Tricky build aside, the Space Wolves Storm Eagle was a great kit to paint and I’m super happy how it looks with the other units in my Horus Heresy force.
I was warned in advance by several friends about the potential challenges involved in building Forgeworld’s Storm Eagle kit, particularly when it comes to aligning the fuselage neatly. However, I was determined to include one in my forces of the ‘Rout’, as it has become an iconic transport option in heresy, alongside the Thunderhawk and Stormbird. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as difficult as I’d anticipated, although it did require some resin warming to straighten and gap filling, especially around the front and rear ramps.
As is my practice with all transports, I fully painted the interior, including the forward and main bays, as well as the cockpit. I completed this step before the final assembly, filling, smoothing, and priming of the remaining parts of the model. To simplify the painting process, I treated the main body with engines and canards as a single assembly, while keeping the wings and weapons as separate sub-assemblies.
Storm Eagle colours
The main palette for the Storm Eagle consists of Tamiya Dark Sea Blue, German Grey, and Neutral Grey, which I applied using an airbrush. For the red accents, I used Games Workshop Mephiston Red, which I shaded with blue ink. The knotwork stencils were airbrushed with Vallejo Necro Gold. To achieve the canopy tint, I applied multiple light layers of Tamiya Clear Red using the airbrush.
In terms of weathering, I utilized a combination of artist oils, followed by acrylic chips and scratches. While the Storm Eagle is 90% complete, there are still a few remaining elements to finalize before I consider it ready for battle. These include adding atmospheric effects such as dust and carbon scorching, attending to final details, and creating the flying stand/base.
For now, I will be moving on to other projects and completing the remaining tasks for the Storm Eagle alongside them.
[…] I managed to snaffle one of these kits for my Ultramarines when they very briefly came back in stock in 2017 and in all honestly I’ve not really seen them make a comeback since. My understanding is the molds have long since perished and need replacing, something Forgeworld have said is going to happen but have not committed to a date. My personal belief is the kit probably needs to be re-tooled in CAD, re-mastered and molds produced from that as it has always been a pernickety kit to build and would probably benefit from a bit of a makeover. I’m hoping that will be the case one day as I’d love to add one to ‘the Rout’ as well to run alongside the Storm Eagle. […]