Dice And Downloads

Why I love heavy infantry in pan O.

I started infinity with nomads, something about that zero that came with the old starter set really appealed to me. The way he got so close to the ground and the pose he’s in makes him look like one of the most sinister and clandestine models in the game slinking around ship corridors and storage rooms, snatching up all those lovely data files, especially when placed next to his older brother the Spekter who is in pretty much the same pose. But this post is about Pan O and in particular some of the HI I field for them. In complete contrast to the Nomads, Pan O are the ruling superpower and as such this is frequently represented in some of their models, especially the HI. Unlike the Nomad nation Pan O pumps funds and technology into its heavy fighting force for public display ( and points if you’re like me ) so to stay true to the cause I have decided to use lots of HI. So far I have three painted but plan on getting 3 Orc troopers and a father knight, who looks like he is using his sword as a baseball bat . . . . .what a guy. So far I have a Swiss Guard, Aquila Guard and a Knight Hospitaller.

The Knight Hospitaller was the first model I properly painted for my force. I decided on gold red and blue as my main pallet as these are all regal colours and represent power and wealth. I played around with a yellow colour scheme on a few models because I thought I would be clever . . .  but they looked awful so we don’t talk about them now. I think the contrast works well and still managed to keep some blue and keep true to the Pan O basic colours. At some point I do plan on painting a cross over the tunic and some heraldry on the shoulder pads probably a Maltese cross as standard and a little red medical cross on the other shoulder as I always field as a doctor so I can grab those objectives but I’m not overconfident with my freehand at the moment. This guy is Heavy infantry but has nothing that really stands out about him other than he is quite cheap as a specialist. Not an auto include but he does find his way into my lists quite often as he gets the job done for not many points considering.

The Aquila Guard, what can I say about this guy. Nice pose but keeps getting chipped, but that’s on me to be more careful with my toys. When I was making the base for this model I imagined his coat is all up in the air because he is either standing on a ledge gunning down some dirty enemies of the Pan O empire so I had him pointing down some rocks, or he has just hit the ground after jumping down from a wall or the likes of. I had a lot of fun painting the model, the cape does look dynamic but can be a complete pain in the arse to get the model into position half the time as it overhangs more than half the base. Stats wise this guy is a real heavy hitter I was originally going to get one with a HMG who looks awesome holding his weapon like he’s just come “straight outta Compton” but considering I already have a Swiss Guard with a HMG and am currently converting an Orc trooper with the same I thought this was overkill and if he has a multi rifle I can occasionally squeeze him in with a Swiss guard when playing 300+. Armed with BS15 and MSV L3 and a shock combat weapon  there is not much he can’t deal with especially with DA and AP rounds, in other words a tank.

Finally the Swiss Guard. This guy is complete monster, I mean seriously his stat line makes him a man tag. Armed with a big gun, the best camo in the game and a huge weapon ( HMG or Rocket Launcher ) this unit dominates the battlefield every time. Being able to set up with no one having any idea where you are can definitely have its pros. I have seen this guy used as both a defensive ARO machine armed with a rocket launcher sitting on the of of the board, going back into camo in the active turn just to re appear and hand out some lessons to anyone brave enough to venture forward, and as an offensive Rambo unit just walking up the board smashing everything in its path with a HMG. with a beefy stat line and heavy amour on this guy is definitely a force to be reckoned with, but does come in at a price at 64pts with just a combi rifle but well worth every penny. Oh and she also comes with an AP CCW, you know . . .  just in case ranged weapons don’t cut it for some reason.

For those of you who have a keen eye or play Pan O you will have notice the HMG on the Swiss Guard looks somewhat different . I’m really not a fan of the skinny HMG. About two years ago I ordered some weapon upgrades to beef up all my death guard bolt guns but like most 40K projects end up in a cupboard for years and forgotten about. I kept my Nisses pretty much the same when holding the HMG but thought the Swiss Guard Needed something more heavy duty. The Drum clip makes it look like it has a serious amount of rounds and the handle on the side give a great image of being held at the hip as whoever is wielding it kicks in a door and holds down the trigger until nothing is left in the clip or the room after the smoke clears. I couldn't find the exact image but when playing border lands I was lucky enough to get a really decent drop early in the game that game that gave me a red rifle that looked just like the one the model Is holding and I really wanted to recreate the image as it did me to about Lv20.

To represent Total optic camo I painted the models feet the same as the rocks to show how she takes on the colour of whatever she’s standing next to, it came out OK but is definitely something I need to work on. Good job for me I plan on having a few Croc men hiding about.