40K: Iron Hands - Part 3

I think I've gone too long with pictures on here. So let's get some up! I've made some more progress on the Iron Hands army. Not finished yet, but I'm liking how some of these guys are coming out. Painting black and steel seems like it might be a boring scheme, but I've found that to be pretty disagreeable if it's done right. I know GW's Iron Hands, what few they've painted over the years, have the standard red eye lenses and such, but I elected to forgo any warm colors at all, to better fit in with the cold, mechanical nature of my favorite Chapter.

I'm pretty sure I've already gone over the conversion bits used in the last part, so I won't get into detail with that again. But here's what I've got so far with most of the army (minus the latter halves of the squads which aren't done yet, also the Thunderfire, Sternguard Squad, and Razorbacks aren't present). I've also completed what I think are one of the most important details to this army: Giving everyone names!

So, without further ado, here's my army of Iron Hands of Clan Karashi (Named after the mountain which Ferrus Manus split asunder with his arrival to Medusa, and represented by the mountain and lightning sigil you'll see on almost everything).


First up is Clan-Commander Talok Vorax. Definitely took some inspiration from Clan-Command Rauth in Wrath of Iron. Rules-wise, he's using Lysander's rules, as he seemed a perfect fit, giving the whole army Stubborn, as well as being a suitably beefy and intimidating fighter in his own right. We'll see if that holds up with the new codex coming.

I even did some freehand work on his cloak, though I need to clean it up slightly. I can probably make it more complex, but I'm not sure what to do. Any thoughts?

Protecting the Clan-Commander is his retinue of Terminators, Clave Stronos. They are led by Sergeant Cytor, in the middle. Other than the Clan-Commander, they're the only models to have anything even remotely resembling warm colors, in the form of the gold. While I realize, if anything, the more senior members should be even colder and more mechanical, I elected to go for the decoration of rank instead. I think the way they blend still works quite well.
 

Next up is my other HQ choice, Librarian Molvech. I like the idea of him jumping around the battlefield, supporting the army by throwing psychic powers around. I haven't quite decided on a favorite discipline, yet, though. Biomancy seems a thematic pick.

 Of course, a Librarian with a jetpack is going to be a tasty target, so he needs some protection. To that end, he relies on Clave Nostros, led by Sergeant Selvox. I think these guys are my favorite so far. They just ooze detail and life.

What Iron Hands army would be complete without at least one Dreadnought? Here we have Ironclad Sakkath, who specializes in arriving behind enemies lines and sowing havoc with his melta-gun and giant fists (one game he had a unit of Dark Eldar wracks crying for their mommies, mua ha ha).

Now we come to the meat and bones of the army, the troops. I have two Tactical Squads half-done so far (with the latter halves partly done), and a third squad that's only at the primed stage.

First up is Clave Solkaar, the first unit I finished. Since last time, I've added their wonderful ice bases, actually making them done. I still love the power fist on Sergeant Lorrot, though a lot of people ask me if he's a Techmarine, heh.

The other squad is Clave Fumitor, led by Sergeant Kuvak. I really like his plasma pistol, I think the glow effects on it came out well. Normally I'd be leary of letting a Sergeant run around with just a chainsword, but he's actually done fairly well for himself so far.

 Finally, the vehicles. My faithful Predator tank, Fury of Medusa. Its guns have reaped a fearsome toll in some games, and I even have the option of using the Techmarine on top as a counts-as Sergeant Chronos if I want (another thematic choice, I think).

And, of course, with the advent of 6th edition and flyers, I need one of my own. So, I've got a Stormtalon I'm working on. I haven't gotten a name for it yet, but I'm sure I'll think of something. I'm also really excited about the windshield, as I painted on a bright blue HUD in the same style as actual fighter jet HUDs, but I couldn't get a decent picture to come out of it. I'll have to work on that for next time.

I suppose while I'm sharing pictures, I might as well throw these in. I picked up Relic last week, which is a 40K conversion of the classic board game Talisman, and came out not too long ago. It comes with ten miniature busts to represent each of the different characters you can play as. Of course, I immediately took to painting them, and here's what I've got after a few hours on the weekend. None of them are done, though a few are getting close.

I think that wraps it up for now! For the Emperor!