Formal shots of everyone finished is a great idea. And it gives you more motivation to get basing done.
Those termies look very WiP. Plenty of time until the end of the month for comp entry, so no worries on that front. You're pushing for the 5 of them, right?
3" of snow?! I loved being out and about today. It was actually warm (doesn't happen much in the UK )
As my blog slips down to page 4, I should probably post an update. Not picked up a brush for a bit, I should get on that. I did, however, warm up the wire cutter for a little WIP on the webway project.
Quoteing myself from over in the LoER thread:
Just to show I’ve not given up hope.
Carved out a slot in the hill potion for the light feature:
That was just a hack job with a knife, it should all be hidden. I took the hot wire to the top layer to make the ring base for the webway. Here is where I’m at:
I need to lower the arch, so the base meshes with the ring, and then a lot of smoothing. Plus carve the hill. Not sure if I want to do a gentle slope, cliffs, or some combination. Was also thinking about a path to the portal from table level.
Picked up some 150 grit medium sandpaper at the store yesterday. My experiments with the 100 grit corse I had on hand were a little to rough for finished work.
It might be worth turning the part that sticks up upside down. Then you can make the smaller part currenty at the bottom into a narrower tip. It might look better having a wider base, narrowing into a pointy tip.
It might be worth turning the part that sticks up upside down. Then you can make the smaller part currenty at the bottom into a narrower tip. It might look better having a wider base, narrowing into a pointy tip.
evildrcheese wrote:Nice conversions, I really like the master of signals.
Thanks guys. I’m looking forward to getting some primer on the 30k guys, kinda excited to get them painted and potentially on the table. So much of my stuff at this point is “another xx” when it comes to footsloggers, these guys represent something new.
When I did the rough carve on the standing up part of the webway, I intentionally made it bigger then I wanted. Easier to carve more off then to add more. So the tip is going to end up significantly thinner/smaller. I just wasn’t going to do it on the first pass with the wire cutter.
I got a little more paint down on the terminators, and was planning to do a little sanding on the webway, but my father-in-law called and asked for help taking down the snow fence. So now I’m sitting around wondering when is too early to start in on the painkillers. Probably did a few miles with a wheelbarrow uphill. Ouch.
Here is a WIP pic to prove I’m still alive:
The only base color not on there is the green for the eyes. Next up is some drybrushing and second coats to clean things up.
40kFSU wrote: Terrain is looking cool. And I like those RT marines you painted up. Classics never go out of style.
I should get more paint on the termis this afternoon. I might go out and prime a little, weather is nice. Only have 3 things in the box right now though, so no real rush.
On the subject of classics, I put an arm on the new librarian from the archaic supply dump.
Because why go for something simple like a bolt pistol or a pointing hand when you can have a severed demon head. From the GK strike box, if people don’t recognize it.
Gitsplitta wrote:I like that libby Nev. I wonder if the arm attaches to the body a bit low though...
I went back and double checked. It might be a hair low, but not as bad as the pic makes it out to be. And if I raised it up, It would cover/clip with some the the helmet detail. One of the reasons it’s where it is is so I could get a solid bond gluing it. If I did a more traditional arm, less outstretched, the shoulderpad might have worked. But as-is, it was going to either require a lot of work, or be a hair out of place. I checked him out from multiple angles, he’s OK from pretty much everywhere but the low/front one.
Good spot though.
Paradigm wrote:Very cool, that model actually holds up pretty darn well!
The old librarians and chaplains are IMHO some of the best characters that GW has ever made. When I was poking around SoL’s page looking for exactly how old this guy was, I was reminded how cool the old librarians were.
Not a whole lot since last post. Been a slow hobby week. Basement is hovering around 55 degrees, so it’s hard to spend time down there. Also, Blizzard is running a BOGO sale on the Starcraft 2 expansions. Since I only owned the first one, and was waiting for a deal to pick them up, I did. So I might have spent time that could otherwise be used painting on the computer.
I did take some group shots for my showcase thread. 2nd and the former 3rd squad get their formals done.
I really need to get more basing done.
So I noticed 3rd Squad is retired. Now my mind is wandering on what exactly an Ultramarine would do in retirement. The retirement home would be insufferable.
40kFSU wrote: So I noticed 3rd Squad is retired. Now my mind is wandering on what exactly an Ultramarine would do in retirement. The retirement home would be insufferable.
Heh. Probably gripe about all those new fangled, non-codex compliant chapters. Or all the new upstart Xenos. Back in my day, we just fought orks and liked it! Kids these days with their “Tau” and “formation” nonsense. Bah!
From a practical standpoint they were pushed off the 3rd company shelf when I finished a better looking tac squad. Still push-fits, but the Battle of Macragge ones, which are leaps and bounds better looking. I did swap out their weapons for a LC/P, and a c-plas sarge, because how many ML/F squads does one man need? But the bolter boys are from there. Some are actually based as well.
Part of me want to track down the tac squad from AoBR, just so I can have a tac squad from every edition of the game. But honestly. I have no real need for them.
In painting progress I did a second pass with the blue on one of my terminators. Fiddly enough work that I only did one, will do the other later. Then just more touchups and the blue wash. Plus basing. Getting there.
For some reason it feels like a Friday. Week has been very odd. Boy is on break, but is doing a two day overnight at my in-laws. So it’s been very quiet around here. Also, stupidly cold; but I’m too stubborn/cheep to turn the heat on in spring. But I’ve gotten a little painting in.
Guy on the left has his blue wash down, just needs some touching up. Sarge on the right still needs a second clean-up pass on blue, then his wash.
Oh, and I got a game in last night!
1,500 points mechanized CAD. Game was scheduled vs. a dread/cultist focused chaos player, but we teamed up against the 30k guy my last few games had been against.
Not shown is the imp. knight and leviathan dread. He had a chunk of heavy metal on the table; a total of 3 dreads of different flavors, plus the knight. Stuff like this is why I generally put more AV firepower in my lists these days then I used to. Game was relic, which I was holding at the end. Mostly because my opponent got caught up with killing specific units and lost sight of the objective. Figuratively, not literally. I was holding it with the remnants of a tac squad clearly visible to half his army.
Fresh paint report:
This was the first time out in 40k for the librarian. He did a cameo in 30k. Divination: it works. I got the ignore cover blessing, and the rending debuff. Both (plus the primaris) got a good workout. He died under a hail of fire and blades at the end, but the effort used to kill him should have been spent on the relic, so victory.
Vindi did about what I expected him to. Rolled forward 6” first turn and blew a giant chunk out of the enemy line. Was shaken next turn and missed his chance to shoot. Killed the turn after. Via the paper side armor. Still like him. Mmmmm. Pie!
One of my tac squads was full grav. First time out for the cannon and gunner. And the combi on a tac I think. The range of the grav guns did come up. If I had used plasma, I would have got more shots off. But they were tethered to the relic, and had to keep moving up to claim it, and not forward to kill the enemy. But the shots they did get off were well spent. Those things are mean The cannon might be crazy expensive, but it killed a good number of marines.
The old stuff performed well. Not usually a fan of putting the sternguard in a rhino, but they got where they needed to be. Probably because the vindi and the pred were soaking fire. TML speeder took a number of HP off of things. Overall happy with the results. My partner didn’t do a lot of killing, but ate a lot of fire. Good use for traitors and heretics.
One down. Sarge is plugging along, I did his touch-up blue pass, so he’s waiting for a wash. Next time I hit the bench I think I’m going to start up the remaining 3 guys, just so I can get the squad to the table.
WWP progress. Done with the major carving, need some shaping then pain.
Sarge is done. Need to be based/transfers, but that can wait for the rest of the squad.
Who just got their golds down. Plugging away on them. I started the week with the lofty idea of banging them all out in a week, but that’s not happening. I was thinking back to when my weekly goal was 4 minis, and wondering if I could still do that. Obviously not this week. When the weather gets a little warmer, maybe. I was also hoping to do a whole tac squad, but somehow I doubt that’s in the cards. Maybe a stick of 5 bolter boys.
You may or may not be aware of kb_lock’s crowdsourced Ork Mob. He asked for volunteers to paint a boy each, shipped them out, and we send them back. Sounded like a fun way to paint something outside my normal range, so I tossed my hat into the ring. Well, after some stumbling blocks getting things out, I got a new little friend in the mail yesterday.
Just push-fit in that pic.
Now I couldn’t just let him go without any mods, but I’m no mek, so I just tossed on a few grubbins and drilled out the barrel.
Old RT era bits. Pouch from RTB01 and the stickbomb from the old orc box. Seemed fitting. And those orks need to work on their posture. The way he is standing cannot be good for his lower back! I debated putting a SM shoulderpad on him, partly as an excuse to paint some Ultramarine colors to put my mark on him, but it detracted from his otherwise pure orkish spirit. Kinda like him as a basic boy, nothing too fancy about him. Those mobs don’t make themselves, and not everyone is a Nob. I did clean the mold lines off of a spare helmet, which I will paint up and include as basing material.
Hope everyone enjoys their weekend. It’s Kentucky Derby day, so don’t forget to drink a bourbon. I’d say a Mint Julep, but those things are heinous; I stopped forcing myself to drink them years ago. Edit: And just to start the season off right, I’m going to grumble now about mowing my lawn. I’ll be griping all summer, but just did the first mow of the year. First time is always the worst. Not just because I need to get the mower started and am out of shape, but we have a whole mess of forget-me-nots that grow wild in the back, and I feel bad about massacring them.
WWP is coming along nicely, and the termies look great. Do you have the newest SM suppliment for the rules for the terminators? Anything good/noticable for them?
An Ork?! Caught me a bit off guard there. Should be a nice change for you!
brushcommando wrote:Can't wait to see what you do with that. Also, great work on the cataphracts. Easily your best work yet.
I wouln’t say they are my best work, but I do enjoy the way they are turning out. Thanks for the complement.
Zambro wrote:WWP is coming along nicely, and the termies look great. Do you have the newest SM suppliment for the rules for the terminators? Anything good/noticable for them?
An Ork?! Caught me a bit off guard there. Should be a nice change for you!
I’ve seen the scan and leaks for them, but don’t own the AoD book. Yet. There is enough stuff in there that I might pick it up, but I hate dropping cash on more rules, particularly ones I might not use much. I’m not up to the FLGS that often these days, and would rather spend my budget on minis, not books. That said, I might pick it up next time I’m there
Their rules look pretty nice actually. They don’t fix all the problems with terminator armor, but do patch a few of them. They are S&P, not relentless, and have a 4++ rather then a 5++. Gear options are pretty much anything you can build from the kit, but nothing more. If I had these rules when gluing them together, I would have stuck a hidden chainfist into the squad. And probably the HF, because why not. For what I use them for (charging down the assault ramp of my LR) they are better then the basic ones. While I don’t have the SSs to tank wounds with the 3++, everyone has a 4++, and paired claws should blender anything resembling a foot unit.
I think they do a better job as tactical terminators. The only real problem there is the equipment option, as the only heavy they can have is the HF. As they are not very fast, getting into range can be tricky, and as S&P they can’t fire overwatch, eliminating one of the major perks for the flamer. But in a list with some homers for them to land on, I think they could work well. And the 4++ will really help their survivability. If I got another stick of 5, I’d build them for this use. Unlikely to happen though.
The rules for the Dread are not bad, but suffer severely from “make rules for this model” syndrome. Not nearly enough options there.
The real gem of the new 40k rules for the BaC stuff is the captain. Because you can stick him in with a squad, he can grant S&P to a unit. Stick him in a pod with some devs, fire on the drop. Like a skyhammer, but without all the cheese. Just a little sprinkle of it He also gets access to all the normal gear charts, so you can tool him up as you like. The re-rolling 1s on his invuln doesn’t say just for his armor’s 4++, so you could in theory give him a SS and have a 3++. Main drawback here is the lack of option to upgrade to CM. The rules fit very well for the mod I did to mine. LC/chainfist should blender things nicely, and the 4++ re-rolling 1’s should make him a tough nut to crack. I feel that the loss of attack for the SS is not worth it with his already impressive base ruggedness.
In other news, I put the clean up coat of blue on one of the guys, so he just needs his final blue wash and touch-ups. It’s also a lovely day out, although a touch windy. We’ll see if it calms down a bit once the dew burns off. Might be a rattle-can day.
Being S&P not relentless doesn't have any affect, right? S&P is relentless without sweeping advances (IIRC). So if they can't sweeping advance due to terminator armour, does it make any difference? Except in the case of the captain. That's a great call, drop podding him for some S&P devs. How many grav shots?!
The other differences with S&P are no Overwatch and can't Run, but to be honest neither really hurt (except the loss of Wall of Death with the HF, but if you're banking on that the Termies are probably dead anyway).
All looking good Nev, I look forward to seeing you tackle one of Da Boyz!
Zambro wrote: Being S&P not relentless doesn't have any affect, right? S&P is relentless without sweeping advances (IIRC). So if they can't sweeping advance due to terminator armour, does it make any difference? Except in the case of the captain. That's a great call, drop podding him for some S&P devs. How many grav shots?!
S&P also can’t run, and can’t fire overwatch. For assault-type terminators this means you can’t DS and spread out. And if you kill everything near you, repositioning is going to be problematic. Shooting means a lack of wall of death on the HF, and the snap shots from the combi-bolters (not that those are a huge loss, but it’s something)
Honestly, I think it’s a fair trade for the most part. Better save with the 4++, but S&P really is slow. Normal TDA is fluffed as a slow, plodding unit, but really it’s just the lack of sweeping advance that separates them form power armor. At least for mobility.
In painting news, I got the blue coat down on the second guy. Day remained breezy, so no priming. I should probably clean up some more things for the can, end of the week looks to be sunny and nice.
Edit: rules ninja from Para. I need to type faster. Or just shoot from the hip on rules calls and not bother to go the the shelf to double check the rulebook and codex.
Done with the clean-up blue pass. Next step is the blue wash.
(Pic was a bit dark, tried to bump up the brightness a bit)
Speaking of brightness, lovely day out side. The only real down side was the fresh, clean air. Let’s see what we can do about that <Rattle, rattle, Ksssssssshshhhhhhhh>
Not a lot in the box, but I wanted to get them done. The UM captain came to me primed, but I needed to do his backpack. Also done are done vehicle widgets, 30k consuls, Librarian, and the Ork Boy. Plus a helmet to ship out with the greenskin.
They can join their fellows in line in the to-paint queue.
I have to say I like the regular 40k terminator models better than the Cataphractii ones myself. That being said, you are doing a very good job on these. Indeed, Ultramarines may be the one chapter where the Cataphractii ones make more sense, as they fit in with the whole Roman Legion feel of that chapter. I'm looking forward to seeing these all done (with transfers and everything).
Did the transfers for the terminators last night. Will grab a picture later today. The crisp white works well as an accent color on these guys.
(edited for pic. Glued some rocks and tufts on them while I had them out for the picture)
I primed a marine head to go with the ork, but actually have some hacked up arms already to go. Being the pack rat that I am, when I cut the plasma pistols off my assault marines a number of years ago, I saved the scraps. As I use plastic glue for the most part, some got kinda mangled. But there will be some Ultramarine blue going home with him. KB is going to do the basing for all of them (to tie the army together) so I’ll not actually be doing the base. Just sending some parts for it. Did a little research for colors on him. The official Dakka Dakka Clan ork mob colors are black, grey, and gold, with red and yellow as accents. So expect to see those used.
(edit: poor, poor assault marines. 2xplasma pistols at 5ppm was the way to go in 3rd. Those days are long gone. One of the few times I actually took a knife to a finished mini. Some of those bits can be salvaged)
Little bit of bad news. The Wife was asking about my projects, and I tried to fire up the webway portal for her. Sometime between the start of this project and now, the lumindisk stopped working. Might just be the plug, so I’ll try some batteries in in later today and see if they work. But if it’s dead, then there goes the rest of my motivation for this. I’d still finish it, but would totally re-work the hill. While I was OK with it being that high off the table to conceal the hardware, it wasn’t my first choice. Given my druthers, I’d just have the portal itself on the ground, or a single layer hill.
(edit: Just put batteries in, and it still works. Thankfully. Of course, there goes one excuse for not finishing it)
And I need to get some paint down on something. Probably going to see how many BaC bolter boys I can move in a month. I’d like to get seven. That would be all the filler (non-sarge/special/heavy) for a squad. Or just the everyday heroes.
Nevelon wrote: One of the few times I actually took a knife to a finished mini.
Painful, even if you don't cut yourself. I've been doing a ton of it lately in my Marine reboot, and it bums me out every time. My old dred is currently bathing away a teenage paint job in a vat of Simple Green.
I really need to get to scrubbing the old guys I’ve got in the Simple Green myself. Kills my hands though.
Did a little sanding this morning on the foam. And then a spot of glue. Both layers of hill are glued together, and the portal ring is glued to the arch. Added a bit of paper clip to give it a little help there, I can see that snapping off.
Question to all of you reading:
I just put the base coat down of 4 BaC bolter boys. But what color should I do the bonding studs? I plan on doing the shoulder trim in gold. So overall they should be similar to the recent terminators. But do I do all the studs in gold as well? That strikes me as a little over the top. White is the other option. It’s the classic UM secondary color, and what I’ve used on most of the other studs that show up in my 40k army.
Did one of each just to see how they looked:
Also tried on a dark background. Remember, the blue is going to get a second coat and a wash before it’s done, this is just a rough WIP. Gold is also pre-wash (it will get a chestnut) White would probably also get another layer to help it pop a little. Grumble grumble, white paint and coverage, etc.
Also fun fact: I’ve been doing my photo booth wrong. When I was tacking up the black, I noticed that it has a shiny side and a velvet side. So does the white that I’d been using! Swapped that around. It had been wrong side up.
Here is the squad as they stand.
Also this morning after I had enough coffee that the jitters were setting in, I switched to basing.
Done, decaled, and based! Shocking, I know.
While my gut was telling me to go white, I’ve decided to accept the majority opinion here and give gold a shot. I might do the next squad in white, but lets see where this gets us.
Put the gold coat down on the studs, and the green wash on the grenades.
It does look pretty good, and a very solid 30k-ish vibe. It’s odd to be painting the same army, in a different style. If I was doing more 40k guys, I wouldn’t have bothered to ask; they’d just be white studs.
I honestly don’t think there is a wrong answer on the studs. I’m sure it will end up looking good. In general I like the abundance of gold on the 30k stuff.
On an unrelated note:
When I was dragging out the black background to try to take an alternate picture, it got me thinking. Should I keep using the white, or switch?
