Lockdown 2.0 Project Log Day 75: Mummy!

 Hi!

I've finished off another miniature from the old Dark World boardgame in the form of a Mummy!

I've actually had him painted for about ten or so years but the paintjob was so atrocious that I dumped him in a box and abandoned him. A combination of poor detail and silly pose really put me off but I discovered him during my latest attempt to clear my leadpile and decided to have a second bash at fixing him up.

His original pose made him look like he was serenading someone rather than looking menacing so I removed his reaching hand and turned it by about 90 degrees to make him look like he was reaching towards an unwitting victim.

I didn't bother stripping the paint off him as I just wanted to get him finished and out of the way but with a re-prime with grey paint and lots of washes over the new basecoat, he looks alright.

I had a bit of a hum and hah about how to base him, initially considering giving him a desert base but eventually decided to just go for my usual sand and green to fit in with the rest of my collection. It may not be the most exciting finish but it's the easiest to use on several different types of board without looking terrible.

In other news, I've printed off a copy of Planet 28 and will be working through a couple of test games over the next day or two before playing out a proper battle report at the weekend once I have all the rules sorted properly.

In the meantime, All the best!

Lockdown Day 27

Hi!

Here's some pics of the assorted gubbins I've been working on over the last day or two!

First up, here's some small terrain pieces for my War of Ashes project:

 Stone Pillars

Quick and easy to make, they are simply old corks with some cardboard slabs, paper vegetation and some beads for pots. Handily they will also do for my Somewhere on the Border or dare I say World of Twilight!

I plan on making a lot more small pieces of scenery as they are rather fun to work on and take next to no time to put together!

Next up, I've been working on a bunch of denizens of the Witchlands for my Deadloque project:

Wolf

It's an old GW plastic wolf and it suits the Flintloque sort of style and I have another four or five lying around which will give me some fun non undead beasties for my Ferach to be menaced by.

Next up, here's a really cross Flesh Golem:

Flesh Golem

This chap is actually an old paint job that I've tweaked a bit to fit in with the Flintloque universe. He's from 4A Figures (which is an absolutely lovely and eclectic range!) and will be making the odd cameo in the Witchlands.

Next up, there's Yevgeni the Wraith:

 Yevgeni is crotchety at the best of times

I painted him last year and he's originally from the Darkworld board game but with a new face. Game wise, I think I'll have him turn up from time to time to chase pesky kids off his land. I just need to build a barrow for him to lurk in!

Finally, there's a large bat:

Batfink

He's from Warhammer Quest and I thought that as the Witchlands is full of vampires, they would need some sort of message service so this little guy will be an objective in the game carrying messages and battleplans for the forces of the Star Wraith!

Hopefully I'll have get some more gubbins up tomorrow including more scenic madness!

In the meantime, All the best!

Lockdown Day 19

Hi!

I've finally finished all the miniatures that come in the Deadloque boxed set!

 Gerard's Survivors

I really enjoyed this project and have managed to paint two 28mm figures a day over the last couple of days to get them all done while the mojo was there and I'm really pleased with how they turned out!

These survivors on the retreat from Moskova during the bone chilling winter in the Witchlands has really been a pleasure to paint with their ragged but still splendid uniforms and chunky character.

 Scavenging for supplies

With the boxed set completed, I need to get some more terrain painted up to represent the hostile frozen landscape of the Witchlands for Gerard and his ragtag band to flee from the encroaching undead menace of the Star Wraiths horde!

Undead Attack!

I've even had a rummage through my bits boxes to see if I have any more decent proxies kicking about to represent suitable denizens of that terrible realm and will post some pics as I get things completed.

Hopefully I'll manage to continue with the success of painting as this is the first completely painted boxed set I think I've ever managed to paint in the last 25 plus years of gaming so I may have to toast my success and hope for more of the same!

We shall have to see what I manage to paint next but it's been rather a lot of fun working on such a great little project which has cheered me up greatly during the lockdown. 

All the best for now and I'll post more gubbins tomorrow!

Lockdown Day 16

Hi!

We ventured out for a quick walk today which was absolutely fantastic and then I got back to work on painting stuff!

I've finally finished all the Undead from the Deadloque boxed set which is terribly exciting!

Zombie Chaps!

Even more excitingly, I've also got the first three of the Ferach Elves done too so I only have three figures left to paint from an entire box set and it's looking like I am going to have the lot done by the weekend. This is a bit of a milestone for me as I don't think I've ever managed to paint the entire contents of a boxed set before.

I'm also looking to make some terrain for the Witchlands so will be having a rummage through my supplies to see what I can put together!

Hopefully I'll have more some more updates tomorrow so watch this space!

In the meantime, All the best!

Deadloque Update

Hi!

