The Void Phoenixes, Part 3

It was at the Well of the Dead that the Void Phoenixes came together. There, Yrule Vivithrax, former Drachon of the Obsidian Rose, saw the Warshard of Khaine being Reborn in Ynnead and bound to Autharch Meliniel of Biel-Tan. There and then, seeing a god of old die and be Reborn at the hand of the Opener of the Seventh Way, he found his true calling. He turned to the survivors among those that had fought under him before Eldanesh's tomb and spoke.
"Brother and sisters, like a Phoenix we were Reborn. Now we can soar through the Void to bring fire and hope. Hope, to those that join us in the Whispering God. Fire, to those that stand in the way of Ynnead's rebirth. Ours will not be a war fought in the open, but a shadow war, for it is to the darkest corners of the Aeldari empire of old that I intend to bring Ynnead's word. Who will follow me?"
Not a single word came from the twelve warriors gathered around Yrule. And yet, the Whisper echoed with their voices and those of the spirits anchored to them.
"I will!"

Yrule Vivithrax, the Thanarch (Autharch, Specialism: Strategist, Demeanour: Boundless Ambition)

Like many Kabalites present when Yvraine was Reborn on the sand of the Crucibael, Yrule Vivithrax had joined the Ynnari out of opportunity. There was power among them, power that could be used to climb higher in the ranks of Commorrite society. And yet, as he fought through the bitter wars that took the Ynnari to the Mon-keigh's capital word, true faith blossomed in him. For if a Drachon could commune with the spirits of deceased Aspect Warriors, gain their skills and in so doing prevent his soul from being slowly devoured by She-Who-Thirsts, truly there lied the path to the restoration of the Aeldari. And so he donned the mask of the Striking Scorpion and the wings of the Swooping Hawk and fully embraced the Cult of Ynnead. Since then, he claimed the title of Thanarch and fought ever harder to prove his worth in the eyes of Ynnead and his Prophet.

Lann of the Unyielding Fire (Dire Avenger Exarch, Specialism: Leader, Demeanour: Absolute Focus)

Lann firmly follows Asurmen's tactical teachings, but he has learned much from the Thanarch. He now masters the art of the hidden blade and can use fear as a weapon. And yet, he still remains supremely focused in battle. To Lann there is only the mission and it is to him and his Temple of the Unyielding Fire that Yrule turns for the most delicate missions, knowing that Lann will sacrifice all for their success.

Torc Cegodari (Dire Avenger, Specialism: Veteran, Demeanour: Acrobatic)

Torc bears herself with innate grace, her every fluid movement enacting Asurmen's teachings to perfection. She earned herself the moniker Cegodari 'She Who Laughs at Despair' on countless battlefields, long before being Reborn. Hence on matters of war she remains staunchly traditionalist.

Barahir and Dis'ar (Dire Avengers)

The last surviving members of the Unyielding Fire, Barahir and Dis'ar have enthusiatsically embraced their new faith and the underhanded tactics Lann has introduced to the Temple.

Excrucia Kharavyxis (Howling Banshee Exarch, Specialism: Leader, Demeanour: Dark Flamboyance)

In both her attire and battle style, Excrucia demonstrated tremendous flair, making her a favourite of the Commorrite arenas. She delighted in paralising her opponents with poisoned blades and then slowly dismembering them. Since her Rebirth, she has gathered in herself only the most embittered Aeldari spirits and now it is their wailing that paralyse her enemies. All of this makes her Yrule's favourite terror weapon, the perfect leader when total annihilition is the objective.

Uless (Howling Banshee)

Once Excrucia's sparring partner, Uless as well has learnt to direct the rage and spite of the Aeldari departed against their enemies. The two often fight together, constantly competing for the highest death tally.

Jair and Bhanlhar (Guardian Defender, Specialism: Comms, Demeanour: Cold as the Void - Weapon Platform)

As the Dathedian split the galaxy, Jair's entire family fell to the daemons that breached Ulthwé. In the aftermath of the battle, daubing her weapon platform Bhanlhar 'Avenger of the Lost Clan', she embraced the Seventh Way and swore to eradicate Chaos. All the Void Phoenixes trust her counsel on the battlefield, for she suppresses all emotions and only follows the dictates of purest logic.

Hal'thar and Eärandil (Guadian Defenders)

Renowned artisans on Biel-Tan, Hal'thar and Eärandil have fashioned the armours worn by the Void Phoenixes and maintain all their equipment.

