All of the tanks were based and painted using exactly the same method as the artillery which is as follows: Stage 1: The tanks were cleaned and assembled before being stuck onto Warmaster plastic bases over which a sand and gravel mix was glued using watered down PVA glue. Once dry all of the models and bases were spray undercoated black. Stage 2: A watered down basecoat of Codex Grey was painted over the entire model, which once dry was then given a wash of watered down black ink to which a drop of Codex Grey was added. The bases were then dry brushed Graveyard Earth and Bleached Bone in that order. Stage 3: A light dry brush of Fortress Grey was brushed over each of the tank and followed with an even lighter dry brush of Ghostly Grey. For the stripes a 50/50 mix of Rotting Flesh and Bleached Bone was painted over the armour in narrowing bands. Stage 4: The tracks and gun barrels were painted with a watered down Boltgun Metal which once dry was given a wash of watered down brown and black inks. Stowage and other details were painted in either Catachan Green highlighted with Camo Green or Bubonic Brown with a Bleached Bone highlight. For all other details such as sponsons, hull weapons, search lights and exhausts simply continue painting using the colours above depending on how far you want to detail the models. Stage 5: The final task was to paint on any company markings, paint the edge of the bases Graveyard Earth and stick down a few patches of flock and static grass with a little watered down PVA glue. (Note: With the exception of the Vanquisher, most of the models in the Company are from an older range of models, however the same painting technique applies to the newer models, as seen on the Vanquisher. I will feature the rest of the tanks from the current boxed set in another article which looks at other Regiments of the Imperial Guard)
In creating an Artillery Company you can choose to select up to three batteries of either Basilisk or Manticore. You could of course choose to take a selection of either of them having a battery of each, but in my case I simply chose three batteries of three Basilisk in each; a total of nine self-propelled guns. The final unit to include was a Command Salamander, which is the tenth and final vehicle making up the company. (Note: It was decided for simplicity to drop the Command Vehicle from the formation in the finished version, however as I had already included them in my own force during early play testing I decided to keep them in for a little character) New vs Old. Those of you that are familiar with any previous editions of Epic will have noticed that I have used the older Basilisk models in the Company, as well as a Forge World Salamander Command vehicle. The simple reason for this is the force was put together early in 2003 in preparation for the games launch, at which point none of the new Imperial Guard artillery were ready. Whichever models you choose to use, the end result is pretty much the same anyway. If you like the newer 'Hades' pattern Basilisk however, fear not as they will be appearing soon as part of another Artillery Company for an entirely different Guard Regiment. | Back to Steel Legion Introduction | Back to Epic Armageddon Introduction | |
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Steel Legion Tank
Companies are an essential component to any Epic Steel Legion
army in my book, simply because their combination of mobility,
armour and weapons mix allow them to engage both armoured and
infantry formations
Every army in Epic
Armageddon has its strengths and its weaknesses. For the vast
war machine that is the Imperial Guard, undoubtedly one of its
greatest strengths is in its artillery companies. With the
exception of no other army, the Imperial Guard can lay down a
massive and sustainable barrage of artillery fire from the
relative safety of deep behind their own lines. One of the key
features of an Imperial Guard Artillery Company is its ability
to combine the firepower of all of the artillery pieces in the
force into a single devastating barrage, which is capable of
smashing apart enemy infantry formations and disrupting even the
largest of Ork Mobs. Naturally, with that amount of useful
firepower, I considered including at least one Artillery Company
in my newly formed Steel Legion force to be practically a core
choice.