Dark Vengeance: Kranon the Relentless
Kranon the Relentless is one of those miniatures that simply makes you want to cry with happiness - the model really is that good. As a staunch defender of the Imperium I don't own a Chaos Space Marine army, but this model alone is tempting me to renounce the Emperor, break my Imperial eagle and burn all my purity seals.
The Chaos Space Marine models in this set are completely twisted and corrupted - their armour has mutated, horns and fangs have sprouted from their helmets and their weapons writhe with unholy energy. Even Kranon's backpack has evolved into something part mechanical, part organic, as a long sinuous spine has pushed its way through the armoured plates and the exhaust ports now look suspiciously (and unnervingly) fleshy. As far as treacherous Chaos Space Marines go, there are few that look as wholly corrupt as Kranon the Relentless.
Draznicht's Chosen are a truly gorgeous unit to look at (if anything Chaos can be said to be 'gorgeous'). Each model is an individual, much like the Deathwing that we showed yesterday, and you could spend a lot of time pouring over all the details. I know I certainly did. Each of the Chosen has a different look and feel, from the aggressive running pose of the Chosen with the power fist to the powerful combat stance of the warrior with the massive power axe who looks as though he's just cleaved someone in half.
What really struck me about the Chosen is how you assemble the models, as on the sprue their components don't quite come as you'd expect them to. The Chosen warrior with the lightning claws, for example, comes in three parts - the front of his body (including the front of the lightning claws), the back of his torso (including the backs of the lightning claws) and his backpack. It's very odd to look at on the sprue, but the parts fit together immensely well and provide utterly seamless joints between the components. You'd be hard-pressed to find the joins between them if you didn't know where to look.
Make sure you check back tomorrow when we'll be taking a look at the largest model in the Dark Vengeance boxed set: Mortis Metalikus, the Chaos Space Marine Helbrute.
