tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65799040284270321332024-03-14T07:25:56.766+10:00This Miniature Life...Little soldiers and the art of war.Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-7654225300930661672010-02-20T18:35:00.002+10:002010-02-20T18:47:12.392+10:00Polemos - NapoleonicsA quick note on Polemos while I think about it. Not really a review, just some thoughts.<br /><br />First thought. I think the approach of the rule mechanics. So much so that I thinking (somewhat idly) about another period from Baccus. The Seven Year War is looking interesting as is the War of the Spanish Succession.<br /><br />Second thought. 6mm figures are a lot to paint. I made a mistake in buying sooooo many infantry in one go. Now after painting a large Russian army for Flames of War I though I had my production line techniques sorted, but these little guys really tested it. I am trying to figure out how many I painted but it must be in the order of 800 infantry alone!<br /><br />To be fair it is more of a colouring-in exercise than truly painting (though there are some 6mm artists out there), but still.<br /><br />The figures are actually quite cheap. It is just the investment in time.<br /><br />By the way - 6mm figures on the Polemos 60x30mm bases look <span style="font-weight: bold;">fantastic</span>. No doubt. Pictures to come.<br /><br />Third thought. The rules are really pretty simple. They play well and are, all-in-all, easy to learn. There are ambiguities - as expected - but so far common sense has generally cut through the problem and we have moved on.<br /><br />I have now played two real games and I am still on the learning curve - and I can feel that curve flattening off already. Really nice work - considering my new found requirements for simple, playable and good games that can be retained between monthly games..<br /><br />Recommended. Check them out at <a href="http://www.baccus6mm.com/">Baccus miniatures</a>.Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-79419973204080171322010-02-20T18:00:00.003+10:002010-02-21T11:37:20.835+10:00Thought of the DayI was reading the latest White Dwarf today and made an interesting observation. Don't worry, I have not turned back to the Dark Side.<br /><br />I was reading a battle report for some Warhammer Fantasy Battles game and realised that they pretty much just crashed into each other after an initial setup phase. Now while this might be typical for Warhammer Fantasy (it was pretty much tactica de jour in 40k) it struck me as odd. Why? I have started playing 6mm grand tactical or strategy games. At this scale - on the same sized table - manoeuvre is necessary, but also an important part of the battle. This sort of manoeuvring is what really tips the advantage. The combat plays out in a pretty straightforward fashion. After all - how detailed can you get when one base represents an infantry battalion?<br /><br />This follows on from a related discussion on the 6mm Yahoo group about initiative mechanics in rules, and the relevance of these rules to reality. There were various positions being taken, but the thing I took away was that historically position (and the prior manoeuvring) often gave the initiative.<br /><br />So we come back to the Warhammer Fantasy battle report and by association 40k. I now understand something that has been bothering me about the Games Workshop rules. The bulk of the "manoeuvring" is represented by the initial placement and so represents two forces that have just made contact. Not necessarily contact with sharp and pointy things, but enough contact to draw up battle lines. Any remaining manoeuvring is cramped and somewhat incidental I think. I may be underselling the GW stuff a little here, but it does seems a little contrived now. As a result games are decided by the will of dice - not particularly <span style="font-style: italic;">tactical or strategic</span>, other than a rock/paper/scissors style stacking of odds.<br /><br />The realisation for me - was that I appreciate the opportunity to manoeuvre prior to contact. Whereas Warhammer Fantasy & 40k put you in the position of T-1 turn before first fighting, a ruleset like Polemos can give you 5 or 10 or more turns before contact. Plenty of time to consolidate position or drive some advantage. Now I appreciate this may prolong a game, but to me it seems preferable to grunt-rushing the enemy.<br /><br />I like it. :)<br /><br />[[includes some minor edits for readability]]Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-59598237927171242382009-09-28T14:17:00.002+10:002009-09-28T16:04:04.316+10:00InterrugnumIt has been a long time since I posted. So long some people prodded me about the lack of recent posts.<br /><br />So suitably chastened and with some spare time, a new post.<br /><br />The absence has largely been due to a lack of things to report. Lacking motivation and inspiration I have not been painting anything. What shook me out of my wargaming funk was a game of <a href="http://www.wingsofwar.it/list.asp">Wings of War</a>. I have been playing the free rules, with a house rule or two and have had an absolute blast. I played the full rules once or twice and apart from the damage cards, I think it pushed it a bit past optimum playability.<br /><br />The game mechanics are so simple and easy to learn that you end up focusing on the tactics - dogfighting WWI aircraft. This is not to say that it is an easy game to <span style="font-style: italic;">master</span>, just an easy game to <span style="font-style: italic;">learn</span>. This is what makes the game so good and a real revelation for me, coming in from DBM, WH40k, FoW and so on. For the first time a while I was enjoying the <span style="font-style: italic;">playing</span> of games, as much as I normally enjoy the painting. Reminds me of something the <a href="http://toofatlardies.co.uk/">Too Fat Lardies</a> say: play the period, not the rules.<br /><br />Some more on WoW in a later post.<br /><br />Now I should point out that I still enjoy playing NUTS!, but I am a bit worn out with WW2. Seem to have been playing that for ages and was getting a bit stale.<br /><br />One of the BIG clubs members posted some news about an award nomination for the Songs of Drums and Shakos (aka SDS) rules from <a href="http://ganeshagames.blogspot.com/">Ganesha Games</a>. In short Napoleonic skirmish rules that have a good simple mechanic that delivers a good game. These are definitely at the "game" end of the "game-simulation" spectrum. But if you are like me - you want to get in a few games in a club day, not spend most of your time with your nose in a rule book. I picked up the basic mechanics in about two rounds of play and otherwise had to look up a couple of factors from a sheet from time to time.<br /><br />As a result of playing a couple of games I have a set of figures on the table from the Peninsula period. I have:<br /><ul><li>French Voltigeurs</li><li>French Old Guard (these guys are terrors on the table :)</li><li>Black Watch Highlanders</li><li>Portuguese Cacadores<br /></li></ul>I have some pictures in the camera, so more about these figures and their paint job in the future. :)<br /><br />These rules are available as online PDF purchases and are great value. The interest in these rules has spawned a broader interest in the Ganesha Games rules. So at the club we now have people playing Songs of Blades and Heroes (SBH), which are the original rules and are a fantasy set. The Mutants and Death Ray Guns (MDRG) has also proved popular for general sci-fi (with some adaption), inlcuding a few Dr Who games. :) I have certainly found some new uses for my idle WH40k figures.<br /><br />The SDS rules introduced me to Napoleonics in general and as such I also got interested in the grand tactical scale of game. The <a href="http://meeples.wordpress.com/">Meeples and Miniatures</a> blog has taken a look at the Polemos rules for this period. Normally a skirmish gamer, the M&M blogger has taken well to <a href="https://www.baccus6mm.com/index.php?content=products/publications&detail=publications">Polemos Napoleonics</a>, a 6mm rule set, which was encouraging for me. So on that note and a couple of other reviews I bought the rule book for a proper look. I liked what I saw and I knocked out a set of cardboard commandos for intro gaming.