Once again, I paint a Bones model...

Since Reaper's Bones models came out a couple of years ago, I've been a little skeptical. Low price point and look good once painted... just a little too good to be true. About a year and a half ago, I picked up a few models on Ebay to give them a whirl... to see how they painted up and to see how much time and effort would have to go in to get them to a level I deem acceptable.

I started off with the Orc Champion in 2014. He painted up decently... although I regretted my choice of primer and I wasn't a fan of how bendy his axe was. Still, not a bad looking model when finished.

Size wise, I'd classify him as a Biggun.. but on the lower end of that spectrum. Bigger than a human model, but smaller than an Ogre or Giant.

At the time, the only other Bones model I had was Garnuk, the Ogre Champ. Definitely a potentially fun model to paint, but I wanted to check out some of the smaller Bones kits. As many people know, I am a fan of Dwarves... and if I could collect a big group of dwarf NPCs for under 20 bucks... that would be awesome. And so, I purchased some smaller models... human sized and down.

That brings us to Hellakin. I'd painted him before, so I figured why not go with a more familiar model. It took a bit of doing, but I got him painted up to a decent standard... not close to my usual "old school 'Eavy Metal" level... but close enough to use as an NPC. Again, not a fan of how bendy his dagger was... nor was I a fan of the primer color I used (Uniform Gray was not the best choice for detailed models).

Again, I didn't have a horrible experience with the model... just a "different" experience. I ended up going a little heavier on the Foundry painting style than I usually do, but in the end I think I ended up with a guy who'd prance about the wilderness stabbing folks with a poisoned knife.

And so, like a dumbass, I went smaller. It took forever to come up with a workflow that allowed me to get that kind of detail on the fur as the details were either really shallow... or just not there. I actually ended up hand highlighting some of the fur to get it to pop more. To be fair, a six pack of metal rats would set you back about $6-$7... where as I think these could be got for less than $3. Still, I think I'd have spent the extra $$$ and gotten metal.

After the rats, I decided to up the size a notch and went with a goblin. No photo... I hated that one so damn much I threw it away. 

Which brings me to my newest addition... the Mimic.

Not a bad model... although you might notice the line where the teeth got a little offset from the rest of the mouth. I tried to minimize it as much as possible, but there is only so much you can do... plus it's a Bones model and there is no way in hell I'm breaking out putty for it.

Still, I'm pretty happy with the end result. I'd be proud to place this on the tabletop and let it devour foolish adventureres. 

  

So yeah... finally got around to doing some painting.

If there is one thing I do not have large supply of, it is spare time. However, I have managed to squirrel away a few hours ever couple of nights and get back to my commissions.

  

Ah... the LotR/Hobbit line from GW... we've had a rocky relationship. Way back in 2001, I got the Fellowship box game and the Fellowship box as a gift. While I loved the metal models... the plastics were kinda meh. Don't get me wrong, the Men of Numenor were pretty good, the Elves ok, but the goblins were atrocious. After that, I kinda kept my purchases to the metal models and decided I'd just collect them.

Now here we are in 2015, and I'm painting plastic Wood Elves... and they are really nice models. I don't know if it's improvements in the casting process, but these are so much better than the original plastics. 

For this one, I went with an autumn themed color scheme. I had originally done the trousers as a light tan, but it felt too "happy" for an autumn. Plus, I wasn't seeing a light tan in any of the leaves in my backyard... but i was seeing plenty of gray. I also went more desaturated than I originally did... really helped push the whole autumn theme more.

Her base was done as a more dried and dead earth... hence the wasteland flock. Definitely think it works well with her color scheme.

Oh yeah. I painted this Wargames Factory Skeleton for Frostgrave way back in August when I got back from Gen Con. Couldn't really get a good angle as he's leaning forward to stab a dude. As I said, he's part of my Frostgrave "monsters" and also part of my big Undead collection. That collection consists of a variety of undead models from Reaper, GW, Wargames Factory, Ral Partha, and Grenadier... and probably more as I come across other really cool undead models.

