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Here they are!








What am I working on now? This bad boy:


The Herald's base looks rough. Hoping some grit and a lick of paint will even it out.

Z

You’re work with color grading and the transitions are epic. Well done!

Those Screamers are quite lovely

Agree with Azalle, colour gradients are nice and their eyes are so spooky! Really fitting for the elegant but gross creatures of warp

I'm back. (I think).

I've been sleuthing the forums for a few months now after a long forum break. And I'm using the monthly comp as a kick in the backside to get painting, which I guess is the slippery slope to me reviving this blog (Thanks to Nevelon for planting the seed). I hope I can maintain some of this momentum to blog my hobby.

It's hard to believe that I started this blog in 2013. Over 10 years ago. Craziness. The last update was in April 2018. And a significant amount has happened since. I've got a 'big boy' job, I'm a homeowner, recently engaged. Gone are the days of painting minis while skipping university lectures - If you could have told me those were the best days, I'd not have believed you. Life was a lot simpler then. But my hobbying has been a continuing theme since - I can quite literally say I've been doing it for 20 years. Craziness (again). Predominantly playing Fantasy Battles: The Ninth Age, but also dabbling with other painting projects here and there. I have a huge Dread Elves (Dark Elf in WHFB money) collection, a growing Saurian Ancient (Lizardman in WHFB) army. I'm playing on Team Wales at the ETC and nationally ranked. (I'm looking forward to going to Spain in 2025 for the ETC!). I've taken to Kill Team the past year or so as a very casual & fun pick up game (I will finish painting a Kill Team, I promise). And I'm continually on and off TOW nostalgia bandwagon, although a more accurate TOW comment would be to say I'm adding to the pile of shame with no plans to paint it. But today, I've finished work for Christmas / New Year and with a sweet 19 days off work I think I have some goals I can make and achieve. And I want to blog them along the way.

I think these are my goals:
1) Build my pile of shame. It's actually not as shameful as I think. It consists of; Striking Scorpions box, Dragon Ogres, 10 Saurus Warriors, Saurus Character, 2 Weapon Beasts, the howda from a Stegadon, and the Kill Team Hivestorm box (ok, this is actually quite big). Oh, plus whatever I get from Christmas, not that I'm expecting to get much.
2) Finish painting my Corsair Kill Team (that I started in 2022...).
3) Paint the Kill Team gaming accessories so I can play with a fully painting set.
3) Work out what I need to paint for a painting competition at the end of Feb 25. There is a Ninth Age tournament at the end of Feb, that has a really good painting comp that runs along side it. I'm unlikely to win the best army, but I hope that I can flood some other categories and come home with something.

Its a lot. But I have 19 days, remember?

No blog update is an update without a few pictures.









Quite a big Fantasy focus there - it'll pivot to 40k / KT in due course. One of the drawbacks of not maintaining a blog is that you don't have a readily available stockpile of pictures. That is just a flavour of what I have been working on in the past year or so. I'm proud of the Stegadon, the first really big miniature I've painting in a very long time. His brother is half finished and would need some love... That AoS mini won me a painting contest in a local club - not the overall winner, but one of the sub categories. It was actually really fun to paint, even when AoS isn't my thing.

I promise to have some pics of my half-finished KT in my next update.

I love your Comic Book AoS guy. I think a 300 style Custode Army is on order....

Now, if only knew someone with really good painting skills...

Welcome back to the blogospere!

Grats on all the life events! The window where I had a big-boy job and was still living like a starving college student was probably the time of peak growth of my hobby. Then the house and wife happened, and things got dialed back. On the bright side, being a homeowner means you can set up your own hobby space! (as long as it’s OK with the better half) The halcyon days of youth are great, but being older, wiser, and more settled down has some perks.

Superb work on all the minis, you haven’t lost your touch. The technique on the stormcast is amazing! Look like he just stepped straight out of a 4-color comicbook. I’ve only seen similar work done once or twice before, and it makes a huge impression.

Looking forward to seeing what new things are coming across your bench. Or the backlog from the missing years if you go back and document it.

Welcome back! Huge fan of the Stormcast!

