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This month was the Open Round. Subject to the normal rules, but paint whatever your heart desires. This is a busy month for a lot of people so paint what you have time for. Have a hobby related New Year’s resolution you need to do a few more models for? Now’s the time! Let’s finish 2025 off with some fun and amazing entries!

As always, you're free to hand out as many votes as you like, and for any entry you feel deserves recognition, based on anything from technical proficiency or model choice, a neat conversion or a cool take on the theme, or anything else! You're also very welcome to leave some feedback here for the entrants, and many of the images click through to the Dakka gallery if you'd like to give out a vote or two there as well. Images in the Dakka gallery are less compressed then the ones in the vote thread, so can get you a better look at details.

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Mothsniper - Garaz-Ngol Golems


Daia T'Nara - Christmas Marine


tzurk - Tonks


inmygravenimage - Festive Bloodbowl


Ezki – Wenena


Mr Nobody - Green Christmas


JoshInJapan - Grubb Street Ne'er Do Wells


bong264 - The Golden Paladin



john_chandler - Kil-More Girls


Geifer - Hera Syndulla


Pariah Press - Robotech Mecha


Captain Brown - Necromunda Goliath Ganger


Vejut - Lyran Guard


ZergSmasher - Tomb Kings Skeleton Horse Archers


Syro_ - Dreadnoughts


Olthannon – Suffer not the Alien...


XvArcanevX - The Three Amigos


Piousservant - Red Terror


Nevelon – Jump Sergent


Flinty – Terminators


Midget Gems - Ork Santa


Maharg - Dwarf Warriors

A great set of completions. Well done all!

LOT of entries this month...well done everyone, hope you enjoyed some downtime over the holiday period as well as powering through these minis!

Some feedback below -

Mothsniper - great OSL, nice metallics, and a super fun build/conversion! Well done mane! Doing all the tiny runes in gold would have driven me crazy.

Daia T'nara - super festive, lovely skintones, and again doing the freehand along with the colours on the jewelry requires an incredible amount of patience/control. Above my paygrade - very impressive.

inmygravenimage - love the mix you've chosen for your final photos, classic scrimmage here. Reminds me I need to dig out my human bloodbowl team and get cracking,

Ezki - a very ambitious project, but you've let nobody down here - beautiful paintjob, amazing handiwork, an end result to be proud of - and I'm sure the recipients are very happy with.

Mr Nobody - same goes - great creativity and colourwork at work here, and something you'll get to have fun with for years on end!

JoshInJapan - I think I said it in the WIP thread, but lovely work balancing the brights and the neutrals here to really make them feel like lived-in medieval folk.

bong264 - I also think I said this in the WIP thread, but I love the mixed metallics here and the bold cloth - reads as a classic fairytale hero.

john_chandler - I'm a big fan of the mixed/individualised colour schemes here. They're a cohesive unit with their own personal flavour. Great work on the camo cloak and the purple metallics.

Geifer - an amazing base, eyes/mouth, and freehand on the head tentacles! she's gorg and makes me want to play SW:TOR all over again.

Pariah Press - nice, clean minis, but I am most impressed with the photography/backdrops! I am usually a big fan of scenic bases but the plain black here helps drop them right into the cityscape. Would love to play a game with these!

Captain Brown - hasta la vista, baby. Clean dirty work as always CB and the old metals will always hold a soft spot in my heart.

Vejut - the halved scheme really pulls together over a massed force, and the weathering/lenses really help make the details stand out. Your workspace always makes me excited to see what comes out of it next!

Zergsmasher - beautiful old minis with a lovely contemporary paintjob. Smooth work on the bones (90% of the minis ), neat bases and the right amount of colour to make them pop while maintaining cohesion. Great work.

Syro_ - I'm a big fan of your scratchbuilds and these boxy boys are no exception. Wouldn't want to get in the way of a swing or a blast from either of them - I definitely feel the weight of the old castroferrum (or is it ferrocastrum??) dreads in these guys!

Olthannon - can't fault the dedication to inspiration and the creativity of the conversion work here. The colourshift on the mask and the clever highlighting of the mail sell this for me.

XvArcanevX - said "WOW" out loud at these - they look like a render. Amazing smooth blends on the skin that contrast really well with the sharp pops of colour and highlighting on the rock/gems. Beautiful work.

Piousservant - Sweet old mini, sweet old colouscheme, neat base. Can't wait to see the rest of the force painted up to match!

Nevelon - your snow bases always pop, and the face/lens on this guy hold up to max zoom scrutiny. Well done.

Flinty - more halved schemes, well executed! something I've always been too scared to try. The firing effect on the assault cannon comes across really strong and I love the extra interest of the multiple colour/power lines on the basing.

Midget Gems - hitting the marks for festivity, while also managing some neat shading and highlighting on red - which is never an easy feat! I did a lil double take at the sketch/engraving on the base as it looked at first glance like Santork had two sacks... 8-)

Maharg - love the natural look of these guys and the way you've mixed up the theme colours between them. a whole block of these guys together would be WD worthy.

Well done everyone, thanks for sharing, and I'll see you in January's thread! 8-)

 tzurk wrote:


"WOW" out loud at these - they look like a render. Amazing smooth blends on the skin that contrast really well with the sharp pops of colour and highlighting on the rock/gems. Beautiful work.

