Games We Play

Monday, 22 April 2019

Air Wolves

Easter Monday! And if you're anything like 10 year old Stylus, you'll spend the day watching Sinbad movies and eating a metric tonne of chocolate eggs.

Space Wolves Primaris Inceptors with Plasma Exterminators

...sigh...

But such nostalgia must wait - we're here to shoot things with overheated plasma!

Space Wolves Primaris Inceptors with Plasma Exterminators

You don't see many of the plasma-variety Inceptors - which is not surprising, given their cost, both in cash and game points, but I think they have a role to play (or at least, I'm about to find out if I'm wrong!)

Space Wolves Primaris Inceptors with Plasma Exterminators
The derpiest jump legs are offset by the coolest 'six-shooter' plasma pose.

A squad of three can put out between 6-18 (18!) plasma shots, they have T5 Gravis armour, they can fall out of combat and shoot, and deepstriking means they won't suffer the fate of Hellblasters and get targeted with everything on the first turn.

Space Wolves Primaris Inceptors with Plasma Exterminators
I really like the 'space helmets' for the Inceptors.
If I'd had more, they'd have all got them.

Still, at £10 a model, I can see why everyone goes to the cheaper easy-to-build kits from Dark Imperium. Speaking of which...

Space Wolves Primaris Inceptors with Assault Bolters

These are the real workhorses of the Primaris Fast Attack. Essentially packing a pair of heavy bolters each makes them a potentially better source of dakka than Aggressors.

Space Wolves Primaris Inceptors with Assault Bolters

In terms of the easy-to-build kit, I quite like it - being half the price of the proper kit helps. It also has a bit more dynamism in the pose of the legs, and it is (duh!) easier to build.

Where the cheaper kit falls down is in the details (and not having a plasma option). This is more telling in the rocket packs. The full kit has a really good pair of rocket engines, the Dark Imperium ones have what could charitably be called a 'suggestion' of an engine.

The bolters are similarly inferior, and since I had the three spare from the full kit, I swapped them over. I needed more shoulder pads, as the Dark Imperium guns+arms+shoulders are all one piece, but luckily the Aggressors come with a plethora of spare pads (no idea why), so I was able to match up the Gravis armour.

Space Wolves Primaris Inceptors with Assault Bolters

The curved flight stands seems to have a very bad reputation for fragility and not gluing properly. But even without these warnings, I would never have trusted these to hold. The stands are magnetised to the flight packs and - so far - it works just fine.

Space Wolves Primaris Inceptors with Assault Bolters

Still loving Gravis armour, by the way - these guys were probably the fastest squad I've painted (and not just because I was up against the clock to get them ready for the Woffboot this week!)
  • Armour: The Fang base, Agrax Earthshade wash, Russ Grey drybrush, Fenrisian Grey drybrush
  • Yellow pauldron: Averland Sunset base, Cassandora Yellow wash, Yriel Yellow drybrush
  • Black pauldron: Chaos Black base
  • Imperial Aquila: Retributor Armour base, Reikland Flashshade wash, Golden Griffon drybrush
  • Helmet coils and gun parts: Ironbreaker base, Nuln Oil wash
  • Eye Lens: Evil Sunz Scarlet
  • Belts: XV-88 base, Agrax Earthshade wash
  • Plasma glow: Ulthuan Grey base, Guilliman Blue wash, Ulthuan Grey highlights
  • Cables: Jokaro Orange base, Nulk Oil wash
  • Cable strips: Balthazar Gold base, Agrax Earthshade wash
  • Base: Vajello Earth Texture, Agrax Earthshade wash, Mounfang Brown lip

Space Wolves Primaris Inceptors with Assault Bolters and Plasma Exterminators

Off we go - flying at speeds rivalling the fastest jets, maxed by unmatched firepower, and too dangerous to be left in unenlightened hands!

8 comments:

  1. That's some solid firepower right there! As though the aggressors need backup...

    With you on the space helmets, they're great. Personally I wasn't sure about all the extra handles on the bolters - what are they for? The puny servitors who arm the marines? So that you can hook them on your belt when you need free hands? A stirrup to reload like a crossbow?

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    1. Yes, I've (unintentionally) developed a theme with this army - no vehicles, no dreadnoughts, no heavy weapons. Just a lot of infantry toting a lot of guns.

      Our bullets will block out the sun!

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  2. They look great, ah Air Wolves, nice! The extra handle is probably just used as a carrying handle and maybe an iron sight like modern assault rifles?

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    1. I don't mind the handles, but what really sold this to me was that the gun barrels are already hollow - I'd put up with a lot if it means I don't have to drill more barrels than I need to!

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  3. I came here to eat leftover Easter chocolate and shoot things with overcharged Plasma, and I'm all out of chocolate!

    I don't think I've ever seen them with those bigger "space suit" type helmets before, and I don't know why. They look so much better than either regular helmets or a bare head, and do a much better job of "selling" the bulkier Armour. One of my big pet peeves about GW kits is how enthusiastic they seem to be about bare heads, and how stingy they get with helmets on a lot of the newer kits.

    Everyone I know who's used the Plasma ones loves them. Real shame they're so expensive, cash-wise. I've been thinking about trying to convert some from the ETB ones and some Plasma Pistols/Guns/Cannon.

    I seem to remember something about the shoulder pads from the Aggressors being in two slightly different varieties, with the ones that have larger bits coming off of them being for the Flamestorm Aggressors, because they want a bit more shielding from their own weapons.

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    1. Conversions would look good - the ETB kit is a really good one to base it around. It is a shame that it doesn't include the space helmets - and it's a shocker that the full kit doesn't even have enough to equip all three with them. It would have made the Inceptors a really distinctive look.

      That explains it about the Aggressor shoulder pads - I did wonder why my bits box was teeming with them. They're a perfect fit for the Inceptors, and the part where I snipped off the extra shielding gets hidden around the back.

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  4. Looking pretty fly for a wolf guy...?

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    Replies
    1. Maybe Jump Around is a more appropriate song...

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