Wow, is it really July already?!
I had this squad painted for a while now, but it took me some time to get decided on the Weapon Platform - especially in regards to the marble effect. I've decided to use stippling only on the shield and frontal panels to make the vehicle bit more interesting. Kudos to my girlfriend for help with that! The decorations are a mix of old and new decals, I still don't feel confident enough to freehand Eldar runes.
Assembling these guys was quite fun. Sure, the Guardians box is old and the mould lines are ever-present, but the models can be assembled in various poses and the kit has plenty of interesting bits such as various antennae, targeters, grenades and spare clips. There are two shields available for the platform, and the box includes each of its pontential weapons. For more variety, try kitbashing with the Dire Avengers box - for example, the model below has a one-hand shuriken from the Dire Avengers exarch.
I planned to do some squad markings for the Guardians, but in the end I've decided against it - at least until I get another squad. My idea was to choose squad colors and paint them on either on kneepads or the antennae on back. I've also left the Guardian helmets free of the Guardian symbol; the reason for this is that I have actually seen only few Guardian models with it - even the Games Workshop showoff models don't have it! And I'm not even sure it would look any better.
The bases were done in similar way as with my Dire Avengers - various bits of plasticard and frames painted to resemble Eldar ruins, painted with Eldar symbols and sticking out of Stirland Mud texture.
By the way, I've tested the unit few times and I rather like it, even though the lack of a proper armour save is really annoying! I guess these guys will mostly camp at base around an objective, which is why I armed the platform with a Bright Lance. The low rate of fire makes it rather unreliable, though. Maybe I should switch to a Starcannon or Shuriken Catapult?
