tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90351858071868995462024-03-05T16:20:39.676-08:00Fight Fire With Fireextremis malis extrema remedia--exitus acta probat--similia similibus curanturVirtual Strangerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01040333093180694172noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9035185807186899546.post-88649061862165657722018-11-27T10:17:00.000-08:002018-11-27T10:17:04.036-08:00The Propecy Fulfiled<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Wow.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><a href="https://relictorschapter.blogspot.com/2018/11/marines-are-doomed.html">Guess I called that one.</a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Primaris Marneus Calgar,
coming soon to a battlefield near you.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbcXo42iCeBpCK4aLMaW6gih_JllCwSzWoiHS11ccscKXhp18odkFvqJoqdmnFTyziEWNHVFX2AFgvdquHbx5CxsP2siJf4vVtFHlIzTdbmwO6_kUD-7WPu-emBKM0uT7LXn2ym2eWi_Q/s1600/VigilusWeekender-Nov24-Calgar10vrnthjwsc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbcXo42iCeBpCK4aLMaW6gih_JllCwSzWoiHS11ccscKXhp18odkFvqJoqdmnFTyziEWNHVFX2AFgvdquHbx5CxsP2siJf4vVtFHlIzTdbmwO6_kUD-7WPu-emBKM0uT7LXn2ym2eWi_Q/s320/VigilusWeekender-Nov24-Calgar10vrnthjwsc.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><a href="https://www.warhammer-community.com/2018/11/24/breaking-news-from-the-vigilus-open-daygw-homepage-post-1fw-homepage-post-1/">And please note the text</a>—“<span style="color: black;"> so it’s only fitting that this venerable hero is the <i>first</i>
to be reborn as a Primaris Space Marine. </span>“<br />
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>(emphasis
mine)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This
isn’t a fluke or a one-off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
where everyone’s headed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Plan
accordingly. And let's all hope for a new Abaddon...</span></div>
</div>
Virtual Strangerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01040333093180694172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9035185807186899546.post-48713918352079450932018-11-20T17:00:00.001-08:002018-11-20T17:00:56.529-08:00Marines Are Doomed<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Okay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A little over a year since the last post.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’m good at
keeping to that schedule.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So, I’ve
slowed down a bit with my Relictors lately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The classics anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was a
point that I had a beautiful, long-range plan of making the full Chapter, with
things get increasingly Chaos-esque as they moved higher and higher thought the
ranks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Six companies at the very (LINK)
least.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Of course,
then GW advanced the story a bit, the Relictors were declared heretics and
all-but-wiped out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So my plans were put
on hold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Partly for financial reasons,
yeah, but also because... well, I just wasn’t having much fun with 40K anymore.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7qJWMQEmY32p6G740tnucuqrbpgBVJ-m1UiA3hshyphenhyphenFYyjXJuMAlNo4ujOBlLga95KIJcExPsMEeNfMfBQKX0uuMTPOH56Sy4O-2Euhu5qOvSNH7EvQzQPfUun1TyKhM-WXnhmM7hQz0E/s1600/Relictors+2ns.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="811" data-original-width="997" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7qJWMQEmY32p6G740tnucuqrbpgBVJ-m1UiA3hshyphenhyphenFYyjXJuMAlNo4ujOBlLga95KIJcExPsMEeNfMfBQKX0uuMTPOH56Sy4O-2Euhu5qOvSNH7EvQzQPfUun1TyKhM-WXnhmM7hQz0E/s200/Relictors+2ns.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Then... 8th
edition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And Primaris.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And a quiet <a href="https://relictorschapter.blogspot.com/2017/07/rulebook-redemption.html">redemption for the Relictors</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which also gave me <a href="https://relictorschapter.blogspot.com/2017/06/primaris-relictors_21.html">some justification for including them</a> as my new Second Company.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I spent a good four or five weeks, altogether,
building and painting up all of those.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And I have
a lot of unbuilt regular, non-Primaris Space Marines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thirty or forty, easy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So... yeah, I’ve been thinking about a full Chapter
again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My dear friend Marcus keeps
creeping towards it with his Dark Angels.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>However...</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I find
myself more and more reluctant to piece these guys together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Definitely holding back on ordering more
parts for them—the odd special chest plate, a specific helmet or head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And any sort of vehicle... probably not in my
future.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Why?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I think
Space Marines are doomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not just the
Relictors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All of ‘em.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Allow me to
explain.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And please
remember, this is just me pulling thoughts out of my butt that could explain
recent design/ sales ideas while also explaining a few things in-story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="https://thoth-amon.blogspot.com/2018/09/elementary.html">The Watsonian and Doylist views</a> of
