Good morning, afternoon, evening or night, depending on when you are reading this...
In my first blog post, I said I was going to talk about some of things that inspired me. Well today is the day for that, along with one of the projects I have been working on, on and off for a few years, that I hope might have a similar effect on others. So, as the song goes; "let's start at the very beginning. A very good place to start."
Why 40k?
Many, many moons ago, I was visiting my Great-uncle's house with my mum and sister. My mum's cousin and his eldest son were also visiting at the time. To keep me and my second cousin out of trouble (both being around nine or ten, and as inquisitive as most boys of that age are) my mum's cousin showed us his Dark Angels. Checking back my facts, this couldn't have been much later than the release of Codex; Dark Angels in '99, but I could have sworn it was earlier than that.
His miniatures were not much to speak of. A tactical squad or two, a fairly basic commander and a Whirlwind if I remember correctly; all painted quite thickly and with only the most basic squad markings. Certainly not the work of 'Eavy Metal or the in-store display cabinets of the time that drew so many people in. However, after a good while moving the models around my great-uncle's living room, making pew-pew and whooshing rocket noises, we moved on to looking through the Codex. For those of you who haven't been in the hobby that long,
By modern standards, this cover really isn't much to speak of. In fact, the whole book was only 25 pages thick and could only be used in conjunction with the Space Marine codex of the time. Still, it is one of my favourites because that battle scene instantly captured my imagination. The press of bodies, the powerful and defiant stances of the Angels, the inference that they are surrounded without showing a single enemy... it all added up to one very happy young Matt. The black and white artwork inside also sparked something off inside my head. I would love to say that the stories and rules also did something for me, but at that age I wasn't much interested in reading when I didn't have to for school. For the rest of that year I saved up all my pocket money, every penny I received for my birthday and Christmas and begged my mum to take me into Games Workshop Leicester every time we went shopping, just to look at the models on display and occasionally be allowed to borrow a squad or two to take part in a beginners game. Eventually I had enough cash to buy my very own copy of the Warhammer 40,000 box set. Unlike subsequent editions, there was no subtitle (Battle for Macragge, Assault on Black Reach and Dark Vengeance) but the box did contain a full rulebook, a small force of Space Marines, an even smaller force of Dark Eldar and the dice, templates and terrain you would need to play a simple game.
This was my gateway. Flicking through the rulebook (which I still have to this day, though distinctly dog-eared) gave me a great insight into the hobby. For the first time I got to see massive, cohesively painted armies, art work depicting the various characters and races of the 41st millennium in more heroic acts than could possibly be replicated with the models themselves and find out about the sheer scale of the galaxy and the Imperium of Mankind. Every page drew me in further, calling me to forge my own army to fight it out in the dystopian future.
Ah, such simple times; almost no-one outside of large businesses had internet access, so the only rumours where the ones the GW store managers allowed us to know, tournaments were a far off dream for most players, with only a handful of tickets available for a couple of single day events at Warhammer World, the background stories were kept purposefully vague to give the hobbyist as much scope to create their own universe as possible. Back then, there was a museum in Warhammer World, the self same space that is now the Gaming hall. Full-scale suits of power armour stood in epic dioramas depicting one on one combat between loyalist and chaos forces, an Ork Mek worked away on some weapon or other whilst propping the door open with a stikkbomb, even a full-scale Genestealer leered down at the crowd from the ceiling. There was also a hall of dioramas at the more familiar scale of Warhammer and 40k miniatures. A full chapter of Ultramarines was proudly ranked up on one side, with an ongoing battle between the Imperial Guard and Orks covering a 10'x6' board (with the Guard's Dark Angel abandoning them in favour of a group of Fallen Chaos Space Marines appearing at the edge of the board.) There was also a Fantasy siege diorama, with over 2000 Skeletons pushing out of the ground and through the gates of a huge Empire castle, along with many other displays. All of these were put in the shadow by one though, The Siege of the Imperial Palace;
The scope of the battle being portrayed was beyond anything else I could think of. All the miniatures were as exquisitely painted as you would expect, each playing a part in telling a hundred stories within the main plot. As you might be able to tell though, there were two that stole everyone's attention. The Imperial Warlord and the Fallen Imperator dominated the landscape. At the time, the thought of using such enormous 'miniatures' in a game was ludicrous. But some part of that idea stayed with me for years to come.
