Monthly Vox: 5 (September, 2021)

 Howdy ho! September's Monthly Vox will either be late or certainly cutting it close, I've just been so busy! This month has been pretty crazy for me. I turned 22 and I'm going back to Uni to study Software Engineering on the 2nd. This combined with work is gonna slurp up most of my free time but I'll still be doing my best to post here. Anyway, I digress. This blog is about hobbying and warhammer, not my life. 

Both have certainly delivered over September, no doubt about that:

Modelling and Painting

I haven't had much time to take an inventory of models this month but I can certainly say the number has gone back up and will continue to climb over October as I hoover up all the upcoming Black Templar releases. 

Bladeguard Veterans w/ New Templar Scheme 

 

This month, I've been trying to rework how I handle painting my Black Templar force. The current method I have was fine while I was first learning to paint but I think I can do better. I'll be slowly trying to repaint my force over the coming months to deeper reds and a more "cobalt" looking black armour, as well as a few smaller tweaks like power sword and plasma colours. 

I painted up one of the spare Bladeguard Veterans I had and also converted the Indomitus Primaris Lieutenant from Issue 1 of Imperium Magazine since I already own the exact model. I figured he would make an excellent Bladeguard Sword Brother. 

Neither of the models are perfect but they're both a step in the right direction for the scheme, in my opinion. It also helped me gain more confidence with edge highlights and non-metalics.

Assault Intercessor Sergeant w/ New Templar Scheme

One of the original test models I used for the new scheme was this Assault Intercessor Sergeant with Power Fist and Plasma Pistol. I run this loadout frequently on my magnetised Assault Intercessor Sergeants so I used some of my spare bits to make a static model for the loadout with a cooler pose, since posing is generally sacrificed a bit when you magnetise. 

He's a bit rough around the edges and isn't quite finished since he was more of a proof of concept, but I thought he deserved a mention.

Royal Warden 

The first Necron (not counting bases) that I've painted, I chose the Nihilakh dynasty because they have bling and seemed like one of the more interesting Necron schemes to paint. All in all, very little to say. I think he turned out alright. Possible Necron force joining the Gannach conflict? 👀

Imperium Magazine delivers again. Very nice. 

Inquisitor Greyfax (Repaint)

I took some time to strip Inquisitor Greyfax (oi oi) and repaint her a little more carefully than the first time, also making sure to put her on her intended 32mm base. The base still needs to be dry-brushed but I'm sure I'll get around to that... right? If you want to see her original paint job, I featured her as an example in my Martian Terrain Basing tutorial a few months ago.

Gameplay

Winter Apocalypse

This month, I've alsobeen able to get in my normal weekly game down at the club, including a massive 7-person Apocalypse-sized game that took all day and featured some questionable rule choices in the name of the Rule of Cool but it was super sick! Plenty of knights, titans, walls of tanks, wraithknights, and a sizable Black Templar force (reinforced by some loaner dreadnoughts) fighting for the centre of the table. 

Free super-heavies, 30 Command Points per turn, and the ability to bring back characters and super-heavies at the start of each round, while not being the most competitive method of play, made for absolute carnage and was a ton of fun when combined with baked goods and alcohol. 

Check out the pics below:

Closing Statement

As always, big things on the way. Still plenty of ideas and projects in the pipeline so stick around for that. Within the next few days you should be seeing a rework of 'Crossing the Rubicon: Primaris Vanguard Veterans' from back in May, since I feel as though the it could have been more informative. Stay tuned for that! 

Additionally, you may have noticed we're a .com site now! Fistful of Beans now has it's own domain. All the previous blogspot links should still work fine, redirecting to here, regardless, but hey, it scratches the itch. There has been an uptake in traffic since so it's clearly done something.

As always, thanks for the support and thanks for reading!

Cheers,

Ryan.

Primaris Chaplain Grimaldus! New Black Templar Release

 As I mentioned towards the end of my consolidation post of all the current* Black Templar releases, along with the recent GenCon reveals, our favourite Chaplain would be worth the wait. 