<br /><br />A couple of games later and I think it is a good game. The manoeuvring is slower and the combat is more decisive than I expected. That said the rules seem to give the correct feeling for the period (noting that I am a period newbie) and an appropriate level of detail for a commander - be it of a corps or an army. So with a partner in crime I now have a set of 6mm <a href="https://www.baccus6mm.com/index.php?content=products/napoleonic&detail=napoleonics">British</a> (and Portuguese) figures from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peninsular_War">Peninsula</a> to play against his French. They have only just arrived, but there will be plenty of material about their painting in the future. 6mm should be... <span style="font-style: italic;">interesting</span>.Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-90285063086327204252009-02-14T10:23:00.002+10:002009-02-14T10:45:33.060+10:00NUTS!Once again it has been a while since I have posted. I blame work. Again.<br /><br />Anyway at the last club day I managed to get in two games of <a href="http://www.angelfire.com/az3/twohourwargames/nuts.htm">NUTS!</a> using my Russian and partially painted Germans (pictures of them soon).<br /><br />Apart from the usual fumbling with new rules it went very well. The second game was very quick as the reaction tables were quite easy to remember. We got the usual number of rules wrong which changed the game subtly I am sure, but all in all it worked out very well. The main rule we missed was setup time for a moved LMG. As a result we had guys bouncing around the table like Arnie, shooting from the hip with MG-42's and DP-28's. A bit funny when you think about it.<br /><br />Funniest event of the game was a misthrown grenade by the Germans, that somehow managed to ricochet of a Russian helmet and hit a German group some distance away and take two men out. Not sure we interpreted the rule correctly here, but certainly a funny and somewhat cinematic outcome. :)<br /><br />As a result of those two games I am thinking about terrain, extra infantry, and some vehicles. Otherwise some scenarios are in order, probably as a campaign sequence, that can be played in a typical club day.<br /><br /> If you have not given <a href="http://www.angelfire.com/az3/twohourwargames/nuts.htm">NUTS!</a> a try, I recommend doing so. It is the nuts. :DLord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-62257840318476563992008-12-07T13:29:00.006+10:002008-12-09T19:15:19.155+10:00Russian Rifle SectionWith the arrival of the Peter Pig figures (so many figures so little time :) I have been able to complete the two rifle groups. I also put the finishing touches to the busted T-34 I have.<br /><br />The figures' bases have been modelled with patchy snow in hollows and under bushes. It is pretty generic sort of basing, so should be good for most scenarios. Plus the presence of some snow supports the wearing of greatcoats - so far only on the LMG gunners.<br /><br />So here they are together, the first rifle group inspecting a destroyed T-34.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/ST42kXpMuoI/AAAAAAAAAKw/w0rQrF_aZWc/s1600-h/Rifle-Group-T-34.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 130px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/ST42kXpMuoI/AAAAAAAAAKw/w0rQrF_aZWc/s400/Rifle-Group-T-34.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5277715811774806658" border="0" /></a>Points for picking the Peter Pig figure in there. But you cannot refer to past posts. :)<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Updated to include a larger size image on request...</span></span>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-45081824583586889642008-12-06T15:38:00.008+10:002008-12-06T16:37:26.754+10:00T-34 Paint GuideAs part of the NUTS! painting effort I have dragged out a long forgotten objective marker of a destroyed T-34.<br /><br />Apart from the obvious colour - some inspiration was needed about the finer details... The marker is basically base coated and needs work on weathering in general - tracks specifically.<br /><ul><li><a href="http://doodlem.blogspot.com/2007/07/t34-tracks.html">T-34 track detail</a></li><li>A nicely weathered <a href="http://www.missing-lynx.com/gallery/small/t3485model194472rf_1.html">T-34/85</a></li><li>Brilliant <a href="http://planetarmor.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4424">winter weathering</a>, inlcudes some interior detail. Just fantastic. Green with envy even.</li><li>More <a href="http://www.network54.com/Forum/110741/message/1224252409/T-34+model+1941-+weathering+almost+done">weathering </a>on a T-34 obr. 1941</li><li><a href="http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/magazine/2007/09/tamiya-t-34.htm">1943 model T-34/75</a></li><li>Image of a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Char_T-34.jpg">museum T-34/85</a><br /></li></ul><br />Some nice pictures of a 1/16 scale (!) captured T-34 showing great detail on the tracks. Came from this <a href="http://www.scale-models.co.uk/tanks/4898-any-help-creating-rust-weathering-tracks-1-16-t-34-tank.html#post35546">post</a> on the Scale Model site, which unfortunately needs a login to view.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SToY4UWkUmI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/nf1L7LUwwK0/s1600-h/t-34+1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SToY4UWkUmI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/nf1L7LUwwK0/s400/t-34+1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276557269233062498" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SToY4_W27DI/AAAAAAAAAKY/yNL_FiCZYXg/s1600-h/t-34+2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SToY4_W27DI/AAAAAAAAAKY/yNL_FiCZYXg/s400/t-34+2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276557280777006130" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SToY5PqRgNI/AAAAAAAAAKg/q_cSFpHnDQQ/s1600-h/t-34+3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SToY5PqRgNI/AAAAAAAAAKg/q_cSFpHnDQQ/s400/t-34+3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276557285153407186" border="0" /></a>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-13950419006635879612008-11-22T22:48:00.014+10:002008-11-28T20:55:13.753+10:00WW2 RussiansI have made a start on my forces for NUTS!. The discovery of some left over figures from my Guards Air Landing force for FoW settled the question of which theatre to play.<br /><br />The left over figures did not include any of the Degtyarev DP LMGs, so I have ordered some from the local Peter Pig distributer along with an OPFOR of late war Germans.<br /><br />I also have a vague inclination to get some Japanese as well, to be opponents in the Manchurian campaign - something a little different.<br /><br />Here is an early picture of the two groups (aka sections, squads) of a Russian platoon. These figures are from the FoW range.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SS_N76QKEVI/AAAAAAAAAKI/iw0JHgnJsJo/s1600-h/Russians-prelim2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 156px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SS_N76QKEVI/AAAAAAAAAKI/iw0JHgnJsJo/s400/Russians-prelim2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5273660117807141202" border="0" /></a>Despite my best efforts, these <span style="font-style: italic;">tovarishes</span> look a little dark - they look better in person. Still a bit more highlighting and weathering to do, but they are beginning to take shape.<br /><br /><br />The basic set of colours in use here are:<br /><br /> Tunic<br /> Tamiya Khaki<br /><br /> Boots<br /> GW Chaos Black<br /><br /> Gun<br /> GW Bestial Brown<br /><br /> Helmet<br /> Vallejo Russian Green<br /><br /> Gun Metal<br /> GW Chainmail<br /><br /> Pouches<br /> GW Graveyard Earth/GW Bleached Bone 50:50<br /><br /> Rain Poncho<br /> GW Catachan Green over GW Graveyard EarthLord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-87626759005780847702008-11-22T22:03:00.004+10:002008-11-22T22:44:32.319+10:00HOTT SkeletonsWhile I had the camera out I decided it was past time to capture some class photos for my army of skeletons.