tabletop gaming, if you will.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m up for
hearing other thoughts, but if you just want to have a screaming argument,
there’s lots of other places on the interwebs for that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Go knock yourself out.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Anyway...</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I mentioned
a while back <a href="http://thegrimcheapness.blogspot.com/2017/08/primarisan-introspective.html">on my other hobby blog</a> that I got to sit in on a Titan
Comics panel about Warhammer 40,000, and they shared a few in-story aspects
about the Primaris that had come straight from Games Workshop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the key ones, I think, is that <i>any</i>
existing Space Marine can be become a Primaris.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Once they get the extra organs implanted, their bodies change and grow
and boom—a couple months later they’re even taller and wider.</div>
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I think
this is noteworthy for a couple of reasons.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><a href="http://atomicwarlords.blogspot.com/2018/10/the-lost-and-damned.html">I scribbled up a little thing</a> for <b><i>The Atomic Warlords</i></b> a few weeks back
talking about how many Space Marine characters have effectively gone
missing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pretty much all of them,
really.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When was the last time you saw a
Tigerius figure in the wild?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or
Lysander?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Shrike?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Emperor’s Champion?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pedro Kantor? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So, going
off the information in those last two paragraphs, what’s a likely thing we’ll
see in the future?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I wouldn’t
be at all surprised if there are Primaris versions of all these characters in
the works.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>GW needs to re-release them
somehow anyway, and this way justifies all new plastic models and a revised
Codex (with all the small tweaks that would be needed after a year or so of
eighth edition play).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus, it wouldn’t
be hard to rationalize a little size difference so Primaris Marneus Calgar is
still wearing the only-slightly-retooled Armor of Atilochus and Gauntlets of
Ultramar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Marines get to keep all
their relic-esque weapons and armor while still getting Primaris upgrades.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Imagine a Primaris Lysander in gravis armor with
his hammer and shield, or Primaris Pedro Kantor with the Arrow of Dorn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hell, I’d probably never play the army, but
I’d be tempted to buy a Primaris Gabriel Seth with Blood Reaver just because I
bet he’d look so friggin’ cool...</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Of course,
once we’ve got all these command units... what’s the point of regular Marines
anymore, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mean, really, at this
point there hasn’t been a “classic” Space Marine release in... three
years?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Deathwatch, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dark Vengeance was back in 2012, and that
didn’t really bring a lot of useful stuff to the table.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even the current crop of codexes talk about
Primaris assimilating into the Space Wolves, the Dark Angels, and so on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heck, we’ve been openly told this is a new
founding with new, 100% Primaris Chapters.<br />
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The whole Space Marine line
could be quietly phased out and replaced with more Primaris options.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More weapon choices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bigger tanks and transports.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dreadnaught variations.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And at some
point...we’re just saying all Space Marines are Primaris now.<br />
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Really, I wouldn’t be shocked
if in another two or three years regular Space Marines are pretty much
gone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From shelves and rules.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And if
you’re reading this thinking “hahahaaaa, they couldn’t do that with one of
their biggest lines...”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>have you seen
the new Kill Team Commanders book?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All
Primaris.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heck, if you want precedent, look
at how many armies and units from Warhammer were swept off the table during the
shift to Age of Sigmar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bretonnians,
Tomb Kings, the Empire, Dogs of War... <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7k5cFgYCRrAvG8nLrxtBlEe8NMgbmcz82Uoqh6avPoGygWm0erM2-iABb3E6DWGyAJxqkdQoB2Q2ra-OuIfom3lX4BT-WH3DHInubOTS15671YVPshLD5MU-W69YXaoTQNjSlhBE-9Yo/s1600/20171015_151643.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1258" data-original-width="1600" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7k5cFgYCRrAvG8nLrxtBlEe8NMgbmcz82Uoqh6avPoGygWm0erM2-iABb3E6DWGyAJxqkdQoB2Q2ra-OuIfom3lX4BT-WH3DHInubOTS15671YVPshLD5MU-W69YXaoTQNjSlhBE-9Yo/s200/20171015_151643.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And it’s not just loyalist
