Hive Tyrant... with magnetized wings!

Hive Tyrants are without a question my favorite commander units in Warhammer 40.000. Yes, that's right, not just Tyranids, but the whole 40K. Why? They are imposing, psychic yet still excelling in combat, and they have so many different weapon options, something that is becoming a rare sight in post-Primaris Warhammer. This is why decided to at least partially magnetize my own Hivefleet Leviathan Tyrant.

I actually went only with magnetizing the upper arms, so that I can provide my Tyrant with a variety of melee weapons (and wings). The venom cannon is fixed as I consider it both visually appealing and satisfying on the battlefield. With a Tyrant, shooting is only a bonus, anyway.

Magnetizing the arms is actually very easy, you simply drill a hole where the joint connections would be and place magnets inside. Only problems is with the wings, which are simply too heavy for most magnets (see more on that below).

I went with my usual Leviathan paint scheme - with Ceramite White (White Scar) basecoat, Screaming Skull undercoat, Carroburg Crimson wash and Ceramite White drybrush. The bioweapons are painted with Mephiston Red basecoat, Carroburg wash and Evil Sunz Scarlet drybrush/highlights.Carapace is basecoated black and then highlighted with multiple strokes of Xereus Purple and Genestealer Purple.

One of my favourite looks is with the Scything Talons for upper arms. Unfortunately this combination seems illegal in the 10th edition. Don't get me started on that.

 

The most impressive way to build the model is with the wings. I love the way the miniature looks with feet stamping on the ground and the wings spreading! The wings are painted with a Kislev Flesh equivalent and, of course, they are too heavy to hold on just the magnets. I've fixed them in position using short pins protruding from the wings and fitting into rather inconspicuous drilled holes above the magnets. 

For best results, I recommend starting by drilling inside the wings just behind the magnets and fixing the pins with super glue and/or green stuff. After that, then try the wings on the model and watch where the pin scratches the model. Then drill a hole there. Be careful while drilling that a proper direction is mantained.

Take a look at the pictures below to see how the pinning sytem works:

 Anyway, hope this post is helpful! Let me know if you want help or could use more pictures.

Bad Moons Deff Dread

It took me way, way too long to finish painting this bad boy - but now it's finally done!

The color scheme used is pretty much the same as with my other Bad Moons, eg. Bad Moon Yellow contrasted with Tin Bitz and other metallics. The challenge with this model was to make it look rich and colorful without it getting too incoherent or rugged. I think we (that is, me and my awesome girlfriend) have succeeded in that - the colors are coherent and well contrasted, yet there are many "chaotical" places that remind us that this is an orkish Deff Dread, and of a rich, garish clan indeed.

 

I wanted the walker to look as if it is closing towards the enemy, its chainsaws buzzing, its pincers snapping and its weapons firing hell. Unfortunately, the pose didn't end up very photogenic and looks a bit static, too (making the Dread lean a bit forward would help, I think). Currently, the model is armed with a Skorcha (I love that one) and a Big Shoota, just in case it would get immobilized. Both weapons are magnetized though, so I might exchange the underwhelming shoota for another Skorcha, or perhaps a rokkit or even a CCW.

After spending so much time with this guy, I decided to name him - and what better name there could be for a behemoth like this than Gork. Now I'm seriously thinking about getting a second one named Mork! Regarding the gore on its left CCW, it has been made with liquid green stuff, bit of sand and static grass, plenty of red and a shiny finish of 'Ard Coat. It looks nasty.

The funny part about the model is the base. Yep, I'm talking about that one Grot Rigger (not about the butchered guardist corpse!). I bought the fantasy model for few cents at second market and simply had to convert it into a 40k grot! The goggles are made out of green stuff putty, while the hammer has been "converted" out of a sprue bit and a pin. He looks remarkably calm for someone standing in front of a giant killer machine - perhaps he is looking over the battlefield for possible loot, or he is just used to situations like these, like a propa' grot rigga' anyway!

Anyway, time for me to rest (and get to those Killa Kans)! As always, C&C is most welcome!

Finished: Magnetized Predator

Edit: Be sure to check out the wallpaper-size picture of this tank here!

It took ages, but my Predator is finally finished! I decided to make its weapons magnetized - after all, you never know whether the Annihilator pattern won't be worth it when the next Codex gets released. Anyways, let's see the dakkapred first!


I tried to make the vehicle more detailed and more weathered than my Rhino. More bright colors are used (mainly for targeters), and I've done some weathering around the exhaust pipes - nothing more than a simple drybrush, but it feels good.


A side view on the Destructor pattern, showing the weathering and a heavy bolter. I use a 1:1 mix of Tin Bitz and Chaos Black for the black metal on weapons.


I've already tested the Destructor in a small battle and I have to admit it is a beast (at least when it comes to putting down Orks). Yet, somehow, I like the design of Annihilator more, and I guess it can be seen on the model. A sniper tank with four lascannons (ok, three and a half, technically) just deserves respect; I wish this setup would be more worth it in-game. As a side note, I'm glad I got all the insignia right this time (gotta love that Insignium Astartes).


Finally, the controversial Maverick (or "autolas") pattern. Somehow this pattern actually feels the most basic for me, since it was the only one featured in Final Liberation, the game that got me into this hobby.

Anyways, let's take a short look on the magnetizing!



The turret wasn't really hard to magnetize. What you need are 3mm wide, 1mm high neodymium magnets; they fit the holes almost perfectly. I also advise glueing a small piece of plastic on the turrets lower side, so that the weapon holds firmly and doesn't fall down (which is always a risk with small magnets). If you look carefully, you can see on the picture that I used just a small piece of sprue there, and it works great.



The sponsons are harder to magnetize right. I decided to go the easy way and replace the whole weapon support with a line of magnets - it works pretty good and is not really noticable on the model. Just be *very* careful to glue everything right and even, so you don't end up with the weapons leaning in sloppy angles. Drilling a correct size hole into the weapons themselves is annoying as well; perhaps a bit of green stuff might help there (didn't try though).



So here's the model with all its parts separated. The army building possibilities are great with magnetized models, but to be honest, if you are a perfectionist, go with the normal, un-magnetized look. If you are more into gaming, though, magnetizing will allow you to try a lot of options without proxying or buying multiple models and the Predator is a good model to get a grip on it, since you need magnets of only one size. Be sure to get a good bunch of them, thought - the turret part requires at least 6, and the sponsons require anywhere from 4 to 12, depending on the way you deal with it.

Anyways, I hope you like the vehicle! See you soon.