and buy new paints like Vulkan Green, etc.

The next step is the messy one, in that he gets covered entirely with Agrax Earth shade.

This shades the entire model in one go, warming the metals and adding depth to the green, whilst adding a richness to the Corvus Black, which I only found out by accident when painting some Black Legion.

This is how Bray'arth Ashmantle stands at the moment. Next steps are to reblock in the base colours and then edge highlight. Finally the flames will get that classic GW yellow-orange-red transition if I can pull it off.

I've still got plenty of time to get him finished, later in the month then I originally planned, but that's life.

*****

 Shadows in the Halls

Darkness settled like a shroud in the underdecks, the kind that swallowed even auspex readings. Bray’Arth paused, motionless save for the slow exhale of his reactor core. “They hide,” he murmured through the vox, “like vermin in the forge’s ash.”

Then came the strike—shapes falling from the ceiling vents, silent and fast. Renegade assassins, their armor blackened and their blades poisoned with cowardice. They struck with desperation, blades scraping harmlessly against his armor before flame erupted in retaliation.

The corridor ignited. Shadows screamed as they burned, their forms thrashing in the sudden inferno. Kael’en’s squad moved in behind him, precise and merciless, cutting down any who escaped Bray’Arth’s reach.

One assassin tried to flee. Bray’Arth extended a claw and caught the foe mid-stride, lifting him effortlessly. “You chose darkness,” he rumbled, voice echoing like a furnace god’s verdict. “And the dark will claim you.” The renegade’s body turned to ash in his grip.

When the flames subsided, nothing moved but the slow drift of smoke. Bray’Arth advanced once more, the firelight dancing over his armor as he whispered a single word—half machine prayer, half vow.

“Purge.”

---

Until next time,  have nice day...

Dreadtober 2025, Fire in the Void - part 2.

 

Fire in the Void.

The chronicled account of Brother-Sergeant Kael'en Dra'vok, Salamanders 4th Company .

---

Part II – First Push

Through the atrium, the Salamanders surged like a tide of living flame. Bray’Arth’s claws shredded reinforced armor, scattering renegades like chaff before a storm. Kael'en moved beside him, the thunder of his boltgun merging with the rhythm of his heart, each burst a promise of vengeance.

The Astral Claw’ numbers were great, yet disorganization marked them. Brother-Captain Jorath Vey'len, a stalwart of the fourth company, directed flanking maneuvers against the renegades with grim efficiency. Corridors became crucibles; fire licked every wall, every ceiling vent, and every corner became a tomb for the overconfident enemy.

Yet the enemy struck with cunning. Explosive charges littered junctions, and close-range firefights erupted as loyalist warriors were forced to leap from cover to cover. Despite these trials, Bray’Arth moved like a sentinel of flame, shielding the advancing Salamanders, a living engine of destruction.

Kael'en’s squad cleared a reinforced door with a Melta charge, revealing a command nexus within the ship. Holo-screens flickered in alarm; the Astral Claws were attempting to regroup. The Salamanders pressed, each step forward bringing them closer to the heart of enemy command, each shot fired a statement that mercy was extinguished in the void.

The first push ended with the corridors of the Obsidian Vigil littered with bodies, yet the Salamanders held their formation. For a moment, victory seemed near. But the void is patient, and patience harbors its own horrors.

*****

So, the first proper post of Dreadtober 2025 will be a short one, but decent progress has been made.

Bray'arth Ashmantle is now assembled, but in four sub-assemblies for painting.

I managed to get a slight striding forward pose with the legs without too much work which I am happy about, on e I've angled his body for final assembly he'll be purposely moving forward.

The base, I have a mixture of industrial type bases for Project Badab as everything is going to be based upon spaceship boarding (I'm writing my own campaign system to follow, more on this soon). Some of the bases are as thick as this one, other are a base topper thing type, so I made the decision to just put everything ontop of a base and go from there making a unified basing scheme.

Next was priming.

Bray'arth I primed Death Guard Green this is because I am heading towards the darker Horus Heresy colour scheme e rather then the really bright primary green of 40k.