So here is a little Warhol-esqe comparison.
(second picture is raw, first I waved the white balance and some auto-adjust tools over)
It’s pretty clear which one my camera likes. it’s position and the lighting were constant throughout the shoot. I might be able to manually tweak settings to take advantage of the different backdrops. But the white one lets me just point and click, requires no tweaking, and gives a good representation of the mini.
Sir Samuel Buca wrote: I like the look of the red background on the photos, draws attention to the detail within the blue armour, such as the chapter badge.
Of all the options, that’s the most tempting one. It tends to make things look more rich and vibrant.
When I was getting ready to try this, my thoughts on how I thought I would prefer it was White -> Black -> Red -> Blue. When actually looking at the results, red and black swapped places. I still think blue is the worst, at least for my Ultras. It might be worth experimenting with my Eldar, and seeing if the primarily red minis hold up better there.
OK, not a lot, but getting there. Just finished putting the second blue layer down on the guy on the left. As I’m a lot more careful on this step, it takes longer and is harder to batch paint the line of them, hence the break where I type this. The next step after this is the blue wash. After that it’s just touch-ups. Plus basing and decals. At some point I need to paint these guy’s bolters as well.
I need to get back to work on the portal. We got an extension, but I still need to hop to it. I think the next step is to put a water/glue mix over the foam to seal it. Then paint. Then more glue, to flock it. Part of me wants to get some spackle and coat it, to help with some of the joins/seems, but I have no idea how that’s actually done, or what to use. I think at this point I’m hoping that the flock will hide most of the sins.
Hope everyone has a good weekend. Mine’s going to be slightly packed. 2 birthday parties to go to tomorrow, and I think The Wife’s siblings are coming over on Sunday for the afternoon. Hopefully I can get some hobby time in.
Oh, almost forgot. I’ve been blogging here for about three years now. I’ve started to go back and edit a bit of an index into the first post. It’s getting long enough here that if I’m trying to find something I did it takes forever to go back and find the right post. It will take a while to go through the whole blog and link stuff, but at some point I’m going to do a massive overhaul of the first post. I’ve accomplished most of the goals I set out to do.
Thanks for reading. While I can ramble on at length by myself, I appreciate all the input of you guys over the years. Couldn’t have done it without you. Still going strong.
Almost done with the first four bolter boys. I adjusted the light on one of the pics, as they were dark. Just rough WIP pics from the paintbench, once I move them to the lightbox they should get better. Bolters are waiting for the fist coat of blue on the hand to dry, should be done soonish. Then basing and decals. Not going to get the other 3 done by the end of the month, but they should be next.
Still need decals, but they are based. Glue is still wet in that picture, not that you can tell under the flock. But while I had them on the movement tray, I took them over to the lightbox for a pic.
Moved the other 3 bolter guys to the active section of the pain bench, will try to at least get a basecoat down this afternoon.
In other project news:
Did a little patch job on the portal. I remembered some of the guys using this stuff to make terrain about 3 FLGS ago. I also remembered that there was a tub of it sitting on the shelf in the garage when we moved into our house some 17 years ago. Now, I know I never throw anything potentially useful out, but can’t say the same for The Wife. Once she gets into a cleaning fit I occasionally have to rescue things from the trash. The next step was to see if it was dried out and useless. Nope, still a little damp and mud-like! Going to give it another day to cure, then a very light sanding. After that, a coat of glue, paint, and flock. Almost there!
Edit: I was also curious if I had passed the 10k point for my Ultras. Their last formal census put them at 9,389 points. By adding up what I’ve done since then, I’m at 10,330. There is a bit of flex on counts-as and unit organization, but I officially have far to many marines now.
GrimDork wrote: Nice numbers Nev! Dag that's a lot of dedication to the same army, inspiring even if I'll never follow suit.
I should get them all out on the table for a photoshoot. Shelf pics are nice, but don’t capture things quite as well. Of course, I’d need to clear off my table to do that, which means finishing projects.
Speaking of. Paint!
Portal needs another coat, hill needs flock, and the cliff needs to be started. But progress.
Finished up the first 4 tacs. Base blue is down on the next 3. Will put another layer down on them after I go for my afternoon walk.
This weekend is going to be crazy, so I’m going to do my weekly update now.
First, some paint:
The next 3 bolter boys from the first BaC squad. Plugging away at them. Basecoats should be done. Need some cleanup passes, washes, drybrushing, the works. But moving along with them.
WWP is done. Well, as done as it’s going to get for now. I’d like to get some more detailing on it. Maybe carve up some spoons for the classic Eldar bulges on it’s profile. I had originally envisioned building a imperial barricade blocking the path up, that never happened. Anyway, I’m finished for now.
I’ve got more pictures, but need to sort and upload them for the contest. Just a teaser for my loyal readers.
@Gits: If by “make electrical things work” you mean “cutting a hole in some foam and shoving something in there” then yes, that’s me. The only electrical work here was putting in batteries and flicking the switch to “on”
Now we aren’t supposed to post final pics in the LoER thread, so we don’t discourage other contestants. So if you are also entering, and faint of heart, read no further.
Spoiler:
Finished! It was fun, but with most large projects, got tedious at the end. And the problem of the results not meeting my vision. Part of that was running out of time, the other running out of motivation. Plus my ability to execute my ideas, but overall I’m pretty happy with what I did manage to accomplish. I wanted to add some of the iconic Eldar oval bulges to it, and probably will later. That’s just cutting up a couple of spoons and some paint. I had intended to block off the path up with an imperial barricade (which was going to be my use of sprue) but that never materialized.
Anyway, enough of the excuses and rambling.
The start, concept, and construction:
When I started my blog 3 years ago, one of my goals was to take a light toy thing and turn it into a webway portal. (sorry for the crummy iPad picture)
The parts for this project are the Lumindisk and some old blue foam insulation. Which had been sitting the the garage since 2002. It was originally purchased to line a crate The Wife used to ship a piece of furniture to a competition.
This was the first time I had actually worked with foam, although I’d see it done before. It was a learning experience. But after a little hot-wire cutting, sanding, smoothing, and glue, I got something that looked no bad!
And the results:
The local wildlife was already uneasy. For the last few days the skies had been filled with thunder and criss-crossed with contrails. A new force had come to their verdant home. The Imperium of Man claiming a new colony. But the creatures were not expecting the hills themselves to erupt with lighting, shattering the morning’s silence and sending them fleeing.
A towering form stepped from between the worlds and swept the horizon with it’s faceless visage. The portal remained clear; he moved aside to make way for the Warhost. A new sound filled the valley, the scream of jetbikes. The Eldar had returned to assert ownership of this Maiden World.
Done with the drybrushing and the green ink. Put the final cleanup coat of blue down on the first guy, then realized I forgot the brown wash on the golds. Woops. Will go back and do the 3 of them once the blue dries. But these guys should be done soonish.
I should probably do the 3 special guys for the squad next, just so I have the lot of them done. I do feel I’m slacking on my other projects though, so might take a time-out to get some more Eldar finished. Last time I did a bike pilot, I did 3, so could bang out a pair of bikes, to finish that squad off as well. Or branch out into something new. Like the ork buy, or some oddity from the back of the bench.
Still recovering from the weekend though, so nothing is happening swiftly. Had a nice Memorial Day/50th anniversary for the in-laws cookout party. Went fine, but a lot of prep work and then a solid day manning the grill. Hope everybody had a great weekend, and a long one if you were lucky.
That went quickly. Wash is drying on the bolters, but other then that they are ready for decals and baseing. If I was a little more diligent, I could have had all of the bolter boys ready to enter in last months competition. Oh well, not a big deal. On to the last three. While I’d like to mix things up a bit, I’d also like to get this squad done.
Sharp stuff - I'm a fan of your gold - its nicely burnished and suits the 'space mariney' aesthetic to me - if that makes any sense - I suppose what i'm trying to say its that its quite a brassy, yellow-based gold, as opposed to a warmer, orangey-brown gold. Good stuff, really accents the marines nicely. Looking forward to seeing the tac squad nice and wrapped up
Of all the colors I put down, I do think the golds are one of my high points. Simple formula really, just a chestnut wash over shining gold. I hope when those pots run dry I can find decent replacements. (I know I can always order cote d’arms, but that requires doing stuff online) Some of the new metalics GW is putting out look to be a decent match, but I’m not sure if the inks/glazes they do these days match the old ones. I know I’m not happy with the drakenhoff nightshade.
On to progress:
Last three guys for the first 30k veteran tactical squad. Basecoats should be done, just finished the gold. Then the brown/green washes, second blue, blue wash and cleanup. Guns will take a little more effort this time, as they are not just basic bolters.
What’s this you ask? Are my eyes deceiving me? A game? And not just any game, but fantasy!?
My forces of Chaos took to the (empty) fields in a test/demo game of Age of Sigmar. Shocking. The layers of dust I needed to claw through to free my army were truly epic. This was my first game of AoS, and my opponent’s second. And the first time since the dawn of 6th ed. WHFB that my forces of chaos had hit the table as anything other then monster stand-ins for our D&D nights.
We were kinda guessing on forces. We both had more in our respective cases, but thought what was on the table looked good. Post game I went to one of the fan made point lists and roughed out my list at a bit over 500 and his at around 650. Woops. We were both used to the undead being mostly filler chaff, with the power concentrated into the HQs. Boy were we wrong. The skeletons were holding their own, and the grave guard were just mean. Chaos warriors were reasonably tough, but just weren’t putting out the wounds fast enough to keep the undead down.
I went into the game with very low expectations. But it was actually quite fun. There was still an element of maneuver to be had. When most troops can only attack things within an inch, getting guys in position to attack can be rough. 40k, where you only need to be within 2” of someone in contact with the foe, is very easy to get the whole squad swinging. Not so here. Where to apply buffs, and screening and spoiler attacks seemed to be where a lot of the play can be. I enjoyed using the feigned flight on my marauders to tie up a block of skeletons, and then break off and plow into the zombies to help put them down.
I’m not going to say it’s the best game out there. But it was fun, and the rules are free. The one big issue we both knew going into it: the lack of points made it hard to choose balanced forces. Looking forward to seeing how GW grows it.
In other news I picked up 4 more paints. 2 of the new gemstones (blue and green), the blue glaze, and a lighter blue for highlighting. The new gem technicals have got me thinking about the Eldar again, and I wanted some different shades of blue for the dire avengers. And/or to see if it’s a closer match to my old blue ink for my 40k Ultras. I think I will continue to use the shade for the 30k stuff.
I agree with you on drakenhoff nightshade - its messier then the blue inks of yore. It made me layer over my washes with the armour colour for cleanup which - to be fair - has improved my paintjobs overall, but if you ask me, badab black, devlan mud and asurmen blue were the best. Take me back
The last of squad 1 are done, awaiting arms, decals and basing. And the flamer and c-flamer care drying right now, so almost there. The missile launcher is getting there. Just put the brown wash on the gold. It just needs the second blue coat on the arms, and then the blue wash. Plus touchups.
Put the first coat of blue down on the ancient UM captain. He’s the primary entry into this month’s challenge: Heroes and Villeins. The ork boy might be the second half, depending on time. But I wanted to get started on him anyway.
Hope everyone is having a good week,
--Nev
Edit: Guns are done and glued on, transfers have been cut out. Planning on doing those tonight. That just leaves the bases.
GrimDork wrote: I've gotta stop watching you (and others) put together marines. That betrayal at...wherever... is too tempting
Join usssss........
The nice thing about Betrayal at Calth is you get all the savings of a starter box, but none of the problems of half a box you don’t care about. It’s all marines!
I’ve still got 8-ish more basic power armored guys to assemble from mine. At this point I’ve got so much backlog, I’m in no rush to put them together. Plus, if they release another similar box, I can mix and match.
Just finished putting the decals on the guys. All that is left is to smear some snow around. Then another tac squad can join the ranks. Ironically, another ML/F squad. I need to base some other guys for varieties sake.
(I also need to ease up on the wine, but that’s a completely different, slightly drunk, topic)
Muahaha. On the rare occasion I imbibed wine in the past, it was most usually in the box format. Not really my thing though most days.
There is a certain charm at taking 40k's 'so far in the future it's like the middle ages with technology magic' approach and pulling it all the way into steampunk with the 30k armor aesthetic but ehh meh. I think I have more fun watching you (and others) painting marines than I have doing it myself.
The last of squad 1 are done, awaiting arms, decals and basing. And the flamer and c-flamer care drying right now, so almost there. The missile launcher is getting there. Just put the brown wash on the gold. It just needs the second blue coat on the arms, and then the blue wash. Plus touchups.
Put the first coat of blue down on the ancient UM captain. He’s the primary entry into this month’s challenge: Heroes and Villeins. The ork boy might be the second half, depending on time. But I wanted to get started on him anyway.
Hope everyone is having a good week,
--Nev
Edit: Guns are done and glued on, transfers have been cut out. Planning on doing those tonight. That just leaves the bases.
GrimDork wrote:Muahaha. On the rare occasion I imbibed wine in the past, it was most usually in the box format. Not really my thing though most days.
There is a certain charm at taking 40k's 'so far in the future it's like the middle ages with technology magic' approach and pulling it all the way into steampunk with the 30k armor aesthetic but ehh meh. I think I have more fun watching you (and others) painting marines than I have doing it myself.
I get the living vicariously thing. There are a lot of projects I enjoy watching others do, and would kinda like to do myself, but there is no way it’s going to happen. I’m not starting any new game systems, and can’t really justify picking up stray minis just to paint.
Normally if I’m going to drink, It will be a martini, or whatever rum drink the mixers on hand will support. But we tossed a bottle of white in the fridge to cool, just in case anyone wanted some, for memorial day. As The Wife is pretty much a pure red drinker, it’s my job to drink any white wine on hand. Our general rule of thumb is not to buy anything over $10 a bottle. So while not boxed wine, it’s not top shelf stuff either. Surprising amount of decent, local stuff you can get at that price point.
Desubot wrote:
God that gold on blue is smexy as hell.
Yup. At this point I’m thanking Dakka for convincing me to do the gold, rather then the white, for the studs etc. Golds are normally reserved for captains and honor guard and the like. But they do look good on the rank and file!
That's pretty cool. I tend towards rum based beverages too but hardly drink any more anyway. The only thing I ever really liked was the Long Island Iced Tea anyway. Or the Green Dragon...same thing but with sour apple something in place of coke.
I really need to pick up some of that micro-whatever stuff to soften the decals. Not quite happy with them, but they are done. Darn curved surfaces. I did slit the transfers a little, which helps them lay flat(er) I also based a few more older guys, the results are in my showcase thread
It’s a little early for the midterm report, but I snapped a pic of the year-to-date shelf. Polishing off a whole tac squad helps a lot on my one-a-week goal. 10 guys in about 6 weeks.
I need to do more Eldar though. I should probably get the bikes done for those riders and I just got some new paints to use for the Dire Avengers.
In other news, I think after 10k posts I’m going to change my avatar. Been using the same guy for a while now. 120x120 pixels and under 100k I think is the limit. Did a little cropping last night and came up with something. I might prefer a black background, but not sure I want to go through the effort to mask it off and futz with paint tools. There were a few other guys who came close to beating him out to represent me (bike captain, new BaC captain) but I really just like that guy.
Yup, things are a little lopsided on the forces there. My rough HIWPI count on the marines is 1,055 points painted. Eldar have a 115 point farseer (If I’m being generous and not calling him a 50 point warlock) and a single bike done (17 points!). Now, I should get a little extra credit for the spare riders, but there is a limit to how much creative accounting can balance things.
I forgot to mention last time that I’m almost out of snow flock. So no more squads are going to be done until I resupply. I should have enough for a few more individuals, so I’ll still be able to base guys for the monthly comp.
That is some really good progress, one mini a week is a very sensible and achievable goal. Even if you miss a week or two you still have a good amount of leeway to catch up. The Betrayal at Calth Ultramarines are looking great, and more Eldar will be great as well.
There is always room for creative accounting with these things.
Thraxas Of Turai wrote:That is some really good progress, one mini a week is a very sensible and achievable goal. Even if you miss a week or two you still have a good amount of leeway to catch up. The Betrayal at Calth Ultramarines are looking great, and more Eldar will be great as well.
There is always room for creative accounting with these things.
Sir Samuel Buca wrote: Stellar work, as per usual. I like the choice in Avatar too, he is a cool model.
Thanks guys.
I highly recommend the 1-a-week goal to anyone daunted by painting. It really is quite reasonable and achievable. Especially when I apply my accounting cheats to it, where a bike counts as 2, and a vehicle counts as 4. But in a year, you can get a robust battle demi company painted. 3x10 tactical, 5 devs, 5 assault, and 3 transports for the tacs. 52 model equivalents by my math, just shy the captain/chaplain. Solid force on the table, reasonable points, and most importantly, doable. Obviously, different armies have different compositions, but all but the gribliest horde should be achievable.
And while I do call it a one-a-week, it really is a 52-a-year goal. Because there will be weeks that get missed. Vacation, sickness, holidays, binge watching anime, computer games, etc. Things come up. That’s one reason I do quarterly checks to make sure I’m on progress.
On the topic of progress:
Working on getting the base coats down. About half done. Half of the blacks on the orc are going to be silvered, his boots will remain. I’m going to base silver and black wash things like his helmet and shoulder pad. This gives a subtly different finish then the black w/ silver drybrush. I just didn’t want him being too uniform. He’s going to have a dirty yellow shirt and grey pants. Not sure on the glove color, probably a shade of brown. I’m planning on 2-3 different ones for straps, hafts, pouches, etc.
Hope everyone enjoys your weekends.
Bonus marital tip: If you get married in 2000, it’s really easy to remember how long you’ve been hitched. Strongly recommended for those you looking to tie the knot.
I may have you try your advice with the weekly painting goal when all my things arrive - will definitely need to find a mature way to balance the hobby with university life at any rate.
Also ah man! I'm going to miss that little mk.VI dude, but your mini which you're changing the avatar too is lovely and will be a nice representation of how far your hobbying has come. Its scary changing such a comfortable avatar, but also quite refreshing, I changed my one the other day in fact, and sort of miss the old sergeant man, but its nice having something new
I mentioned that I was almost out of snow flock. What will one tiny bag cover?
