Mother Magnus

Over two centuries ago, Magnus was fast becoming a natural leader within the Dark Angels chapter. He served well in both assault and devastator companies, but really came under his own as a member of the tactical companies. He earned the nickname 'mother' because he was always looking out for his fellow marines, not just in battle, but in all aspects of their lives. A scything claw of a Tyranid Carnifex cut his career short, literally. Mortally wounded, 'Mother' could only carry on entombed within the shell of an armored Dreadnought. He has served in this new role well for the last two centuries, and troopers still smile as they see their old brother-in-arms step between them and danger time and time again.

Although I'm sure this has been done before, I haven't actually seen it done, so I can kinda claim this idea on my own, haha. As I put together this model the idea came to me as the torso took shape. I cut up an old fantasy skeleton I had in my bits box and glued him to a little chunk of sprue to have him sit upright. Then I just super-glued it all down. Even though the model will be sealed up, at least I'll know it's in there.


This isn't the Black Reach snap-fit Dreadnought, this is from the boxed set and is quite the multi-piece model. So I could have plenty of options, I thought I would try my hand at using some magnets. Embedding the magnets in the weapon limbs wasn't too tricky, just some patience, an x-acto knife, and a little super glue.


The corresponding magnets I put inside the torso pieces. Sure, there's a thin layer of plastic between the two magnets, but these are pretty powerful and the hold is still tight. It also makes the outside of the model clean and neat. When it comes to 'weapon destroyed' results, it'll be a breeze to just pop off what's been taken out, and keep carrying on.


With the magnets in there, I can swap out the different arms with the torso as needed with incredible ease. This gives me full range of all the pieces in the boxed set, and I have flexibility when it comes to outfitting my Dreadnought for each battle.


"You know you're a geek when..." You post a YouTube video of your giant robot to show off the interchangeable, magnetic arms.


Here's a size comparison with a veteran Dark Angel. I jumped the gun a tad on the pics. Since I took these, I added all manner of bits, banners, and icons to personalize it a lot more, and make it feel more like a Dark Angels Dreadnought. The kit itself was not so easy, it felt more like a traditional model than a gaming model. Having said that, it still went together fairly quick and it feels pretty solid. The magnetized limbs are just an added bonus.