Weekly War Report #6

A light week, to be honest.

Finished (well, finished off) Models

For a start, there was a small furniture collapse in my room that smashed and mangled beyond repair two Termagants, my Genestealer Patriarch and the very nearly almost certainly finished Easy Build Plague Marines. It also did a small amount of no good to my Blight-Hauler which is not missing a couple of spikes.

Bollocks.

No actual finished models. To be honest, this little incident rather knocked the wind out of my sails for a day or two.

Games Played

Had a quick 50 power of 40k: my Tyranids against Matt's Death Guard. I got tabled but not before taking out all but four or five of his models. I am still running a mainly combat-oriented list because that's what was mostly painted and I think that what I really need is more range on the army to soften up the opponent before reaching combat, especially super-elite armies like the Death Guard.

Anyway, on to the painting table:

Deathwatch Kill-Team and Librarian

A little highlighting and the golds on the Kill-Team are done. After that a little tidy up and I can get started on the chapter shoulder pads, which is the fun bit. Or maybe not because the sergeant is a Star Phantom and that means painting a flat white and then filling in the small chapter symbol in black.

Yay?

Anyway, I also made some progress with the Librarian from Kill-Team Cassius. He needs more work than the Kill-Team including a little extra work on the golds which did not come out as consistently as I'd like, especially the big winged blood drop on the leg. I am happy with the shoulder pad, though, which has a very (for me) consistent bone colour. Its about three or four thin coats of Rakarth Flesh and I feel that I'm making progress in the multiple thin coats department.

Chameleon Skinks

This did not come out how I imagined it. I painted the shields of my Skink Cohort in the Slaanesh-themed purple greys and thought it might make a good skin tone for the Chameleons. I was wrong and I think I might redo these in a green or something. Either that or try improving the look with something darker on the back scales.

Purestrain Genestealers

The other week Tom sold me some old Tyranids of his. The box contained mainly second and third edition models, which I don't mind because I quite like those old designs. The super-thin and delicate looking, metal Zoanthrope I adore and am using as a Neurothrope. Anyway, the box contained about twenty old-style Genestealers.

They do, of course, look very different from the modern Genestealers so putting them next to each other looks odd. So I'm painting these in my Jormungandr colour scheme but I'm planning to use them as Purestrains in my Genestealer Cults army. I just have to work out whether those big growths on their backs are meant to be carapace or skin of some sort before I go further in painting them.

Savlar Command Squad

And, finally, the first Officer and Command Squad for my Savlar Chem-Dogs. Now, for those just coming in, this is my “2-for-1” army: an army that can be Traitor Guard units for my Genestealer Cults and an Imperial Guard army in its own right. The other week I finished a test model that was just an ordinary lasman and now I wanted to try out the conversion and colour scheme on a unit that I can't use for the Cults just to make sure it works for the Guard. 

I think it does. I have to work out a colour for the cuffs on the officer and standard bearer, how I want to paint the details on the banner and so on. I'm using a rather heavier Karak Stone drybrush to really build up the colour. Looking at how the fatigue colour came out on the standard I'm really looking forward to trying out the scheme on a vehicle.

Finished Models (at last)

Admittedly, these ten models have been waiting to have finishing touches applied to them since Christmas but they are done and they were finished this year (yesterday, in fact) so for the sake of my own morale and self-satisfaction I am counting them as the first finished models of the year and the first finished model of my 50/500 Challenge.

To start with, let's count the big fella as #1: a Hive Tyrant armed with monstrous scything talons and heavy venom cannon in (my interpretation of) Hive Fleet Jormungandr colours.

The colour scheme is based on the drawn art of Jormungandr from the Tyranids Codex and not the example model which looks completely different for some unknown reason. I picked it because it was simple and could mainly be achieved through drybrushing. Admittedly, my own laziness meant this took three months to paint but the actual method was quick enough and I've been able to effectively mass produce a good chunk of my army in the last two weeks.

He is accompanied by a small Warrior brood armed with rending claws (the best can openers), devourers and a barbed strangler.

And, finally, we have a small Fantasy contingent as a rank of six Skinks armed with javelins and shields stalks past. These were an experiment for me. Until now I've been painting up my Lizardmen from a white base but I saw a Warhammer TV video that built them up from Macragge Blue which gave me a much better finish on the Sotek Green skin. I painted the shields Daemonette Hide for a lark and I think it really works as a contrast.

Now, as to keeping score:

50/500 Challenge Tracker

Lizardmen: 6 models / 30 points

Tyranids: 4 models / 13 power levels

Total Models Painted

10

This week's hobby goals

Its going to be a busy work week this week with not much time for hobby so I'll be starting off the year with some small, simple tasks I can get done in simple sessions. This is something of a New Year's Resolution for me: to get more hobby done by being realistic about the time I have available and trying to get something done, even if its just a little something, every week.

So small, simple jobs:

Undercoat the remaining models

for my Flesh Tearers 100 power list

I actually had a 100 power game on Sunday (I lost, got tabled but learnt some valuable lessons) so I have the models easily to hand. Its basically a zero effort job though it will take a while because we're talking about something like thirty models including a Dreadnought and a tank (I was not kidding about how bad my “grey horde” problem was, folks).