I've organized my collection into something of a horde of undead... which is inspired by the GW Undead Army book from the early 90s. An Oldhammer styled horde... but with mainly new models. 

I amaze myself sometime at how bad I am at photography...

Quick update this week... got two finished models and two in progress models.

First up the finishes... keep in mind these are quick shots with the phone and not with a proper set up with the backdrop or good lighting (amazed how bad the lighting in my office is).

First up is Foxy Brown (or whatever the actual name of the model is). I finished her back in April but never took a photo of her finished. Planning on using her as a proxy for Zombicide. I'm actually planning that for many Chronoscope models. While I kept her color scheme and painting style simple, I am pretty happy with her fleshtone. I tried a new approach to darker skin tones and I ended up with a much more natural look than I thought I would. Planning on using this skin formulation on some upcoming fancier models (the ones where I do blending).

Next up is the Colnel. Another Chronoscope model which I've painted up for a friend for Xmas. While I'm happy with the painting on the model... I do have some gripes with the casting (I hope it's the casting as it's a Bob Olley model). I honestly thought it was an Old Glory model... but no.. it's a Reaper model. I also have the three pack they made to accompany him... which I am not going to paint. But since he has the same problems as an Old Glory model... I opted to paint him in the same style I paint all my Historical models in... the Foundry method. I think it works to help hide some of the models sculpting flaws.

Next up is a Skeleton from Wargames Factory. I like these models quite a bit.. they remind me a lot of the older Citadel Plastic Skeletons from the early 90s (and just as fragile). I'm giving them a suitable Oldhammer styled paint job and he'll be joining the ranks of my D&D collection.

Mr. Beefy got some work done. His head and back got some attention this week. I plan to give him a bit more over the weekend.

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I've pretty much stuck to my standard layering method on this model as he's huge.

On a sidenote, you might have noticed I've been opting to go with more layering as of late. My biggest reason is time... layering is a nice fast way to get a neat appearance with good amounts of contrast. When you have maybe two hours a night during the week to paint and not much more than that on weekends, you need a shortcut or else you end up painting 4 models a year. Plus, I have a ton of Zombicide on the way shortly... so I need to work on speeding things up.

Any progress is still progress... I guess...

I actually scored some time to paint this week. Not as much as I would have liked, but with my schedule I take what I can get. Across the top are my four current projects:

• A British Colnel from the Anglo Zulu War which is a Bob Olley sculpt from Reaper. Since it is essentially a historical model, I went with a Foundry style paint job (although I did do a little bit of glazing on the jacket). You can see I did a fair bit of black-lining on where the straps meet his tunic. Still iffy on the blue for his pants. They are supposed to be Prussian Blue (I went a little lighter since he's a man of action and thus his trousers would have faded). You might notice his base is missing (but the gravel for it isn't)... welcome to the newest hell that has plagued me over the last couple of months. I've actually reattached it to the base using Gorilla Glue Gel... it's not the greatest fix, but once it dries and I touch up the paint it'll be fine. Once he's done I'll glue on a couple of dead grass bits and he'll be ready for whatever.
  
• A plastic LotR Wood Elf Ranger. I think I first posted photos of him in April... close to this stage. Scary thing is, I had done up his color scheme in such a way I could "mass produce" his buddies... but then life gets in the way and my plans go flush. As he is now, he's about 95% done... he just needs some tweaks to his flesh, his quiver, and a generous application of Red Pepper Flakes... then he'll be done. Yes, Red Pepper Flakes... DIY autumn leaf litter.
  
• The Harbinger of Darkness. In case you are wondering, he also fell victim to the gravel on his base giving up the ghost. So I rebased him on a lipped plastic base... I guess this way he'll fit in with the Thoth guy I did a few years back. He is also about done... probably 90%... just needs some details finished and the base needs another hit of black paint.
  