Loving the comic style on the Stormcast and the color scheme on the stegadon. Great job, good to have you back!

Welcome back, Zambro! I really love the comic book style paintjob on the stormcast! I am so jealous of your 19 day vacation. If I had 19 days off in a row, I'd be in hobby heaven! Have fun!

Lathe Biosas wrote:I love your Comic Book AoS guy. I think a 300 style Custode Army is on order....

Now, if only knew someone with really good painting skills...

Thanks mate. Not sure I'll be doing this style in any great numbers... The black lining was intense.
I've seen a few of your posts about AdMech. Got any pictures?

Nevelon wrote:Welcome back to the blogospere!
...
On the bright side, being a homeowner means you can set up your own hobby space!
...
Or the backlog from the missing years if you go back and document it.

It feels oddly good to be posting minis back to a blog. Especially having the best part of 10 years of hobby in one place.
Homeownership has it's perks. My gaming room is still under negotiation (apparently we need a spare room and an office...). But having my own real space has literally taken the constraints of limited space away. In the past 6 years, I've had 6 addresses as a result of work (moving 7 or 8 times, between those places too). Having to box up and move it all routinely is a natural limiter to how much you can buy. All bets are off now. One thing I have never experimented with before is terrain (the terrain was part of the reasoning to buy Hivestorm). I will have a gaming table, and the terrain to play on.
I might dip back into what I've worked on over the past few years. It is almost all Fantasy related. But I do have some Aeldari I've not spoken about.

youwashock wrote:Welcome back! Huge fan of the Stormcast!

Thanks!
I snooped your blog too - Love the Shadow Spectre Wraithknights & Elric model.

muette wrote:Loving the comic style on the Stormcast and the color scheme on the stegadon. Great job, good to have you back!

Ty! I have a second Steg in progress too. It'll be similar in style, but blue for the body and yellow for the scales. The first one took a significant amount of time to finish. It is kind of scaring me to start the next one...
I love all of your fantasy stuff in your blog. Do not stop, I demand more.

Warboss_Waaazag wrote:Welcome back, Zambro! I really love the comic book style paintjob on the stormcast! I am so jealous of your 19 day vacation. If I had 19 days off in a row, I'd be in hobby heaven! Have fun!

Almost 3 weeks off is a gift. Especially at this time of year. No complaints from me!
I snooped your terrain blog too. Really awesome stuff going on in there. Far more imagination that I have. Any hints / tips for painting terrain that you would share? I've got the Hivestorm pieces that I will look at soon.


I got a few things done in the past few days. Striking Scorpions and Tempestus Aquilons built. I magnetised all options for the Exarch, and the Servo Sentry. First time in a long while I've magnetised weapon options on infantry, fiddly and enjoyable. I've gone from having 1 Kill Team to three, and if history is anything to go by, these should get some paint at the turn of 2030.





This guy was on my painting desk to repair a leg I broke when testing the scheme. Super bright Saim Hann seems to be where I'm going. Happy enough to see where that takes me, and willing to learn as I go. I've realised over the past few years that because hobby time has been hard to come by, I've obsessed with getting things right first time (the comic style AoS took a very long time to psych myself up to do...). To the point of killing the enjoyment sometimes. I've lost the art of just seeing how it goes. Going back through this blog has been good to remind myself all the weird stuff I've done over the years.


And finally, the next few days should see these two Kroxigors finished. Contrast paints are a game changer. I want to try experimenting a bit more with them (beyond putting them straight over a drybrush). These will eventually become a part of my Army for the painting contest in Feb. They will join a unit of Skinks as their muscle.

Zambro wrote:
I think these are my goals:
1) Build my pile of shame. It's actually not as shameful as I think. It consists of; Striking Scorpions box, Dragon Ogres, 10 Saurus Warriors, Saurus Character, 2 Weapon Beasts, the howda from a Stegadon, and the Kill Team Hivestorm box (ok, this is actually quite big). Oh, plus whatever I get from Christmas, not that I'm expecting to get much.
2) Finish painting my Corsair Kill Team (that I started in 2022...).
3) Paint the Kill Team gaming accessories so I can play with a fully painting set.
4) Work out what I need to paint for a painting competition at the end of Feb 25. There is a Ninth Age tournament at the end of Feb, that has a really good painting comp that runs along side it. I'm unlikely to win the best army, but I hope that I can flood some other categories and come home with something.