I've been a bit busy with work but finally have a week off and I'm hoping to be able to spend a little bit of time in hobby related shenanigans!

I've been slowly painting my way through my Deadloque box and have finished another Zombie musketeer as well as a few odds and ends and have even repurposed an old board game figure into my small force:

Zombie Musketeer

I've given this guy a brown greatcoat instead of the dark greens I've stuck with so far as I'm keen to avoid getting bored of my painting. I'm also still experimenting with the correct skin tones for zombies so this little chap is a somewhat warmer green than the last figure I painted.

Next up here's a Wraith:

Howdy Neighbour!

He's the Lurker from the old Darkworld boardgame and I spotted him in my bits box and thought that his mighty truckasaurus hands would fit in with the style of Flintloque. I sculpted a new head for him to give a more pleasingly cartoony finish and gave him a quick paint job. I'm quite pleased with how he's turned out!

It's not all figures I've been painting though as the box set I picked up from Ebay included some handy scatter terrain which will be making a handy objective for my forces to fight it out over:

 Ye Shotte

The sculpts are really crude but a quick dash of paint makes them serviceable enough!

Finally, here's a quick pic of my Undead force thus far:

The forces of the Star Wraith

I'm still enjoying painting my way through my collection and can't quite believe I've almost finished the Undead from the box. I seem to be spending 2019 in a very productive mode with steady progress on my 2mm and Deadloque projects. 

Hopefully this will continue over the next couple of weeks as I attempt to finish the Undead and make a start on the Elves. I even managed to play a quick skirmish using Flintloque which saw the Elves make a quick raid on an Undead ammunition store and steal some powder and shotte before withdrawing having shot down two zombie sentries and a skeletal guard who was attracted to the noise.

Sadly I didn't manage to get any photos as our cat, Mab decided she wanted to constantly climb on the table, knock over dice and generally be a bit of a menace but hopefully next time I'll get some pics and put together an after action report!

In the meantime, All the best!

Ironclads, Infantry and Undead. Oh My!

Hi!

It's been a while since I updated the blog but I've been rather busy with work and hobby related stuff so without further ado, here's some pics of what I've been getting up to:

First up, here's the second brigade of my 2mm Orc Horde:

 Tiny Troops

I've had these chaps almost finished for a while but adding the flags and giving the base a bit of a polish seems to really make the stand of Yellowjackets pop.

I need to add a third brigade to finish my Orcish infantry for the time being but putting the bases together is rather tedious so I've been procrastinating!

 Orc Infantry supported by Necrosaur Wartowers

Saying that, I'm really liking how the army is slowly but surely coming together with the horde of infantry looking suitably tiny next to the towering warbeasts.

Here's a scale pic showing the original Leviathan Necrosaur Wartower in 28mm scale next to a 2mm one made by me:

Little and Large

The Old Leviathan range has some stunning pieces in it that ooze charm and I highly recommend folks give them a look. That being said, the moulds are starting to show their age a bit and there's a fair amount of excess resin to clean up with the range but the effort is worth it, especially if you're looking to add an old school beastie to your army!

Speaking of which, here's a pic of the beast in action alongside Necrodon cavalry which I painted last year:

 Fyreslayers take on a posse of warbeasts. What could go wrong?

Here's a pic of the Necrodon by itself. It's a great model, even if it does show the limitations to the one piece moulds that Scotia use:

Necrodon

I've also been busy working on some terrain suitable to 2mm gaming and have put together some patches of vegetation to give my infantry something to hide in:

 Shrubbery!

At long last, I've also got a few Land Ironclads for my Dwarves which I hope to be able to get some paint on over the course of the weekend:

Dwarf Ironclads

It's been a fascinating process working with plasticard rather than putty but I'm rather pleased with the results as they've turned out rather nicely and it's got me thinking about trying to make some larger scale ones next for 15mm!

Finally I've managed to finish another Zombie Musketeer for my Flintloque project:

Brains...

He was another great figure to paint and the warband as a whole is really starting to come together now and I'm looking forward to finishing the Undead and starting on the Elves!

Lastly, here's a pic of my Vampyre officer with a couple of underlings:

I've come to drink your blood!

It's fascinating how my projects are meandering along so well this year as I'm painting lots of gubbins and really enjoying the eclectic nature of what I'm working on at and given moment.

The only thing missing thus far is 15mm sci-fi but I hope to work on some bits and bobs soon so watch this space!

In the meantime, All the best!

Tiny Horde and Skeletal Reinforcements

Hi!

Well it's been a while since I last updated the blog but I've not been idle. I've been furiously painting my way through all sorts of oddments and seem to be keeping the hobby mojo going well for January!

