Eagles View

PhotoHelper

2010-04-04T12:54:00.002+01:00

It's been a long time since i've posted, and sorry to say i probably won't post again. I've not given up on 40k, i'm just never getting the chance to paint or game.

I started Eagles View whilst i was on long term sick from my work, and i really enjoyed becoming part of the 40k blog community. Not to sound to sappy, but you guys and the hobby helped me to keep a bit of sanity in the dark days and for that i will always be grateful.

Thankfully, i have moved on now and uprooted the family back to Fife in Scotland. I'm no longer an Area Manager but i'm working in a photo printing lab in Dunfermline.

The pay maybe poor, but working in a business that is linked to Photography and doing my hobby everyday is great reward. To help pay the bills i have also started PhotoHelper which will hopefully take off and become succesful.

Once again thanks to you all, especially Stirling Wargamers, Ron at FtW and BoLs guys.

All the Best For the Future,

Andy

Two at a time.

2009-06-15T20:10:00.002+01:00

I've been back to work for the last 2 weeks and have been finding hobby time a bit tighter, but i did spend a couple of hours yesterday finishing off these two guys.

Now that my fighting army is 95% basic painted, i have been struggling to get the motivation to get groups of 5 or 10 models finished off properly. Thankfully James at the club said to try "2 at a time" and i had a enjoyable couple of hours lavashing attention on these 2 yesterday.

I've not done any squad markings or Raptor logo as i'm going to leave that until another time but i think that is the only real finishing needed now.

I am also going to need to practice on the Plasma chamber as i'm not happy with this one although i do want a glowing green core with red crusting effect!, any ideas on how best to achieve it?

A rag tag bunch!

2009-06-07T11:20:00.004+01:00

After seeing Drax's infantry company structure, and purchasing the new codex a few weeks ago i couldn't resist dusting off every Guardsman i had to try and make a 1500pts list.

So excuse the state of this disorderly mob but i have been meaningly trying to avoid them as i knew it would slow down my Raptor work.

Rough set up is;

Company Command Squad with 2 bodyguards

Platoon Command Squad with Commissar

3x Infantry squad who will be joined and advanced behind the Leman Russ with the PCS and Commissar making them stubborn.

Last infantry squad will stay back and protect 3 heavy weapons teams while 10 veterans will be in the Chimera with meltaguns and Lascannon to fire out the hatch.

The 1st Leman Russ is a standard Battle tank with bolter sponsons and hull lascannon.

The 2nd Leman Russ is a Punisher model with bolter sponsons and Lascannon hull gun and Knight Commander Pask to make the most of the Heavy 20.

Let me know what you think,

All the Best

Andy

Brother Chaplain Dandist

2009-06-03T20:34:00.008+01:00

At long last Chaplain Dandist has a full paint job, the painting seemed to be never ending job but i have enjoyed doing it. A first for myself also as i hand painted the shoulder pad raptor!. It may not seem like a biggie to some of the more able painters, but it took a while for me.

Dandist will regularly team up with Captain Orelius and 10 Assault Marines to hopefully give me a first turn Feerless assault squad with some serious punch.

Thunderfire Cannon

2009-05-28T11:23:00.010+01:00

After another bright idea!, i decided i would like a Tech Marine so i could Bolster the Defences of my Camo Cloak Snipers giving them a 2+ cover save. So i made a custom guy based on the artwork in the Codex but wanted to give him a Servo harness so he could help my Dreadnaughts if they got damaged.

I extended the shaft of a power weapon you get with the assault marines and managed to make a custom Servo harness from Drop Pod seat belts, i was quietly proud of myself and added him to my army last week at the cost of 90 points.

I should really stop reading the codex so much, because i then realise that i could get a Thunderfire Cannon and Tech Marine for only 10 points more. I would loose the ability to follow around my Dreadnaughts but i gain an artillery piece that can cause some dice to be rolled for armour saves.

I realised they were £30 to buy and did not want to fork out the money as i had already made my Tech Marine, so when i visited the GW store a friend Jamie mentioned the Warhammer Empire Volley Gun at only £12 it seemed a bargain. I thought it would do fine for a trial piece and if it became a regular part of my list i would buy the real deal.

