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Hey Neil! So good to see you're producing again - and such unique stuff too! Hope this marks the start of a big creative period for you

Love the chapel, and especially your evocative shots of it - it's been said by others, but the image of the troops climbing the stairs is fantastic. I really want to see the Woman in Black, but it was that or the Muppets last time I went to the movies with Hannah, and - what can i say? The elysians look sweet too, as well as the board - amazing stuff. Have you checked your house for FW bugs?

Apologies if I missed your last update, have had very little time for Dakka lately. Hope you're doing well!

Hey folks , been working on the frank n furters lair, some good progress some not so good

@Vik why thank you kind sir, The admechs are by the genius Jes goodwin i think , looks very much like his work , he has influenced my own work though , as a kid i copied his terminator captain sketch for my art homework , cant find the pic now.

right again with the texture work, if that's wrong it just doesn't work as a convincing reality for me. lots of stuff in the gimme bar , very handy for me , the talented Tears of envy spotted it , and i haven't gone back since.

@ Perkustin Hey mate , yep Frankenstein's monster is gonna get it ! the elysian pic is just glowing edges filter in photoshop. looks kinda cool on that pic, shame on me using filters

edit oops @Scarper ,thank you .very kind words matey, i hope this signals a new creative juncture too, really feeling some writing and maybe even drawing , feels like i have been away an age , not sure if i would have opted for the woman in black over the muppets had it been on , these are not the bugs you are looking for hope life isnt too mental for you , would be a shame to miss out on all those post apoc stories

work is progressing at a pace , i stocked up on 12 bottles of liquid nails and now only have 1 left picked up some cork sanding blocks for rubble and stripped some bark off my plum tree i even stocked up on some extruded polystyrene at last !! but the plaster of Paris casts are the best thing for this project, i made the cliff face first using just the yellofoam polystyrene but it looks a little plain now i have completed the front steps and the side cave . ,the sleepy hollow tree and the graveyard , next, i made my own tombstones using the plaster of Paris , but the my squirty polystyrene foam tree failed , too big and dominating will probably just pick up the citadel wood.

This certainly looks like its about to be epic.

that foamy looking structure is so weird looking... i hope i wont get nightmares from that

and that poor sod of a plumtree sure has it...looks definatly done in...^^

When I saw the words "update, big hill" I was expecting, well, a hill, not an entire game board!

Dude, you sure do love to make some cool terrain! Wish I had the skills (and the space ) to do what you are up to!

Neil never disappoints in his terrain or conversions!

Great terrain...again!

great looking peice this is turning out to be neil!

So uh Neil, you didn't happen to have an encounter where one object looked like an ice cream cone, and another like a circle and a little red one that went "whoooosh!" did you?

Oh yeah now that looks the part.

Wow man! Amazing stuff! The groundwork is awesome!

Hi all

Thanks for the feedback , I have been struggling with the build , the natural stuff went in like clockwork , but everything else has been a bit of a mare , It was my bday the other day , so i picked up a few prezzies for the build , the garden of morr and the citadel wood , both cool products , i highly recommend the garden of morr in particular , a bit pricey though at twenty five quid but the tombs in it are marvellous , great for inquisitional stuff. and the gothic reaper is straight outta the original Frankenstein, perfect! but then i got stumpted with the tower , cant decide on 40ked windmill or just a gothic tower , none seem right at the moment . my heart leans for the windmill , but i think i will get burnout if i have to scratch build the 40ked sails, but a plain tower looks a bit bland now .

any help folks can suggest pictures or other 40k towers would be much appreciated, really want to start painting now. before mass effect 3 steals away my life

@ Moltar Cheers molt , epic scale would be so much easier , for huge dios i think i might take it up

@vik , lol , i based it on this pic kinda yep my garden is truly a garden of morr

@Commander cain hiya cc , cheers man , i really don't have the space truly , just cant stop myself building the bleeding things and your skills are in no way lacking my friend

@ shazolenzabi Thanks shazo, cost me bomb this one , cant really decise if its a gaming table or a diorama . probably one of the reasons i suffering with the tower design.

@Baiyuan Hey mate , thanks man , wanted it to be light , ....its not!

@Rogue wolves He rogue , thanks mate , the natural stuff i am pretty confident with , its hard to go wrong with hills stuck now though.