Quite a bit. 85 guys by my count, on a few different sized bases. And still some left over. The WL is there on his grassy base, just to prove that I am working on the Eldar as well. And not just the snow based rangers. While in absoulte terms, that seems like good progress, I’m still not halfway done with what I need to do. Getting there though. I do need to resupply. I checked out Michaels, as I heard they had a better selection then my local AC Moore as far as hobby stuff was concerned. That was incorrect. They probably had 95% identical stock. The only thing they had that even vaguely peaked my interest was a slightly wider array of paint pens. Almost picked up a .2mm blue to go with the black one I own, but decided against. Would have got a white one, but didn’t look like they had that size and color available.
In other news, I cracked open the tub of simple green and wrecked my hands scrubbing for a few hours this morning.
Lot of work, and there is still a lot of stuff in the nooks. Plus the paint that was under the superglue looks to be pretty solidly on. Will take a hobby knife and do some gentle picking and scraping later. Once my hands un-claw.
GrimDork wrote: Lot of bases done, whoop. I hate stripping models, don't envy that chore.
I think I might be halfway though the batch. The green guys seem to be holding their paint better. I changed out the simple green for a fresh dip, hopefully that will loosen things up a bit. More power to those guys who buy, strip, and flip old minis. I’d kill myself trying to do that. This will probably be the last time I voluntarily strip minis. If I need to do it becasue of a bad prime, that’s one thing, but this is a major PITA.
In painting progress, I snapped a shot of the paintbench. Still in the sloppy basecoat stage.
Yeah I agree I can't be bothered to strip stuff for almost any reason. If I mess something up? No, I meant to do it like that. Bob Ross. Happy accidents. All that.
Yeah I agree I can't be bothered to strip stuff for almost any reason. If I mess something up? No, I meant to do it like that. Bob Ross. Happy accidents. All that.
I’ve had accidents come out better then I intended. Or have had them grow on me. Bust mostly I just look at mistakes and think of what I should have done better. Even if part of me knows I tried that, and just wasn’t up to the task. I try to take a zen-like acceptance of what is. I work for table top quality anyway, not display pieces. Arms length is a very forgiving distance.
This should be my 10,000th post. I’m getting verbose in my old age. Thanks for putting up with me everyone!
If Simple Green is anything like Dettol, you're a brave man, I'm developing scales on my right hand, middle finger from all the stripping I've done using it lately. Buy some gloves Nev! Can't wait to see the repaint though.
Sir Samuel Buca wrote: If Simple Green is anything like Dettol, you're a brave man, I'm developing scales on my right hand, middle finger from all the stripping I've done using it lately. Buy some gloves Nev! Can't wait to see the repaint though.
After the day of work, I did notice some problems with my hand. Skin was tight and a little tingly, and then peeled a bit like from a sunburn afterwords. Fine now. But that might have just been from working 2-3 hours in the stuff. Gloves might be a good idea, but I was having trouble keeping a grip on all the little bits as it was.
Now that some of the guys are dry, I took a good look at them and tried to clean them up a bit more.
Should I toss them back into the drink? There is still paint in a lot of the cracks and crevices. Not a lot, but I have no idea how much detail will be lost once I put a primer coat over it. Thoughts and opinions? Still new to the whole stripping thing.
And a little slow progress on the paintbench:
Got the brown wash down on the captain, a few more random coats on both of them. It’s progress. Not sure if you can tell, but I put the new gemstone green on the eyes and plasma pistol. We’ll see how it looks when all is done. Not that different from a green ink. Glossier, but that’s kinda it’s job.
Hope everyone has a nice weekend. And happy Father’s Day to my fellow Dads out there.
You might use a bit of acetone (nail polish remover) on the metal figs. It works instantly and is a very powerful paint remover. DONT use it on the plastic minis as it'll melt them.
I’ll have to check if The Wife has any nail polish remover. I don’t think she uses nail polish, but might have some stashed away. If not, I’m sure I can grab some at the store.
Spent the lovely summer day driving hither and yon across the region. First stop was a hobby store specializing in train stuff I had heard good things about. About half an hour west of me, but worth the drive. As it happened, they were having their annual 20% off sale. I drooled over the racks of plasticard and assorted flocking, but just walked away with a giant thing of soft snow. After a quick stop home to cool off (no AC in the car) I headed up to my normal FLGS. They were running a 40% off sale on Pathfinder hardcovers, but none leaped out at me. They had just restructured their paint and hobby supply section, one nice perk of which was the overstock bin of $3 each paints, or 5 for $10. Picked up the blue and black I burn through a lot of, a nice bronze, pot of liquid green stuff, and a nulan oil the guy said probably shouldn’t have been in there, but sold me anyway. And then some more tufts, as I wanted some nice green ones, and was most of the way through my winter dead ones.
Overall, the day’s damage was about $35. Not bad for what I got.
And now I don’t have an excuse for getting more basing done on my Ultras.
Little experiment today. I’ve not been happy with the tone on the Drakenhoff Nightshade. Not the rich sapphie I’m used to. So I tried putting down a layer of Guilliman blue glaze on the latest captain.
All of these guys were basecoated in Macragge blue base paint.
Left to right, they were washed/glazed/inked with:
Drakenhoff Nightshade Guilliman Glaze Blue Ink.
I think the glaze comes closer, but is still not there. I should probably attempt some combinations of washes and see if I can get closer. Could the glaze over the shade give me what I want? Or add something like Nulan oil?
Thoughts?
Edit: Also in the news, almost done with the old captain. Working on his backpack now. In addition, I glued some rocks and tufts down on another tac squad, will give the new flock a spin. On the down side, today was The Boy’s last full day of school. He has two half-days left, then my summer of being a semi-irresponsible parent begins. Hopefully I can neglect him enough to keep up the pace of my work.
Did a little basing this morning with the new flock.
4th Squad, the captain I’m working on, the back half of a dev squad (the 9th) and a bunch of guys from the spares shelf. I would have done another tac squad, but I hadn’t put rocks/tufts on their bases yet. I made a little too much of the glue/flock mix, and didn’t want to waste it. Once it dries (and I glue a backpack back on) the 4th will get their glamor shots in the light box. One nice thing about having the giant tub of flock was the ease of swishing the wet glue base through flock for the extra layer. I did the same technique with the GW flock, but had to dole it out in very small amounts as there wasn’t much of it. Nice to be able to shake out a half cupful of the stuff and just dredge the mini.
While still white and snowy, there is a noticeable difference between the woodland scenics and the GW stuff. GW was more little filaments, WS is more grainy. Not a bad thing, just different. Yes, this means my bases are not going to be uniform. Whatever, I’m not going to re-do my old ones. Here is a close up of the new stuff:
On the topic of bases, I found another mini I had based with the old stuff. Another chaos warrior was over at the side table after being cleaned up after a RPG session. So add one more to the count of guys I had done with the old GW flock.
Really a fan of the middle captain, always loved that helmet and you did it justice. Base looks good, I'm just not a fan of winter snow bases. I think it really detracts from your amazing painting.
You did a good job with the winter base... though you might consider painting the top of the base something other than black before you add the snow. I like the white actually as it reflects the white in the marines' colors.
With the GW flock, the glue/flock paste I smeared on the bases was opaque enough that I didn’t need to put down a while layer. This stuff seems to be a bit more translucent. I suspect that going forward, I’ll put down a white coat of paint on the base top.
And some day make the polar fortress for them to defend. I do like the blue on white look of Ultras on snow. Looked into picking up an arctic 4x6 battlemat, but frankly I have better things to do with $100. Tempting though.
While I’m at it, here’s the 4th squads official pic:
Did a little more basing. Also, another 10 tac marines (6th squad) These guys have a layer of white under the snow. Close up: (LT on left has white layer, captain on right does not) Now these aren’t completely dry, so the white PVA might go a little clear. I’ll check later to see if there is any significant changes. It’s not a major issue to slap a bit of white paint on top, but is another step. Much faster to bang these guys out with the new flock. I should do some guys in green on the Eldar side of the fence. Also, my scouts.
While I should be spending more time painting, I can’t fault the time I spent on bases this week. Was it just last weekend I picked up the new flock? I think I’ve based roughly the number of guys in the the last week then I’d done previously. OK, maybe not quite that many, but 3 tac squads, a dev squad, and probably a dozen guys from the swap shelf/assorted HQs. Next time I build a list for 40k, it’s going to be fully based. I should have enough done at this point to make a viable force.
All the Tacs in my company are based, and one of the dev squads. Plus the Captain. So I need to do 2 assault squads, the other Dev, and the command squad. One dread is also without a base, so should get something. Plus the chaplain.
And when I am done with the company, I’ll need to start working my way through the vets and other assorted HQs. I prepped the bases for the librarians, but ran out of glue/flock paste before getting to them all (I did the TDA one).
And at some point, I need to paint some more. I’m not fond of the way the orc is coming along, and he’s scaring me away from the bench. Not a new phenomenon. I should start painting something interesting to get me back in the grove. Or just keep riding the wave of basing, because frankly, that needs to happen.
I was just going to post a link to my Ultramarine gallery, but realized that would leave this post without any pictures. So here’s the 5th and the 9th squads:
Hope everyone enjoys their weekend. Busy one here, today is The Wife’s birthday, so have a number of things planned for today/tomorrow.
You sick of me posting more pictures of based squads? I hope not!
For those of you who’ve been reading since the start of this blog, you’ve seen these guys from start to finish. Fully magnetized. All JPs, the flamer arms, and both arms on the sarge.
I keep on looking at that “count all your unpainted minis” thread over in the discussion section and wondering if I should take a tally. But that way lies madness. I did however, take the camera out for a spin this morning to shine some light into the dark recesses of my basement.
A while ago I posted a pic of a box of old blisters inthe the Flashback Friday thread. Actually sorted through it a bit.
Ah, grenerdear. Not the best detail, but some of the earliest fantasy minis out there. Got some old boxes as well Plus a shoebox full.
Some Reaper and Ral Partha
and Warzone
And then a whole lot of clan wars: I think I have some more basic infantry primed for clan wars, and even some painted. Plus another oni (they came two to a box)
Lot of this stuff is mildly water damaged.
But there is also some more GW stuff lurking about. WHFB 6th edition starter. Orks are untouched, empire I took a stab at.
Very old orks, both plastic and metal
LotR guys? No idea I had them
The recent old stuff drop
And boxes of assorted stuff, mostly fantasy.
...and that’s not counting the stuff in my primed pile, or the odds and bobs sitting on my workbench. Which is mostly some SM stuff still on the sprue, and assorted RT eldar stuff (and some guardians)
I couldn’t even hazard a guess to how many minis that is. Hundreds, at least. Enough to keep me painting for a long while. Of course, I have no interest in painting a lot of it. Need to lighten the load one of these days.
Really fun stuff in there! I know we've had this conversation in other threads, but I recognize so much of the RT stuff in your boxes, and I'm kicking myself for letting as much go as I have. Lightening the load is good and all, but I wish I had a few of those classic figures back in my possession...
OK, hold on to your hats, I've had a productive few days.
Ready?
Seats and trays in the upright and locked position?
Spoiler:
So that’s a full company of Ultramarines. Painted, based, photographed in a lightbox. Stitched together post-production. And once more, all together on the table:
Ultramarines, 3rd Company. Scourge of Xenos.
WYSWYG, as pictured, is 2,640 points. Not pictured are transports, of which there would be at least 3 pods and 3 rhinos. So minimum another 210 points.
I have my own copies of those old Eldar minis. They're all retired now except the wraith guard models which I plan on resurrecting once I finally get to my Iyanden army.
Thanks for the kind words all. The trip to a full company has been a long one. I started it back in 3rd, and while I’ve been “basically” finished, there have always been a few more things that needed to be added or polished up a bit. I still need to do some transfers, and might make a few more swaps to the shelf deployment. But I’ve got a good sense of completion here.
I will probably ease up on the basing, although I’ll try not to stop. But I need to get some paint down. So let’s go to the benches and see what’s happening:
Cleaning up the RTB01s still. Not just paint and glue residue, but old mold lines. Slow going, and rough on my hands. Been a bit achey lately. Also, my entry for July’s comp “Unleash the Beast” I was just going to do a little gribbly nid or a genestealer, but decided to go big and paint the Zoat. Not sure on colors yet.
Ork is puttering along. More cleanup, tweaking colors. He’ll get there eventually.
It’s a jetbike. They need to get done. Boring old one, although with the cannon.
Sometimes cleaning up the basement is a good thing. I found my stash of plasticard:
These used to be dividers in the CD bins of a music store I worked at. When they changed systems, I snagged a bag full of the old cards. These will help next time I do terrain work. I was thinking of making some bunkers. Use foam insulation as the base, and bolt on cardstock as armor plate.
Happy Canada Day to our neighbors to the north, and 4th of July weekend to everyone else. Grill something, have fun, and try not to injure yourself with fireworks.
Paradigm wrote: The Company is truly impressive, and a true testament to your outstanding dedication to the hobby! Amazing stuff!
You say “outstanding dedication” but I think more of “packrat nature”. But thanks.
So in between all the lawn work, grilling and beer, I did get a little hobby time in this weekend. Cleaned up more of the RTB01s, and got some of them primed and ready.
Need to scrub a lot of bolter arms to get the rest ready to go. Once I clear the debris from the 4th out of the kitchen, I’ll try to get some more stuff out of the simple green and back to the workbench.
Now I have a question for all of you: What color should I paint the Zoat? It’s not like I have a hive fleet for him to join. Just a few generstealers lurking about as they are want to do. They are in a blue/purple scheme. Not many pictures of them, but here are some in the foreground getting purged.
Hope everyone enjoyed their weekends and still has all their fingers.
I think a classic blue and purple would look nice too. I never have been a big fan of red on bugs. I like bright colors, neons, with dashes of black and grey on nids too, if I ever built a hive fleet it would be modeled and painted after South American amphibians and bugs.
I don't think I've seen a painted Zoat......ever.....so I have no idea how to guide you there. I'd think a lighter shade of blue/grey, but I'm not sure what fluff is.
youwashock wrote:A Zoat sighting is never a bad thing. Great stuff.
Gitsplitta wrote:I've always loved Zoats. Used to have several of them.
Theophony wrote:I don't think I've seen a painted Zoat......ever.....so I have no idea how to guide you there. I'd think a lighter shade of blue/grey, but I'm not sure what fluff is.
I’ve got another one Gits, but he came to me partly painted, so needs to be stripped. He currently has some green paint on him. I honestly have no clue what color they are supposed to be. I read up on their description in the RT rulebook, but no hints to be found there.
Here is where we are:
Dark blueish purple for the crusty bits, and a light blue for the soft. Both, interestingly, RT era paints. I’m going with green eyes, partly because that’s also an RT pot. The black is a modern pot, no way I can do the entire guy with 20+ year old paints.
I’m going to try something odd for the black bits. They are organic grown gear, not mechanical. I was thinking of giving them a coat of the soulstone blue paint. This (hopefully) with give them a glossy, chitinous look. As I don’t normally seal my minis, it should be the only gloss on him, the rest being the more mate paint.
I continue to do cleanup passes on the ork. I think the next step is to dunk him in nulan oil, and then brighten up some colors. Not sure if I want to green wash the skin to bring it together a bit.
Eldar jetbike is just about done. Need to wait for the black to thoroughly dry, and then remove the masking tape and clean up the edges. Also tidy up the underside of the canopy where it’s stuck onto a stick.
Edit: Bike done. I also took most of my HQs to the paintbench and gave them their white base and glued some rocks/tufts to them. Over in a thread discusing how you field your HQs, I was reminded that it’s been a while since I updated my matrix picture. Lots of additions and paint since then. Figured if I was going to take a new pic, might as well base them.
Finished the basing last night for the HQs. The techmarine on bike is the last guy I need to do to fill the matrix. Of course, I have duplicates of some that still need paint (mostly librarians). If I was feeling masochistic, I could try to get one of ever consul for 30k done. Not happening.
But here are some 4xHQ pics. Foot, jump, TDA, bike.
MacPhail wrote: Man, watching the company come together is inspiring. Makes me wish I had a few more hours in the week to devote to the hobby! Great work!
A few hours a week, over the course of a couple of decades will get you there. Part of me wants to to a time lapse collage/animation of my collection growing over the years. Just put the camera on a tripod and add stuff to the table. One frame a year, approximating when things were painted. Would be a fun exercise.
Been painting a bit. Got a few coats of red down on a bike. Should be ready for the black and then details. Which the old guys are light on, so should go quickly. Also put a coat of nulan oil on the ork. I can see why they call the stuff liquid talent. My old GW inks worked more like an ink/glaze. This stuff did a good job heading to the cracks without tinting the flats too much. I like it!
Anything else I need to do to this guy in your opinions? He’s destined to be part of someone else’s army, so I’d rather not make a mess of him too much.
Your stuff looks awesome, as always, and I'm made up to see your biker Captain again. But there seems to be a LOT of xenos creeping in lately, do we need to call the Inquisition?
Sir Samuel Buca wrote: Your stuff looks awesome, as always, and I'm made up to see your biker Captain again. But there seems to be a LOT of xenos creeping in lately, do we need to call the Inquisition?
Once this current lot is off the bench, I'll do more ultras. The Techmarine on bike is a high priority, but some of the refurbished RT guys or the second BaCtac squad are also promising candidates.
Of course, whatever wins the monthly competition vote for August will need to happen. Could be a marine, but I do like using it to add some diversity to the paintbench.
Got a bit done yesterday. Polished off the last bike I need for the riders I did a while back.
So I can field a squad of 3 without having to poach a bike from the seer and autarch I did before. It also means I can use my old jetseer as a warlock for the squad, and the new one as an actual farseer. On another note with these guys, while the minis and paintjob are pedestrian at best, I’m rather proud of how the picture came out. Just a reminder how nice it is to have a light box and the difference it makes.
Also, some more basing.
Vanguard Vets and a few guys from the swap shelf. Which, shockingly, is getting close to being done. Pretty much bikes and vets left at this point for snow bases. Not that there aren’t plenty of those to do... Vanguard up in my showcase thread
Edit: Spent a little time at the workbench this morning. Magnetized and cleaned up some spare arms.
Also put the base white on the sternguard bases in prep for flocking. Off to glue down tutfs and rocks now.
Edit 2: ...And done with the sternguard and what was left on the swap shelf.
Thanks. Looks like I might need to tidy up the stripe on the guy on the left. I’ll get to that eventually. One of my goals for the year was not just points, but to get more squads on the table. These three guys check off one. While I do have more bikes, I do think I should do some on foot next. Fire Dragons, Dire Avengers, or Swooping Hawks are the options. Dragons and DA are probably the most useful for putting a list together, so will be one of them. Votes? After them I’ll get back to bikes. Probably the other 3 old ones. Save the shiny new ones for last.
