For this year's Armies on Parade, Stefano Levorato built a stunning depiction of a hangar aboard the Imperial Fists' Fortress-Monastery Phalanx, the largest starship in the Imperium.* Here’s Stefano to explain how he created such an amazing scene.
Stefano: I entered a Warhammer store for the first time about five years ago, and I became a fan right away. I've been painting miniatures, vehicles, and scenery non-stop since then.
When I first saw a Space Marine Rhino, I was stunned by the visual aspect of it, and as I delved deeper into the hobby I grew to love the Space Marines aesthetic. One of my early ideas was to build a large diorama themed around a Space Marine headquarters. I knew I had found my project when I found out about the Imperial Fists Chapter fortress, the massive warship Phalanx.
I decided to build an interior hangar bay, and gathered as much information I could from codexes, novels, and chatting with friends to decide the elements I would include.
I began by building a rough model with blocks to have a sense of the layout, then I started painting the vehicles, the miniatures and – finally – the scenery. I created a number of smaller scenes to be distributed across the board, each with its own theme.
Strategium
The big window is the same as in the existing art of Phalanx, but I added some text to the yellow around the outer edge. I also converted the captain of the 7th Company, Orpheus Taelos, based on classic artwork.
Vehicle Bays
A Techmarine is loading a Vindicator with more ammo here. If you look carefully, his toolbox seems to be a relic that has belonged to many other Space Marine Chapters.
Gunship Hangar
The Stormhawk Interceptor is rising from an infinity shaft that I built with double mirrors.
Ork Capture Zone
This was actually my wife's idea, to get some Orks who've been captured by the Primaris Infiltrators. This was a way to connect the piece with my award-winning Speed Freeks Armies on Parade board from 2020.
Drop Pod Launch Bay
One drop pod is being launched, and another is waiting for more passengers. The main inspiration for the layout here came from the Angels of Death animation.
Besides these scenes, the diorama is packed with other details, such as banners on the walls, window graphics with Imperial Fists and Adeptus Mechanicus iconography, an out-of-order servohauler, and many barrels and cases spread everywhere.
From the start of planning to finishing the last miniature was about a three-month project, painting every single day. The challenging part was the overall layout and composition of the vehicles and miniatures, finding a balance in their distribution across the board while drawing attention to the correct places.
The next project on my list is a "wall board" featuring Space Marines from 100 loyal Chapters, like the famous poster. This is something I started years ago, and I'm finally close to finishing.
Thanks, Stefano! Grab yourselves a squad of Primaris Intercessors and the Imperial Fists Upgrade Pack so that you can start your own sons of Dorn army. Share all of your painting projects on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram using #WarhammerCommunity – we love to see what you're working on.
* Learn more about the Phalanx in the Black Library novel Phalanx by Ben Counter.