So what is this 'the bigger they come...' title all about?
Fast forward a few years and I started attending Games Days. Each year, the hall was filled with ever larger, more elaborate and/or wacky games to play. Slowly but surely Titan's started to make their way out of Epic and in to 40k. Somehow, I was too in awe to take worthwhile photos, particularly only having a disposable film camera or a digital camera with a memory card small enough to get only a few photos. However, here are a few of the ones I have found (with a little help from google!)
The release of Apocalypse in '07 changed all that, with rules for the Warhound and Warlord class titans, as well as some of those of the xenos races. At one point, I think I saw 9 different Warlords on 8 different tables at Games Day. The Era of Titan's was certainly swinging in to full effect, particularly as Forge World released the Reaver and Phantom Titans. However, back at the Apocalypse release, I was gripped in the throws of hobby passion with two ideas; a full armoured company and my own Titan. Being a poor student at the time, there was no way I could afford the glorious resin masterpiece FW were selling, so my only option was scratch-building. By this point I'd like to think I was an accomplished modeller, but I was well aware of my limitations. Drawing on the inspiration I had received when visiting Warhammer World all those years before, I set to, building my very own Warlord.
.JPG)
I took my time initially, building the Warlord over three years, whilst working on other projects as well. Mostly she was built out of cardboard and polystyrene that would have otherwise been thrown in the bin, with a PVC pipe skeleton and a pine base to make sure she was stable.
In the end I actually ended up spending more on paints and glues than I did on actual components. Unfortunately, she ended up in a squatting position as the glue in her hips and spine dried. At the time there was very little I could do about it, so just left it as a running joke to distract people whilst she blasted everything apart with her guns before being ripped apart my monstrous or gargantuan creatures, chainfist wielding Terminators or, most embarrassingly of all, an Imperial Guard priest! Whenever I took her to an in-store game, loads of people would come in off the street to ask about it, whether or not they had an interest in 40k. I know for certain more than a couple of people decided to take up the hobby after seeing her, despite not being a GW model.
What now?
Well, as you may have guessed when I said 'At the time' I have since gone back to working on and improving my Titan. Many of you who are familiar with these kind of scratch-builds will have no doubt noticed that my Warlord is a little out of scale. So far out of scale, in fact, that she is much closer to an Imperator. Well, needing to correct the squat and the scale gave me a great excuse to get involved with her again. As for inspiration; well I think we are living in a golden age in many respects. The rise of the internet means there are a whole host of pictures people have posted (much like I am doing now) of their own creations. Here's just a sample of those I've been working from;
I also have a couple of favourites, made by Blackadder and Isotope99 on Bell of Lost Souls (click the picture to be taken to their WIP threads, but don't forget to come back!)
I seriously do suggest you go have a look through those threads, even if you aren't a BoLS member. Nothing I can say could really do them justice; for Isotope's Imperator on the paintwork, for Blackadder the incredible detail of his build, especially with the interior detailing!
So what have I done to my own Titan since the earlier photos of her? Simple; demolition!
I've actually gone a little further than these photos suggest, taking the hips apart down to the central block and accidentally pulling each leg apart at the knee. The weapon arms have been safely stored away, but the upper carapace has been all but destroyed, with only the hard plastic details stored. I will be building a base plate that will slot onto the raised box surrounding the spine, from which I will build up a weapons cathedral that is so iconic on Imperator titans, allowing me to remove it from the carapace for easy storage and transportation, much at the torso is removable from the legs. I will also be reposing the legs and quite probably re-building the base to give the titan a more natural walking pose rather than the old "where's the nearest 10-story toilet" squat she had before. I'm also hoping to add in a lot more detail, such as the defence lasers and the like on Isotope's behemoth.
