Palladian Grav Troopers - Fallschirmjäger in 40K
As recently promised, here are some pictures on a project my brother and I have been working on recently. The idea is a Fallschirmjäger-themed Imperial Guard force, focusing on ground combat as elite light infantry rather than the parachute element. Full disclosure - this was mainly a vehicle to do something with the old Steel Legion models, which we both agreed were lovely. The Steel Legion range includes some of my favourite models from the GW range - especial their heavy weapons.
In terms of fluff they are based on my Palladian Guard, but taken from the III Augustus Tiberius regiment, rather than the I Praetoriae like the rest of my Guard. Rank-and-file Palladians usually look like Cadians, but we use other IG models to represent different uniforms and specialist clothing - Mordians are full-dress Palladians, and now Steel Legion represent grav-trooping Palladians in a temperate environment.
I was surprised to see the models still available on the GW website for £20. This is the first time in many many years I'd bought something from them, but since Ebay had squads up for £30 or £40, this made the most sense. We only needed three squads and some heavy weapons - this is the start of a 500pt patrol clash force.
Ollie worked on the building and conversions, including a lovely blast shield for the missile launcher which made it look like a panzerschreck. I worked on converted MG34 teams, using the Escher heavy stubber as a weapon. I made three 'light role' guns on a bipod, and one sustained fire version on a big tripod mount. The sniper was also great fun to make - unlike most 40K snipers which are inexplicably standing upright, I repurposed the heavy bolter crewman who's lying down to be firing an old wooden rifle from my bits box. Painting was pretty simple - a random mix of camo, desert and field-grey uniforms.
This selection includes the officer, several heavy bolters from the command squad and heavy weapons platoon, a sniper, and one of the 10-man squads. Enjoy!
Hope you liked them! More will follow...
 |
| Commanding officer, heavy weapons and a grav-trooper squad. |
In terms of fluff they are based on my Palladian Guard, but taken from the III Augustus Tiberius regiment, rather than the I Praetoriae like the rest of my Guard. Rank-and-file Palladians usually look like Cadians, but we use other IG models to represent different uniforms and specialist clothing - Mordians are full-dress Palladians, and now Steel Legion represent grav-trooping Palladians in a temperate environment.
I was surprised to see the models still available on the GW website for £20. This is the first time in many many years I'd bought something from them, but since Ebay had squads up for £30 or £40, this made the most sense. We only needed three squads and some heavy weapons - this is the start of a 500pt patrol clash force.
Ollie worked on the building and conversions, including a lovely blast shield for the missile launcher which made it look like a panzerschreck. I worked on converted MG34 teams, using the Escher heavy stubber as a weapon. I made three 'light role' guns on a bipod, and one sustained fire version on a big tripod mount. The sniper was also great fun to make - unlike most 40K snipers which are inexplicably standing upright, I repurposed the heavy bolter crewman who's lying down to be firing an old wooden rifle from my bits box. Painting was pretty simple - a random mix of camo, desert and field-grey uniforms.
This selection includes the officer, several heavy bolters from the command squad and heavy weapons platoon, a sniper, and one of the 10-man squads. Enjoy!
 |
| Officer, with a Second World War model headswap, and pistol from Victoria Miniatures. |
Don't bring them here.
ReplyDeleteI'll steel (legion) them.
Ha I wouldn't blame you, they are very lovely to have on your shelf...
DeleteLovely work, man - really dig how those turned out!
ReplyDeleteGlad you like them, they're my first 40K - in fact my first 28mm - in a long time. Feels good to get back into the groove!
DeleteJust amazing - awesome, and so characterful! Stunned that you got classic squads from GW for £20 too!
ReplyDeleteBrilliant work.
Where's that lovely MG34 tripod from, may I ask?
Thanks for the kind words Drax, glad you like them. Yes, it was a real shock, it makes business sense for these to be available. I can't imagine it being prohibitively expensive to maintain the range, and so many people know and love them.
DeleteAh, a good spot! They are basically parts from the real MG34 tripod, glued on to the existing Steel Legion lascannon tripod for visual effect. The kit I used for the extras was the 28mm Bolt Action Falschirmjager MG34.
(I originally intended to have three of these heavy MGs, but buying three MG34 kits just for those legs would have been very expensive!)
Thanks mate, yes it was good to have a team effort like this to work on.
ReplyDeleteWow! I almost scrolled by thinking they really were 28mm falschrimjagers! Nicely done
ReplyDeleteThanks Rabidchild, yes I did pretty much copy the camo scheme exactly, the models are distinct enough I think. Glad you like them, thanks for commenting.
DeleteO very nicely done mate. I'd altogether forgotten the Steel Legion sculpts - yes, they are perfect for FJ's.
ReplyDeleteMy fav aspect of these is the MG34's and their team members. Flippin great work mate.
Cheers Dai - yes, it was talking about the helmets which inspired us, they really are beautiful sculpts.
DeleteThanks mate! Yes, they'd have to be my personal favourite as well. Great fun to convert, if perhaps a little expensive.
Glad to see you're till active! I recently signed back into my infinite mischief for the first time in ages
ReplyDeleteAlso, beautifully done!
ReplyDeleteThanks mate! Good to see you again.
DeleteWhen did you switch over to 2mm? Is that your primary now?
DeleteI got my first 2mm in early 2015, and I still play 28mm but yes it's mainly 2mm and 6mm now, just because I prefer historical gaming and that's the best scale for it.
Delete