Grimaldus, the man who literally shouted the princeps of an Imperator Titan back to life, is back from his trip across the Rubicon. The famed reclusiarch is sporting an awesome new model, complete with Mk X power armour and his signature plasma pistol. While I'm not a fan of how weirdly he's holding his Crozius, the model still looks fantastic.

Grimaldus isn't the only one getting a makeover, however. His cenobyte servitors, each carrying a relic of his relatively shitty time inside the hive city of Helsreach, have also received awesome new models. 

While, in my opinion, nowhere near as cool as the new Primaris High Marshal Helbrecht model, I'm still hyped as hell to see one of my favourite characters get a fresh plastic kit and will definitely be picking this guy up.

Grimaldus' stats are also something to consider going forward. Seeing as he is crossing the rubicon, we can most likely expect to see him gain and extra wound and possibly an extra attack. I am also expecting a bit of an aura rework for both himself, and Helbrecht. But I can hardly comment on that currently as we still have no stats for any upcoming templar releases besides the Pyreblaster.

So what do you guys think? Like Grimaldus' new model? Let me know over on my Instagram, @fistfulofbeans , or in the comments below.

Posts may be even more sporadic going forward as the university term begins for me. Stick around still! There's still plenty more posts on the way. 

Cheers,

Ryan.

*At the time...

A First Look at The New Black Templar Marshal Weapon Options and Sprue

 Hey all! Pretty interesting news today over on reddit.

After mishap with their Hexfire order, Reddit user u/jazzhandskreiger accidentally received the unreleased Black Templar Marshal model, fresh on it's sprue, in place of the recently-released Castellan Crowe model.

The reddit post also gives us a good look at what the sprue will look like for the new Black Templar Marshal, as well as giving insight into possible weapon and wargear options!

The wargear options I can discern from this sprue are as follows:

• Power Sword
• Power Axe
• Combi-flamer
• Plasma Pistol

I'm hopeful that this will be the first Primaris* Character we've had in a while that actually has flexibility in it's loadout options, allowing more of a mix-and-match, as opposed to set loadout variants. 

One thing I am confused to see is a complete lack of closed-off helmet options, with the sprue appearing to only contain open helmets and empty heads. I will probably be putting a helmet/alternate head from my bits box on here, especially if it coincides more with Marshal Reinhardt.

This guy may just be the spiritual successor to the Black Templar Marshal of old. It's always great to see older models reimagined. 

It's refreshing to see some actual wargear options on what is presumably a monopose kit. I'm looking forward to magnetising this guy or, alternatively, having some extra power weapon bits complete with chained wrists for my bits box. 

Just a short post to quickly jump on this news! See you in the next one!

Cheers, 

Ryan.

*Yes, technically he could still be firstborn. Especially since Primaris would not be caught dead with a combi-weapon but hey...

Games Workshop Celebrates A Million Online Customers with Exclusive Sergeant Castus Miniature

 Games Worshop seems to be squeezing the most out of October's Black Templar releases by releasing an exclusive miniature for orders over the low price of £150 ($205). They recently announced this massive milestone in a Warhammer Community post along with a short promotional video.

The model itself appears to be an Assault Intercessor Sergeant with Chainsword and Plasma Pistol, featuring an awesome-looking 40mm scenic base. As someone who will be throwing money at GW come October, I'm looking forward to grabbing this guy. My only issue is the game legality, similar to sergeant Jovan, Castus comes on a 40mm base which, while legal since its the one he comes with, is irritatingly inconsistent. But of course, he's a display model so I'm nit-picking.

The mind boggles at what HQs this chap could be converted to with that 40mm base and cool-ass pose. Sergeant Castus will be available to grab for free with orders of at least £150 from now until the 28th of October. 

What about you guys? Do you like this limited-time model? Hit me up in the comments or over on Instagram (@fistful of beans).

I've got very little going on today so I hope you guys are enjoying an afternoon full of small posts :)

Cheers, 
Ryan.

