As you take your space marines into the darkness of the 40k universe, there are some important ways to fight, up close and personal or destroying your foe from a distance with precision. The latter is where the Primaris Eliminators come into play, with their long range weaponry and their camo cloaks.
Building
Building the primaris eliminators is as easy as most games workshop models, be aware there are some differences on how you wish to build your models and how you want to play them. There are three different weapons that the eliminators can be equipped with, each having a difference on how they play, each with their own strength. This diversity and uniqueness of each one calls for bringing one of each with the three models included or branching out to getting three squads of eliminators, I already have my eye on my next squad.
Painting
Painting the eliminators is a unique and fun challenge for those who love painting their models, for the most part they work like any other space marine standard model and allow you to paint the model any colour scheme you wish which shall create a unique playstyle for them. For my models I wanted them to serve under the Emperor's Spears and so I painted them accordingly. The other unique aspect of painting the eliminators is their camo cloaks that are on their backs, painting these can initially seem daunting but with the help of a video from games workshop themself on youtube it is really easy to learn how to paint this new technique. For my models I followed this painting guide:
- The Fang - covering the entire model
- Leadbelcher - focusing on any metallic elements
- Mournfang brown - all the brown parts of the model
- Screamer pink - the wax seals
- Mechanicus standard grey - the entire cloak
- Nuln oil - shading the whole model
- Corax white - covering all white elements of the model, the base they stand on or next to and the head
- Abaddon black - all black elements of the model
- Rakarth flesh - all flowing sheets
- Retributor gold - all gold elements on the model
- Agrax earthshade - covering all the rakarth flesh areas and the base details
- Nuln oil(thinned down with some water) - covering all white areas except the face
- Reikland fleshshade - covering the face and all gold areas
- Astrogranite - for the base
- Nuln oil - over the base
- Calgar blue - the blue highlights
The cloak:
Once covered with the base colour of mechanicus standard grey then shaded with nuln oil, the model now is ready for the more complex detail. To start I went over the cloak with dawnstone leaving the recess that would hold more shade. With this done the cloak now is ready for the camo effect, for this I used two paints, mecahnicus standard grey, administratum grey, I took them over the cloak in four sided shape designs randomly over the model. This will give the unique effect of a camo cloak and make the model stand out.
Playing
Playing the Primaris Eliminators in the game is a lot of fun but can come with a lot of challenges to master them to the best of your ability. To every battle these three models will not bring a massive dice pool but they will bring a strong dice pool that will more likely hand out successful rolls. With their three weapon choices you can bring in models that can play more successfully in different battles, for most games you will probably want the bolt sniper rifle as it is the most diverse of the group allowing different rounds to shoot, allowing you to adapt during the battle. The instigator bolt carbine will be a stronger weapon for less clear distances on the battlefield but will not pack as much of a punch and on the other end is the las fusil, this is a great weapon when you have clear space to deal heavy damage while your opponent tries to come to you. These three options encourage you to diversify with three different models in your squad or getting three different squads overall and I would easily lean to the latter.
Overall this model kit is brilliant for all space marine players as these models give a great support unit that will allow you to support your main forces from a safe distance, creating a strong offensive which shall force your player into your traps.