A few days and I've chipped away at goal #1, and refocusing now to #4. I will lose a bit of time this weekend to The Lord of the Rings, though. I decided to do the extended trilogy this weekend. The Fellowship of the Ring today was an absolute delight to rewatch. Naturally including coffee, Breakfast, Second Breakfast, and elevensies. I'm not sure when I last watched the extended versions. It has to be 10 years or close to it. Some of the scenes were completely new to me. Very much looking forward to The Two Towers tomorrow!

Welcome back!

Joining the chorus: that cell shaded Stormcast is just amazingly good! Been thinking about painting something in a similar style, so that's very inspiring.
Great work all around!

Good luck working on your pile of opportunity!

Any hints / tips for painting terrain that you would share? I've got the Hivestorm pieces that I will look at soon.

Yes. Big brushes and broad strokes. Craft paints are inexpensive and last longer, cover more of your models, and come in bigger bottles for mass painting large projects.

For me, before I assemble any premade plastic terrain, I sand them with a rough textured sandpaper to eliminate their shine and create a rough, uniform texture. This also helps provide more detail for drybrushing and washes to adhere to. For things like...wait, I was going to say underhive models, but I think I do this for everything... I chip and gouge the surface of the plastic to create an uneven and battlefield-damaged look. Adding superglue along the bottom edge and sprinkling in some baking powder creates a good "corrosion" effect. This technique will obliterate whatever details it is layered on top of, so be judicious with it and ignore this step if you don't like it.

When you paint it, first find photographic references for what you envision it to look like. Things like abandoned factories, war torn cities, earthquake damage assessment photos, fire damage, etc. Keep those handy when painting.

Layers are your friends. Don't try to get all the details on in one go. Start with a dark color. For concrete or cement, I might use a midnight blue. For steel I might use dark brown. Don't be afraid to mix colors. Drybrushing is your friend. If you paint a detail and you don't like how brightly it came out, layer on a coat of wash - even just thinning a black paint with a lot of water will work. I find washing orange, brown, and black over brightly colored objects works very well to bring it back down to reasonable tint. Stippling verdigris colors - like off-white for lime stone, jade green for copper, brick red or dark orange for steel and iron, and black for bronze, gold, and silver - is a great way to add highlights to otherwise featureless panels.

I stare at buildings in my area. Especially ones that have been there awhile. I look for where the stains are on the exterior. Where does it stain white? Or black? Or rusty? I look at close ups of peeling paint (there's whole pages and blogs dedicated to these photos).

For Necromunda, I also recommend looking at graffiti in your area or in pictures online. Most graffiti is terrible and not artistic in the slightest. It isn't meant to be. It's just some kid trying to leave their mark on the indifferent landscape. At some point in time, other kids come along and tag up over them. Or municipal agencies do a half-assed job of painting over it with miss-matching colors. And new kids show up to paint over that. Graffiti in difficult to reach places fades over time, becomes obscured and damaged. Isolated places are more likely to get the artistic grafitti. Well-traveled areas get the crappy graffiti. If one kid has something against another, they do the disrespectful thing known as "lining" another's tag. They literally spraypaint a strike through line across someone else's graffiti. You can tell the story of a territorial dispute from a wall covered over and over again with layers of lined out tags and artwork.

Fire damage tends to streak upwards and out of holes like windows and doorways. The black soot blots out underlying colors, but you should still paint those underlying colors.

Time and water (mostly water) eventually destroys everything - details, structures, and color. But water flows downwards, in the opposite direction to the damage and color left by fire.

Metal brightens, even old metal, when it is forcibly bent or twisted, but only at the points where it fails. It also becomes stronger at the point it fails and bends, but it also becomes somehow more brittle at that point, too. When metal fails it sheers, almost like paper, but in near-straight lines. Photos of building collapses, car wrecks, stress testing videos, and crane collapses will help you here.