The next step will be getting a layer of Waaagh! Flesh down as this is the best green I have available for the scheme, without going out and buying new paint. Abaddon Black, Runelord Brass, Retributor Armour and Leadbelcher will finish off the main colours, the flame motif's will get their colours later after the wash stage.

The base was primed white in readiness for a light off-white style basing scheme, think like the corridors in the habitation unit in the first Alien film, but weathered and lived in.

That's the image I have in mind, and everything will contrast nicely against it, and the planned scenery I have in mind for Project Badab.

*****

The Melta Breach

The bulkhead ahead was a barrier of black iron and defiance. For a moment, silence reigned—then Bray’Arth stepped forward. “Stand clear,” he intoned, his voice low, ancient, and absolute, clear through the vox-grille.

He raised his claws and unleashed twin streams of searing flame. Metal softened, screaming as it warped, before the Dreadnaught’s shoulder drove forward. The door burst inward with a detonation of sparks and superheated air.

Through the breach, the Astral Claws rallied, their defiance commendable but meaningless. Bray’Arth surged into them like a living siege engine, one claw crushing a defender against the wall, the other tearing a bolter from another’s grip before reducing its bearer to cinders. The corridor filled with smoke and heat, but to him it was home—an echo of the forges of Nocturne

Sergeant Kael’en’s voice filtered through the vox, steady and reverent:

“The way is open. The fire leads.”

Bray’Arth did not answer. His sensors were already sweeping ahead, tracking movement deeper within the vessel. The machine-spirit within him burned with purpose. The flame had found its fuel.

---

Until next time, have nice day...

Dreadtober 2025, Fire in the Void - part 1.

 

Fire in the Void

The chronicled account of Brother-Sergeant Kael'en Dra'vok, Salamanders 4th Company

---

Part I – The Initial Assault

The void was a frozen tomb. The Obsidian Vigil, support cruiser of the Astral Claws chapter, drifted silently, its bulk punctuated by the flickering energy spark gleam of shattered void shields and splintered hull plating drifting in the void. Through the darkness, fiery beacons streaked across the gap—assault pods, forged in the fires of Nocturne itself, carrying the wrath of the Salamanders. Inside, the ceramite-suited forms of the Chapter’s 2nd Company braced for the violent welcome the renegades would deliver upon their arrival.

Bray’Arth Ashmantle’s Dreadnaught hull glimmered with the patina of countless campaigns. His twin-linked heavy flamers roared to life, spilling searing tongues of flame into the breach, wreckage stillsettling at the assault pods violent approach. He moved with methodical precision, feet of adamantine stepping over molten wreckage as he led the charge. Brother-Sergeant Kael'en Dra'vok followed close, bolter at the ready, every fibre of his being a furnace of righteous wrath.

The breach was met with a storm of bolter fire and the burning walls of flamer weapons, meltas splintering bulkheads and illuminating the void-torn corridors with brief, blinding brilliance. The Astral Claws defenders recoiled, their ferocity undiminished, but the Salamanders advanced. Smoke and flame mingled with the acrid stench of plasma, painting every surface in molten gold and crimson.

Kael'en’s squad moved with practiced synchrony, breaching doors and cutting down foes before they could form cohesive ranks. Every strike was precise; every flamestoke a cleansing judgment. The corridor’s end opened into the central atrium of the Obsidian Vigil, where the roar of battle awaited.

Even as the Salamanders pressed, the whispers of fate drifted through the smoke. Bray’Arth’s visor glowed, scanning for targets of import, while Kael'en’s heart hammered in anticipation. They had taken the first step into the heart of darkness—but the shadow of the Astral Claws would not yield so easily.

*****

It's that time of the year again, when the blog/online hobby community all take to their painting tables and paint something big and armoured.

Dreadtober is back and I'm going to take part for my fourth year.

With things still being up in the air staff wise at work so to speak, and me not knowing just how much time I'm going to have to devote to the hobby, I'm only working on one Dreadnaught this year, but it's a special one.