<br /><br />The spears are a recent addition and have not been based yet. In the meantime I have completely changed my basing technique, so I have to relearn the old way... Oops.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sH1imWI/AAAAAAAAAI4/yIMAuz8ETps/s1600-h/artillery.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 223px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sH1imWI/AAAAAAAAAI4/yIMAuz8ETps/s400/artillery.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271452027227117922" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Artillery</span>. Next to useless in practice, but nice little diorama.<br />Sand bags and cannon balls hand made from Milliput<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sRfXF4I/AAAAAAAAAJQ/AnlWpvjYwlw/s1600-h/riders.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 273px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sRfXF4I/AAAAAAAAAJQ/AnlWpvjYwlw/s400/riders.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271452029818443650" border="0" /></a>Dark <span style="font-weight: bold;">Riders</span>. Someone ought to get those horses some oats.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sONnDtI/AAAAAAAAAJI/wRvb8fa6wxs/s1600-h/lurker.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 119px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sONnDtI/AAAAAAAAAJI/wRvb8fa6wxs/s400/lurker.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271452028938686162" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Lurker</span>.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sNOn8hI/AAAAAAAAAJA/3tMQCQnhx10/s1600-h/blades.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 312px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sNOn8hI/AAAAAAAAAJA/3tMQCQnhx10/s400/blades.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271452028674503186" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Blades</span>.<br />Some effort was put into making the metal rusty looking, including orange surface rust and the deeper red iron cancer.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sYOqvDI/AAAAAAAAAJY/SGfptLyyEyo/s1600-h/Shooters.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf1sYOqvDI/AAAAAAAAAJY/SGfptLyyEyo/s400/Shooters.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271452031627476018" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Shooters</span>.<br />They are carrying crossbows if that is not completely clear.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf87g-zu5I/AAAAAAAAAJ4/K2phKgjtnjE/s1600-h/necromancer.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 333px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf87g-zu5I/AAAAAAAAAJ4/K2phKgjtnjE/s400/necromancer.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271459988256308114" border="0" /></a>Necromancer as the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Magician</span> who raised the skeleton army.<br />Has a skeleton standard bearer and a sorcerer or some other magical assistant.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf87cw2UQI/AAAAAAAAAJw/IT1vp57MWfk/s1600-h/tower.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 370px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf87cw2UQI/AAAAAAAAAJw/IT1vp57MWfk/s400/tower.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271459987124015362" border="0" /></a>The necromancer's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Stronghold</span>.<br />I was a bit inspired by Orthanc in the construction. All the rivets are PVA drops applied with a piece of brass rod.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf87bfugqI/AAAAAAAAAJo/BB9EPqdm4Us/s1600-h/spear.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 259px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf87bfugqI/AAAAAAAAAJo/BB9EPqdm4Us/s400/spear.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271459986783765154" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Spears</span>.<br />Cannot quite figure out what the shako or WW2 helmet is all about...<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf87Eu-EhI/AAAAAAAAAJg/YqMipLviiUs/s1600-h/sneakers.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSf87Eu-EhI/AAAAAAAAAJg/YqMipLviiUs/s400/sneakers.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271459980673683986" border="0" /></a>Wraith<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Sneakers</span></span></span><br /><br /></div>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-14580830257677082862008-11-22T21:35:00.004+10:002008-11-22T21:52:17.537+10:00Japanese DBAI have put together a Japanese army for a DBA campaign at the club. We are using some modified rules to add <span style="font-style: italic;">teppo</span> as Shot - basically Bow with factor changes.<br /><br />Here are some photos of my army. I will be playing Uesugi, who was a monk. Accordingly his blade entourage are <span style="font-style: italic;">naginata</span> wielding <span style="font-style: italic;">sohei</span>.<br /><br />The campaign is yet to start, but I plan to post some results.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbDPK8SI/AAAAAAAAAIQ/vNuUvywcUZM/s1600-h/sohei-blade.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 218px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbDPK8SI/AAAAAAAAAIQ/vNuUvywcUZM/s400/sohei-blade.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271446236376527138" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Sohei </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Blades</span> with <span style="font-style: italic;">naginata</span><br /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbGzznLI/AAAAAAAAAIY/6XHbIQFct7k/s1600-h/teppo-ashigaru.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 199px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbGzznLI/AAAAAAAAAIY/6XHbIQFct7k/s400/teppo-ashigaru.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271446237335493810" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Ashigaru</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">teppo </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Shot</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbezZxZI/AAAAAAAAAIg/ao-azCMFafA/s1600-h/spear-ashigaru.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 310px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbezZxZI/AAAAAAAAAIg/ao-azCMFafA/s400/spear-ashigaru.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271446243776251282" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Ashigaru</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Spear</span><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbYq85gI/AAAAAAAAAIo/nBcImz-Ss58/s1600-h/bow-ashigaru.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 255px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbYq85gI/AAAAAAAAAIo/nBcImz-Ss58/s400/bow-ashigaru.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271446242130191874" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Ashigaru</span> bow, being run as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Psiloi</span><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbhnez9I/AAAAAAAAAIw/qH3iAiV3WLU/s1600-h/cavalry-command.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 337px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SSfwbhnez9I/AAAAAAAAAIw/qH3iAiV3WLU/s400/cavalry-command.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271446244531556306" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Samurai</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span>Cavalry</span> command.<br />The centre figure is Uesugi, made with a head swap from a <span style="font-style: italic;">sohei</span> figure.<br /></div>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-7193127440338966972008-11-22T13:06:00.013+10:002008-11-25T12:47:19.429+10:00WW2 Paint GuidesI have made a purchase of some figures for NUTS! and found myself wondering how to paint them.<br /><br />So here is another post in the WW2 theme, this time tracking web resources on painting schemes and guides<br /><br />Any recommendations for this list will be gratefully accepted. :)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">British (and Commonwealth?)