It’s a small thing, but Angholan’s base I’m particularly happy with (dude on the left). A long established part of his deal is that he, sergeant at the time, was crushed in a building collapse in the fall of Forestway to the Legio Apex, and was the last man recovered from the rubble by the Imperial Fists before the planet was declared Exterminatus. Much of that was inspired by the much slimmer build of his previous Emperor’s Champion model, the idea being that he was completely shattered and after being rebuilt from the boots up isn’t bulked out like a standard Marine.
Previously I’d never come up with some appropriate site for that keystone event. What would be worth not just him and his squad sacrificing themselves, but then the Fists doing a final sweep right before bombarding the planet?
Then the obvious answer hit me out of the blue the other day: The gene-seed vault in the Kingbreakers’ chapter monastery. Clearly the whole chapter would be willing to bring the house down on top of themselves rather than risk Nurgle Chaos Marines getting their slimy hands on it. It would also make sense for the Fists, in the process of evacuating whoever and whatever they could from Forestway in its last moments, to do a last check there to see if there was anything salvageable.
That detail about the vault doesn’t really show up, but that’s the story on the base. It’s a bit of broken wall and a balcony statuette from some Cityfight bits I have from building terrain at Redcap’s, with some sprue shavings sprinkled on, representing his rise from the rubble in that foundational story of him & the chapter.
I’d say the knife’s there crossed with the death’s head eagle to represent a life of constant struggle and fighting to the death for the Imperium, but it’s probably just about stabbin’ dudes/daemons.