First up, here's my first infantry brigade for my 2mm Orc Horde:

Orc Yellow Jackets

As previously mentioned, I'd planned on making hair curler armies in true old school style but the times have moved on ant the style of curler is surprisingly difficult to obtain. I'd then thought of just biting the bullet and placing an order with Irregular to get all the bits I needed but I stumbled across an article suggesting Granny Grid (the plastic webbing used for cross stitch) and as I had a few bits of the stuff lying around, and being cheap, I thought I'd give it a bash.

I must admit that my initial reaction wasn't too favourable but once the unit is based and tiny flag added, they seem to all of a sudden work. At 2mm scale, Infantry units are always going to be a bit of a challenge to represent but the impression of ranked troops looks fine from a range of 2 foot which is fine with me!

 Orc Horde on maneuvers

I need to put together a second brigade to make a regiment and give my Orcs some ground troops to take objectives and generally get stomped or blown up so I can see more tiny troops making an appearance soon!

Next up, here's some additions to my Witchlands force for Flintloque:

Vampyre Officer

As already mentioned, I'm finding these chunky figures almost paint themselves and the Vampyre is no exception and he was a real pleasure to work on.

 Zombie Musketeer

Next up, the first of my Zombies. He's great fun and surprisingly expressive for a dead fellow. Again the sculpting is rough and stylised in places (such as his massive hands) but it doesn't matter. In fact it gives the whole thing a charm that more polished sculpts, especially computer based ones, lack.

Militia with Musket

The rather more worn figures for the warband are local militia who have decayed to the point of being skeletal. Again these chaps are great fun to paint and have just enough detail to keep them interesting without being fussy.

Militia with Axe and Pitchfork

The Cossack looking militia is the only one that I had to apply any putty to and that was because his left hand clutching the hatchet was freakishly small...

Hoodie wearing Militia

The last militia is possibly a little boring colour wise, but his pose os great and his grinning skull peeping out from his ragged hood looks fab too!

This leaves me with four more Zombies to paint up, a couple of which need a little tlc as their bayonets have broken off and then I'll be moving onto the Ferach Elves. I do recommend folks take a second look at the Flintloque range as it's surprisingly satisfying to work with. The cartoony proportions add to their charm and I'm really looking forward to finishing off the force!

With all this painting, I'm falling behind in the gaming department with just one game played and now three weeks into the year. On the one hand I really want to get some games played but on the other, my painting mojo is strong so I'm not sure I'll be able to resist painting more gubbins and then seeing about a game or two further down the line.

I also plan on getting to grips with my assorted 6mm and 15mm projects with an aim to get some more painting, sculpting and converting done in the near future so watch this space.

In the meantime, All the best!

Second Titanosaur Sighted

Hi!

Just a quick update this morning before I head out to work. I've managed to finish my second Titanosaur for my 2mm fantasy project and have also finished a trio of skeletons for my Deadloque project too!

Titanosaur Wartower

This gives me a couple of heavier warbeasts for Land Ironclads but looking at the sculpt, I'm thinking I need to make a few more, possibly one with a heavier gun to act as a siege piece for assaulting Dwarven fortifications.

I must admit that I'm finding the whole project rather fascinating to work on as I'm constantly having new ideas for units, forces, warbeasts and all manner of interesting gubbins but I'm trying to keep myself from getting carried away by first concentrating on getting the stuff I have already sculpted finished!

 Titanosaur Unit

 I have found myself looking for Infantry to add to my fledgling force and I'm still swithering about picking up some from Irregular Miniatures but have spotted a few articles from people using hair rollers as the basis for tiny scale infantry. It sounds awful but having taken a peek at the finished article, I must admit that I'm tempted to have a go as in 2mm, the figures are so small that the approach may work! It's also rather in keeping with my budget for the project as a whole.

I suspect I'll need to nip into Boots and pick up a pack and have an experiment and if all else fails, they'll do for interesting conversion fodder.

Orc Warbeast Formation

Last but not least, here's a pic of my skeletal trio for Deadloque:

Dem Bones

It doesn't really show up in the sepia picture, but they've all been an absolute pleasure to work on and I'm looking forward to adding a few zombies as well as the vampire leader of the force in the coming weeks!

Once I've got them all done, I'll post an article on my thoughts on both the figures and the game but in the meantime, All the best!

Little and Large

Hi!

Well my new year seems to be continuing with painting stuff of random scales and sheer enjoyment as I finished another of my 2mm warbeasts, this time a Titanosaur and a 28mm scale Flintloque figure to boot!

First up, here's my Titanosaur:

Titanosaur Wartower

He's one of the earlier of my 2mm sculpts so is actually a bit on the crude side but I had lots of fun painting him up in traditional Orc Horde colours and he makes a good addition to my fledgling force. 

