The Caledonian Uprising draws closer...and a second attempt at the Rapier Weapon Carrier

Greetings sinners!

The 40k hobby has really exploded for me in the last couple of weeks. My Noise Marines call to me....listen to the children of Slaanesh, what sweet music they make! The Path to Glory: Call of Chaos haunts my dreams, luring me down the dark, twisted paths of my imagination and seducing me with thoughts of eternal glory. As if that wasn't enough, the tournament Caledonian Uprising is fast approaching, so once again it's time to prioritise this wonderful hobby.

Path To Glory: Call Of Chaos

Greetings sinners!
I'm sure every self-respecting GW fanboi knows that Games Workshop are doing their usual Advent Calendar once again....and I'm sure every self-respecting Chaos Lord worth a spit, knows that all of them are Chaos related this year. So despite the lack of sunlight to paint with or to cheer me up, I'm really stoked with GW's offerings this month, so much so that I've subscribed to all of the 40k Advent Calendar!

Storms of Judgement Campaign - The Sacking of Mammon

Port Avarice was empty when Festus and his Death Guard dropped onto the central landing pad, his forces had fanned out to clear the facility encountering no opposition. 
Usually a planet's main port would be a bustling hive of activity, but Port Avarice was deserted. The occupants had obviously left in haste, evident by the dropped trinkets and garments littering the eerily quiet streets.

Still smarting from the loss of the space station, Voidspan, Festus had immediately determined a course of action. The Space Port on Mammon would would make an ideal base of operations for the Death Guard. With this undamaged Space Port he could coordinate sweeps and searches of the entire system, it wouldn't take long to locate Nestor and his decadent Castigators from here. 
With this in mind he set his menials to task fortifying the base and re-activating the deep space scanners. Moments after restoring power, Proximity alarms began flashing, accompanied by the wail of a droning klaxon.
"Report." Ordered Festus.
"Scanners report no unidentified ships in the vicinity" replied the Warpsmith Darkmite.
"Well something must be setting off these damned alarms! Find out...." Raged Festus.
"I think I can answer that" interrupted Tosis Mire.
Festus turned to look at his second-in-command, but the Nurgle champion was gazing through the window into the gloom.
"And how would you know what's approaching?" Growled Festus.
"Because they are already here, sire." Sneered Tosis pointing into the gloom.

From the ridiculous to the Sublime

Greetings Sinners!
With my tournament season over for this year, I'm struggling to find the motivation to paint anything at the moment. To get my painting mojo back, I'm going to embrace my Hobby Butterfly Syndrome and concentrate on one model at a time and then jump to something totally different. Lately, I've been speed painting ridiculously large models, so where better to start than with a member of Squad Sublime.

The 40k UK GT Heat 2 - Lucian's Tale

Arise! Arise Cold Steel Mercs.

Fell deeds awake, fire and slaughter.

Spears shall be shaken, shield be splintered.

A sword day, a red day!

'ere the sun rises, ride. 

Ride now to Sanctuary.

The Castigators' 2nd Cohort sets sail for Heat 2 of the UKGT

After three days of solid painting, my army is as ready as it's going to get for heat 2 of the UKGT. It seems awfully small for a 1500pt army, but hey, a Scorpion and a Fire Raptor sure eat those points up!

The Quick and the Dirty

Greetings sinners!
Heat 2 of the UKGT is fast approaching and once again a tournament is dictating what I'm painting. I have a week to get everything table top ready and it's looking a bit of a tall order. Fortunately, my mate Rob has lent me the ten Cultists above to help me out. So for the last couple of days I've been busy sorting out another 10 Cultists, a Dreadclaw and for some bizarre reason I decided I didn't like the Force Sword on my Sorceror and chopped it off to replace it with a Force Axe.....great timing eh?

The Southern Invitational - Nestor's Tale

The Journey had been long and perilous. Traversing the whirls and eddies of the storms had been relatively simple thanks to Weymouth's psychic beacon lighting the way. The danger came not from the storms, but from the bitterest of rivals travelling the same route. Nestor had ordered the Castigators to keep a wary eye on Festus Foulspawn's Death Guard that had shadowed them for the entire journey. Tensions rose even higher when Damien Broadcloak's Tzeentch warband came into view, but all of them respected the truce accorded to the participants of the Southern Invitational.