Shots fired at Wahapedia

 Hey all! It would appear that Games Workshop's legal team is going after Wahapedia now, not that any of us are really too shocked. Wahapedia stands as the main source of datasheets, missions, and codex content. The main thing that separates it from the books themselves is it's utilitarian site design and no-fluff content deliverance, lacking most art and lore. This makes the codices, at least in my opinion, still worth the purchase.  This is summed up well in Wahapedia's own 'Legal' notice (below).

In a post over on Wahapedia's Patreon, it was revealed that GW have allowed 14 days for all the site's info to be taken down, or face further legal action.

While the first few statements declared by the email outline what GW and Warhammer are, the email quickly gets down to brass tacks, making the obvious statement that Games Workshop's data and text are not Wahapedia's to distribute. It additionally points out that the site and it's owner(s) are profiting from it, and that is obviously a no go. 

Games Workshop have officially given Wahapedia, and those who run it, 14 days to remove any "significant" infringement of their content, along with any quoted text or data from their books. 

This does not bode well for other data sites such as BattleScribe and it's community-sourced 40K Repos, especially since Games Workshop would probably prefer that you use their app to write your lists. I nearly threw up in my mouth typing that last bit. 

Either way, in his patreon post, Vyacheslav of Wahapedia seems to be taking the whole thing very well, stating no ill-will to GW and even asking the community to find the fun in the situation and create memes. All in all, a good sport.

What do you think of Wahapedia's takedown? Corporate seal-clubbing or justified infringement-removal? 

More stuff on the way soon.

Cheers, 

Ryan.

Warhammer 40K Black Templar Gen Con Reveals and MORE!

Hi all! Sorry for the lack of posts the past few weeks. Took a short break out while I got some things sorted for uni and I also turned 22! 

Naturally, as soon as I take a small hiatus, Games Workshop decides to drop some absolute bangers for our boys in black. We've seen such a push for the templars over the last few weeks, so allow me to consolidate what we have so far, as well as what we might be able to expect going forward! 

The Teaser

Back in July, we first saw a teaser that the Templars were getting some love in the form of a short trailer, featuring, what appears to be, the Emperor's champion kneeling over a shrine of sorts while the signature vows were recited. Check out the covering of that, here! 

New Primaris Emperor's Champion

Spoken about back in August, we first got a taste of what was to come with a brand-spanking-new model for the Emperor's Champion, most-skilled and best-equipped of a Black Templar crusade company. Check out some theories about that, along with my initial impressions, here! 

Primaris Initiate with Pyreblaster

The releases were bi-weekly at this point, with constant posts and reveals, including a new weapon and our first hint of Primaris Crusader Squads, the Primaris Initiate with Pyreblasters. Check out my post on that, here!

Black Templars Boxset

And now we have it, the crème de la crème reveal we all wanted to see! The Black Templars, for the first time in years, have their own dedicated boxset and, more importantly, a codex! I'll be covering the latter at a later date when we have more info since, weirdly, we havent seen much in the way of actual rules for the Templars like we did for other factions in the lead-up to their codex release, but alas. 

For now, let's focus on the models. The box set features, what appears to be*: 

• The Emperor's Champion
• Primaris Crusader Squad
• 2x Primaris Initiate w/ Chainsword and Heavy Bolt Pistol
• 2x Primaris Initiate w/ Auto Bolt Rifle
• 2x Primaris Neophyte with Chainsword and Bolt Pistol
• 2x Primaris Neophyte with Bolt Rifle/Bolt Carbine
• Primaris Initiate with Pyreblaster
• Sword Brethor with Power Sword
• Primaris Redemptor Dreadnought (Most likely, the full multi-part kit) 
• Primaris Marshal with Plasma Pistol and Master-Crafted(?) Power Sword

I may be wrong on this, but this is what I can deduce from the image above, at least as far as models go. I initially assumed most of the models would be monopose with set loadouts until the dedicated kit came out but we have been promised a "ton of build options" so we shall have to see. My main concern is that they give us enough of each weapon to uniformly outfit our crusader squad with one loadout, rather than being forced to mix like the new Ork Boyz kit. Bad move, GW.