</span><br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.flamesofwar.com/Default.aspx?tabid=110&art_id=455&kb_cat_id=27">British Infantry</a> - Flames of War website</li><li><a href="http://www.boltactionminiatures.co.uk/webpage.php?PageID=33">British and Canadian infantry</a> - Bolt Action Miniatures. Very detailed, sadly light on pictures. Colour charts for Citadel and Vallejo.</li><li><a href="http://www.greatescapegames.co.uk/wrapper.php?w_page=GB%20Para%20Painting%20guide">British Airborne</a> - Great Escape Games</li><li><a href="http://www.greatescapegames.co.uk/wrapper.php?w_page=GB%20Commando%20Painting%20guide">British Commando</a> - Great Escape Games<br /></li></ul><span style="font-weight: bold;">German</span><br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.lloydianaspects.co.uk/models/paintgerm.html">German infantry</a> - Lloydian Modelling Tips. This is really nice article on German infantry.</li><li><a href="http://www.boltactionminiatures.co.uk/webpage.php?PageID=32">German infantry</a> - Bolt Action Miniatures. Very detailed, sadly light on pictures. Colour charts for Citadel and Vallejo.<br /></li><li><a href="http://www.flamesofwar.com/Default.aspx?tabid=110&art_id=866&kb_cat_id=27">SS Pea Dot camouflage</a> - Flames of War website<br /></li><li><a href="http://www.flamesofwar.com/Default.aspx?tabid=110&art_id=289&kb_cat_id=27">German Infantry</a> 1939-1945 - Flames of War website. Not completely sure about this one - disagrees with the Lloydian site above...</li><li><a href="http://www.flamesofwar.com/Default.aspx?tabid=110&art_id=460&kb_cat_id=27">Fallschirmjager camouflage</a> - Flames of War website.</li><li><a href="http://www.greatescapegames.co.uk/wrapper.php?w_page=Waffen%20SS%20Painting%20guide">Waffen SS</a> - Great Escape Games</li><li><a href="http://www.greatescapegames.co.uk/wrapper.php?w_page=German%20Infantry%20Painting%20guide">Wermacht Heer</a> - Great Escape Games</li><li><a href="http://theminiaturespage.com/boards/msg.mv?id=97523">Vallejo Colour Guide</a> - The Miniatures Page post. Bit hard to read, but great resource.</li><li><a href="http://www.battlefront.com/resources/poc/_images/full/3rdreich03.jpg">Splinter Pattern Image</a> - Steve's Page of Camo</li><li><a href="http://www.coloradominiatures.com/index.asp?ID=5&PageAction=Custom">Suggest Colours for Splinter Pattern</a> - Colorado Minatures</li><li><a href="http://www.kamouflage.net/country/00136.php">German Camouflage Patterns</a> - kamouflage.net<br /></li></ul><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Russian</span><br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.amazonminiatures.com/youandwhosearmy/modelling/painting_wwii.htm">Russian Infantry</a> - Amazon Miniature. A general page with some good detail on Russians: </li><li><a href="http://www.boltactionminiatures.co.uk/webpage.php?PageID=31">Russian infantry</a> - Bolt Action Miniatures. Very detailed, some pictures. Colour selections for Citadel and Vallejo.</li><li><a href="http://www.greatescapegames.co.uk/wrapper.php?w_page=Soviet%20Infantry%20Painting%20guide">Russian Infantry</a> - Great Escape Games. Step by step pictures and colour guide. Nice.<br /></li></ul><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">United States</span><br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.flamesofwar.com/Default.aspx?tabid=110&art_id=737&kb_cat_id=27">US Airborne</a> - Flames of War website </li><li><a href="http://www.boltactionminiatures.co.uk/webpage.php?PageID=58">American Army</a> - Bolt Action Miniatures. Very detailed.</li><li><a href="http://www.greatescapegames.co.uk/wrapper.php?w_page=US%20Infantry%20Painting%20guide">US Infantry</a> - Great Escape Games</li><li><a href="http://www.twfigurines.de/wwtwo/uspara/uspara01.htm">US Airborne</a> - Tom Weiss</li></ul>for chrisLord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-83518833672960346672008-11-17T16:32:00.003+10:002008-11-17T16:36:49.537+10:00Infantry Tactics WW2In the search for better TO&E for Russian units, I came across a site with some discussion on infantry tactics and the corresponding units.<br /><br />I haven't read it in detail, but seems good (not to mention they have some TO&E material).<br /><br />Here's the link: <a href="http://www.bayonetstrength.150m.com/Tactics/infantry_tactics_of_world_war_tw.htm">infantry tactics of WW2</a><br /><br />and their <a href="http://www.bayonetstrength.150m.com/index.htm">TO&E data</a>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-44830519449190748432008-11-03T20:58:00.015+10:002009-02-07T21:36:02.161+10:00WW2 TO&EWith NUTS! have a more historical (if somewhat <a href="http://homepage.ntlworld.com/neil.shuck/revnuts.html">cinematic</a>, apparently) feel about it, it seems appropriate to consider some potential theatres for scenarios.<br /><br />Thanks to the <a href="http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/TOandEs/">TO&E</a> Yahoo group for this data.<br /><br />My current thoughts are to start small - one combat section per side and see how that plays out. I'll be surprised if NUTS! can handle a full platoon, but some more games will tell. At that size it is basically a couple of Peter Pig packs. Sweet.<br /><br />UPDATE: I have been struggling to make sense of the Soviet data from <a href="http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/TOandEs/">TO&E</a>. The numbers haven't been adding up and I haven't been able to find any alternatives. Until now. :)<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.avalanchepress.com/BehindCounters3.php">Avalanche Press</a> site has some detail on Russian platoons. This data is reinforced by this <a href="http://www.bayonetstrength.150m.com/RedArmy/russian_rifle_battalion.htm">site</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Stalingrad</span><br /><pre> <span style="font-weight: bold;">German Rifle Company Platoon (1942-43)</span><br /> Headquarters<br /><br /> 1 Squad<br /> 2 x 9mm SMG<br /> 6 x G98 Rifle<br /><br /> 3 Squads<br /> 2 x 9mm SMG<br /> 1 x 7.92mm LMG<br /> 1 x G98 Rifle (Assistant LMG Gunner)<br /> 6 x G98 Rifle<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Soviet Infantry Company Platoon (1941)</span><br /> Platoon Leader w/ pistol<br /> NCO w/ SMG<br /> 1 or 2 Messenger/Sniper w/ rifle<br /><br /> 4 Infantry Groups<br /> Group Leader w/ Rifle<br /> 6 soldiers w/ Rifles and some SMG (mostly rifle)<br /><br /> LMG Machinegunner w/Pistol<br /> Assistant w/ rifle<br /><br /><br /> Mortar Group (1+3 men)<br /> Group Leader<br /> 3 Mortarmen<br /> 1 50mm Mortar<br /><br /></pre><span style="font-weight: bold;">Monte Casino</span><br /><pre> <span style="font-weight: bold;">German Rifle Company Platoon (1944-45)</span><br /> Headquarters<br /> 1 x 7.92mm LMG<br /> 1 x G98 Rifle (Assistant LMG Gunner)<br /><br /> 3 Rifle Squads<br /> 2 x 9mm SMG<br /> 1 x 7.92mm LMG<br /> 1 x G98 Rifle (Assistant LMG Gunner)<br /> 6 x G98 Rifle<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> British Rifle Company Platoon</span><br /> Headquarters<br /> Second Lieutenant armed with a revolver<br /> sargeant with a Sten gun<br /> platoon commanders batman with a rifle<br /> platoon commanders orderly with a rifle.<br /><br /> 2” mortar group consisting of<br /> lance corporal. Mortar group leader with rifle<br /> mortar No1 with 2” mortar<br /> mortar No2 with rifle<br /><br /> ? Rifle sections<br /> Corporal. Section commander with a Sten gun<br /> Rifle group of six men armed with rifles.<br /> Bren group of three men<br /> Lance corporal, Bren group leader with rifle<br /> Bren No1 with Bren gun<br /> Bren No2 with rifle<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">US Rifle Company Platoon (1944-45)</span><br /> Headquarters<br /><br /> 3 Rifle Squads<br /> 10 x M1 Rifle<br /> 1 x BAR<br /> 1 x 1903 Springfield Rifle or M1 Garand<br /> <span style="font-style: italic;"> or</span><br /> 9 x M1 Rifle<br /> 1 x BAR<br /> 1 x .45 cal SMG or .30 cal Carbine<br /><br /></pre><span style="font-weight: bold;">TODO: Normandy</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Pacific Theater</span><br /><pre> Japanese Infantry Platoon<br /> Headquarters<br /><br /> 3 Squads<br /> 1 x 6.5mm LMG<br /> 12 x 6.5mm Rifle<br /><br /> Weapons Squad<br /> 3 x 50mm light mortars<br /> 13 x 6.5mm Rifle<br /><br />Australian Infantry Platoon (Tropical 1944)<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">(based on Australian War Memorial data)</span><br /> Headquarters<br /> Platoon Commander - Lieutenant<br /> 1x 2" Mortar, 2x Mortar numbers<br /> 3x Rifles<br /><br /> 3 Rifle Sections<br /> 10 Other ranks<br /> 1x Bren LMG<br /> 2x Owen/Austin SMG<br /> 1x sniper rifle<br /></pre><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tobruck or Bardia?