Felix's Gaming Pages – warhammer, wh40k, flames of war, bolt action, aeronautica imperialis, star wars, models, news, views and stuff

Noctilith Crown

This Noctilith Crown was on display at Warhammer World.

Towering over the battlefield as dread monuments to the Dark Gods, Noctilith Crowns are brutal edifices raised up by Chaos Space Marines to tear open the fabric of realspace. Forged from noctilith—the esoteric, warp-conductive material commonly known as blackstone—these towering structure-crafts act as vast psychic resonators, channeling raw immaterium and thinning the veil between dimensions to deadly effect. By siphoning and amplifying chaotic energies, a Noctilith Crown creates a localised reality-bleeding field that empowers Heretic Astartes sorcerers, shields nearby Chaos infantry behind flickering warp-barriers, and severely destabilises enemy psyker abilities. Standing as an unyielding focal point of ruin, a Noctilith Crown ensures that reality itself buckles beneath the weight of the Warp, carving a permanent foothold for daemonkind and chaos legions alike.

Though from a game mechanics perspective this is a force field, to me it looks more like a gateway in a similar manner to a Stargate.

Churchill VI Infantry Tank

The Tank Museum’s Churchill VI Infantry Tank in the Conservation Shed.

The Churchill Mark VI was a crucial mid-war enhancement to the British infantry tank lineage, introduced in late 1943 to resolve the multi-role limitations of its predecessors. While earlier marks like the Mark III and IV carried the anti-tank dedicated 6-pounder gun—which lacked an effective high-explosive shell for infantry support—the Mark VI was built from the outset with the British Ordnance QF 75mm gun. This dual-purpose armament allowed crews to effectively engage soft targets, anti-tank gun positions, and fortified strongpoints alongside enemy armour. Retaining the composite welded-and-cast welded turret design and heavy hull armour of the late-production Mark IV, the Mark VI offered a valuable, standardised upgrade that saw extensive service during the Normandy Campaign and the subsequent push across Western Europe. Although eventually overshadowed by the heavily up-armoured, purpose-built “Heavy Churchill” Mark VII, the Mark VI served as a vital bridge in British tactical doctrine by providing infantry formations with versatile, heavy direct-fire support when it was needed most.

FV 4005 Stage 2 at Tankfest 26

The FV 4005 Stage 2 driving in the arena at Tankfest 26.

An experimental tank destroyer with a 7.2-inch mm gun L4, which was a modified version of the BL 7.2-inch howitzer. It’s not only a huge gun, but also a huge turret. However as a SPG artillery piece, this isn’t too critical, no need to be hull down on a hill ridge. The project started in 1951/52, and developed in July 1955. It used a lightly armoured, fully enclosed and traversable turret on a Centurion hull. The project was abandoned in 1957.

I had seen it before when it was a gate guardian to the museum. Since that visit it was restored to full running order.

Dark Angels Gladiator Lancer

Designed to serve as the ultimate long-range hunter-killer for the Primaris Space Marines, the Gladiator Lancer trades troop-transport capability for sheer, armour-shredding firepower. Built upon the hover-capable Impulsor chassis, this anti-tank battle tank replaces the open troop bay with an armoured hull and an advanced weapon turret housing a devastating Lancer laser destroyer. Engineered with exceptional optics and targeting systems, the Lancer picks off enemy super-heavies and war engines with pinpoint accuracy from extreme range, punching smouldering holes through the thickest plating before the foe can even register the threat. By neutralszing high-value armoured targets from afar, the Gladiator Lancer allows fast-moving Astartes spearheads to storm past burning wrecks unhindered and claim their battlefield objectives with absolute dominance.

In the same way the Predator evolves the classic Rhino chassis, the Gladiator adapts the anti-grav Impulsor framework into a dedicated frontline battle tank rather than a troop transport.

Sd.Kfz. 222

This Sd.Kfz. 222 was driving around the arena at Tankfest 26.

The Sonderkraftfahrzeug 222 (Sd.Kfz. 222), officially designated as the Leichter Panzerspähwagen (2 cm), was the primary light four-wheeled armored reconnaissance car used by the German Wehrmacht during World War II. Built on a heavy-duty Horch 801 chassis featuring four-wheel drive and all-wheel steering, the compact vehicle was designed for speed, agility, and cross-country mobility to perform scouting duties ahead of mechanized panzer divisions. Its open-topped, ten-sided polygonal turret was fitted with a wire-mesh anti-grenade screen and mounted a 2 cm KwK 30 (later KwK 38) autocannon alongside a coaxial 7.92mm MG 34 machine gun, providing surprisingly formidable firepower against light vehicles, infantry, and low-flying aircraft. First deployed during the invasions of Poland and France, the Sd.Kfz. 222 excelled on Western Europe’s developed road networks and saw widespread action with the Afrika Korps in North Africa. However, its operational limitations became starkly apparent on the Eastern Front, where the Soviet Union’s severe rasputitsa mud and harsh winters severely hampered four-wheeled off-road mobility, leading to its gradual replacement by eight-wheeled armored cars and half-tracks like the Sd.Kfz. 250/9.

Tahlia Vedra, Lioness of the Parch

First Marshal Tahlia Vedra, famed as the Lioness of the Parch, stands as the paramount tactical mind of Hammerhal Aqsha and a fiery beacon of hope for Dawnbringer Crusades across the Mortal Realms. Rising from the gritty life of a mercenary warrior through sharp intellect, unyielding passion, and a trail of bloody victories, she reshaped the Freeguild into a force capable of reclaiming Aqshy’s scorched hearthlands from the grip of Chaos. Astride her terrifying manticore steed, Infernadine, the Lioness leads from the front lines of the Twin-tailed City. Her presence inspires ordinary mortals to stand firm in the face of horror, proving that human grit and strategic brilliance can carve out light within the darkest corners of the realms.

