Skitarius Vanguard with an Arc Rifle, painted

Every once in a while, I like to build and paint some AdMech models. I don't expect to have a functional army any time soon, but I'm not in a hurry, and eventually, I'll have enough to play a small game with (especially if amended with my House Taranis Knight).
I particularly like the Skitarii models, as they can be built either as Rangers or as Vanguards, and both types have a distinct look of their own.

Most of my Vanguard models are modeled either running or currently firing, to differentiate them from the Rangers, more specialised for ranged combat. I decided Arc Rifle should be currently fired, as the cable running to the backpack doesn't allow a lot variation in poses. The electric glow on the Arc Rifle was achieved with Temple Guard Blue.

 I also decided to add some glow to the backpack, since it's supposed to be powering the rifle. I painted some yellow stripes to one of the cables from the backpack.

I paint the metal armour on the Vanguards first with Warplock Bronze, then drybrush it with Leadbelcher, shade with Nuln Oil and finish by drybrushing it with Ironbreaker. I like the dark metal look, so I don't use Runefang Steel or Necron Compound on most metal pieces.

Adeptus Mechanicus Skitarius Vanguard

Every once in a while, I remember that I have another army (well, a sapling of an army, anyway) and try to get on with that one, too. While AdMech will probably continue to be a secondary army at most, I would like to build it up to a level it can be used for a game of Kill Team, at least. Getting there, I now have two models in my Vanguard squad. 

 The model was painted along my established Mars Skitarii lines, with mostly dull steel plate and some bronze/brass for decoration, and deep red robes. The blue glow on the radium carbine was painted with Temple Guard Blue.

 Instead of the yellow-and-black striped pattern I often use, I chose deep red for most of the wires visible. I decided simplicity would be best in this case.

 The base was painted in a standard pattern, too, with Doombull Brown rim and drybrushed over Stirland Mud. In my opinion, it looks reddish enough to suggest Mars, without making the point too explicit.

I don't know when I'll end up finishing my next AdMech model. I still have a couple of Kataphron servitors to build and paint, not to mention a whole bunch of Skitarii. All in good time, or sometimes a little after the aforementioned good time has passed..

Sicarian Ruststalker, painted

I sometimes forget that I have an Adeptus Mechanicus army, too. The models aren't as poseable and easily convertd as Space Marine models tend to be (though I've noticed an unfortunate trend of chipping away this benefit in the more recent releases), and when I decided on the reddish-brown bases, I did pretty severely limit my basing options. However, I do try to grow the army, little by little.

 The freely rotating wrist joints of the Sicarians enable some martial techniques that would be very difficult, if not impossible, for an unenhanced human to perform. For example, changing the sword between what functions much like a reverse grip and a normal grip wouldn't work as well on normal wrists, as a normal hand would probably accidentally fling away any blade with actual weight to it. I decided that, since the Ruststalker is armed with two swords, it'd have the other one behind its back, ready to parry or counterattack as necessary, while keeping the point towards its opponent.

 The colour scheme on the swords is still pretty effective, with the transition from black to white through blue. It's pretty hard to imagine what the actual sonic-based blades would look like, and I have no idea why they'd really glow blue, but again, let's not overthink 40k.

I'm pretty satisfied with the outcome of the model. I'm still not sure how to avoid the clone trooper syndrome, but as long as I keep the army small, that shouldn't be a problem, and that, in turn, should be simple enough, because the assembling the models gets samey pretty soon.

Skitarius Vanguard Alpha, painted

The Kataphron models inspired me to continue my AdMech army further. The high points cost of pretty much all of the Cult Mechanicus models means I won't have to have as many Skitarii models, amking the clone trooper syndrome less of a problem. They'll still remain a secondary army, though.

 The first major decision to make with the Alpha was the armament. After some thought, I chose the Arc Pistol / Arc Mace combination, for vehicle hunting. I wanted to have most of my Vanguard to be either firing their weapons or running forward. The arc pistol arm was posed rather awkwardly so that he'd necessarily have it either in the movie poster style by his head (pointless, since you can see the weapon and the model's head simultaneously anyway) or just hanging around, so having him firing wasn't an option. The mace arm was also posed less than optimally so that it points nearly straight to the side. Works fine, if you have your Alpha standing around and pointing, but since I wanted him to be running, the finished pose would necessarily look a little awkward. At least I managed to fit him with a pair of legs that is currently lifting the right knee, so that having the left arm straight looked at least a little bit more natural.