Little bit of progress from the paintbench:
Hard to tell from the pic, but I put a blood splash on the axe for a spot of color. Also, not the best picture for it, but I used the new soulstone paint for the accessories/gun on the zoat. Came out OK. I like it’s effect better on the shoulder then the gun. Might black wash the gun to tone it down a bit.
Also in the news, I’m going to be mostly afk for the week. The Boy and I are abandoning The Wife to visit my folks for a week. One of the perks of being a stay at home dad is the infinite vacation time, so we can go larking off to Kentucky while The Wife has to work. I’ll have my iPad, so will be lurking and maybe posting a little during scraps of time, but no paint, and probably nothing long-winded. Text entry on the ipad is not the best.
Zambro wrote:Just checking in, everything is looking great Nev!
The Orks and Eldar are looking great. And it makes me happy that you have the Ultra HQ's with every option.
I'm starting to miss the hobby having been in the mountains for over 2 months now...
Enjoy your time in Kentucky!
Gitsplitta wrote:Dire Averngers would be a nice change of pace I think.
evildrcheese wrote:Damn Nev you're hitting these out the park. Loving those jetbikes.
EDC
Thanks guys.
Good to hear you haven’t been eaten by a bear Z. Or a horde of zombie campers. You’ll be back to the hobby before you know it!
While I was leaning towards the Dire Avengers, it looks like August’s challenge is going to be “Death from the Skies” so I suspect the next Eldar to cross the bench is going to be a swooping hawk. Might try to bang out enough for a full squad, or just the exarch.
And some more marines. It is starting to feel a little xenos heavy around here.
I tried to take some pics of the zoat, but none got the focus right. I had to take the lightbox down to clean up the basements a bit (needed some electrical work done while I was out of town) so I’ll put that back together and get some better progress pics. And probably some final ork pics. Then the greenskin will get to be boxed up and shipped off to join the growing waggghh. Then I just need to polish off the zoat and the decks will be cleared for the next projects.
Vacation went very well. Didn’t die in the Kentucky heat, drank a lot of top-shelf bourbon (and rye whiskey) and in general had a good time. Got to check off a lot of summer activities we don’t normally get to do when we visit for Thanksgiving/Christmas. Falls of the Ohio, Zoo, Baseball game (The Boy’s first live game). The only hobby related progress from last week was at a restaurant supply store I went to with my mom. Picked up a new tray to shuffle minis around on. You’ll see it in future photos.
Edit:
Set up the photobooth again, got some pics. Should be the final on the ork and some in-focus WIPs on the zoat
Decided I’ve been spending a little too much time on the 30k stuff, and didn’t want to dedicate the block of time to bang out the other tac squad. So I started putting the base coats down on a pair of c-melta sternguard.
Automatically Appended Next Post: Needed to base the Zoat, so grabbed the bikes to do at the same time.
OK, I could understand having fun with things like your pumpkin patch halloween army, or doing mini dioramas, but I still think it’s a chore.
But one getting closer to being finished. The only thing I need to snow base that is left is my terminators. Then I need to figure out what I’m going to do for my grasslands bases for the scouts/eldar. The one I did for my wraithlord feels a bit flat. Might work better with some tufts. I’ll probably use more per base, rather then the one tuft and/or rock per base I’ve been doing for the snow. Might add some moss scraps as well.
In painting news, Zoat is done. Or as done as he is going to get.
Got a few more layers on the sternguard, but didn’t grab a pic when I was down this morning. Did get a proof pic for next month’s competition:
The two painted ones are there as guides. Not sure what I want to do with the one that I did some helmet reduction on back in the day. Leave him as is? Try to reconstruct? Total head swap with a bare head or extra guardian helm? Do nothing and just paint as-is is the lazy (and thus most likely) path. The goal for August is to get all 4 of them done.
Gitsplitta wrote: No, I do love basing. It's a final chance to put a perfect finishing touch on a model.
I wish I had your love for it. I recognize that it can be a key part of the model, and one of the key things that separates basic table-top work from amazing pieces of wargaming art. I just don’t have it in me to care that much. Just stuck in my mediocre-quality rut.
Got a good bit of painting in yesterday:
Sternguard are just about ready for the cleanup pass for the blue then the final blue wash. Hawks are working their way through their basecoats. I think they just need their red ribbons, dark blue armor plates, gold masks, and lenses done. Might actually use the soulstone paints to paint some of theirs as well. Then the wings, which I need to figure out how I’m going to do. The old ones were done with boltgun metal for the structure, and alternating silver/gold feathers. Not sure if I’m going to continue with that.
Aslo, For all of you gearing up to head to GenCon, I’m jealous and have fun!
Still have a few more in the primed pile, but those two can hit the finished shelf. While I was basing them, I just kept going, and ended up with this:
Which should be the last of the snow basing I need to do until I finish painting more Ultras. Still need to do the scouts, so I can’t say I’m done basing my army yet. But that’s a pretty big milestone.
I’ll be mostly AFK for the next week. Heading to the beach to play in the surf and sand with The Boy and my folks. I know, I just got back from vacation. Soon my days of freedom will be over though. Actively looking for a job again, so infinite free time will be a thing of the past. But more money soon hopefully.
As a fun note, my Zoat made it to the Dakka gallery front page. Fist time I’ve ever seen my work up there. Pretty stoked!
Guessing this is going to auto-append, but here we go.
Got a little more work done this morning on the swooping hawks. Should be mostly done with the base coats, just a few things left I need to decide on. What color for the exarch’s helmet feathers, and what to do with the cables. Normally, I use the same blue I’m using for their armor for all my thick, ribbed, cables. As some of these are plugged straight into the armor on the hawks, I need to do something else. Might go with a mid shade of blue, probably Macragge. I’ll also need to decide if I’m going to wash them like their older brethren. Also started to put a black basecoat on the wings. Will do a silver drybrush, then probably pick out some of the feathers in gold.
Fun Fact: That is the 1,000th picture I’ve uploaded to Dakka.
Did some more work on the hawks this morning, figured I’d post an update while some layers dry.
Going back and touching up the old guys while I work. They might not match perfectly, but will be a little closer to the squad.
Vacation went very well. Lot of stuff I need to do now that I’m back home. Changes are in the air, and not good ones. I should be able to continue painting and posting, but there might be some interruptions. We’ll see how things fall out.
--Nev
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Almost done with the Hawks. Just need to put their packs on and figure out how to base them. The original though for my Eldar army was maiden world grass scheme. Need to see how the tufts I picked up work with my old flock. Tested out on an old scout.
Sometimes I forget how irritating some of the old metal models are. Undercuts filled in, etc. Plus as these guys demonstrate: balance issues. Perched like ballerinas on their toes, with big ol’ sets of wings on their backs. Basing was a fun exercise in finding the biggest rocks in my collection that would fit. I still want to cut some pennies in half to glue under the slotta base.
I did some touch-up work on the two existing guys who I had painted decades ago. Here is the full squad of 6:
My YTD painting total is 45 model equivalents, and circa 1,550 points. (not counting a marauder and the zoat) Plugging right away for my annual goals.
Just want to leave a note to myself here on basing techniques, as I use a different system for the grass bases then I do for snow.
Snow bases: Paint rim black, top white. Glue tutfs/rocks to base. Mix PVA and water at about a 1:1 ratio. Add flock to form a paste, not too thin, so it can fill gaps and retain some shape. Apply paste to base (with offset spatula/knife). Add a little dab to tops of rocks, or other places snow might collect. While still wet, swish base though dish of loose flock to coat. Shake excess flock off, wipe rim clear.
Grass bases: Prep base (cover slotta gaps with green stuff) Paint rim black, top Goblin Green. Glue rocks to base (not tufts). Mix PVA and water at roughly a 1:1 ratio. Paint top of base with glue mixture Stick on tufts. Swish through flock Shake, wipe any excess of rim. Plant wildflowers
Putting the tufts on after the glue helps keep them clean. I don’t mind a little snow getting stuck on the arctic grass, as that is more appropriate, but I don’t want to see the meadow grass with stuff stuck on it. Some might still happen, but putting them on after the glue minimizes it. What does get caught will eventually come off, as it’s not glued.
edit: forgot the prep base step for the grass. Just did that for my scouts Edit2: Added the flowers step. This needs to be done last. They seem to love the flock, and doing them before the swish step ended up with them being buried in the stuff.
Sgt. Oddball wrote: Recipes are always a good idea! Those bases on the Hawks look really great.
Thanks. It’s good to note how I do things. Not just to help others, but so I can duplicate my own work later.
While I was in the basing mood, I did all my scouts.
Quick little collage, with all the ones done being painted (I have a few primed still). Done in the same style as the Hawks. I realized as I was chatting with The Boy that not a lot of my Eldar need to be based. The whole grav/jetbike thing. Still, those who walk will get the treatment.
These scouts are also the last of my Ultramarines that need to be based. Well, almost. Both my flyers are not done. For them it’s a question of transportation. The way they fit into my KR case does not leave a whole lot of room for stuff sticking up on the base itself. I might be able to get some low slung rocks on, or just flock them. But with all the space, they seem like they deserve more. But at this time, I’m calling my Ultras completely based. As long as I keep basing as I paint, maintaining this status should be easy. Next step is to finish the backlog of the Eldar.
Automatically Appended Next Post: I just put down the base blue on 4 of the next BaCtac squad. We’ll see how long it takes to bang this squad out.
Thinking about my YTD progress made me notice that we are halfway through Para’s monthly competition, as it starts in March. So here’s a composite of my entries for the last 6 months.
Automatically Appended Next Post: And just to show I’m still painting:
Working on the second BaC squad. Done with the first blue, black, gold and glistening green pass. Still need to basecaot the leather for the pouches, and the silver krack grenades. Then it’s drybrush/wash time. But plugging right along.
There is still a little bit more old school eldar in store, but shockingly, most of what’s left is new-ish.
Fire Dragons are finecast, current models.
Dire Avengers are plastic and new
Half the bikes are new.
So the old stuff in the primed pile is:
3 old bikes
Melta gunner.
Now I’ve still got some old RT-era stuff in the odds and ends box, and some guardians that need to be assembled, but not a lot of rush there. I’ve got two squads of guardians, and don’t see the need to get more on the table. I think they might end up painted like DA, just to bulk out those guys.
But back to marines:
The last wash is drying on the backpacks for the first 4 guys of the squad. The marines themselves are over on the workbench, just had their bolters glued on. So they just need their backpacks glued on and to be based. I’m not sure if I’ll wait for the whole squad to be done before basing or just do them as they come. Although they do need decals as well, I normally do those in bulk at the squad level. Considering how irritating the last batch was, I might pick up some micro sol/set. I hear good things about it.
Next 3 bolter boys are started, got the base blue down, and the black and silver basecoats.
My painting pace is picking up. I need to add more stuff to the primed pile if I’m going to make it through the winter. I should get back to stripping the old RTB01 guys. It’s just rough on my hands, both chemically and physically. Some gloves would help with the dishpan hands, but the aches are still an issue from the scrubbing. Thinking about picking up some new things. I have a small amount of guilt-free money, but only a bit, and I need to be choosy about where to spend it. I was holding on, hoping that the rumored sequel to BaC would come out and be worth picking up, but those Deathwatch are smexy as heck. I’ve got a partial squad I wanted to round out for a while now, but lacked the shoulderpads.
A few problems with getting the Deathwatch though:
I’m not shelling out for another codex. At the rate that GW churns rules, there is a limit to how much I’m investing in keeping up to date. Main rules and 2 codexes (SM, Eldar) is already pushing it considering how many games I’m getting in these days.
If I do pick up some DW, (probably to field as sternguard) how do I want to do that? Kill team Cassius? One of the vehicle/character kits that comes with the DW upgrade sprue? The actual DW vet kit with all the cool new toys, sculpted pads, etc? Seeing if I can find someone willing to split the new Death Masque box (unlikely)
And if I want to blow the budget on non-DW, what to get? Long list of things on my to-buy list.
Here are the 3 bolter boys right before the blue wash stage. Coming along nicely. At this rate, I might have the whole squad done by the end of the month.
Fun 40-ish aside: I always thought that if I went down the path of heresy in 40k, it would be the call of blood and bronze that drew me. Ironic, since my WHFB was mostly slanesh with a bit of nurgle. But last night was a beautiful summer evening, and I needed to grill something. Wanting to do something a little special, I made bacon cheddar stuffed hamburgers. As I had cooked up a whole pound of bacon bits, there were a lot extra. When I was getting ready to take them off the grill, I thought it might be fun to melt some cheese on top, and add more bacon. When I asked The Wife and Boy is they wanted double bacon cheeseburgers, they asked what I meant by that. Without missing a beat, I responded “Bacon within, Bacon without!” in my best Iron Warrior voice.
They didn’t get the reference, but did enjoy the burgers.
Edit: Wash done, just need their final cleanup. Basecoats going down on packs and bolters.
Marching for Macragge across the paintbench, 3 more basically done.
Slightly dark workbench pics. The last wash on the combat knives is still drying, then they get assembled.
Hmm, now that I think of it, I should probably take notice of the fact that all the shots from my workbench are not in good light. I should probably get a decent lamp for working there. If there is not enough light to take pictures, how can there be enough to work?
Base blue down on the last 3 guys.
As I’ve been burning through these guys, I’ve had some thoughts on the sustainability of my pace. So I grabbed a snapshot of my primed box:
At my 1-a-week pace, that’s a bit over a year worth of stuff.
6 jetbikes
5 1/2 Dire Avengers
6 Fire Dragons
Stalker/Hunter/Command tank
TML/HB speeder
3 counts-as LotD 5 scouts
5 sternguard
2 Devs (MM, GC)
4 RTB01s (2xML, 2xbolter)
RT captain
Librarian
Apothecary
Master of Signals guy
Tech on bike
Homogaunt
(random bits)
I think the only thing in the to-prime pile is some spare arms with weapon options. Although if I call some of the lead I stripped "clean enough", it could get a fresh coat of primer and a new lease on life. But it will soon be fall here, with the damp and crummy priming weather. So if I want time to buy/build/prime before winter hits, I need to start my crazy squirrel action now. Especially if I can maintain the pace I’ve been working at the last few weeks.
Love the old-school Hormagaunt sitting in the box there. I used to have two of them I used as chaos spawn back before I knew what size chaos spawn bases were supposed to be lol.
Inevitable_Faith wrote: Love the old-school Hormagaunt sitting in the box there. I used to have two of them I used as chaos spawn back before I knew what size chaos spawn bases were supposed to be lol.
I picked a plastic box of genestealers back in the day for exactly the same reason. Ugly, too many limbs, claws everywhere. Made for a good spawn!
Today was a mixed day. Depressing meeting in the morning, but got to hang out with friends and do some retail therapy in the afternoon. Was finally able to get together with one friend who I’ve not seen since she got back from GenCon, and got some gifts. The Deathwatch I picked up, she gave me the die and beer:
Beer is chilling now, I think I’ll break open it and the box later tonight. I was debating getting another DW thing, just for the accessory sprue, but couldn’t make up my mind, so just punted. Picking up the DW razor kit would not be a bad idea, as I can always use more rhino hulls. But frankly, I’m in no rush to build and paint another. I have more HQs then I need, so those were out. The VV kit was tempting, and might be what I end up with eventually. But I really wanted the new toys to play with, so the basic box is what I walked away with. Still frugal enough with the budget not to blow it all at once; need to save some space for if/when the next HH box comes out.
On the painting side, most of the basecoats are down on the last 3 guys of the BaC squad. I think just the brown remains. I’ll try to grab a pic later tonight, should be some more progress.
Sorry to hear about the gakky meeting but good to hear about everything else. Those DW marines are gunna be awesome and can't wait to see what ya do with em.
Inevitable_Faith wrote: Sorry to hear about the gakky meeting but good to hear about everything else. Those DW marines are gunna be awesome and can't wait to see what ya do with em.
Thanks.
I can’t wait until I figure out what I want to do with them.
I cut some parts last night, and tried out a few things. First thought was the stalker bolter. OK, going to make a Raptor, they like being sneaky, got the pad, lets do this! While I like the torsos with the knife and pouches sculpted on, I wanted to try to give this guy a backup weapon in the form of a shotgun. I have some spare holstered ones from the scout bikers. Also a nice belt accessory with some grenades and a coil of rope. Finding the right spot for the shotgun is tricky. Lower back not the best, behind the pack is clipping with the large shoulder pad from the DW kit. Might give up on the shotgun. And by the time I was done swapping stuff around, the only DW parts I was using was the stalker, chapter pad, and legs. This guy might wait until I pick up just the DW accessory sprue for the slightly lower profile pads, see if I can get the behind the pack thing to work.
But I find myself asking “What do I want from this kit” The easy answer is “To finish out my one DW squad”. OK, good start to an answer. But as what? Originally, when building them, I wanted to be able to use them as both a tac squad and a sternguard squad. Now I have to ask “Do I want to field them as a independent DW squad, using the official rules (which I don’t intend to own) or just my counts-as” When pictures were being leaked, I grabbed enough of them to have all the rules I need. For casual games, that’s enough to get them to the table as DW. Equipment loads are going to be significantly different.
What I have for DW: Librarian (Mantis Warrior, on foot, with force sword) 1 combi-plasma (Dark Angel) 1 incinerator (could be either a flamer or HF, Salamander) 4 bolters (Space Wolf, Crimson Fist, White Scar, Raven Guard)
Spoiler:
(I need a better pic of those guys, probably when I finish the last 4)
If I want to do them up as a DW kill team, using those rules, more heavy weapons seems to be the way to go. At least the frag cannon. And probably the inferno HB-thing, because of awesome. While looking fluffy and cool, I don’t see the points being spent on the CC upgrades as being worth it. Might be worth tossing in a SS, just to get in the way of plasma. Tempting to kit out a blackshield, but he’s going to be such a massive wad of points. Xenophase blade on the sarge also sounds like fun, but it too many points on a 1W guy. Honestly, DW rules might not be the best for someone as stingy as me.
I think the shotguns might be fun if doing one of the mixed unit formations. 5 vets with shotguns (or other assault weapons) and then some VV for the chopping. From a practical POV, I think mixing them and bolters is a bad idea. Tactically, they want to do subtly different things, and counting how many of each are still alive, checking ranges, rolling dice, etc is going to bog down play, just for the sake of having a fluffy mixed unit. Of course, RAW it looks like a marine can have both, due to equipment swapping, but not sure about RAI on that. And when putting models together that you want to be able to use in the future, sticking with RAI, rather then RAW will keep you from having to chop arms off later.