Marines, either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The most recent
Chaos/Traitor/Heretic releases have been the Thousand Sons and Death
Guard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’re both notably larger than
previous versions, and much more in scale with the Primaris Marines.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Plus, that
idea of Primaris gene seed being able to enhance classic Marines?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s no stipulation that they have to be <i>loyalist</i>
Marines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Alpha Legion intercepts a
certain convoy, the Iron Warriors lay siege to a certain Mechanicus storage
center, and look at this... suddenly we have Primaris Fabius Bile (another fig
in desperate need of a resculpt/re-release).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Who could be quickly followed by (speaking of <i>desperately</i> needing
a new model) Primaris Abaddon.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So now we
don’t just have new models—we’ve got an event to promote them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A crisis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A huge shift across the galaxy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
new box set game to sell!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Plus—if I
may be so bold—this would be a huge chance to finally differentiate Chaos
Marines from loyalists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All along, the
heretics have pretty much been “loyalists with horns” and <a href="http://atomicwarlords.blogspot.com/2013/11/happy-chaos-giving.html">most of the big differences</a> have been about what the Chaos Marines <i>don’t</i> get.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have very few unique (or at least unique
and useful) units or wargear.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>But if the
loyalists move on to this degree, it could mean a huge difference.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heretics could still have all their old armor
and heavy weapons and bolters while Loyalists go through a substantial shift in
their weapons and tactics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Chaos could
finally, truly have a “retro” Marine look... which would also give them an
in-story reason to up their own game and start making their own unique, Chaos-fuelled
weapons. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Anyway...
just some random thoughts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Feel free
to toss agreements, counterpoints, or other forms of polite discourse below.</div>
</div>
Virtual Strangerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01040333093180694172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9035185807186899546.post-32829424537605020332017-07-16T23:04:00.004-07:002018-11-20T16:42:20.246-08:00Rulebook Redemption<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
Just wanted to point a fun
fact I noticed last night...</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Page 161 of
the new rulebook still lists the Relictors as one of the final defenders of Cadia, there for Lord Castellant Ursarkar Creed's last stand. Two of their
companies stayed to the bitter end.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Two things about this...</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>One</b>,
this doesn’t quite line up with the history we know. We know they were
there. We know they were following their
own agenda, as a whole chapter. And because of this—and some other Puritan
nonsense—they were declared traitors and supposedly fled to the Eye of Terror.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So if the
whole chapter was always off somewhere else all together, and then fled <i>en masse</i>... how did
two companies end up defending Cadia at the very end?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Possible
answer—they came back. Space Marines have entered the Eye before. The Relictors may have been finishing up
their own business and then returned to do their job. This could all be the spin job of one small
faction of the Inquisition. Heck, possibly just <i>one</i> Inquisitor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
(Looking at
you, Cyarro—possible Alpha Legion agent)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
More to the
point—point <b>two</b>, in fact—the rulebook itself lists them as a loyalist
chapter. It hasn’t shunted them over to traitor legions or heretic forces. The
Relictors are clearly listed as one of the Imperial forces defending
Cadia. Their contribution hasn’t been
excised or removed or rewritten.</div>
Fight fire
with fire.</div>
Virtual Strangerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01040333093180694172noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9035185807186899546.post-74636616971294667612017-06-21T13:05:00.000-07:002017-06-21T13:05:12.062-07:00Primaris Relictors<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
Oh, look. A
new post. It’s been a while.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Three and a half years.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I had all
these great plans for this page. Working
through my different Relictors companies and models, explaining the how and why
of them. But then my career kinda took
off (which ends up being oddly time-consuming) and...</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To be
honest, I grew<a href="http://thegrimcheapness.blogspot.com/2017/06/counting-hours.html"> a bit frustrated</a> with 40K. And with Games Workshop in general. But that’s a story I’ve told in <a href="http://atomicwarlords.blogspot.com/2014/04/chaos-bias.html">a few other places</a>. The important thing is
that Dark Imperium has really revived my interest in the game and the universe.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
When we last left the
Relictors, they’d been all-but-destroyed.
