Workbench Wednesday

No update on miniatures this time, as work has been a pain recently with shifts all over the place as we are permanently short staffed.

So the Stormcast, Terminator Resistance and Japanese Ashigaru have all remained in their containers for the time being.

Having a few days off coming up as my son is in the hospital I am hoping to make some headway with them whilst we wait.

Anyway, Chris linked me this the other day:

It's the 2020 edition of Wargame Hobby Bingo.

Compared to the previous one, you can see that there are many more options, including some of the more common things people do within the hobby now.
Such as splitting starter boxes and taking one force instead of both, etc.

Like Chris, when we were messaging about it, we both think that now is the best time to start, right at the beginning of the year.
I'm going to try to get him motivated to play along as well, but we'll see.


Until next time...


 - Lewis.

Workbench Wednesday

After the glut of finished stuff in the previous post, here are my current workbench projects.

Remember:

• A project can only be added when another project has been finished.
• Two projects off this week. 
• There can only be three projects on the workbench at any one time.
• Preparation and Priming work can still continue unabated

 So, the Yari Ashigaru from last week are still on the table as I didn't feel like working on them this past week, I'll not post the picture again.

Instead, new stuff:

Stormcast Eternals:

Four Stormcast Eternals models, these will allow me to finish off two six man units for Dragon Rampant, and then get on with the next phase of that army.
These should be a moderately quick project as like the Dracoth Rider, they are mostly done with detailing and things like the Aetherwing Hawk to paint.

Human Resistance (and one more Exoskeleton):

A unit of eight human resistance models for Terminator Genysis, I managed to start the fatigues and skin on some of the models. I've also converted a few of them, one of which is wielding a captured Plasmagun from the machines. The guy front and centre is wielding "The Holy Bible" and a pistol in an effort to make the metal demons return whence they came.
The bible was a part on a zombie survivors sprue I picked up and was too good to not use really.
The last lonesome Exoskeleton stood there is the last one off a sprue, so I figured I'll thrown him in with this lot to get him done (and throw out a sprue as well).

Well, next projects announced, on we go.

Until next time...


 - Lewis

Workbench Wednesday, first completed mini's of 2020.

Hello,

Well, the first miniatures have been completed for 2020 and we're just over a week into the new year.

Maybe rejigging things worked for motivation?
(or it could be that I've picked generally small projects to start with to clear some of the backlog...who knows?)

Anyway..

First up, My Stormcast Eternal Dracoth Rider, not sure what to name him yet.

I just had his head and flag to finish last time, so it was into the bits box for another Space Wolf Terminator head to match the rest of my Stormcast so far.
Ironically, I have just finished him (the rim of his base could do with touching up) and I've rewritten my Dragon Rampant list for them which drops him in favour of a Giant Eagle...oh well.

Speaking of Terminators:

The first lot of Exoskeletons for Terminator Genysis are done, I'll try to get a less "flashy" photo of them later on, but being silver, that's going to be interesting.
Basic paint jobs, drybrush lots of different silvers, pick out the eyes and plasma injectors on the weapons with red, add base and done.

In accompaniment to the small Primaris Blood Angels force I put together for a friend last year, I have added some details to these 4 Primaris Intercessors and this Primaris Ancient:

Blue knee pads mark these out as the second line squad, the gold helmet of the Primaris Ancient denotes him as a veteran or honour guard member.

Yes, I could have added the company number, but my friend couldn't decide and has since decided to stop with the Primaris, so I'm hoping to get the other models back from him soon.

Finally, I decided to turn my attention to finishing off a couple of terrain pieces I have had lying around for Test of Honour:

A bamboo stand, a rice cart and a rice store hut made by Sarissa Precision.

The bamboo stand is made from some cheap plastic bamboo from china off eBay, and then glued into a suitable scatter base and worked up from there.

The leaf fall on the base is made out of mixed herbs and thyme from our local supermarket, after a youtube tutorial I found about making jungle bases for your models.

The rice store has actually been built and mostly finished for the past year, I went back to it with a drybrush for half hour last night and worked some greens over the piece, down the roof line and such to represent growth and rain deposits from the bamboo without going overboard and adding loads of detail which would ruin a gaming piece.