I’ve got some spare AM toros and JPs (3 IIRC) so could put together some DWVVs. Just to use all those sparkly CC bits. I also have one bike remaining.
So the pure DW build 2 heavies (frag and HBF) 2 bolters (extra guy, probably turn into VV) Edit: Now that I think about it, I also have the heavies from the GK box. One of those looked frag-cannon-ish
Now, if I want to use them as sternguard: I’ve only got room in the squad for one more heavy. As I am fond of the HF, getting a second one seems to be the plan. Now I could just use the cigarette cannon as a counts-as. Or the HB/HF thing. As it happens, I traded for another sternguard HF a while ago, so have an actual WYSWYG HF. As strange as it seems coming from me, I think I’m at the “Screw WYSWYG” phase here. It’s not particuarly hard to keep track of what’s what, so lets build for looks.
Frag cannon (counts-as HF) Stalker bolter (counts-as normal bolter) Combi-plas (already have one in the squad, having one or two more to actually get the job done would be useful) Shotgun (counts-as bolter)
This leaves me with a 10 man squad, 2xHF, 2xc-plas. Not a bad squad.
The other pressing issue is what chapters get represented. I’d like to have one member descended from each loyalist legion.
Dark Angels X Blood Angels Space Wolves X Salamanders X White Scars X (Lib) Imperial Fists X Ultramarines Iron Hands Raven Guard X
“X”s are existing minis, plus the librarian.
I think I’m going to build as this: Iron Hand with the frag cannon. Blood Angel with a shotgun Raptor with a stalker bolter (Ravenguard) Howling Griffon w/c-plasma (Ultramarine, and HG becasue I want to push/hate myself)
OK, this has been a rambling walk through my thought process. Things might still change, but I should stop writing now.
Edit: One more thing. The caped back, an old company champion front, and a heavy thunderhammer are probably going to form the core of a new chapter champion. I think I might also take a mace/stormshield and turn them into a field police marine.
If you don't have a Kill Team yet then this seem s like a great box to build into a DW Kill Team. The new KT rules are releasing next week, GW just put them up for pre-orders today.
Inevitable_Faith wrote: If you don't have a Kill Team yet then this seem s like a great box to build into a DW Kill Team. The new KT rules are releasing next week, GW just put them up for pre-orders today.
I’ve thought about putting together a kill team in the past, but never let it dictate what I build. Deathwatch are the classic kill team though.
Little painting progress:
Last 3 marines of the second BaC squad washed. Next is the final cleanup pass, mostly to re-polish the gold. Then the accessories. Which normally don’t take that long, but these guys have a bit more going on. Then the whole squad will get based, decaled, and moved to the finished shelf.
Then I need to figure out what to do for the rest of the month. Probably mostly building. Although I could bang out some of the extra bits I put together for these guys. Right now I’ve got the anti-marine bits on deck, but the low-cost options are waiting. Chainsword for the sarge, and a flamer for the special. One of these days I’m going to take all the magnetized options off everyone and take inventory of what I’ve done. Pretty big undertaking though, so always a back-burner project.
Finished the second squad of BaC marines. Well, they still need transfers done, but that is often pushed to a back burner; especially as my workbench is covered in DW bits atm. Painted, based, and ready for battle though!
The fruits of my workbench, YTD:
I also painted up an Ork, but he has shipped of to join his Waaagggghh.
Which by my caveat-soaked math of model equivalents, is my yearly goal. Heck, even in absolute terms, that’s 46 models. I think my stretch goal for the year is to paint 6 more at least, regardless of size. Which shouldn’t be an issue. Just counting entries in the monthly comp will yield 4 more.
And after banging out a squad of marines in record time, I think I need to do some more eldar. As I did a non-bike squad last, I think I should do at least one or two more bikes next. Not to worry, there will be a Librarian joining them on the paintbench for September.
(Full disclosure, I’m posting this most of the way into my second martini)
It feels good to be able to make my goals.
There are a lot of them that just woosh by, so catching the ones I can is a good thing. This year I’ll be able to put more check marks down then in the past. Well, at least for some things. My old FLGS closing put a big damper on the “get more games in” goal. But I’ve done a lot of basing, painted a lot of guys, did the webway portal for my eldar, etc. So far a good year on the hobby front.
Depressing personal stuff under the spoiler.
Spoiler:
Which is a much better showing then the personal front. I don’t want to vent much, but you guys here are my friends, and my primary form of social interaction these days. So I’m going to lay some heavy personal stuff down here. After 16 years of marriage, and 20 years of being together, The Wife has decided that we are not happy together, and that she wants to separate. So I’m in the process of getting divorced. I just sent out notification to my friends and family today, so thought I’d post something here. Right now everything is civil, and hopefully will stay that way. But if you wonder why I’m a little off, that the reason. Also, if you wonder why I’m painting more then normal, the ~2 hours a night I used to spend with The Wife watching movies, etc, has been freed up for painting.
Once I sober up enough to trust myself with a hobby knife, I’ll get back into working on the DW guys. Until then, I’ll probably play some Fallout:New Vegas. Or watch an old Mel Brooks movie.
Sorry to hear that Nev, I hope the very best for you. Goals seem like a great idea right now, those small victories in life can carry you over some of the biggest hurdles.
AUGmaniac wrote: I propose we all do a road trip to pick up Nev, his army, and we go rock out with a 3-4 day Apoc game. sound good?
Funny things, apoc games. I’ve got a large army. OK, that’s a bit of an understatement. 10k+ points is approaching the silly levels. But it’s predominantly infantry. I don’t have any of the “Ooh, Ahh” big centerpiece models that really shine in apocalypse. The biggest thing I have is my land raider. Now it might just be my limited experience with apoc games, but I find that waves of infantry exist just to be pie plated off the table. Then again, I’ve only really played two games, and they didn’t use the full apoc rules and were more kill ‘em all shoot ups.
That said, I’d love to play in a real apoc game sometime, with the full rules and reasonably balanced armies.
And once life settles down and I get a grasp on what my disposable income is going to look like, I might spring for some fancy FW resin. One perk of this whole mess is that I don’t need to worry about justifying my hobby expenses to anyone but myself. But I do need to wait till things settle down before doing anything major.
So I went on a field trip to one of the other hobby stores in the area. I’d not been there before due to the fact that it’s about a 45 minute drive, and southeast of Albany, so I need to deal with city traffic to get there. Not bad in the middle of the day, but if I wanted to head there in the evening, not really a good call. Great store though. Nice selection of product, not just 40k, but tons of board games as well. And offered 25% off pretty much everything. Worth the drive for that kind of discount. I almost dropped the rest of my hobby budget while I was there, but restrained myself. Did pick up a couple things though:
A little over $11 for when I do my year end math.
Not sure exactly how those flowers work. The instructions on the back imply they work like the tufts I’ve been using, but it looks more like a solid sheet. I’ll experiment with them shortly. I needed more small bases, as I’m going to stick the DW on them to match the rest of the squad. Plus some of my old ones snapped when I was stripping minis last.
I also did a little clipping the other day, so I’ve got 4 DW guys in blisters ready to be cleaned. I also worked up a new chapter champion for my HG squad.
I’m going to clean some of the =I= off him, and paint him blue/gold to match the squad. I think I’ll keep him on the 32, even though his squad is on the smaller ones. He is the guy in charge of the squad after all, will help him stand out. I’m not sure if it’s the mk. 8 collar, the shoulders, the base, or just the massive hammer; this guy feels like a solid tank of a marine.
OK, got to play with the tufts a little. I think I prefer the more pre-formed ones, but these can work. Stuck some on the hawks, and prettied up the old wraithlord.
Just glued them on top of what had been there before. Seems to work OK. Not sure how I’m going to do them going forward. Due to their nature, they don’t stick up as well as the pre formed tufts, so I’m not sure if gluing them down before the swish through the flock is a good idea. I’ll give it a shot and see how it works. Got a squad of guardians ready to go (once the glue on the rocks dries)
I need to take some greenstuff to a lot of the old metals to fill gaps in the slota bases. So most of the guys on the tray need to hit the workbench before they get based. These are all the guys who are going to be based any time soon. The harlis and odds and ends that don’t fit into squads for the codex are getting a pass for now.
And a little paint: Just started the sloppy basecoat stage. But this fine chap is my entry for the month’s competition.
Automatically Appended Next Post: Edit: OK, based up the Eldar I had prepped. The flowers seemed to attract the flock, so swishing them through the tray seems like a bad idea. I’m just going to glue them on top of the flocked bases.
Also dragged out the scouts and prettied them up a little. Flowers for everyone!
evildrcheese wrote: Flower power! I can just imagine scouts having an interest in botanical pursuits.
Libby is looking good so far and the dude with the massive hammer looks like such a double-hard mofo. Nice work all around.
EDC
Sometimes when infiltrating enemy positions, you need to stop and smell the flowers.
Not going to set them all up again for formal shots, but here is a sample of the flower powered scouts.
I think the yellow flowers blend in a little too much with the shade of flock I’m using, but the whites pop nicely. Overall quite happy with them.
And here are the guys they’ve been sent to keep an eye on/kill:
Not much to look at, but a squad of guardians will all the whistles and bells. Platform is magnetized, borrowing a shurcannon for the pic. Warlock to match the squad. It’s a troop pick, ready to take the field in my WS.
Hope everyone enjoys their Labor Day weekend. I’ll be heading to SE Mass to spend some of it with my cousins, but only an overnight visit. I’ve done it as a day trip before, but it’s rough. For those of you heading back to school, enjoy your last breath of freedom.
Once I tidy up my table, I’m going to try to get a full army shot. Of course, I’ve still got more to paint, but have enough for a fully painted and based army. At a reasonable point level at that!
Edit: Army Pic!
Acording to HIWPI in battlescribe, 2,322 points worth.
Most of the arms and a few other bits just tacked on for now, but did a lot of cleaning and gluing last night.
WYSWYG side of me decided I might as well use the HF I had traded from a friend, rather then the frag cannon. It’s not like the frag looks that great anyway (just has awesome rules)
None of the chapter pads are glued on ATM. I think it might be better to just stick them on toothpicks for painting.
Anyway, I’m almost done with my morning coffee and need to hit the road. 3+ hour drive, but a lobster boil with family at the end of that. Probably AFK for ~36 hours, keep safe guys!
Some Eldar love Nev, that's what I like to see. Loving all of them, even that Jain with her twisted sister hair. Every time I see someone paint Guardians too it reminds me how much I love them and really need to add some to my force.
Inevitable_Faith wrote: Some Eldar love Nev, that's what I like to see. Loving all of them, even that Jain with her twisted sister hair. Every time I see someone paint Guardians too it reminds me how much I love them and really need to add some to my force.
Of all the old stuff I dragged out to take pictures of, Jain and the Avatar were the ones that called out for a little update the most. The Avatar could use some BftBG on his hand, and maybe a red wash in the recesses of his armor. Jain needs a chestnut wash on her golds, similar to what I’d doing these days. Maybe a nulan oil on the silver. I also debated going over all the red helms of the guardians to get rid of the blackwash. But they look OK for now.
I have a squad of guardians I need to put together. Should be most of a squad, I might have poached some bits for the DA or my autarch. I’ve been in a building mood lately, so they might actually get done. Cleaning mold lines off of eldar is the pits though. SM it’s not so bad, due to the solid, clunky, construction. Graceful curves and delicate bits are less fun.
I’ve got enough stuff if the prime box to take out if the weather is nice. Bit windy with some clouds today, although I probably could have done it earlier. No huge rush. Here is what the Deathwatch squad is looking like:
It’s a mix of old and new, but they should hold together once painted. To be fielded as sternguard. 2xHF, 2xC-plas. While it doesn’t make a huge difference who the sarge is, I should probably designate someone. The wolf is not a bad call, being the only guy without his helmet on. The BA with a shotgun is another contender. Once these guys are done getting painted (plus the guys in the primed pile), that will bring me up to 3 full squads of sternguard. With my 3 pods, that’s a nasty little 1st company TF right there.
Painting the librarian is moving along. Almost done with the basecoats. Then the drybrush, washes, etc. But I need to figure out what color to paint the demon head. Might go with a very pale blue, with a turquoise wash. Maybe purple hair. Was thinking about doing something odd with the runes on the axe as well. Maybe taper the blue into green, and glaze it with something. Maybe one of the new technical paints. Or blend the soulstone paints as well as the metallics.
I know it's pricey but the mould line remover that GW offers is actually really good, I absolutely love mine and couldn't imagine removing mould lines without it now. It might be worth looking into.
Cap'n Facebeard wrote:I like those Eldar, always wanted to start an army of old Eldar but never felt like my painting skills would do it justice.
If I can paint Eldar, anyone can. Sure, you might need mad skills to do all the fancy stuff, but basic tabletop stuff is within everyone’s grasp. Although I do wish I had an airbrush for a lot of their stuff. I think the army lends itself well to the smooth gradients that tool offers. But for those of use still stuck on fuzzy sticks, multiple thin coats and basic work suffices.
Inevitable_Faith wrote:I know it's pricey but the mould line remover that GW offers is actually really good, I absolutely love mine and couldn't imagine removing mould lines without it now. It might be worth looking into.
I’m fine with the back of the knife a/o files that I’ve been using. It’s just labor intensive, an no tool is going to fix that. My secret weapon is booting up turn based games and doing one bit every time the computer takes theirs. Civ V is my poison of choice these days.
I couldn’t stop myself from a little touch up work.
old
new
Brown wash over the golds and face, and the soulstone blue as a glaze on the power weapons.
And the Bloody-Handed One got, well, bloody:
I think back in the day I had covered his hand in blood red paint. I put a layer of BftBG over that, then a layer of nulan oil, and then a light touch-up of BftBG again to re-shine it. Bit more gruesome.
Painted the base of the crimson hunter green and glued a few rocks to it. Will flock in a bit. I don’t think I’m going to do anything fancy on the flyer bases, even though it’s such a nice, wide, canvas. It would make them impossible to transport. But I figure a few low rocks and tufts should be OK.
Very nice work on Jain there Nev, she's got a lot more depth to her now. That blood is looking wonderfully gruesome, very fitting for the bloody handed god.
The more I look at them, the more I want to do. But I need to step back. Plenty of other things need work first, and the odds of me actually fielding them are pretty crazily low.
Nice day out, so after running some errands I broke out the rattle can. Not a whole lot at this point, just the DW guys, the champ, and some spare arms I had magnetized a while ago.
Prime for the Primer God! Minis for the pile of shame!
Edit: Based the CH. Nothing fancy, but it’s done. Started on the marine flyers.
And that’s a big fat checkmark next to one of my perpetual goals. Everyone is based. The only things that aren’t are the harlequins and odds and ends of my Eldar that I can’t field due to age/squad size. (plus almost all my WHFB stuff, but lets not look at those shelves) As long as I can continue to base as I go, it’s all good.
Thanks. The SM flyers have grown on me, and I do love the sleek lines of the Eldar vehicles.
So I was down perusing the shelves last night, thinking about lists. I’m going to try to head down to a friendly (no so) local game store for their 40k night Monday. Marines are easy. Even if I want to include as much fresh paint as possible, there are a lot of things I can do. The one unit I’m having trouble with is the caperactii terminators and their captain. Not enough space in my LR, and I dislike DSing assault troops. They might not see the table anytime soon.
The Eldar were stumping me. I’ve got a reasonably sized collection painted these days, but it’s not as many points as I thought. I mean, that while I technically have 2,322 points ready to rumble, a lot of it is in HQs that don’t really have a spot in my army. Jain Zar and the Avatar are CC footsloggers, without any units to support them. My Farseer on foot with spare warlocks are a chunk of points, but where to field them? Not sturdy enough to run solo, and sticking them in a guardian squad is not going to accomplish much. Take all those guys out and I’m stretching to make a 1,500 point list.
This triggered a couple of thoughts. What else do I need to add to get my army to a level where I can get some decent lists out of it, and I need to paint more elves.
Adding stuff is going to be very budget dependent, but I thought I’d make a list. I think a start collecting box (jetseer, 3 bikes, fire prism) would be a nice addition. I could also use another Wave Serpent. Part of the theme of this list is not to touch the ground. So I’d like all my foot soldiers to be mechanized in grav tanks. If I picked up those things I could comfortable do a 2k list, with some room to swap stuff around. If I wanted to slap everything on the table, it would be close to 3k. That seems pretty good for a secondary army.
Painting was the other issue. So I put some basecoats down on a fire dragon. (also, progress pics on the lib)
I don’t normally do front and back shots for a WIP, but you don’t get a good sense of the undersuit from the front. Right now he’s giving off a very halloween vibe, but that’s the orange and black talking. The gun will be silvered. Not sure what other details need to be picked out. I think getting him done and based on the grass with help tie him in with the rest of the army. Thoughts?
The librarian is going through his detailing phase. It doesn’t show up well in this light, but I did some blending on his tabard. Not me best work, might add some more highlights to it. Gentle folds are hard to make stand out, and it’s a mostly still piece of fabric. The force axe was just a little green on the edge of the blue runes. I like the way it looks. Helps get the point across that it’s not just a power weapon. I think I might go back on the demon head with the pale blue on the flesh. Leave the hair the turquoise glazed.
I think the elder get started box looks less fun than many of the other get started boxes. Having said that it does offer a very competitive bundle (rules-wise and $). If you're looking to never touch ground it's a great place to start adding units too.
Good to have you back Z. I expect to see you update your blog once you finish unpacking!
That little line of gems does call out for something. I might do them in yellow. With the exception of stock colors I use throughout my army (blue hoses, silver guns, green lenses, red ribbons) I want to the dragons in flame colors. So red/orange/yellow.
I chose an old pot of orange for these guys. RT-era old. I found they generally have good coverage, better then the mid range hex pots that make up most of my collection. I do have a couple other pots of orange though, and even an orange ink I might put to use.
I get that the Eldar get started box is a lot less fun then the other ones. I’ve never recommend it to an actual player just getting started. (unless he had his heart set on Eldar, and even then I’d suggest he try to find the old battleforce) But I’m pretty much as far from a new player as they get. For me, it’s a question of what does my army need, what do I want, and what can I afford.