Soul Grinder of Slaanesh- WIP

Greetings sinners!
With the Southern Invitational less than five days away, I've been beavering away on my Slaanesh Soul Grinder. Unfortunately I'll only have two days of free time to paint 15 Furies and re-equip my Slaanesh Lord with a Fist and Claw. So for the time being this will have to suffice.....

Storms of Judgement - Clash at Morbus

The Nurgling's squeal of anguish was brutally cut short as Nestor crushed the noisome creature beneath his heel. "Odious, filthy vermin" he thought as he put a bolter round through another of the tedious pests. "I shall cleanse this world of these vile parasites once Morbus is free from the Death Guard." He vowed.
For several Months the Pandora Cluster had been ravaged by Warp Storms. Travel between worlds had been impossible and Nestor had found himself stranded on the pleasure world of Mammon. Not a terrible place to be stranded, but the Slaanesh Lord had soon grown restless. He yearned for the thrill of combat once again and even Nestor realised that his blood lust could be a dangerous master if left unchecked. When the Storms had eventually cleared the Castigators made for the nearest warzone to slake his thirst with the blood of his enemies.....Morbus.

The Southern Invitational Approaches

Things have been very quiet on the gaming front lately. Summer has always been a bit slow, I mean who wants to be stuck inside when it's as sticky as Sticky the stick insect stuck on a sticky bun? But summer is behind us now and here in the UK we're officially into Autumn. With the changing of the seasons comes a change of pace on the gaming front, starting with the Southern Invitational.

The Silken Scorpion - WIP....decisions, decisions.

Greetings sinners! It's been a while since I posted, but as you can see I've been beavering away on my latest acquisition, a Brass Silken Scorpion. I suppose I should have taken a photo of this with a Chaos Marine stood alongside it to show the scale because this thing is bloody huge.

The Hobby Butterfly Syndrome strikes again!

Once again the dreaded HBS has gripped me with its alluring and seductive charms. As I write this, I'm surrounded by 20 Slaanesh Furies, a Soul Grinder, the Masque, a Slaanesh Herald, 10 Daemonettes, a Brass Scorpion and 3 Kataphron Battle Servitors waiting impatiently to be turned into Rapier Weapons Carriers.

The Knight is Coming

Pre-orders go up for the new Chaos Knight a week from today.
"These vile engines of destruction will have had many gifts bestowed upon them in return for their devotion to the dark gods. Some Chaos Knights may be refitted with powerful and tainted weaponry, augmenting their already fearsome strength in close combat with foe-reaper chainswords, barbarous corruptions of reaper chainswords adapted to gouge and eviscerate all who get within their reach. Whilst those who have given themselves over fully to one of the Chaos gods receive malevolent powers, granting them unnatural and terrifying abilities that few can match and defend against."

Getting Back In The Saddle

As I mentioned previously I've entered a heat at this year's UKGT. As everybody knows, the Chaos Space Marine Codex is currently the weakest Codex out there at the moment and my usual Castigators army list is woefully inadequate to compete at this level. With this in mind I'm looking to allies to pick up the slack and help out the Castigators in their time of need. Fortunately for me, I have a couple of months to decide on which direction to go in. Most of my time will be spent on speed painting Daemons, trying out some lists and discovering just how inadequate my rules knowledge is.......

Slaanesh Fury - The colour of Chaos

I've managed to get 20 Furies of Slaanesh built in double quick time (well, double quick for me). The plastic Gargoyles and Daemonettes are a real pleasure to work with, they go together so easy, giving me a very light and durable model despite their fragile appearance. They'll need to be durable because moving 20 around means they're getting to be handled pretty roughly when I use them.
After a bit of musing over a colour scheme, I decided against a muted bestial look and opted for a more retro Slaves to Darkness colour scheme. I managed to knock this out in a couple of hours and whilst it could do with a few more highlights on the wings it gives a good idea of how they will look.
The only thing I'm unsure about is her hair. I can't decide whether to leave it white, colour it purple or go for a turquoise/blue. Any thoughts are more than welcome.

