Ben's Gaming Blog

[DocB]

Nearly fully painted a Great Unclean One tonight, so looks like I’m going down that route!! Don’t know if it’ll be the most competitive, but I’m hoping at least it’ll look good...

[DocB]

So,

Great Unclean One is done. Everything is done, apart from the Plague Drones - the trees themselves are done, they just need six painted bugs...I’ve given up on getting the Gnarlmaw done, so I’m just going to have to live going to learn how the army works without one.

Once the bugs and the GUO’s bell is done, I just need to add static grass to complete the effect, but I think that might be a 1am Saturday morning job...wouldn’t be the first time I’ve gone to an event with the glue still drying on the base!!

Looking ahead, I think the next things will be the Blight King’s & The Glottkin. I’m inclined to get the latter done first, it’ll be nice to do one big model rather than masses of rank & file. I really don’t want to have a Plaguebearer under my brush ever again.

Oh, yeah, the Plague Drones have riders. Balls.

[DocB]

I bet you thought this was dead!

Yes, well, as many of you know I do have a tendency to have a massive spike in productivity and then it promptly dies again. But a few weeks have gone by and I'm back to planning what comes next. So;

Age of Sigmar - Well, we have a painted Daemons of Nurgle army, so I'm now looking to get to work on adding some mortals to the army! Namely, the Glottkin and about 20 Blight Kings. This particular part of the project is on standby at this particular moment in time until a) I get the contrast paint that works so fucking well on human flesh & b) I get my yearly injection of GW gift vouchers to buy 40 odd Maurauders & Plague Monks. Stay tuned on that front.

Oh, and Contrast paint is great for painting large amounts of models at speed (see the Plaguebearers) - however, word to the wise, it does leave gaps. Small gaps, but noticable gaps. I need to spend an afternoon going over my Daemon part of the Nurgle army just touching them up. An afternoon I'm not looking forward to....

40K - So, in preparation for our 40K tournament, I've been painting those Blo<THIS PARAGRAPH CONTAINS HERETICAL CONTENT AND HAS BEEN DELETED>

Warmachine - HAHAHAHAHA!

....but seriously, I'm painting my Grymkin. I have a plan! It actually fits in nicely with...

Malifaux - Ok, so, I've decided to stick with Outcasts for the next few months to learn the game with Leviticus. I'm looking at playing some Ressurectionists as well, purely to break up playing the same faction (or, more accurately, the same master because I fucking love Leviticus) constantly. I've got my eye on the Student Nationals in April 2020 and I'm hoping to play Malifaux there and then switching out to a new faction after that event as I suspect even I will be sick of Levi by then.

(For those interested, I think I'm going to either Arcanists or full on Ressers).

But, I need to start painting. Luke over at the Skirmish Wargamming YouTube channel has asked me to come on to play some games, but I can only do so with a painted crew. Now, whilst I have a painted Dr. McMourning crew, it is still missing a couple of models I need, so I'm planning on painting up Levi & a Seamus crew.

I've not been sure how to go about doing the Seamus crew - but I saw a paint scheme online of someone who did a Grymkin army in a Sin City style scheme of blacks & whites with emphasis on blood and eyes in bright colours and, since Seamus (for the unknowing, he's a mixture of Jack The Ripper & Batman's The Mad Hatter with a .50 calber flintlock....) gives off a massive horror movie feeling, I thought I'd do that with a small crew, may expanding it into more Ressers as time goes on.

It's not going to win me many prizes, but since there'll be plenty of Black/White/Red at least it'll meet 3 colour minimum painting requirements....

Until next time (and most likely Sunday when I do some building & painting once I get down to GW on Sunday to get some paints....)

B

[DocB]

<continuing from the above>

Although, thinking about it, Jack Daw could fit into the Horror movie theme as well....

[DocB]

So, here's what's happening - apologies for the long delay in an update - a new job and real life have jumped me and left me with little to no hobby time. But, with a couple of free weekends coming (more on that in a moment) it's time for me to sort out my hobby life and start getting ready for a new year. So, let's do some updates;

 

Warmachine - ……

 

Malifaux - So, having played another game with Jack and another game with Leviticus, I've come to the conclusion that I'm tied into M2E a little too much still with Outcasts - so one of my jobs this weekend of tie a knot on the Outcasts - build what I have left and get it on the shelf next to the Neverborn crew I'm eternally working on and then I can get going on what I've been building up to for a while now - Resurrectionists!