As I download various STL files for "Project Badab" (more information coming soon), I have had t make the difficult choice of just which chapters to include in my project, as there are far too many through the entire Badab Wars campaign for me to pick EVERYONE!

One of the Loyalists which was an auto include were the Salamanders, with their storyline within and negotiating a ceasefire and surrender with the Executioners chapter being a particular highlight.
When Forge World were originally producing the Badab War big books, and obviously a slice of models to accompany them. One of the models they produced was a named Dreadnaught for the Salamanders, one Bray'Arth Ashmantle.

Perfect.

Perfect to cross something off the list for Project Badab AND take part in Dreadtober with.

So, with some searching I found an excellent STL of the Dreadnaught and seven hours later, my own model was in my hands, de-supported, washed and cured, ready to begin modelling on.

The STL comes in a LOT more pieces then the original Forge World model, which was a resin base copy of the (then current) plastic dreadnaught.
I'm hoping to have him built by the end of this week (I'm writing this on the second of October. and can then get him primed up this weekend, ready to begin work on.

Please head on over to the Dreadtober blog page as there are eleven or twelve of us taking part again this year, and any and all comments are welcome, as there will be links to everyones blogs/instagram pages with updates and WIP photos and everything.

*****

Fire and Iron

The corridor was a narrow tomb of steel and shadow, yet Bray’Arth Ashmantle moved through it like a living inferno. Every step of his adamantine feet sent shudders through the deckplates, every sweep of his massive claws tore reinforced doors and enemy armor alike. The screams of the Astral Claws reverberated off the walls, drowned beneath the roar of flamers that ignited everything in their path.

Kael’en and his squad flanked him, bolters blazing, but it was Bray’Arth who commanded the space. He was fire incarnate, a sentinel of judgment whose mechanical frame consumed enemy resistance as though it were kindling. Every strike of his claws carved death with precision, every movement clearing a path through the choke-point that had once seemed impenetrable.

A squad of Silver and Blue-armoured foes surged from a side hatch, hoping to stem the advance. Bray’Arth swung his claws in a sweeping arc, tearing the first two apart and sending the remainder sprawling into the walls. Sparks rained from twisted ceramite, metal screamed under the force of impact, and the corridor itself seemed to groan beneath the weight of his assault.

Even in the smoke and chaos, Bray’Arth’s sensors scanned, assessing every threat, calculating every strike, directing the path of destruction. The corridor became his domain, every shadow a target, every spark a warning. No Astral Claw could withstand him; no corner offered safety. He was the engine of purification, and nothing in his path would survive the judgment of flame.

---

Until next time, have nice day...

Dreadtober 2024 - Dreadline missed.

 

So, Dreadtober has been failed this year.

This is as far as I managed to get with the Meka-Dread painting, real life just caught up with everything.

All the parts have most of their basecoat's down, I just need to add some brass detailing to the bolt heads on the legs and then I can wash everything with the brown weathering shade and then work colours up from there.

I'll get it finished soonish, but I'm just waiting for some good chunks of hobby time as work has ramped up with contracts, so my time is starved at the minute as I'm getting home and spending a couple of hours with the family in the evenings rather then just hobbying immediately when I get home.

I managed to work up the craters, as they were a quick project to finish which kept me in hobby, but anything bigger which requires more time was just not going to work for me.

Real life, always getting in the way...

Until next time, have nice day.

Dreadtober 2024 - Torso work.

 

The madness of Dreadtober 2024 continues, and I started work on the main Torso of the Meka-Dread this past week.

I didn't get any photos of the original colours going on (no point really), but here is the torso alongside one of the Kills Kanz I finished in Dreadtober 2022.

I've stuck to the same overall palette of red, black and white, with a little gold thrown in for a spot metallic.

The rust is still really bright, but you can see the various components better now that there are some other colours present to break up the outline a bit.

The "Face" was stippled with white for the skull, it won't be getting checkers, however the various other white panels definitely will.

I'm also torn between doing the massive eye in a bright yellow or a green glow.