Until next time......may Our Lady grant you her number ;-)

Facing My Demons

It's no secret that I've been somewhat disillusioned with the direction GW have dragged 40k in. It's pretty much a free for all these days, and whilst freedom to do whatever you want can be a liberating experience, it can quickly become tedious when it becomes the norm. As a 'Fluffhead, the background has always played an important part of the game for me, so when I see Grey Knights allying with Daemons or Thunderwolves with Flying Hive Tyrants, I think what's the point in tournaments?

Chaos Fire Raptor, Divine Flame - The Colours of Chaos

It has been a bit of a trial to build and paint it but I've finally reached the stage that my Fire Raptor is tabletop ready.

Chaos Knight Approaches?

The latest Forge World Bulletin released today tempts us with a sneak peak of the Chaos Knight that they have been working on. Unfortunately the only information to accompany the photo was the following:
'A Knight sworn to the powers of Chaos. I hear it’ll be ready for production soon!'

Fire Raptor - WIP III....Now With Wings!

I've managed to get a bit more work done on my Fire Raptor. The wings have been added and I'm finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. It's not been without its tribulations though......

Fire Raptor - WIP II

I managed to get some work done on a wing today, and I'm pretty pleased with the overall effect. I've resisted gluing the wing on for now as there is still plenty of detail to add to it.

Fire Raptor WIP - Subtitled, Do I NOT Like Painting Large Models!

Work is continuing very slowly on my Fire Raptor, in fact, the only thing that has progressed quickly is my realisation that I don't like painting large models. As each day passes, it sits there on my coffee table, taunting me with its 'vastness,' leeching every ounce of enthusiasm from me and replacing it with soul numbing apathy. Even as I type this out I can feel the waves of smugness emanating from the damnable thing as it mocks my inability to find the energy to pick up a paint brush.

Damn you Forge World, Stop tempting me!

Forge World are at it again....enticing me with their sweet seductive charms.
All hail the Deimos Vindicator Destroyer.....

Storms of Judgement - The Pandora Cluster Revealed

Janus had fought with Void Span's machine spirit for days, overcoming one obstacle only for the space station's malignant intelligence to throw up yet another.
Lucian had suggested purging it and allowing the never-born to infest it, but Janus dismissed the Sorceror's idea immediately. Truth was, Janus admired its tenacity, it was a worthy adversary and technology such as this should be harnessed....revered even. Finally the Warpsmith had mastered it, taming its spirit and establishing his dominance. 
Nestor was delighted when the scatter-field was disabled, revealing the Pandora Cluster in all its glory, ripe for the plucking. Janus used his.....Voidspan's sensors to delve deep into the system and unearth its secrets had been an exhilarating experience and the Warpsmith marvelled at just how sophisticated his.....Voidspan's alien sensors were. Exploring the.....station's other systems had been a fascinating experience that had opened him up to stimuli that he could never have dreamed of. With the scatter-field down, it had become evident that his.....Voidspan's position could no longer be triangulated, making it ideal as a permanent base for the Castigators. Janus was pleased when his lord gave permission for him to stay behind and refit Voidspan to suit the Chapter's needs.

“So nothing can be done?” Asked Nestor.
“Janus has become fully integrated with the station’s machine spirit.” Lucian replied.
“His body is merely an empty husk, but at least we have full control of the station.”  

Storms of Judgement - The Fall of Voidspan

The bridge of the Shaft of Dominance was a hive of activity as the ship manoeuvred alongside the enormous space station. Squeals of binary code echoed around the chamber adding to the endless reports and orders being issued, creating a cacophony of noise that bordered on chaos. Captain Vane sat silently in his command throne, his attention focussed on the view screen before him. Lights flickered across the screen like fireflies on a balmy summer breeze, dancing to a tune that only he could hear. Two of the lights came together, their embrace momentarily amplifying their brightness before winking out of existence. 

