Cyborkz - Resistanz Iz Futile

Who wouldn't want to add a few Borg to there miniatures collection?

The trouble is though that if you do want to, there just aren't any good Borg miniatures readily available. In fact, I'm not sure there are any "out of the box" Borg available full-stop. Of course, I could be wrong but, I can't find them!

So, what's a modeler to do? Assimilate of course! ;0).

My first thoughts on going custom were that Cadian Shock Troops would make a pretty good starting point for any Borg model. I'd need new heads and probably a few servitor arms from other models but the end result should be pretty close.. Or so I thought.

Then I found this picture on-line:

Click to enlarge.

Whilst the Cadians would do a fine job representing labor and transport drones, the arms would need some serious modification for every other type. The Games Workshop servitor arms just weren't going to cut it.

Not particularly practical from a personal point of view as I have none of the parts in my bit box nor anything to mod them with, meaning that this idea could quickly turn into a cash sink.. But looking in my bits box did give me a brainwave.

I have 40 or so Marauders from Mantic. Orks, that straight out of the box have a very Borg look about them. At one point I was even going to convert several of these to Mech Boyz for 40k. So, these would seem to be the perfect low-cost option for the project at hand. After all, the Borg didn't just assimilate Terrans did they?

So, depending on how well this pans out, I may even produce an unofficial codex for them. Not that Games Workshop will ever let you bring them to their gaming table... You can always use the paint scheme and ideas though, bringing cybernetically  enhanced Orkish killing machines to a workshop gaming table near you.

DMotivational #34: ACME Ork Suppliez

Necrons: The Lazy Man's Force

Imagine this but, more awesome!

When it comes to starting up in the Warhammer: 40,000 hobby the first major choice that you face is which army to field.

It's obviously important to choose a force that appeals to you but, what often gets overlooked by newer players is just how manageable is that force?

For example, the idea of playing as Orks may appeal to you but, are you prepared for just how many models you are going to have to assemble and paint?

Let's face it, it's not uncommon for new players to throw in the towel half way through painting up, what is a small army but a hell of a lot of models. So, to save wasting money if for no other reason, it's important to choose your army wisely based on your abilities and level of patience (and I can be quite impatient!)

The chances are that if you're reading this, you're quite impatient too. So what do i suggest?

Necrons. Necrons all the way! But why?

Well, for a start Necrons have always seemed to have an edge over all of the other armies from the word go, so if winning is important to you, choose Necrons but, that's probably a topic for another post.

What we're interested in here is the fact of just how fast you can get that bulk of a Necron army to the table, and when I say fast, I'm talking in hours, not days, to the point where it is conceivable to have the better part of a Battleforce rendered to a good tabletop standard within a day!

Something that I consider unthinkable with most other armies.

This is made possible by just how little you can get away with and, how many lazy mans tricks you can pull to get you there quickly. You thought Black Templars where a cinch, you haven't seen anything anything yet!

All you have to do is follow these few simple steps and you'll be rising out of the sand with the best of them:

Step 1: Prime your models.. Spray them black.
Step 2: Paint them all with a quick coat of watered down chainmail or boltgun.

This is a personal shortcut of mine. Metallic paints don't mix well with water as you may know, so the end result of applying this mixture will produce much the same effect as if you had painted the model silver and washed it black... Just in one step, saving you time and saving you money!

Step 3: Whilst your models are drying, paint their bases brown.
Step 4: Once your models are dry you may want to wash a little black into the deep recesses but, this is totally optional.
Step 5: Detailing. Pick out the chest emblem and eyes with a touch of green to compliment the Gauss Rifle and, optionally the piece of cabling on the rifle itself.
Step 6: Assemble the model.
Step 7: Base the model with sand and you're done!

All in all, that should take you about an hour and a half for a ten man squad the first time around, which should get quicker as you get into the flow of things. You can also apply similar methods to your other models, switching the green for red with the scarabs for detailing and, possibly line-edging your larger models.

Be warned though, line-edging takes time (lots of time if you want to get it right) so be sure to make it one of the last things you do to bring your models from tabletop - good, to tabletop - awesome. For a lazy mans approach however, this simple guide should see you well on the way to marching across scorching deserts and apocalyptic wastelands.

DMotivational #5: Let's Hope The One Ring Gives A Good Armor Save!

Why Pay More?

When it comes to building an Ork force for Warhammer: 40,000 cost can quickly become a problem.

Outside of what you can currently pick up inside of a Black Reach starter box set, you are going to need grunts and lots of them. Boyz form the core of most Ork forces and given that a 10 man squad currently sets you back £18 and, you realistically need somewhere between 6 of these before you throw in all the bells and whistles (Nobz, Trukks etc) setting up a warband, even a basic one, can easily set you back hundreds. Ouch!

But what if you could pull off pretty much the same effect for a fraction of the price? Allow me to introduce you to Mantic.

Mantic are not a new name when it comes to miniature gaming in the UK but their Ork range has been a long time coming. It has to be said though, well worth the wait. Whilst the plastic could use a little work the overall product really does give you a lot of bang for your buck, working out at about a pound a model with a couple of vehicles thrown in for free in this box set.

All-in-all you can get 40 Slugga Boyz and 10 Mek Boyz with Kustom Mega-Blastas out of this box (or 50 Slugga Boyz if you prefer) and the trikes included could easily be considered to be Wartrakks, worth £16.50 each with Games Workshops current prices.

So that's £141 from Games Workshop or, £49.99 from Mantic

Now whilst i can never honestly see Games Workshop allowing you to use these models in any of their stores (no surprise really) for your friendly games and local gaming groups there shouldn't really be any problems. The idea of Orks is "Kustomization" after all.

Orks Don't Get to Have Nice Things

After months of ownership last night marked my first game of Warhammer: 40,000 with the Black Reach box set outside of Games Workshop and, boy did they ever make an epic fail in putting together that army list.

The Warband as it Stands

Out of the box the Ork player receives 20 Boyz, 5 Nobz, an Ork Warboss and, 3 Deff Koptas. From the word go this a poor selection for an Ork player with only 500ish points to spend on their force. It is perfectly understandable that Games Workshop would want to throw a wide variety of models into the box to attract new players but this really shouldn't come at the price of playability.

One Simple Tweak

Orks are by nature a 'horde' army and, those Deff Koptas whilst looking cool (and being limited edition) really have no place in such a small warband. In my personal opinion those 135 point would be much better spent on an additional 20 Boyz (coming in at only 130 points).

In gaming terms those 3 dice from the Deff Koptas (admittedly with re-rolls on misses). just became 20 dice. An amazing 60 for the first round of assault if you charge in (with Slugga Boyz)! Easily enough to bring some hurt to even the most hardened marines when you get up close and personal. Which is the point of playing Orks. Hit them hard, hit them fast and, shouting WAGGGGGHH!! a lot.