Well, I hope that some of that has inspired some of you, the way the Titans that used to be at Warhammer World inspired me. As I work on my Warlord-to-Imperator upgrade, I'll keep you posted. Let me know in the comments below what you think, what insanely large projects you are working on, or even if you are just starting out in the hobby and would like some pointers. Once upon a yesteryear I was buying my first models too. Someday perhaps you'll be showing someone new to the hobby your fully functional Titan Legion.
Matt
In my first blog post, I said I was going to talk about some of things that inspired me. Well today is the day for that, along with one of the projects I have been working on, on and off for a few years, that I hope might have a similar effect on others. So, as the song goes; "let's start at the very beginning. A very good place to start."
Why 40k?
Many, many moons ago, I was visiting my Great-uncle's house with my mum and sister. My mum's cousin and his eldest son were also visiting at the time. To keep me and my second cousin out of trouble (both being around nine or ten, and as inquisitive as most boys of that age are) my mum's cousin showed us his Dark Angels. Checking back my facts, this couldn't have been much later than the release of Codex; Dark Angels in '99, but I could have sworn it was earlier than that.
His miniatures were not much to speak of. A tactical squad or two, a fairly basic commander and a Whirlwind if I remember correctly; all painted quite thickly and with only the most basic squad markings. Certainly not the work of 'Eavy Metal or the in-store display cabinets of the time that drew so many people in. However, after a good while moving the models around my great-uncle's living room, making pew-pew and whooshing rocket noises, we moved on to looking through the Codex. For those of you who haven't been in the hobby that long,
By modern standards, this cover really isn't much to speak of. In fact, the whole book was only 25 pages thick and could only be used in conjunction with the Space Marine codex of the time. Still, it is one of my favourites because that battle scene instantly captured my imagination. The press of bodies, the powerful and defiant stances of the Angels, the inference that they are surrounded without showing a single enemy... it all added up to one very happy young Matt. The black and white artwork inside also sparked something off inside my head. I would love to say that the stories and rules also did something for me, but at that age I wasn't much interested in reading when I didn't have to for school. For the rest of that year I saved up all my pocket money, every penny I received for my birthday and Christmas and begged my mum to take me into Games Workshop Leicester every time we went shopping, just to look at the models on display and occasionally be allowed to borrow a squad or two to take part in a beginners game. Eventually I had enough cash to buy my very own copy of the Warhammer 40,000 box set. Unlike subsequent editions, there was no subtitle (Battle for Macragge, Assault on Black Reach and Dark Vengeance) but the box did contain a full rulebook, a small force of Space Marines, an even smaller force of Dark Eldar and the dice, templates and terrain you would need to play a simple game.
This was my gateway. Flicking through the rulebook (which I still have to this day, though distinctly dog-eared) gave me a great insight into the hobby. For the first time I got to see massive, cohesively painted armies, art work depicting the various characters and races of the 41st millennium in more heroic acts than could possibly be replicated with the models themselves and find out about the sheer scale of the galaxy and the Imperium of Mankind. Every page drew me in further, calling me to forge my own army to fight it out in the dystopian future.
Ah, such simple times; almost no-one outside of large businesses had internet access, so the only rumours where the ones the GW store managers allowed us to know, tournaments were a far off dream for most players, with only a handful of tickets available for a couple of single day events at Warhammer World, the background stories were kept purposefully vague to give the hobbyist as much scope to create their own universe as possible. Back then, there was a museum in Warhammer World, the self same space that is now the Gaming hall. Full-scale suits of power armour stood in epic dioramas depicting one on one combat between loyalist and chaos forces, an Ork Mek worked away on some weapon or other whilst propping the door open with a stikkbomb, even a full-scale Genestealer leered down at the crowd from the ceiling. There was also a hall of dioramas at the more familiar scale of Warhammer and 40k miniatures. A full chapter of Ultramarines was proudly ranked up on one side, with an ongoing battle between the Imperial Guard and Orks covering a 10'x6' board (with the Guard's Dark Angel abandoning them in favour of a group of Fallen Chaos Space Marines appearing at the edge of the board.) There was also a Fantasy siege diorama, with over 2000 Skeletons pushing out of the ground and through the gates of a huge Empire castle, along with many other displays. All of these were put in the shadow by one though, The Siege of the Imperial Palace;
The scope of the battle being portrayed was beyond anything else I could think of. All the miniatures were as exquisitely painted as you would expect, each playing a part in telling a hundred stories within the main plot. As you might be able to tell though, there were two that stole everyone's attention. The Imperial Warlord and the Fallen Imperator dominated the landscape. At the time, the thought of using such enormous 'miniatures' in a game was ludicrous. But some part of that idea stayed with me for years to come.
