Dark Angels army classic 1998-2012
Elite
Each Chapter of Space Marines has the fearsome terminator armours for some of its veterans and especially for the most dangerous tasks. But you can't say Dark Angels without saying Deathwing, an entire Company equipped with the best exoskeletons in the Imperium. Painted in bone white in honor of the brothers who freed their homeworld from a cult of Genesteelers, each member of the Deathwing is also a member of the Inner Circle and aware of the existence of the Fallen. But other veteran brothers in power armour are present in the various Companies or if wounded beyond the superhuman limits, honored with the self-propelled Dreadnougt sarcofgus.
Deathwing:
the renowned
1st Company
I began the collection by painting a model from the famous Dark Angels First Company in 1998, to use as a token for a reimagined version of Space Hulk. Inspired by William King's short story that featured in the game's Deathwing expansion, I fell in love with the Company's connection to a recruiting world whose tribes had a culture very close to that of Native Americans. Later, when my adventure with Warhammer 40,000 began, I first painted six models in bone white with tribal glyphs, then six models in the black of the original Legion, focusing on the right shoulder pads, featuring the Chapter symbol combined with the marine's tribal name, as in the illustrations that accompanied the short story. Six as the survivors of the clash with the invading Genesteelers who, at the end of their unauthorized mission, receive permission not to return to the Chapter and refound their tribes.
My first Deathwing squads
were a tribute to the novel
that made me choose the Dark Angels Chapter
Veterans:
not all are Deathwing
The idea of Veteran Brothers not necessarily part of the Deathwing is important to understand the various levels of secrecy within the Chapter in parallel with combat seniority.
When I started this collection, only the named character miniatures wore robes. I chose purple to keep the army's tone dark. I kept this choice when the first metal veterans models were produced, and then the plastic ones.
Sometimes I painted miniatures not intended for the game table.
Purely modeling pieces that have allowed me to adapt the painting style to the specific project.
This vintage miniature brings a power axe and a power glove/fist.
The body of this model from 1992 is made of metal, while axe and power glove come from the 1995 plastic sprue.
Veteran in Mk2 power armour
Dreadnoughts:
from metal to venerable
The first dreadnought I built and painted was the generic metal one in the 3rd edition of the game, when it was treated as a vehicle and didn't yet have a base. A few years later, the plastic model was produced, and I painted it, embellishing it with some Native American-themed freehands. Next came the venerable dreadnought, which I decided to paint in Deathwing colors, focusing on cleanliness and prestige.
