Ultramarines: The Movie
Making a CGI movie without being Pixar, Lucasfilm or other big studio is a risky attemp, but the world of Warhammer 40.000 is not so mainstream as to allow Games Workshop to spend so much money.
Ultramarines: The Movie is the first official full-length animation movie about the grim future. Around 70 minutes of action, depicting a Ultramarines ship responding to a distress signal from a beacon on a planet, from other chapter of Space Marines who have fell to a Chaos attack.
The best ace of the movie is the background/setting: Fully respects the boardgame, the weapons, the decoration, the courage and no fear attitude of the space marines... It is glad to see everything depicted correctly, from the armor details and purity seals, to the big bolters, thunderhawks, land speeder, futuristic gothic buildings... Everything is as in the books, illustrations and miniatures.
The story feels short but enough to keep some tension during the 70 minutes, with all the space marine chicles, taunts and war quotes.
The sound is pretty nice too. As I'm used to play all existing Warhammer 40.000 videogames, the weapons sound the same, voice acting is good, and the music has some great tracks (gothic chants with motivating music).
The movie features some typical space marine squads, with flamers, heavy bolters, an aphotecary, a captain, plus the chaos space marines and some other figures I won't spoil. It also has a nice wink to the game in the form of the spaceship's relic, a powerful Warhammer ;)
And then we come to the visuals/graphics. They are in the middle, not bad not impressive, with varying quality depending on the scene. The faces are in general very well done, every 3D model is an accurate representation of the "real" one and some lighting and fire effects are very good.
But in general, it could have been better. If you've played the PC game Dawn of War II for example, its introduction movie has more quality. The marines sometimes move a bit too fast (don't forget they're carrying a huge armor and big guns), and while it's for sure very hard to animate them, the games have a more natural movement than this movie.
Also, some scenes have lower quality than the rest, with not too good lighting (so the marines are too bright) or lower resolution scenarios (sometimes they look really poor and lacking detail).
My final complaint could be that, probably to stay in the budget limits, the enemies are chaos, yes, but still space marines. Of all the so visually varied races, choosing them reduces the visual variety. Orks are the always-present first choice, but with the Ultramarines the Tyranids would have been more appropiate.
This is a matter of taste and not a bad point itself, but let's hope there would be more movies in the future with other races.
I liked the movie, is not perfect but I hope it starts a new line of long-term products with more movies, whenever they are based on the long list of Warhammer 40.000 novels or smaller stories like this one.
If you are a fan of the game you will probably enjoy the movie.
Tags: Movies Warhammer 40000
Genestealer Hybrids Conversion (WIP)
In the old times of Warhammer 40.000 and Space Hulk, before the Tyranids became a race, Genestealers had not only the normal 4-arms monsters, but also semi-human Genestealer Hybrids. They even were available to play in the old Space Hulk rules, but Games Workshop phased them out and made Genestealers the baseline close-combat troop for Tyranid swarms.
I have some old miniatures (some yet unpainted), and I wanted to build a Genestealer Cult mini-army, but getting more hybrids like this is almost impossible today:
So, after one day looking at some Warhammer Fantasy Ghouls painted with pink tones, the heads reminded me of the hybrids, and I decided to do some modding experiments. This was the shopping list:
- Tyranid Genestealers. I had spare pieces from old Genestealer models so I still was able to build full Genestealers squads after rampaging arms, but will depend on your desired amount of claw-arms hybrids.
- Vampire Counts Crypt Ghouls. Initially I just wanted the heads, but after checking the models, I decided to go for a "weak hybrid" conversion also using Ghoul torsos and arms (either unarmed or changing the bones/knives for pistols). The torsos needed removal of hair and some spikes (or softening them).
- Catachan Jungle Fighters. I wanted the hybrids to have uncovered violet arms and some torsos (to remark that they are no longer human), so instead of other Imperial Guard miniatures I chose this.
Some afternoons assembling, cutting and joining pieces, and this is the unpainted result:
This is one of the new "weak hybrid" models I mentioned before:
The worst part was the necks. Catachan torsos had no neck because is the head the one containig it, but Ghoul heads are concave instead of convex, so I did one elaborate but guaranteed approach: Cut the ghoul necks from the torsos and adapt them to the Catachan ones.