Pick a palette - whatever your base color will be - and stay consistent. If you want to add variety I recommend using sponges or stipling to add the illusion of chipping paint. Start dark and stipple/splotch inconsistent highlights lighter and lighter. I recommend a base dark, a midtone, and a muted highlight. And again, wash to bring your colors down. One thin coat of very watered down paint. If things get too dark, wait for the wash to dry completely (an hour or more) and then lightly drybrush the highlight color of your base layer (not your wall paint color). Drybrushing a light version of your base color over washed details helps to unify your whole piece.

If you have any questions or want more details on anything I've touched on here, please do not hesitate to ask. You can even DM me if you feel more comfortable with that.

I hope this helps. Have fun.

Some sage advice there, Warboss.

More Eldar are always a welcome sight, Zambro. I look forward to more red jetbikes. Thanks for the comment, as well.

Ezki wrote:Welcome back!

Joining the chorus: that cell shaded Stormcast is just amazingly good! Been thinking about painting something in a similar style, so that's very inspiring.
Great work all around!

Good luck working on your pile of opportunity!

Thank you!
The pile of opportunity is a very optimistic way to see it. It feels more like a burden than an opportunity. But never the less, I'm chipping away at it slowly (and trying not to add to it too quickly).

Warboss_Waaazag wrote:

Any hints / tips for painting terrain that you would share? I've got the Hivestorm pieces that I will look at soon.

...

I hope this helps. Have fun.

That is some of the best P&M advice I've gotten in a long while. TY Warboss. I am actually quite exciting to move some Hivestorm terrain across my paint station now.

youwashock wrote:Some sage advice there, Warboss.

More Eldar are always a welcome sight, Zambro. I look forward to more red jetbikes. Thanks for the comment, as well.

I've made some small progress on the Eldar, but nothing worthy of a picture and update. In the next post, I promise!


As the year comes to a close, lets start with closing off a commitment I started at the beginning of December. My monthly painting comp entry:





I had some sage advice in the comp thread about adding depth to the skin tone. I think it's worked out well. I enjoyed doing the plumage in his skull-hat. It's very colourful, and pops on the table. After spending 6-7 years exclusively painting Dark Elves (purple and silver), I'm making a conscious choice to get more colour on the go with my Saurian Ancients (Lizardmen) army. Next month's comp theme is Frugal, and I won't be frugal with the paint - it'll be very colourful! Nevelon has very helpfully shared the next 3 months' themes, and I know what I am doing for each; Frugal, January - a Skink Veteran, a bargain basement character for the Army. Surprise, February - No one expects Striking Scorpions to emerge from the shadows. Space Marine, March - It has been a very long time since I last painting a space marine, I will peruse the catalogue and pick something cool.

I've been on some sorting and organising recently too. Hobby admin is a thing. I have been buying White Dwarf mags for a while, I enjoy all the pictures and some of the Bat Reps and the occasional fluff story. But they are really starting to stack up now, so while I was out I got a box and boxed them up. Likewise, while out I found some "sponge brushes". It reminded me of Warboss' excellent advice above on terrain and I picked them up with a large brush. Not a bad haul for a few pound. And should make the Hivestorm terrain a bit more manageable.


And speaking of Hivestorm:

Very enjoyable to put together. First lot of terrain I've done. I was a bit intimidated with it as I was putting it together, but the advice above is great and makes me look forward to chipping away at it. No plans to look at it in the next month or two, unfortunately.

On a completely unrelated note, is anyone able to identify these 40k rules? I found them, and I think they are going to land on EBay. I assume they are not current?