@Sahzo " qoute " " So uh Neil, you didn't happen to have an encounter where one object looked like an ice cream cone, and another like a circle and a little red one that went "whoooosh!" did you?"
well if i did i wouldnt be posting about it on dakka , dirty boy


any advice on what direction to take the tower is most welcome folks.

I dont think a windmill is the best idea, I think that it would look cool as "the lightning church" from Tales Of Hersey!

I love it but not a fan of the windmill. It certainly adds atmosphere but throws off the whole grim dark future idea. If it was for fantasy I'd say leave it, but take no offence I love the feel of this work of art. I would maybe add a clock instead covered in imperial iconography.

Always a pleasure to see your work!

I don't know... I think the windmill is a nice idea - it reminds me the scene from Army of Darkness movie and the one from Van Helsing movie... And a lot of other grim and dark images. Windmill is a really suitable variant of tower for gloomy and creepy atmosphere, well, with a proper decorations. Something which can make a great 40k landscape.
Just throw in some wires, tesla-coils and other tech stuff for more Sci-Fi feel... Who said, there can't be a futuristic windmill? 40k is all about grotesque and fantasy vibe.

An awesome build nonetheless! Keep it up

Well Neil, one never knows when one has been affected by such a "encounter" He was making the sculpture unconsciously at first. Looks good with the tower for the windmill and the graves etc. Like it.

i think the windmilltheme is as classy as you can go... i know... the future surly will have a problem to have a working windmill that is any use against so many other energy sources in that techperiode... but well... i think you should do the windmill... but for my sins...i would do it ruined and halfburned ... the wings/sails of the windmill like this perhaps...or already bunt down seriously...:




also like the lil poe pic with the raven!

and what is that substructure of the windmillsials made form? looks like a picketfence to me...^^

Liked like iron speared fence to try and keep grave-robbers out.

Thanks folks , given me plenty of food for thought , really like the last church idea , and i think it would be pretty easy to do too
, then the windmill got a big thumbs up , and my heart does agree , the only thing putting me off is another long build , kitbashing .. :-/ , i have tentatively placed the building on a black powder world , with little imperium contact,so the fantasy element is not so much bothering me, but still , it is 40k not fantasy ..mmm.

@ Capitan solstice , giving me plenty of inspiration on the church theme , never really considered it until now thanks , found a deviant art pic too

https://gimmebar.com/loves/neil101/collection/firehose

@Madmartykmf hey mike thanks for the feedback mate, i do agree with you about the windmill , my original idea was just to have a fantasy themed 40k diorama , then the Frankenstein idea took hold and the windmill is so Frankenstein and Gothic , , but i am struggling to fit it in with the mythology , is it an imperium structure on a black-powder planet , can i tie the two themes together convincingly .. guess we'll see , cheers man. and congrats again.

@Ishkatar , this is what i feel in my heart about the piece , i usually go with my gut , but Amber and Bailey , both told me in no uncertain terms they think the windmill looks out of place or too dominating , now i am torn , i have found some cool tesla style stuff that would work very well with the build from quantum gothic
http://www.quantumgothicwars.com/rcstudio/
but the price and more work is putting me off .. maybe i should stop trying to rush it. thanks matey.

@Shazo , I think we must have gotten our wire crossed i thought you were talking about the hill , who was making the sculpture unconsciously , and what sculpture ? sorry for the mix up matey ,

aye spear tipped fences , they never work do they tut tut tut .

@ Vik , love that windmill design ,
based on this concept art i think


which this guy built before if you remember. soo cool.



http://www.dakkadakka.com/s/i/at/at2/2010/9/25/f79e8b046c30a0e9002dfcb2b7703e98_16851.jpg

love the burnt out sails idea , i was thinking of going down this route at one point , so it wasnt too dominating , my problem with this design is its so very much fantasy , not really a problem since i am thinking of a blackpowder planet , just , i dont have any fantasy buildings to pull it off convincingly.

thanks for all the ideas folks , plenty of food for thought will, keep posted where it goes from here.