Thresyn Neverbreath (Storm Guardian Gunner, Specialism: Scout, Demeanour: Mistrustful)

Before embracing Ynnead, Thresyn had survived the intrigues of the Dark City by trusting no one but himself. He had never joined a Kabal and earned himself a leaving as a trafficker of information in Low Commorragh. Though he has now found true bothers and sisters, even in battle he still prefers to keep to himself and regularly prawls ahead of the rest of the Void Phoenixes.

Fachean (Storm Guardian)

Fachean always had a taste for finery and, as a Corsair captain, he ruthlessly pursued the fulfilment of his desires. His ship now serves the cause of Ynnead, but he has not lost his taste for the finest things in life.

Inghfar the Wanderer (Ranger, Specialism: Sniper, Demeanour: Mentally Dexterous)

Inghfar has never spoken of his life before he took the Path of the Outcast. What is clear, is that over long centuries roaming the galaxy he has trained his mind to move at lightining speed. He can think, plan and react with a swiftness unmatched among the Void Phoenixes.

The Void Phoenixes, Part 2

And I'm back to work on my Yinnari Kill Team!
The sources of bits are exactly the same: bodies from the Bloodbowl Elven Union and heads, arms and accessories from the Drukhari and aelf ranges.

Dire Avenger

Dire Avenger

Howling Banshee

Storm Guardian Gunner with Flamer

Guardian Defender

Autharch
The wings are from Baharrot. I cut them in half so that, once pinned to the back, they looked like the ones on the plastic model. The Mandiblaster was made by glueing the teardrop-shaped part of the Plasma Grenades from the Asuryani Guardians to one of the Elven Union heads with the face mask.

Ranger
In the bits box there was one Dire Avenger torso, a pair of Kabalite legs without the back bit and the Dark Lance arms. With the barrel of the Dark Lance swapped for the final part of a Bright Lance barrel and a greenstuffed coat, I had a perfect Ranger. However, the body and legs are in 28mm scale, while the Elven Union models are in 32mm. The Ranger looked tiny when next to the other models, hence why I've raised it by modelling some ruins on his base.

The Void Phoenixes, Part 1

Yrule Vivithrax paused in front of the long sealed Webway portal. It was a minor one, leading from a disused spar of the Webway into the Sprawls of Low Commorragh. As a Drachon of the Obsidian Rose, he had used it often to smuggle the peerless weapons produced in his Kabal's workshops. Should Overmistress Khromys had found out about his dealings, retribution would have been terrible. But that was another life. The one he lived before being Reborn in Ynnead. And in the Whispering God's name, he was now returning to Commorragh. He turned to his brothers and sisters. Some, like him, were eager to see the Shadow City again. Others, had never set foot in it. All were ready to bring the hope of the Seventh Way to the wretches of Low Commorragh. And they knew that in the lawless Sprawls, they would have had to fight before anyone listened to them.

When Fracture of Biel-Tan was released, I immediately loved the idea of mixed Aeldari forces fighting in the name of a god of death. In my mind I'd started planning conversions mixing all possible Aeldari and Aelfs kits, trying to figure out a way to have models that would fit nicely alongside the Visarch. All ideas, however, fell short of matching the archaic style of his armour. Until the Bloodbowl Elven Union team was released. That happened roughly at the same time as with my gaming buddies we started talking about a campaign in the Shadows of Commorragh. Then, with the release of Kill Team, we were completely sold on the idea. I got a Elven Union team and raided our bits box of all Aeldari and Aelfs bits. Most bits were Asuryani ones, but there were also some Drukhari and Dark Elves ones. That worked fine, as I could then have a WYSIWYG Asuryani Kill Team I could take to events.

In the bits box there were also Asuryani heavy weapons and bits from 40k vehicles and AoS chariots that allowed me to build a Weapon Platform from scratch.

For the colour scheme, I settled on the red, black and white scheme of the most devoted Ynnari, keeping blue, green and gold for the spot colours, as shown on Fracture of Biel-Tan.

As I was painting the models, we decided to postpone Shadows of Commorragh, which drained some of the creative juice away. So, I've not yet worked the fluff for each model. However, as I have another six to build once we get closer to play the campaign, I'm sure the narrative will start to flow again. For now, enjoy the painted models.