Starting somewhere in the middle

So where do you start when you are collection 1,000 marines? I wanted a small army that I could play with pretty soon and that would embody the drop pod aesthetic that had really captured my imagination. With only a limited grasp of the mechanics of 5th edition, I put together a 5 drop pod 51 marine list that filled out nicely with 30 jump pack-less assault marines and a Dreadnought.

With such a heavy weight to the assault marines, the first chapter I was going to paint was the 8th, the Ultramarines reserve company, dedicated to assault.

 List clutched in my hand I turned up at Warhammer world and with my friends help bought the entire army outright. 6 drop pods, 6 boxes of assault marines, the Assault on Black Reach boxed set and a tactical squad box along with a few of the metal shoulder pads. The WHW staff gave me a great box to haul it all home in, a green plasma ammunition crate that I am still using to haul my armour around in.