 Titanosaur

I'm now down to just two figures to paint to complete the mini project which has been really great fun to do and I'm looking forward to adding to my tiny force with some much needed infantry and cavalry which I plan on picking up next month from Irregular!

Next up, here's a better pic of my Necrosaurs:

 Necrosaur Formation

I've reworked the bases a bit so they aren't quite a featureless and have given them some small scrubby patches to break up the base a bit. I'm still not quite happy with the finish but I can always go back to it in the future to tinker with once the whole force is completed.

Next up here's a slightly blurry scale shot of the whole force thus far:

 Orc Horde Building!

I'm really loving the epic scale of the little fellows and am also turning my attention to some of the other inhabitants of Aeroth for inspiration and possible addition to my micro madness!

Finally, here's a quick pic of Stalinov the Lich:

Greetings Mortals!

I picked up Deadloque from Alternative Armies for a bit of a bargain on Ebay a while back and have decided to paint my way through its contents and was overjoyed to find that the figures were an absolute pleasure to work on.

I owned pretty much all the miniatures from Flintloque and it's associated rules back in the day and had painted most of them before moving and getting rid of the lot. I had very fond memories of painting them though and thought that they might fill the 28mm niche that I've been hankering after for the last couple of years.

Their chunky but characterful sculpts are an absolute joy to paint and it's a crying shame that the studio paintjobs shown on Alternative Armies website really don't do them any justice at all. I highly recommend folks pick up a pack and try painting them as they're great fun. It's also worth noting that they are pretty huge too. Stalinov stands just over 40mm tall from the bottoms of his boney feet to the top of his impressive hat.

I've got a second skeletal Witchlander almost finished and will get some pics taken once he's finished but I seem to be really enjoying all things hobby related this year so hopefully 2019 will be a bit of a golden year for painting and gaming!

All the best!

Back From Holiday and Pondering the Future...

Hi!

Well we are back from our sojourn up north to the Isle of Skye and had a fantastic, if soggy time of it to boot! Whilst on holiday I have been giving some serious thought into what I am going to be doing following my last post.

The gist of the post was my increasing hankering after a project that I didn't think I had it in me to complete, namely collecting and painting a fantasy army. The reason for my hesitance is that I haven't attempted anything similar for years, in fact the last full fantasy army I had was a hefty 6000 point Dwarf force that was fully painted and sadly sold off before I went off to uni.

Sadly all that remains are the few bits and bobs that I had kicking around unpainted that have eventually formed a bit of a warband:

Dwarven Warband

Every time since that I have actually sat down to think about attempting anything larger than a skirmish force, I have found myself stalling and giving up. Similarly, I have a bit of an issue with the likes of Warhammer as the background leaves me cold and generic fantasy in general just doesn't seem to inspire me at all. Looking back at the projects I've worked on down the years, just about the most fun I had warband building was this undead force that has also long since been consigned to ebay:

 Skeletal Troops

 Skeletal Giant

 Zombies!

 Skeletal Spearmen

 Jabberwock!

 Manticore

 Wights

Skeletal Pack

While using generic enough miniatures (the vast majority came from the old Games Workshop plastic skeletons or Reaper and Ral Partha) the force was a bit different and far more dynamic than the shuffling boredom that I usually associate with the classic undead sort of army. Each unit was unique, be it with their grafted weaponry or intricate armour or even just the odd headswap.

While I applaud the folks who have the patience and skill to create massive armies with vast regiments of troops, I just don't have the time or inclination to put together something quite so grand but I am thinking that by using the traditional round base, movement trays and a bit of low cunning, a 20 figure regiment can easily be represented by 12 figures...

This is the sort of force I do want to put together with units of troops supported by terrifying monsters, destructive war engines and charismatic characters to lead them into battle! I must admit that looking at these pictures has stirred a great deal of nostalgia in me and I am sorely tempted to put together a similar force.

I don't want to spend years painting up an army, I want to create an interesting force relatively quickly and still be able to paint each figure to a standard I am happy with. Is such a feat even possible? Who knows but I don't know unless I try!

Now I have ranted and railed enough, I think its time I had a bit of a think about what sort of a force I want to put together and more excitingly, a decent back story which is vital to bringing together often disparate looking figures and combining them into a cohesive force. Who are they, where do they come from and what is their motivation? Who are their leaders? The backstory maketh the army and sets one up for good narrative games rather than the lifeless, soulless boredom that tournament type play seems to encourage. I don't want game winning units, I want interesting ones!

This is all a bit Oldhammerish in spirit, even if the rules and figures I use might not be. With my ponderings done, I think I am going to go and have a rummage through my collection and see what I can put together but I think I am going to take Chico's advice from a while back when I had painters block and buy something I have never painted before and see how I get on!

Till next time, All the best!