Good news for fans of god-engines smashing each other to bits, Legions Imperialis – The Great Slaughter is available to pre-order on Saturday. Following the brutal campaign for Beta-Garmon, this book contains rules to pit entire demi-Legios of Titans and Knight households against one other – far more than you could ever cram even into a day-long game of Adeptus Titanicus.
To participate in the carnage you’re going to need a maniple, or five, ready for the tabletop.
We asked the ’Eavy Metal team how they approached painting in the smaller scale of Legions Imperialis, and top Titan painter Borja produced some bite-sized tips, alongside a swatch for the infamous Legio Mortis, who led the attack on Nyrcon city.
Warhammer Community: What’s your general advice for approaching Knights and Titans, given the combination of dirty internal mechanics and colourful armour panels?
Borja: It is better to paint the unassembled parts – the mechanical skeleton on the one hand and the armour parts on the other – so there is no danger of staining the colourful armour panels with the paints you use for the industrial, working metal look. All Titans are designed so the majority of these parts can be painted separately and glued together at the end.
WarCom: Titans and Knights are usually covered in markings and freehand. How do you create interesting patterns on armour panels?
Borja: There’s no magic trick to achieve these results. The best thing is to create a template with freehand and then fill that pattern with the colours you want. Don’t worry about not getting it right the first time: work patiently, fix mistakes, and take your time.
WarCom: How do you make sure your Titans feel like huge machines?
Borja: For Knights and Titans at this scale, it is best to reduce some of the steps in the painting. Chunky highlights (which the finer edge highlights are seated on) should not be too thick because they will look out of place. As well as adapting things like highlights and weathering to the scale, the light contrast on the panels should not be too extreme – this subtlety helps reinforce the intended size.
WarCom: How do you use transfers?
Borja: There are many references in the Horus Heresy books that concern the iconography you can use on Titans. You can combine generic decals with specific ones for each Legio to create unique Titans. While there are lots designed specifically for Adeptus Titanicus and Legions Imperialis, you can additionally use the decals designed for the Horus Heresy Titans – the smaller ones are a perfect size to use on the larger panels of the Legio Imperialis Titans, adding lots of variety!
Thanks Borja! That should be enough advice for every up-and-coming Princeps to get multiple maniples ready to participate in Titandeath. Legions Imperialis – The Great Slaughter can be pre-ordered on Saturday.