Declared heretics by members of the Inquisition and <a href="http://relictorschapter.blogspot.com/2013/11/relictors-organization.html">more than half their number wiped out</a> by the Grey Knights, the survivors had... well,
vanished. Nobody knows where to. Possibly the Eye of Terror. Maybe still
somewhere within the Imperium...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9onro4Ja9DifEFYAT8RNx2j3oA4dDFyIGUurirzDhbj9FPSQ3jkVLC0jsJrMnIFEJEi8DPzfmtyCqZQZaKxvhoMzaWIxc1pgPR052wIPIfUsGM-PnCqjLpzJ0lrBQ6aMqw3QQxgk-EYg/s1600/PrimarisCaptain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="847" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9onro4Ja9DifEFYAT8RNx2j3oA4dDFyIGUurirzDhbj9FPSQ3jkVLC0jsJrMnIFEJEi8DPzfmtyCqZQZaKxvhoMzaWIxc1pgPR052wIPIfUsGM-PnCqjLpzJ0lrBQ6aMqw3QQxgk-EYg/s320/PrimarisCaptain.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Which
brings me to the Primaris Space Marines.
At first I figured it’d be impossible to justify/rationalize adding
Primaris to my army. Sure, Roboute Guilliman offered the next-generation
Marines (and/or the tech to make them) to whatever Chapter could use them.
Would that include a Chapter that had been named traitors, though? A Chapter whose very location was unknown?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So... bear
with me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Gulliman
definitely has a different view of the Imperium than anyone alive today. He sees the overcomplicated, superstitious
machine it’s become, as opposed to the thing of purity and strength it was
supposed to be. He’s also viewing it
through the eyes of a primarch. He’s
legendary for seeing the big picture, playing the long game. When he’s playing chess, he’s seeing fifteen
moves ahead in the game he’s going to play against <i>her</i> once he’s done
playing this game with you.<br />
<br />
With all that in mind... maybe
he would send a squad or two of Primaris to join the Relictors. Perhaps he doesn’t feel being censured by the
Inquisition is the end-all, be-all that most “modern” people do. Could be he sees something further down the
road, an outcome no one else does, and the Relictors are part of it. Heck, maybe he’d send them the better part of
a whole company to help bolster their depleted ranks.<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal">
But how
would the Primaris themselves deal with this?
Would they be horrified to find out their new Chapter is using these
cursed weapons of Chaos? Would they
return to Gulliman in horror? Try to
take down the Conclave from within?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Maybe not.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
It’s been stated a few times
now from GW that while they’re all modern beings, the Primaris have a very 31st
Millennium mindset, much like Gulliman himself.
They don’t believe in a lot of the... well, mythology that’s sprung up
around the Emperor. And around his enemies.