Finally, the rice cart, I have left loose and not added to a base so far in order to be used as general scatter.

 I'll have to add it to a base eventually, as it is quite fragile, but that's a future problem.
I am looking forwards to adding some more terrain and setting up a feudal japan game in the future.

Well, a rather prolific start to 2020, here's hoping that things keep progressing.

Until next time...


 - Lewis

Workbench Wednesday

Welcome to Workbench Wednesday.

Like I said previously about reworking how I post things in order to encourage motivation, this is the first Workbench Wednesday post of the year, and of the decade!

To reiterate the rules:

Three items on the workbench at once. That can be three characters, units, terrain pieces, etc

• A weekly update post on a Wednesday about how things are getting on, but the finished items will be posted on their respective day.

• An item can only be added to the workbench, when another item has left it completely.

• Preparation work and Priming will still occur whenever I feel like it. This is for when I don't feel like painting per-se, but also so I'll have things ready to go onto the workbench as soon as something is finished.

So, whats on the workbench at the start of the new year?

Stormcast Eternal Lord Celestant on Dracoth.

This is the Vandus Hammerhand model, from the first Age of Sigmar starter set.
I'd already used his head and hammer elsewhere, so he is being converted with the spare banner from a Knight-Vexillor and I'll probably add a spare Space Wolf marine head as I've used those throughout my other Stormcast Eternals.
He's going to become a "Heavy Rider" unit for Dragon Rampant, more on that when he's finished.


Yari Ashigaru, unit of ten.

Whilst I only have an image of the three which I have started to paint, I am going to include the other seven models I want to include in this unit.
Usable for both Test of Honour in groups of three for one warband, the reason I am making them up to ten strong, is because I have been reading a rule set called Sengoku:

This I downloaded for free from WargamesVault, sister website of DriveThruRPG.
It's a slightly larger battle game then Test of Honour.
But we're talking fifty to sixty models per side, not the historical Kawanakjima or Sekigahara battles of a hundred thousand plus on each side...even in 6mm scale I think that would be impossible.


Finally, T-800 unit of three and two crawlers.

These models are part of the system I have had in the box for about eighteen months now after having painted a few models for.
The now defunct Terminator Genisys Wargame which was produced by River Horse Games and Warlord Games.
It's an actual future war setting, something the movies haven't given us.
I bought two starter boxes when they were reduced down to £10 each in a Warlord stock clearance sale.
The Terminator models are quite nice, if statically posed, the resistance need some work, but that's part of the hobby!


So that wraps up the opening hobby moves for 2020, remember I cannot start another painting project until at least one of these has been finished completely, so it'll encourage me to finish stuff.

Here's hoping anyway...


Until next time...


 - Lewis

New Year, New Plans...

New Year, New Blog Format??

Hello, and welcome to a brand new year.

One thing I have been mulling over the past few days as 2019 wound to a close has been this blog and it's future.

I've neglected it and really wound down the hobby a lot recently as real life has been quite hectic.

Hospital trips, Job interviews, Consistent overtime in my current job because it's constantly short staffed, Christmas and New Year family gatherings (my sisters birthday is New Year's Eve).

So I've only managed to post a couple of things in the past few months, and finished very few models, not even had chance to think about playing any games.

I am aiming to turn that around this coming year.

In an effort to encourage motivation and work on the hobby, I am going to place some rules upon myself and split the blog up into certain posts per week.

Not just post randomly as I have done for the past two and a bit years...


So, and I stress that these aren't hard and fast every week postings, I do this for fun and am not wanting to turn it into a job.
I already have one of those and it takes up a lot of my time as it is, I don't want a second one...

So...

History Monday:
I have a great interest in history, and am aiming to sort some historical gaming out this year.
Whenever something to do with Historical is ready to go, I'll probably post it up on a Monday.

Workbench Wednesday
Most Wednesday's I will post what I am working on and progress reports on said miniatures or terrain.
One of the new rules I am going to implement is that there can only be three different things on the workbench at once, nothing new can be added to the paint station until something comes off of it.
Like many hobbyists I assume, I am sick of half painted miniatures staring at me accusingly.
Prep and Priming of miniatures will occur whenever I am not in a painting mood as such.