On the eve of a new year, I'm thinking about goals for next year. I'm trying to come up with something wide enough to be achievable, but still measurable and specific. I'm trying to make it non-specific to any one game system, to give me options. Here is where I am currently, with big props to Nevelon who has pretty much nailed his goals (specific and measurable goals that I have taken inspiration from):
1) Play at least 2 in-person games a month.
I have definitely suffered with not playing enough games in 2023 & 2024. I go through peaks and troughs. I want to try and be more consistent. Plus, playing in person builds friendships, and while online / virtual hobby activity is enjoyable it isn't a complete replacement for f2f social interaction. I will become more of a regular at my local gaming group.
2) Paint more than I buy.
That pile of opportunity isn't going to paint itself. My rough 'finger in the wind' feel of 2024 says that I achieved this in 2024 - although my Hivestorm boxset splurge could be a gamechanger if I worked it out properly. Now that I am settled with a house (and storage), I wonder if I'm going to be more inclined to buy minis knowing I don't need to cart it around when I move next..?
3) Attend The Ninth Age's ETC with Team Wales and play a fully painted army.
I attended ETC in Poland this year with Team Wales, and the last minute painting, list changes, work commitments, life, etc. means that I took models that were minimum standard of painting. I was embarrassed about it, frankly. It will not happen again this year. The event is on the 1 August, so I have 7 months to get myself in gear to arrive with a good looking army.
4) Update my blog at least once a week.
I've enjoyed my return to the Forum. It's a good way to share my hobbying, beyond the local groups that I am a part of. I want to maintain this record going forward and weekly updates should be achievable.
5) Paint 10 models for each of the following game systems; The Ninth Age, The Old World, Kill Team, 40k.
This currently reflects my pile of opportunity - I have models for all of those systems in that pile. Goal 2 keeps the pile of shame in check, but this one actively has me chipping my way through it. I am only playing 2 of those systems, so without the motivation / accountability to get on with the others, I can see myself neglecting them.
6) Attend a tournament for The Ninth Age, and place in the top half of players.
I am a regular tournament goer for T9A. But since I made the swap from Dread Elves to Saurian Ancients (2 years ago), I haven't been scoring so well. Their play style is so different, the learning curve has been significant. Of the 6 events I went to in 2024, I placed in the bottom half of all of them. It's time to get my head in the game properly.
7) Visit Warhammer World in Nottingham.
I currently live closer to WHW that I ever have before (2 hours away). It's been on my 'nice to-do' list for a very long time, but always blocked by a 4+ hour drive. Now it is easily achievable. I will do this in 2025.

I will in all likelihood take another week or two to refine / add to the above.

I wish everyone a happy and prosperous 2025. I hope the night is enjoyable wherever you are - Happy New Year.

Lizard came out looking nice!

Indomnius was 9th edition.

Solid set of goals. Looks doable, but will take some work. Which is where they should be.

Challenge entry looks great. I really like the contrast between the skin/scales and the headdress. Good luck with your goals in the New Year!

Nevelon wrote:Lizard came out looking nice!

Indomnius was 9th edition.

Solid set of goals. Looks doable, but will take some work. Which is where they should be.

And we're into 10th ed... Gotcha. We'll see if anyone wants it from Ebay.

youwashock wrote:Challenge entry looks great. I really like the contrast between the skin/scales and the headdress. Good luck with your goals in the New Year!

Thank you! It really pops on the table top.


When I restarted this blog, I gave myself some goals.

Zambro wrote:
I think these are my goals:
1) Build my pile of shame. It's actually not as shameful as I think. It consists of; Striking Scorpions box, Dragon Ogres, 10 Saurus Warriors, Saurus Character, 2 Weapon Beasts, the howda from a Stegadon, and the Kill Team Hivestorm box (ok, this is actually quite big). Oh, plus whatever I get from Christmas, not that I'm expecting to get much.
2) Finish painting my Corsair Kill Team (that I started in 2022...).
3) Paint the Kill Team gaming accessories so I can play with a fully painting set.
3) Work out what I need to paint for a painting competition at the end of Feb 25. There is a Ninth Age tournament at the end of Feb, that has a really good painting comp that runs along side it. I'm unlikely to win the best army, but I hope that I can flood some other categories and come home with something.

I have complete goal 1.



