Secret Project Revealed

I am very excited to finally reveal to the diceRolla community the results of a secret project that I've been working on for most of the past year. Sorry to have kept so many of you in the dark about this while all the behind-the-scenes stuff was going on, I thought it would be more appropriate to keep quiet until everything was in place. So it now brings me incredible joy to introduce you to my newest gaming and painting buddy, Oswald Montgomery Jones!

Little Monty!

Ozzie (or Monty for you fans of The Simpsons) was born earlier this week on Monday and then my wife and I adopted him on Wednesday. Hopefully this explains at least somewhat why I have not been blogging as much as I used to. I've been rather preoccupied these last couple months. ;) With all that we had to do in order to become eligible and qualify for the adoption, I've had less time than usual for hobbying and blogging, though that was certainly a trade-off I was more than happy to make.

We'll be staying just across the border in South Carolina for the next couple of weeks as we await the legal authority to travel across state-lines with our new baby. During this time I don't have a lot to do other than taking care of Ozzie and our now three year old daughter, Cassidy, who is by the way very happy to be a big sister. :) Therefore I'm optimistic that I'll be able to post a few more times over the coming days about some of the gaming that I managed to squeeze in recently. Also I have with me a small stack of wargaming rulebooks to read, so if everything goes alright I might be able to review a couple of them as well. Of course I'll likely be delirious from a lack of sleep but that's never stopped me before.... Here is what I have on hand to help pass the time:

5150 - Star Army

Larger Than Life

Adventures in the Lost Lands

Strange Aeons

Von Unaussprechlichen Kulten (BETA)

Fear and Faith

Pulp City

Heavy Gear Blitz!

Songs of Our Ancestors

If anyone is particularly interested in hearing more about any of these games, let me know and I'll put it (or them) at the top of the list for examination and discussion. I've already started testing out Strange Aeons and so far I'm thoroughly enjoying the game. It feels like it was written especially for me as it hits all the right buttons, being a skirmish-level game based on the Cthulhu Mythos, and I suspect that it will become a big part of my hobby life once things settle down again. Therefore I'll likely start the reviews with Strange Aeons unless someone would prefer me to begin elsewhere.

Okay friends, that's it for now. If you want to check out the beginning of what promises to be a cool series about another secret Mystery Project (and one that is actually intended to benefit fellow bloggers too!), you can go check out Thor's blog Creative Twilight. Here's the link for that: Mystery Project WIP. So until next time, happy painting and gaming!!

CoA Flyers Finished

Okay, they're not completely 100% finished yet. I still need to spray them with varnish but otherwise I've now painted the Ptolemy Class Bombers and the Tiny Flyer tokens that come in the Covenant of Antarctica naval box. The bombers look a lot like they did the last time I showed them on the blog, having only added highlights to the metal areas, the orange canopies and windows, and the glowing green rotor blades. It's all pretty subtle though so the changes might not be noticeable in these pictures. I love these models and am quite happy with how they tuned out.

Ptolemy Class Bomber Squadron

The giggle-inducing CoA Tiny Flyer tokens however look fairly different from how they did last night. I took some good advice and pressed on with my plan, painting through my momentary hobby panic. I am thankful that I did as these Tiny Flyers ended up looking nicer than I had expected, likely better than they would have had I not botched my original color scheme. As for the glowing coil that makes up each drone's midsection, I opted in favor of expedience and decided not to repaint anything, instead leaving them as a mix of colors to denote what type of tokens they represent.

I have to say that the green ones are still my favorites of the bunch. I agree that having them all the same glowing green color would help to visually tie together everything in my fleet, but for now I am willing to forego that level of consistency in appearance. I may want to paint all my future drones with green coils but I can accept this first batch as they are. Also this way it might be easier for me to keep straight the different types of flyers as I learn the game. Nonetheless at this point I think having all of them with green coils and squadron markings on the wings or wingtips would look the best. I'll save that however for another day as I would rather continue on to the next part of this project.

Fighter Plane Squadrons

Dive Bomber Squadron

Recon Plane Squadron

I was going to work longer on the bases of these tokens but then ultimately chose to keep them very simple and plain. At first I wanted to try to blend and stipple over the top of the bases several various shades of grey to hopefully mimic a cloudy, overcast sky. While I think that could have looked really cool, there's also a good chance I would have just made an awful mess. Therefore I wanted to make the bases seem as unobtrusive and neutral as possible.

