The Den Takes Shape

The move is complete and the unpacking begins. My new Den is also in the basement but this one is finished! I ha e the same desk and computer set up but now have this fucking post to work around. I decided to make the best of it and use fit to make a shelf over the desk to mount my lights. Since the shelf is so big, I can also store my bits on it. Due to a measuring error, I am unable to stack the smaller bins that store my paint. No big deal as I can replace them with larger bins later. The boxes in the background hold books, painted minis and a legion of bits. I don't know that I will have my workshop set up before the weekend is out but the goal is to get back to painting soon. 

I Have Way Too Much Stuff

We are packing and moving for what is the third time in 6 years and hopefully the last. The picture is just the hobby stuff and painted minis. It is unbelievable. I have spent about $1,000 a year since 2004 and have rarely sol or traded anything. I could probably paint every day for 8 hours like it was a job and have months of project ahead of me. I've shipped and moved this mess twice and hated every second of it. 

So much of the collection has no dedicated storage. I really need to get some foam to put them in. As much as I hate Battlefoam because of their atrocious customer service, their product is really great. I am going to get some for the new Deathwatch army as it rolls out. 

Deathwatch Army Grows

I worked a extra shift rather than taking a three day weekend and used the funds to buy the new shiny for Deathwatch. I needed that DW Captain in a bad way. I always wanted that new plastic Blood Angel Terminator Librarian and now with it bundled with the Deathwatch shoulder guards, it became too good to pass up. How can I not get Corvis Blackstars? That was a no-brainer. 

I need the new bits from the Deathwatch book for conversions and bulking out my force. The spectrum of Chapter shoulder guards is astounding and much easier than trying to hunt down other shoulder guards in trades. I shoudl be able to make 10 Marines out of a box made for 5. 

Finished (Mostly) - Deathwatch Terminators

While not 100% complete, these are as finished as they are going to get until i get some bits that come through. I have quite a deep bits box but only for armies that I play and while I pay quite a few armies, I do not play all Chapters of Space Marines. Shocking, I know. What I do have is money to buy bits and friends that play other armies. They hooked me up with some Dark Angel Lightning Claws and Black Templar Terminator pauldrons. That will complete these bad boys.

It is good to have friends. At some point I am going to have to get them back.

This leaves the DW Terminator squad at one Power Fist/Melta/Heavy Flamer, two Power Fist/Storm Bolter, and one bad ass Power Weapon (sword)/Storm Bolter. That is pretty solid. 

On The Table Now - Deathwatch Terminators, Bases

The Deathwatch army is the only army that I am using entirely custom bases. I started doing this because Deathwatch was never supposed to be more than 10 models. It started as the old White Dwarf formation from a thousand years ago. The army expanded a little when Deathwatch RPG picks up and I get excited and want to make another mini. With the release of the Deathwatch Codex and the Overkill box, this handfull of minis is going to expand to a full army. As it expands, I decided to carry forth the custom bases that look like deck plating or alien stuff. 

I think the bases in the picture are from Secret Weapon Minis from the Tau Ceti range and from and Steel Invasion. 

I made the choice to continue using 25 mm bases rather than the new 30 mm bases for consistency sake. I am old school and the new larger bases just look silly to me. 

On The Table - 4 Deathwatch Terminators

Oh what a difference a day makes. I spent a few hours figuring out what Deathwatch Terminators I want to make from the bits that I have on hand. I had some left over Space Hulk Blood Angel Terminators that were never going to get used for anything else. May as well induct them into Deathwatch. I also needed to use up the BA Termie arms that are covered with BA iconography. 

The Deathwatch rules don't really allow for much variation in Terminator load outs. You are restricted to Powerfist/Storm Bolter, Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield, dual Lightning Claws or a heavy weapon. The meat and potatoes of Terminator squads are going to be the PF/SB so I don't mind having some redundancies. It is not like these minis are ever going to be used for anything else. 

Thanks to the Overkill box, I already have an awesome Salamander with a Heavy Flamer and the sexy new PF/Meltagun. I know that I want a Dark Angel because I have some awesome bits that are laying around. I am going to try and use up the shoulder guards by magnetizing the model. I threw some magnets in the tops of random models for later adding some Missile Launchers but I don't have those bits spare. 

I digressed a little there. 

The last mini is a Black Templar. I had some Forge World Cataphractii Terminators that are now obsolete by the plastic ones. I wanted something that looked more knightly than the other bits that I had available. I used a Grey Knight head and legs and paired them with a Grey Knight sword and a Dark Angel Storm Bolter. I think the mini is going to come out really well. 

Deathwatch Codex

I just got the Deathwatch Codex and it was worth the decade-long wait. Certain websites that shall remain nameless have had this Codex on their "next 8-12 months" for almost that entire decade. Rumors are such garbage. 

It took GW more than a few tried to get Daemonhunters/Grey Knights/Ordo Malleus right and some could say that they still are not a well-rounded army. They have never done justice to Sisters of Battle with numerous chances and it almost seems misogynistically intentional at this point. While I can't say that this is a "home run on the first try" situation that we have here but is a darn good for a first try. 

Deathwatch is going to suffer from what every Astartes army suffers from and that is being out numbered, except Deathwatch (like Grey Knights) runs the risk of being out numbered by Astartes. All of these armies lack a cheep troops choice. There were several things that I was shocked to see didn't make it into this book that were part of 40k cannon, but I was really shocked to see Scouts missing. GW seems to have a problem moving that dated box set. They would not even have to release anything new to include them though a Deathwatch Scout arm like the one I made would be pretty awesome.