Next it was time to start weathering, Orks never clean their vehicles after all.

So a home ade wash was mixed up, ten parts Rhinox Hide, fifteen parts water, two drops of Washing Up liquid. This last is to break the surface tension of the water and force it to flow around all the details on the model.

I'm using a spare upturned cavalry base to mix in, after a friend nicked (by acciddnt I'm sure) my previous mixing tub after I showed him how to make his own wash for his terrain...

Half hour later, she was dry.

The Rhinox Hide is a little more reddish then brown when it separated out like this, which aids in the dirty/rusty effect, the texture on the skull face itself is really nice.

You can see how it settles into details like the grills at the bottom of the engine area or the tubings on the torso front. 

You can also see the difference in brightness of the rust here in this photo.

Whilst still somewhat prominent on the torso, it's definitely more subtle then before, like on the gun.

Finally I thought I'd end this update with a photo of the current state of play of the dread, you can rally see the difference the was makes when compares with the other subassemblies.

I'm hoping to get some work done on the beast this week, but that depends on both work and my health.

One of the reasons I feel like I am behind schedule is because I have been ill this last week (last Saturday I didn't even get out of bed all day), so I'm hoping it starts to clear up and I can stop having coughing fits* so I can paint normally again.

Next steps are to block in the details on the torso leaving the weathered colours beneath, and to start with the rest of the parts.

It's just this is the start of the time consuming part of painting with picking out panels and details, etc. 

Then CHECKERS!!!!!!!!!

I advise anyone reading to check out the Dreadtober blog here:- Dreadtober as there are some cracking entries being worked upon.

So, Until next time, have nice day...

*Fortunately it's not, whatever variant of COVID is doing the rounds in the UK. It just seems like a bad chest infection/dry insistent coughing.

Dreadtober 2024 - Rusty Metal.

 

The first update of Dreadtober is in.

After getting the build together...and using the most pins I've EVER used on a single model sorted, I was keen to begin painting, conscious of the fact that I've still got to go to work and that will eat into hobby time.

My usual Ork scheme is what I'll be aiming for, and this is Mekka-Dread is going to be a centerpiece for the Dreadmob I did for my first Dreadtober in 2022, so it needs to match those.

One thing I decided to try differently then my usual method is to use a coloured undercoat.

I normally work over a grey undercoat and then add a coat of watered down orange paint as the basecoat of the rust, as it will flow deeply into the recesses.

A trip to the local Range* store procured this can of Yellow-Orange. I use Maston Colour sprays for my primer now, and this is in the Maston One range, meant to give one coat coverage but I found it a little thin and needed to give two primer coats, using more paint then I would have liked.

Once the dread had dried it was looking very bright, but a great starting point for the rusty metal.

First step is to heavily drybrush the entire model with Warplock Bronze (I used the last of my very old pot of Tin Bitz** for this).

The second step is a lighter drybrush using Leadbelcher**. This gives the metal sheen I was looking for, whilst keeping the darker metal and rusty orange in the recesses.

It still looks a little orange and bright at the moment, once I've gotten some coloured panels down and areas for checkers marked out, I'm going to hit the entire model with a dark brown wash to darker it down.

But this will be in the next post.

Until next time, have nice day...

*For non-UK readers, The Range is kind of a general store which sells craft materials, furniture, interior decorating stuff, food, etc)

**Before one of GWs renaming for "licensing purposes" periods, the paint Warplock Bronze was formerly called Tin Bitz.

Likewise Leadbelcher was formerly Boltgun Metal. Mephiston Red was Blood Red, etc.

Dreadtober 2024 preparation.

 

As has become tradition over the past couple of years, during October I'm going to be taking part in Dreadtober again.

The first year I completed an Ork Dreadmob and last year I painted up two World Eaters Legion Dreadnaughts for the Heresy period.

This year I decided to head back to my beloved Greenskins and tackle a model which I ALWAYS wanted but was never able to afford from Forge World before it was discontinued.

A Meka-Dread!!!!

