Peter and I have recently decided that 2nd edition is a better way to play Warhammer currently. As more of a "Middlehammer" game it's somewhat easier to obtain models and rules for the game.
My Crimson Fists translate well to the new edition and there are some relaxation of list requirements, such as only needing one Techmarine, which are welcome.
We've played a couple games so far with Peter's Orks versus my Eldar. The Eldar are a solid army in 2nd Edition. It's likely the best version of that army in all editions of the game, in fact. The Orks are a bit rough and require a lot of optimism to be effective, though as Peter plays more he's getting more out of them.
I'd quite forgotten all the extras that Games Workshop had included in White Dwarf during this time. It was a treat to go through my collection and harvest things like the extra missions, Battle Bunker, Wargear cards, Strategy Cards, and the like.
Our first two outings were only 1000 points, Peter has worked up to 1500 points of fully painted Orks and we hope to soon move to 2000 which I think is the optimal value for the game, giving players a lot of options without bogging down the game too terribly much.
Since my Crimson Fists and Eldar were already fully painted I undertook a few projects while Peter worked on his orks.
I realized that I didn't have any Shining Spears, one of several units in the Eldar Codex in 2nd Edition that didn't have corresponding models until (I believe) 3rd Edition. I had some old Guardians on Jetbikes but not enough to make a full squad. I also decided that I wanted my Shining Spears to look different so I decided to convert the unit rather than to field the actual sculpts.
Here are the finished models. I used plastic shields to build up the armor on the front as well as to create the base for the Laser Lances which I incorporated into the jetbikes themselves. I added a full body shield to each rider as well to help reflect the better armor save of the Shining Spears.
I decided to also go with silver rather than white, which I feel looks better and is easier to paint.
After our second game I started looking at my old Imperial Guard Codex and began work on a small Imperial Guard army which could stand alone or be added as support to my Crimson Fists (because who doesn't want cheap Lascannons that can re-roll missed shots?).
I only owned 17 or so of the RT Era Guardsmen (originally used as a stand-in Blood Bowl team!) so I had to settle for two Heavy Weapon Squads and a Regimental HQ Command Squad. I decided to paint them up as the 8th Necromunda Spiders and used the box art as inspiration. I also felt that by using the Necromunda's most famous regiment that would let me sneak in a Van Saar Underhive gang as a squad of Stormtrooper equivalents. I had plenty of those models as Van Saar was my favorite gang back when Necromunda debuted and I bought a lot of them. Here the Van Saar "Silver Spiders" are ready to support the rest of their platoon.
In reality this army is not enough points to currently field at even 1500 points. I need some tanks to bulk it out. Thankfully the Chimera and Leman Russ are the same kits that debuted back in 2nd edition so I can just buy a couple of those and plug them into this list.
I envision this unit as being seconded to an Inquisitor who is hunting daemons who (unbeknownst to them!) have lurk in the minds of enemy psykers.
The goal is to field a unified force of Crimson Fists and Imperial Guard with Grey Knights, Inquisitors, and an assassin. I feel that would be an interesting army to see on the table.
