Winter on Fenris

Where there's snow there's almost certainly going to be Space Wolves. In my festive quest to feature as many snow-based miniatures as possible in the run-up to Christmas, I was delighted when Rafael Urbanski sent us these pictures of his Sons of Russ, a successor Chapter of the Space Wolves.

Rafael wanted a different colour scheme to the traditional light grey armour that Space Wolves normally wear. After a little experimentation and research he settled on Mechanicus Standard Grey armour with Khorne Red as the spot colour, using it to pick out the shoulder and knee pads. Rakarth Flesh was then used as the colour for Chapter markings and for details such as fangs and claws on the pack markings. For tiny details such as the rune stones and purity seals, Rafael used a striking Sotek Green highlighted up to almost pure white.

Parts from the Space Wolves Pack box, the Space Marine Tactical Squad and the Space Wolves Terminator box were all used by Rafael to create a unique collection of miniatures. He also used parts from the Space Wolves accessory set, including the shoulder pad that features the wolf skull with the crossed bones - a symbol that he chose to use as his Chapter symbol. Of course, getting hold of so many of these shoulder pads wasn't easy and Rafael spent many hours painting them on to the shoulder pads by hand.

Object source lighting has become a popular technique recently, especially when it comes to power weapons and plasma guns, both of which Rafael has in his army. The intense blue-white plasma blazing out from the barrel of Ulrik the Slayer's plasma pistol is especially good and it ties the miniature nicely to its snowy base. The Space Wolf Dreadnought also has a wickedly curved power claw that looks as though it's made of ice - another wintery touch that adds a vibrant, eye-catching focal point to the miniature.