It’s likely that the idea of treating Chaos as a tool, an energy source—of
fighting fire with fire—could appeal to an even slightly open-minded Primaris.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Which is why the
Primaris Marines in <a href="http://amzn.to/2sTMEf9">the Dark Imperium set </a>have become the new Second Company of
my Relictors.<br />
<br />
But I’ll get to that in a bit.<br />
<br />
Next time... a few quick
conversions.</div>
Virtual Strangerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01040333093180694172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9035185807186899546.post-2984227116174603722013-11-11T13:47:00.002-08:002013-11-11T13:48:40.047-08:00Relictors and Helmets<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Hopefully
we can all agree that <i><b><a href="http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/globalLanding.jsp?gotoGWSPage=http%3A//www.games-workshop.com/gws/home.jsp">Warhammer 40,000</a></b></i> is a fantasy game. Not in the lizard men-and- elves-and-dragons
way, but in the sense that it has little grounding in science. It has some of the trappings of sci-fi, but
they’re all there to set the mood more than help create a sense of
plausibility.</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIblmLzd0EY6ijkheZPhUh6ku_wduDKVrPLC-cnr58dvQdXn7sSIeyBd9blAjLgvTyD6dZCQwnTvOcFM86wGtgmpEkB28QAxFWb-1dHR4ZkrJQkovOdK1Gi0QApSpvUOykG4igB977xVs/s1600/post-3-1241478301.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIblmLzd0EY6ijkheZPhUh6ku_wduDKVrPLC-cnr58dvQdXn7sSIeyBd9blAjLgvTyD6dZCQwnTvOcFM86wGtgmpEkB28QAxFWb-1dHR4ZkrJQkovOdK1Gi0QApSpvUOykG4igB977xVs/s200/post-3-1241478301.jpg" width="200" /></a> As such, I
understand the inherent flaws of the world, since it is more about the game
than about believability. The Imperium
has miles-long spaceships that can decimate planets and massive war-robots that
can level cities, yet we routinely send out guys with swords and pistols to
fight our enemies hand to hand. Many
folks have pointed out the silliness in this.</div>
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It’s also
been brought up (although not quite as often) that the idea of un-helmeted
Space Marines doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Power armor is the very high-end of personal protection. It enhances the wearer’s strength and senses,
not to mention providing a pile of tactical information. And a lot of time and work goes into making a
Space Marine. You think you’d want to
protect that investment from, say, some kid with a rock and a sling...</div>
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All that
being said, I recognize that a lot of models look very cool with their helmets
off. And it does fit with some of the
more savage and feral chapters like the Space Wolves, White Scars, or Blood
Angels. So I’d never mock anyone for an un-helmeted
marine. Even for a lot of them.</div>
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<a href="http://d1466nnw0ex81e.cloudfront.net/n_iv/600/609483.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://d1466nnw0ex81e.cloudfront.net/n_iv/600/609483.jpg" width="144" /></a></div>
Anyway, all
that was tickling at the back of my head when I first started assembling my
Relictors army. I’d had a bunch of
marines kind of kicking around, but couldn’t settle on a Chapter that really
appealed to me. Then White Dwarf 295 came out and I was hooked. My friends
saw the article and even they said “that’ll be his chapter.”<br />
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I had about
thirty-odd Relictors painted up when I realized that, by odd chance, not one of
them had an exposed head. It was just
what I’d built in the past and what I’d picked when I started assembling the
army. But I really liked it, and decided
early on that the Relictors would always wear helmets—everyone from the newest
marine to the Chapter Master and every rank in between.<br />
<br />
It was only later that I
realized this also gave them a sinister edge.
Since so many marines are modeled or drawn with bare heads, there’s
something a bit off-putting about a group of marines that don’t show
anything. And I realized it’s not that
the Relictors aren’t showing their faces... it’s the subtle, underlying message
that they’re hiding something.</div>
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Now if GW
would just make a helmeted Librarian again...</div>
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Virtual Strangerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01040333093180694172noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9035185807186899546.post-89691194394974762462013-11-03T13:02:00.000-08:002013-12-07T13:13:45.931-08:00Relictors Organization<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Despite
some of their<a href="http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Relictors"> more controversial weapons choices</a>, I think the Relictors are
pretty much a Codex chapter. Sources say
at least part of their gene-seed comes from Ultramarines stock. As such, I’ll probably be playing them as an
Ultramarines successor chapter in sixth edition, and I think their organization reflects that
overall.</div>
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That being
said, there’s also some switches and changes, and it makes sense to me that the
Relictors should be a little...off.
