It's funny when obsession strikes

I was just thinking the other day that I probably wouldn't be entering into the 2012 Armies On Parade competition. Although I've been working on some lovely models (Thundertusk and Ironblaster) and have quite a few armies I could spruce up, I just wasn't "feeling" that any of those were real options.

Fast forward to last night at my friend's place, where I was playing in a big Warhammer game to conclude our recent campaign. While the vile stunties on the opposite side of the table shuffled forward and readied their cannons, I took the opportunity to check out some of the terrain models in Eric's painting queue. Ever since I first saw the Dreadstone Portal (above) I've known there was some great potential for a wacky Empire piece.

Add to that the very cool Garden of Morr box on Eric's shelf, and my mind started to tick over. There are a lot of fun things I can do with this piece that could really push the boundaries of the craziness that is now the Warhammer World.

Priest of Morr

And after a look through my copy of Blood On The Reik (a wonderful book full of excellent Dave Gallagher concept sketches) I knew I was hooked.

I'll be working on a crazy mix of "Warriors of Morr"/funeral procession that will include a lot of unique models and considerable conversion, perhaps even some original sculpted parts and backyard casting.

What follows are images that will inspire and inform my obsessed mind and hands as I embark on yet another Empire army.

Doomsayer

Corpse Handler

Grave Diggers

Imperial Judge

Amethyst Wizards

Barber Surgeon

Hobby Horse - I don't know what this is, but I know I want one

Amethyst Wizard

Corpse Cart

Lietpold The Black

Wish me luck, I think this is the first time I've worked on an army that was inspired by scenery rather than miniatures : )

Cheers

Dave

PS. All of these images are from Games Workshop's website, Forge World's website, and the Black Library artbook Blood On the Reik, and are used without permission.

Grey Knights - Soon up for Sale

Back in 2003 (I think it was) when Codex: Daemonhunters was released, I painted up an army of Grey Knights and Ordo Malleus Inquisitorial support. With the release earlier this year of Codex: Grey Knights, I figured it was about time to pick up some of the Grey Knight plastics, update the collection of models with some of the new equipment, then sell them on.

Above you can see the first updated squad, a unit of Purifiers, which of course were not in the original codex. These guys are equipped with a Justicar with Daemon Hammer, 3 with Halberds, 2 with Falchions, 2 with Psycannons, 1 with a Warding Stave, and 1 with a Sword.

Although the paintjobs are reasonably basic, I have made sure that each model has it's own personal heraldry. Below is the top hatch of the Purifiers' Rhino.

So my big question for you all is, with the army to include the following:

Draigo, Librarian, 2 units of 4 Paladins, 2 units of 5 Terminators, 1 unit of Purifiers with Rhino, 1 Strike Squad with Rhino, 1 Interceptor Squad, 1 Dreadnought, and 1 Land Raider.

Should I sell it all as one big lot? or sell it as individual lots?

Cheers
Dave

Might Makes Right! - Completed Thundertusk

Well, it's been a little over three weeks of work (on and off) on this big boy, the longest I've spent on an Ogre model to date. Above you can see the final "accessory" I had to paint to wrap=up the Tundertusk itself. I put this poor, unfortunate snack-to-be in a Nuln uniform, a nod to my Artillery Train. I started his skin with a mix of Sombre Grey and Elf Skintone (both Vallejo paints), then highlighted up by adding more Elf Skintone.

Below you can see my painted base for the Tundertusk. It's one of the Dragon Forge 150x100 mm base blanks (to avoid the warping I've seen on a couple of GW plastic bases). You can see the pre-paint in my last post.

Each of the little "divots" in the acrylic was shaded and highlighted by hand, quite the tedious task if you ask me. A coat of gloss varnish was painted on over the top to complete the icy look.

And here is the beast in all its glory! I hope you've enjoyed watching this guy come together.

Cheers
Dave

Might Makes Right! - Thundertusk and basing

My Thundertusk moves ever closer to completion (thankfully). I must reiterate my previous comments about this kit, it is simply fantastic. So much character, brilliantly sculpted, and wonderfully fit together. It may be the best model kit I've ever worked on.

