I've hit one of those impasses at the moment where my enthusiasm for the projects I've outlined so far has waned somewhat. Nothings been abandoned mind, I'm just not feeling excited about any of the stuff thats on my painting table at the moment. Now, this isn't an unfamiliar feeling for me - it was exactly this sort of thing that I mentioned in this blogs inaugural post. So I'm not worried by any means as I know at some point in the future I'll feel drawn back to one of my many ongoing projects and things will start running smoothly again.
But what do I do until then?
Well, I have no intention of buying anything new at the moment, so it's time to consider a little recycling. A dig through my bits box unearthed many and various almost-forgotten miniature treasures, but what really caught my attention was two Forgeworld Renegade Militia torsos which I think I aquired a while back in a trade. I love a lot of the Forgeworld stuff - I think their resin bits and bobs are fantastically sculpted (I've never owned any of their multipart kits, so issues with warped resin and miscasts are not something I'm qualified to espouse an opinion on at this stage - maybe that'll change in the future...) and are extremely evocative of the 40k universe.
But the thing that really makes FW shine is the background that goes into their minis. With the two Renegade torsos in mind, I dug out Imperial Armour 5 - The Siege of Vraks (part 1) and started rereading. Its been a while since I last leafed through this mighty tome, so it feels a bit like reading it for the first time, which is never a bad thing. And it's brilliant! The detail laid out in the description of Vraks' fall into the hands of the power-mad Cardinal Xaphan and the response of the Imperium to this wolf in their midst is staggering. Practically every paragraph of the historical narrative carries an insight into life in the Imperium, or a cool character or event. This is how source books and campaigns should be written. This is how conflict in the 40k universe should play out - treachery, bloodshed, the balletic dance of massed units of infantry and armour, uplifting victories, crushing defeats, hope and despair. And possibly the biggest bonus to the modeller/wargamer has to be the descriptions of the historic battles, complete with detailed army lists of the forces involved. No need to spend hours deliberating over how best to equip your troops before daring to apply glue to plastic/resin - it's all there, right down to heavy weapons choices and special wargear!
No prizes for guessing where this post is going. ;)
A quick trawl through the bits box has revealed a fair number of cadian bits (including many, many heavy weapons), a squad of traitor marines (well, almost - 8 out of 10 ain't bad!) begging to be repainted as Alpha Legion, plus my two Renegade torsos. Certainly enough to get a couple of squads together for a paint test. Beyond this, I've got my Red Scorpions (they turn up in part 2 or 3 of the Siege I believe), and a Death Korps tank commander (hardly a regiment but from the smallest acorns...) should I ever decide to tackle the forces of the Imperium in this little theatre.
However, one major plus point for starting a Vraksian project is that my Ecclisiarchy army needn't be ignored. All they need is a change of allegiance (except the Sisters ofcourse, who still have their own place in the Vraks incident) and I have a solid basis for the troops of Cardinal Xaphan. Even my Redemptionists will have a place, appearing as the elite and fanatical Disciples of Xaphan.
And, paint test going well, perhaps my two lone Renegades will find themselves joined by a few more ForgeWorld reinforcements sometime soon. :)
So perhaps this isn't a new project so much as a reimagining of an old one?
Thanks for reading, any and all comments gratefully received.
Anodyr
