No one expects.... The Inquisitor's Retinue!

 So there I was digging through a box looking for some bit or other when I came across this assortment of Inquisitor's Retinue that I picked up from my good friend Pat a few years back and didn't manage to paint before packing up the house 2 moves ago!  Since I'm actually in a mood to paint some fringe Imperials it was a timely find!

I based these in the same scheme as I'll be using on the Raging Heroes IG project using Trenchworks bases from Secret Weapon Miniatures.

The Cherub was fun... if only because I got to scribble some cryptic messages on its proclamation. 

 I'll need a lot more practice to do fancy Illuminations in this scale but this proclamation captures the feel of the Imperial Cult as a movement of the working masses of Imperial Citizenry.

For the Preacher I wanted to mix fanaticism with the last vestiges of a fading glory.  To get the feel of a man who has joined the crusade because he has nothing left of his former high station except the clothes on his back and the weighty tomes of the Emperor's Wisdom that he carries with him always.

 The full set of minis that I found on this pass through the boxes.

The Lexigrapher follows the Preacher and, aided by the pair of Servoskulls, records every word. The Gun Servitor that protects him rounds out the group.  I picture the retinue as followers of the Preacher rather than of the Inquisitor so its actually thematic to show them without the Inquisitor that they would typically be seen to escort.

 These were worked up from black with three stages of bone white and highlight then washed with Secret Weapon Washes and painted where this treatment was too muddled.  This ended up generating a lot of the shadow effects and highlights were often achieved by glazing the surfaces to be highlighted with a lighter tone (like a yellow) and then thinly re-glazed with the original base wash color.

 A bit of attention was paid to the wires.  They are all color coded either on the cable itself or on the terminal plug.  There is nothing worse than a pile of unmarked cable!

 The retinue are the wandering remnants of a destroyed congregation and, as such, are scavengers by nature.  They not only carry their personal fortunes on their backs but their other equipment is also of mixed provenance due to the random nature of its acquisition during their long travels.  The Gun servitor sports a Multi Melta in an Astartes color scheme and might be a bone of contention in an encounter with Space Marines of any flavor.

I love Servo Skulls!  They are iconic of the poor man's way to continue service to the Emperor after the body... and even the mind... fails.  These scout and guard always recording the retinues efforts in the name of the Emperor!

Back to the table now... more projects are waiting...