I paint the electric blue glow on the arc weaponry with thinned-down Temple Guard Blue. I try to paint the crevaces in the weaponry, but am not overtly worried about accuracy, as some slight smudges just reinforce the glow effect.

 I generally try to use the colour of steel or iron for anything that looks like it needs to be durable, and the copper or bronze for the more decorative parts or stuff that look like they need to conduct electricity. The coat's Mars colours are just Evil Sunz Scarlet drybrush over Mephiston Red shaded with Nuln Oil and Carrowburg Crimson.

Adeptus Mechanicus Skitarius Ranger with a Transuranic Arquebus, painted

My AdMech force is growing very slowly and unsteadily. It might help if I focused more on the Cult Mechanicus, as their models are more expensive points-wise, with the Electro Priests being the cheapest ones, despite costing approximately the same as a Space Marine Veteran and being nowhere near as useful. The way the models are designed definitely dampens my willingness to invest in them. They are bound to start repeating poses soon.
Anyway, the Transuranic Arquebus is one of the cooler weapons in the army. I like the old-timey design coupled with the idea of the weapon still being extremely hi-tech (by the Imperium's standards).

 The weapons long, thin stand proved to be ridiculously fragile (or alternatively, my hands proved to be ridiculously clumsy). The stand broke off at two points, which I had to pin with thin wire. Fortunately, the fix turned out pretty seamless, but I'm still concerned about how hard it will be to transport and move the models on the tabletop without breaking anything.

 I chose the head with the hood pulled back, because variety is the spice of life, and I intend to have at least one more TUA in the same squad.

Other than the fragile stand, the model was relatively uneventful to put together. I just wonder how the Skitarius is supposed to move quicker than most infantry and yet have time to fire an aimed shot in the same turn when he's using a long weapon with a stand, but I suppose the priests of Mars will have their secrets.

Adeptus Mechanicus Skitarius Ranger w/ an Omnispex

Of the two main Skitarii troops, I find I like the Rangers more. Though the Vanguards look nice with their sallet-type helmets, the snipers capable of moving and firing are more interesting to me. The general steampunk appearance is interesting, even if it wasn't what I imagined when I first thought of AdMech troops.

 Mars' red, black and white colour pattern is pretty striking, especially with the long, flowing robes.

 As I mentioned with my Sicarian Ruststalker, I think the models look really nice, just wish there were more posing options. Of course, it would be difficult to fit the robes with various kinds of legs, and would probably lead to clunkier-looking models. Still, I hope GW finds a way how this cake could be had and eaten, too.

Sicarian Ruststalker

Ever since I first read the 2nd edition Codex Imperialis, I have always liked Adeptus Mechanicus and consider them to be an integral part of the fluff. I actually find it a little strange GW didn't publish codices for them earlier, but better late than never, I suppose.
I bought both Codex Skitarii and Cult Mechanicus as soon as they came out. Never mind that I basically paid twice for what really should be just a single codex (together with the Imperial Knights), the models look cool and most importantly, it's AdMech.

Sicarian Ruststalkers have an appropriately menacing look to them. It's not easy to have no facial features and still have a threatening stare, but these guys somehow manage it.
Game-wise, the combination of chord claw and transonic razor would have admittedly been better, but it's a little too late to change the equipment now. Besides, I don't think I could have made a pose like this with just a hand with unclipped nails and a knife.

 I wanted to have one of the Ruststalkers crossing his/her blades (I suspect the recruits may be of any gender, but by the time the Tech-Priests are done with them, I don't think the concept of gender really applies to them) and painted the blades reacting violently to each other. Martially speaking, there's hardly any point to do this, except maybe to intimidate the opponent, but WH40k isn't about realism.

 I do have one complaint about the models, and that's the fact you can't really repose the legs, torso or head. That just leaves arms, and while a lot can be achieved by using various combinations of weapons and arms, a large Sicarian army will end up a little deja vu-y. The other Skitarii models have the same problem. Green Stuff can't help much either, unless you want to resculpt the torso, and while I do enjoy challenges, that's just a little too much work for the reward of just having a slightly different Sicarian. As a result, my AdMech army will probably remain a small, secondary army.

You may notice that I based my AdMech differently from my Space Wolves. I went for a red desert look, as if they were on the surface of Mars. I also decided to base my Imperial Knight in a similar fashion. I'm sure I'll end up showing the Knight in a future update -- after all, there has to be some use for that Lords of War tag besides Logan.