Based on the article over on the Warhammer Community, as well as the reveal at Gen Con, we can also expect to see: 

• An exclusive Codex featuring the brilliant third-edition artwork by the talented John Blanche
• Datacards detailing Codex content like strategems and such.
• A "massive" transfer sheet with 226 DECALS for the Black Templars! Sorry Mighty Brush...

The boxset is rumoured to be releasing some time in November, though we may see it sooner. 

New Primaris High-Marshal Helbrecht Model

I'm lost for words at this new model of the High-Marshal, looking like it was ripped from the works of Mark Gibbons.

With his current model being finecast from a billion years ago, it's great to see this guy getting a new dedicated model. He also appears to be making the swim across the Rubicon Primaris, hopefully beefing up his stats to be more on par with what we would expect from a High Marshal.

His model even comes with two servitor simps, one to hold his combi-melta, and another to polish his sword (despite it still being impaled in the chest of an unfortune Ork). We also know he'll be arriving to crusade on a whopping 60mm base to accommodate them, making him one of the largest non-primarch characters in the current range. I'm looking forward to seeing how far he can push his juicy melee auras.

What Else?

Going forward, I think we'd all be ecstatic to see a new model for our favourite Chaplain, Merreck "Shout up to the Cathedral" Grimaldus. Part of me doesn't want to get my hopes up but Games Workshop seems to be going balls-deep with this release so our hopes may be fulfilled. 

It would also be fantastic to see some of the new rules ahead of time since we saw it with other factions such as the lead-up to the Ork codex, though I may be asking too much. This is already the most love the Black Templars have seen in years.

A Quick Word

Hey all! Just a quick word from myself and the blog. As you may have seen in the post I put up a couple of weeks ago, we have an email list now! So if you don't want to create a blogger account, simply pop your email into the field at the bottom of any page on the site and you'll be able to register for alerts whenever a post goes live here! 

Don't worry, if you get bored of my rambling you can unsubscribe at any time!

I'm also about to purchase the domain name for the blog! Small bit of news but it's nice enough :)

I look forward to writing more stuff for you guys! 

Cheers, 

Ryan

*I could be wrong, since we don't have the actual datasheets or stats, as of me writing this.

Coming To An Email Near You!

 I've finally figured out how I can get email updated forwarded straight to the readers of this lovely blog. 

There are currently two options:

Option A: Create a Blogger account and subscribe to the Blog. This will send you updates via blogger if you allow it in your account settings.

Option B: Enter your email in the bar at the bottom of the site. Utilising email hosting from MailChimp, I now have an email list set up that will ping you once per day (assuming I have posted), straight to your email!

This was just a short post to get that out there! More stuff on the way!

Cheers, 
Ryan

Grip It and Rip It With The Rumour Engine's New Bike Model

 August 31st saw the release of another Rumour Engine article over on the Warhammer Community, hinting at something ready to tear up some dirt. 

It doesn't take a PhD in engineering to work out that there is something automotive involved in this newly hinted model. Signs point to a new biker model for an unknown faction. 

Now, there are a few likely candidates for whom this sled might belong to. I am in the school of thought, along with most others in the community, that this is likely to be a release for the Genestealer Cults. Perhaps a new model character model to run alongside a couple units of Jackals? It would certainly make sense given their penchant for off-road vehicles and seizing of Imperial equipment.

On the flip-side, the large round riveted plate suggests something Mechanicus/Imperium to me. As Bolter and Chainsword user; DeadFingers pointed out over on this forum post, this particular aesthetic piece really is everywhere!

While, personally, I'd love to see a Primaris Captain on Bike, I doubt this would be it. Exposed springs don't strike me as very 'Space Marine'. Plus: Primaris Bikes have already found a strong foothold starting with the Outriders and working into the Primaris Chaplain on Bike.

Perhaps we'll find out, soon enough, what this mysterious motorized snapshot belongs to. Until then, thanks for reading!

Cheers,

Ryan