Here's a look at the faces of the Beast Riders, a wonderful mix of angry and bored, all at the same time.

And it can be just dripping with the little hanging accessories, like the frozen chicken, Orc hand, pigskin, and huge tongue. You'll also see  switched out the regular quiver of massive arrows for the rack of High Elf bolts.

Anyway, on the the base. A few posts back I asked for ideas from you all, and I got some very good ones. I let them roll around in the hobby rock tumbler of my mind, and I decided that while an entire base covered in ice would be cool (no pun intended), I still wanted it to fit in with the rest of my "Spring thaw" basing scheme. To that end I hypothesized that wherever the Thundertusk stepped, tendrils of rapidly growing ice would crackle and spread across the landscape, only to melt as the best recedes into the distance (something like the profusion of life that would spring up in the footsteps of the old Chaos Champion, Aekold Helbrass (thanks for the reminder Mike).

Above you can see what I have come up with.

Step 1 - I traced around the three feet that touch the base, and made a reasonable guess of where the front right foot would have been.
Step 2 - Using snapped off pieces of a clear textured acrylic, I laid out radiating "runners" of ice from the footprints.
Step 3 - I converted an Empire Handgunner as a "victim of the Aura of Frost". He'll be painted up in my Nuln colors.
Step 4 - The footsteps were filled in with brownstuff that was blended into the edges of the acrylic. I also sculpted some up and over the legs of the Handgunner. I plan to paint it all much like the weapons on the Yhetees.
Step 5 - I glued down small clumps of the GF9 medium basing grit, then glued down large areas of the GF9 superfine basing grit.

Now to the long task of painting it.

Here's a small look at the acrylic I used. Thanks go to my friend Thomas for showing me this stuff, apparently it's from a version of the plastic sheeting you see covering banks of flourescent lights. He picked up quite a few sheets at a local Home Depot store for cheap (as they were damaged) and then used them for his Space Wolves army.

Speaking of 40K, I've been refurbishing my Grey Knights and Pre-Heresy Death Guard, getting them ready for sale. Keep an eye out for them in the next few weeks.

Cheers
Dave

The tickets for Celebrity Dreadfleet!

The tickets are now on sale for the raffle of the Celebrity Dreadfleet!

Unfortunately, your ticket needs to be present at AdeptiCon in order to win the raffle. Note the importance nuance here... Your ticket needs to be present, but you do not need to be on site.

 If you are planning to attend and want a ticket (no reason why you shouldn't buy at least 3 dozen...) the tickets are this way.

 If you will not be at AdeptiCon this year (which is a shame but understandable... well not really, but still...) you can always ask a friend who will be present to buy them for you and collect your prize on site (if you do win, which I'm sure you will).

 If you do not know anyone present at Adepticon, or you cannot trust any of your friends, we have another solution. Mathieu Fontaine and I are proposing to be your reliable friends at AdeptiCon. You send us your donation via Paypal and we will buy the tickets for you, manage them during the raffle and if you win (which again, I'm sure you will) we will send you your copy.

A few rules and details:

• We need to receive your donations at the latest March 30th. Mathieu and I will buy the tickets on March 30th (day on which the online cart for Adepticon closes).
• Any bonus tickets will be awarded as per the guideline on the Adepticon Online Cart. Any extra bonus ticket will be pooled together and if one of them ends up being the winner, the copy of Dreadfleet will be randomly awarded to one of the donators.
• A complete list of the donators with their ticket numbers will be published on our respective blogs for transparency on Saturday, April 21st.
• Any transfer sent to either Mathieu or I must include Paypal fees or be sent as a personal transfer. Mathieu and I will cover shipping of the Dreadfleet copy in case one of you win (and I'm sure you will) but we will not cover the Paypal fees.
• The winning ticket number, along with the name of the winner if it is one of our donators, will be announced Sunday, April 22nd in the evening on our respective blogs.
• I accept donations at the following Paypal adress: tanithtaylor@gmail.com

Cheers
Dave