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Made in us
Druid Warder





You aren't alone who thought this is llama, theCrowe. Maybe this is a sign and I really should try doing a llama, a drama llama? Not for any specific game but "just because"? Maybe...

But Vejut was closer to the correct answer with his guess - its an otter. Able sea-otter Fritz and young deckhand Whistle, at Your service!



Since settings of Burrows-n-Badgers revolves around creeks, fords, rivers and crossings, I've decided to make a less-combatant-crew for a boat or a raft that may participate in some action but mostly for a fun and fancy. Civilians are not exactly canon in the game, but if a shrew berserker can get on with a pan and a roller - why not an otter with a mop, defending his life and those dear to him? Fritz takes his duties very seriously... but still, he is just a very young otter -



He likes to play. And it is not inappropriate to want to rub his belly, Theo - if You are polite and well-meaning otters consider it good manners.

Again I am trying to push myself where I haven't gone before. These two are small, Fritz 37 mm to the eyes and Whistle 32. I've tried embossing their faces instead of building them outwards - didn't like it too much. It is more difficult for me this way to ensure both eyes sit at the same depth. may try it again with more preparation, but for a time being I am back to "little green gators". You may notice that Fritz may be too similar to one certain copyrighted bear cub... I assure that it was not intended but gave me a good chuckle!

In other news - I've wrapped a reed stem in paper tissue, rolled in milliput mixed with water until runny and - this will be a very proper cat lady, probably waiting for a transfer to another river bank by boat. She has no name or face at this time, but I'll make a pledge to have her done before September.



However, my good wolf company is still in a very, very early stage, not much to report here.



Instead I am making chaos -



And, Syro, if You would like, I may try to get some more WIP photos of otters from my fathers phone...

Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in us
Utilizing Careful Highlighting





Looking good wirecat, a lot of character on that otter. Look forward to seeing the others as well.
   
Made in hk
Krazed Killa Kan





USA

Thank you Wirecat, I'd love to see more WIP photos. It's really enjoyable for em to see you doing so many sculptures again.

   
Made in gb
Liberated Grot Land Raida






Northern Ireland

Creeping down the scales and bringing the detail and character along for the ride. Nice smooth uniform on Frizt and I love the little boat.

   
Made in us
Druid Warder





Syro_ wrote:Thank you Wirecat, I'd love to see more WIP photos. It's really enjoyable for em to see you doing so many sculptures again.


Heh. My parents, when they go into my "sad cave", say that it is WIP that is more interesting than the finished piece. Anyway, here are promised photos. Not much, but I hope they will be entertaining -



theCrowe wrote:Creeping down the scales and bringing the detail and character along for the ride. Nice smooth uniform on Frizt and I love the little boat.


Thank You! Smoothing over becomes a little bit easier with just two tricks - adding more greenstuff than You really need and then cutting the excess after You've pressed it into shape and waiting for a right moment into curing process.

Oh, and I've forgot to post these last time - wireframes of witch-cat, prowling and captured. They will take more effort to bend into shape - they are still too large. :(


Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in us
Utilizing Careful Highlighting





Haven't done much sculpting, so can't say I know exactly how that feels, but given the obvious amount of work you've put into them, yeah, can't imagine de-biggening them while keeping the pose won't be annoying. Good luck, expect it'll look nice once you finish!
   
Made in hk
Krazed Killa Kan





USA

Thanks for the WIP pics Wirecat
I don't don't know if they are more interesting than the finishes sculpts like your parents say, your finished sculpts are always very interesting to look at. Like I said before, I feel like I have learned a lot, and improved as a mini sculptor from looking at your WIP pics and asking you questions.

Also I don't know if you use Facebook, but I am part of a miniature sculpting group called "Miniature Sculpting Noobs". Even though it is called "noobs" there are quite a few professionals. You would fit in quite well and be very welcome, if you have any interest.

   
Made in us
Druid Warder





 Syro_ wrote:
You would fit in quite well and be very welcome, if you have any interest.


I do have, Syro. But with all ongoing troubles I don't think I'll have time to for a few months at least. :(

I know this is just a Chinese recast with a full set of problems, but still - out of fascination with Hell Dorado I've tried my best to repair and paint it. I've based it for Hordes, maybe it'll have some use as a mercenary.



It is funny how pooling of pigment with AV metallics affects the "luminance" of the resulting layer. With ambient light only this is especially prominent. Don't know whether I'll repaint that iron belly...



Tune in for the next week when I try not to stop...

Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in us
Utilizing Careful Highlighting





Looks quite solid. If the belly plate bothers you, possibly use a layer or two of black wash, maybe go in with some rust weathering, make it look used? Granted, could also just full repaint.
   
Made in us
Druid Warder





In the end I've just added more of the same on the other side. You can never have enough chrome on Your belly plate.

I am very slowly moving back towards my miniature addiction. Got some pretty uninteresting but well done PVC from Wrath of Kings lined for a painting - but hit yet another block. How to paint them less vampyric and more courtly?


Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in us
Utilizing Careful Highlighting





I'd consider emphasizing the trim, and maybe painting the horns up like a set of wimples? Granted, ever since stoker, vampires and the court kinda go together...
   
Made in us
Druid Warder





So, I've tried all the tricks for cloth I've read about lately. Even floor is done according to one of them - cross-stroking with dry brush over pooled watered down paint. Liked the process, do not find the result too disappointing either. The idea of red metallic eyes without whites, on the other hand, didn't work out just as good as I've thought it would. Anyway, four PVC miniatures done for the years goal. And if I start playing, maybe someone will meet these vampires and find them appealing?






In other news - the pizza was good.


Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in us
Utilizing Careful Highlighting





The carpet effect came out fairly well, I'd say. I also kinda like the slight purple in the gold.
   
Made in hk
Krazed Killa Kan





USA

I like the look of your vampires.
And I'm glad the pizza was good, that's a sacrifice we have to make as crafters when we need some cardboard

   
Made in de
Longtime Dakkanaut






Nice work on the cloaks!
   
Made in us
Druid Warder





Thank You all for kind words, I hope to keep things at least as decent. More PVC now, a totally ununspiring Basilean sisters on battle cats. Mixed their heads with other Mantic kits of the same batch for variety, reposed some arms... Will see where they go from here.



In other news - I like when a project does not require a 1 mm tolerance except the flatness of the bottom.


Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in us
Utilizing Careful Highlighting





Yeah, I do like the cats themselves, but the rider sculpts are a bit uninspired, aren't they? (or possibly just a bit less than the sum of their parts) And always nice to have an undemanding fun build to go.
   
Made in us
Druid Warder





Vejut wrote:
Yeah, I do like the cats themselves, but the rider sculpts are a bit uninspired, aren't they? (or possibly just a bit less than the sum of their parts) And always nice to have an undemanding fun build to go.


They are, Vejut. Mantic problem with most Basilean kits is non-existant attention to proportions. As a result most of them look more wrong than most "28mm" humans. Plus (or minus...) this particular sculpt features terrible, unfixable (unless resculpted and rider legs are adjusted under hot water) saddle. I just can't bring myself to spend even more time with a unit that at best will be an occasional filler for KoW army.



I am experimenting with washes for fur and leather again. Not much remains, just capes, weapons and small metallic details. And a good weather. It is so cold now that it is impossible to work with resin outdoors, so... I've cut cardboard for another wall.


Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in us
[DCM]
Boom! Leman Russ Commander





United States

While the riders may have their idiosyncrasies, the mounts are possibly some of the best dynamic feline poses I've seen- and well painted to boot! An interesting unit to have for those battles when you need something a little out of the ordinary. We;; done, Wirecat!

"He fears his fate too much, or his desserts are small, who will not put it to a single touch; to win- or lose- it all."

Montrose Toast


 
   
Made in us
Druid Warder





 Meer_Cat wrote:
While the riders may have their idiosyncrasies

What a careful way to spell "failure". I like it! Reminds me of one NSFW accident that by accident occurred in a work environment.
Spoiler:
As quite a large group of students, assistants and other junior staff were waiting for a workgroup meeting in a corridor next to a restroom (WC) a friend of mine came out of it with another coworker. I have no idea what they were discussing in such a place, but the first thing everybody in a corridor heard was "Now that was one gross under-performance!"

I will use "this project may have its idiosyncrasies" next opportunity arises.

But I did what I could with these without spending a full month on them.

I've tried a novel "multi-basing" method with them - cast their PVC bases into a solid block of jewelry resin, the same Chinese used reproducing my "wolfen", The idea was to make a transparent base for a see-through effect (since I am getting gaming mats and want to show off)...

It is indeed transparent. And heavy. "Heavy is good", right? And it lets me get funny pictures.

In other news - with weather giving me three warm days and not so cold nights the courtyard project moved forward. I think it may be time for another pizza...

Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in us
Utilizing Careful Highlighting





Cats came out nicely in the end. The casting block idea is interesting, though I'd think it might work a little better with the plastic bit cut off and the mounting to the block done by a pinning wire, so there's a bit less blockage of the see through bit. Still an idea to maybe try at some point if I do clear bases.
   
Made in us
Druid Warder





Vejut wrote:
Cats came out nicely in the end. The casting block idea is interesting, though I'd think it might work a little better with the plastic bit cut off and the mounting to the block done by a pinning wire, so there's a bit less blockage of the see through bit. Still an idea to maybe try at some point if I do clear bases.
Probably. Even likely - You are right. But that was more of a "what if" experiment - to leave those large plastic blobs with the black undercoat to serve as a shadow under these cats. Not exactly working, indeed. I was better as an idea, but I will show how it looks, sooner or later.

Meanwhile I still need yet another warm day and the weather is likely to withhold that from me. I wanted to fill the insides of cardboard walls with plaster and sand, but in the end decided that resin and cheapest deco stones would be less hassle. Now these pieces are about 350 grams each, quite bottom-heavy and with upcoming locks and wooden tops that will bring their weight to 500 grams or more, just enough to be safe from accidentally knocking them over during the game.



