Plastic Thunderhawk (somehow)

Dear Games Workshop, you’ve had many, many years to release a plastic Thunderhawk for 40k, but you haven’t done it. (Let’s just ignore the model for Legio Imperialis.)

So after all that waiting, I finally had no choice but to take matters into my own hands. In the depths of the internet, I found printable files (which I won’t share here) and got to work. 

This time, I paid meticulous attention to getting the scale right. It helped that the Thunderhawk’s side doors are the same as those on Land Raiders. My FDM printer ran for a few days, and in the end, this is what came out:

Sure, if you look really closely or know the original down to the smallest detail, you can tell it’s a copy. But for me, it’s good enough. Especially when you consider that it only costs me about 20 euros to print and assemble.

I’m going to paint the Thunderhawk for my Iron Hands. That means black, silver, and white colour scheme. This scheme should also help to conceal its unholy origin.  

Turmoil in the Old World

As always, I’m not sitting idle, but I don’t always find the time to document my progress. I promise to do better.

Since the end of last year, I’ve started taking tentative steps into Warhammer: The Old World. Aside from an Ork Mordheim gang and various teams for Blitz Bowl and a few PC games (In the Shadow of the Horned Rat, Mordheim, Blood Bowl, Total War: Warhammer, and Vermintide), I haven’t yet fully immersed myself in the Warhammer Fantasy world. 

Warhammer Fantasy was always around somehow, and I found it interesting, but my friends and I ended up thinking its sibling, 40k, was somehow cooler. And that’s how things went for about 30 years of hobbying. But that’s finally about to change.

I also want to expand my skill set, so I’m going to try airbrushing for the first time. I’ve already decided on two armies: Wood Elves and Chaos Warriors. I actually wanted to start with the Wood Elves, but the intricate models and numerous details initially put me off, so I’m starting with the Chaos Warriors instead.

Last week, my old buddy "Goatmörser" invited me to an Old World event. We played 500-point games using the Battle March rules, and this was my army:

Detailed photos of the individual units will follow later. I played a single battle against Feldermaus's Bretonnians, and then we played a big narrative battle with three players on each side. It was just awesome, and now I’m totally hooked on TOW. Here is a brief summary of the events:

The villages of Brionne were burning.

Sir Gerome de Brionne rode at the head of his knights, holding high the banner of the Lady. Screams echoed across the fields as the hordes of Chaos, led by Zyphrael the Tormentor, descended upon the defenceless populace.

With thundering hooves, the knights of Bretonnia crashed into the enemy ranks. Lances were lowered, and for a moment it seemed as though the charge might turn the tide. But Chaos did not yield.  

Zyphrael herself stepped forward to face the paladin, surrounded by flickering, ominous energy. Reality seemed to warp as their blades clashed. Despite all their bravery and divine favour, the knights were pushed back. One by one, they fell, and the defence collapsed. Sir Gerome de Brionne rose into the air, wounded, and vanished.

In the end, leaderless peasants stood surrounded by chaos amid the burning ruins of their existence.

The gods of chaos had taken their toll, and the path to the von Brionne family seat was clear...