Hello there! I'm a bit inexperienced at this whole blogging thing, but I'm hoping that cobbling up a dedicated project log will help me chronicle my hobby progress, stay focused, and most importantly, interact with other hobbyists! '
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I've been rather productive in the last couple months, and both my Ork army and my Tyranid swarm are nearing completion. I'm moving out of state in about a month, and my goal is to have these two forces fully painted before I pack them away (not for any particular reason; it's more of a concrete deadline to keep me on track.) I'm going to post pictures of the finished stuff, and follow these with
WiP updates. Hopefully I can keep it interesting around here!
At the moment, I'm working on my Orks. This army has been a labor of love over the last three years or so. I started collecting Orks at the tail end of fifth edition, with the old Ork Battleforce box. From there, I built my army up through bits bins at local game stores, cheap ebay purchases, and a few trades. Aside from the initial Battleforce, only a box of Meganobz was purchased brand new. This ensured that much of my time was spent hacking, repurposing, reposing, and repainting, but it was totally worthwhile. I feel like it is both fun and characterful to "refurbish" unwanted or poorly painted Ork models (like a proper Deathskull, of course) and the scrapheap, mishmash nature of the army makes the process more forgiving.
Just for some background: I'm a slow painter. I tend to work real hard during sudden spurts of inspiration...only to leave things at a standstill for months on end afterward, haha. When I revisit my work, I often repaint units, add new details, or tear up models for conversions. I've still got a couple of vehicles and a smattering of infantry to finish up for this warband...but I'm happy with how my Orks are coming together. The best part is I've been able to experiment with a number of new (and varied) weathering techniques, and I've successfully squashed the intimidation that comes with experimenting. Orks, in particular, are a great army to practice new methods on, no matter how far-fetched they sound. Blob on paint, scrape it off, use graphite, use inks and varnishes, use hairsprays and table salts...don't be afraid to get messy and mess things up. I let myself get loose for this project, rather than worry over every detail. I tried to see through the eyes of an Ork: would they paint their vehicles and armor carefully? What would inform their aesthetic choices? I imagine rust and grime would serve as warpaint. Battle damage would be displayed like a badge of honor. Function would trump fashion. Symmetry would be largely accidental. For me, a clean, pristine presentation doesn't fit the Orks' hardscrabble lifestyle - everything should be busted, beaten, and smeared!
Above all, I've learned about the quality of quantity - an Ork horde just looks rad. I tend to paint with the "three-foot rule" firmly in mind. Not every detail has to be perfect. My work can be reasonably sloppy (or worse, perhaps) in places, but still look great on a tabletop. I can always go back and touch things up as I like.
To start off, here's my Warboss - Thruk Rustguts - and his retinue: some Nobz, a Mekboy, and a Dok. I've always liked the way you could build a personal retinue for your Warboss in the 3rd edition codex, and I've emulated that here. The Kommando Nob is such a cool model, and while he isn't a massive, brutal warboss, I think he still looks cunning and wily enough to hold his own. (I can see I need to finish painting the washer glued to his base.)
(I'm sorry the pictures aren't all that great - I'm hoping to improve as I go along!)
I like to envision the 41st Millenium's Orks as clans of semi-nomadic barbarian raiders who thrive off of the vestiges of the crumbling Imperium. Orks are as tough and adaptable as they are audacious and clumsy. They extort and they scavenge, they plunder and pillage. I don't imagine them as stupid, bloodthirsty football hooligans in space - rather, I like to think that the stereotypical Ork is based upon an image the Imperium has propagated in order to further degrade and villainize them as a species. I imagine the Orks have a rich, if warlike, culture, full of all kinds of mystery, ritual, and symbolism. For me, Orks in the 41st millennium fall somewhere between Gauls, Klingons, and Morlocks. Now, please don't get me wrong - despite any illusions I may harbor regarding Ork kultur, I recognize that they do, indeed, live for speed, explosions, and loud, volatile weaponry - and this is wonderful. When I play with my Orks, I crank a
Lightning Bolt or a
Conan record, pour myself a tall glass of grog (or sludge, depending on the time of day), strap on some aviator goggles (well...perhaps not really, but in my mind I sorta do), fill a bucket with dice and prepare for total mayhem.
My headcanon runs in a bit of a different direction, and I wanted to support this. While I dig the "fun to play with/against" aspect of the army, I wanted my Orks to feel just a bit more serious, and perhaps a bit more threatening. I enjoy much of
GW's take on Orks, but I wanted my Orks to look more like mutant humanoids. I painted them in pallid skin tones, and I tried to be muted and subtle with my colors - lots of bare, worn metals, dingy earth-tones, and general muck. I tried to avoid the more cartoonish, exaggerated bits and bobs and I downplayed the flamboyant sort of dazzle usually associated with Orks (though I couldn't resist painting checkered panels and bright colors here and there!) I feel like it worked out alright, although there are times where I think an olive green skin tone would have looked real nice, and offered a bit more contrast overall.
Anyway, I apologize for the wall of text! If anyone is still there, feedback is always welcome. Thanks for stopping by!
I'm glad - I've been kinda worried the yellows aren't, well, yellow enough.