 

Now that'll be of no surprise to a few folk, but I always get drawn to the Undead faction of any game I pick up so it was only really a matter of time…I need to get my hands on a 3x3 matt as well so I can start having some games at home. So, yes, look forward to that in the new year. I'm building another crew for intro games so if you're interested then there's that too…

 

Regarding masters though, I've always wanted to play Seamus and I've started assembling the man himself, but it's somewhat frustrating (as usual with Wyrd models) so it may take a while…but I've got a few ideas on how to  get him and the Molly crew that's on its way to me to really sing. Two words - Lamp Posts.

 

Also, keep watching Luke's YouTube channel (Luke, if you're reading this and I haven't replied to you yet, I give you permission to stand on my McMourning!)

 

40K - So, the Blood Angels are getting a new book and we're getting a new Mephiston, so expect to see those back on the table in the new year! For the moment though, I'm getting them built ready to hit the table. And no, I'm still not planning on getting them painted. 40K is my beer & pretzels game so it's never going to get the same amount of hobby time as, say, Age of Sigmar gets from me. However I have picked up a few bits of a Guard army, and having read the codex have been considering either a Catachan or a Starship Troopers themed Cadian army so…watch this space for the inevitable disappointment.

 

AoS - Well then. The Nurgle stuff continues to go together, but I've hit a gut shaped lump in the road in the form of the Ogre army that has landed in my lap (more on that later) so I'm working on finishing the Nurgle stuff off so I can put it aside and focus on something else.

 

I've acquired a Dwarf army. I need to buy/build/paint Gotrek and it's ready to rumble.

 

So I've got an AoS tournament on the 7th of next month and the Student Nationals has rumbled round again and I've signed up for AoS again - mainly because Malifaux and Warmachine were not choices. It's in Sheffield this year so I don't have to take travelling into account as much as going to Glasgow last year - that said, I'd like to do something with a bit more weight this time - Nurgle does fine, but every time I write a list I find something else I need to add to my collection. It'd be fine for a Path to Glory campaign (watch this space, the event organiser is working on it!) but I've decided to go with Ogres for the Student Nationals. They don't need to be painted, but you get bonus points if they are so I'm working on getting that done.

 

"But when" I hear you cry!

"Ben you hate painting" I hear you laugh

"Ben you're a nightmare when you're painting" I hear Laura sob

 

But, as I said, I'm free next weekend so I intend To paint the army in a weekend to show it can be done and I can do it. I've got the models, I've got the paints and I'm just waiting on some bases to shore up what I need. I'm not going to claim it'll be the best army (I doubt it) but it'll be a start and I can build on these foundations as we get closer to next April.

 

Or I'll scythe through half an army with Gotrek in December and won't ever look back.

 

I'll keep the updates coming. Thanks for wading through my ramblings - again

[DocB]

I didn't paint the army in a weekend. And I haven't built Gotrek - He's staring at me from the pile of unbuilt stuff in the corner.

Sick days suck, but they're also helpful when you've got a new set up in your hobby room which gives, you the insentive to start work on a new hobby project (or three)

So I've been spending the afternoon preparing bases and slowly building a Seamus crew for Malifaux. I'm not going to get it all done over the next few days because I need more lamp posts for the crew - I only have 5 for the moment, and I haven't fully decided if more is overkill or not - but I have decided to go down the route I thought about a while ago of doing the Sin City style paint scheme where all the models in the crew apart from the leader have that black & white look, with one bit of colour to make it stand out. So far, such a good plan. But then again, this is Malifaux and as the box says - bad things happen. In my case, spilt blood and the fact that Seamus is such a fiddly fucker to put together.

I keep looking at the sprue at the Copycat killer and wondering how in the hell I'm going to stay sane putting him together.

On the subject of my Blood Angels, I don't even know where they are.