• GW Minotaur #1... or as I call him Mr. Beefy. I think this is the largest model I've painted in years (non terrain). I painted his head and face back in September and he's been in limbo awaiting for me to build and paint his base. Simple enough, but again... life happens and plans go flush. He's been painted with a muted reddish brown... mainly as Minotaurs are NOT covered in fur. Seriously, these models and the Mantic Werewolves are basically nude except for tufts of fur and loincloths... frikkin' wierd man. I'm figuring he'll drag on for a while as he's literally the size of three models and has large flat areas that require some blending in order for them to look nice.

And that kids is pretty much all the painting I've done since the summer. I'm hoping once things settle down I can get caught back up on things (my commission pile is huge and I have xmas gifts to paint).

43 by 44

The last couple of years have been an absolute bust as far as painting goes... hell the last 5 years have been a total bust. Since we moved back in July of 2010, I think I may have painted 40 models grand total... which is just awful. I used to paint 4-5 models a week... and now I'm lucky if I finish one in a month. Last time I finished anything was in July... remember these:

Yeah... two Zombicide models were the last things I completed almost three months ago. Since then, a lot of false starts and a lot of sabotaging myself.

So the time has come to kick myself in the ass. I'm setting a goal for myself and that is to paint 43 miniature before my 44th birthday next year. 

Time to forget about the high school shit show that is posting on CMoN... the futile bullshit that is selling on eBay... and just focus on one thing, painting what I like in the style I like. No more trying to do something fancy... no mini dioramas on bases... no zenithal lighting... no gimmicky airbrushing... just good old fashioned late 90s/Early 2000s 'Eavy Metal style painting with a bunch of Foundry style swirled in. 

And goddammit... to not only paint 43 models by next September... but go way over that goal.

FYI... Mummy dude up there is gonna be #1. Would have finished him had his base not given up the ghost in the middle of painting him (technically the Aileen's Tacky Glue holding the gravel on the base gave up the ghost... not the base itself). Definitely an Oldhammer style color scheme and painting style on him.

This week I'm all about Mordheim... again... kind of...

While I was on vacation this week, I dug out my old Mordheim rulebook and gave it a looking through. It inspired me to dig out my old half painted Reikland warband and give them an updating as they have been sitting in a plastic bin for about eleven years now. Alas, they didn't so much need an update and a complete strip down and repaint...

So, first thing that happened was all the metals went into the Pinesol jar... Captain, Champion, Youngbloods, Trollslayer, and the Ogre... all in. I also have some Marienburg Youngbloods that I picked up when I was doing an Estalian warband... so I need to figure a way to work those guys in as well. Maybe as young duelists or something like that.

Next up were the six plastic mercenaries. Luckily, those have only been assembled but never primered or painted. I popped them all apart and gave them a thorough cleaning for mold lines and flash (I built these in 1999... didn't do nearly as good of a job cleaning them as I do now). I also took the opportunity to reconfigure their weapons and gear... less for gameplay and more for "cinematic" effect. The only thing I don't have represented from the original sprues is an archer and crossbowman... I figure I'll add those on eventually.

In addition to the six headless bodies, I am also prepping their heads seperately. This is just a personal preference... I  paint the heads separately from the bodies whenever possible

Everyone will be mounted to a 1 inch fender washer base with sand. I had thought about using fancier resin bases... but I think I rather go DIY with these.

Yeah... no blog entry from two months...

I've been going full blast on Gen Con prep since mid May... which means a lot of overtime and a lot of weekends spent on something other than painting. I managed to get most of the stuff off to presses by the end of June... so I've been able to squeeze a little bit of painting in over the last couple of weeks. Mainly worked on a couple of personal pieces as I needed to shake the rust off and you don't do that on commission pieces.