A huge mechanical monstrosity armed with a massive Buzzsaw and a Shunta/Zzap Kannon. As well as a multitude of smaller holding klaw arms, and piloted by the maddest of Big Mel's makes this a brilliant kit.

As alluded to, I think the kit is Out of Production now, but as is usual for Forge World it was ridiculously priced for their lack of quality control so I haven't got that kit.

Instead, I found a free to download STL of the Meka-Dread on the purple site* and downloaded and printed my own.

After a few full build plates, washing and curing the parts I was left with this:

There are some serious chunks of resin there, lots of pinning will be needed!

Making a start, I began with the engine block as that seemed the easiest. The top exhaust and the pipes on the side were separate and easy enough to glue together:

Next I decided to tackle to Shunta-Kannon, this was in seven pieces total, and as there is a fair chunk of weight hanging off the shoulder I decided to add pins throughout this piece.

There are five or six pins in this gun alone!

Not photographed yet, but I also have the legs glued together and pinned with the hip joint added, so the beast is almost ready for priming.

I'm going to use my traditional Ork Goff scheme, starting from an orange basecoat to begin the rust effect, and then work up through metallics and add the black, red and checkers on the armour panels.

As usual through the month I'll document progress to keep everyone updated as well as for Dreadtober itself who post a weekly round up of everyone who signed up to take part.

Until next time, have nice day...

*If any of you reading this doesn't know what the "purple site" is, I will explain if needed. But as I know at least one GW staff member who reads this sometimes, I don't want to get the 3D modeller in trouble.

Dreadtober 2023 - part 4.

 

A rythmic pounding sound echoed from the stricken drop pod as Ghrast scrambled back over the rubble. It was clear that Dhekarst wasn't going to wait to be released from the transport, rather punch his was clear.

Oresk was busily butchering a scouting party which had found them even as Ghrast crested the wall of the ruined manufactory, the piercing shriek of tormented metal announced that Brother Dhekarst was now free.

A blinding flash erupted as he fired his Lascannon as something Ghrast couldn't see, sparking off an explosion as the high powered laser slammed into the ruins.

Ghrast ripped his bolt pistol from its holster and shot a charging Infantryman, sending the body tumbling through the air, limbs flailing with the freedom of death.

He thumbed on his Auspex scanner and turned trying to see some form of numbers of enemies.

Perhaps a platoon worth of mortal troops had stumbled upon them, armoured vehicles in tow, no doubt hoping to destroy the World Eaters who had become separated from the main force.

Dhekarst fired his heavy Lascannon again, a deeper explosion answering as he definitely hit something this time.

Oresk stomped his was forward, bloody smears ground into the dirt beneath the weight of the machine.

Ghrast felt the Butcher's Nails beginning to dig into his skull as the carnage erupted.

Without realising, he was charging forwards into the mortals, firing his pistol wildly.

His axe swung, separating head from neck, arm from torso and body from waist.

He saw only red and didn't register the burning promethium falling around him as both Oresk and Dhekarst stalked forward firing their Lascnnons in unison. Touching off a fuel storage tank and lighting the entire ruined building with hellish firelight.

*****

Phew, this was cutting it close this year, but both Dreadnaughts are fully completed for the deadline (Dreadline?) and ready to serve on the battlefields of Terra:

Brother Dhekarst in all his glory:

He uses the same techniques as detailed in my previous post for Dreadtober, just this time with a lot more red as he's further along the eightfold path then the previous dreadnaught.

I have three remaining Castra-Ferrum Dreadnaughts left over from the box I got from my friend. The state of these three shows you how much work went into the two World Eater ones featured for Dreadtober this year:

Everything completed so far for the Twelfth Legion:

Half of the next unit for this army is on the way as well now, I'm starting to bring in some Troops choices, considering most of the HQ and Elite sections are done now, just a second Apothecary to go.

These follow the ethos of mixing and matching any marine/chaos and Berzerker parts I can get my hand on, with a few 3D printed heads thrown in as well:

"BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!"

Until next time, have nice day...