I tend to disagree. 40k is very fantasy in so many ways... After all, it's a very eclectic universe, where anything can find it's place.
Of course, it's all up to you, but I think, that hobby is all about making your ideas come true, no matter, how complex and work-demanding they are.
Pfff, I know, that sounds a bit lame and not very motivating

PS:
Those Power Modules you've linked are super cool!

your resaerch is yet again mindblowing...and yep...i remember the guy that made that windmill... great builder!!!

well with the whole blackpowder theme too you are totally boundless... so i would do this... but you are also quite right that the sails would be dominating the scene pretty much... maybe by only doing one full sail and the rest ruined would compensate you in a way? that might leave enough "mindspace" for the whole terrain to be worth a look...the balance restored and staying true to the vision ...

as for the powergenerators... i have in my scratchbuild box a chewing gum package...that looks like a powergenerator... if i am able i will show you a pic of that... dunno maybe it will be helpful^^

@ Ishkatar , true , its very eclectic , i do like fantasy , just putting off what i know i should do i guess ( the hard work ) scratch built sails , grimdarked up to look suitably futuristic and still retain that fantasy vibe. tricky stuff , but ultimately what i think the hill needs , either that or a church spire with ruined outbuildings now.

@ Vik I think i know what gum packet you mean , the rolled stuff in strips ? have to pop into town today so i may pick up a pack , nice call mate.

http://image.made-in-china.com/2f0j00LMwQyketrIbj/Pop-Chewing-Gum-YD-R-001-.jpg

yep...that is looking quite like the stuff that i have... tho a tad different... more ribbed...sort of... you know what i mean once you see it in the store^^

Hey folks , i finished the build finally , took a bit longer than originally planned , decided to go with the regular aquilla tower , and move focus of the build to the as yet unseen rear , as diorama , i was happy to only have the front and sides , but as i progressed i thought , bugger it ,this can be a gaming board too so i added a few bits to give more regular gaming room and also to let the hill have a bit of breathing space , probably will add another flat section for gaming purposes, i base coated all as one and will paint it all as one , but the boards are in fact separate for storage ,as is the tower which is in two sections. painting next effeminately going for a morning or moonlit winter theme , and picked up some woodland scenics for snow basing , looks like a great product. was thinking of a vampirific blood red tower in a snowy white environment , but it might be a bit much maybe just regular tower.

painting suggestions welcome

introducing inquisitor radical inqusitor Absolom on the mount.

@ Vik still havent been in town for that gum generator

@ captain solstice , special thanks to you for igniting the church theme , it really inspired me to finish the build , loved the windmill , but couldn't face the kitbash

Wow. I cant believe you actually used my advice

it looks amazing neil, and i like all the interesting little characters you have there

oh man... what a feast for the eyes! again so much storytelling with pics! what i truly like and what i one day would love to see in person, are the many delicatly placed breadcrumbs of details all over the board... so many sweet things here and there ...alcovens and steps and caves and scattered small items like the axe and it´s chopping block...

also i like how you help us even tho we are not there to look in every nook, to do just that with your camera perspective... great photography... i think for this one you should again make a scenic background like you did with your chilling captain at the island... a moody sky...

i think after seeing this we all can live with the tower and not having a windmill quite good... it seems to have inprinted it´s need and will on the artist!

very good work old boy^^ and beeing an old grunt just means in this context full of whim and vinegar enough to be able to conjour such pleasentries for our eyes!

*respectful nod*

Man! That is EPIC! Perfect composition!!

Thanks folks , i am pretty tired after the build , your comments really kept me going , when it started to get tough , went through loads of different concept stages during the build, was difficult trying to keep the Frankenstein aim , especially when i researched Don quiote , lol . learned new stuff too , less is more ! i always forget this basic concept and end up having to pull bits of conversions and scenery;-) , although my cliff face went through 3 different stages , and still doesn't really look like i wanted it too . Oh well , you live and learn eh!

really looking forward to a nice easy paint job , will probably take an age as its so bloody big though .

@ captain solstice , Yeah cheers again matey , ( less is more , more often than not )

@Rogue wolves thanks rogue , , now the fun bit. ;-)

@ Vik glad you like mate, the back drop is something i have been thinking on for the final pics , it will need to be pretty huge though , i have a spare door that i am thinking of using a panel of the front of it. Been old has some advantages , i get to be more grumpy than usual without having to explain myself .

@ Dst , hey mate , cheers ! it was pretty frustrating , every time i put something right something eles looked wrong , i was spinning the board to make sure it had that golden ratio feeling. i wanted it to feel like an old landscape painting by the romantics. not sure if i pulled that off , will e easier to see after the paints on .

thanks for all the help folks

maybe use a piece of canvas rather... some blanket even...

Been old has some advantages , i get to be more grumpy than usual without having to explain myself .

i like that as a motto^^ getting old never was so rewarding^^