First one up is the Harbinger of Darkness from Crocodile Games. I bought this at the War Room about 13 or 14 years ago. Diane and I both liked these... she liked the Egyptian theme and I liked that they were sculpted by Chris Fitzpatrick (I like his work so much I even bought some Dark Elves). Going with my usual Tomb Kings/Nefsokar color scheme that I use on all my mummy models. I'm actually thinking about going with a red for the handle of the flail... just to add some zing to the color scheme. Going with a brown for the bandages rather than bone white... mainly so they look old and rotten.

Next to him are two Zombicide models from the S1 box set. I've opted to stick close to the box art color schemes for these two... more freshly dead than old and rotten. Don't know if I'll revisit that greenish fleshtone or not. Both have had Blood for the Blood God globbed over top some reddish brown stains.. Kept the painting style simple as the definition on the walker models aren't as clean as they are in the later sets. For those keeping score at home, I have 7 more fatties and 7 more of this type of walker left.... and 40 additional walkers, 8 runners, 7 survivors, and an abomination to finish up to complete my S1 box (I also have a walk of the dead and angy zombie set to do as well). Will I finish the S1 stuff before my Black Plague stuff arrives... maybe half of it but definitely not all.

Might be a couple of weeks until the next blog post... I'll be at Gen Con all next week. But I'll have plenty of photos to share, so not so bad.

Got a little painting in this weekend...

...not as much as I'd have liked as I've started hitting the gym. Trying to adjust things so I can fit that into my daily routine and still have time to work on things like painting and freelance work.

This week's painting has pretty much been these two sexy dudes. 

The elf got some additional highlights in and some clean up here and there. I've also glued him to his base and now I'm trying to find some autumn leaf litter for the base. Probably holding off until payday this week and then hitting Hobbytown USA or just ordering it online.

Goblin dude... well, I painted his spear and started the skulls. Oh, and his base got some attention as well.

Not bad considering I couldn't bend my arms until late Saturday.

Hopefully by the next time I post, Elfy will be done, second elf will be in progress, and the goblin will be done and just awaiting his coat of dullcote.

Saturday Night Gooberiness...

Having some friends over tonight for some hobby fun... the 1 inch tall plastic variety of friends that is. Tonight I start on two projects and continue on another (which I can hopefully finish this weekend). 

From Left to Right and Back to Front:

• Wood Elves of Mirkwood from the Hobbit. Really nice but fragile plastics... a lot of tiny accessories that would snap at the slightest bit of pressure. I put pins in their feet and stuck them in cork "holders" for painting. Fun Fact... that's pretty much how I paint all my minis with few exceptions. I'll be using Army Painter Quickhade on these guys to speed things up a bit as I'm painting them in Autumn colors. With the exception of the green spot color, everything else should be fine to use the brown strong shade on.
  
• Zombicide Angry Fatties. Working on the other two from the little box set that started my Zombicide craze. Their color schemes will be identical to the first one I painted, but with some slight differences (hair color) to tell them apart. Also using Quickshade on these guys as the bulk of the paint works with a dark brown wash.
  
• Red Box Games Goblin. Again, no idea if he's a champion or a boss...or just some schmoe... but he has a ton of cool details (skulls). Got his flesh done and I'll be working on his dragonscale breast plate. Probably going classic gray with his wolf pelts. I really dig these minis although they'd be too tiny to fit in my collection.

On a sidenote, I need to get a couple of paint racks... if nothing else to hold all my non dropper bottle paints (I have a ton of Citadel, Reaper, Rackham, Target, & Badger paints just sitting in cardboard boxes).

Another tiny ass goblin...

I don't know if this fella is a "champion" or "leader"... but I think he'd make a pretty good one. This is the second of the Red Box Games goblins I've been working on (there is another archer and shaman too). Took a week off from him to do a little experimenting on a personal project (messing with painting some non-caucasian skin tones for some upcoming Zombicide projects)... but I'm back on this guy again.

Once again, I've base coated him with a mix of Gnarloc Green and Waaagh Flesh over black primer. I painted the raised areas with a custom mix of my own... Kelly Green/Antique Gold/Charcoal/Sandstone... which was then built up by adding small amounts of Sandstone. I glazed it with Waaagh Flesh between each layer which helped give it a blended look. 

