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Dr H wrote:Good work, Graven'.
Right proppa dirty like.

Thanks bud. We're having a filth off, you and me

monkeytroll wrote:Niiice! Really liking the icon bearer, although obviously I have a soft spot for the Lord and his tentacles....
Even have me playing with some Papa related ideas...

I can say with full confidence you have already obliterated my annual record

Mwahahahaha! Well, as for records, it's just about pushing yourself I think to whatever you want to do that's a challenge. It's not a numbers game... Honest

Slinky wrote:The poxwalkers are looking great - That paintjob suits them soo much more than the bright colours of the official GW models.

Thanks mate. There's lots of colours in these fellas, but to me they have to be muted and decaying or what the heck's the point?
Didaskalos, the Teacher, Chaos Sorcerer Lord in terminator armour





And Stentor, the Herald, icon bearer





Very happy, all things considered. Which means first wave done!

Something else for a bit of variety now. Not sure what, but something.

Suggestions?
Later
Graven

Everything looks great Graven. I do like the crustyness... it's a nice effect rarely seen other than on bases.

Wonderful catching up on this blog, so much fantastic work. These crusty are amazing fantastic to see.

Lovely stuff

Definitely digging the icon bearer as my fave.

As to numbers, whilst it would be nice to finish some things off, I'm just happy to be building again, and let's face it, choppin' and gluin' is always going to take priority over colour with me


What next? Not sure what you have on your pile at the moment, think we've had Nurgle, teenage alien football turtles, and some Gotham dudes all recently.

Here's the big thing, I think.

Variety. Not massive, harlequin-esque variety, but enough to draw attention to and highlight the desired detail.

For example- these guys are all crusty- great. But in order to off-set that, in order to really draw attention to 'They're crusty', why not try to add in a spot or two of highly-polished material? A bit of their armour that wore shiny, or a portion of gut or tentacle or bloated flesh that's smooth and glistening, in contrast to the rough and crumbly everything else.

Similarly, with the colors, having a scrap of 'still bright' somewhere would do a good job of emphasizing the muted nature of most of their surface- bright purple bruise, or orange rust, or a dribble of bright yellow puss running out of one of their ulcers.

You've got SOME blood there, but I feel it could be brighter, as a start. Maybe mix in a little white for puss.

Having those points of contrast (smooth, bright, clean) helps to emphasize the nature of the overall paintjob as well- it says "Look, I've deliberately made them look like this" instead of "I had a dodgy batch of primer and couldn't be bothered to fix it".

Gitsplitta wrote:Everything looks great Graven. I do like the crustyness... it's a nice effect rarely seen other than on bases.

Well, by accident, not design. But many thanks.

Gitsplitta wrote:Everything looks great Graven. I do like the crustyness... it's a nice effect rarely seen other than on bases.

Camkierhi wrote:Wonderful catching up on this blog, so much fantastic work. These crusty are amazing fantastic to see.

Thanks mate. And look after yourself, great to hear from you.

monkeytroll wrote:Lovely stuff

Definitely digging the icon bearer as my fave.

As to numbers, whilst it would be nice to finish some things off, I'm just happy to be building again, and let's face it, choppin' and gluin' is always going to take priority over colour with me


What next? Not sure what you have on your pile at the moment, think we've had Nurgle, teenage alien football turtles, and some Gotham dudes all recently.

Well a degree of chopping is certainly called for to make the rest of the Poxwalkers, but I'm waiting on some fantasy nurgle plague dudes for bits first. I love the icon bearer too. Proof of what you can do with a pile of assorted crap. My favourite

Anvildude wrote:Here's the big thing, I think.

Variety. Not massive, harlequin-esque variety, but enough to draw attention to and highlight the desired detail.

For example- these guys are all crusty- great. But in order to off-set that, in order to really draw attention to 'They're crusty', why not try to add in a spot or two of highly-polished material? A bit of their armour that wore shiny, or a portion of gut or tentacle or bloated flesh that's smooth and glistening, in contrast to the rough and crumbly everything else.