<br /><br /></span><pre> Australian Infantry Platoon [4 Officers, 62 Enlisted each]<br /> Platoon Headquarters [1 Officer, 8 Enlisted]<br /> 1 x Bren LMG<br /> 1 x 2" Light Mortar<br /><br /> 3 Sections [1 Officer, 18 Enlisted each]<br /> Section Headquarters [1 Officer, 2 Enlisted]<br /> Rifle Squad [16 Enlisted]<br /></pre>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-5695525512860240242008-11-02T20:00:00.019+10:002008-11-03T20:26:03.249+10:00WW2 15mmThe list of miniature manufacturers is getting a bit out hand. With the recent purchase of <a href="http://www.angelfire.com/az3/twohourwargames/nuts.htm">NUTS!</a> it seems time to focus on a specific area - WW2 this time.<br /><br />Here is a list of manufacturers of WW2 15mm in some more detail:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Battlefront </span><br />Germany, Finland Italy, Hungary, Romania, United Kingdom, USSR, USA<br />Infantry and Vehicles.<br />Clearly oriented towards Flames of War, so packs might be large. Vehicles have always been regarded as expensive. Happy with the Soviet Red Guard army I have for these rules.<br />Not sure where to get them from now that Napoleons has closed down... MilSims or Mind Games? Tin Soldier even - what happened to the Brisbane retailers...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Eureka</span><br />Australians, Chinese, Italians, Japanese, US Marines<br />Infantry<br />Really nice looking figures.<br />Typical Eureka - per miniature pricing at <span style="font-weight: bold;">80c</span> ea.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Legions East</span><br />Early Russians, Finns, Hungarians and Romanians<br />Infantry only.<br />Nice looking figures, specialised range<br />Available from the US.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Old Glory - Command Decision</span><br />British, American, German, Early British, Early German, Russian, Italian, Japanese, French<br />Infantry and vehicles<br />Infantry in massive bags of <span style="font-weight: bold;">50</span> for £9. What an earth do you do with 50 figures in a skirmish game? 10 man packs available from <a href="http://www.skytrex.com">Skytrex</a> in the UK.<br />UK - postage expensive.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Peter Pig</span><br />Germans, British, Americans, French, Russians, Italians, Japanese & Dutch<br />Infantry and vehicles.<br />Huge selection of infantry, 8 per pack . Nice looking sculpts.<br />UK - postage will be expensive.<br />Available from <a href="http://micksmetalmodels.com/">Micks Metal Models</a> in Australia - no entries in store.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Quality Casting</span><br />ANZAC, Britain, France, German, Italy, Japan, Polish, Soviets, USA<br />Infantry and vehicles.<br />Extensive selection of vehicles and good lists of infantry. No pictures. Figures seem to be in lots of 24 for US$10.<br />US availability - postage again<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Quick Reaction Force (QRF)</span><br />American, British, Bulgarian, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Japanese, Polish, Romanian, Soviet<br />Vehicles and Infantry.<br />Vehicles are really strong. Basic selection of infantry. Vehicles about £5 - ouch. Infantry £2 for 8. Vehicles seem to be well regarded.<br />Available from the UK. Postage is again, the enemy - 30% of order.<br />Australian agent is <a href="http://www.olympian-games.com/">Olympian Games</a> (busted website).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Resistant Roosters</span><br />Americans, Finnish, Germans, Japanese, Soviets<br />InfantryLord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-50210100980197361372008-10-30T21:31:00.003+10:002008-11-03T11:56:06.904+10:00New rulesBeen a while since I last posted. Must try and do better.<br /><br />At the last club game I arranged to play a game of Chain Reaction 2 from the Two Hour Wargames guys. This is a free set of rules that predated the more specialised WW2 and sci-fi versions. This idea all started with some other members talking about playing TW&T from Too Fat Lardies.<br /><br />Having these rules available for free made a great opportunity to get a feel for the Two Hour Wargames mechanics. And really this is what it is all about with these rules - new, novel mechanics.<br /><br />The basic difference is that the figures will react to events around them - two big ones being: seeing or being seen by the enemy; and receiving fire. Depending on the quality of the troop involved the troop will react in different ways. All the reactions seemed reasonable and logical and for the most part made the game feel realistic.<br /><br />As a first game we fumbled with the rules a bit and forget where we were up to in the heat of the moment. But as a first game it went quite smoothly and we all enjoyed it. A few more games should cement in the concepts and we can get on with some serious games.<br /><br />This brings me to the other area of interest for me - not a points based, tournament driven game. I am not against tournaments and competitions per se, but it seems that rules tailored towards competitions lose something in the process. Not to mention the tournament weenies that super tune their lists and get very picky about applying and interpreting their rules (read anal retentive). Not so much fun.<br /><br />So a game that focuses on scenarios (not necessarily "balanced" like a tournament style game) and therefore the story should be a lot more engaging. It will require more effort to assemble the scenario for a game, but should really be quite flexible. I can already see a scenario for the allied paratrooper landings after D-Day. The Two Hour Wargames rules support campaigns (or linked scenarios) by allowing Stars (<span style="font-style: italic;">your</span> battlefield representative) to develop and improve over time.<br /><br />The more focused rules NUTS! (WW2) and 5150 (sci-fi) are looking <span style="font-style: italic;">very</span> attractive.<br /><br />There are a number of reviews out on the 'net worth reading about the Two Hour Wargames rules. Recommended.<br /><br />Thanks to the BIG guys who broadened my horizons.Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-88793750040380467032008-05-20T20:24:00.005+10:002008-05-20T21:02:56.202+10:0040k 5th EditionHere are some notes on the upcoming 5th ed. rules, including a link to a torrent download of the pre-release rulebook: <a href="http://samuraigunslinger.com/2008/05/08/warhammer-40k-5th-edition-rumor-compendium/">Samurai Gunslinger</a><br /><br />I must say that I am facing this rule change with some trepidation. Mostly for the rumours about nerfing the Necrons gauss weapon ability. It seems that the ability to fluke a lucky vehicle kill via a glancing shot will be removed and the troops need to wear down a vehicle - one weapon at a time.<br /><br />Ick. Yuck. Barf.<br /><br />With the new rules vehicles like the Falcon will take 5 or 6 rolls of 5 or 6 to take down. That is a massive difference and I hope, but seriously doubt, that the point cost will be adjusted accordingly. The choice of high S weapons is pretty limited as I recall (codex not at hand), to the Heavy Destroyer and the Monolith.<br /><br />I am yet to figure out what the effect will be on my growing Chaos army. But with the vehicle changes I expect something nasty to happen to the dakka predator I was planning. For reference a Dakka Predator (from <a href="http://www.librarium-online.com/2008/01/05/chaos-4th-edition-unit-tactica-2/">Librarium Online</a>):<br /><blockquote><span style="font-size:100%;"></span> <p><span style="font-size:100%;">Predator w/ AC + HB Sponsons + Havoc Launcher<br /><br />Here we have the “dakka” predator. Capable of <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">spewing out enough hot lead to choke a horse</span>. This thing is usually seen running beside two of its AT brethren in larger sized games, the enemy should be so focused on killing the AT predators that this should receive little to no attention.