Dreadtober 2023 - part 3.

 

Ghrast stood at the edge of the crater looking at the second drop pod. He had already been working fifteen minutes opening up the first pod as its doors had locked slightly open due to the damage caused upon its arrival planetside.

This second drop pod had smashed through four floors and was buried beneath the rubble, as well as broken manufacturing equipment which had fallen in as well. He could hear the straining of servo's as the machine spirit kept trying to open doors which were lodged shut by debris.

"Brother Oresk, I will be sometime freeing the other drop pod, I will need covering to keep the enemies at bay whilst I work" Ghrast voxed to the already freed Dreadnaught.

The box like silhouette stamping its way through the murk simply raised its huge Powerfist in response and began a patrol.

Ghrast began smashing rubble with his Omnissian Axe and lifting chunks with his servo-arm. He estimated perhaps twenty, twenty-five minutes before be could open one of the doors.

If they had that long...

*****

Seventeen minutes exactly and the counter attack began.

Ghrast first heard it through the booming of nearby launched mortar shells exploding. Severely off the target of course, but still that meant enemies were nearby.

"Brother Oresk, do you read me?" He voxed, he'd managed to dig out most of the door, but hadn't began ministrations to get the damn thing open yet.

A bark of Storm Bolter fire echoed before Ghrast's vox link crackled into life.

A shrill scream erupted in his earpiece before being silenced and the deep baritone voice of the dreadnaught sounded.

"What is it Techmarine? I've got enemies to kill"

Despite the situation Ghrast smiled, "Understood Brother, Ghrast out".

A whirring power build drew his attention towards the stricken transport pod. It seemed it's occupant had survived the misdrop and was waking up.

"This is Techmarine Ghrast, Brother Dhekarst, are you recieving me?"

"Yes Brother, I appear to be in one piece, but unable to exit the drop pod"

"Yes, I am working on that, the machine spirit of the drop pod was offended by it's landing, it will be some time before I can open it"

"STAND ASIDE"

*****

Well, we're nearly at the end of October, which means we're also nearly at the end of Dreadtober.

Sadly, due to the extremely unsettled weather here in the UK recently, I haven't had as much time to hobby as I would have liked, due to rail lines and yards being flooded, and stricken freight trains to secure either in our yards or stable in sidings nearest to them.

I have however managed to get Brother Oresk fully finished and matching the previous World Eaters I had painted for this project:

The off white from the "Marine-Juice" wash really shows up on these larger models.

I'm pleased with how this started as a generic Assault of Black Reach dreadnaught from all those years ago, and has now been recycled and converted up into this Warmachine of the Twelfth Legion, the centre of the sarcophagus received those armour panels because of damage the dreadnaught had suffered before when someone obviously tried to grind away the winged skull which should have been there.

A lot of the symbology, like the ravening jaws are made from plasticard, with the rivets and spike being of all things, supports from 3D printed models!

I'm particularly fond of the skulls attached to the side of the Lascannon, being cut in half and filed flat before being glued to the trophy slot I built there.

If Dreadtober ends tomorrow at midnight, I'm not entirely sure when it does actually end as we normally go until the end of October, which falls on a Tuesday and then do the finished updates the following weekend. I can say that I am happy I got at least one of the Dreadnaughts finished with the second one, just needing a few highlights to be done 

Hopefully I can get Brother Dhekarst finished and have him added to the end of project update, but we'll see, back on night shifts at work which eat up a lot of my hobby time due to the altered schedule you're on, simply by working during the night and sleeping the morning away.

Until next time, have nice day...

Dreadtober 2023 - part 2.

 

Techmarine Ghrast ground his teeth as he listened to the report from the ship in low-orbit. Both of the assault forces Dreadnaughts had been dropped off target and we're not responding, and even though he fought the fog in his head caused by the Butcher's Nails, he knew that they would need the firepower of the venerable brothers in the near future.

"I'll handle it, Ghrast out" he growled into the vox link, his bronze teeth chinking as they clicked together.