Paint the bases on some “finished” models

I have a couple of models (six Skinks, a Hive Tyrant and three Tyranid Warriors) that have been basically finished and just waiting to have their bases finished since before Christmas. If I can get those all the way finished that's the first drop in the ocean of the 50/500 Challenge.

Finish building some Grey Knights

After a frustrating hour trying to get one Grey Knight's daemonhammer built I decided to give it a rest for a while. That was a week ago and I should probably get back on that horse. I want to say the hard part is done because I have all the bodies built but I know that isn't the hard part because Grey Knight weapons come in so many different co-dependent builds. Still, if I break it up into a couple of sessions it shouldn't drive my too far down the path of insanity.

*****

It seems a realistic amount to do in a busy week. Obviously, this doesn't include much actual painting and if I do get some done it'll be a nice extra. 

A short pictorial to do list

Well, here it is, and for the first time I'm not completing one of these Hobby Goals on Saturday night so the pictures benefit from something resembling natural light. This isn't exactly for immediate attention, the painting station is still rather crowded, but it'll give me something to dip into when I want to get something done on the side. This is by no means every half-painted miniature in my collection, just the ones that are something close to complete and that I actually feel some urge to finish:

BRETONNIA

Knights Errant Cavalier

“Ser Daniel of the Young Companions”

To do: A few little jobs to do here. First, I need to freehand some basic heraldry onto his shield and barding. Nothing too extravagant, he's only a Knight Errant, just a basic field shape and maybe a small device. After that I just have to highlight the leathers and horse brasses and he's ready for basing.

DARK ELVES

Darkshards

“The Tower Watch of Karond Kar”

To do: Main job is to commit some of the dreaded freehand on that banner. Aside from that there's a little highlighting to do on the armour and I find myself really wanting to redo that leather in something darker like Rhinox Hide or Dryad Bark, its far too light.

DEATH GUARD

Terminator Lord

“Siegemaster Scofulas Bezoar”

To do: Main job here is to do all that fiddly banding on the armour plus various other mettalics like the claws and those lengths of garden railing he's wearing on his head for some reason. Also, this is a model that's been sitting to one side for quite a while so first job is to, well... dust him, in all honesty.

DWARFS

Runesmith

“Orvyn Godricson”

To do: Since this little fellow shuffled off the painting table I've completely changed how I do Dwarf armour so those silvers will need completely redoing before I even think about drybrushing that beard or filling in the bronze details or painting that book.

EMPIRE

Greatswords

“The Carroburg Greatswords”

(Oh, I know everyone does the Carroburgs but its a good design.)

To do: Well, the red cloth needs highlighting, all the metal detail on their armour (which will mainly be black lacquered and is, therefore, done) needs doing and I really need to freehand something onto their banner. Their beards need inking and subtly drybrushing, too.

Handgunners

“The Bogenhafen Longshots”

To do: A few simple bits of tidying up on the dividing line between the pink and bone sides of the uniform and just a touch of highlighting on the handguns' wooden stocks before I can finish off the basing. Plus, there are a few areas of the chests behind the arms that need some paint applying to them, white being an unforgiving basecoat.

LIZARDMEN

Bastiladon

“Light of the Old Ones”

To do: Lots and lots to do here but it will be so worth it. Had art block for a while on this little chap but now I think a grey carapace would suit the green I've used for the scales. Aside from that, the Skinks and Ark are simple jobs that I can paint using methods used elsewhere in the army. Though, I admit, the Skinks will take a while over a black undercoat.

Saurus

“The Spears of Heaven”

To do: Probably the most extensive job on this list. The skin is finished but not much else: I need to fill in the shields, the spear hafts and pick out all their teeth, claws and spines. Also, I really need to fix the sand on those bases where its flaked off.

Skink Priest

“Kuchiki, Raptor-Priest of Tlaxtlan”

To do: More of the evil and unforgiving white undercoat: I need to choose a colour for that last line of feathers and tidy up the others, plus do the golds on jewellery and staff. Also, like the Saurus the sanding needs redoing because, apparently, Corax White doesn't keep the sand in place as well as Chaos Black.

OGRE KINGDOMS

Ogre Bulls

“The Gut Punchers”

To do: Big simple models, big simple jobs. I need to fill in the boots and belts with a different brown than the trousers; drybrush trousers and bone bits; ink the metal; and, add some bronze or brass for contrast on the gutplates. Hair could do with an Eshin Grey drybrush for definition, too.

ORCS & GOBLINS

Gnarly Squigs

“Da Chompas”

To do: Just a little highlighting on the flesh, mainly tidying up where the ink layer came out a little too thick, before I can finish up on the bases.

TOMB KINGS

Necrotect

“Amon Crookback”

To do: Literally just his basing, quick drybrush and paint the rim in Steel Legion Drab.

WOOD ELVES

Glade Guard

“The Blood of Anmyr”

To do: These I abandoned when some fine detail work proved too difficult. There are some very, very fine bits of binding on the models' arms and legs that I just kept missing with my brush point, smearing Steel Legion Drab over their skin. Now I have my Insane Detail Brush, hopefully the task will no longer be beyond me.

Tree-Kin

“The Unquiet Souls”

To do: An easy one to end with. Most of the hard work on these is done, I just have to finish layering the flesh on the spites, drybrush the skulls and then pick out minor details like the vines and fungi. Probably just a single sitting's work