After getting the parts out of the box i thought i could customise it a bit to make it more 40k than 40B.C. using some more Drop pod parts and the spare tracks from a Leman Russ. So now i have a Thunderfire Cannon with Cup holders:-)

I'm in 2 minds to do some armour plating around the mid section of the gun but i quite like it the way it is, let me know what you think?

Great Gift!

2009-05-27T10:32:00.006+01:00

Here is my early birthday present and i have to say i'm a lucky laddie!, my good wife allowed me to get my presents whilst we visited the Edinburgh GW.

I had always wanted to get Vol 3 because i knew it had information in it about the Raptors but grudged paying £55 for a few pages of info on them, so i had resisted. As am sure most of you know resistance is futile, and only leads to a build up of angst, so i had to grab Vol 2 also, as it's not very often i'm at GW store!(honest)

Having only just skimmed the pages of both books, i'm well impressed, the quality is excellent and i've got a fair bit of extra information about the Raptors. Luckily it was the 3rd company who was written about in the book and that is who i'm creating so i now have a name for my Captain.

He is Captain Orelius, and it is great to read about a character and company who i have been building and painting for months, so i have to say the books are well worth every penny.

Veteran Sargeant

2009-05-25T14:36:00.004+01:00

He's not totally finished but i thought i would show my Sarg with Power Fist, he is also the first Cyber Skull model i have painted which was tricky but worth it. I only ever see me really using 1 Tactical Squad as my other troop choices will be Scouts, so hopefully this Sarg with be dealing out a lot of damge with his power fist.

Also this is first location photo shoot with a model so let me what you think!, back to white backgrounds or do you think it could work?

Hello Stranger!

2009-05-22T14:55:00.004+01:00

Well what can i say, no good excuses just life getting in the way a bit.
That doesn't mean the Raptors have been forgot about though, and now that i have a bit of relief from my bloggers block i present the Raptors 3rd Company Captain.
He doesn't have a name at the moment but he is a Shrike copy giving my army fleet and his squad infiltrate, which teamed up with the Drop Pods, Dreadnaughts, Sniper Scouts and Assault troops is the road ahead for my army.
Shrike was made from one of the Vanguard Veteran models and a plastic lightning claw from the Commander box and then i butcherd a 2nd lightning claw and stuck the talons on a chopped power fist to get twin lightning claws.
A long way for a short cut but i hope you like the model.

The Way It Should Be.

2009-03-31T12:37:00.004+01:00

After much deliberating i have finally decided on my 1500pts army list. Now being fairly new to this i'm not sure it will be a "killer list" but the Raptors are a 2nd founding chapter from the Ravenguard so this is how i think they should be played. I also hope it should be a lot of fun to play them this way.

Kayvaan Shrike Captain + Jump pack Chaplain (Bolt Pistol & Melta Bomb) 315pts

Chaplain Dreadnaught(Assault Cannon, Storm Bolter & CCCW), Dreadnaught (Multi Melta, Storm Bolter & CCW) both with Drop Pods and 1 Locator Beacon. 325pts

Tactical Squad (10 man)in Drop pod with Multi Melta, Melta gun & Combi Melta Sarg. 220pts

Scout Squad (10 man) with Heavy Bolter & Melta Bomb Sarg. 155pts

Assault Squad (10 man with Plasma Pistol, Sarg with Power Fist and Storm Sheild) who the chaplain joins. 245pts

Assault Squad (10 man with Flamer, Sarg with Power Fist and Storm Sheild) who Shrike joins. 240pts.

Now if i have added that all up correctly it should be 1500pts exactly, and a competitive list if played the right way.

I'm thinking along the lines of Tactical Squad and Chaplain Squad being held in reserve. The Shrike squad aiming to get a first turn assault, the dreadnaughts dropping straight into the middle of the action and the scouts being snipers sitting on an objective normally. It sounds so simple!!

So here is my question, any ideas on deployment/reserves and what to do if i don't get first turn?

Deff Dred Distraction

2009-03-16T19:53:00.005Z

After seeing the great custom Deff Dred that Jeff made over at the Adepts Forge ,my kids were twisting my arm to make one with the spare parts we have.