It may come as a shock to some, but I don't blend on every model I paint. I usually save that for those really sweet Rackham models I've been saving for the past 10 years or my Space Marines (which have been accumulating for about 20 years now). About 75% of the time, I use the layering technique. I've been doing that for about 15 years now and I've added some personal tweaks in such as washes and glazing to help get a quasi blended look. In the old days it allowed me to do up a pretty nice looking model every 36-48 hours. Sucky thing is now it takes me about a week to complete anything due to work schedule and personal commitments (having responsibilities sucks).

Here is another shot of the goblin. Going to go with a mix of Beastial Brown and Charcoal for his shield. As a matter of fact, I have colors worked out for everything except for the scales on his armor. I had originally thought about copper or bronze, but then I noticed he isn't wearing scale-mail. No, he's wearing armor made from Dragon Scales (or some other beast). So now I'm trying to think of which Chromatic Dragon to base the color on.  Red isn't a viable color as it would over power the other colors. Guess I'm flipping through my Monster Manual tonight...

Finished the wee Goblin....

Yes... that's a penny. Like I said... tiniest goddam goblin I've painted other than snotling hordes. I'm starting on one of his goblin brethren today... and more than likely employing my Foundry style of painting since they are so tiny. Should go by pretty quickly as my sleep schedule is normal now and thus all my cylinders are firing properly once more.

Colors wise, I kept him simple.

• Fleshtone was achieved with Waagh! Flesh (or Ork Fleshtone if you still have the old paints) which was built up with Ceramcoat Kelly Green. I added a little grey in towards the end and added Pure White to do the highlights. This kept him from going too yellow (or Workshoppy).
• Tunic was painted with Miniataire Ecchymose. I mixed some Reaper Anti Shine in to keep it from going glossy. The highlights were done by adding Warlock Purple to the basecoat. Definitely added more antishine as old GW paint gets kinda glossy.
• Leathers and bow were done with Snakebite Leather.
• Goody bag and fur trim on the bow were done with Vallejo Khaki.

Again, simple colors as it's a tiny model and very easy to overload. Should look really nice in a group with all of his goblin buddies.

JTFC... that's a tiny goblin...

Over the past couple of evenings, I've been working on this fella when I have had a spare moment. This is a goblin archer from Red Box Games and sculpted by Tre Manor. Like all of his minis, this one is really detailed and chocked full of little bits. Also, it is really, really tiny. The model itself is the size of a penny and makes the goblins from the LotR game look huge. 

The only real gripe I have with the mini is the casting. Some rough surfaces on the flat areas aren't really visible until you paint over it. Had the same problem with a viking warrior model they did... he's going in the Pinesol this week so I can clean him off and then fix the worst of the imperfections.

I've opted to go with a classic Warhammer color scheme (although my fleshtone is much more desaturated than the models from the 90s were). This model also marks the first time I've used Reaper's Anti Shine additive as I used some of Badger's Minitaire paints for the purple. Without the addtive, those paints dry really glossy and shiny... and damn near impossible to knock the shine off of.

The model itself is about 90% done... just needs his legs painted and some of his equipment finished up... and maybe some of the tinier details picked out (claws, teeth, eyes). 

The goblin is part of a big commission job I'm just getting started on. I have three more Red Box goblins to paint along with previously mentioned viking, a "ranger" styled mini, and what I think is a halfling archer (although it may not be a Red Box model).

In non commission painting news, I'm starting to put together an painting instructional for Zombicide models. I'm dividing them up between the various types and sets (Walkers from Season 1, Fatties from Season 3 and so on). I'm probably going to start with the Fatties from Season 1 and I'll be doing them up in the color scheme from the box set. Don't really know what format I'm going with... more than likely PDF as video would require Diane to sit there and film me painting. The painting style will be along the lines of the "Everyday Joe Guide to Painting Models that Don't Suck Ass" mentality.