Similarly, with the colors, having a scrap of 'still bright' somewhere would do a good job of emphasizing the muted nature of most of their surface- bright purple bruise, or orange rust, or a dribble of bright yellow puss running out of one of their ulcers.

You've got SOME blood there, but I feel it could be brighter, as a start. Maybe mix in a little white for puss.

Having those points of contrast (smooth, bright, clean) helps to emphasize the nature of the overall paintjob as well- it says "Look, I've deliberately made them look like this" instead of "I had a dodgy batch of primer and couldn't be bothered to fix it".

I see where you're coming from. I think more blood and glistening tentacular goo is a very good shout. I think I've been so focused on saving them that I've lost sight of variety. Good shout!

Speaking of variety, some more terrain and so forth.

Decided to make some trapdoors. Sewers feel ridiculous sometimes in BMG, because they can go on rooftops also. So...

Bases and coffee stirrers. Simple but effective.

And new billboards, continuing the Batman Beyond aesthetic.




And finished the lazarus pit, at last

Working on it in situ.


And made another barricade.



Some RL stuff happened (nothing to see here, these aren't the droids you're looking for, move along).

So, I think I need to refocus my priorities.
What does this mean in real terms?

Probably less frequent updates, for one thing. Sometimes, I think dakka becomes as needy a form of self-validation for me as those idiotic Snapchat obsessives.

No more new toys for a while. Yes we've all heard it, and we've all said it. But, seriously, I have 160+ unpainted models on the shelf alone, certainly more than enough for every game I play.

No commission stuff. It's tempting, and flattering, but I'm not going to risk getting burned again. Plus, I want to paint for me, on my terms, to no-one else's deadline.

Less reviewing. Well, ish. No new companies, certainly.

And, slightly riskily, less time playing. Kids' activities have changed, so geek Tuesday is going to go for the foreseeable. Maybe it's a sign. Besides, I can just teach my kids - win-win, right?

Having sat on this for most of the day, I'm sure I'm doing the right thing. Time will tell, eh?
Best,
Graven

I can empathize graven, though not for exactly the same reasons. My blog went from a monster to almost non-existent... that wasn't an accident. However, in the ensuing years I think I've found a nice balance... but I made a promise to myself years ago never to skip out on anything I could do with my kids when the opportunity came. Life got better after that. Hobby time got better after that too.

Best of luck my friend.

I can fel your pain graven. Got sucked into battletech lately (at least that kept the costs down ), but I do feel the need to tone it downa bit as well.

Nice models as always, and we'll see updates when we see them!

Pretty pics

For the rest, sensible choices you make my friend.

Hobbies are part of our lives, our life is not a hobby. Focus on the right things and everything else becomes better too.

Good work on the Nurgl-iness, Billboards, Pit and Barricades.

All sounds sensible. Do what you must to keep the real world happy. We'll be here whenever you have time to indulge.

Oh yeah, models are looking good, love the trap door idea, brilliant and simple.

Gitsplitta wrote:I can empathize graven, though not for exactly the same reasons. My blog went from a monster to almost non-existent... that wasn't an accident. However, in the ensuing years I think I've found a nice balance... but I made a promise to myself years ago never to skip out on anything I could do with my kids when the opportunity came. Life got better after that. Hobby time got better after that too.

Best of luck my friend.

Thanks old son. You're an inspiration on many levels.

CommissarKhaine wrote:I can fel your pain graven. Got sucked into battletech lately (at least that kept the costs down ), but I do feel the need to tone it downa bit as well.

Nice models as always, and we'll see updates when we see them!

Took me a minute to realise you meant the computer game. And thanks.

Dr H wrote:Good work on the Nurgl-iness, Billboards, Pit and Barricades.

All sounds sensible. Do what you must to keep the real world happy. We'll be here whenever you have time to indulge.

Cheers mucker. Or should that be mucky?

Camkierhi wrote:

Spoiler:

Nothing is more important than family.

Though we are family too, maybe that weird smelly uncle that teaches you naughty jokes and gives you sly drinks. We are here, as I am finding out, you are all amazing. And most importantly do not judge us for prioritizing.