</span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-size:100%;"></span></p>With the new rules, any movement over 6" will reduce this torrent of horse-choking lead, possibly making other units like heavy weapon Chosen or Havoc squads more useful.Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-32680627125489791772008-05-19T21:16:00.004+10:002008-05-19T21:59:12.479+10:00Magic Wash - Pledge One GoI have noticed that as a thinner, Magic Wash (Pledge) makes the paint flow beautifully. I also noticed that it leaves a slightly glossy (about semi-gloss I think) finish. Looks real nice on metallics, but probably a bit much on the non-metallics.<br /><br />So I went searching for flat coat choices to both protect the miniatures and make them look realistic. The popular choice seems to be Testor's Dullcote. As a lacquer there are some concerns about it yellowing over time. Other people recommended PollyScale Flat and something similar from Model Master. The lacquer based sealers use a thinner that can be harsh on acrylic paints, especially silver apparently, which is a bit of a concern.<br /><br />Unexpectedly my searching turned up a technique based on Future (known as Pledge here). The idea is to mix a matt medium, such as Tamiya X-21 (get it from Toyworld) to make the normally glossy Pledge flatter, leaving a tough, flat finish. Remember that despite all this modelling fun, Pledge is meant to be tough enough to be walked on.<br /><br />A number of different finishes are possible, just my varying the amount of flat base used:<br /><ul><li>dead-flat: 1 part X-21, 3 parts Pledge</li><li>flat: 1 part X-21, 10 parts Pledge</li><li>satin: 1 part X-21, 15 parts Pledge</li><li>gloss: Pledge (what else :)</li></ul>I am really impressed with the apparent flexibility of Pledge as well as it cost - available from Coles or Woolies for less than $6 for 500ml. How good is that?<br /><br />For reference here are some links:<br /><a href="http://www.swannysmodels.com/TheCompleteFuture.html">The Complete Future</a> - a great reference. Includes an image of the <a href="http://www.swannysmodels.com/images/Futurepics/pledge.jpg">bottle</a> (centre bottle).<br /><a href="http://www.ndrr.com/rmr_faq/models/Future-Floor-Wax.htm">Future Floor Wash</a> - as used by a railroad modeller.Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-11521842554908484702008-05-18T18:15:00.005+10:002008-05-18T18:58:43.479+10:00Partial Painting ResultsWell I started testing the new painting techniques on a guinea pig Raptor (everyone else took one step back).<br /><br />The first picture is of a brush primed Raptor next to a "raw" Raptor. This was obviously more time consuming to actually paint on than a spray can, but because it is water based it can be painted on much sooner. Especially if you have access to a heat gun! :)<br /><br />I thinned all these paints with a magic wash, which worked well. Still getting the feel for appropriate dilution - not sure I agree with the TAB Studio video - yet. The primer covered in three coats - and that means about 3-4 drops of primer. The difference is a bit hard to see - it is bit more obvious in the flesh (metal?).<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC_nNxD37AI/AAAAAAAAAFg/SEnBCkJh8L0/s1600-h/RaptorPrimedAndFriend.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC_nNxD37AI/AAAAAAAAAFg/SEnBCkJh8L0/s400/RaptorPrimedAndFriend.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201630318330113026" border="0" /></a>Left is the basic marine and on the right is the brush primed model.<br /></div><br />After the primer dried I started working on the metallic armour for the Raptors. The colour is <span style="font-style: italic;">Dwarf Bronze</span> and I thinned it down in the TAB Studio way - about 10 drops of magic wash to a drop of paint. I though this was so thin it was completely useless - I swear I could count the mica flecks after I had done a coat. I figure that this due to a difference in pigment content in GW versus the Vallejo paint in the video.<br /><br />I used a thicker wash than before and proceeded to carefully wash on thin coats of the bronze. Between coats I hit the model with a heat gun to drive out the water, speeding up the process. Even with the thickened wash the results below took a fair while and about 7-8 washes.<br /><br />Time consuming, but a very smooth result.<br /><br />Here are some pictures of the test piece. Note the highlights on the armour. How cool is that? :) Stoked in short.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC_nQBD37BI/AAAAAAAAAFo/UayL82x_0b8/s1600-h/RaptorFrontView.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC_nQBD37BI/AAAAAAAAAFo/UayL82x_0b8/s400/RaptorFrontView.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201630356984818706" border="0" /></a>Front view of the Raptors armour<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC_nQBD37CI/AAAAAAAAAFw/0YoUpvPXoY8/s1600-h/RaptorRearView.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC_nQBD37CI/AAAAAAAAAFw/0YoUpvPXoY8/s400/RaptorRearView.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201630356984818722" border="0" /></a>Rear view of the Raptor.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">I am a convert, and intend on using this technique further including normal non-metallic paints. Stay tuned...<br /></div><br /></div>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-91942701727241994812008-05-17T20:26:00.003+10:002008-05-17T20:35:42.604+10:00New approach to paintingThe brush on primer mentioned above is white (Vallejo have one). I have been an advocate of black on the 28mm sized figures since the beginning, but the latest round of metallics have been disappointing (note that the silvers work like a bought one). So with all that I am going to give the brush on primer a try.<br /><br />The challenge will be to ensure that all areas get some sort of paint. Missed areas on a black primed model look like deep shadows. Missed areas on a white primed model really stand out and look, well, shit. The other trick will be in getting the darker "scale" colours and grungy feel you get for free with black undercoats. It will really be a matter of darkening paints accordingly, which will require some work on palette mixing. Cool.<br /><br />I should that my 15mm work gets a white undercoat followed by a brown shadow wash, so this won't be all new. It will be a challenge but I am sick of fighting with red, white, yellow and the non-silver metallics - so here I go...Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-16205008003686839232008-05-17T19:55:00.002+10:002008-05-17T20:26:45.074+10:00Painting VideosAfter complaining about painting metallic golds in a recent post, I got referred to a video tutorial series.<br /><br />All in all very good.<br /><br />Highlights for me were:<br /><ul><li>Use of "magic wash" as a paint thinner instead of straight water. This wash is one part acrylic floor wash and three parts water. This is supposed to help with keeping the metallic flakes in suspension, instead of lying about on the bottom.</li><li>Undercoating with an acrylic brush on primer. The basic idea was that spray cans while much faster can produce inferior results due to temperature and humidity. I have seen a powdery finish due to the paint drying in the air and an uneven finish due to high humidity.<br /></li></ul>Here are some links to the series. The home website appears to have gone AWOL, so these links are all to blip.tv, but the videos come from TAB Studio.<br /><ul><li><a href="http://blip.tv/file/337840">Priming A Miniature<br /></a></li><li><a href="http://blip.tv/file/352487">Attack of the Colours</a></li><li><a href="http://blip.tv/file/371089">Pinning</a></li><li><a href="http://blip.tv/file/393285">Base Coating Metallics</a> - (the video that started it all)</li><li><a href="http://blip.tv/file/477976">35mm Face Painting</a></li></ul>They can take a while to download and the client does not appear to buffer at all. So I suggest some manual buffering - leave it on pause until fully downloaded.Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-13220213344387217802008-05-16T21:10:00.007+10:002008-05-18T19:11:06.823+10:00The Big KahunaAfter doing some assembly on my Raptors (pictures as they get painted) I kept rolling and assembled the Daemon Prince.<br /><br />The assembly was harder than I expected. The model came in thirteen metal parts, including a front and back torso. Nothing seem to fit quite right and in some cases the contact surfaces for gluing were pretty small, which is not good for superglue. I thought I was pretty proficient with pinning but I was stretched with this model - and improved my technique.<br /><br />The front torso was pinned in place simultaneously with 5 pins. This was not for fun. One for each arm, one for the waist post and two for the body. Getting that precisely lined up was tricky. In short I put all the pins in one side, aligned them all carefully and drilled some over-sized holes in the other side and jockeyed it carefully into place.<br /><br />Once assembled it was obvious that a fair bit of filling was going to be necessary. A few hours later I had bogged up:<br /><ul><li>left and right torso joins</li><li>left and right armpit/shoulder joins</li><li>top torso join<br /></li><li>waist<br /></li><li>hip</li><li>head and neck</li><li>wrist</li><li>exhaust pipe thingies on the shoulders.<br /></li></ul>I think that this kind of lack of quality with the assembly is really is pretty poor form when you consider the premium price paid for the figure. Shame on you Games Workshop.<br /><br />The figure comes carrying a sword, but since I had equipped my Prince with the Lash of Submission ability I decided to give him a physical whip. Rather than butcher the hand with the sword I carved a new hand for him holding the handle of the whip. The handle is a section of styrene tube that I formed the fist around. The handle will be trimmed to size and detailed further, including the addition of the lash and tails of the whip.<br /><br />This is my first attempt at carving anything at all and I must say I am pretty happy with the result. The fist is larger than the original, but seems to fit the model really well. His thumb is a bit deformed looking, but rather than make it worse I decided to just leave it as is.<br /><br />The big ticket item remaining with this figure is the creation of some wings. I found that wings were really useful for this guy in play testing, so now I need some way to model them. I have been studying the structure of bat wings (the things we do!) and figure I will make the bones out of a few different sizes of styrene tube. The skinning of the wing is still a bit of an unknown at the moment.<br /><br />I initially wanted to have his wings at full extension like he was had just landed or was about to take off, but figured that this would always be banging into terrain, so I figure now that he will have his wings furled up at rest.<br /><br />Back to Games Workshop again: why can't a company that insists on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WYSIWYG">WYSIWYG</a> modelling actually supply all the options for the models? Even old models could have some add-on bitz. How hard is it?<br /><br />Here are some photos for this stage.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC1-ihD36-I/AAAAAAAAAFQ/VG4vFM1-3uQ/s1600-h/DaemonPrinceAndFriend.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC1-ihD36-I/AAAAAAAAAFQ/VG4vFM1-3uQ/s400/DaemonPrinceAndFriend.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5200952276138060770" border="0" /></a>The Prince with one of his marines for size comparison.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC1-ixD36_I/AAAAAAAAAFY/WlodNtBHunQ/s1600-h/DaemonPrinceHandDetail.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SC1-ixD36_I/AAAAAAAAAFY/WlodNtBHunQ/s400/DaemonPrinceHandDetail.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5200952280433028082" border="0" /></a>Close up detail of the new hand.<br /></div>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-27786239254104924022008-05-05T19:23:00.004+10:002008-05-16T22:37:49.989+10:00Class Photo - RoyalsThe first Chaos warband has been completed - the Royals.<br /><br />A group that considers themselves a notch above the rest, they have adopted a regal colour scheme, including gold leaf, to demonstrate their superiority.<br /><br />They have turned out pretty well, but the gold metallic was a pain, and I am totally over it. These paints are built on a yellow base which doesn't cover well and the metal particles are quite large. There wasn't a lot of room to swing the brush properly for dry brushing, so I tried washing the metallic on, but it was too easy to get it wrong. If I was not careful the paint got a bit thick and grainy looking, which was/is super irritating.<br /><br />You will notice that there are two bases with gold edges in the photo. The right-most one is the results of 4 or 5 washes of Burnished Bold. Looks pretty good in the photo? In real life it looks grainy. Frustrating.<br /><br />So the search continues for the master class technique for painting golds (and brass, bronze, etc).<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SB7VJmnNkWI/AAAAAAAAAFE/1sXIfd_vfr0/s1600-h/Class-Photo---Royals.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/SB7VJmnNkWI/AAAAAAAAAFE/1sXIfd_vfr0/s400/Class-Photo---Royals.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5196825380992684386" border="0" /></a>The Royals. A Plasma Gunner Warband<br /></div>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-31092954353531040452008-03-24T21:26:00.005+10:002008-03-24T21:51:32.073+10:00Chaos BeckonsThe new codex for the Chaos Space Marines has inspired the need to start a new force, something different from my Necrons.<br /><br />I really like the new background of Chaos warbands, so I decided to work along those lines - a group of warbands, temporarily united under a warleader.<br /><br />The core of the force will be two squads of CSMs. One prefers plasma guns, and the other melta-guns. An example of the first squad is included below. They are based on the Warriors of Mayhem - and for now are known as "the plasma gunner group". :)<br /><br />They were supposed to be like the Night Stalkers in the new codex, but I could not figure out how to replicate the look. So instead I just worked with the original purple shade colour and did some highlighting and further shading.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/R-eViEIfULI/AAAAAAAAAE8/_gmwnk9G0to/s1600-h/PlasmaWarbandExample.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/R-eViEIfULI/AAAAAAAAAE8/_gmwnk9G0to/s400/PlasmaWarbandExample.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5181274308770484402" border="0" /></a>"Plasma gunner" Warband<br /></div>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-92011167731992231032007-10-06T18:46:00.000+10:002007-10-06T19:46:58.235+10:00Boys in BlueI got interested lately in the idea of playing some Kill Team in WH40k, particularly the Space Hulk variant.<br /><br />So partially to do something different and to bring a classic team to Space Hulk, I went and got some Space Marine Terminators. After some decision about colour schemes (as usual), I settled on the Crimson Fists. In GW terms the colours are Regal Blue and Red Gore for the fists. The highlights use the typical GW approach - lighter shades of the same colour. The skull ornaments are Snakebite Leather - Bleached Bone - Skull White.<br /><br />The force field glow technique is thanks to this <a href="http://www.ironhalo.net/lighting.htm">guy</a>. I haven't attempted the full light casting effect on the model (which looks awesome) - I just went for the power effect.<br /><br />They turned out pretty well considering I only spent a week or two on them. I am pleased with the basing - I make up some styrene tiles to look like decking plates. Two of them have hoses running in the floor and there are some with floor grills. All very atmospheric for a squad of spaceship clearing specialists.