Now I'm gonna go try and sleep for a few more hours... my sleep schedule has been screwed for the last two weeks and there is no sign of it improving any time soon.

Warhammery goodness...

Worked on my Dwarf Miner Standard Bearer and my Reikland Mercenary a bit this evening. Not a huge amount of progress, but I still think I can wrap up the Dwarf Friday night. I got his gloves finished, along with the candles and the fleshtone. I used my custom fleshtone mixed with a little Bugman's Glow to give the dwarf a ruddy complexion. Candles... Ratskin Flesh basecoat and I tried to blend in some yellow at the bottom and red at the very tips of the flame. I think a little bit more glazing around the transition and the flames will be acceptable. Really trying to keep the techniques simple on the dwarf as I'll have to replicate it 7 more times to complete the Skull Pass Miners. Yes, I plan on painting the complete Skull Pass Dwarfs force by end of this year. I'll probably paint the extra Dwarfs I have and sell those eventually.

Reikland guy... besides attaching him to his painted base, I based coated his trousers with Mechanicum Red and his shirt with Army Painter Bone White. I'm keeping his color scheme simple... again, I have to replicate that paint scheme and style at least 2 more times after he is done. I think four mercenaries plus my Reikland metals should make a base size Mordheim warband.  Should make nice opponents for my Witch Hunters and Amazons (who also have to get painted at some point, but they are metal so they'll get extra attention).

Once I finish the Dwarf, I'll be diving back into commission work as I have a pile of it. I should have dived back in earlier in the week, but after getting nothing done while I was sick... I had to get a personal model in.

Possibly might paint an Ebaying model in the near future as well... although what I don't know.

Surviving Nurgle's Rot...

...okay, not Nurgle's Rot... but I did manage to finally get over a really bad cold. I haven't been knocked on my ass by the common cold like that in almost 20 years. Even though my sinuses have cleared up and I don't feel like I have a head full of rocks, I'm still dealing with the exahaustion from not getting a decent night's sleep (aka more than two hours) for the last six nights.

But enough talk of snot and misery, time to talk about my most favorite things in the world... painting miniatures.

Sunday was a day of celebration as I could once again breathe... so I decided to get some painting in. First up was the Dwarf Miner Standard Bearer from the Battle for Skull Pass Box Set. Thus far, I've opted for the 'Eavy Metal color scheme and I'm using my Foundry/GW hybrid paiting style for this model. The blue is simply Ceramcoat Copen Blue over a Citadel Enchanted Blue/Regal Blue mix. The beard is a mix of Vallejo Red Leather and Ceramcoat Autumn Brown with small amounts of Reaper Saffron Sunset added in. I love the Saffon Sunset color... you'd be surprised how often a desaturated orange comes in handy. He is based on a round Wargames Factory plastic base which has a simple gravel texture.

SIDENOTE -  Yes, I know the round base isn't the standard for Warhammer. Honestly, the chances of these guys seeing any sort of action is slim and none... so I just went for a basing style that was different and aesthetically pleasing to me. Besides, maybe they'll get pulled out for some sort of Mordheim thing... or something along those lines. All I know is, the little voice that screams "What about resale value" inside my head is now dead.

Next up is a Barbarian Prince from Grenadier (Mirliton). I'm doing up what will eventually be a 20 man warband of some sort. While I'd like to add them to my existing Barbarian Horde... I don't know if the models would go together well. What I do know is these are all Mark Copplestone sculpts... and he is the master of miniatures as far as I am concerned.

To the right you can see the bulk of the collection (I still have a couple of barbarians from the early days that pad this out to a 10 man warband). My favorite model is the beardy guy on the far right with the big battle axe. I think I've painted that models about 15 times over the years.

