A Quick Update!

Hi!

Well I have finally got a day off work but will be spending much of it doing work related shenanigans but have just been rummaging through some of my old pics and found these chaps:

 Lesser Goblin Wartower

Orc Warriors

 Scenic Gubbins

Interestingly they are all from my old Leviathan project which stalled out many moons ago but looking at some of the stuff I developed for it, I do wonder if it might be possible to resurrect the enthusiasm I had back then for 28mm scale stuff as those Orcs look cracking and the tree gives me a hint of just how interesting my fantasy project might have become.

I don't want to jump the gun but watch this space...

All the best!

A Return to Aeroth?

Hi!

Well another busy day at work is over but I have loads of stuff still to do organising a Harry Potter evening instore for 200 people so I suspect that my hobby time is going to be next to non-existent for the next couple of weeks but I do find myself looking back over some of my Aeroth stuff of the last few years.

Now I have tried time and again to get some warbands put together for the classic wargame, Leviathan but for various reasons I just don't seem to be able to get anywhere. Part of the problem is that the original game was in 28mm scale and required some really vast warbeasts and engines of destruction to play such as this fellow below:

Orc Titanosaur

The game looked amazing if a bit impractical as you needed a vast amount of space to play it properly, not to mention a large selection of equally vast monsters. I've tried it out in 15mm with some success and am slowly working on a selection of 6mm bits and bobs to represent some of the epic battles that take place on the blasted plains of Aeroth but I can't help but wonder what I can do to resurrect the fun I had with the game.

Horned Folk Warband

Now I doubt that I can summon up the time or space to create a mass battle in 28mm scale but I have been wondering about a 28mm skirmish or a 15mm scale mid sized battle sort of  a deal. With that in mind, I am going to do a bit of experimenting to see if I can't put together some bits and bobs.

I don't know how much time I have spare to work on the project but I am rather keen to have a bash and see what I can put together. Hopefully I will have something to post this weekend though!

All the best!

Squat Re-Inforcements And Orkish Marauders

Hi!

Well I have the day off at last and have finished off a few bits and bobs for my Epic project as well as adding a couple more sculpts to my SD Orks:

 Squat Warrior Squads

The Squat Warriors have been on my painting table for some time as they are the most involved Epic figures that I've encountered as they need so many colours to get them looking right but look cracking once done and round out my infantry force nicely.

 Squat Infantry deploy

I've got another Thudd Gun underway at the moment which will give the little guys some more ranged firepower and also want to add another heavy weapons squad but that should then be the detachment complete! Looking through my small stash of unpainted Squat gubbins, I have enough to add a robot unit, some more bikers, artillery and berserkers but want to move onto another force for my next update as my Ultramarines are in need of some new additions too.

On a related topic, I've been pondering the possibilities of playing a game of 2nd edition 40k using 6mm miniatures and think I may have come up with a bit of a cunning plan but it's going to require quite a bit of planning to work out as I need to order some bits and bobs as well as tracking down suitable miniatures and adding quite a bit more scenery to my collection before a decent game can be played but I will update the blog here once I have things sorted!

I am also quite interested in the upcoming Osprey game called HORIZON WARS which sounds quite good and I think I might be picking up a copy once it's released:

Horizon Wars

Next up, there's a couple more Orky marauders for my SD project which I've been pottering around with over the last few months:

Bloodaxe Marauders

I still need to add a heavy weapon and a few more close combat troops as well as a Dreadnaught and some sort of transport but they are heading towards completion at which point I will be starting work on some Space Marines or Imperial Guard to oppose them. Interestingly, I find painting the little guys a breeze compared to 28mm scale s think I could do with making a few more too...

I also have a couple of weeks of holidays coming up which I am looking forward to rather a lot but my job is going to be requiring a lot of artwork over the coming weeks and months so I am not too sure how much time I am going to have spare to work on my various hobby projects but we shall see what we can do!

In the meantime, All the best!

Blood Axe!

Hi!

Well wonders will never cease apparently as I've managed to clear another long standing bugbear from my workbench in the form of a Mantic Ork Commando who will be added to my slowly expanding Bloodaxe warband:

 Ork Commando

Much like the Eldar from my previous post, I had started this chap at least six months ago and gave up finishing him as the detail on the figure annoyed me so much. I decided to get him out of the way and spent a couple of evenings to get him to the standard that I needed to and am really pleased to have got him done.

As I mentioned when I posted pics of the last member of this warband that I put together, I find a lot of modern sculpts a bit too fiddly and detailed to be an enjoyable object to paint and this fellow is no exception. There's a profusion of straps, buckles and small details that need to be sorted out for him to look good and it really does put a crimp on my painting enjoyment.

Bloodaxe Warband

Saying that, I have him done and think I will be taking a proper break from 28mm for a while as I find the experience rather frustrating and will be resuming Epic project gubbins for my next update. 

I do find myself in a bit of a quandary with my hobby blog at present as I am loving painting 6mm stuff and forming decent sized forces to play platoon to company level battles but I can't seem to find my mojo when it comes to skirmish sized games. I have sold off my 15mm stuff as I just can't seem to summon up any enthusiasm for it anymore and my 28mm stuff just isn't doing it for me either. 

Handily, I have another batch of sculpts underway for my chibi/super deformed project so will be seeing about creating some new factions as my Orks are very nearly done now and I hope to have a few more bits and bobs to show in the near future including my freshly reinforced Bloodaxe warband!

In the meantime, All the best  

Eldar Heavy

Hi!

Well I've just been to see the new Star Wars movie on my day off and really enjoyed it and I even managed to finally finish off an Eldar Heavy for my Saim Hann warband!

