Space Wolves Deimos Rhinos

I enjoy painting Space Wolves Deimos Rhinos so much, I made three of them. I absolutely adore the ‘Deimos’ pattern Rhino kit from Forgeworld. In my humble opinion, it’s practically the poster child for the Heresy game, right up there with MkIII armour and Spartan assault tanks. However, I do wish Forgeworld would release a full plastic kit for this ubiquitous transport and retire the hybrid plastic plus conversion parts we’ve endured for years.

That being said, Forgeworld does offer a long-standing bundle of three Deimos Rhinos for £100 GBP, which is not only a discounted bundle but also a great deal. It makes the Deimos not much more costly than the base plastic Mars pattern kit it’s built around. To date, I’ve built over a dozen of them, and the Space Wolves hold the dubious honor of being my first legion to have three of these right out of the gate.

I believe I have a strong connection with the Deimos at a hobby level because its design is clearly influenced by the original Rhino kit, which used to come in a box of three during the days of Rogue Trader. Yes, it’s ‘rogue,’ not ‘rouge’—please, for the love of the Warmaster, let’s stop using that gaudy red color! The original Rhino was such an iconic tank kit, and I particularly enjoyed examining the artwork depicting it in various camouflage schemes for both Astartes and Imperial Guard. Back then, it could be used by both factions in Warhammer 40,000 and Epic. Those were the happy days.

Addendum: This post has aged like fine milk! Games Workshop have of course now released not only a full plastic Deimos kit, but a variety of other hull variants as well. I guess good things ‘do’ come to those that wait.

Each Rhino in the squadron has its own distinctive pack markings on the roof hatch. However, I ensure that they all share the same palette to maintain uniformity across the squadron and other armoured units in my force. While two of the Titans utilize Forgeworld legion-specific side doors, which slightly increases the cost per unit, the remaining markings consist of a combination of waterslide transfers and airbrush stenciling.

Will I add more transports to the Space Wolves? It’s possible, but unlikely that I’ll opt for more Rhino variants. As it turns out, the ‘slayer’ packs can move swiftly on foot, almost matching the speed of the transports, while still maintaining their ability to charge or counter-charge. This makes the tanks somewhat redundant. Nevertheless, I have no regrets as they do look cool. On the factory floor, so to speak, there are two more Deimos vehicles. However, one is destined for the defenders of Terra from the VIIth legion, and the other… well, that one is something rather special. You’ll have to wait and see. Until next time.