While my color scheme might drift a little from the official craftworld, I claim to hail from Saim-Hann. The whole windrider host thing. Getting mud on your boots is for lesser species. I’d like to be able to claim that most of my army is on bikes, but they cost peanuts in game, and big bucks IRL. Right now when I paint what I’ve got, I’ll have 9 basic guys on bikes, and 3 characters. I do have one more old bike still on sprue I could do something with. That is the bare minimum for the formation, which I feel is a decent benchmark. More bikes are always better.
I’ve been lusting after a fire prism for a long time. So seeing it in a discount box is very tempting. Plus it fills a role in the army. In general, I feel light on AV firepower.
But if not the start collecting box, what else? And I’m not just speaking hypothetically here, but an honest question. What to add? Because once I start adding restrictions, the list of units gets small, fast.
Needs to either be floating, or in a transport.
Can’t be finecast. After the rangers and fire dragons, I’m steering clear of the stuff.
No allies, or Forge World. Unless I can get the full official rules for free. Nothing against them, but I spend enough on codexes as it is.
Needs to add something useful to my army.
Can’t break the bank. (another strike against FW here)
I’d rather not field dirty fielding them.
A unit of wraithguard in a WS is an option, although comes close on my last point. A third Falcon is tempting, for squadron tricks. I’d rather get something new though. “Another <fill in blank>” while often useful, is not sexy or fun. If I was going to get another of something, a WS would be at the top of the list. Just so I could mech up another guardian squad. It would basically add double it’s points to my army, because I already have a squad for inside.
If I wanted to lift my self-imposed ban on e-bay, I could try to grab an old metal wraithguard or warp spider. One more of each would allow me to field legal squads. Although to be honest, I’d rather trade the 4 metal WG I have for a new plastic box then get another of the old guys. Not the best models. But to venture down that road, I’d have to set up a PayPal account, and open up pandora’s box.
And then there is the overall budget question. How much do I want to spend on Eldar vs. Marines? How much do I want to save for hypothetical future releases? I’m even struggling to keep my “guilt-free” money actually guilt free. The responsible side of me wants to fold it into my savings to help deal with the future. But I do need to keep myself sane and happy, so right now I’m keeping it earmarked for hobby stuff.
Hope everyone’s weekends are going well.
Automatically Appended Next Post: A little blurry, but should get the point across.
I think he’s almost done. I should probably do some grey highlighting on the black armor. At least on the high/sharp points like the shoulder armor. But once I get some feedback, I’ll start working on his mates.
Until then I’ll putter away at the librarian. Also started a spare brightlance, as I tend to use a lot in lists.
Or more probably, I’ll spend the rest of the afternoon doing yardwork and then drinking gin until the aches subside.
OK, slightly better picture. And I decided to do some light highlights in grey on the black armor. As usual, the ultra zoom pics can bite me. Looks much better at tabletop distances.
Zambro wrote: Looks great, Nev. The grey highlights really help define the armour.
Yup. I’m not normally a fan of edge highlighting, but it needed something. If I get really motivated, I’ll do some heat stress/weathering on the barrel. Although who knows if fancy Eldar materials deform like that.
So I actually got in a game yesterday. (Don’t look at me like that, I’m allowed!) Down at the new place, Flipside games. 45 minute drive, but good people. Played a guy who is just getting into Necrons. 1,850, purge.
Here’s the pack pic. This is the full 2k list I brought (but wrote a 1,850 at home that used most of it) No dread, and only 1 of the pods were used.
Gladius, with a demi-co and a 1st co. TF.
Deployment. The devs take up position in the ruins, rhinos like up to move out. He seizes initiative. This is bad for me. Mostly for my devs. He rolls up and focuses fire on them, gaining first blood. As my list was a little light on AV fire, this is a fairly major blow. Especially now (after the game) that I’ve played enough Necrons to realize that ghost arcs must die.
On my turn I drop the SG behind the walker thing, combat squad out, melta it to death, and roast some warriors in their open topped transports with the HF side of the squad. On the other side of the table I put some wounds on the wraiths, kill one of the bike things, but otherwise don’t get much done.
This is where the chopping gets started. I think this is turn 2, before his assault phase.
The wraiths/bugs are about to plow into that poor tac squad, who will hold on until finally pulled down on the last turn. Who’s tarpitting who here? The rest of the squads start their shooting, which kills a few guys, but not many. Slow but steady casualties is the name of the game for most of this fight. The big issue was he kept getting back up!.
He had some sort of HQ deathstar that in hindsight I should have left alone. 2 named characters in a squad of T5, 2+, 3++ guys. Don’t think I killed any of them. Even when the Vanguards plowed in. He did take some time killing the vanguard off, so there was that.
I charged the middle warrior squad with one of my tacs, but rather then the clean, definitive resolution to the problem, it degenerated into a slap fest. I didn’t manage to get into CC with the other one, so just ended up shooting it more.
At some point my terminators came in, off to the side where the spider was. They finished putting it down, and then erased a immortal squad that had arrived in another flyer. Eventually the deathstar broke free, worked it’s way over, and killed them.
When the game ended at the end of 5, I had a handful of tacs left, 2 rhinos, the pod an a speeder with 1 HP left. I had managed to kill one of his arcs, the walker thing, a squad of deathmarks and immortals, maybe the tomb blades (I forget). I think the final tally was something like 5-8, Necron victory.
Fresh paint report!
2 c-melta sternguard: These guys did good. They joined their 2 previously painted brothers in a combat squad, and popped that stalker thing. I still can’t claim to enjoy suicide sternguard drops, but they were the alpha strike I needed.
BaCtac squad 1 (blades): plasma gunner killed himself on a gets hot roll after a couple shots. Didn’t accomplish much with their shooting (but were trying for some rough targets, wraiths and deathstars) even with a power sword sarge, just ended up in a slap fight with the warriors. They didn’t cover themselves in glory, but they held the line. About what I expect from tactical squads overall.
BaCtac squad 2 (pistols): Good shooting into the warrior squad on the far side. Shame he kept both making his saves, resurrection rolls, and getting rebuilt by the arc. Tried to make a short charge though cover at one point that they failed. Just went back to shooting after that. Much the same as the other tac. They did OK-ish.
CTDA Captain: He did good for himself. Soaked up 2/3rds of his wounds before having to LOS them to his escort. And he ate a LOT of fire before getting stuck in CC. 2+, 4++ (re-rolling ones on invuls) is pretty tough. I liked the paired weapons. Just used the claw, as I was either mulching troops, or wanted to get my hits in before I2 when the lichguard were swinging.
Vanguard: Not sure if there was any actual new paint here, although some of the weapons might have been out for the first time. 2 axe/ss, 2 sword/pistol, 3 basic, LC/SS sarge. I might move the shields to the basic guys and run them as pure wound sponges. Letting the axe men keep their pistols would give them more attacks. Still not sure how to dole out gear to these guys.
I like the demi-co, but it’s much better in objective games. I just felt that I didn’t have a whole lot of firepower. It might just be that the Necrons took what I was putting out with a shrug. The lack of AV was telling. I think I might have been better off deploying my devs behind a rhino, out of LOS, rather then in a ruins. But those ghost arcs were rebuilding 2-4 guys total each turn, which was almost the rate I was killing them. At the end of the game, I still had 5? ObSec units alive. So if that was part of the victory conditions, I think I might have been able to pull a win. But the mission were we playing didn’t mater.
Still a fun game vs. a good opponent. And it’s been a long time since I faced the robot menace in battle, good for a change of pace.
I really dislike facing necrons and ghost arks are the icing on the "you can't kill me" cake. Overall it sounds like a fun battle though. I like that Fire Dragon you did, the edge highlighting does help to give it some depth, as anooying as edge highlighting is it can pay off on the right models. Your SM looks great on the table btw, a great unified force.
Gitsplitta wrote:Necrons are a tough go. Those ghost arcs need to be a top shooting priority or his warriors will just outlast you.
Inevitable_Faith wrote:I really dislike facing necrons and ghost arks are the icing on the "you can't kill me" cake. Overall it sounds like a fun battle though. I like that Fire Dragon you did, the edge highlighting does help to give it some depth, as anooying as edge highlighting is it can pay off on the right models. Your SM looks great on the table btw, a great unified force.
I blame not fighting them very often. I can learn though. Just need to remember lessons from past games...
Eventually I’ll get into the habit of useing painting techniques that other, better, painters have been using for years. I’m not an early adopter, what can I say?
War Kitten wrote:I love seeing batreps with painted minis! Also, if I may ask, what's your blue recipe Nevelon? Curious Ultramarines minds want to know
What my recipe is depends on the era of the mini. As GW has changed paint formulas multiple times since I started painting. My early work is "Ultramarine Blue" with “Blue Ink” over it. The really old stuff is realistically weathered by 20 some odd years of sunlight and fading. Pretty much everything painted in the era of this blog is done with "Macragge Blue” with the same “Blue Ink” wash over it. More recently, my old pot of Blue Ink is getting very low. (Now that I think about it, I’m not sure that pot is the same formula as my early stuff) All of the 30k stuff is still based in Macragge Blue, but is washed with Drakenhoff Nightshade. Not quite the bright sapphire I’m used to. I’ve done some experiments with Guliman blue glaze, but nothing full scale yet.
Edit:
Little progress tonight. Almost done with the next two Fire Dragons. I probably should have taken some WIP pics. Oops. I also painted up a spare brightlance, and assembled modded and magnetized a weapon platform for the guardians.
Edit 2:
OK, snapped some quick pictures:
The melta gunner broke his wrist. The gun was being supported by the hose, so I glued it together again. Hopefully he’ll hold. He’s in line to be painted like the Fire Dragons. Will have to be a slightly different scheme, due to the different era of sculpt. Probably do orange tinted chainmail.
Weapon platform I could have magnetized to take it’s own guns more easily, but by raising up the side with GS, I can swap guns with the rest of the army. Worth it.
Next step for the dragons is to clean up the black and then highlight it with grey. Then I move on to the next two guys.
Those two fire dragons are looking good, the orange and black go well together. Interesting idea on how to magnetize the weapon platform, I've never thought of using GS in that way. I drill into my mounts and set the magnet in but I like your way here, it allows the weapons to adjust firing angle vertically which is thematically cool.
Inevitable_Faith wrote: Those two fire dragons are looking good, the orange and black go well together. Interesting idea on how to magnetize the weapon platform, I've never thought of using GS in that way. I drill into my mounts and set the magnet in but I like your way here, it allows the weapons to adjust firing angle vertically which is thematically cool.
I just dabble in greenstuff sculpting. I has a few thoughts on how to tackle that job. The platform normally would slot guns into that rectangle on top. So the easy answer would be to sink a magnet into the middle of that, and one up into each of the guns. Or just rely on a push-fit to keep them in place. The issue with that would be those guns would only work with this platform. Not ideal. All of my guns are set up side-mount for tank use. The next thing that came to mind was to carve down into the mount. Take the whole rectangle sized socket out, probably to 5-6mm deep. Then drill in the side, place the magnet, and patch the drill hole. That’s a lot of carving, I’m going to mess it up, and it’s going to look sloppy in the end.
So the final choice was to build something up. I checked in my bits box for anything that might help, but nothing leapt out. I might have been able to do something with the spare gun shield, but wasn’t feeling it. So I just mixed up a blob of greenstuff and went to work. My goals were:
Get the magnet in facing the right way
Not leave fingerprints
Keep it smooth
Keep it symmetrical
Make it look good.
Once I finish my morning coffee, I’ll see how it looks after curing. Then I can chuck it into the prime box.
Glad to see you got a game in. I got a 40k game in last night (first one since being back). Some absolute BS with the deathwatch made it a bit of a chore for the first turn or two. It evened out and ended a 1:1 draw. I assume necrons are still one of the top teir armies out there?
Edge highlighting, games and GS sculpting... Who are you and what have you done with Nev?
"That..." (he says, pointing at the guardian with the melta gun standing near the weapon platform)... "is a very old miniature. Mk-1 eldar pirate from the RT days."
Zambro wrote:Glad to see you got a game in. I got a 40k game in last night (first one since being back). Some absolute BS with the deathwatch made it a bit of a chore for the first turn or two. It evened out and ended a 1:1 draw. I assume necrons are still one of the top teir armies out there?
Edge highlighting, games and GS sculpting... Who are you and what have you done with Nev?
I think Necrons are still up there. They are definitely strong. But neither of us were playing tournament level lists, so at the FLGS level balance is a little better. I’ve not seen DW on the actual table yet. One guy was assembling some down at the store. I think they will be very strong vs. other elite, low model count armies. They have some very nasty tricks and gear. But as a hyper-elite army, every casualty is going to be critical. And I don’t think they can waste time blowing chunks out of tac squads. Or an actual horde army.
I’m trying to think of the last time I did more then use GS just to fill gaps. I know I made some tentacles for nurgle conversions for my WHFB army, and a santa hat. I did a custom character mod for a friend for a HERO game. Took an old witchhunter and extended the rim on his hat and made his cape more bilious. Not the cleanest work, but some actual effort. I have done some minor edge highlighting on some newer things, but it’s generally rare and subtle.
Games have been rare lately. I’m almost afraid to go back through my blog to find the last one I played.
Gitsplitta wrote:"That..." (he says, pointing at the guardian with the melta gun standing near the weapon platform)... "is a very old miniature. Mk-1 eldar pirate from the RT days."
I'm impressed.
Yup, and one of the few that can be shoehorned into a modern list. I checked before glueing him onto the slottabase; his tab is dated ’87. I could paint him like a guardian and use him in a storm squad, but don’t have enough sword/pistol guys to back him up. So he gets to be a Fire Dragon.
I should clean up and prime the other RT chunks of lead, just to paint. But with their eclectic mix of gear, they are doomed to warm the shelf.
I hear ya Nev, having your weapons interchangeable between models is a great idea. In my collections I have a few models with the vertical slot mounts, war walkers, Wraithlord, Wraithknight, so I've sunk the magnets into those. Only my Vypers have a side mount so they're not compatible with the rest of my weapon mounts. All the same you have a great idea there, I'm looking forward to seeing it primed and how it looks as a unified piece.
So some guardians are ready to prime. Which if the weather holds, could be this afternoon.
Sooooo many fiddly bits. But done now. In parts to prime. While I could glue the heads on at this point, leaving them on the sprue should make them much easier to pain, as they will be the only red. Well, most of the red, there are still the ribbons. I cut one set of gun arms off the sprue, but left the other ones on (cleaning their mold lines was extra fun). This is one of those sets where there are matched sets of arms. A B C and D. I used the cut arm to get the placement of the supporting arm right, which I glued. Rather then having to carefully keep track of who’s arm goes with who, I can just match the cut one to the one still on the sprue. All the guys have the letter of their arm written under the base.
In the back is lurking another bit of RT lead. I tidied him up a bit. He was jealous of his melta gunner friend, and decided to try out for Dire Avenger exarch. Even though his tab clearly labels him as “Captain” And he’s a little over geared for the job. But if you are going off to war, why not pack two pistols, a power sword, bootknife and a digital weapon?
I think I’m going to head down to the bench again. I’d like to put together an magnetize some arms to chuck in the prime box before this afternoon. Hopefully will get some more pics of primed stuff up this evening.
Edit: And primed. I put shoulderpads on a power maul and SS from the DW box. Will be painted UM colors.
And just so I can post the same pic in a 4th thread:
Librarian done. I like the way he came out, particularly the axe.
The promised primed picture:
And some progress on the fire dragons:
Here are the 3 finished ones waiting to be based as a squad:
Hope everyone enjoys their weekend. Need to do some home improvement stuff, chat later!
Edit: Another thing about that librarian: I changed up the blue on him. He’s still the macragge blue base, but with a guiliman blue glaze. Not quite as bright as my old blue ink, but closer then the drakenhoff nightshade got me. Eventually I might start doing my 40k stuff in it. I’ll keep the 30k stuff in the nightshade.
Looks like there is some sort of bug lurking around the Dakka gallery preventing me from getting pictures to you. But I finished the core 5 guys for the Fire Dragon squad, and got them all based up nice and pretty. Still have the old RT guy to add to the squad, but he’s optional. There is a certain charm in a 6 man squad in the back of a Flacon though.
Any thoughts on what you guys want to see painted next?
Edit: by attaching the pic directly to the post, it looks to be showing up.
Thanks guys. I think they look pretty sharp. I’m not a huge fan of the all one color dragons that are on GW’s website. By having the hard black armor over the orange bodysuit, I think it make a little more interest in the mini. Plus the black ties into the rest of the army. Which with aspect warriors is an issue.
Speaking of which, I think I might try my hand at a dire avenger next. A squad of DAs in a Falcon has been part of my Eldar list concept for a bit now. Getting them done would finish the core part of my army. And give me a 3rd squad of aspect warriors if I wanted to cheese it up with a formation.
Heh, I guess they do sorta match the Dakka scheme.
So I put a coat of blue down on a DA last night. I went with “Caldor Sky” thinking it might be nice to have them in a different tone then my Ultras. Way too bright. So a few options here. I could use washes/glazes to tone it down. See how it looks with the nighshade over it. Or I could just bit the bullet and paint them similarly to my marines. Macragge base, with the guiliman glaze, like I just did the Lib. I think if I used the Caldor as an edge highlight, it should brighten them up significantly, without the overwhelming tone my test guy is sporting now.
The other big question I’m debating is if I should do the black armor plates like I did the Fire Dragons. So many color questions...
Helm - White (pretty set here)
Crest/helmet frill - Khorne Red (the same red I use for the bulk of the army, to help tie them in)
Bodysuit - ? (some form of blue)
Hard armor - ? (could just be the same as the bodysuit, black, or an alternate blue)
Tabards - ? White? Pale leather? Red?
Guns/grenades/etc - Black w/silver drybrush, army standard.
Eyes - Green metallic.
Thoughts/opinions? I’d rather not have to experiment and strip minis.
You could go with black hard armour, and keep it as a standard across the army. Would be a great way to get cohesion between the different aspect warriors.
The problem is that while it would tie in with the guardians/dragons, it would not be universal. My Hawks have a darker blue for their armor.
If it was an army-wide thing, I’d do it. But there is already one exception.
Automatically Appended Next Post: OK, some pics.
The DA just has a sloppy basecoat on. But is far to bright to fit in. Accent color, maybe. But not that much of that light.
Here are some of the blues I do:
All Macragge blue base. From the left: Guiliman glaze, Blue Ink, Drakenhoff Nightshade. (also, if you wondered where the BaC marines got their backpack designs from, it’s an old throwback)
Really digging the skull you added to that Librarian. I am still restoring one myself, along with a Pewter Dread.
