Grabbing and Chasing
***File J85-Vox/Pic Capture--SOURCE: Classified--SECURITAS: Adeptus Maxima-INQ:Quintus Severus***
My Lord, as you orderded I haven't conducted any direct investigation into the movements of the Scuttlers but rather continued my under-cover engagement with the Cult of the Divine Illumination. However, rumours reached us that a load of unknown origin had appeared, from one cycle to the other, in Sump Crawl and that it was the infamous cargo of the Scuttlers. Magister Silas immediately mustered a raiding party and we moved into the area. As we approached, Brother Thomas was sniped at from extreme range.
Merkzy Banda and the Skinnymen were also converging on the area, moving on the upper levels. The Van Saars let loose a few granades and halted the Merkzy Banda's advance.
As if a silent pact had been signed, the Cult concentrated their fire on the Merkzy Banda. It's not the first time I saw that happening, established gangs dealing with pretentious newcomers before sorting their own rivalries. Some Brother went down, both to return and inaccurate friendly fire from those behind them.
The Skinnymen continued to rain grenades on the Merkzy Banda closer to the stash. As the cloacked outsiders finally legged it, a close-range fire-fight broke between the Cult and the Skinnymen. It looked as if we were having the upper hand, but then Newton Heat sprung up after getting a glancing hit and put his power sword to good use.
Magister Silas saw there was no point in continuing the engagement and instead ordered to follow the Merkzy Banda. Battered as they were, chances were we could relieve them of some of the caches they had managed to steal. We quickly caught up with them and Brother Thomas, although still shacken by the hit he'd taken, pinned a few forcing them to drop their cargo.
We rushed to grab what we could, but the superior weapons of the few remaining Merkzy Banda stopped us from reaching them and claiming the rest of the loot.
Magister Silas took the little loot me managed to recover to the Cult's base, claming it was nothing more than techscrap. I suspect he was keeping something hidden from the rest of us. I shall look into this, even if it means infiltrating the Magister's private quartes. Agent LVC, end of report.
Slowly, but work on the Free Companies of the Gilded Hand is going ahead. Hopefully, I'll have enough models painted for the starting warband I'll take to a Skirmish campaign set in Warboss Kurgan's very own Harrowmark. This time around, I've been working on some close quarter fighters, the duellists and reckless thrill-seekers known as...
Fernando's Fancy Fencers
The plan for them was to replicate the look and feel of the classic Vespero's Vendetta.
Ufortunately, I had used almost all the left arms with daggers I had on other models. The other problem I faced was the lack of male heads with long, flowing hair in my bits box. The heads with feathered hats from the Freeguild Crossbowmen and Guard, however, screamed 'fancy-dressed rogue' as much as long hairs and I settled for them. The head from the Feeguild General also has a skull nested on the hat's brim, so I've managed to give a tribute to Vespero's Death Mask without having to go into more extensive conversion work.
To replace the daggers I thought that bucklers would be equally appreciated by professional duellists. Not to mention that, game-wise, they will avoid confusion between Freeguild Guards with Militia Weapons or Sword and Shield. I had plenty of bucklers from the Duardin Thunderers set, and they worked just perfectly on the Freeguild range. As you can see, I didn't remove the duardin runes from the bucklers. Well, there'll be an explanation for this once the Fancy Fencers are painted and given their bit of back story.
The bodies are from the Freeguild Crossbowmen command group, the only three bodies to come without the left arm in that kit, and the unarmoured ones from the Freeguild Guard. Since the original Vespero's Vendetta had no command group, I felt free to give them a piper rather than a drummer as stated in the Freeguild Guard warscroll. It makes much more sense for a bunch of wealthy young men seeking the best pleasures Venithya has to offer to ease their days with some merry tune than to march at the sound of drums, doesn't it?
The last thing left to do was to give them mantles. In the original models and rules, the mantles were used as shields, thus they were rather long and wrapped around the left arm. Since my Fancy Fencers have bucklers, there was no need for the mantles to be long, so I kept them short.
I've just realised this is the first time I took WIP pictures just before priming my models, showing that I base them during the building stages. I do this as I see bases as part of the models and prefer to paint them alongside the rest. The other thing is, I keep my bases very simple (just some sea sand and slate chips) and in neutral colours to match as many gaming tables as possible. Who knows, one day, if I decide to experiment with some more scenic bases I might try and paint the bases separately.