Eldar Heavy

I must admit that I really didn't enjoy painting the guy as he's been sat on my workbench for over six months now and the effort of getting a smooth finish with the paintjob was really annoying. Still he's finally finished and while he may not win any painting competitions, I am really pleased that I have him finished at last.

Guardians

Along with the other three guardians, I now have the start of a skirmish warband but I don't think I will be working on another for a little while as I want to get back to some Epic gubbins as I actually enjoy painting them but I've enjoyed finishing off another work in progress.

In other news, I have also been reworking my blog here a bit and will be adding more pages detailing the alternative Imperium and its allies and enemies so do feel free to have a peruse!

All the best!

Thunderhawk!

Hi!

While I was in Tesco's the other day picking up some shopping, I happened across a rather nice Diecast Star Wars Republic gunship that looked like it might be handy for Epic gaming so I picked up one for £6.00 and cracked out the paints to see if I couldn't convert it to something more suitable and am rather chuffed with the results too!

 Thunderhawk gunship Athena

The sculpt itself is really nice and clean and took paint very well without stripping off the previous coat too and with a new Ultramarine livery, the Athena is ready for action!

I used a bit of brass rod for the flight stand as it's quite a heavy beast and did initially think of magnetising it all to allow it to land, I eventually just glued it on as it was a little wobbly. I do plan on perusing more of the Star Wars toys in future to see if I can find any more suitable gubbins for use in other projects!

Scale wise, the Athena looks suitably imposing when seen next to Epic scale infantry and actually looks like it could transport an infantry platoon, unlike the official Thunderhawk and it fits in rather nicely with my reimagined Imperium where tech has actually moved forward rather than stagnating.

 Ultramarines deploy from the Athena

But the Imperium's finest aren't the only ones who got some attention as I finally finished my Squat infantry command:

 Squat Warlord 

Once again, I can't get over how much I am actually enjoying painting small scale projects, especially when I chop and change between them which seems to be succeeding in stopping me from burning out and is actually encouraging me to paint more and I am really enjoying my hobby again!

Squat infantry detachment guarding a bunker

I am also working on some more Squat infantry to round out my current detachment with more Warriors and another Thudd Gun which should allow me to then see if I can find some suitable vehicles for the little chaps to move around in and decimate foes with macro weapons fire!

I must admit that painting my Thunderhawk has got me wanting to paint some more superheavies too so watch this space!

All the best!

2015 Yearly Review!

Hi!

Well it's almost the end of 2015 and it's been a busy year here with mixed success in my assorted hobby related activities.

I started the year with a selection of 28mm scale gubbins for my alternative 40k project but things quickly stalled and for several months my hobby went absolutely nowhere and I almost despaired of ever getting anything done but eventually I seem to have got back into the swing of things with my Epic Project!

First up, there's my Saim Hann Eldar warhost:

 Eldar!

The warhost is coming together nicely but do need to get their Aspect Warrior and Windriders sorted out as well as a few more Dreadnaughts and Warwalkers to give me some more ranged firepower and they will be ready to do battle against the Imperium.

Next up, there's my Ultramarine detachment:

 Ultramarines

I've not added much to my elite warriors of late but I do think they need some more ranged firepower too as well as getting a squad of assault troops sorted out too. At some point, I want to add a Thunderhawk but we shall see what we can do in the coming year!

Next, there's the Squats:

 Squat Brotherhood

My Squat brotherhood is starting to come together too but I still need to paint a fair few troops to get it up to scratch as well as some heavy hitting vehicles as that's what makes the Squats iconic in Epic. Lots of massive artillery pieces, superheavy tanks and possibly a Gyrocopter or two!

Looking back at some of the older pieces in my collection, I realise I should really finish off my Mercenary combat team too:

 Mercs

I've got lots of vehicles but very few infantry so will by trying to sort them out with a motorised infantry platoon in the new year too as well as a command element. I love the Brigade models vehicles to and wouldn't mind bulking out the force a little and add some more heavy firepower like the assault vehicle I converted by adding a heavy Vulcan cannon to an artillery vehicle.

But what does 2016 have instore for my ongoing hobby interest?

Well looking at the bits and bobs I've started, there's going to be several new forces making an appearance in the spring.

 Space Wolves

Amongst the several ideas I have for the new year, I want to build an arctic tundra board to play on and that means a new force suited to the frozen hell of such an extreme place and who better than a battle company of Space Wolves to get things going!

 Chaos Renegades

While I have very much re-imagined the imperium for my own setting and Chaos being done away with, I do like the idea of fielding some Renegade marines who have spent rather too much time out on the rim and have gone rogue so expect to see some small detachments too!

Squat Renegades

But there's more! There's my Renegade Squat Oathbreakers who will be forming a small but powerful force as and when I get the chance.

So that's the Sci-fi side of things, now onto the Fantasy forces!

I have slowly been putting together a Horned Folk force for my Aeroth setting and want to continue expanding my fantasy forces into playable levels.

 Horned Folk

At present, I have enough stuff to put together a small force but want to expand both the size of the force, and the choice of units as well as one or two larger warbeasts too. 

 Grey Elves

The Grey Elves are a bit of a slow burn project at present as they are rather time consuming to clean, convert and then paint but I will be persevering with them in the new year.

Dwarven Wargolem

I also want to get my Dwarves started up in the new year too but at present, I only have a few Wargolems so will need to explore picking up some more gubbins as the year progresses. I will also be adding a backbanner to the fellow above to make him more inkeeping with the Leviathan vibe!

Now I have no doubt there will be other projects that will distract me over the next 12 months but I do seem to have found something that I am really getting my teeth stuck into so long may it continue!

So that's how my year has shaped up and hopefully next year will be just as much fun but for the time being, All the best and I hope everyone has a cracking new year!

Richard