I don't think I've ever put together so much in such a short space of time. It really did take some time to do it all. But it feels great to not have any unbuild/NOS miniatures*, I have at least got some time/enjoyment out of everything I have. And that's what it's all about right?
Magnetising the Dragon Ogres was great fun. I bought a WOC Army back in the day from a guy in Sweden, if I remember rightly (Dakka Member). It was beautifully built and magnetised. The trip down memory lane was fun. They are intentionally unbased. I want to mull over some TOW basing options before I crack on with them. Likewise, I'm uncommitted on the other lizards, they're just a little too big for 40mm bases. I think I might have to get rid of them and get them re-print them scaled down.
My kill team options are quite big now. A few teams, and terrain. I had initially dismissed the Stingwings, but having put them together I have to say, I think I like the models! My mind ran away with me thinking about speed-painting with contrasts, they look like they'd take it very well. I'll bank that idea for a rainy day.

*for now. I got an email from GW for £10 off. I dismissed it initially as spam, as in my experience GW never do discounts / money off. But when I double checked it, it all looked legit. I added something to the basket on the GW site, and the discount worked. Apparently it was 1 year ago today I did my first order with GW direct (that doesn't feel right, but it's what the email said - maybe first order on the new site?) so they gave me a voucher to entice me back. I got it this morning, valid for today only... So I have a Space Marine coming, which is good pre-planning for Mar's painting contest. It was the only thing I 'need'. I've also been told I have a TOW Chaos Lord mini coming, a Christmas present that didn't arrive in time. I'll be sure to build both asap to keep myself free of unbuild minis.

With goal 1 complete, and 4 days left, I think I was quite ambitious with myself. Never the less, straight into goal 2.
Of the 10 Corsair minis, I have finished 2:




I didn't realise that the Felarch's sword broke in the foam until I pulled him out for this picture. He will get a spot of glue in due course. He was the first one I painted. I didn't really like the scheme, so tried something different on the second. I like it a lot more, and will do the whole unit in this style. I have another 2 very close to finish, and the rest with the armour done.




I'll put in some time and effort to paint these guys over the weekend. I'm looking to get a game of Kill Team in next week. And running fully painted team is my motivation. I hope I can make it happen. If I can put some paint onto the KT essentials too, I will. But I think I might be pushing it to get that much done.

I like the color scheme you've chosen for your Corsairs. I bought a bunch to use in a 40k campaign I wrote/am writing and still haven't even cracked open the box.

Corsairs are looking good. Best of luck getting them all done in time for the game

Warboss_Waaazag wrote:I like the color scheme you've chosen for your Corsairs. I bought a bunch to use in a 40k campaign I wrote/am writing and still haven't even cracked open the box.

There are a lot of bits in that box - plenty of options for your builds and a worthy contribution to the bitz box too.

Nevelon wrote:Corsairs are looking good. Best of luck getting them all done in time for the game

Thanks Nev.


Unfortunately the game didn't pay off. Which is just as well, as returning to work took me from 0 to 100mph (or 160kmph for you Europeans) immediately. The first week back was, well, a blur. I didn't get to finish painting the corsairs, nor did I get a TT game. Making time for hobbies is hard. Important, but hard. I think my goal to update my blog at least once a week is going to be harder than I expected - unless my update is "no update", which is RAW but not RAI... You can judge me if I do it. I have, however, managed to squeeze a bit of hobby time this weekend, and the weekend after my last update / before work. Not we're not at a "no update" yet...

First things first, the state of my Kill Team:

We're getting much closer. No where near as much primer on show as the previous pictures. I think I could probably run them to a game without feeling too bad about part painted minis now. Mostly it's the sashes and belt kit that needs a spot of paint, with a few other notable pieces that need touching on.

My GW order arrived this week, too. I put it together immediately to maintain my 'no unbuilt minis' brag for longer than a week.

There was something very enjoyable, comforting, and oddly familiar about putting together a space marine. It even made me drill the barrel. Nostalgia hits pretty hard at times. I'm looking forward to getting some paint on it. For those that haven't looked back through my blog, over the years I've had a Salamanders Army, 2 White Scar armies, an Imperial Fists army, and a Blood Ravens and Space Wolves Detachment (wouldn't call the collections big enough to be considered an 'Army'). I'm not going to re-tread old territory with the paint job, I'm feeling something different. Something that I haven't done before. I have until March's painting comp to decide.

What else have I been working on? I've had some models for The Ninth Age coming across the desk too. My Jan painting comp entry has gotten some colour.