On the subject of Age of Sigmar in preparation for the Student Nationals, I'm building more and more bases and slowly working my way through the thirty something Ogre Bulls I'm planning on taking. But I have also heard rumours about how Tzeentch is now back with a brutal vengence and after looking through all the Tzeentch stuff I own, I realises I'm about two exalted flamers and a Lord of Change away from a full force I could rock out with! But I think that's going to be a project for after the Nationals - given what I've heard about the Changehost, I think the FAQ bat might be going to come down quite hard on this one....we'll have to wait and see.

Oh, and if anyone wants any coffins for projects, I may have a few left over. Need some markers for the Carrion Emissary, so I ordered a pack of the TT combat ones - don't know if I'll need 10 (which is how many are in the park) - also, having been arguing with the TT combat paint rack for so long I don't know if I have the patience to get them all put together without killing someone.

Out of interest - has anyone tried undercoating and painting wood?

[Cookie Monster]

that would be a good topic..... it is actually possible to build a malfaux crew in a weekend lol

[DocB]

that would be a good topic..... it is actually possible to build a malfaux crew in a weekend lol

Depending on the crew, I'd argue it's easy enough, with enough patience, to build a crew in an evening. I've built Seamus and have just started on the Copycat Killer (whose attachment to the base I'd say is the most ridiculous I've ever seen, but then I've got the Molly crew to build at some point and she's on her tip-toe!) and reckon I can build the crew box, the Doxies and Archie this evening if I don't get distracted.

If. Big If. Maybe I should eat now before the cat tried to run off with Seamus in her mouth again.

[DocB]

that would be a good topic..... it is actually possible to build a malfaux crew in a weekend lol

I spoke too soon.

One of the Dead Doxies is 14 pieces. The hand that is resting on an umbrella is separate to the arm. And the umbrella.

Determined to finish her and Archie before I sleep!

(NB the other Doxy in the box was so frustrating she's gone back in the box after I remembered there was a completed Doxy in the stuff I bought from Nathaniel...)

[DocB]

12/14 pieces on the Doxy on, and I can't see joins for the last two bits, so I'm calling her done.

Archie didn't take long at all, even if it took some painful thought process to work out where each of his five arms go...

Half an hour before I go to bed. Might try doing a Rotten Belle or two before I start undercoating over the next couple of days. God forbid I might actually do some painting tomorrow to get stuff up and done.

Trying to pick out the bits on the models to put into colour to make them stand out. Think I'll start with Archie - think I'm going to wind up painting the whole crew before I start on Seamus. Looking at Archie;

https://images.app.goo.gl/cAD1e6FTyWua4A8c9

(Painted by someone better than me)

I'm thinking the tentacle and the Ice Cream? Then doing a lampost behind him. Better do his base actually, just realised I've not done it yet.


EDIT: Did two Rotten Belles. Go me. A Belle, a base for Archie and Madam Sybelle to go tomorrow. Might even go nuts and build and paint one of my favourite Malifaux models which I've finally gotten my hands on - the Dead Rider.

[DocB]

So, about 24 hours have passed and despite having a head which feels like it's three pounds heavier than it should be, I've made some progress.

All of the Seamus crew, the Dead Rider and the Doxies are all done, as well as getting Mortimer & some mindless zombies off their original bases so they match up with the bases the rest of the crew are on.

I've undercoated everything apart from Seamus, as I'm not sure which undercoat to use on him. I'm tempted to use Wraith Bone rather than Corax White as I want to use Contrast paint to do his skin to make my life slightly easier.

I've finished the bases. They've all been undercoated grey and had a light shading of Nuln Oil. Much lighter than I've done in the past as they will be models standing under a lamp post.

Speaking on lamp post, they've had their base coat of Balthasar Gold - next will be a shade of Agrax and then I'll be putting on some Nihilakh Oxide to get a rusted brass look with maybe a silver highlight to try and get some scratches on their. I've never watered down my paints, used a mixing tray or highlighted before, so I'm quite intreged by this.

I'd like to finish a Dead Doxy tonight. She looks like she's leaning back to get someones attention, so I've got a lamp post which looks kind of perfect for this. Only thing I need to work out is how to paint the "Light" bit of the lamp post. Will do some research I think...any ideas?

[Skeletor]

Well done on the painting ben- sounds like you've been busy. For an oily/rusty look to the lampposts you may want to try typhus corrosion? I've been painting the blood Angel's and genestealers for my space hulk set, and typhus corrosion is great for recreating the oily rust look of the ancient space hulk floor. I've applied it over a base of leadbelcher.