Wow! Was just about to start typing up some feedback and saw this! I am sincerely grateful for the awesome comments you left me! Honestly, I had bought these models close to the start of my painting journey (couple of years ago now) and saved them until I felt I could reproduce some of the great examples I’d seen online. That time had arrived and I was determined to try and achieve bright and vivid colours and, as you mention, smooth transitions. The fact you compliment the work on exactly those points is music to my ears and brings a big smile to my face.


Thankyou for leaving such encouraging feedback. It’s very appreciated

 tzurk wrote:

john_chandler - I'm a big fan of the mixed/individualised colour schemes here. They're a cohesive unit with their own personal flavour. Great work on the camo cloak and the purple metallics.

Aww, thank you for the feedback. Much appreciated, especially as it's the first time I've entered and was pretty nervous about it.

Feedback time:

Mothsniper: Great use of materials for the kitbashing! The glowing hot axe blade and reflections are nice too. I also really like the use of colours and the attention to detail picking out the symbols and runes. Really nice!

Daia T’Nara: Very festive for sure. Lovely work on the face and I like the colourful bracelet!

Tzurk: Really nice choice of colours here and the weathering effects on the tanks are really lovely! Did you use oils? Looks great!

Inmygravenimage: Really careful attention to detail on the picking out the details on some of these. Very nice. Can I ask though, did you use a satin varnish… the minis seem a little, um, glossy. In particular I’m noticing it on the fabrics, which would probably be a little better with a more Matt finish. Still, nice work!

Ezki: Beautiful little miniature in a lovely context. Love the ethereal hues on the character; really sells the ‘deep sea realm’ feel. Wonderful reflective blue tones on the skin too. Also, the fish rocks. My pick for the month’s best!

Mr Nobody: Another bauble, another stand out of the month. Honestly this is nicely painted with clearly defined and readable outlines. Lovely work on the whites too, giving them plenty of contrast so the texture of the suit pops. Just a cool entry.

JoshinJapan: The work on the fabrics here is lovely. Very nice work on the faces too. Very nice!

Bong264: Nice poppy colours here. Good work. The fabrics look a little glossy though, did you use a satin on the mini?

John_Chandler: Nice job picking out all the details, and good work on the leather areas. The colours seem a little muted on these guys though, and maybe a few edge highlights might help to make the figures more readable. Good work though. Like em!

Geifer: Nice job on the fabrics here and the goggles and eyes are great. Good work!

Pariah Press: Nice and clean paintjob here. The jets are great!

Captain Brown: The work on the skintone on this is great. Very rich hues and deep shadows. I really like it. In fact, the colours all pop on this guy. Nice job.

Vejut: Really like the two tone scheme here… and the yellow visors go with that scheme perfectly.

Zergsmasher: Great job picking out all the little greebly details… seriously. Every time I see skeleton I just think ‘Jason and the Argonauts’. Man, I hope Nolan delivers the magic he is capable of in The Odyssey this year. Annnyway, nice job.

Syro: Nice work picking out the banner… was that hand painted? Might I suggest some sharp edge highlights on this guy… it would really help to bring out the form of this little machine! Something like a blue tinted grey… maybe Dawnstone by Citadel?

Olthannon: Nice use of colours here and the steel ‘skirt’ is great.

Piousservant: Nice contrast between the carapace and skintone on this. Good work.

Nevelon: Really nice work on this. Very sharp and readable, good work on the flesh tones and the details all pop; in particular the eye lens and the lovely plasma glow. Love it.

Flinty: Man, I love the two tone scheme on these guys. Lovely and striking colours. The glow on the weapons is great too. Great work.

Midget Gems: Wonderful mini very well painted. Beautiful and rich colours and the details are clear and easy to read. A very nice entry, one of my favs.

Maharg: Beautiful minis with a wonderful paint job. The work on the flesh is lovely and the shading on the metals very effective. I also really like the gemstone on the helmet…. Very nicely done. One of the best.

Right, I think that is everyone. Congratulations to all for painting something and I wish you a great year ahead!

 XvArcanevX wrote:

John_Chandler: Nice job picking out all the details, and good work on the leather areas. The colours seem a little muted on these guys though, and maybe a few edge highlights might help to make the figures more readable. Good work though. Like em!

Thanks, and the feedback is much appreciated. Cheers!

 tzurk wrote:
LOT of entries this month...well done everyone, hope you enjoyed some downtime over the holiday period as well as powering through these minis!
Mothsniper - great OSL, nice metallics, and a super fun build/conversion! Well done mane! Doing all the tiny runes in gold would have driven me crazy.

Thanks man. tiny golden runes are GreenStuffWorld - Dwarven Runes and Symbols Photo-etched brass, not free hand


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 XvArcanevX wrote:
Feedback time:
Mothsniper: Great use of materials for the kitbashing! The glowing hot axe blade and reflections are nice too. I also really like the use of colours and the attention to detail picking out the symbols and runes. Really nice!

Thank you. For the red I used Red-Enamel paint, much brighter than the acrylic.
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Awesome job guys, A lot of work has been done.

For me
First place is:
Maharg - Dwarf Warriors
Because dwarfs are the best, obviously. An ez autowin.

Second is:
Ezki – Wenena
Because love to see industrious ideas come to life with skill. The possibilities are endless.

tzurk - Tonks
Because Bill would be proud, and I am inspiered to make me self some Tonks.

And XvArcanevX - Way too crispy, so good.