<br /><br />Anyway here they are - take a look:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWAq7I36I/AAAAAAAAAC4/n_yyGn-HWiE/s1600-h/SargeantNiliusFront.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWAq7I36I/AAAAAAAAAC4/n_yyGn-HWiE/s320/SargeantNiliusFront.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118154071052181410" border="0" /></a>Brother Nilius<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWAq7I37I/AAAAAAAAADA/7yjFzsA4AbA/s1600-h/SargeanyNiliusSide.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWAq7I37I/AAAAAAAAADA/7yjFzsA4AbA/s320/SargeanyNiliusSide.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118154071052181426" border="0" /></a>Brother Nilius - Power Sword<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWtq7I38I/AAAAAAAAADI/XqYJ6SinaXw/s1600-h/BrotherPainFront.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWtq7I38I/AAAAAAAAADI/XqYJ6SinaXw/s320/BrotherPainFront.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118154844146294722" border="0" /></a>Brother Pain<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWtq7I39I/AAAAAAAAADQ/99jhkbo3q9Y/s1600-h/BrotherPainAutocannon.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWtq7I39I/AAAAAAAAADQ/99jhkbo3q9Y/s320/BrotherPainAutocannon.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118154844146294738" border="0" /></a>Brother Pain - Autocannon<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWtq7I3-I/AAAAAAAAADY/R9QiftA6CV8/s1600-h/BrotherPainPowerFist.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdWtq7I3-I/AAAAAAAAADY/R9QiftA6CV8/s320/BrotherPainPowerFist.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118154844146294754" border="0" /></a>Brother Pain - Power Fist<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXTq7I3_I/AAAAAAAAADg/VdIEGMAFv9o/s1600-h/BrotherFlameFront.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXTq7I3_I/AAAAAAAAADg/VdIEGMAFv9o/s320/BrotherFlameFront.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118155496981323762" border="0" /></a>Brother Flame<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXTq7I4AI/AAAAAAAAADo/AB5hskOIgR8/s1600-h/BrotherFlameHeavyFlamer.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXTq7I4AI/AAAAAAAAADo/AB5hskOIgR8/s320/BrotherFlameHeavyFlamer.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118155496981323778" border="0" /></a>Brother Flame - Heavy Flamer<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXTq7I4BI/AAAAAAAAADw/4Z404-tH76k/s1600-h/BrotherFlamePowerFist.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXTq7I4BI/AAAAAAAAADw/4Z404-tH76k/s320/BrotherFlamePowerFist.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118155496981323794" border="0" /></a>Brother Flame - Power Fist<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXvK7I4CI/AAAAAAAAAD4/_Y5LejpIhEo/s1600-h/BrotherPrimusFront.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXvK7I4CI/AAAAAAAAAD4/_Y5LejpIhEo/s320/BrotherPrimusFront.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118155969427726370" border="0" /></a>Brother Primus<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXva7I4DI/AAAAAAAAAEA/QcjEZzQP_VY/s1600-h/BrotherPrimusPowerFist.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdXva7I4DI/AAAAAAAAAEA/QcjEZzQP_VY/s320/BrotherPrimusPowerFist.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118155973722693682" border="0" /></a>Brother Primus - Power Fist<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdYBK7I4EI/AAAAAAAAAEI/WWY0S_Njlg4/s1600-h/BrotherSecundusFront.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/RwdYBK7I4EI/AAAAAAAAAEI/WWY0S_Njlg4/s320/BrotherSecundusFront.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5118156278665371714" border="0" /></a>Brother Secundus<br /><br /></div>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-37025795823440400832007-05-29T20:37:00.001+10:002007-10-06T19:49:12.819+10:00Hivefleet ItsumadenI decided to go my own way and create a custom <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">hivefleet</span> for the combat patrol.<br /><br />Keeping with the "monster" theme for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Tyranid</span> fleets (they are really just misunderstood, honest) I hunted around for a suitable monster. I decided to go for something a bit different than the usual and went for looking for monsters from Asian mythology.<br /><br />The result is the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Itsumaden</span>. It looks the part and is easy enough to say - could you imagine someone trying: <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Negoro</span>-no-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">ushi</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">oni</span>. :)<br /><br />The image comes from the <a href="http://www.obakemono.com/obake/itsumaden/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Obakemono</span> Project</a>, which is a great resource for Japanese mythological creatures.<br /><br />I haven't bothered with any background fluff for these guys yet, though that might be getting a bit carried away...<span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.obakemono.com/obake/itsumaden.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;" src="http://www.obakemono.com/obake/itsumaden.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6579904028427032133.post-21698740794528103882007-05-29T20:08:00.001+10:002007-10-06T19:49:50.795+10:00Scrubs up ok<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/Rlv73XY4MDI/AAAAAAAAACY/00R-mB3pUR0/s1600-h/warrior1.jpg"></a>The combat patrol has been essentially completed now.<br /><br />This last stage was all the fine stuff - the striations in the skin (what are those things?), weapons, teeth, eyes, toxin sacs and so on.<br /><br />The skin bits were done with Enchanted Blue to give a strong contrast to the red skin. The toxin sacs were done GW style - approximately. Snot Green, Scorpion Green, White.<br /><br />The barbed strangler (leader's gun below) was painted to resemble the plant it is supposed to be. The result looks pretty "treey", but not quite what I was after there - perhaps more alien next time. I spent a bit of time with the ammo sac (or scrotum as some have suggested :). This was Bleached Bone base, Elf Flesh broadly dry-brushed, with a careful highlight of White. The skin colour was then washed with a red wash. Looks suitably gross.<br /><br />Basing still needs to be done, but may take some time to materialise... When finished the whole patrol will be photographed.<br /><br />I finally got the exposure settings right - it only took till the end of the project! :) The colours below are pretty accurate.<br /><br />The patrol has their first run at the May BIG club day. They got walloped by Space Marines and Necrons. Wasn't until I got home that I realised that my costing spreadsheet was broken and I had diddled myself out of a heap of points. What a wally. :)<br /><br />Next game they will be tougher...<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/Rlv73XY4MDI/AAAAAAAAACY/00R-mB3pUR0/s1600-h/warrior1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/Rlv73XY4MDI/AAAAAAAAACY/00R-mB3pUR0/s320/warrior1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069922734125363250" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/Rlv73nY4MEI/AAAAAAAAACg/bvCuVeggKM4/s1600-h/warrior2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/Rlv73nY4MEI/AAAAAAAAACg/bvCuVeggKM4/s320/warrior2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069922738420330562" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/Rlv73nY4MFI/AAAAAAAAACo/UDvhSmLgqWg/s1600-h/ravener.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/Rlv73nY4MFI/AAAAAAAAACo/UDvhSmLgqWg/s320/ravener.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069922738420330578" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/Rlv73nY4MGI/AAAAAAAAACw/hCp9DUvU8ig/s1600-h/genestealer.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-JvnENwxc1s/Rlv73nY4MGI/AAAAAAAAACw/hCp9DUvU8ig/s320/genestealer.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5069922738420330594" border="0" /></a>Lord Gumbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15066030170503338066noreply@blogger.com