Doing UM successors but, since those models were originally found in an attic, and in UM colors no less, they will have secondment heraldry out of respect so your blog is a help.
Lastly, the rune idea was good, I may have to try that.
I actually did a few things different on that librarian. Not that it shows up terribly well, but I did edge highlighting on his psychic hood. The rune on the axe was an experiment, the demon head was a new color of paint (turquoise glaze), as was the overall armor glaze. I actually went though the effort of blending the tabard, but it doesn’t show up very well. That’s not new, but a step I don’t do often.
As for being predominantly blue, this is an Ultramarine blog. That said, the blue metallic has been my accent color for librarians forever. Just keeping up my scheme.
The problem with the middle blue is that it uses the OOP “Blue Ink”. But it is may favorite shade. It’s not horribly out of date (flip top bolter shell pot) which is after the Cote d’arms era I think. I might still use it for the DA, but I am keeping an eye on it’s level and rationing it these days.
I was blocking out some of the other parts of the DA, just to get a better feel of him overall when he popped off his base. So he is going to be on hold a few days at least while I re attach him. Odd, because I normally use plastic glue, and it takes some effort to get those guys off. Even odder because he’s the second one of this batch to pop off.
Nevelon wrote: The problem is that while it would tie in with the guardians/dragons, it would not be universal. My Hawks have a darker blue for their armor.
If it was an army-wide thing, I’d do it. But there is already one exception.
The DA just has a sloppy basecoat on. But is far to bright to fit in. Accent color, maybe. But not that much of that light.
All Macragge blue base. From the left: Guiliman glaze, Blue Ink, Drakenhoff Nightshade. (also, if you wondered where the BaC marines got their backpack designs from, it’s an old throwback)
I guess it comes down to do you want them to stand out or be part of a whole. A darker blue closer to the Hawks sounds like it could work and tie in with the other units...but some Eldar armies look so wonderful because of the absolute specialization and colour scheme between Aspect Warriors.
Nevelon wrote: The problem is that while it would tie in with the guardians/dragons, it would not be universal. My Hawks have a darker blue for their armor.
If it was an army-wide thing, I’d do it. But there is already one exception.
The DA just has a sloppy basecoat on. But is far to bright to fit in. Accent color, maybe. But not that much of that light.
All Macragge blue base. From the left: Guiliman glaze, Blue Ink, Drakenhoff Nightshade. (also, if you wondered where the BaC marines got their backpack designs from, it’s an old throwback)
I guess it comes down to do you want them to stand out or be part of a whole. A darker blue closer to the Hawks sounds like it could work and tie in with the other units...but some Eldar armies look so wonderful because of the absolute specialization and colour scheme between Aspect Warriors.
CB
It’s a hard line to walk. You want the army to look like a cohesive whole. But the aspect warriors are classically flamboyant and varied in their garb. I hope the stock colors across all the aspects will be enough to tie them together. Silver guns, red accents, common basing. If not it’s just going to look like the dog ate a box of crayons and puked it out on the table.
I’m going for my basic Ultramarine scheme. Worst case, I strip and start over.
OK, little blurry. And the color is a little washed out in the back pic. And I still need to highlight and put on the blue wash. But here is the scheme I’m running with atm. Not wowing me, but looks pretty solid.
So I was perusing the shelves this morning, thinking about army lists. Decided It’s been a while since I took a pic of everything sitting there, and I’d recently reshuffled stuff around.
Although in hindsight, there isn’t any difference between the Feb ’16 shelf shot and this one for the Ultras. Besides everything being based that is. Everything I’ve painted this year is kept on top of the auxiliary white shelf.
The remnants of the Eldar have been moved off the bottom shelf of the Ultra’s space so they can be better organized in their own area. This leaves that whole bookcase clear for the Imperium of Man. Plus gives the Space Elves a little more breathing room of their own. Once I move the YTD stuff to their respective collections, they are both going to need the room.
Also in the news, I scrubbed some of the soaking marines. Damn I hate doing that. Typing this with pained, clawed hands. But should have about 5 more guys ready to tidy up, assemble, and add to the fray.
Really should have used a more upright guy for the test. He’s leaning way forward, makes him hard to photograph. Oh well, done now. Here he is in a comparison pic with his peers:
I think they will do fine on the tabletop. Started getting the basecoats down on two of his fellows.
Also spent a little time clearing mold lines. Of off 20+ year old models, If someone goes back in time, do me a favor and slap younger me. Lazy git. So when I’m done here that will be 2 more MLs and 6 more bolters. I’ve got 2 of each that I already cleaned up that I primed a bit ago. Also as a pleasant surprise I found another Fire Dragon. I thought I had already cleaned and primed my test mini, but he was in the soup with the marines. If I feel like some GS work, I have another one. He had a mostly hidden bubble in his leg and a little miscast detail, so I got a replacement from GW. Of course, there is not a whole lot of reason to field that many dragons, so I’ll probably never bother with the patch work. 5 basic guys, exarch with the pike, and a RT guy who can be either a normal guy or a naked exarch is probably every option I’ll need.
If all goes well, I’m heading down to the store to try to get a game in tommorrow. Packed up a 1,850/2k mech list. After building smaller lists for so long, it feels odd to drag out so many guys for a battle. Was used to 1k and 1,500 lists.
Zambro wrote: Is that an 1850.2k eldar list? Do you have that many?! Although scrolling up and looking at the shelf pictures it looks like a lot.
You know you have loads of stuff when your not supprised by just finding models...
Hey, I was surprised to find him!
Nope, the list is just Ultramarines. Basic mechanized CAD
Spoiler:
The difference between the 1,850 and 2k is adding the TFC and sticking Chronos in the pred.
While I have a little over 2.5k painted Eldar that could potentially be fielded, it’s more like 1.6k actual. Is the Avatar worth fielding alone? Jain Zar? Eldrad on foot with 2 spare warlocks for a council? How bad are wraithlords? Once I get the DA painted up, I think I’ll be a lot more comfortable at 1,850. Right now it feels like I’m stretching to make points, which generally works poorly on the table.
I managed to clean up all the RTB01s on my workbench, so I’ll assemble them shortly. Need to get the to-prime box stocked.
And it did pretty good on the table! Victory for the Ultras, with some surprise friends.
Opponent was a new player, who had picked up a a DE army he was refurbishing, plus some harli/eldar allies from the DW box (Eldard and a pair of seers) When he was putting his list together one of the guys asked if I would mind cutting 400 points from my list and ally in his deathwatch team. Sounded like fun, so I cut the speeders, scouts, and the 2k add-ons from my list to make room.
We roll up the maelstrom mission with 3 cards, draw up at the start of your turn. All of the objectives are close to my side of the table. He reserves almost everything, with just 3 bikes squads starting on the table. Risky, but he’s hiding in the backfield, it’s nightfight, and I’m not that mobile. Works out for him.
This is what it looks like once the boats start dropping out of hyperspace.
Fighting DE went about as well as I thought it would. The’ve got some nasty tricks, both shooting and CC. But at best, the toughness of slightly soggy cardboard. At least the stuff he was fielding. Mostly wyches/warriors. He had the incubus deathstar with the pychers in it, which I didn’t do a whole lot to. The deathwatch dropped in to try to do something, and did tie him up for a bit. Which was a good thing. I had pretty much cleaned up my backfield by the time they made it across the table, and by then the game was over.
Maelstrom. This was my first full game playing it. Yes, it’s random. But I like how it makes you do fun and crazy things for points. I know “forging the narrative” is often said in snarky tones, but it can be entertaining. One thing I found enlightening, is that my TAC style of list plays it very well. Not just for the mobility, but the assortment of assets. Need to wipe out a unit in CC? OK, time for the terminators to deploy from the LR. They were waiting for the proper moment to commit, and it’s now. And while I’m not normally a fan of issuing challenges, my sergeants will call them out for a free VP. It will also shuffle up plans. For example, I flew my talon on, with a planned flightpath that would take him across the table, to get 2-3 good turns of targets before having to hover/exit. But I drew the “kill an elite” card. His trueborn were in my backfield, so I hit the breaks, went to hover and went to help shoot them off the table. Successfully.
Ended up scoring 21 to 7 VPs.
Fun game, all around
Edit for year-end math: While unpacking I remembered that I had picked up more meadow tufts, as I was almost out. So another $6 in hobby supplies. I’ll try to sneak them into my next WIP shot from the bench, so I can remember to add them to the tally. Also while I’m editing, I went to the bank yesterday to cash in loose change, a traditional source of guilt-free hobby money. It had been a while, and it showed. About $120. I’d like to keep it guilt free, but it went into my personal account for now. Hopefully things will settle down and I can get a grasp on my situation sooner, rather then later. Sigh.
I don’t generally do in-depth battle reports, but I do like to log the doings of my armies.
I forgot to do the fresh point report, but I’m not sure if it was the first time out for anyone. Might have been for the capheracti terminators. The did pretty good, but honestly, shredding DE is not that hard for them. The sarge did get punked in a challenge though. I5 witches and a 1 on an armor save. But the rest of the squad blendered the xenos in retaliation. This list was mostly an excuse to knock the dust off some older models.
Yay crappy phone pic!
Some RTB01 guys ready for priming. If tomorrow is the same as today, that will be soon.
Also took some time with the brush to polish up another 4 marines. It’s not so much the scrubbing that bothers my hands, it’s the death grip I need to keep on the tiny piece of wet plastic to keep it from popping out of my hand and flying across the kitchen.
So this makes 4 primed old school MLs waiting for paint. I’ve got one in active service, and another Mk. VI beekie with a homemade ML. That should be enough for a 30k heavy support squad. As more RTB01 bolter boys get cleaned up and ready for war, my ability to field legion tactical squads will increase. It might not make for a tactically deep 30k legion army, but I make do with what I can. Not ordering any FW anytime soon.
Interesting seeing the genestealer cult stuff being leaked. Almost makes me want to sift through what I have to see if I could make a valid army. But the point values are so low, I suspect I could barely make a killteam out of it. Talk about horde armies...
One thing I didn’t mention in the battle report was my vindicator ignobly ramming into a building, trying to get in range of the Eldar deathstar. While I normally just trust in the Emperor when making difficult terrain tests, I think the Vindi might need a little assistance if he’s going to be doing that sort of thing regularly.
So fun with masking!
I started with a roll of tape, obviously too wide, so I measured and cut a 1cm strip. First stripe was laid parallel to the angle near the middle, the rest were just freehanded down. OK, this is not going to work. Angles and widths of the stripes are all over the place. Next attempt, use a spare strip of tape, lay it parallel to the first, and then they the next one parallel against that one. Remove spacer strip. For the corners, the spacer acted as a guide to trim. I found it easier to just put tape in the corner first, rather then cut the thin strip out of a wider one.
Iron Without, Iron Within! Ahem. Much better. I know the stripes don’t extend to the top. That’s intentional. The whole thing is going to be done in my black/silver drybrush. Probably a little extra silver near the dozer blades. Then the stripes will be yellow. But knowing how well yellow paint covers, I didn’t want to paint it over black. Hence the tape.
The 2 DA on the paintbench are progressing nicely. Put the brown wash on the golds. Next step it to tidy up the blue, and then wash. And probably put another thin coat of white on the helmets. Speaking of lousy coverage...
Automatically Appended Next Post:
OK, difficult terrain can now get stuffed.
There was a little seepage under the tape. I put down a layer of white, and then 2 yellow coats over that. Then drybrushed silver over the whole thing.
DA are ready for their cleanup pass and then highlights.
Edit: DA are done being painted, just need their gun arms glued on and to be based. Moved the next two to the ready line, will start on them tonight.
Zambro wrote: Wow, that really adds something! It looks aweomse, good job!
Thanks. I alway felt that the siege shield was an integral part of the Vindi’s look. Penny-pinching wargear miser me balked at the 10 points it cost though. I’m used to my preds sitting back and shooting, or my rhinos which were mostly OK without dozer blades. Odds are, if they got caught up on a rock, the troops inside were probably close enough to the objective to walk the rest of the way.
My game experience Monday might have swayed the miser in me. I wanted to field it with the shield for aesthetic reasons anyway. Looked naked without it.
And from a painting POV, gets the thing off my paintbench. Getting better at masking is just a nice side effect.
Also in painting news, put the blue down on the last 2 DA, and glued the arms on the recent ones. Might flock them tonight, or just wait for the remainder to be done.
Although once The Boy goes to bed I need to re-watch The Fellowship of the Ring with my daddy eyes on to see if it’s appropriate for a 10 year old. He’s read the book, but I need to check for excessive violence and gore. I know there is no sex, and don’t recall any language. Well, nothing he hasn’t heard on the school bus. So that’s going to be a chunk of my evening (and probably tomorrow as well, we only own the director’s cut)
So September is almost over, so let’s look back at the third quarter. Here’s the year to date pic:
Not bad, not bad at all. Not pictured are the orc that was sent off and the webway portal terrain piece. 56 items total counting those. Using my fuzzy math (and counting the portal as a vehicle) brings us up to 69 model equivalents. According to what I’ve entered into battlescribe to track, I’ve painted 2,095 points worth of stuff. This is not counting the Zoat, Ork, or marauder. Eldar are about 475 points at the moment, and will break 500 once I finish the DAs. Overall, feeling very good about my progress this year, and there is still 1/4th of it left.
This is also the time of the year I start to evaluate my stocks for the winter. Here is what the primed pile looks like:
It’s been fuller, but there is a reasonable amount of stuff there. But even at my current rate (which is closer to 2 minis a week then 1) that should be enough to last me until spring. I would like to get one more batch of stuff primed, just to be on the safe side. To do that I’d need to get cracking on stripping the rest of the old stuff, which I need to finish anyway.
And current events:
Two more DAs getting work done. There is a spare trooper torso that can share legs with the exarch if I just want to run a naked squad. Or if I want to use the old RT lead captain as an exarch and field a 6 man squad.
Yorkright wrote:Love that siege shield, really makes that vindicator stand out.
It’s been a while since I was so happy about how something turned out. Normally I just see the flaws in my own work. Not that the shield is without flaws. There is a little yellow where it doesn’t belong on the bottom edge of one stripe, the gold on the eagle is a little uneven, etc. But overall I really enjoy how it turned out. Had a lot of fun with the masking and the stripes. Always neat to get a new technique down.
Zambro wrote:Great minds think alike - I started rewatching the LotR last night. Completly forgot how long the extended edition ones are!
So far so good for this year!
I’m giving the first half of Fellowship an "acceptable to view” rating**. Didn’t get around to watching the second half yet. The Nazgul are creepy. Probably more so then the dementors from Harry Potter. Same basic look/idea, but the ringwraiths in the movie are very real and very creepy, with bugs and blood and such. The creation of the Uruk-hai is a bit bad, but within acceptable parameters. There is some severe peril, but as The Boy has read the first book (and is partway though the second) he know how things turn out.
** Not responsable to any issues that might arise vis-a-via long term emotional scarring or trouble with the Better Half if you follow my rating system.
Anyway, back to paint.
Getting pretty close to done on the DA. Need to do the second blue coat and edging, plus pretty up some more gems and the like on the shimmershield. And the sword, which I might get fancy on. Plus basing etc.
October’s competition is “Something this way wicked comes” so I’m pulling an old mini from the back of the bench. Chammady Drovenge, one of the Big Bads from the Council of Thieves adventure path. Although I don’t recall her being particularly bad, I think we punked her in 2 rounds. Still, she’s wicked, evil, and needs paint.
Inevitable_Faith wrote:Loving the DA, they look fantastic.
Zambro wrote:Looking good, Nev. And they're based...
Thanks. And I’ve been much better about my basing. Part of it was the massive backlog of un-based stuff that needed work. But I think I can keep up with current production. Snow bases I might still wait to do in batches. My process there works better with multiple minis. I make a batch of the glue/flock paste, and keep doing minis until I run out. I’ve been putting excess on my old chaos army. Although now that I have a lifetime’s supply of flock (rather then the tiny GW bag) I’m less worried about waste.
Some painting progress for the day:
Getting the base colors down on the one and a half DAs and Chammady. Making good progress there. I think the only basecoat I need to do on the DAs is the gold, then just touch-ups and washes. The evil little Chelaxian still needs quite a bit more done on her. Most notably the gold, hair (probably going with an off-blonde) and the flame on the dagger. Then all the assorted detail bits. Not looking forward to those strappy sandals. Why can’t people wear sensible shoes? Her dress is also going to end up more bright red. I just wanted to start with the deeper red for the recesses.
There are models that politely ask for edge highlighting. That captain demanded it. So many sharp edges. I was forced to comply. Probably did more highlighting on him then I’ve done all year. Here are some more shots of him:
Fun guy. Love the old stuff. Here is the full squad:
If I want to run a 5 man squad with the shimmershield exarch, this guys swaps torsos:
Over in the P&M section, Buttery is running a very informal Armies on Parade contest. Display board is optional. Just an excuse for people to get a nice army together and share some pics. At this point with the DA done, I feel that I can actually put down a reasonable Eldar army, so thought I’d toss some pics up that way.
Here is roughly 1.850 points of space elves, ready for battle!
Hope everyone has a good weekend. The Boy and I are heading cross country. Going to drive 8ish hours to south of Pittsburgh to visit some family for the long Columbus Day weekend. If the weather holds, the drive should be spectacular. We are just about peak for the foliage here, so the trees are vibrantly on fire with a cascade of colors.
I should have probably posted an update earlier this week. Bad blogger, I know. Trip went fine. Little rainy at the start, but otherwise clear sailing. Good to see some of my cousins I don’t normally get a chance to, and their kids. Long dive is long though, and I’m not as young and limber as I used to be. Oh well, good warm up for the drive down to Kentucky in a month.
Been doing some painting, decided to start the last of the Fire Dragons.
And Chammady gets a little more paint as well. Not sure if it shows up well in the pic, but I tinted the old FD’s chainmailmesh armor heavy aspect armor with an orange wash. Just so he fits in with the squad a little bit better. That’s also why he’s got an orange mohawk, rather then the red most of my eldar dye their hair. I think the next step for those guys is to put a more careful black layer down on their armor, and a few more coats of orange on helms and the like. Plus the whole facial details on those who need them. Getting there.