Of rescuers and creepers
***File J84-Vox/Pic Capture--SOURCE: Classified--SECURITAS: Adeptus Maxima-INQ:Quintus Severus***
My Lord, I have to report some serious developments from Mancunius Dome. It seems that not only the Scuttlers are moving, but that colleagues of yours have taken an interest in the area. But let me proceed with order. After the Span Yarders' attack against the Cult of the Divine Illumination, Magister Silas' managed, I don't know how, to locate the captured members of the Cult in Rank Oats, on the way to the Pit. The Span Yarders had put up a well patrolled perimeter.
We approached in two groups, taking what little cover the crumbling manufactorum walls could offer. Two of us mugged a first sentinel, while Deacon Steven freed Brother Peter.
The two moved forward, preparing to fall on the sentinel watching Nobody from his back. We duck back into cover, and from there shot down the Span Yarder patrolling the walkway above.
That was the signal for Deacon Steven. He bathed the other sentinel in prometheum, finished him off with his knife and freed Nobody. But the commotion was too much and Span Yarder reinforcements moved in, their boltguns blazing.
Steven and Peter went down but managed to crawl in cover. Nobody, with typical Ratskin's skill, legged it putting as much distance between him and the pursuers as he could.
We also started to backtrack, bolt fire raining on us from the gantries above.
Then we found we'd been surrounded as the Span Yarders' leader and his personal bodyguard emerged from a derelict hab-block along our escape route.
Yago summoned his wyrd-fire and blasted the bodyguard, but he left himself open to the leader charge. He must have had some sort of anti-wyrd, psy-weaponry because Yago turned into a bubbling idiot and we were overcome by an unnatural dread and had to fall back.
[ADDENDA: This is indeed Inquisitor Faziel. What in the Emperor's Name is he looking for in Mancunius Dome? INQ QS]
Nobody was still pursued, but he spotted a safe path around a huge industrial vehicle. Magister Silas immediately followed the Ratskin.
The Span Yarders couldn't catch him but in running after him they gave us wounded a chance to sneak away safely.
My Lord, I'm sure the Span Yarder leader is an Inquisitor. I've seen the effects of your gear, and the ones he was carrying did exactly the same. How am I to act if we run into him again? Please instruct me. There's more I'm worried about and on which I'll need your orders. It seems that, as the Skinnymen and Merkzy Banda met to exchange prisoners, they then clashed over some pieces of discarded tech scattered in the area.
That would be nothing special in Mancunius Dome, if it was not that the Skinnymen, even if having the upper hand, had to retreat as, apaarently, they were attacked by shadowy figures moving on spider-like mechanical limbs.
These can only be the Scuttlers. They are moving, my Lord, but it is still not clear if they've the permission of Pa'smond Massoonan to operate in the Sulfured Quays. Agent LVC, end of report.
Lucius Scopos and the Venithyan Marksmen
The Venithyan Marksmen were funded during the Long Siege, the major conflict faced by Venithya in the Age of Chaos. When a Slaneeshi fleet emerged from the Waterway and blockaded the city, most of the Free Companies were engaged on the mainland repelling a Skaven attack to Iridiumspire. Every civilian able to hold a weapon was thus press ganged and given a crossbow. As the siege grounded on, the best marksmen were formed in a special company, tasked with the spotting and killing of the officers of the blockading ships. It was their commander, the Venithya-born commoner Drogo Scopos, to end the siege as he placed a bolt in each of the three eyes of the enemy admiral, Ar'ghul Slithertongue. Scopos and then his descendants continued to guide the Marksmen, taking pride in recruiting only among the Venithyan commoners.
Lucius Scopos has recently succeeded his father. Yet, he has already led the company in a number of brilliant missions that have allowed the Gilded Hand to reclaim many of their long lost trading routes. He has proven himself as a calm leader and unmatched maestro of the reapeter crossbow. These qualities, together with his uncompromising loyalty for Venithya and hate of any Chaos worshipper, make him one of the most highly regarded Captains on the Gilded Hand's paybook.
It took me some time to paint them as the hype for the new 40k edition and the enthusiasm for the Inq28 campaigns I'm playing pulled me towards other ideas. But then, AoS Skirmish came out and rekindled my motivation.
As for the modelling, i've tried to replicate, as close as possible, the colours of the Marksmen of Miragliano sticking to a palette of red and green for the clothes, pale leather for caps and accessories, bronze for armour and steel for the pot helms.
And now, onto the next Company, a yet-to-be-named bunch of swaggering duellists!