Fantasy Friday
AoS, Dragon Rampant, Hordes of the Things, Song of Swords and Heroes...
The number of fantasy games out there in the world is huge.
That being said, I am aiming not to try to play all of them, I have other interests and time commitments after all.
I'll focus down on Dragon Rampant for certain, perhaps something in the future if it catches my eye.
Any Fantasy postings, finished models, thoughts, world-building or battle reports will be posted on Fridays.

Sci-Fi Saturday
Science Fiction, like Fantasy is another genre which has numerous games present.
For myself, 40k and Apocalypse are a large influence, but One Page Grimdark is looking more like a great alternative to regular 40k.
Likewise, for some hard boiled Sci-Fi the old classic Stargrunt 2 is something I have had my eye on for a long time.
Cyberpunk is another interest which may crop up from time to time.
Any Science Fiction postings will go up on Saturdays.


Like I said earlier, these aren't hard and fast that something will be posted on that day each week. Just a rough guideline of when to post certain stuff to give the blog some sort of order, and hopefully encourage me to finish things quicker then I have been doing.

Enough rambling,

May you paint hand be steady and your dice always roll sixes...


Until next time...


 - Lewis

40k - Silent Sisterhood.

****

Dust churned as the vast ranks of the Astra Militarum war machine ground forward.
Hundreds of men and machines thrown into a desperate battle against the oncoming Tyranid horde.

The vox blared with calls for orders, screams for air support or artillery fire...or just plain screams.

In the midst of the chaos of battle, one singular black tank sat in the lee of a hill rising in the centre of the defence lines.

Curiously enough, the guardsmen took pains to leave a perimeter around it, as if it was anathema to them, even as it showed the symbols of the God-Emperor of Mankind upon it's flanks.

'Ignore the vox sister, keep scanning for mentions of Psy-Craft' the tense sign language of the Superior read.

'Affirm'.

In the space of minutes they heard what they were waiting for.

"That thing just fired lightning from its head, half my platoon is down, Emperor protect us...we need artillery support".

'Psyk-Creature reported' the sister monitoring the vox signed.

'Wake the servitor, get us moving!'.

****

Greetings, tonight I present this Null-Maiden Rhino tank.

Looking for a quick project, and working towards a possible apocalypse game next year, I decided that some Sisters of Silence in a rhino would be a good bet to take.

Rather then the blingy bronze of. The sisters armour, and inspired by the cryptic mentions of the inquisitions "Black Ships" throughout the various years of 40k background, I decided to paint the rhino black.
Drybrushed with Incubi Darkness, Thunderhawk Blue and Ulthuan Grey.

I've never painted a purely black model before, on the size of this tank, so it was a good experiment.

Weathering is drybrushes of Baneblade Brown, Ushabti Bone and Flayed One Flesh.

One thing I am really proud of is the Silent Sisterhood symbol which was freehanded onto the top hatch, then worked over with Somme light drybrushing to blend into the tank a little more.

Undecided whether I'll take my Orks or guard if I can make it to the (hopeful) game next year, all depends on work see, I'll figure that out after Christmas.


Until next time...


 - Lewis.

Spooky Scary Goings On, part 3.

Well, a day late due to real life goings on, but the Big Gribbly for the Nighthaunt Dragon Rampant army is completed.

This is a Lesser Warbeast with the Undead, Flying and Flame Attack rules.
Undead is obvious as the entire army has that rule.

Flying because the model is floating, I added the ruins on the base to make it more stable and durable overall.

Flame Attack is a little confusing, but I imagine that this creature has some sort of spectral scream attack like the Banshees scream. It can stun it's opponent and then carve them up with the obsidian talons on the end of its limbs.

I kept to the same colour scheme as the rest of the army, even though this isn't a pure spirit.
Lots of ethereal blues, dirty decaying silver and such.
The bones are actually Dark Grey washed a couple of times with Nuln Oil to get a dark shadowy look to them.

I do believe that this is the first time I have finished everything for an army since I started the blog, two years isn't a long time to achieve such a thing right?...right?

Anyway, until next time...


 - Lewis.