The ballet continued as more of the Assault Torpedoes attempted to close with the space station. The Wolves were suffering horrendous casualties; the Corpus Mundi adding her considerable firepower to the barrage from the other side of the space station, each ship mindful of the others presence, made sure to keep the space station between them.
“And there lay the flaw”, thought Vane to himself. A blind spot that neither the Shaft of Dominance nor the Corpus Mundi, could reach. A corridor that once entered would allow the Wolves’ Assault Boats free run at the space station. Vane continued to watch as the ballet reached its climax. “There!” He said aloud as four Assault Torpedoes punched through the barrage and entered the corridor. All eyes turned to the Captain as he rose from the command throne, his gigantic armoured form throwing shadows that coiled and crept at the edges of vision.
“Open a Comm-link to Nestor and inform Lord Lustheart to expect visitors.”

Storms of Judgement - The Scourge of Voidspan

“You’re sure this scourge cannot be stopped?”
“Not from here, my Lord” replied Janus. “However, I’ve located the source and believe that the parameters can be changed to a more favourable setting.” continued the Warpsmith.
“Parameters?” Inquired Nestor.
“The Scourge operates under predefined protocols when targeting intruders. The Death Guard have locked the internal sensors to emit a wide angled beam that attacks the targets molecular structure. If we reach the coordinates that I am currently uploading to all squads, we can reset the protocol to emit a narrow angled beam. This would allow a quick-witted enough target to avoid the Scourge.”
“How long before the Scourge activates?
“Less than four cycles, my Lord.” Replied Janus.
Nestor opened a comm-link “All units, converge on me. We move out immediately.”

Painting Season Begins

Finally we're on the right side of Ostara, the cold grim darkness is pushed aside to make way for the....err....cold grim light! The clocks have gone forward and at last there's enough daylight to start painting again.
I've always painted in daylight, so when Ostara (the spring Equinox) comes around I wake from my painting hibernation and bask in the glorious daylight with paint brush in hand, ready to do battle with the endless hordes of plastic that infest my abode.

Storms of Judgement - Voidspan fights back

The roaring, thundering presence of the machine-spirit echoed everywhere. Janus slipped through the next layer, and its anger hit him like a tidal wave. It was hot and vibrant, a shocking terrible mass of emotion to come from a machine spirit that had been so quiet for so long. When the Warpsmith had first entered Voidspan's Machine-Spirit he had known it only as a chained storm, its power and the potential energy of its great intellect and knowledge contained in the metal shell of the station. Now it was open and raw, all of its centuries of corruption powering its fury, and its pain. Waves of pure agony hammered off it. Janus forced his mind to conceptualise the machine-spirit as it loomed up from the darkness of the space station's higher systems. The storm clouds were angry red, and they rained blood. Currents of hot, toxic pain flowed around the storm, lashing Janus with black lightning of pain as the machine-spirit raged.

“Tell me!” cried Janus. “Tell me what I must do!”

The emotion that howled on the electronic gale was not human, but it could not be mistaken. Pain, anger and malice mixed into one, battering against the Warpsmith’s mind.

The Station wanted him to die.

Janus wrenched his mind out of the space station's information systems. He snapped back into his body and turned to face Nestor.

“We must hurry my Lord. Defence protocols have re-established themselves, if we don’t reach the inner level to stop it, the outer ring will detach itself and we will be cast adrift.”

As if to emphasise the Warpsmiths point, rivets, the size of a man’s fist tore a section of panel away as the station shook violently.

“Move out!” ordered Nestor.

New Game Mat Arrives

I'd been thinking about getting a game mat for a while. I looked at Frontline's gaming mats and thought they looked great but the shipping costs from America really put me off. Fortunately I came across GAMEMAT.EU who are based in the Czech Republic and, being considerably closer, are also considerably cheaper.

Slaanesh Maulerfiend - The Colours of Chaos

Fresh from the Hell-Forges of Lathe, the Castigators have taken possession of another vile and blasphemous Daemon-Engine. As the inhabitants of the Pandora Cluster scurry deep underground to escape the attentions of the Castigators' Heldrake, little do they realise that they are being herded into the waiting arms of a Maulerfiend codified 'Tormentum.'

Storms of Judgement - Assault on Voidspan, Forcing the Breach

Nestor’s steed writhed with pleasure as the metal floor plates vibrated beneath her. Her squeals of delight added to the sound of groaning metal to create a cacophony of sound that the decadent Noise Marines revelled in.
Shock waves assailed all those in the vicinity as the Castigators’ assault torpedoes slammed into the outer bulkheads of Void Span. Klaxons immediately began bleating their monotone song accompanied by amber flashing hazard beacons as Frag launchers scoured the entry points with lethal shrapnel. The blaring noise faded to silence as the stations interior climate evaporated in a plume of gas into the still, blackness of space.