Funny, I often hear how this hobby is expensive, can steal away money. Yet I am poor and chose this hobby because I can go for months without spending a penny.

Rambling on a bit here, lost the plot somewhere back there, anyway I think I was trying to say, totally agree with you, right choices. Head down the rabbit hole is not good. Pull back a bit. As to numpties screwing you over...got an address? Smelly uncle is good for something else too! Above all things, take care of yourself and your beautiful family. Will look forward to seeing you about here when you can.

Oh yeah, models are looking good, love the trap door idea, brilliant and simple.

Cheers, thanks and you're not that smelly

Thanks all, in brief.

Variety continues to be the key. And I want to feel like I'm making progress... So I batch highlighted all my BMG and DCU stuff.

As you do.
Plus, finished Bane for #2's birthday.


Decided to paint my TIE silencer, as it's just been sitting there.


And no pics of this, but primed up Mr Freeze crew (final commissions for a looooooong time), Yndij team for Dreadball, this year's walking dead promo pack (Walker Rick!!) and plaguebearers with some brown primer, as a further experiment in coloured primers.

So quite a lot for cutting back. but actually it's just mixing things up, preparing to clear space and staying sane.

Cheers for everything, once more,
Graven

It’s a good thing to take stock time to time. I’m also glad everyone is sharing. Seriously I felt like a sobbing idjit for a long time moaning about what was happening to me/my family, I’m glad others feel “safe” enough to open up. I think time helps but you have it prioritized correctly. The kids will get excited I’m sure and you’ll get games in with them. Win-win as you said. The friend exploding...always difficult. Take notes. Seriously, then when he is busted up for real and asks what went wrong and starts blaming others you can snap him back with “but you said...let’s not kid ourselves and let’s get this worked out.”

I’m being a good stalker and watching....not being a good commenter though. Sorry.

Always good to see the variety your blog offers graven. Given my own current situation... it's very reassuring.

Theophony wrote:It’s a good thing to take stock time to time. I’m also glad everyone is sharing. Seriously I felt like a sobbing idjit for a long time moaning about what was happening to me/my family, I’m glad others feel “safe” enough to open up. I think time helps but you have it prioritized correctly. The kids will get excited I’m sure and you’ll get games in with them. Win-win as you said. The friend exploding...always difficult. Take notes. Seriously, then when he is busted up for real and asks what went wrong and starts blaming others you can snap him back with “but you said...let’s not kid ourselves and let’s get this worked out.”

I’m being a good stalker and watching....not being a good commenter though. Sorry.

Don't be daft mate. We all do our share of lurking and abbreviated commenting.
As for the opening up: there's an odd security here. It's the pseudo-anonymity, I think. BigGreenStompa very accurately observed that part of the problem with t'internet is that Anonymity breeds Aggression, but sometimes, for us, it can be enable empathy, also.
As for the friend ...

Gitsplitta wrote:Always good to see the variety your blog offers graven. Given my own current situation... it's very reassuring.

Cheers mate. Yeah, we need to mix things up to stay sane. Loving YouRTube

Speaking of mixing things up. It really annoys me how mono-pose the new DG Termies are. They're lovely models but there's very limited poseability. Some cutting required, I think.
The Plague Marines, fortunately, are a bit more varied. Before I build them, a bit of 8th logic needs applied, I think, so any advice gratefully received:
Currently, from DarkImp, I have 7, including a Champion with PF and Plague Sword, a Plasma Gunner, and my kitbash Icon Bearer with bolter.
From what I can deduce (and with good advice from Yorkright) I think a gun-blob unit and melee-blob ( I say blob - 7, because ) makes sense:
So, Gun Blob:
Champion with Plasma Gun (because he can take one, so why wouldn't you? - reckon I'll be converting this from a DarkImp guy, quick hand swap).
PM w Plasma Gun
PM w Blight Launcher
4x PMs w Bolter
7 gives me room for a bit of attrition, mixing a PG and BL gives me a little flexibility. I don't think they need an Icon Bearer (reduces LDR by 1 on enemy w/in 6") because although they're for taking and holding objectives, I'm not convinced it's as important on a run (well, steady walk) and gun unit.

