Fast Attack! Part 2: Bikin' It!

Did I mention my Ultramarine army was taking shape in fits and starts? Really, that was more when I was flush with extra cash and little spare time. Now that the opposite is true, I can start polishing whole sections off in short order. As you can see, they're shaping up to be quite the opposite of my IG army with its static guns and huge, plodding war machines. Indeed, they're shaping up to be quite spry.  You all recognize the Master of the Forge with his bigass Warbike, right? Looks right at home next to his two-wheeled fellows. 

No, that isn't a mirror image. I got these guys for a song, and rather than have both gunners blasting away with their bolt pistols, I had them synch-targeting their multi-meltas with those binocs of theirs. No sense in wasting perfectly good bodies with just attack bikes, now is there? Personally, I like the look of the old, retro bikes better than the new square ones. Of course, not long ago on another forum someone (rather wisely) pointed out that bikes, especially with sidecars, are terrible for broken terrain. 

Flying speeder bikes, on the other hand, are awesome for broken terrain. Some of them were assembled from separate bits auctions, and others were bought whole. Most were fitted with comparatively new plastic bikers, which required a bit of shaving to fit properly. Just who is that techmarine going to crown with that wrench, I wonder? Man at the speed those things fly, that's gonna hurt. There are two of them in that formation, along with a Medic brandishing his surgical tool and a Chaplain leading the way. 

This chaplain was the seed that started it all. I hated the design of the handlebar-less, prow-less Bullock model bike, and made the former from some bits and a cannon barrel, and the latter from a pair of pilgrim shields. That back banner is going to generate some tremendous drag when he's racing along, though, but honestly, he looks cool, so who cares. 

Of them all, this one required the most work. It came to me as the front section, with the handlebars and bolter sheared off. Cheap at the price, so I set to work rebuilding the front with green stuff and a little bolter bit left over from a plastic bike. Then it was on to the rear half, which was a labor of love:

Okay, so I had the undercarriage of a metal Eldar jetbike in my bits box (I'll post the mecha the rest of it went to on a more mecha-centric post). The thrusters are cannon muzzles from an old Battletech Annhilator. As with my other pre-Heresy relics, the metal bits are a nice archaic brass/copper scheme. Basing them's always fun:

The veteran of some ancient battle from days gone by, still brandishing his shield. Don't envy the view he has now:

That heavy-gauge paper clip holds the jetbike up nicely, and won't break like those squirrely plastic rods GW pushes do all the damn time. (I'm not bitter). Of course, some of the posts might be a little high to allow for cover, but I can always cut 'em back a bit. 


With two bike squadrons and four land speeders, do I even need assault marines? 


Hell yeah I do. Especially if I want to run a "Blue Angels" list with Storm Ravens......