Iannick's Red Templar's 1st Tactical "Mors Manipulus" Squad (250 points)

We are the Mors Manipulus. We've killed more traitors, fought more battles, shed more blood, and stomped more ass than the rest of the company put together.

Sargeant Gaudin, 1st Squad, 1st Company, Red Templars

Rank & File #4

Hey look at that, more marines! 

May was my last rank & file month, and so it was also my last month painting marines. And I've kept the best for last. I wanted to represent the first squad of my force as a bad ass veteran outfit. My idea was to use helmetless marines as well as marines with a lot of individual honours, badges, weird armour type, etc. All the things a veteran of many campaigns would accumulate along the way, and adapt to his needs. Basically, the opposite of my 3rd squad, which is quite vanilla in it's look.

It wasn't really difficult to find 10 such marines because really the Rogue Trader range is full of those types of figures. It also allowed me to use those weird death eagles armoured marines, as well as the marine with terminator honour figure. Any of those would've looked out of place in a normal marine squad, but here, surrounded by an eclectic looking bunch,  they all fit right in. 

However, sitting down on May 1st and looking at them, I felt I needed to make them stand out even more. For aesthetic purposes, sure, but also because I needed a little variety. Because one thing I had never really noticed before is how monochrome space marines really are! Little bit tired of red, yeah...And I needed to spice things up, if only a little. 

I figured the 1st Squad of the 1st Company of the Red Templar chapter should be special. And as such I decided to add black to my repertoire, and I gave them black helmets striped red. I was afraid it might constrast too much, or detract from my force's overrall red & white, but no, it *really* works and gives them that little extra badassery and unique factor. I call them "Mors Manipulus", i.e. death squad (the latin doesn't have that Nazi connotation!).

I gave Sargeant Gaudin a white helmet striped red, as all my leaders and special characters have white distinctions, but gave him a black banner to tie him with his squad. I really like the banner. I've always wanted to paint that figure, and I'm quite happy with the results. The marine with the bionic leg was a very old figure from my youth collection, and his sword broke aeons ago, so I gave him a chainsword instead. It looks better than the sword if you ask me. 

Some of my fav RT figures. Brother Martin with the cybernetic leg might be my favourite, but
really they are all iconic figures

Two of the marines in Death Eagle armour, and then there's the multi-melta
marine with a very unique "skull" helmet and decorations. He fits right in.

I'm really pleased with this squad, and I feel I may have kept the best for last! 

With this submission, my OWAC is "unofficially" over and I can do whatever I want with my Wild Card month. Damn, I love that weight off my shoulder feeling of ending an OWAC. It's a sweet, sweet feeling. I'm pleased with myself as this is the first OWAC where I manage to go 5 straight months without using my mulligan (Wild Card). It was my plan all along as I didn't want to have to paint in June. My painting room has no AC so I often take a painting break in the summer and I didn't want to sweat come late June, forced to paint under unrelenting heat (and stress!). A lot of people assume Canada is always cold, but yeah, no. Montréal in the Summer is extremely hot and humid. Our Summers may not last long, but they are intense.

So the weather will quite possibly determine what I will submit in my Wild Card month, although I have been working on a little something different the last few months that I hope to submit next month, if nothing else.

Technical stuff : 

Red Templars tactical Squad : 250 points