From GregB: Beta Bunch for Alpha Legion (60 points)

More lads from the 20th Legion

Well, my submissions are getting repetitive, but here is - you guessed it - more 30k.  This is a second tactical squad for the 20th Legion, known as the Alpha Legion, for GW's Horus Heresy setting.   There are ten fellows wearing Mark IV power armour, plastic kits from the "Betrayal at Calth" box set.

I painted a white knee plate on this crew to help tell them apart from the first bunch

There are also a pair of Mark VI "beakie" power armour suits in this submission, kits from Forge World.  They are carrying special weapons, and can be swapped into the squad to create a unit of legion veteran troops as opposed to a vanilla tactical squad.

Comms trooper on the left and vexillary on the right

Some examples of the custom Alpha Legion heads from Forge World - nice dabs of character

The embossed shoulder pauldrons, transfers and a few of the helmets are upgrade packs from Forge World.  The helmets are available in packs of 10, and you can sprinkle the heads from one package across several units to add a bit of additional character to the overall force. 

Mark VI armoured troops from Forge World, probably my favourite models...

Love the "shark fin" style missile launcher.!

As I said previously, while the plastic Mark IV armour kits are very nice and fun to work with, the Mark VI armour sets from Forge World are a pure joy, a hidden gem for Space Marine junkies like me.  No skullz...great proportions...beakie helmets...and they mix perfectly with any plastic or resin spares or accessories.  It is everything you get from the old RTB 01 plastic box, but with better proportions and full compatibility with all of the bits out there.  I have a small and declining stash of these models, and I expect I will sprinkle them around the different forces in my collection so each one has a dash of "beakie" look to them.

When I contemplate how much fun the "beakie" models are, I'm surprised Forge World was ever allowed to release the Mark VI armour kits.  After all, they are connected to the heritage and original inspiration of the game, and Space Marine players and collectors love them - in my experience, both of those seem to be deal breakers with GW.  I imagine it all played out as some kind of dysfunctional corporate situation, where the Forge World guys had to sneak the designs online...

GW corporate tool: "You are not selling those old 'beakie' Space Marines are you? You KNOW we are not 'in' to that anymore..."

FW designer: "Of course not, Liege - we would never stoop to releasing anything that popular, connected to the collective positive experiences we all shared when we got into this hobby. That is fully against..."

GW corporate tool: "...against the business plan! As it is, this whole 'Horus Hesresy' thing seems dangerously popular, and we may have to give it the ol' 'specialist games treatment' at any minute, before more players start to enjoy it..." [makes throat-slashing gesture]

FW designer: "Not to worry, Liege - ensuring the best prices for the most accessible Horus Heresy models are only found in box games few people are actually interested in playing is doing a trick to ensure it is still harder for a gamer to get into the Horus Heresy than it otherwise might be..."

GW corporate tool: "Right then - get back to designing that new special character, Skully Bonerz McSkullz, King of Kaos Kookiness - he will be a special release, front page of a White Dwarf, etc."

Anyway, I digress...but the Mark VI suits ARE getting harder and harder to find on Forge World's byzantine web site, and I'm sure it is only a matter of time until word reaches GW leadership that these beautiful models are available for sale, and the sculpts are withdrawn from the web store...

Putting the "me" in team - the Alpha Legion...

So a total of 12 models in 28mm, good for another 60 points or so. The completion of this unit provides the absolute bare bones of a force for the tabletop - two troop choices (tactical squads) and an HQ (the chaplain).  This is next to nothing under the current iteration of the 30k/40k rules, but would be plenty for a game of Rogue Trader, or even just enough to wreck things for someone as some "allies" - and with friends like the Alpha Legion, who needs enemies?

This bunch is ready for action, but will require some reinforcements before they have any impact on the table...

Up next? Well, no prize for guessing the setting, but hopefully I might change up the scale...or not...whatever it is, we'll see you next week!

Alan and Paul: Excellent painting, Greg. Your very clean style does justice to those nice Forgeworld sculpts. Like you say, it's very refreshing to see Space Marines without skulls hanging off everywhere. Oh, and great GW rant!