Downed Tempestus Scions Valkyrie

This downed Tempestus Scions Valkyrie is from one of the dioramas at Warhammer World.

The Tempestus Scions are elite special forces of the Imperial Guard. They have the best equipment and weapons.

The Valkyrie are troop carrying gunships used by the Imperial Guard. They are used to take soldiers into the heart of the battle. Flying through the enemy gunfire, landing in the hotzone and dropping off their payload before flying up in support.

Sometimes the troops are jumping, using grave chutes, from high above the battlefield. The Valkyrie is armed with lascannons or a multi-laser, and under the wings are missiles or rocket pods. The Valkyrie, like most of the Imperium’s aircraft, is piloted and operated by the Imperial Navy, with a pilot, co-pilot and two door gunners. Though not a helicopter, the Valkyrie is used in a similar way.

I do have a Valkyrie model, but it currently remains unbuilt in its box. I did though paint some for Aeronautica Imperialis.

Gallery of Valkyrie models.

Sd.Kfz. 265 Panzerbefehlswagen

The Sd.Kfz. 265 Panzerbefehlswagen (light armoured command vehicle) was a German Army’s first purpose-designed armoured command vehicle; a type of armoured fighting vehicle designed to provide a tank unit commander with mobility and communications on the battlefield. A development of the Army’s first mass-produced tank, the Panzer I Ausf. A, the Sd. Kfz. 265 saw considerable action during the early years of the war, serving in Panzer units through 1942 and with other formations until late in the war.

This rare Sd.Kfz. 265 Panzerbefehlswagen is on display at Bovington.

The Sd. Kfz. 265 was based on the Panzer I Ausf. A chassis, but it had its turret removed and replaced with a superstructure that housed additional radios and other communications equipment. The superstructure was located at the rear of the vehicle, and it was designed to provide the commander with a good view of the battlefield. The Sd. Kfz. 265 was also equipped with a single 7.92mm machine gun, which was mounted in the hull.

The Sd. Kfz. 265 was crewed by three men: the commander, the driver, and the radio operator. The commander was responsible for directing the unit’s movements and for communicating with other units. The driver was responsible for driving the vehicle, and the radio operator was responsible for operating the vehicle’s communications equipment.

The Sd. Kfz. 265 was a relatively simple and inexpensive vehicle to produce, and it was well-suited for its intended role as a command tank. It was reliable and easy to maintain, and it had good mobility and range. However, it was lightly armoured and lightly armed, and it was not suitable for combat.

The Panzer I Command Tank was first used in combat during the Spanish Civil War, and it saw extensive use during the early years of World War II. It was eventually replaced by more capable command tanks, such as the Panzer III Command Tank, but it remained in service until the end of the war.

I didn’t know until some years ago that the German tanks in 1940 were painted grey and brown, I had always thought they were just grey. I personally blame Matchbox for this.

It was only after Blitzkrieg was released back in 2010 by Battlefront that I noticed the grey and brown camouflage scheme.

As recently as ten years ago the overwhelming consensus regarding early war German AFV paint schemes was that they were all painted in uniform overall panzer grey (Dunkelgrau – RAL 7021 – formerly RAL 46). However, in 2002 Tom Jentz and Hilary Doyle published an article based on primary sources stating all German vehicles at the beginning of World War II were painted in a two tone camouflage scheme of panzer grey with one third of the vehicle painted in a disruptive pattern of dark brown (Dunkelbraun – RAL 7017 – formerly RAL 45). The order to move to an overall panzer grey scheme was not signed until the end of July 1940.

Carrion Birds of Khemri

Sacred to the Nehekharan Mortuary Cult, the Carrion are vast, repulsive, vulture-like beasts entombed within the ancient crypts of many Tomb Kings. Raised from their dusty graves through foul, dark rites, these skeletal and decaying aviators soar into the sky on wide, tattered wings. Circling far above the clashing armies, they cast long, ominous shadows over the desert sands below. Driven by an eternal, unnatural hunger, these monstrous birds sweep down from the clouds not merely to feast upon the freshly slaughtered corpses left in the wake of the undead horde, but to actively hunt down the living and create new prey of their own.

Dark Angels Death Wing Land Raider Crusader

This Dark Angels Death Wing Land Raider Crusader was in the displays at Warhammer World.

Engineered to act as an unstoppable linebreaker, the Land Raider Crusader is a short-range, anti-infantry assault variant of the classic Land Raider Phobos fielded by the Space Marines and the Inquisition. Sacrificing the long-range anti-tank lascannons of the standard pattern, the Crusader replaces them with sponson-mounted Hurricane Bolters that lay down a blistering curtain of mass-reactive fire to cut down enemy defenders prior to an assault. Paired with a hull-mounted twin assault cannon and heavy frag assault launchers that pepper defensive lines as the tank closes in, the Crusader suppresses the foe with overwhelming close-range firepower while effortlessly shrugging off incoming enemy small arms fire.

Beyond its formidable anti-infantry capabilities, the Crusader’s tactical brilliance lies in its vastly expanded transport capacity. By removing the bulky las-power generators required by the standard Phobos pattern, the vehicle reclaims critical internal volume, allowing it to carry larger Space Marine squads—or bulky Terminator formations—directly into the fray. Striking at the core of enemy lines, the Land Raider Crusader smashes through defensive perimeters to disgorge its deadly transhuman cargo right into the heart of the foe, ensuring immediate and decisive victory in close-quarters engagements.