So moving right along I hope to finish painting the three squadrons of Diogenes Class Frigates either tonight or else early tomorrow. I may try to magnetize the turrets for the rest of my ships but I currently don't have enough magnets for anything other than the Pericles Class Fleet Carrier. I'm having a lot of fun working on my Covenant of Antarctica miniatures and overall feel good about the color scheme for this fleet. It could be premature but I am also starting to think about what I would like to collect as a second, rival fleet to go up against my South Pole scientists. It will be tough to choose as I like just about equally each of the four other major powers in Dystopian Wars. If anyone is particularly partial to one of them, I would love to hear the reasons why.

For now though I suppose I should just keep on painting. Goodnight!

QuickPic - Hundred Years Project

I just snapped this photo a few minutes ago of some 15mm Hundred Years War miniatures by Corvus Belli. These guys are for my HYW: English army for the fast-play historical wargame, de Bellis Antiquitatis. I have an element of four billmen almost fully painted and ready for basing, after which I'll have finished all of the support and optional pieces for the army. Not too shabby considering it's only taken me, um... 3+ years to get this far. :)

Next up will be six elements of deadly accurate longbowman who form the core of the army. I then plan on painting the three elements of mounted knights and their dismounted counterparts. Finally I'll wrap things up with a camp and possibly a separate element of camp followers, though I might model them as part of the camp itself. Since I'm saving that for last, however, I have plenty of time to think it over.

Happy painting and gaming... goodnight!

Dark Angels Dreadnought

More than a year and a half ago I was working on a Space Marine Dreadnought whom I named Brother Abraxos. He was to be part of a Dark Angels' 6th Company army project that was shelved not too long after I'd finished painting this model. At the time I made a few WIP updates about him but then never got around to posting about the finished model. It's time therefore that I correct this oversight by sharing some pictures of my Dreadnought that I took back in January, 2010. Having patiently waited for such an introduction, I feel it is his due. Here then is Brother Abraxos....

I've had very little experience working with magnets and so even the straightforward task of magnetizing the arms for this Dreadnought was a challenge. I made a few mistakes concerning their polarity but was able to fix them without too much frustration. Reassuringly I have since learned better ways to keep the magnets properly oriented. I'm happy that the arms turned out well enough although the alignment on one or two of them is slightly askew. Not that it really matters though as they are still usable and look fine to me.

I enjoyed painting this Dreadnought but perhaps not as much as I thought I would. Nonetheless I really like how the model turned out and am grateful for the experience, especially in overcoming my hesitancy about using magnets. Overall I think this was a fun and worthwhile project. Unfortunately my interest in continuing with the rest of the Dark Angels army gradually fizzled and I moved on to other things. If I ever do return to those plans, one reason will likely be so that I can make better use of Brother Abraxos, but for now that's not sufficient motivation.

Then again, if the rumors are correct about the Dark Angels receiving some extra attention with the anticipated arrival of 6th Edition, perhaps that will provide the spark needed to reignite my interest in the Unforgiven. I suppose I'll just wait and see what happens, and of course in the meantime there is never a lack of minis that I am eager to paint. Speaking of which, I believe it's time I went back to my brushes for a bit of late evening painting. Goodnight!

Flashbacks and Nightmares - Ork Painboy and Squig

While searching for some missing paintbrushes earlier I came across one of my favorite old GW minis from back in the day. It's been something of a bust on the hobby and painting front today so for now I'd just like to share a few photographs of that old miniature, a rather archaic Ork Painboy. I'm not exactly sure when he was in production but I'd guess it was around twenty or so years ago. Likewise I don't know how old I was when I painted this one but evidently I was still rather new to techniques such as highlighting and even thinning one's paints. Thus he is a prime candidate for another edition of Flashbacks and Nightmares, in which I take a nostalgic look at examples of my painting past, both for a sense of perspective but perhaps more importantly for some simple facepalm-inducing fun.

So this Ork Painboy has for some reason always seemed really cool to me in that goofy old school Ork sort of way. I also remember well how much fun I had painting him and displayed him proudly for many years on my bookshelf. Even considering the more simplistic style of sculpting back then compared to what we have become accustomed, I think this model still has a lot of neat little details to enjoy. Looking at his gruesome range of doctoring implements, it's easy to see why this caste of Orks became known as Painboyz. The bone saw is great, as are his many knives, cleavers, and clamps. My favorite part of the miniature however is the doctor's head mirror that he wears. It has always amused me that an Ork doctor would be concerned about something as trivial as proper lighting.

