Squad's Done, so Time to Work on the Transport

Due to the REALLY expensive bill of doing a resin-heavy Siege list, I've decided to start my Krieg project as a 1500 point Armored Regiment. With my HQ, Infantry Platoon, and Veteran squad, I'll need six Chimeras to finish this. I have seven on the shelf from previous projects, so I'll kill two birds with one stone and get some serious armored overstock built and painted with this project.

However, being Krieg, I thought I should make a few minor conversions to the Chimeras to reflect the nature of the army they serve in. Yesterday, I posted about the port firing lasgun covers, and today I've got more to show.

In addition to drilling out all of the weapon barrels, I also added rivet detail. I used 1mm styrene rod, which is not a 100% match but close enough.

One of the great things about the new Chimera kit is the choice of turret weapons. Parts are provided to have the standard multilaser, but you also have parts to choose either a heavy bolter or a heavy flamer. The heavy bolter option comes with its own mantlet, while a completely separate mantlet is provided to use with either the heavy flamer or multilaser.

My plan is to use autocannon turrets, referring to the ForgeWorld Imperial Armour rules. Now, of course, you might rightly point out that this is not "tournament legal", as the Imperial Guard codex does not offer the autocannon as a choice. I realize this, but I like autocannons, and my approach to the hobby has always been a figure-centric version. However, in the event I play against someone who is unhappy with the autocannon option, I've magnetized the turret and mantlets to use either the heavy bolter or the autocannon option I've converted here.

After gluing the cut-up autocannon on the spare mantlet (from the IG Heavy Weapons sprue), I went ahead and used Apoxie Sculpt to model up a mantlet cover. This hides the conversion work, and I think is also evocative of the overall Krieg aesthetic. I'm happy with it, and I think it'll paint up great.

The last thing I want to do for all my armor is model them up with sand channels attached. Since I'm going for a desert theme with my bases and weathering, it makes sense to include these. I'll probably make a master from plasticard and a punch, and then mold it up to cast in resin. My tanks won't get stuck in the sand!

This week I'll start painting. Extra bits like the searchlight, smoke launchers, and door handles on the top troop access hatches will be painted separately and attached at the end. I'm doing this to facilitate masking later on. By week's end I should have some pics up and be well on my way to finishing it. Until next time...