Unperturbed by the commotion, Nestor’s forces stalked silently like spectres into Void Span’s mortuary corridors, mag-locks on their armour shod feet keeping them grounded in the zero gravity. Blips on Nestor’s auspex marked numerous, as yet un-quantified targets in glowing red. Nestor knew the Death Guard would be closing quickly to seal the breach and repel the invaders for the third time.
“Nephran, take Squad Sublime along with Phobos and secure the east flank. N’kari and his children will take the centre.” Ordered Nestor. 
“As it pleases you” replied N’kari.
“Darius, you’re with me.” Continued Nestor as he smashed through the ventilation grill and entered the ducting system.

Building a Zone Mortalis Board

Hey Peeps.

Thought I'd show you how we went about building our Zone Mortalis board.

I liked the look of the Forge World board from the first moment I saw it, but I was unwilling to pay that kind of money for something that might only be used occasionally. I mentally filed it away under 'Future Projects' (I'm sure I'm not the only one who has  a 'future project' list, I have a third of a Daemon army, a third of a Space Wolves army, an old Tyranid and Tau army that are all down to future projects ;-) ) and continued my enjoyment of 5th edition tournament play.

So what changed?

6th edition came along and I realised that I no longer enjoyed 40k as a competitive tournament game. I've invested too much time in 40k and have made too many friends to simply give up on it. So I've gone back to my roots and have concentrated on the hobby side of things like modelling, painting and running campaigns with my old mate Rob.

Our campaign games took on a life of their own and it wasn't long before we started building specific pieces of terrain to enhance our games and help with the story. The Storms of Judgement Campaign moved along and it soon became apparent that we wanted a Zone Mortalis board to fight over.

This is how we set about it.....

Storms of Judgement - Assault on Voidspan

Nestor silently cursed his impetuousness.

In his haste to hunt down the Corpus Mundi, the Castigators’ Terminators had been left behind at Toil’s End. Only Shaithis, captain of the first Cohort, had one of the precious suits available. Because of this, Nestor had given him responsibility to secure a beachhead on the station.
Shaithis had addressed the War Council with his usual arrogance. His attempts at swaying the War Council to his proposals had all the finesse of a World Eater at a tea party. Whilst amusing at first, Nestor was growing tired of his rhetoric and was beginning to regret his decision to give him overall command of the assault.
Shaithis’ ramblings were interrupted by the arrival of Lucian and Janus. Nestor held a hand up and Shaithis fell silent.
“What news do you bring us Janus?”
“The space station is still invisible to our sensors my Lord. The structure defies all known configurations.” replied the Warpsmith.
“So we’ll be going in blind then. Have you awakened Deimos and Phobos from their slumber?
“I have my Lord; they are already secured on the first wave of Boarding Torpedos.”
Nestor turned to face the Chief Sorceror as he took up his customary position alongside him. “What of our allies Lucian?”
“All is ready my Lord. The ritual is complete and N’kari and his children will join the assault in the second wave.”
“Excellent!” interrupted Shaithis. “Consider the beachhead secure my Lord.” 
Shaithis turned to leave the chamber.
“Shaithis!” growled Nestor. 
Shaithis turned to face him.
“You have my permission to leave Captain…..and if you do not secure the Beachhead, then see to it that you do not return.”

Storms of Judgement - The discovery of Voidspan

"They're preparing to enter real-space" said Lucian. "Stand by for the co-ordinates."

Nestor roused himself from his his ennui at the Chief Sorcerors words. For three days the Veritas Invicta had tracked the Death Guard ship, the Corpus Mundi, through the Warp. A feat that had not been without its costs, evident by the shrivelled dessicated husks of the Sorceror's Acolytes that littered the chamber.

"On my mark prepare to enter real-space."