For the light on the lamppost, are you looking for a white light (like LED) or a yellowish light? Got a couple of ideas depending on what your required finish is?

[DocB]

Well done on the painting ben- sounds like you've been busy. For an oily/rusty look to the lampposts you may want to try typhus corrosion? I've been painting the blood Angel's and genestealers for my space hulk set, and typhus corrosion is great for recreating the oily rust look of the ancient space hulk floor. I've applied it over a base of leadbelcher.

For the light on the lamppost, are you looking for a white light (like LED) or a yellowish light? Got a couple of ideas depending on what your required finish is?

So I've nearly finished the lamp posts - I used Nihilakh Oxide in the end, but found it a bit overpowering, so threw on another coat of Agrax Earthshade which seems to have softened it enough that it's at an exceptable level now. As for the light itself, I watched a video on lamps and saw one that used Casandora Yellow which has actually come out really well - just need to do some highlights and fine details and they should be done - but thanks James, I'll definately try the Leadbelcher/Typhus Corrosion on the second set of Lamps I'll need to order to get the crew completed.

As for models, I finally bit the bullet and started the Sin City look by starting on what's probably the most impressive looking model in the crew - the Carrion Emissary. Got some grey mixed with Lahmian Medium and covered important looking bits of the model and am now waiting for that to dry before pouring over Nuln Oil and then doing some highlighting. Not a difficult scheme, but I think it will be effective.

For the one "stand out" colour on him, I decided to paint his upper tunic dark green, which hasn't provided the effect I wanted. Unless you look for it, it looks like the tunic is still black like other parts of him - so I'm waiting for that to dry and then I'll paint over it either Mephiston Red or Orange - Orange might be a bit bright for him, so I'm leaning more towards the red and then using it as a theme across the crew.

Only thing not undercoated and ready to go is Seamus. He's lent up against Butcher3 on my desk. Judging me. Little Irish fucker....

(Don't judge my spelling, I'm really tired out)

EDIT: Probably worth pointing out to those not in the know, but Seamus is a mixture of The Mad Hatter and Jack the Ripper. His crew are made up of undead prostitutes that he's murdered and brought back from the dead. Hence the Sin City theme, and hence the desire for a suitable bright colour to stand out on the models. Below is a link to some images to back this up;

https://images.app.goo.gl/UJB9GmzvLCg5LKkK9 - the Carrion Emmisary

https://images.app.goo.gl/zWFkeYeLLsgPxC51A - Seamus crew

[DocB]

So, the Carrion Emissary is now done. I'm really happy with how he's turned out, so we're now full steam ahead on this colour scheme for all of my Ressers. I've even got all my other Ressers out and ready to be undercoated black so they can get the same treatment. If I could find both of my Hanged then I'd be working on my Jack Daw crew next. I think they're screaming out for this colour scheme. Even bought a load of new paints to finish off this scheme.

I've been thinking about Seamus and the other masters - I can't understand why I thought it would be a good idea for me to handicap myself by painting the masters to be unique in the crew when they should be the same to complete the look. So I'm undercoating Seamus tomorrow so that he can join the same theme as the rest of the crew.

I think if this works I might use the same paint scheme on my Grymkin too. Then I might do a 40K army with the scheme as well. Not quite sure which one yet. I think I might wind up doing a Lost & The Damned style army (Renegades & Heretics) as I think that night compliment the paint scheme. Not sure yet. I think this paint scheme might work best in a skirmish style game like Malifaux or Warmachine rather than in a game that requires more models like 40K. Also it would mean having the insentive to paint 40K - which as I've previously said is more of my beer & Pretzels game.

I've also got the Ogres on the painting table. The thought of painting that much flesh is making my eyes water. Maybe we should finish a Malifaux crew or two first...

And yes, I am procastenating rather than painting. Will likely get some more done tomorrow. Honest.

[Mart]

Don’t be intimidated by all the flesh to paint on your ogors, there are so many ways to paint it quite quickly now that look really effective. I’ve come across so many videos, blogs and threads on methods, but a good one is coating with Cadian fleshtone then going over it with thinned gulliman flesh contrast paint.