As you may notice everything has been chucked at it, and a lot has stuck!. I make no apologises for this as i was only the builder, and the designer was my youngest son who is only 6.

More worrying is the fact that he is also trying to talk like "Da Boyz", and wanted "Big Choppa fings that chop fast"

and the winner is....You Guys!

2009-03-12T21:39:00.004Z

The Badab Challenge winner was Nate, who's also a new FtW blogger so a big well done to him(the scoundrel beat me by 14 votes!!).

I'm just really posting to say a big thank you to everyone who voted for my entry and all the positive feed back i got from the community, you made the challenge fun.

All the Best

Andy

1500pts Raptors List

2009-03-11T14:00:00.006Z

The main reason behind this list is to use my Captain with a Command Squad and Razorback. I plan on having a few different lists but this will be my only one with a Command Squad so let me know what you think.

Captain, 155 (powerfist, combi plasma, artificer armour)

Command Squad, (1xpower fist, 1xlightning claw + melta bomb, 1xplasma pistiol) 240 including Heavy Flamer Razorback

Chaplain Dreadnaught, Assault Cannon & CCW with Strom Bolter 140

Troops

Tactical Squad Meltagun, Multi Melta & Sarg with Combi Melta in Drop Pod with Locator Beacon 230

Tactical Squad Plasma Gun, Lascanon & Standard Sarg with Rhino, 225

10 man Scout Squad, Heavy Bolter. 150

Assault Squad 2x Plasma Pistol and Sarg with Power Fist & Storm Sheild. 260

Whirlwind 85

Grand
Total

1500 Totals

The rough plan would be for the Whirlwind, Plasma Tactical Squad and Chaplain Dreadnaught would hang back and the Command Squad attack the big guns. The Scouts will outflank and try to capture/contest while the Drop pod will go straight for the middle and either of these will be backed up by the Assault squad depending on how the game is going.

That's the plan anyway!

BoLS Badab Challange Voting.

2009-03-07T13:46:00.003Z

Anyone who follows Bell of Lost Souls will already know about the Badab APC challenge, you can now see the 10 finalist and voting has started.

I'm proud to say i'm 1 of the 10 so please head over and vote for your personal favourite, no arm twisting here because they are all great entires.

http://belloflostsouls.blogspot.com/2009/03/40k-voting-badab-apc-challenge.html

"Infernum" Raptors Razorback

2009-03-03T19:08:00.006Z

Wheww!!, it's done. I've enjoyed the challenge of getting my Razorback ready for the BoLS APC challenge this is the first tank i have ever painted so it was a proper test for me. I've already emailed the pictures over to BoLs so i will let you know how "Infernum" gets on.

My little bit off fluff about the Razorback is that when landing on "Tranquillity" during the Badab War, the Raptor Techmarines converted a Rhino to carry a twin linked Heavy Flamer to help them clear a path through the Jungle. This was needed as they were asked to clear the planet of The Executioners who also have a habit of camouflaging their armour, so no tree was left unburnt to hide behind!

Razorback update.

2009-02-28T20:48:00.008Z

Well i started thinking i better get a move on with this, so i should have known not to take a break and look in the Codex!

I noticed a Razorback could have a twin linked heavy flamer as it's weapon choice, this got the grey matter ticking and about 3 hours later i had created/bodged this.

Now i have got to decide which to put forward for the BoLS challenge, the heavy flamer isn't as nice looking as the Heavy Bolter. Although i like it just as much, maybe it just because i made it.

I did paint my first interior with this razorback so i'm quietly proud of it. (he says posting it for the WWW to see!)

Raptors Razorback

2009-02-27T19:56:00.002Z

Due to some late deliveries and "Real Life" getting in the way i may not get this tank ready in time for the BoLS challenge. Although i did want to post this just to show that i havn't been lazing around, honest.

I recieved the Rhino today and will be using Forgeworld Raptor doors and front along with the Heavy Bolter option to turn this into my Command Squad/ Veteran transport. So fingers crosssed, Real Life will take a break this weekend so i can build and paint this in time!

