A Legion Rises

I assembled all the colours I had used on the previous regiments, using this project blog as a reminder of what they were! As you can see I’ve stuck to the same palette, with the Gloomy Violet (previously used on the Xikiarch’s cloak), as the retinues spot colour.

With just four models to work through this didn’t take very long at all. My original list was now complete, and only eight months behind schedule!!

With the retinue rebuilt, I turned my attention to my army list. It needed re writing to accommodate the points amendments but this was an absolutely breeze, due to the excellent (& free), army builder app that is available from Para Bellend.

My original line up now came to a meagre 670 points, falling considerably short of the amended 1000 point limit. However, if I added the Athanatoi regiment I had previously built, plus an additional Praetorian and Legionnaire to each unit (also built and painted), I could reach 985. Close enough for now!

I resolved to get the Xiliarch’s Retinue painted before I tackled anything else. I started with a two stage prime of Retributor Gold over Halfords mat brown primer, as I had with all of the models to date. 

As these models were based on the Athanatoi bodies, their armour only covered their upper body. By masking the legs I was able to keep the brown primer for the trousers and boots, as well as the base.

It had been some time since my last project update. So much so that another year had come around, and I received a new unit of Old Dominion for my birthday!

With other models to paint and games to play, First Blood had dropped out of the spotlight for a time, leaving just three models from my original list unpainted. My new toys would have to wait until this had been set right.

Since my previous entry the First Blood rules had been revised, outdating my previous Army List. The points costs for many units had been amended and the bracket of the game expanded from 800 to 1000. But what really caught my attention, was that the retinue rules had changed – making my retinue (that one I didn’t get around to painting), redundant!

In the previous edition, a retinue was made up of any combination of Bodyguard, Duelist and Warrior. Cool though this was, the three categories were basically the same across all factions. Under the new system, retinues would be comprised of existing troop types from the host faction, varying from Character to Character. In the case of my Xiliarch, this meant a choice between Athanatoi and Varangian.

I didn’t want to completely remake my retinue models as they were each a unique build, standing appropriately apart from the rank and file. In any event my Duelist and Warrior were armed exactly as an Athanatoi and Varangian respectively. The Bodyguard would need a rebuild, and as I had a spare torso in my bits box, I decided to build a fourth model while I was at it.

After a bit of hacking and gluing, my new look Retinue was complete. In the end I settled on building two more Varangians. With defence 3, wound 3 and the Tenacious special rule (allowing you to ignore the first failed save each defence roll), they are the more durable option. The former Duelist could still be fielded as an Athanatoi, should occasion call for it.

The weekend prior to our trip I primed the two Optio, masking off the non metallic areas as I had done with the Xiliarch. The Reliquary was almost entirely armoured so I primed him without troubling myself with masking.

Working first on the Optio, I was reminded that dealing with a couple of models was much more convenient than a whole regiment. By grabbing 20 mins here and there, I had them base coloured by the Monday.

On a Tuesday I usually try to catch the Unofficial Hobby Hangout and get an hour of painting in. This week I managed a longer shift and all but finished the Optio, just their verdigris remained!

On the Wednesday, once the family had gone to bed, I managed a 22:00 to 00.00 shift and all but completed the Reliquary in a single sitting.

By the Thursday evening I only had a few highlights left to add in. This left just enough time to apply the Verdigris to all three officers before they were marched off to kill some Techno Greeks!

The distraction of the Athanatoi got my brain re-engaged with the project and I began tackling the second regiment of legionnaires. They were painted in the same manner as the previous regiment, this time using Cardinal Purple as a sash colour.

Having already figured out the painting method on the previous units, I managed to work through these fairly quickly, but there was no making up for lost time.

With just a week remaining before our trip I knew I wouldn’t be 100% painted. However if I could get the Officers finished at least the regiments would be complete. The Xiliarch’s retinue would have to wait.

For the rest of May I couldn’t find the motivation to pick up a brush. Maybe I took on too much at once with the larger Praetorian regiment. Or maybe it was the prospect of painting a unit that was all but identical to one I had previously worked on. Either way it was all I could manage to get the shields painted. Meanwhile the legionaries sat on my painting tray untouched.

While it is important to have a plan, it is equally important to recognise when said plan is failing. A change of strategy was required, so in a bid to reignite my enthusiasm I decided to mix things up a bit…

… and so I built a regiment of Athanatoi!

I really like these models, their expressionless masks give them a serene yet menacing attitude. The kit assembly was a little disappointing as certain heads and arms are designed to only fit particular bodies. However with minimal trimming I was able to achieve a bit more mix and match and was ultimately happy with the result.

I wouldn’t be painting this unit until I had complete the original 800, but I primed them so they would at least have a base colour if they made it to the table.

As much of the Xiliarch was covered by a cloak, I took the time to mask off these sections before applying the Retributior Gold. This would save me time overpainting the metallics later.

In a bid to catch up I managed to get a few late night painting sessions in over the early May Bank Holiday, all but completing the Xiliarch in a weekend. He was actually pretty simple as a large portion of the model is covered with a cape, which I tackled with a couple of coats of the X-press Gloomy Violet. This was followed by a Drakenhorf wash to the more recessed areas and Agrax around the hem.

With the completion of the Xiliarch I had reached my first milestone of 350 points painted! (I will update with some army pics when I get the chance).

I now had 20 models painted, well over half of the 34 that make up this small army (and including a few options to bulk up a couple of the regiments). I was also back on track, with the rest of May to tackle the 2nd regiment of legionnaires.

March and April were busy months for me and the Praetorians drifted well over their intended deadline. Although they were more straight forward to paint than the legionaries, the larger model count slowed me down and I wasn’t always able to complete a step on every model, within the same painting session.

I had chosen the Deep Purple as the Pretorian spot colour and despite having ‘Smoke on the Water’ on repeat in my head, I was really pleased with the result.

On the final day of April I applied the verdigris, finishing the unit a full month behind schedule!

Fortunately the Xiliarch was next on the list. As a single model he offered a much needed reprieve from the bulk painting required on the regiments and would hopefully allow me to get back on track.