Melee Blob
Champion with PF and Plague Sword
PM Icon Bearer with axe (this will require another hand swap, as he's got a bolter atm, but also allows me to take on board Anvildude's excellent point about bright splash colours).
5x PMs with various large melee weapons - a flail, a bubotic axe, and other assorted others.

Does that seem reasonable, mighty dakkasaurus? On the one hand, it loadout doesn't really matter - it's not like I actually play but on the other, you want it to work in theory, right? Right?!
Cheers,
graven

Hmm...I'm thinking that Bane could do with a bit of tinkering from the meks and doks, and a tinge of green......

I agree the pseudo-anonymity can be a help in opening up, peeps on here can be close enough to be considered friends (I still consider quite a few peeps here to be friends even after I've been absent for several years) but also have enough distance to not trigger false threat signals that so often prevent us from being open. I know back when I was diagnosed with depression I had no qualms about sharing it here before sharing with some of the people I know IRL. Although this is a hobby space, we do get to know something of each other, and it is healthy to share with our peers.


With the load-outs - no idea whatsoever as to what is even legal anymore, and I think I'm now at a point that I'm not really bothered. I always tried to ensure that I could field my toy soldiers if I ever came back to playing, and it may just be the long break that has changed that, but certainly with my current builds I only have the very vaguest idea of what they could be in-game. So, in short, can't help you there much

@ Theophony: like Inmygravenimage said: don't worry about it



Not a clue bout the loadouts, about to play like my 5th game of 8th ed; tonight, but it seems sensible to me . Bane is looking great, and loving the variety in here!

I like the intervention idea if you need to borrow the Tetsubo I’m making, I’ll just ask for postage and you clean it up before you send it back .

Can Deathguard use powerfists? I just read another post somewhere saying that they forgot how to use them even though the models come with them . I don’t 40k, so totally oblivious.

Tetsubos are outlawed in the UK, Theo. Cricket bats do well as a substitute

The hobby. I buy hobby related things twice per year, and only twice per year, as Christmas and Birthday gifts for myself. This effectively reduces all impulse purchases. Something to think about to cut back on spending. Make and keep a wish-list, and ruthlessly prune it. You may be surprised how much you remove after a few weeks or so.

Yes, more time with the family. I think I mentioned, somewhere, a friend who built his dream shop in his basement, then came to hate it quickly enough, because he was in it alone while his family was upstairs. So, he abandoned the shop and went back to the cramped desk in the family room.

The eternal struggle. The quest for balance. We all face it. Keep your chin up. All will be well. And those billboards look awesome.

Whoa I dont check in and Graven has done more incredible work, all of it looks quite gribbly when it needs to be and very DC comics too. Big compliments on Bane I absolutely love your take on him, wow is he a monster and well done to boot. As for slowing down why not, you pour yourself into this or any hobby and it can detract from what is most important in life. Recently I have take a break from painting 40k and have loved not worrying about having to have the latest and greatest thing for my DG (of course it is all still in boxes squirreled away but thats another story). Keep us updated as you need.

CommissarKhaine wrote:@ Theophony: like Inmygravenimage said: don't worry about it

Spoiler:

Sorry to hear about your friend; if he's blowing up stuff everywhere around him, have you considered a good old-fashioned intervention? We did with a friend of ours, got him to,open up about the real issues, helped getting him patched up afterwards.

Not a clue bout the loadouts, about to play like my 5th game of 8th ed; tonight, but it seems sensible to me . Bane is looking great, and loving the variety in here!

Tried an intervention, got nowhere unfortunately. So, I'm ignoring him for a bit. I'm hardly WAAC with 40k so I'm happy enough to just trust my plaguey gut

Theophony wrote:I like the intervention idea if you need to borrow the Tetsubo I’m making, I’ll just ask for postage and you clean it up before you send it back .

Can Deathguard use powerfists? I just read another post somewhere saying that they forgot how to use them even though the models come with them . I don’t 40k, so totally oblivious.

Yeah, they get them for filling your opponent's face with power pus.