Tactical Squad Buzzard

2009-02-19T15:23:00.006Z

It seemed to take forever but here they are, everytime i think their done i spot something else to do. Just looking at the picture i've noticed a couple of missed bits!.

I'm happy with how they have turned out, hopefully now the others will roll out a bit quicker(doubtful!).

Here is my Terminator Captain i bought last weekend, he's going to be a Lysander copy Captain so i have made a DIY storm sheild and Thunderhammer(no chuckling at the back) i hope when he is done it will look quite cool.

Here is another HQ choice i've made, this is my Shrike copy who i think should really be how the Raptors are played but i have a lot to learn before trying out his tactics.

By the way Shrike isn't singing Hymns, he's meant to look like a Raptor landing/attacking!

Another Dreadnaught

2009-02-16T15:04:00.005Z

Here is my Assault on Black Reach dreadnaught in the Raptors colours, i havn't made a name up yet but that will happen as he is going to be the 2nd Dreadnaught of the 3rd Company of Raptors.

I've decided i will go all out and eventually build and paint the whole 3rd company, along with a few veterans for good measure.

The trickiest part so far about Warhammer 40k is getting any wins under my belt, at the moment i'm zero in two games. So i will be looking for as much tactics, tips and practice alongside the building and painting.

Brother Chaplain Gardel

2009-02-14T13:30:00.007Z

A couple of weeks ago i recieved my Chaplain Dreadnaught from Forgeworld, first off i must say i'm happy with it.

Now i have got to try and make up some fluff about how Chaplain Gardel ended up getting the honour of being put into a dreadnaught.

Hopefully the assault cannon will be able to dispence plenty off purifing rounds upon any who need salvation!

Planning & Building

2009-02-12T13:28:00.004Z

I've got to be honest and say that so far planning and building are my favorite parts about this hobby. With the Assault on Black Reach marines being clip together, i didn't quite get the full enjoyment that you get when building a tactical squad from scratch. Although now i find myself wondering if i have enough Meltaguns or Plasma Guns, and don't get me started on if the Vet Srg should get the Power fist or not!

I've enjoyed being tight and building my own Sternguard Veterans, when you see the models in the codex they look excellent but £20 for 5 guys is a lot of cash. So here is a sneak peak of my Vets and they were mostly made from a combat squad and parts from my bitz box.

There is a DIY combi-melta, i also chopped a pair of legs and mixed them with the crouching legs so that i could get the guy on the left standing on a Orks head.

I'm quite happy with them, i just need to do a half decent paint job and they'll be great. That is where it gets tricky though, i enjoy building and planning, i don't even mind priming but i've got to be honest and say i find painting hard and tricky and this makes painting not as enjoyable.

I'm sure through practice and learning some new techniques i will improve on the painting and may even start to enjoy it, but it is not until you try it that you really appreciate the skill it takes to paint the figures i have seen around on blogspot.

Eagles View

2009-02-11T10:11:00.010Z

Why Eagles View? Well when i got some Space Marines i originally thought off making up my own chapter.

I found the great Space Marine Painter.

Bolter and Chainsword not only made up the painter but also is a great place for help and information on anything in Power Armour. So i created my own chapters colour scheme which you can see above, i was wanting to call them Aquilas Talons as i have always been interested in Birds of Prey. Whilst doing my research i found out about the Raptors chapter which fitted the bill and already had some background (i never was any good at writing my own fluff), my chapter choice was made.

The Raptors is who i'm going to collect and Eagles View is the blog name, it also helps that it is the same name as the house i live in!.

Just Starting.

2009-02-10T12:42:00.005Z

Hello, i'm Andy and i thought i would blog about my Warhammer 40k experiences.

I only started to get interested in 40k after playing Squad Command on my sons PSP last year. We then headed to the nearest Games Workshop to have a look, we walked out £90 lighter and the hobby had began!. The Assault on Black Reach set was a brilliant introduction to 40k, my son and i painted and glued and in his words spent quality "Father and Son time". Little did i know how far the 40k hobby who grab me and now 4months later i thought i would start blogging as i have gained so much help from other blogs and forums.