They’re really close to being a mainstream chapter, but there are a few
places where they just don’t line up. So
I thought I’d jot down a few notes and thoughts about where I think they’d be
different and how those differences might reflect—stylistically—in my actual
army and army lists.</div>
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The biggest
difference between the Relictors and a regular Space Marine chapter is the
Conclave. According to the various
fluff, the Conclave is a sort of “inner circle” of the Relictors. A close analogue would be the Mournival,
Horus’s group of commanders and captains before the Heresy (no irony
there). The Conclave is made up of the
high-ranking officers and veterans who actually use Chaos artifacts. The idea is that the rank-and-file don’t know
where the chapter’s powerful relics come from, and those marines are kept far
away until they’ve proven themselves physically/mentally/spiritually strong
enough to use them without risk of corruption</div>
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<o:p> </o:p> </div>
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So, with
that in mind, let’s consider basic chapter structure. Veterans are generally “above” regular Marines
and Scouts, and Captains and command squads are above them. There also seems to be a hierarchy among
companies—that the First Company commander is considered a bit higher up the
chain than the Sixth Company commander, for example. This gave me a good sense of which members of
the Relictors are a bit more mainstream and which are probably members of the
Conclave (with all that implies). </div>
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For
modeling purposes, I decided that the Chapter Master and the first five company
captains probably made up the Conclave.
Their assorted honor guards and command squads were probably included as
well. And it wouldn’t be that unusual to
see some lesser Chaos weapons scattered throughout the First Company, too. This was where future Captains and command
squads would most likely come from, after all.</div>
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This also
meant a bit of shuffling and tweaks when it came to titles and duties. If I accept a ranking of the different
Captains, for example, it doesn’t make sense that the Master of Relics would be
the Ninth Company commander. Not within
the Relictors, anyway. So I restructured
the titles like so.</div>
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First
Company—Master of Secrets</div>
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Second
Company—Master of the Vault*</div>
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Third
Company—Master of the Arsenal</div>
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Fourth
Company—<a href="http://relictorschapter.blogspot.com/2013/10/test.html">Master of the Fleet</a></div>
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Fifth Company—Master
of Relics</div>
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Sixth
Company—Master of the Rites * </div>
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Seventh
Company—Master of the Hunt *</div>
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Eighth
Company—Lord Executioner *</div>
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Ninth
Company—Master of the Marches *</div>
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Tenth
Company – Master of Recruits</div>
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The
asterisks mark positions that are, shall we politely say, currently open. Since the Inquisition’s censure of—and <a href="http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Relictors">completely unwarranted attack on</a>—the Relictors, the chapter has been notably
under-strength. While I have full faith
that their name will be cleared in the near future (if the world
of the game ever gets there...), for now they’ll remain low in numbers and with
few recruits or Scouts. So, as much fun
as it would be to build a full chapter, I think I’ll be building toward this
idea.</div>
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I also
decided to swap the company colors for the first and fifth companies, making
the First Company black/ebonite and the fifth company white/silver. I liked the idea that Relictors would get a
bit darker as they advanced toward the Conclave. Combined with my decision to leave everyone
helmeted, it gave the Chapter a dark edge... which was kind of perfect. This also carried over to veterans and
veteran sergeants, of course. </div>
</div>
Virtual Strangerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01040333093180694172noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9035185807186899546.post-48590439499542194762013-10-20T15:52:00.000-07:002013-10-21T16:45:30.417-07:00First Signs...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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And, in what is surely a poor marketing decision, my first post will be directing you to my other page,<b><i> <a href="http://thegrimcheapness.blogspot.com/">In The Grim Cheapness of the Future</a></i></b>. It's all about trying to do things on the cheap in this ever-more-expensive wargaming hobby. And last week I took some scavenged bits from a few lines and put together <a href="http://thegrimcheapness.blogspot.com/2013/10/space-marine-captain.html">a Space Marine captain</a>.</div>
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To be specific, it was Relictors fourth company Captain Daedalus, the
Master of the Fleet.
According to most fluff, this means he should be armed with a thunder
hammer, a symbol of the massive firepower he can call down. But he is a Relictors captain—a high ranking one,
too—so there should be a bit of a Chaos influence in his weaponry. There’s a good chance he’s part of the
Conclave, after all.<br /><br />So you can see how I did all that<a href="http://thegrimcheapness.blogspot.com/2013/10/space-marine-captain.html"> here...</a></div>
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Virtual Strangerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01040333093180694172noreply@blogger.com0