Kasfunatu's Cochineal Corsairs

Avast!

'Tis indeed a return to a past unit, mateys, with a second swaggering set of sabre-slinging swashbucklers! Now that the crew is all aboard, mayhap they can wreak some havoc on the high seas. Or, you know, a tabletop somewhere. Probably depicting a field. In a game with no boats. 

Very much the same as the last time out, this lot. I did discuss the possibility of two different colour schemes with Kas, wondering if he'd like to have them as two units. It makes more sense to have them available as one forty-strong block, was his thinking. Especially after the time that a mere thirty of them killed Archaon. Bah. 

Which isn't to say that I did them exactly the same. Well, I mean, they aren't exactly the same, are they? Look at this champion, for a start. Entirely different to the last one. 

This sword smells funny. Who's been fighting Nurglings with my sword?

Same with Deckhand Hornblower here. 

Squoooooonk.

And Crowsnest McGee, company flag carrier. 

No more over-complex aquatic battle scenes this time. I went for something serene and underwatery instead. It's come out looking a bit orky, somehow. It's meant to be a shark jaw but looks more like a warboss of some kind. And I should have painted the background light effect first, as trying to paint it in behind the anchors was a pain. But it's fairly straightfoward and eyecatching, so that's good. 

New cloak colours, too, to go with the Navy Blue and Racing Green ones from last time. 

Crocodile skin and Saurus hide, I'm thinking.

We've got a boggy reptilian green one and a slinky aquamarine number, as well as the Royal Purple sported by the champion, ideal for the ambassador's ball. 

With these two extra pips to my armour save, you're really spoiling us.

Rattling about in a huge loose box with dozens of others isn't very good for miniatures, so over the last couple of months I wasn't surprised to find a few casualties. Most of these were in the Witch Elves, whose heads and necks seemed to have had a dose of duff glue, the last of the tube maybe, and frequently parted company. When I was getting them ready for paint, I did a repair spree, and fixed the remaining corsairs that needed it too. After going through the boxes three times, I was still a cutlass arm down, but I decided that it needn't be a problem. Pirates, after all, are fairly well-known for their prosthetics. 

Make a grapple check.

Typically, the arm turned up about twenty seconds after the glue dried. But tough, he's stuck with this one now. Also: to it. 

Painting Guide:

• Secret Tip: It's the same as last time. Except for!
• Green Cloaks - Goblin Green with first Brown Ink wash, then Nuln Oil, then an Underhive Ash drybrush
• Turquoise Cloaks - Shadow Grey base, which is an odd name for a paint that is neither shadowy nor grey, but in fact a fairly bright light blue. A heavy wash with green ink soon fixed that, with Temple Guard Blue drybrushing
• Breastplates - I balked at another time-consuming round of orange layering, as the photos of the last lot didn't make it look great. So this is Terracotta with Red Ink again, then a Ryza Rust drybrush over that. In fact, there's little to choose between them, and the first batch look much sharper in the flesh than on photo, so I needn't have worried
• Crossbow Strings - Oh bloody hell, I haven't done any of the crossbow strings. Not on the others either. And now they're varnished. Sod it. 

Leading these charmers is the charismatic if rather poorly-ruled Black Ark Fleetmaster, fresh from his plastic blister. Others before me have remarked on what a smasher the model is, and what a shame he's a bit overpriced points-wise compared to other options. I'm sure he could double up, though. 

Polished Blue with silver trim on the breastplate. Gloss all over the base...

The base is very nice, awash with limpets and seaweed. Lovely flowing locks and a pretty epic bit of cloaking make him one of the best characters the Dark Elves have going for them, I'd say. Although personally, if I had a peg leg, I'd probably not want a hooked one. Probably a bit of a liability on a wooden ship's deck, I'd say. 

And the back, which is Abaddon Black washed with Green Ink, then Incubi Darkness and Underhive Ash layers and a second, final Green Ink wash.

And that is the last of the infantry done!

People don't usually leave the purple Quality Street until last.