It needs some cutting and careful glueing, and I found better to rotate horizontally 180ยบ the neck (so that the back part becomes the front one) because it rises the head (as opposite as lowering it in the ghoul models).
The title says WIP (Work In Progress) because I've just started painting the squad. I'm not yet finished with any model but I painted all the flesh part of one hybrid to check how it looks:
You can't simulate the "hunchback" old hybrids mostly because of the bigger head and complexion, but I'm satisfied with the results of the experiment. I definetly prefer this to just simple Imperial Guards with another colors...
It will take me some time to paint every model, but I also have another modding project related with Genestealers which I'll show in the future (when I can at least start painting it and show a before-after).
Tags: Miniatures Warhammer 40000
Deathwatch, Deathangel and Castle Ravenloft
Finally, a long awaited order arrived with some interesting new games:
- Deathwatch: A Warhammer 40.000 book RPG. Being able to roleplay individual Space Marines (as alien-hunters instead of mere army soldiers), looked too appealing to let it pass. As far as I've read it is not a substitute for Rogue Trader but a newer version of the rules focusing on SMs. The book looks awesome but I have almost 400 pages to read!
- Death Angel: A card game version of Space Hulk that can be played from solo to 6 players (all with Terminator Squads, Genestealers are played automatically). I'm still reading the instructions and the system is quite clever and seems to have ported the basic feeling of Space Hulk battles.
- Castle Ravenloft: A module I didn't ever played on the old D&D converted into a boardgame full of miniatures, random maps and that also can be played solo or up to 5 people (with automatic rules for foes). I just assembled the contents and gave a quick look to the instructions (quite small, but the maps are random and there are lots of encounter cards).
I definetly want to prepare a Deathwatch campaign to play with my friends, but if I hadn't already too much to read, more stuff...
Book Review: Angels of Darkness
Angels of Darkness is the third and last book in the Dark Angels Space Marines story.
The first thing you notice while reading the book is the different author. We're still told two stories (one of a Fallen and one of an Interrogator-Chaplain, both Dark Angels) as in the second book, but although both are told in present tense, one happens before.
Also, the difference in writing is noticeable, not a bad thing, just you feel different than with the previous books. Probably having completely new characters boosts this feeling too.
This book deeps a bit more into how a Space Marine thinks. Questioning of oaths, duty, preservation of lives, and secrets, dark secrets between the chapter.
The combats are nicely described (and there are a bunch), although killable this Space Marines are real badasses, and in general the setting is really good (probably the best of the three books).
As usual it ends with a few unanswered questions, but it at least makes some really interesting revelations of the Dark Angels. One warning, though. Without spoiling anything, Astelan's tale has been confirmed to be subjective and not the reality.
If you enjoyed the other too books, you must read this one and finish the trilogy.
Tags: Books Warhammer 40000
Book Review: Fallen Angels
Second book in the series of the Dark Angels background, Fallen Angels tries to deliver the reasoning behind Luther's threachery on Caliban (home planet of the chapter).
Continues directly after the events of Descent of Angels, so shares some characters, some are new, and the warhammer futuristic setting is depicted perfectly, only exagerating a bit the resistance of the space marines (but not too much either)...
The pacing of the story is much better in this second book: Two parallel main characters and associated stories in different places (one in the Dark Angels' homeworld, the other in a planet with Horus rebels). Pretty well told, keeping interest even when part of the ending is known, and even with small twists (nothing great but good enough to serve their purpose).
I didnt liked the "humanization" of Nemiel's team, talking as typical cocky marines. Being space marines they are supposed to be badasses without the need of mocking typical movie bluffs and semi-jokes. It kind of disrupts the non-talkative, 200% war focused adeptus astartes image.
But this is a personal taste, other books keep this semi-humanization of Space Marines so whenever I like it or not, I have to bear with it.
The book is the nexus with what will become the "hidden" current Dark Angels secret, unfolding how it happens and what happens but not how it ends (yet, that's what the third book is about). But this time, and unlike what I felt with the first book, what is told forms a whole and is correctly both delimited and depicted.
Now we're talking about real space marines adventures.
Tags: Books Warhammer 40000
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