If I can bring myself to do some 3D modeling they may even be ready before the end of the year. But... just when You think that everything is back on track, something new happens and... and now I have an entire new tabletop game to paint.

Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in hk
Krazed Killa Kan





USA

Ooh, I'm curious what your new tabletop game is.

   
Made in de
Longtime Dakkanaut






Congrats on finishing and basing the cats, that's a fun unit. Good luck on getting the courtyard project further along!
   
Made in us
Druid Warder





Since every courtyard needs a central point - and if these walls are arranged in "T" formation, they make two of them, I need to invent something in that department. One is obvious, a raised platform for special events like wedding, beheading... and any possible combos.



I've come too close to failure couple of times here. The idea was to lay out some flat stones on polyethylene sheet, press them down with toilet paper soaked in resin and when it becomes a hard enough backing to support them - turn it over, place in a round something and fill it to the brim with liquid resin to make a solid "brick" that can be finished with acrylic paste and some flock.



Well, stones are a little on a big size compared to usual scale of 28-32 mm miniatures, but they are passable. And for bigger stuff like 50+ mm B-n-B it will be just right. For the other accent I am planning a lower trunk of a giant tree with widely spread roots. Something between Yggdrasil and a Royal Oak. But I am not finished thinking it out.

It isn't anything special, Syro, and it isn't _my_ game, neither in ownership nor kind. It's "Doom".

Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
Made in hk
Krazed Killa Kan





USA

Thanks Wirecat, sorry to hear that it isn't anything special. I like how your raised courtyard turned out. With all that resin it must be really solid and heavy. That will be one long lasting terrain piece.

   
Made in us
Speed Drybrushing





Colorado, USA

The courtyard looks good.

Are you thinking something like the White Tree of Gondor?

   
Made in us
[DCM]
Boom! Leman Russ Commander





United States

Nice work on the walls, Wirecat, and brilliant to weight the bottoms down with glued pebbles. It puts me in mind of the Chinese saying "The sea was great, the bird was small; the bird carried pebbles until the sea was filled". I would either have not anticipated the 'knocking over' factor, or would have tried to implement an overly complicated and frustrating fix. Your solution is elegant in its simplicity.

I like the stone paving base- very nice effect with the lichen/moss growing between the pavers.

"He fears his fate too much, or his desserts are small, who will not put it to a single touch; to win- or lose- it all."

Montrose Toast


 
   
Made in us
Speed Drybrushing





Colorado, USA

Lots of really cool stuff. I love the "sea" horses and the swan banner.

The cheetah is solid. Nice work on the snake dudes.

Like the progress so far on the horse guy.
Always a good detail to make them anatomically correct.

   
Made in us
Druid Warder





Syro_ wrote:Thanks Wirecat, sorry to hear that it isn't anything special. I like how your raised courtyard turned out. With all that resin it must be really solid and heavy. That will be one long lasting terrain piece.

It is "Doom"... When I've got into that WHFB thing in 2008? I think... I chose Beastmen for primal-tribal-barbarian thing, not because of chaos. And chaos side of both warhammers never appealed to me. Sometimes great designs, nice plastics, but not something to have on my table. And now I have an entire box of these things to paint...



But I hope it will really brighten winter holidays for a good friend!

DJJazzyJeff wrote:The courtyard looks good.

Are you thinking something like the White Tree of Gondor?

Not exactly - but yes, close enough, if not for scale, at least not for a scale in the movie. If the yard itself will be about 45 cm per side, I need the root system some 16 - 20 cm in diameter to give a sense of scale but still allow for free placement of models around it. Up to the currently fashionable things on 12 cm base. Warmachine colosals and such...

Meer_Cat wrote:Nice work on the walls, Wirecat, and brilliant to weight the bottoms down with glued pebbles. It puts me in mind of the Chinese saying "The sea was great, the bird was small; the bird carried pebbles until the sea was filled". I would either have not anticipated the 'knocking over' factor, or would have tried to implement an overly complicated and frustrating fix. Your solution is elegant in its simplicity.

I like the stone paving base- very nice effect with the lichen/moss growing between the pavers.

Even back to the Confrontation/Warlord I've came to conclusion that a big piece of scenery on the gaming table should be either A - steady not to be knocked over and B - be at least as heavy as an average unit/regiment on its tray. Preferably both... And those metal models were heavy! This lesson is still dominating my mind.

The original idea was to make the outer (flat) side of the walls glued from actual stones like that platform - but I just stumbled after recognizing the effort it would take. So I went with easier way of acrylic sand over cardboard.

Now I am slowly working around the perimeter of the platform, sculpting stones out of milliput and making it actually round. Texture is final, colors - not so much. I'll be going over them with grey and pink washes to blend individual stones together and closer to the color of the actual stones on the top. Four smaller steps will be about half the height of the central part.


Painting progress tracker:
2017: 50 of 50 planned; 2018: 80 of 60 planned; 2019: 75 of 75 planned

Pledge 2020:
6 to sculpt, 75 to paint (2/57 done) 
   
 
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