Just enough to get him started. I'm slightly intimidated by the lizard - I should have found a reference picture before deciding to slap a lot of yellow on him. Oops, onwards with it anyway. How bad can it turn out?
I've also been working on some Raptors.



They are the GW skink raptor riders (without the skinks clearly). In T9A, I am able to take a unit of Raptors in a Saurian Ancients Army. They are an excellent pick: dirt cheap point wise (amounting to making them a chaff piece), but they are spitters. Think Jurassic Park. They can use it as shooting or in combat, and it's armour piercing 3! Super acidic spit. Not to mention they put out a reasonable amount of attacks too. Since I bought the unit, I haven't left home without it. I put an Agrax wash on them to take their super bright airbrushed colours down a notch. I think I've taken it too far, and will need to layer back up. With hindsight, I should have done it a sepia or flesh shade wash. Live and learn.

I'm struggling to keep focus on one project currently. I'm dipping in and out of painting things (and building a random SM). Consequently, I'm having a little bit of progress on lots of models, instead of lots of progress on a few models. In typing this blog update, I'm realising that I need to do something about it. I have a painting Comp in February that I'm very keen to compete in - half painted models won't do. I think I need to set myself some targets to focus my mind and keep me honest. Firstly, what am I taking to the tournament? That needs to be painted for best army. What doesn't make it into the Army, but is a well painted model that fits the other painting categories? Is finishing off my KT a priority, or do I just suck it up and go play with half painted miniatures? What do I actually WANT to paint? Lots of questions to occupy the mind while doing chores or working. (How do people without hobbies get through the boring bits of life? )

I have a bonus picture for you:


A random Warlock, from my back-catalogue. Painted somewhere around Winter 2022/2023. I was getting fed up of painting fantasy, and impulse bought the double Warlock boxset. This guy came along quite quickly. His friend is half painted though... It was the catalyst to buying the Eldar combat patrol, which in turn got me the Corsair team and into Kill Team (IIRC). I was 99% sure I finished it. But I'm looking at that helmet plume and wondering why I settled for that - it definitely doesn't look finished.

I hope you are all having a great weekend. The UK's below freezing temperature is about to end, which is good for the mood. I'm looking forward to getting back out for some runs.

Those Corsairs are a freakin' awesome kit. I, too, picked one up at some point just to have because Eldar are #1 love. So many cool options. Yours are looking quite good, as does the Warlock. Can't wait to see the Space Marine at the end of March!

Lizards look fine. I guess what are you after? Bright exotic looks? Or more drab? Plenty of examples of both in the wild.

Seer looks great. Grey plume is a little odd. If you are going to have a big waving crest on your helmet, they do tent to be bright.

Sometime you do need to post a weekly no-progress progress report. Life is a mess, things get in the way. But it’s good to keep at it. It’s a motivational tool. If the worry about putting up a blank blog gets to to clean a single mold line, or put a layer on one mini, that’s progress. Chipping at at the pile of shame one step at a time.

Oh, those lizards look great. Warlock too.

Thanks all.

Nothing but Fantasy this week.

I need to get a move on for a Tournament at the end of February. I have a bit to do. I think it is all achievable to arrive with a fully painted army. At current, I need to:
Base 14 minis
Paint and base 12 minis
Paint and base 2 monstrous cavalry (1 is 90% finished).

Optional:
paint & base 10 infantry (I'm likely to take alternative fully painted models as stand-ins, to ease pressure on painting)

And the hardest challenge of them all: Do not rewrite my army list!

There are 5 judge votes, and 1 player voted painting categories. Best army is player voted. The following are judge voted:
Best Small Single Miniature (20/25mm square base)
Best Large Single Miniature (40mm+ square)
Best Unit (5 models or more)
Judges Open
Best Dressed.
The only one that is stumping me is best dressed... Lizards aren't particularly well known for wearing clothes.

I've finished (less base) my monthly comp entry. He is going to the tournament, with his friends seen below. They are 11 of the models that need basing - some tufts, leaves and plants would fit them in with the rest of the Army. These are also the first 5 completed models of 2025.



