Like a number of my fellow staffers, I have been diligently working on painting up the contents of my holiday bundle—Cygnar, in my case. Unlike many of my compatriots, however, I have had the distinction—nay, the privilege—of painting the battlegroup twice.

When the time came to choose a bundle back in November, I decided to add to my very first faction: Cygnar. I figured I’d take the opportunity to revamp the army’s paint scheme, which is the tried-and-true blue most people think of when they think Cygnar. My plan was to integrate just a bit more white into the standard blue scheme, keying off Commander Adept Nemo and Lord Commander Stryker’s studio paint schemes where white is used as a spot color to break up the blue armor. After a couple days finalizing the battlegroup, I found myself very uninspired. So I was left with a choice: forge ahead or change course.

I can’t tell you when the thought struck me, but as I went about my day-to-day at the office I suddenly thought about shining knights.

“Wouldn’t it be a fun theme to take the holiday bundle and paint them all as the shining knights of Cygnar?”

The more I thought about it the more I liked it. Thematically, the force would represent Stryker and his quest for redemption following the events of WARMACHINE: Legends. Given his less than noble actions against the Menites of Caspia, I could easily envision him reaffirming his faith in the Morrowan ideals of kindness and charity and seeking to expunge his sins through noble acts in service to Cygnar and its people. What better visual identifier of such desire than gleaming white armor with shining steel and gold accents?

In addition to the fun theme that was forming in my mind, the project would also force me to work with a color I find difficult to use: white. Try as I might, the ability to paint white over large areas and have it come out looking smooth and pure has consistently vexed me. It was time to rectify that problem.

Though the process of figuring out how to get a solid-looking white took quite some time, I have to say I am quite pleased with the result.

By the time I finished the battlegroup, I knew I wanted to take this army all the way to 50 points. However, instead of simply going full-throttle I decided to do the smart thing and build up the army in stages.

First up, 35 points.

35-point Cygnar Army

• ModelCost
• Lord Commander Stryker +6 warjack pts.
• Ironclad 7 pts.
• Lancer 6 pts.
• Journeyman Warcaster3 pts.
• Charger4 pts.
• Reinholdt, Gobber Speculator 1 pt.
• Storm Lances (5)11 pts.
• Stormguard (10)9 pts.

Thankfully the choice of models to fill out the army to 35 points was pretty easy. I knew right away the army had to have some real shining knights. So before I had even finished with the 25-point bundle, I was putting together a full unit of Storm Lances over lunch. Needing an extra point to finish out the list, Reinholdt came along from out of my existing Mercenary collection. I have a plan to convince our blue-collar conversion guru Adam Johnson to craft a more knightly version of everyone’s favorite gobber adventurer.

With the 35 point list determined, I began thinking about how to expand the army to 50 points. After playing around with some options, I’ve come up with the following list.

50-point Cygnar Army

• Model Cost
• Lord Commander Stryker +6 warjack pts.
• Squire2 pts.
• Ironclad 7 pts.
• Lancer6 pts.
• Hammersmith8 pts.
• Journeyman Warcaster3 pts.
• Storm Lances (5)11 pts.
• Stormguard (10)9 pts.
• Precursor Knights (10)8 pts.
• Precursor Knight Officer & Standard Bearer 2 pts.

A Hammersmith adds excellent punch to Stryker’s battlegroup, especially with Positive Charge. Two MAT 8 P+S 19 attacks with Chain Attack: Smite is nothing to laugh at. (Unless you are the one delivering it; then by all means cue maniacal laughter.) Rounding out the army, a full unit of Precursor Knights with the UA not only fits the overall theme of the army perfectly, it also provides a rock-solid unit for capturing and holding objectives in SR 2013 scenarios without sacrificing hitting power thanks to the officer’s Morrow’s Name ability.

I plan on showcasing the finished 35-point and 50-point army in an upcoming blog so you can see how this unexpected journey played out!