The skirmishes for the Underhive of Toil's End had not gone well for Nestor. The Death Guard had secured three transponders while the Castigators had managed to retrieve only one. The Death Guard had triangulated the position of the jamming transmitter and had boarded their flag-ship entering the Warp to seek it out. Nestor had immediately boarded the Veritas Invicta to pursue them, but they were still 12 hours behind them.

"Mark." commanded the Sorceror.

The ship groaned and shuddered as the stresses of traversing the barrier between real-space and the Immatarium threatened to tear the ship apart. Just as it seemed that the Veritas Invicta would break apart the vibrations ceased and calm was restored.

"Report." demanded Nestor.
"The Corpus Mundi is 12 Hours away holding position. Probe already launched, we will receive visual confirmation in 5....4....3....2....1.....visuals coming on line now my Lord."

Nestor looked at the view screen. The Corpus Mundi was dwarfed by the space station that it was docked alongside. Nestor cast an inquiring glance at the crewman.

"The station is not showing up on sensors, my Lord."
"Prepare Boarding Torpedos and assemble my War Council.....I want that Space Station."

The Colours Of Chaos - Lucian Soulweaver, Lord Sorceror of the Castigators

The Chaos Space Marine section on Bolter & Chainsword is running a hobby challenge to build and paint a Chaos Sorceror. So I thought now would be a good time to post up my Sorceror Lucian Soulweaver

Storms of Judgement - Assault on Precinct XIII

“I shall cut many threads this day” boasted Sven as he fastened himself into his harness.
“None shall escape our murder-make” agreed Hjad with a raucous shout.
The rest of the pack merely smiled at their youthful exuberance. It was their first mission as a Grey Slayer and although Heinrik had no doubt that they had earned the right to join the pack, their eagerness must be tempered, they still showed the wild abandon and occasional recklessness that typified a Blood Claw.
The deck vibrated. There was a dull, dead sound like a giant gong striking arrhythmically in a distant palace of echoing marble. As one they donned their helmets and prepared themselves for the trials ahead.

“For Russ and the 13th” Said Heinrik as the Drop Pod hurtled towards the Hive city.

Three's A Crowd - A 40k Scenario

Shards of data shattered against Janus’ defences. With contemptuous ease the Warpsmith turned aside the scrap code as it attempted to repel him. Janus played with the idea of allowing it into his mind to experience the wondrous agonies that such a battle would bring, but the foreboding presence of Nestor stayed his hand. Instead he teased it into a new direction, toying briefly with its singular desire to destroy him, Janus lured it back to its source. A flicker of satisfaction sparked within as he twisted the scrap code’s program into devouring itself. Surging past the remnants of his assailant, Janus entered the data-stream. His consciousness swam in the sea of data, plunging its depths in search of the engrams that would lead to his goal. Exhilaration coursed through him as he skirted eddies and located his prize, pausing only to activate the transmitter, the Warpsmith’s consciousness followed the signal into the void and found…..nothing!
“Do you have it?”
“No my Lord, I have followed the transmitters signal, but it will require another two communication relays to triangulate the position.” said the Warpsmith in his customary monotone voice.

Nestor nodded and opened a comms channel. “Assemble the war council, our work has just begun.”

Storms of Judgement - The Storm Rages

Singed flesh, ozone and sacred unguents assaulted Nestor’s nostrils. He breathed deeply savouring the sickly sweet aroma as he waited impatiently for the Warpsmith to uncover the secrets within the communication relay.
“Shackle the soul and forge the flesh. Bind the machine and butcher the rest.” chanted the Warpsmith as his Mechatendrils caressed the relay, their data spikes penetrating the relay’s data-ports, eager to become one with the machine. Nestor watched with mild curiosity as the Warpsmith fell silent, his body swaying to an unheard rhythm.

The battle for Toil’s End had been a stimulating experience. Seventy per cent of Lathe’s Hive city was firmly under his control, but it had not been without its costs. Darius had lost most of his squad to the accursed Death Guard and was even now having a new augmetic limb fitted by the Fleshsmiths. N’kari had been banished back to the warp and it would take many sacrifices to open the way and allow the Keeper of Secrets to rejoin them.
With the main communication relay in his hands it was only a matter of time before he pin-pointed the source of the transmissions that hampered off world communications. Because of the interference no ship could venture further into the Pandora Cluster lest they be ambushed by another ship or lost in the receding warp storms. Where ever this transmitter was located he would find it and control it, revealing the system to the Dark Prince’s desires….