As was the case with many Ork personality blister packs, also included with the Painboy was a randomly selected squigly beast. Over the years squigs have become essentially standardized in their shape and appearance, but in olden times there was a very wide assortment of squigs which took on many different forms. Some were pretty nasty looking and may have even seemed like the dangerous little monsters that they were supposed to be. Others, however, appeared rather less ferocious....

Now that's just weird. This particular squiggly beast could be one of the most bizarre and pointless miniatures Games Workshop has ever produced. It should be no wonder then that I am so fond of it. Due to it's standout nature, this squig has been a central focus for numerous homebrew scenarios and has served as an objective marker countless other times. Indeed it's possible that this horribly ridiculous squig has been used in more of my games of 40k than perhaps any other miniature. Not quite up to the usual Grim Dark standard, is he?

Hmm... it seems that I've run out of steam this evening and need to wrap this up. It's been a long day and I'm beat, although I've really enjoyed looking back on this classic GW Ork miniature and his less-than-classic companion squig. I find it quite interesting to see how things have developed and changed over the years. If there are any old minis that you remember fondly for whatever reason, please feel free to leave a comment telling me which ones were your favorites. Otherwise I hope everyone had a great weekend filled with plenty of gaming glory.

Goodnight!

QuickPic - Lord of the Feast

Today I unpacked my Hordes miniatures for the first time after the move and was relieved to see that all of them held up quite well to the jostling. A couple of smaller pieces popped off of one of the unpainted Cyclops Savages but otherwise everyone appears to be in good condition. Phew! Also I noticed a few areas here and there that will need touching up but again it doesn't look like it will take much to fix 'em.

So after inspecting all the models I couldn't help but play around a little and take some pictures of them. Even though he's been seen on this blog a few other times, this Lord of the Feast is still one of my favorite minis to photograph. I hope you don't mind me posting him again, I kind of like the way this one turned out.

Hmm... I wonder what he's pointing at.

Oh well, goodnight!

Flashbacks and Nightmares: Stone Trolls

Since the new Orcs and Goblins book was just released this weekend, I thought it would be a good time to take a look at one of my old O&G units, a mob of Stone Trolls. I don't remember exactly when I painted these but suspect it was around the mid to late 1990s. Along with being influenced by the more colorful period of Games Workshop's stylistic history, apparently I was also in a rather experimental mood when painting them. I wanted to do something different from the norm for Stone Trolls, which I'd say I achieved handily, though whether the results were worth it or not I leave for you to judge. While I am fond of these miniatures in a nostalgic way, my assessment of them leans more toward hideous....

Now for a closer look at the individual trolls... yikes! I do however like those bases right down to the classic Goblin Green edges.

This mob of Stone Trolls is lead by an Orc Big Boss but I'm not sure if that would still be allowed by today's rules. I admit to really liking this miniature and think it's a good example of the outright silliness that used to be fairly common in GW designs at the time.

So that's it for this look at some of my old miniatures, I hope you enjoyed it. I really admire creative and innovative color schemes but there is a certain risk when straying from the tried and tested. Not every experiment can be a success, after all. Nonetheless I do like these trolls but if I had to paint them over again I would likely go with a more conventional approach. I would not, however, change a thing on the Big Boss as I especially like the brightly colored skulls on his wrist and orange belt buckle. The sides of his bracelet which you can't see in these pictures have a green skull facing to the right and a red one looking back. Taste the rainbow!

As evidenced by these pictures, this was my first attempt at using a lightbox photo studio thing. Along with getting some brighter lights there's obviously still much for me to learn regarding miniatures photography. It is my good fortune then that just earlier today I saw Nesbet of Nesbet Miniatures has posted what looks to be a very helpful tutorial on this exact subject. Part 1 of the tutorial even has instructions for making your own portable lightbox and photo studio. Awesome! Part 2 looks at correcting common mistakes made when photographing miniatures, and Part 3 is about photo editing. Good stuff if you're interested in that sort of thing... thanks, Nesbet!

Knights of Bal Timorea, the Finale!

I just returned home from staying out at the beach for the last several days with my family so I'm now catching up on all the exciting hobby goings-on I missed while disconnected. Right away I am delighted to learn that Alex of One Inch Warrior has won the drawing for the Knights of Bal Timorea project. Congratulations, Alex... hooray! Along with the big announcement last Thursday SC John of Santa Cruz Warhammer also posted some awesome pictures of all the entries to the contest. Seeing them together is really cool indeed. I'm grateful to all the other participants and had a fantastic time working on my knightly submission, this was easily one of my favorite hobby projects from last year.

