Aegis Arising - The Gun-Cutter

I've wanted a small aerial / space transport for a little while. I have a shuttle or two, but I was after something in the vein of the gun-cutter utilised by Inquisitor Eisenhorn in Dan Abnett's excellent novels. Although there are the boxy Thunderhawks, Storm Eagles and all their variants, I didn't want something so recognisable. Similarly, Imperial Guard Valkyries are excellent, but they're clearly not space-worthy. By chance, I mentioned this to a friend. By chance he happened to have access to the Mantic Accuser Interceptor from their recent Warpath Kickstarter (I believe these aren't yet on general release).

Mantic Accuser Interceptor render.

 

The kit comes with optional weaponry and transport compartment. I discarded the missiles, and built the variant with the transport compartment. The kit itself was pretty easy to assemble, with just 21 pieces to put together. Everything fitted pretty nicely, and while a few extra pieces would have helped to hide the join lines between components, the whole thing comes together well. The wing/gun elements aren't glued and can rotate, but I suspect I won't use this 'in flight'.

 

I gave the gun-cutter a beaten-up grey paint scheme, with orange flashes on the wings and tail.

The windows got a basic blue tinted glass.



After some feedback, I added a few decals to break up the surfaces a little.

The rear door is magnetised, as it can't stay closed without being glued otherwise.

I painted the recesses on the sides of the transport compartment as viewing slits.



The transport compartment got a light tan colour scheme with some glowing interior lights.



After 23 days in the void, ace pilot 'Xhonni' Xhonzhon takes a short re-supply stop.

 

Whilst there are a couple of elements of Mantic's design that I don't like (tiny cockpit windows, seam-line on the engine exhausts), overall it's a neat little transport, and it will be suitable for transporting incognito Inquisitors, Imperial Guard snatch teams, or smugglers as required!