Top 5 Plague Marines of All Time

Other people keep doing it and who is more qualified than me, I’ve painted just about every Plague Marine or Nurgle Renegade sculpted by GW and some I’ve painted many times. Other people when they do this seem to use photos from GW, what gives with that?  What is the point of having a miniature painting blog and putting up pictures of models you didn’t even paint. How can you be so sure if it is an awesome sculpt if you’ve never had the model in your hands, let alone had the model in your hands for hours while you paint it?

1) Original Pointing Plague Marine

I believe this model is called “Nurgle Renegade with Plaguebearer Head”. I own exactly one of these models. I stripped it and repainted it. The second paint job was done in Japan with a very limited palette. Folks these days don’t realize how good they have it with their websites, their mail order, their 100s of different colors to choose from, their specialty bits manufacturers. This model was one of the first Chaos Space Marines I bought and one of the few I could scrounge up while in high school, I converted the beginnings of my army from RBT01s and 2nd Edition box set loyalists.

2) Plaguemarine with Nurgling on shoulder

This model probably came in the same blister as the one above.  These two models probably along with the +1 Toughness encouraged me to go with Nurgle at the dawn of 2nd Edition.  This model was also stripped and repainted in Japan. This is the only copy of the model I have. Looking at this page in Stuff of Legends, (someone borrowed my old catalogs and never gave them back) it appears I do have every Nurgle Renegade. I almost have every Tzeentch one shown too.

3) Nurgle Renegade with Horns aka Nurgle heavy weapon guy

This model I really liked and was able to find copies of online. I think I may own three. Two are currently painted and in my display cabinet. Dylan was unsuccessful at turning one up, but he’s found lots of old OOP models. I’m unemployed and used to live on an Island in the colonies. The fact I have several is a testament to my passion as a Nurgle collector.

4) Plaguebearer Head #2

This model I did not strip and repaint. He must have come in a blister with one of the other Nurgle Renegades as I’ve had the model since say 1994. It wasn’t unheard of to have blisters with three or more models in them back in the day. Small models like goblins used to come several to a blister. All GW models used to be smaller and even dreadnoughts and bikes came in blisters.

5) Plague Marine Champion

Picking the final model was tough. Every model I picked was basically released before I started playing the game almost. Models were just more desirable and harder to come by back then. You had to save and make a pilgrimage to GW Gastown, then you had to hope they had what you wanted in stock. I backfilled my collection in the mid to late 90s as I traveled across Canada doing co-op work terms. I’d always hunt through old blisters and I ordered a bunch of stuff as it went out of print or traded for it after it was OOP. That said all my favourite models I acquired new when the Diseased Sons were starting out, way before nurgle.muschamp.ca.

There have been a number of Plague Marine Champion miniatures. There were two released for 2nd Edition. I used one as a general and the second as a special weapons trooper. There was a special champion that came with the metal Plaguemarine havoc box set, which I converted to be an icon bearer and there is even a champion or at least helmetless model that comes with the Forgeworld Death Guard upgrade kits. I like a lot of these armless models, but I think from a miniature sculpting point of view, the models that have the most personality generally come in one piece and historically are made of metal. So I chose the Plaguemarine Champion with Plasma pistol, the one sighting along his weapon with his breather hanging loose.  I like the guy with the blue face best. I’m big on blue faces for Chaos Space Marines. I’ve tried other colors and blue looks best with green, purple, black, even red power armor.

I’m a fan of some of my many converted and kit bashed champion models as are others, but it’s getting so I don’t even remember where I got the bits and pieces from nowadays. My collection is pretty big and I have a lot of unpainted models and bits, that I need to devote time to if my life ever turns around. I also need to buy a real camera, there is a dust mote in my iPhone now, I noticed it the other day, unable to wipe it away. I put up a gallery of Plague Marines before, after I came back from Japan so 2004ish, I’ve painted a few more since then.  ;-)

A lot of the best Nurgle sculpts were actually Warhammer Fantasy Battle ones which can be incorporated into a 40K army through conversion or daemonic allies.  One model I still have to repaint is my original Chaos Magus, Cancerous the Extremely Naughty.

Now it is 2022 and I finally did get to repaint that model. I even found another copy of my favourite OOP Plague Marine / Nurgle Renegade. I had to strip it and I’m not sure when I’ll repaint it, as I’m currently painting some new Plague Marine models. Below is a picture of the repainted Cancerous, if you have a favourite Plague Marine model or even Nurgle Games Workshop model you can leave a comment below.