So what is this 'the bigger they come...' title all about?
Fast forward a few years and I started attending Games Days. Each year, the hall was filled with ever larger, more elaborate and/or wacky games to play. Slowly but surely Titan's started to make their way out of Epic and in to 40k. Somehow, I was too in awe to take worthwhile photos, particularly only having a disposable film camera or a digital camera with a memory card small enough to get only a few photos. However, here are a few of the ones I have found (with a little help from google!)
The release of Apocalypse in '07 changed all that, with rules for the Warhound and Warlord class titans, as well as some of those of the xenos races. At one point, I think I saw 9 different Warlords on 8 different tables at Games Day. The Era of Titan's was certainly swinging in to full effect, particularly as Forge World released the Reaver and Phantom Titans. However, back at the Apocalypse release, I was gripped in the throws of hobby passion with two ideas; a full armoured company and my own Titan. Being a poor student at the time, there was no way I could afford the glorious resin masterpiece FW were selling, so my only option was scratch-building. By this point I'd like to think I was an accomplished modeller, but I was well aware of my limitations. Drawing on the inspiration I had received when visiting Warhammer World all those years before, I set to, building my very own Warlord.
.JPG)
In the end I actually ended up spending more on paints and glues than I did on actual components. Unfortunately, she ended up in a squatting position as the glue in her hips and spine dried. At the time there was very little I could do about it, so just left it as a running joke to distract people whilst she blasted everything apart with her guns before being ripped apart my monstrous or gargantuan creatures, chainfist wielding Terminators or, most embarrassingly of all, an Imperial Guard priest! Whenever I took her to an in-store game, loads of people would come in off the street to ask about it, whether or not they had an interest in 40k. I know for certain more than a couple of people decided to take up the hobby after seeing her, despite not being a GW model.
What now?
Well, as you may have guessed when I said 'At the time' I have since gone back to working on and improving my Titan. Many of you who are familiar with these kind of scratch-builds will have no doubt noticed that my Warlord is a little out of scale. So far out of scale, in fact, that she is much closer to an Imperator. Well, needing to correct the squat and the scale gave me a great excuse to get involved with her again. As for inspiration; well I think we are living in a golden age in many respects. The rise of the internet means there are a whole host of pictures people have posted (much like I am doing now) of their own creations. Here's just a sample of those I've been working from;
I also have a couple of favourites, made by Blackadder and Isotope99 on Bell of Lost Souls (click the picture to be taken to their WIP threads, but don't forget to come back!)
I seriously do suggest you go have a look through those threads, even if you aren't a BoLS member. Nothing I can say could really do them justice; for Isotope's Imperator on the paintwork, for Blackadder the incredible detail of his build, especially with the interior detailing!
So what have I done to my own Titan since the earlier photos of her? Simple; demolition!
Well, I hope that some of that has inspired some of you, the way the Titans that used to be at Warhammer World inspired me. As I work on my Warlord-to-Imperator upgrade, I'll keep you posted. Let me know in the comments below what you think, what insanely large projects you are working on, or even if you are just starting out in the hobby and would like some pointers. Once upon a yesteryear I was buying my first models too. Someday perhaps you'll be showing someone new to the hobby your fully functional Titan Legion.
Matt
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