He checked his position from the co-ordinates he had been sent and started the loping, ground eating stride Astartes adopted when they ran.

Smashing through ruins with his axe rather then going around, the Techmarine cut a strange sight as he bounded along, in a completely different direction to the main assault. Servo-arm tucked against his back to make better speed.

He'd made better time than he hoped as he had not run into any enemy patrol's, they were all too busy countering the orbital drop of the main force as he closed in on the transponder signals of the drop pods.

The report was accurate, the dreadnaught drop pods had both landed within fifty yards of each other and within the same manufactorum, bringing the roof down and a fair portion of the walls. This was the cause of the non-responses from the Dreadnaughts, trapped by rubble the doors of the pods couldn't open.

Heaving himself alongside one of the stricken drop pods, Ghrast immediately began throwing chunks of rubble away and his servo-arm sprang into action lifting steel girders out of the way with little effort.

As he found he had room, he jammed the end of his axe into the seam of the drop pod door and proceeded to force it open, the way a mortal would open an ammunition crate using a crowbar.

A huge white slab of armour greeted his efforts, bronze trimmed and battle scarred, the venerable machine sat waiting. The sky blue of the legion colour slowing being replaced by a deep blood red as the legion transformed by the will of their new patron.

The view-slit on the sarcophagus lit up an angry orange as the growing electrical whine signalled a full power up of the machine. Heat distortion rippling from the turbine exhausts and the engine spooled up.

"YOU TOOK YOUR TIME TECHMARINE"...

*****

The forge has been busy this past week working up some armour Anti-Tank support for the Twelfth Legion.

I know that you can field havoc/heavy support squads in any Legion, but I never felt that they fit the theme of the World Eaters*, especially by the time they get to Terra and have fallen fully into the embrace of Khorne.

The infantry with the Butcher's Nails forcing their actions, in my opinion, wouldn't be able to hold a good firing position and not succumb to the temptation to charge headfirst at the first target to come close to melee range.

Instead I wanted to use vehicles for that role in my army, and with it being Dreadtober, what better way then to get some Anti-Tank support through the Castra-Ferrum Dreadnaughts.

My rationale is that they have some sort of circuitry over-riding the nails until they are released by the Techmarine present and given over to melee like the rest of the legion.

So after a week and a bit of chopping plasticard and adding details, the two Dreadnaughts for my army are here in their painting sub-phases:

A close look, the skulls added to the sides of the arms were chopped in half removing the rear rounded portion and filed flat, before being glued inside the boxed off area, which was made from 1mm strips of plasticard cut to size.

The Powerfist sides of the Dreadnaughts had much the same work done, one had a piece of banding added around the fist by adding another strip of plasticard:

And the business end, the front facings.

The dreadnaught on the left has had its sarcophagus left as was, but the armour planels each side have been paneled over and a Khornate symbol added using plasticard. 

Lots of trophy chains taken from various chaos vehicle kits were then slung under the chassis, all swinging the same direction to convey movement.

The right hand dreadnaught had some damage to the sarcophagus, so this was scraped flat and then a detail added through the plasticard method.

This time the armour planels got a World Eaters symbol and a spare Khorne Crest from a Blood Warrior was added above.

Both dreadnaught have skulls mounted on spikes above the sarcophagi, the spikes made from 3D print supports of all things, the various rivets added to the plates are also from the same source:

The bases, as it normal for my urban assault force, are made from cut up and torn up cork sheeting, along with some random dotted skulls and the "rebar" poking up is actually detonator wire which came from a mine which was closing down.

Alongside Dreadtober, I've also been assembling an Death Korps of Krieg army for a friend in order to play a game against Cardboard Fortress's Guard later in the month when we have another gaming day, so that's why it's taken a little longer then it normally would have to get to this stage.

So next steps are to start painting the pair and getting them ready to face the loyalists across the battlefields of the 31st millennium.

Until next time, have nice day...

* I know, I know, I am trying to add logic and reason to a make believe military force.

It's my hobby and I'll rationalize it anyway I want to thank you.