Red Harvest wrote:Tetsubos are outlawed in the UK, Theo. Cricket bats do well as a substitute

The hobby. I buy hobby related things twice per year, and only twice per year, as Christmas and Birthday gifts for myself. This effectively reduces all impulse purchases. Something to think about to cut back on spending. Make and keep a wish-list, and ruthlessly prune it. You may be surprised how much you remove after a few weeks or so.

Yes, more time with the family. I think I mentioned, somewhere, a friend who built his dream shop in his basement, then came to hate it quickly enough, because he was in it alone while his family was upstairs. So, he abandoned the shop and went back to the cramped desk in the family room.

Very good advice on the twice a year thing. I'll hard think on that.

youwashock wrote:The eternal struggle. The quest for balance. We all face it. Keep your chin up. All will be well. And those billboards look awesome.

Cheers mucker yeah they were fun.

Yorkright wrote: Whoa I dont check in and Graven has done more incredible work, all of it looks quite gribbly when it needs to be and very DC comics too. Big compliments on Bane I absolutely love your take on him, wow is he a monster and well done to boot. As for slowing down why not, you pour yourself into this or any hobby and it can detract from what is most important in life. Recently I have take a break from painting 40k and have loved not worrying about having to have the latest and greatest thing for my DG (of course it is all still in boxes squirreled away but thats another story). Keep us updated as you need.

Thanks mate, I enjoyed Bane. As you'll see I'm happy to be back doing a spot of BMG generally.

What's been going on? Well, Joe's 8th birthday has made things a bit busy. Still, my wife is master of the dwarven cake forge:

Quest for balance indeed

Other than that, tidy ups and touch ups.
Redid the Icon Bearer to a more melee loadout:


And this chap got an upgrade:

Don't think the hand being swapped sides is noticeable, thanks to new GS fingers and grip flattened out.

And came up with a test scheme for my Yndij:

All natural muted colours for the tree hugging forest dwellers they are, with a couple of spots to pop. Yes there's a mould line, tough

And started on the 90s movie colour scheme Freeze Crew:

He wants the goons in mucky creamy white.

Freeze himself a bit further along.

That's me, move along now,
Graven

Someone wants to be reminded of that movie???

Infinity cake ftw, now if she can figure out how to make cake last for infinity....

No sign of a hand swap from here.

That cake is amazing. Once again your wife proves that she's the real "king of cakes".

That last guy reminds me of the Dr. Who episode "The Library".

monkeytroll wrote:Someone wants to be reminded of that movie???

Infinity cake ftw, now if she can figure out how to make cake last for infinity....

No sign of a hand swap from here.

Cake is almost entirely gone, alas,though the stones remain... anyway, my kids always get 2 cakes, one for the party, one for the day - reece' s peanut butter meltdown on the way

Gitsplitta wrote:That cake is amazing. Once again your wife proves that she's the real "king of cakes".

That last guy reminds me of the Dr. Who episode "The Library".

Vashta narada? scary stuff. Great episode. Yeah, he does a bit actually.

That cake is art of the highest quality.

Tried an intervention, got nowhere unfortunately. So, I'm ignoring him for a bit. I'm hardly WAAC with 40k so I'm happy enough to just trust my plaguey gut

Ah well, in that case I can only wish you strength!

That gauntlet-cake is pretty amazing. Oh, and the models are looking good as well!

youwashock wrote:That cake is art of the highest quality.

Tasty too

CommissarKhaine wrote:
That gauntlet-cake is pretty amazing. Oh, and the models are looking good as well!

Cheers, buddy.

Just touching base.
Got the Freeze crew done to my buddy's requirements.

<Insert ice pun here>

Apparently, KM are getting their act together again and sending me goodies. We'll see *shrugs* given that I'm scaling back, it's good and bad. Free toys, woo, but again too many toys brings out my worst tendencies. Am getting on with the Yndij, going ok. Not sure what's next, any suggestions gratefully received.
Best
Graven

The Freeze team looks awesome. I've never seein these in IRL, how do they scale up next to a circa 1996 GW Necromunda figure?

Looking good.