Then there is this guy. The Exotic Idol from Reaper is the latest commission model I've done. I really can't call this a miniature though... more like a piece of terrain (yes, that big). The painting for him was pretty simple, Partha Old Gold base coat followed by a wash of Dark Burnt Umber. Then drybrushing of Partha Old Gold, then Vallejo Old Gold, then a little Pearl White for the highlights. I also did a purple glaze over the model to weather the gold (takes a little of the yellow out of the gold). I did do a little verdigris on him, but I played it safe and only did it in certain areas. Didn't want to get so close to the finish line and then mess it up.

Check back next time when I'll be starting to work on some of my Oldhammer models. Thinking I'm gonna tackle my Chaos Marauders or some of my older Undead models.

No Jake but plenty of Fatman....

This is my "Prototype" Angry Fatty for Zombicide. In case you are wondering, yes... he does seem to have sprouted an exo-skeleton/carapace thing. While I don't know exactly what the deal with that is, I have to admit it's fun to paint (and a nice way to break up big fleshy areas.

Colors used on the model are:

Fleshtone - GW Rakarth Flesh mixed with my own custom flesh blend (Cadian Flesh would work though).

Jumpsuit - GW Macharius Solar Orange mixed with a little Vallejo Light Brown. Shaded with Army Painter Strong Tone (added some water to lessen the ffect... wanted to shade it, not to varnish it).

Carapace - Army Painter Skeleton Bone mixed with a small amount of Loren Green. I shaded with Vallejo Russian Green.

Details - Vallejo Oiled Metal on the zipper, GW Snakebite Leather on the shoes (I think), GW Rakarth Flesh mixed with GW Iyanden Sunset for the hair (again, I think). The metallics were shaded with Apple Barrel Black while the rest with GW Agrax Earthhade. The blood was Blood for the Blood God (applied in very thin layers to set up basic discoloration... then I piled it on the areas where it would pool).

Everything was highlighted by simply adding a small amount of Ceramcoat Sandstone to the mixtures. Glazes of Agrax Eartshade were applied between each layer .

To finish him off, he was mounted on a clear plastic base from Litko.

I plan on puting the other two through a much faster process now that I have the color mix and techinques figured out.

Have to admit, I'm considering purchasing another box of these to paint up for the Gen Con painting contest and basing them on custom wargaming styled bases. Definitely think a base styled after the prison tile set would look really cool.

"Loving you is a dirty job..."

I'm gonna hold you 'til the end of time

I'm gonna love you 'cause it's now or never

I'm gonna kiss you till I make you mine

Lovin' You Is a Dirty Job

Lovin' You Is a Dirty Job

Lovin' You Is a Dirty Job

Yes, those are lyrics to the song Ratt tried to foist on us twice...once in 90 and again in 97. Also yes, hair metal is one of my guilty pleasures (that Winger guy writes some catchy songs dammit). Can't be all death and doom metal all day everyday.

So I finished three of six rats from Reaper. Still not the biggest fan of the casting on these models with the new Bones material. The fur texture doesn't really come through as nicely and no segmenting at all on the tails. I still might blend a little pink in from the tips of each tail just to add a little more umph to them. 

Sure, I give the Bones stuff  a hard time... but in all fairness it's only to the smaller stuff like critters and things like that. I actually really like most of the line... I just want to caution anyone thinking about buying them is that they are not the same quality as metal or resin. I actually have a seperate rate I charge to paint Bones as they aren't as detailed or elegant as their metal counterparts. 

This fella is Hellakin. He's also a Reaper Bones model... one of the first I bought. He's not a bad model if you look past his kinda bendy knife and futzed up detail on his feet (they get kinda crummy). Painted up relatively quick (did him over a weekend) and makes a great NPC.

Plus I'm sure you've seen the Orc Warboss (he's the big orc below).

If I didn't have the metal model to compare to, I'd have never noticed the minor casting problems.

But that's the deal with Bones... the bigger the model is, the better it looks. If I can somehow score that big ass metal hill giant from the new wave, I'm getting it (even though I have the metal one as well).