I hope there are more opportunities to participate in community projects like this in future, this was a lot of fun and also a nice little diversion from the usual routine. Thanks again to everyone involved and to Santa Cruz Warhammer guys for issuing the call to arms. Woo-hoo!

Sir Cumference rides again! Only now he has joined company with a glory-hungry band of knights... happy questing, fellas!

Knights of Bal Timorea, Part 4

I am happy to report Sir Cumference has finally begun his long journey to the land of California. Safe travels, friend! I finished painting him a couple of nights ago but was not able to get him in the mail until earlier today so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he arrives on time. Seems my original confidence that I'd finish with plenty of time to spare was rather unwarranted. I'll never learn, will I?

From beginning to end this project was a blast and I'm really happy I decided to participate in The Knights of Bal Timorea. Despite the misgivings I had along the way about the color scheme and concept I had chosen, I'm now quite pleased with my contribution to the group. There are certainly things I wish I could have done better but there are as well some parts of the mini that turned out much better than I had hoped. Also I learned at least a few new techniques that should be helpful in the future so I'd say this was a success. Hooray!

I mentioned back in Part 1 of this series that my inspiration for Sir Cumference was the villainous black knight of the same name seen in the 1946 cartoon, A Knight for a Day. This is the reason why I went with a predominantly black color scheme. I knew right away that I wanted his heraldry to be the letter pi but there were a number of variants that I had considered. Ultimately I decided to keep it as simple as possible knowing even that would be challenge enough for me. My aim with the green background for this heraldry was to be reminiscent of a chalkboard in math class upon which the symbol has been written. I hoped the black would reinforce this Old School Chalkboard feeling and compliment the simple aesthetic I had in mind for the miniature.

I decided to go with red for the helmet's dragon crest because I thought the extra bit of color would be nice since the rest of the model is quite dark overall. Also at one point my goal was to have Sir Cumference finished by Christmas so the red and green helmet seemed at the time appropriately festive. My final reason for choosing to paint the dragon red is that amongst the knickknacks on my painting desk is this little fellow seen to the left whom I picked up decades ago during a family vacation. I thought it would be neat to pay respect to him as one of my longtime painting buddies and to incorporate a little more of myself into the project.

Like I said I'm really happy with how my miniature turned out and look forward to seeing him ranked up with the rest of the entries. That being said I am now a little sad to let him go, though I know I must as it is his destiny. It is the journey for which he was born.

And so with that Sir Cumference and his faithful steed, the warhorse Diameter, set off for distant lands in search of glory. Happy questing, brave knight. Farewell!

Citadel Woods Finished

Even though it took me a couple weeks longer to finish painting this group of Citadel Woods than I'd originally planned, I am still very happy and am quite satisfied with how they turned out. So much so that I decided to have some fun taking pictures of them today. I painted the miniatures seen in the following photos at least 15 years ago, but the trees were not finished until 3am this morning. Actually before going to bed I went to put my new terrain pieces away and promptly dropped two trees, snapping off a number of branches and breaking a few leaves. It was therefore another hour before I had everything repaired which made for an exciting conclusion to my late night hobby session.

I love this terrain kit! I think Games Workshop did a fantastic job on it and I look forward to working on my next batch of Citadel Woods perhaps sometime in the coming weeks, though likely not until the new year considering all the projects I'm juggling. I have another three sets of Woods still unassembled which I will paint in the same fashion as these. I like this scenery so much, however, that I now would like to eventually get a couple more kits to be painted as burned up sections of forest that have seen heavy fighting. I think that would introduce some nice variety to the collection and would look pretty cool as well.

That's all for later, though. Regarding the matter at hand, here are some pictures of my newly completed terrain pieces:

Citadel Woods #1

Citadel Woods #2

Citadel Woods #3

A surprise encounter.

"Look out, he's right behind you!"

"Artillery's hard work, lads, so be grateful for the shade."

The garrison was alert for any potential threats...

... but they still didn't stand a chance.

"Hi, I'm a wizard. I wear sensible shoes."

All the [miniature] world's a stage...

These trees were a real joy to paint and it's nice knowing that they'll be of use no matter how much jumping I do from one army project to another. I'm not sure what this coming week will be like for my hobby activities as Thanksgiving is on Thursday, but I will nonetheless endeavor to get in as much hobby time as RealLife allows. If you can't tell by my choice of subject matter in tonight's photos, I've had Warhammer Fantasy on my mind recently so that will likely receive a fair share of my attention.

That's all for tonight... happy painting and gaming, everyone!