The Colours of Chaos - Squad Prurient

I love Noise Marines and I've always had at least one unit in my Castigators. A Slaanesh Chaos Space Marine army without them isn't really a Slaanesh army as far as I'm concerned. So I thought I'd take the opportunity to introduce you to Squad Prurient, formerly of Vorlath's Emperors Children, but who have now pledged their allegiance to the Chosen of Slaanesh, the Castigators.

Storms of Judgement- Encounter at Fahrenheit 451

Tosis Mire's disdain of his orders to pick through the rubble of this shanty town was clearly evident. He wasn't even sure if what he searched for was of any use. This little foray was probably just a ploy to keep him busy while Festus concocted another of his delicious serums. He would however, have to bide his time, if only he could see combat today. He needed to hone his skills,  Festus could not be blind-sided easily and he would need all the practice he could if his coup was to be successful. Just as his frustration was about to be exacted upon an unfortunate member of the Eidos Loimos cult,  movement was detected on the other side of the compound and although this was supposed to be a recon mission, his impatience got the better of him.

The Cold Steel Mercs Invitational

Taking a break from their Storms of Judgement campaign, the Castigators made the perilous journey to the Preston system to do battle with countless rogues, villains and miscreants. Many, lured by the phantom shrieks of the fabled Dragon and Golden Turkey echoing throughout the warp, answered its call. Some coveted the glory and power that only the Dragon can bring, whilst others sought solace in the strangely alluring and comforting talisman that is known as the Golden Turkey. For Nestor and his Castigators, these trinkets paled into insignificance next to the prize of defeating his Brother Vorlath the Forsaken and reaffirming his divine title of Chosen of Slaanesh. Here is the tale of the Castigators exploits.....

Storms of Judgement - The Storm Breaks

Nestor surveyed the scene before him and smiled. Rising to the heavens stood a tangle of blistered metal, fused stone and tortured flesh twisted together into a perversion of sculpture offering sweet praise to She Who thirsts. Daemonettes danced and cavorted around the obscene monolith, taking it in turns to hang the bodies of fallen Space Wolves and Black Templars onto its grotesque protrusions.

Nestor watched with amusement as the Daemonettes dropped their macabre trophies at the sight of N’kari approaching them. The Daemonettes rushed towards the Keeper of Secrets, encircling him like eager children who run towards a parent, all ready to tell them all about their day. The beguiling daemon held aloft the body of a marine in its lacquered claws, laughing as his children leapt into the air to try to claim their present. The Space Wolf let out a moan and a squeal of delight pierced the air as the Daemonettes realised their present still lived. Within a heartbeat their impish glee turned to wanton lust and their arousal threatened to bring down the mighty daemon. An orgy of violence erupted as N’kari tossed the marine into their midst.

Nestor’s comm-link crackled into life…..”Area secure, my Lord. Shall we make camp?”

“Negative, our allies are not yet spent, prepare to move out.” Replied Nestor as he turned towards his troops. Behind him the Space Wolf began to scream….

The Storms of Judgement Campaign-The Coming Storm.

I've always been a fan of campaigns, it's probably the Role Player in me, I just love the idea of my Castigators, Saim-Hann wild riders or Witch Hunters Sisters of Battle carving out an empire and developing their very own identity.

The Cold Steel Mercenaries Invitational approaches

Every year the Cold Steel Mercenaries (my gaming mates) hold a 1000pt tournament to test our mettle against each other and renew bonds of Brotherhood with a few tankards of ale and a hearty meal. Michael, who does a great job organising it, always likes to add a twist to the tournament each year. This can range from army swaps, a bizarre scoring system or even secret mission cards that can earn players extra points. This year, the sneaky git that he is, he's really thrown me a curve ball..... 

The Castigators Chaos Space Marines

Being an elucidation of the origins and vile nature of the blasphemous Renegades known as the Castigators.

The Colours of Chaos - Mayhem for the Castigators

Being an acute and necessary observation of the twisted creatures of metal and flesh known by most as Helbrutes.