Love the use of Red Gore for the Eldar. It's a greatly underrated shade of red for Eldar and DE in my opinion. But maybe I'm a bit biased since I used it for my Dark Eldar
metallifan wrote: Love the use of Red Gore for the Eldar. It's a greatly underrated shade of red for Eldar and DE in my opinion. But maybe I'm a bit biased since I used it for my Dark Eldar
While some of it might be Red Gore (I know I have a pot of that on the bench) all the new stuff is done in Khorne Red. The old stuff is mostly from an old pot of RT-era Terracotta under the black wash. They are all similar colors though. I didn’t want to go for a candy apple/fire truck red, but something a bit more grounded and subdued. In general I prefer more earthy or jewel tones, rather then the cartoony palette we see a lot. Especially with Eldar, who can easily look like a bag of candy.
Got a few more layers down on the bench. Reminded again why I love helmets. Damn faces...
metallifan wrote: Love the use of Red Gore for the Eldar. It's a greatly underrated shade of red for Eldar and DE in my opinion. But maybe I'm a bit biased since I used it for my Dark Eldar
While some of it might be Red Gore (I know I have a pot of that on the bench) all the new stuff is done in Khorne Red. The old stuff is mostly from an old pot of RT-era Terracotta under the black wash. They are all similar colors though. I didn’t want to go for a candy apple/fire truck red, but something a bit more grounded and subdued. In general I prefer more earthy or jewel tones, rather then the cartoony palette we see a lot. Especially with Eldar, who can easily look like a bag of candy.
Got a few more layers down on the bench. Reminded again why I love helmets. Damn faces...
"Khorne Red" eh? My Red Gore is still practically brand new, goes to show how often I buy paint And I completely agree, subdued tones definitely serve the whole "LOOK HOW GRIMDARK IT ALL IS" aspect of the game better. Kudos!
And the dragons are done:
Back shot of the RT:
And the squad together:
Ready to bring some melta lovin’ to the battlefields of the 41st millennium.
Chammady is still plugging away. Not a fan of the mini in general, so not a lot of motivation to get paint down on her. Need to soldier on though. I should probably paint something fun next to lure me to the bench. I should probably do a formal inventory of the primed pile and list out my potential choices. I should also look into trying to get one more batch of stuff built and ready to prime, just in case we get another good day. It’s not unheard of, happened last year.
So rumors are leaking about the next 30k Box, Burning of Prospero. This was the box I was hoarding my guilt free money to pick up if it looked good. While not as useful as BaC, where I could use 100% of the box, it’s still pretty nice. 30 mk. III marines, 5 tarteros terminators, 5 custodios, 5 sisters of silence, and 2 characters (a SW and a 1k son). $150 MSRP. The marines and the terminators I can add to the shelf, no problem. But if that’s all I’m using from the box, the value is marginal at best. The two other units look like very nice models, and fun to paint. But would I ever field them? That depends a lot on the rules. I’m not a big fan of allies in 40k, even if they got rules there. I’d have a lot less of a problem putting them down in 30k, but am less sure how allies work there. I do suspect they could fill a role I’m otherwise lacking, as I don’t have any of the cool FW units, which I’m guessing these guys would be equivalent to. The HQs are total deadweight. To be sold/traded/or just kept for a painting project.
Then there is the question of what to do with 30 more power armored bodies. I have quite a few of those kicking around, a large chunk even in 30k approved marks. So the desire to build more basic bolter boys is low. I was poking around some of the 3rd party bits sites looking for ideas. The thought was to pick up some shields and make a 15 or 20 man breacher squad. While I was on Anvil Industries site, I also noticed some nice and brutal looking jump packs. You may recall my previous ramblings about putting together some of my BaC guys as a destroyer squad. If I’m going to be placing an order and having it shipped across the pond, those could be a lot of fun. Has anyone used Anvil’s “Regiment” line ballistic shields on marines? I like the look, but I think that’s their guard-equivelent range.
I should probably also join the modern age and set up a paypal account. Are there any gotchas I should know about, or just head over to their site and start clicking? While I’m not quite at the luddite keep my money under the mattress level, I’m not a big fan of online transactions, so am a little uneasy at the thought of setting this up. Not sure how this international finance thing works, but if I’m ordering stuff not from around here with prices preceded by odd squiggles, I’m sure I’m going to have to work something out.
Still have some time to figure out what I’m going to do. I suspect that if I do pick up this box (and I’m leaning that way) it will be my winter built project.
Dragons looks great Nev, you did an awesome job. As for Paypal, I've been using it for years. I really enjoy the service they offer and the company has some in-built protections to help protect you from fraudulent charges or sellers. I don't think paypal has ever had a security breach either (as far as I know). Almost all of my transactions nowadays are digital in some form, be it paypal or online banking, never had any problems with either. Hopefully that helps put your worries at ease.
So I decided to work on a pair of sternguard. The last c-melta guy and a bolter marine. Plugging away at them. I keep skipping steps and going back after missing things. Bit out of sorts, but eventually they will get done.
Same with the evil little vixen there. Enough random splashes of paint hit her, she’ll get done.
I had plans to get a game in yesterday, but life interviewed. Got roped into helping a friend out, and ended up on my feet for about 4 hours in the middle of the day. After that, I didn’t really feel up to standing at a table for another 3ish. Hopefully next week.
Looking good Nev, really digging the wings and skull on the chest of the right dude and your lady is coming along nicely. Her robes are looking real good.
Some more progress:
Marines have their blue wash down, so it’s just a mater of touch ups on their bodies. Both of their bolter arm are progressing. Might finish them up tonight, or I might have a few drinks and watch a movie. Undecided at this point.
Chammady is also plugging along. Need to do a little cleanup work on he feet and sandals, which I’m not looking forward to. And a bit of yellow highlights on the flame. But she’s getting there.
In semi-unrelated news, when going for a walk I noticed they have re-paved one section of my neighborhood. While some more sane people would cheer the lack of potholes, I mourned the crumbling asphalt that was my primary source of little rocks for basing material. Other roads along my walk still yield good results, but that one section was the best for it.
Looking great Nev, that white trim on the left guy really pops, I like it. Chammady is coming along nicely too.
Sorry to hear about your road getting fixed. People should just learn to accept that they need to sacrifice the shocks on their car for the sake of the hobby, far too selfish of them in my opinion.
As an alternative I've found buying a little bag of aquarium basing rocks for small fish tanks works quite well. You have to wash the rocks first but they come in a variety of sizes and styles depending on what bag you get. I bought one here for 7.00$ Canadian (5$ US I think) and it's enough that I doubt I'll need a new bag for many years to come.
Inevitable_Faith wrote: Looking great Nev, that white trim on the left guy really pops, I like it. Chammady is coming along nicely too.
Sorry to hear about your road getting fixed. People should just learn to accept that they need to sacrifice the shocks on their car for the sake of the hobby, far too selfish of them in my opinion.
As an alternative I've found buying a little bag of aquarium basing rocks for small fish tanks works quite well. You have to wash the rocks first but they come in a variety of sizes and styles depending on what bag you get. I bought one here for 7.00$ Canadian (5$ US I think) and it's enough that I doubt I'll need a new bag for many years to come.
While I don’t normally do the shoulder trim thing, I do it for vets. And the white does contrast nicely with the deep sapphire of my normal marine paint scheme.
I’ve got a decent stock of rock built up, so I’m not especially worried. Just a little something to take note of. I should stock up though, as I’m not sure how much longer I’ll be doing my mile and a half daily walk through my neighborhood. Another meeting with my lawyer next Wed. The Wife has finally gotten around to setting a date she wants me out of the house. I think things might get a little ugly soon, as I disagree with her timeframe. Oh well.
As the gin in my martini has made me a tad on the verbose side, I think the bolters can wait until tomorrow. Intoxication and detail work do not go well together. So I’ll probably watch the Two Towers tonight. The Boy is reading his way though the series, and wants to watch the movies when he is done with the books. Of course, the Two Towers was my least favorite of the movies, mostly due to the butchering of Faramir. But I need to watch it with my Daddy eyes on to see it it’s appropriate for a 10 year old. Sigh.
In other news the Burning of Prospero is looking like a really nice box. Quality minis, lots of multipose stuff. I think I’m going to treat myself. Still trying to source some boarding shields. I’ve got a thread over in the general P&M section asking for help. Or you can just post here. I’ve got dimensions for a lot of the 3rd part stuff, but not the official FW ones. 40k rules for the custodies and SoS look cool, but without accompanying formations force you to go unbound. We’ll see if more stuff come out. Do they have separate 30k rules already?
Never a huge fan of this time of year. Not sure if it’s seasonal depression, or the fact that I’m going to be another year older and closer to the grave in a couple of weeks. Of course, this year is worse then normal. Sigh. My folks were asking if there was anything I wanted for my birthday. Might as well own up and ask for hobby stuff, which I’ve not done in the past. 40k and compute games are pretty much my only hobbies these days. Fallout 4 was 50% off on steam, so I picked that up for myself the other day. Just leaves 40k for things I need right now to keep my happy. Of course, once I need to set up my own place again, there is going to be a crap ton of stuff I need.
OK, I’m getting melancholy to go with my drunken ramblings, so It’s probably a good time to call it a night. Remember kids: some drinks are just for Daddy, and you can’y have them until you are 21. And don’t post drunk. It never turns out well. Crap.
I like the Chammady. Really big difference to the boys in blue, painting wise.
I always feel awkward asking for warhammer for birthdays/christmas, but warhammer that you dont have to pay for is better warhammer.
Sorry to hear that things may start to get worse. If I had any valid experiance or advice, I'd offer it up.
But when you get around to sorting your new place, a large display cabinet should definately go on the to-get list
Zambro wrote: I like the Chammady. Really big difference to the boys in blue, painting wise.
I always feel awkward asking for warhammer for birthdays/christmas, but warhammer that you dont have to pay for is better warhammer.
Sorry to hear that things may start to get worse. If I had any valid experiance or advice, I'd offer it up.
But when you get around to sorting your new place, a large display cabinet should definately go on the to-get list
When it comes time to split up the furniture, I’m making a play for the china cabinet. Just because she’s going to end up with the house doesn’t mean I only get the crappy furniture from the basement. I’ve got a right to some of the good stuff as well. The big question is how big a place I’ll end up with. That remains to be seen.
Got a bit more painting done this morning. Marines should be just about ready for the blue wash on their bolter arms. Then final clean up, assembly, and basing.
Sorry to hear that things are getting rough Nev. I've been on the sidelines watching my girlfriends parents divorce for the past 2 years. I don't have any personal experience in the matter but from what I've seen the worst thing you can do is let it drag out too long. Try and get it done and over with as fast as possible and go your separate ways. At any rate I hope things start to look better soon.
Alcohol and detail work are a terrible combo, I've fallen into that trap too many times now. The night you're working on it you think it's going wonderfully but then the next morning you check out your work and just sigh, you know it'll be a couple hours of cleanup on the terrible linework now.
I love getting GW gift cards for borthdays/xmas as it's something I can spend at my leisure. If I get models I feel guilty because it's another box to add to my pile of unfinished shame
The new prospero box looks good. I have no use for most of it but I've always loved Ahriman so getting that model just to paint would be nice and the sisters of silence would be an awesome addition to my sisters of battle army. I'm currently trying to convince a friend of mine to get the box so I can buy the sisters and Ahriman off him.
Look! Edge highlighting! OK, it’s just around that raided disk on the shoulder, but it needed something. 2 more sternguard down, and if my calculations are correct, just two more needed to finish up the second full squad. I’ve got 3 primed and ready. I could work on them next, we’ll see where the mood takes me.
I’ve warmed up to the non-marine parts of the BoP box. The sisters and custodes look pretty cool. Rules are interesting, but the need to go unbound to field them in 40k does put a damper on things. Assuming no special formation/detachment comes out. The HQs are dead weight to me, so I’ll still be trying to offload those. If you can’t convince your friend I_F, let me know, we can see what the shipping looks like. But I suspect that a lot of the HQs are going to be flooding the secondary market, as non-wolf/1ksons players dump theirs.
Sternguard look awesome dude! The snow basing is stellar and I love how you built up some snow on their legs.
I spoke to my friend yesterday and he said he was gunna get back to me as to whether he was going to get the box or not. If he decides not to get it i'll definitely send you a PM about Ahriman. Thanks man
OK, she’s done. I really hate doing detail work that fine. Chunky marine faces give me enough trouble, and this little doll has very delicate features. I like the way the dress ended up, and am happy with the flames on the dagger. Which at tabletop distances are probably what you will notice.
I do really like what those little flowers do to flocked bases. Easy to use and great results; what more can I ask for? I handed her off to her owner yesterday, who was thrilled to get her, but had completly forgotten that I was working on it. To be honest, I think Chammady was lurking around my workbench for two years or so. Woops. Longer. I just checked my the first workbench pic I uploaded here on dakka, and she was sitting there back in 2012. Well, she’s done now.
While I wait until noon for my FLGS to open so I can pick up a copy of BoP, I thought I’d try to work out a practical to pair with my theoretical breachers.
I’ve got measurements, I’ve got scrap paper, and a ruler and knife. Let’s see how this looks:
I just cut out Anvil’s breachers and Victoria’s, as those are the two I like the looks of the most. And let’s be honest, it’s all about the looks. BaC Mk. IVs are standing in for the Mk. IIIs that will soon be storming the workbench.
Some thoughts:
The anvil shield is on the small side. It is bigger then a combat shield, and smaller then a storm shield, so fits close enough for me to feel comfortable using it as a counts-as. The fact that it doesn’t have a cutout for the bolter should make it easier to attach. Less worry about everything lining up right.
I like the size of the Vic shield. Feels much more like a breacher shield should (similar look to the FW ones). I’m worried about getting the cutout lined up right. They were designed for GEQ, not marines. If they fit, it would be great, but if not would take a lot more work then anvil’s to get right. So the high risk, high reward option.
I just cracked open the box to get that new-kit smell and parts check, will go back and do an in-depth sort later tonight. But I’m on deck to watch The Boy in a few, so didn’t want to get stuck in quite yet.
First thoughts: Marines look about what I expected. The power armor lightning claw looks mean, need to find a use for that. Terminators look fun, need to figure out how I want to build them. SoS and Custodes look amazingly detailed and baroque. I suspect I’m going to need another pot of gold paint. HQs look cool, shame they are chapter specific.
Overall I need to review the 30/40k rules and think of how I’m going to build things. I think I’m going shooty with the terminators, as I went CC with the capheracts from BaC. Looks the the sarge at least should be easy to magnetize. I saw the plasma blaster and my first though was “Captain Invictus”. Now all I need is tyranid bodies piled 6 deep in a circle 20 yards around him. My knee jerk thought on the custodes was to mix them up, but looking at the 30k rules, they are either/or there. Will check how well they magnetize.
And figure out what I’m going to do for breacher shields, and the rest of the PA guys.
Edit: No combi weapon for the sarge, no grenades. Lots of other shiny things, but those two things stood out. Nice spare mag bits. Made me think of the not-sternguard from 30k with the special ammo.
It might be a bit pricy for a supply drop, but considering how long it took (and enjoyment gained) for the BaC box, this should keep my happy and out of trouble for about half a year on it’s own.
So I got the clippers out and started on the terminators. As I don’t see myself fielding them in 40k, I can focus on how’d I go with them in 30k. Although magnets might be in their future, and if so they could probably work for a 40k squad. Not that I need more tactical terminators.
Right now I’m thinking vokite on the sarge, plasma blaster on a random guy, and a mix of CC weapons. The point-pinching miser in me says the basic power swords should be fine, but the claws/fists do look awfully nice...
Interestingly, both the lightning claws and chainfists are just add-ons to the basic powerfist. Probably a bit fiddly for me to magnetize though.
Also, it looks like the arms are mostly compatable with the capheracti ones from BaC. I wanted to make the sarge stand out a bit more, and the hanging tassle/leather things from the BaC set do a nice job of that. Match the peturge (or however you spell that belt hanging thing) nicely.
The shoulder pad is a little tight, and would like to pop off, but I suspect it would be fine after gluing.
The arms have a little nub to help things line up. Obviously not in use here. Would probably have to go if I magnetize. I think I can just glue the shoulderpads to the torso, and use that a a guide to set magnets into the arms so everything lines up. I also saved the c-melta I cut off my CTDA captain, which I could give someone.
I think the lids on top of the suits might have to be left off for painting. Getting a brush into the space for the helmet is going to be a bear.
I recall people mentioning that the terminators from BaC and this box should probably been switched. I fully agree. These guys have a very similar aesthetic to the Mk. IVs, and the capheracts share a lot with the Mk. III. Not a big deal for me, as they are all joining the same force, but of you were picking up squads and wanted a coherent looking army, they should be swapped.
According to my math 227 points of mean. Still undecided if I want to try to stick that c-melta on. While I’m normally not a big fan of a single melta in a squad, it would add a little bit of bang if shooting at light armor. But these guys are more likely to gun for infantry, and just CC tanks if needed. I could also give the sarge the grenade harness, but am not sure it’s worth the 10 points.
From a modeling POV, these guys went together a lot smoother then the capheracts. Those damn shoulders on the BaC guys were some major points against them, so being easier is not a high bar to reach. The arm/peg thing was actually a bit irritating. It severely hampers the ability to get the arm pose just right without cutting them off. It does make sure everything lines up though, so points for that. I was able to just use the pre-sets, so not an issue. If I was putting together more then 5, I’d be chopping. The deep set heads are going to be irritating to paint. I don’t think I’d be able to sneak the helmets in after painting, so will leave the roof off the armor to paint. It also makes it irritating to get the model to look the direction I want. Once the glue comes out, that will be fixed, but it was annoying at the tacked together phase.
Fun note: the chainfist and lightning claw pars both work together, so any space shark players who want a counts-as Tyberos, this is your kit. Also due to the modular nature of the fists, there are a good number of both left and right handed powerfists, which is rare on TDA arms. Good for anyone doing character conversions.
I left the lids unglued for ease of painting helmets:
Is it just me or do these guys give off a true-scale Mk. VIII vibe? You have that raised gorget on a big marine. And without the top cover giving them the hunchback look of a classic terminator, they just look like well armed/armored tactical marines.
The plasma blaster is magnetized. I cut the autocannon to do it up, but lost steam. The odds of me swapping guns is low, so I just put the parts in a ziplock. I might get to them later. Overall, fun kit to build.
You know Nev comparing the two pics I gotta say I really prefer the look of the termies without their top-hatches. There's something about the silhouette of them that it changes by not having it on and it really appeals to me. If they were mine I'd definitely be painting them without the top part and see how it looks. Just my two bitz.
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WAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! 
Not sure if serious...