Pictures aren't great, as my painting station light has burnt the wall socket... Waiting on a replacement, while avoiding an electrical fire.
I had 4 skinks to go, too. All from Lost Kingdom Miniatures. These are amazing and dynamic models. I'm glad I've finally got through them, as they've been making it into all my lists in the past few months.


Group shot:


In The Ninth Age, they're Chameleon Skinks. Adept at ambushing into the battle, and blowing away (pun intended) big nasties.

I also got another model this weekend. As part of the family secret santa, I put this Chaos Lord on my list. It turned out that my father in law had me. He is genuinely great, but firmly doesn't understand the hobby. Long story short, he had to collect it after Christmas from store. According to the MiL, he was exceptionally nervous and awkward in store (a hilarious change to the confident guy he normally is) - the picture she grabbed is very amusing! Anyway, I've decided that I'm going to paint it up, put it in a Wicked Brick Display Box as a 'mini scene' and re-gift it back to him for his birthday in June.


It's not the first time I've painted him. GW have played a blinder with the re-releases hitting on the ol' nostalgia. I just spent 15 mins trying to find a picture of the one I painted in 2014(ish) for my WoC army at the time. I can't find any pictures - I'm certain I had the model... Maybe I never actually painted it..? Anyway, he'll get some paint in due course.

For best dressed you could go with the saurus with the feathered headpiece?

GL with getting everything painted.

Update time.

Thanks Nev - you're right, the headdress Saurus will clearly be the best dressed!

Only a small update this week. 1 in person game, and 1 painting session...


Managed the belt kit on most of these. I'm close enough with them to just sit down and get them done. They've been WIP for way too long.



A quick snap at the start of the game, and of the most disappointing moment of the game.
I've played a few games online this month, but nothing beats the real deal. I'm part of a UK wide online Ninth Age league, and playing in a European Team Tournament online, so I've got a steady number of games being played on Warhall. This is the first TT game of the year, and I lost by a small margin.
My Saurus flanked his Knight bus. It's amazing positioning, and the best way to kill them. However, I almost lost the combat (only won by a difference of 1) through the worst display of dice rolling I have ever given (didn't kill a single knight!). I died to the counter charges and lost the objective as a result.

This week is full of promise. A planned online game for the League in the week. Some free evenings for painting. And a weekend where my partner is away for a long weekend. A completely free weekend. So full of promise... What should I fill that time with? New month, new painting comp to get started... Build the coolest 3d printed dinosaur I bought for my Saurian Army... We'll see what happens then.

Well, that's another week done. And the first month of the year.

Jan was an ok(ish) month for the hobby. Only 1 TT game played unfortunately. And not as much hobby time as I would like. Typical life stuff taking priority. I managed to sneak this over the table last night.






He has been a work in progress for a few months. Partly me being a bit intimidated by it. Partly me being a bit lazy. In The Ninth Age, you're able to take units of 2-4 of these. I've got another on the go, and I am looking to push myself to finish it by the tournament at the end of the month. He was satisfying to paint. It has been a long time since I did something so big, and I think the colours work really well.

I need to fire up the Airbrush this weekend and get my Striking Scorpions primed. They are my entry for the 'Surprise' themed monthly painting comp. I'm in the process of buying some new paint. My current paint collection is massive; the organised and well maintained part of me wants to streamline it from the 5 paint ranges I have to just 1 paint range, but the rest of me says to just keep them all even if I don't use them. And rather ironically, in deciding how to streamline my paint range I've talked myself into buying more I'm looking at the Scale75 Scalecolour paints. They are very Matt in finish. I have a few already, and I quite like the look of the finish. I've talked myself into buying some greens to use on the Scorpions. They can be my test models for the range.

That's me for now. An early weekend post, as I have to go to work today (boo!). But hopefully some hobby time later this afternoon.

That's just a beautiful paint job on that giant lizard. That's not something I get to say often.

You can field units of that thing? By itself it’s an absolute Unit! Love the way it turned out.

I mostly just use one paint range these days. But if different companies offer paints with different properties and colors, no reason not to avail yourself of the options. I think it would be worth a little clutter at the paint bench for the options at hand.