So to wrap up... Ratt was never a great band and the bigger Bones models are pretty sweet.

Finally scored a little bit of time to paint...

Juggling three huge books tends to eat up one's time. However, I managed to score an hour and half of painting time this evening and here are the results:

On the left is a Reaper Half Giant I am painting on commission for a friend. If you haven't noticed, the model is incredibly top heavy and awkward. He's actually fallen off everything I mounted him on... I finally had to epoxy his big ass on a 40mm round base (and epoxy 4 metal washers under the bottle cap to keep him from tipping over). His paint scheme is black armor with grey trousers... sort of loosely based on Blade of the Berserker. Not the greatest miniature ever... but certainly not the worst either. Hoping to wrap him up this weekend so I can quick knock out 5 more rats.

To his right is my personal project I've been working on while the big guy dries (including the 24 hours I let the epoxy on big guy's base cure). Standard second gen Sons of Kronos warrior... and I believe he's a Kev White sculpt (I'd be shocked if it wasn't). Waivering back and forth on throwing him in the Pinesol jar as he just isn't popping the way I want him too. Maybe it's because I only started messing with him because he was primered... which is not a great reason to paint a model.

Anyway... come back by next week when I'll be showing off some more Zombicide models and hopefully a completed half giant with several rat friends.

Setting some specific goals for 2015.

I think setting a couple of hobby goals for this year might be in order... otherwise I'll meander around like I've done for the past four years and not really get anything done.

So.. these are my four "basic" painting/hobby/gaming goals of 2015.

• Russians for Bolt Action. 
• Couple of Inquisitors and their Retinues for playing Inquisimuda.
• Sci-Bor Resin Inquisitor kit
• Zombicide Fatties

Gonna try and post some photos tonight... although the bulk of my progress has been "waiting for it to get warm enough to primer".

2015 or Holy Crap I've Been Doing This for Twenty Years...

Another year has passed and my mountain of unpainted stuff is still monstrous. Granted, my efforts at reducing it for the last four or five years have been kinda half assed. But by Crom, 2015 I intend to use all of my ass.

Before I list my "hobby resolutions" I should probably point out that I actually did absolutely nothing I listed last year. However, 2014 wasn't without some hobby accomplishments:

• Managed to paint several historical models in 2014. Vikings, pirates, Victorian Explorers, and even some WWII stuff.
• Painted a few Reaper models after not painting any for about 3 or 4 years.
• Painted a couple of my old Warhammer models. Got around to goblins I purchased fifteen years ago.
• Realized I don't do theme months or self imposed deadlines. Stuff gets done when it gets done and I've made my peace with that.

I'm sure there was more but the rest probably weren't worth mentioning if I can't remember them. So this year, I'm going to keep my hobby resolutions simple:

• One year moratorium on purchasing new models. Not getting anything until 2016... I don't care how cool something is.
• Not buying anymore Bones models. I have enough... time to paint what I have and stick a fork in them. This is a "from now on" and not confined to a year.
• Paint a squad or regiment of something... I don't care what but I'm going to finish something this year.
• Zenithal lighting and blending. I actually used to do that kind of thing but stopped after Otto passed away. Time to start doing it again.
• Clear bases on boardgame and RPG models. They look really friggin' cool.
• Sell some stuff. Unpainted stuff going on Ebay this year. I predict massive casualties to Reaper stuff and maybe some old Warhammer stuff. I don't know why I have Bretonnian Pegasi, but they gotta go.
• Airbrush. Use it. If nothing else just to do mass base coating. 
• Organize. Organize. Organize.
• Set up gaming area in garage and play some Zombicide and Inquisitor.

I think the hardest thing will be the year of not buying new models, but has to be done. Going to be tough to not purchase any new models at Gen Con (although I might let myself buy some then as it's a special occasion, but definitely no more mail order, ebay, or going to stores).

Later taters, I gotta go basecoat Baba Yaga.