Head Detachment

Lady mantises are famous for eating the heads of their mates. Exactly the kind of reputation you want for your all-male leaders in 40K, I think.

Yes, it's some Primaris command for the Mantis Warriors, again from the pages of Conquest. Eight quid for five primaris, two lieutenants and a big flag? You'd be mad not to! Unless you're already afflicted by the madness of our hobby, of course, then you're damned either way.

My Mantidae are too few to need a pair of Lieutenants, although they're a great and cheap HQ option to have. They do seem to work best paired up with a Captain, though, so I duly got the clippers out and botched together an alternative build.

This is as close to a Gravis Cap as I could get with assorted bits of Aggressor and old Marine leftovers. His sword came out nicely, even if it's on the small side for a Primaris blade. And I know he can't really be given a flamer option, but it looks nice. There's probably a relic somewhere I can claim it's representing.

Next up is the Ancient. Ages since I did a banner! Always fun to have a crack at some freehand. After botching my way through their chapter badges, which have come out as a very mixed bag this time round, it was nice to do something a bit less stylistic. Also on a larger and flatter space, which helps no end!

Finally, for bonus points, this is the Primaris Librarian. I really like this model, it's only bettered by the Phobos one for style (and maybe the Chaplain too, that's a great model). I didn't know that there was a crest option for his armour - not sure I like it that much, but the last one I did didn't have it, so I put it on for the sake of variety. Otherwise he's totally stock. I did wonder about converting him a Force Staff of some kind instead, but couldn't find any parts that really worked for me.

That is all for the Mantis Warriors for now. Just one last squad to do before their first battle, but that's for their opponents!