Primaris Ultramarine Test Figure

I have been getting a lot more painting done over the last few weeks, my Twitter account has been evidence of this. I suppose that the reason has been that I have simply painted what I have felt like painting. 

Several weeks ago my wife and I were enjoying a day out in Oxford when we dropped in to the Games Workshop store there. Now, as a rule I avoid Games Workshop stores. I find the sales manner of the staff off-putting, and knowing that I can buy the same products from my local gaming store for a small discount, leaves very little reason to shop there. Still, it was an opportunity to catch up on the changes to the ranges, as I haven't been keeping up on what has been happening in the Games Workshop-sphere.

I spotted a £25 starter kit called "First Strike" and had to have it. My wife/chancellor of the exchequer agreed I could splash out, since I haven't spent much on wargaming recently, and a few days later I stopped by an independent stockist and picked the box up for 15% less than the Games Workshop store. 

I will express my thoughts on the boxed set in another post/video, but I thought I would share the first completed Primaris Marine. Excellent miniature, and finally a Space Marine in "True Scale". Suffice to say, I am looking forward to painting the rest of the miniatures from the box. 

I decided to paint the Space Marines as Ultramarines because I figure that if I were ever to add to the Primaris Marines I would likely get Roboute Guilliman. It also gives me an opportunity to try a slightly different scheme from the one I have employed with my Horus Heresy Ultramarines. I want there to be a tonal difference between the 30th and 40th Millennia. 

As you can see from the side-by-side photos, the 40k Marine is darker in tone, whereas the 30k Marine is brighter. I like to think of the 30th Millennium as a more hopeful epoch, humanity is at its zenith after Ullanor, the Great Crusade is drawing to a close, the Imperium triumphant. By contrast, the grim-dark 40th Millennium is more desperate and humanity on the knife edge of extinction. These colours hopefully reflect that difference, or perhaps it is all in my mind. 

Oh, and I must add that of course the Primaries Marine is missing his transfers and basing. This will be done once I have done the lot and have decided on what sort of basing scheme I want to employ.