The Army of the Eternity King: my big 2018 project

I admit that about 90% of this decision was based on my housemate and I watching the complete Lord of the Rings cycle (Hobbit films first) one film a night for a week. You can't expose yourself to that much high fantasy without wanting to paint elves, not when you're a Warhammer player.

And because I am a painfully indecisive person (who also has a small Wood Elves army already) it'll be an Army of the Eternity King (minus the Eternity King because I hate that model). I love all three of Warhammer's elven races: the High Elves in their white robes, the Dark Elves with their serrated blades and the Wood Elves with all the longbows you could ever want. There are so many specialist units I so want to paint: Executioners, Swordmasters, Eternal Guard and so forth. I think this project will be less building to a plan and more picking up whatever catches my fancy.

About the only definite idea I have for the army is that the general will be a Loremaster Of Hoeth.

Korando of Hoeth is an old character of mine, though this will be the first time I've used him as a general. He used to be a mercenary captain for games of Triumph & Treachery who led a small unit of Shadow Warriors. He's a wanderer and the army I'll be building represents less an official alliance than people he's picked up on the way.

Whatever else, this'll be a fun story to write and an interesting army to paint. 

Completed models for August

My big push to finish old projects in August didn't do too badly: 36 models. Its not a bad total even if a lot of them just needed a few final details and basing to complete them but the motto around here is “Progress is progress”. I finished thirty-six models this month and that's a better total than any month this year.

And here they are...

Already showcased earlier this month are the Dwarf Runesmith and Tomb Kings Necrotect. I'm proud of my work on both even if I'm not sure I could properly replicate the skin method on the Necrotect. Its a couple layers of Athonian Camoshade over Rakarth Flesh which sounds simple but when it comes to inking as a final layer there's a lot of atmospheric stuff that can influence the final effect and I laid that ink down on a particularly hot day. Still, worth trying again for my Liches and Royal characters.

I finally picked out all the fiddly metallic detail on my Angels Of Redemption Captain (aka Legion Praetor in Cataphractii armour). I went for a copper effect rather than gold because a) I wanted to test out a bronze method (that I later decided not to use) for my Death Guard and, b) it felt a little more “antique” than glorious gold. I know Heresy stuff should look more glorious than “modern” 40k because it was the golden age but sometimes what feels right is more important than what is right.

Anyway, I loved painting this guy. If this runs to an army (maybe, maybe not) then I definitely want to use more of the antique armour marks. The particular colours of this halved scheme are quite forgiving and I love how the bronze contrasts with both armour colours. I also, hopefully visibly if my meagre photography skills holds out, managed some recess shading that came out well on the white and okay on the green. I am usually the “lay it on with a trowel” sort when it comes to shading, it has to be said.

I also finally cracked grey basing! Turned out, thank you How To Paint Citadel Miniatures 2012, to ink it Nuln Oil to get a good contrast with the drybrush (which was invisible before).

Next, we have a full unit of Dryads and my Branchwych finished up. Unfortunately, my camera seemed to take particular exception to focusing on these models, I think it might have something to do with the colours and how they contrasted with the background. Like the Runesmith and Necrotect these ladies just needed a few last details picked out and their bases done. So maybe this doesn't seem too big an achievement but it now means that more than half of my Sylvaneth 1000 points army is painted including my Warlord. I am literally nine models (my Treeman, Kurnoth Hunters and Tree-Revenants) away from actually completing all the models I have for this army. Also, its a big block of infantry finished for my Wood Elves. Double achievement!

Shout out to my friend Matt for insisting I mix up the colours of leaves and such in this unit which kept me interested during the most boring phase of the unit. It also gives the unit, which is very brown, some nice visual interest when they're arranged in a block.

My colour test Plaguebearer (now complete) has been joined by a trio of Nurgling bases just to reassure me that the colour scheme works on more than one model. Lesson learnt, though: the horns on the Nurglings are very delicate and I snapped more than one during the drybrush layer. I'll be more careful next time but otherwise the method is quick, simple and looks like it'll look good on the whole Daemon contingent for my Death Guard.

Also on the Death Guard front, the first six Poxwalkers finished. I'm painting them in small batches of a couple od designs at a time simply because there are so many differences between the sculpts that doing all twenty in one go would probably be more time-consuming and horribly dispiriting. They aren't the best paintjob I've ever managed but I suspect doing these guys “well” would not worth the time so I went simple with it.

Speaking of things that are hard to paint in a batch, I've decided I have to do the metallics and finishing touches on the Dark Imperium Plague Marines singularly. This also meant I could experiment with the metallic colours on this miniature before committing to what I'd lay down on the rest. I like the finished effect...

… which I then applied to my Helbrute to see how it came out on larger models. Again, it looks good. It takes ages because of how much armour trim there is on Chaos models but that would be true of literally any colour I used and I just feel lucky that I largely used pure Balthasar Gold on one layer to finish the models. I decided I just did not have the patience to bring it all up to Sycorax Bronze as I did with the Angels Of Redemption Captain.

(P.S. If you notice the Helbrute is missing components on its arms... it was an eBay job and came like that but I quite like it anyway.)

Anyway, now I have momentum behind me which wrestling commentary tells me is the all-important factor in future success so I feel confident going into next month and my Tale Of 1 Gamer project. 

A couple of lucky finds

Most hobbyists, I think, have one or two models they regret not buying when they had the chance, things that we were going to get some day but then went out of production on us. In our modern age, of course, this is a major motivating factor in why many of us have eBay accounts.

In my case, the other day, the chance came up to get two such models at pretty reasonable price and they're two of my favourite models ever.

Eltharion: The Elf Without Fear by Frank Miller

The first is Eltharion the Blind, one of the earliest dynamically posed character sculpts and a relic of GW's first attempt at rolling storyline (the one that didn't end with the world being destroyed). I love the motion of the model, the way the pose captures a moment in personal combat that is very rarely used in miniature design: blocking an incoming attack. It actually conveys the skill of the character more than having him in a static or attacking pose would. Yes, the model has certainly aged but it has a real place in my heart as one of the miniatures that inspired me to start collecting.

The other model I just bought is, I admit, rather less spectacular. In fact, the reason he went out of production is that he isn't as spectacular as the competition.

"Come along, Dobby!"

This is one of four Spellsingers released for the sixth edition Wood Elves book and the first to go out of production. The other free all have these floating poses, held aloft by sculpted magic effects. Next to them, a dude standing there with a staff just doesn't cut it, especially given that at the time characters floating in mid air was this amazing thing we astonished to see achieved in miniatire.

He also, I think, was designed to represent the darker, more capricious side of the Wood Elves. He has a more sinister aspect than the surviving Spellsingers, an impression not helped by the sight of whatever the hell he is doing to that spite. Funnily enough, he fits better with the sort of character the Wood Elves had in the 8^th edition and I'll probably use him as a Dark Magic Spellweaver.

"I walk in eternity (also swamps), Sarah Jane."

He also rather reminds me of Puddleglum as played by Tom Baker in the Chronicles Of Narnia TV series. Not a terribly villainous figure, I admit, but a central character in one of the most mentally scarring viewing experiences of my childhood so you understand the association.

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