Bigger Bugs Pt 21

   I got to play 2 turns of a 1500 point game at my mate Steve's house a few weeks back - we started late as both parties needed to put kids to bed first, then it quickly became obvious his alarm clock was going off uncomfortably soon, so we called the game, but the game did give us some learning points;

1. I still love putting a swarm on the table

2. I need some movement trays for my Tyranids - that allow for long tails

3. Venomthropes are fun in a swarm

   My brother bought a load of space bugs from myminifactory (pretty sure that's the company) as he liked some of the alternative sculpts for Ravenors and Venomthropes more than the GW ones and while he was there he bought me a pack of each too to keep a level of consistency across our forces.

   While I'm not sure I 100% agree that the Ravenors are an improvement, I sort of see his thing for the Venomthropes. I do like that they don't look like the alternative kit for a Zoanthrope. 

   Out of curiosity, I added them to my swarm list for our game and the shroud ability when in the middle of every unit was a lot of fun, so they deserved a paint job in my limited hobby time.

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The Army Of The Dead

The way is shut. It was made by those who are Dead, and the Dead keep it, until the time comes. 

The way is shut.

   An army I bought at the start of 2022 when my brothers and me were really looking at getting back into Lord of the Rings. We were going through the new scenarios and seeing where the gaps were in our collections and the Dead of Dunharrow were one such gap, and more importantly they were an affordable gap.

   Fast forward a couple of years and I'm trying to slowly tidy my man cave up and part of it is building those sprues where I've basically finished an army or a box of something and if I don't build them and put them in the same box as the rest of their collection, it's almost a sure bet that I will just lose or break them. The Army of the Dead fit into this category with most of them build and stored, but one sprue just sitting in a loose pile of other sprues. The aim was just to build and then store them, but with their paint job being fairly simple, it seemed daft not to just get them done.

   The finished collection is the King of the Dead, 2x Heralds and 20 infantry. I followed a recipe I found online but I think there is an argument for a quick white drybrush over the top in the future.

Going purely by the scenario books this is the most infantry I will need for this army - although there is one scenario that needs 6 horsemen, but they will cost me nearly £70, so it's not going to happen . . .

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Bigger Bugs Pt 20

   Another quick paint job on the off chance of a game of Combat Patrol, this is the last three baby Lictors (Von Ryan Leapers) that I needed for the White Dwarf list, which gives me that full Combat Patrol to try out.

   Again, nothing special with this unit this far into the Tyranid project but I'm quite enjoying doing these slightly easier paint jobs once in a while. These were painted a couple of weeks ago but I didn't have a chance to do anything with them.

   With there not being anything particularly new or different in this post, I thought I would do a shot of this whole combat patrol - so three units of Von Ryan Leapers, a Lictor (hidden at the back) and a Neurolictor.

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Renewed assault

   While there has been a lull in the campaign for the world of Fratribusia*, in the fluff battle is still raging. The planet was supposed to be a sacrificial delaying point while the Imperium focussed on gathering forces to protect more valuable worlds, but in recent days Fratribusia looks like it might just hold despite the Imperium's plans for it.

*while painting time has struggled recently, the last month or so Monday evenings have been prime gaming time - although getting to the venue for 8pm as other games start to wrap up.

While other delaying worlds in the Western Reaches of Segmentum Pacificus were being abandoned to the mercies of Hive Fleet Leviathan, the world of Fratribusia was a rare point of defiance that sent Imperial strategists scrabbling. As more Tyranid fleets started to be drawn to the planet, the Imperium sent more assets of it's own into the conflict.

As nearby systems fell to the unstoppable Tyranid swarms and the Solblades sent to hold the lines, slowly slipped out of doomed planets, their missions complete, the shadow of the warp grew stronger with every devoured world, until almost nothing could be heard from those planets that still held out.

One message that burned out of the minds of 4 adepts of the Adeptus Astra Telepathica on the planet Sanctum, a key Anchor World, simply said 'Fratribusia stands - For the Emperor'.

Lord Commander Solar Arcadian Leontus authorised a limited response from Solblades recently drawn back to evaluate this claim.

What was unknown to the Imperium as a whole and the remaining authorities on Fratribusia was how deep the rot had gone.

The first message was followed days later by a second, this one bypassing the normal telepathic routes and bearing a cypher that could not be easily cracked. It went to a lifeless asteroid field in the Sedna region.

As the planet's leadership waited for a response, the war carried on. The Ossuary Brotherhood conducted targeted raids on reports of Lictor Organism build ups in an attempt to disrupt the xenos.

While the Dark Angels struck at genestealer cult risings to try and push the conflict back to as few fronts as possible.

++ Message to the Watch Commander of Watch station Sedna +++

Commander

It is as we feared, the Ecrin Mission of the Order of the Fallen Angel has been infected with the taint of the enemy.

Authorise insertion of assets Valorous and Exemplar to purge the rot.

Code Gamma-Gamma-zeta-5 seal of Inquisitor Ferumor Ordo Xenos

Thought for the day: 

Ruthlessness is the kindness of the wise

 +++ Message Ends +++

While the strike team from the Deathwatch failed in their mission and the sky children cult continued its insidious spread, more ships broke from the warp at the edge of the Fratribusia system. Led by The High Lord of Terra herself, Morvenn Vahl, the fleet held the remnants of a handful of Astra Militarum regiments pulled from other doomed conflicts, Solblades from the Adeptus Astartes chapters Aurora Knights and White Panthers and a sizeable force of Adepta Sororitas.

Finding that the planet did indeed seem to be holding out, Morvenn Vahl ordered a rapid deployment of the troops under her command, with the High Lord leading a mission from the Order of the Fallen Angel straight into the teeth of a Tyranid swarm.

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