20 Questions

This is apparently a thing, so I thought I'd participate.

Favourite Wargaming Period and Why?

This is a tough question.  I got my start in fantasy, so I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for that, but I'm sticking with the grim-dark future right now.  I love the modeling possibilities and how amazing the story has been so far.

Next Period, If Money Was No Object?
Fantasy, for sure.  I am a big Lizardmen fan, and when I made the choice between Fantasy and 40k, it was tough to give up the little scaley guys.

Top 5 Films?
The Crow

Grosse Point Blank

Ghostbusters

Die Hard

Dark City

Favourite 5 TV Series?
Better Off Ted

Battlestar Galactica
Magnum P.I.

Firefly

Simpsons (seasons 4-9 are best)

Favourite Book and Author?

American Gods by Neil Gaiman.  The man is genius.

Greatest General - and You Can't Count Yourself?
Either my buddy Mic or Marv.  They're both whip-smart and know how to take advantage of tricks people don't expect.

Favourite Wargame Rules?
The rule of cool.  I know it isn't really a rule, but darn it if it looks cool and isn't game breaking, it's cool to me.

Favourite Sport and Team?

Not big on sports, but being a Wisconsinite probably the Green Bay Packers.

If You Had A One Use Time Machine, When and Where Would You Go?
Probably back to 1992 and smack younger self around a little, tell me that everything will be ok.

Last Meal On Death Row?
Prime rib sandwich with au jus sauce, garlic smashed baby reds, and green beans.

Fantasy Relationship and Why?
Hm, probably Rachel Leigh Cook.  Nobody looked better smashing up a kitchen to promote the anti-drug message.  She's still adorable!

If Your Life Was A MovIe, Who'd Play You?
Oh, I don't know.  Jeremy Renner I suppose.  Be his most boring role ever!

Favourite Comic Book Superhero?
Never been huge on super heroes either, really.  My favorite comic book is the Sandman.

Favourite Military Quote?
FUBAR.

Historical Destination To Visit?
World's Fair, Chicago, 1893.  How cool would that be?

Biggest Wargame Regret?
Buying Inquisitor models.  It just didn't go anywhere and I never got a chance to play it.

Favourite Fantasy Job?
Owning a game/hobby store.

Favourite Song, Top 5
Jets to Brazil, Sweet Avenue

Bad Religion, Anesthesia

The Beta Band, Liquid Bird

God Lives Underwater, All Wrong

Nine Inch Nails, The Perfect Drug

Favorite Wargame Moment?

Deep striking all 4 of the super expensive gigantic Daemons without a mishap during an Apocalypse game.  They totally wrecked face.

The miserable git question: What upsets you?

Rude people.  Bad drivers.  People who feel the need to cheat in games.

What's up with Army Builder 40k files?

Something people may have missed in all the excitement of the new Chaos Space Marine and Dark Angel picture leaks is the notice from Homer at AB40k maintainers, those magnificent folks who provide and update the Warhammer 40k data files for Army Builder.

Late last night a comment which was part of their global announcements was updated instructing people to download the newest 40k update through Army Builder's update system.  We were told the files would only be available for a short amount of time and wouldn't be available through email or other means after they had been taken down.

As of now, that post has been removed and replaced with the general announcement. no longer commenting on the possible doom and gloom of not having updates in the future.  The latest glimmer of information can be found in this thread on the AB40k Maintainer forum.  This is basically 'we don't know, wait and see' style of reply.

I love using Army Builder.  It helps me decide what I will need to purchase and what I plan to build for later use.  I like not having to create my own Excel spreadsheets to make an army list, or flip through my book constantly and use pen and paper to make my lists.  In 6th edition, you could have to flip through 3 separate books just to make an army list, being the main army, allies, and fortifications.

If AB40 Maintainers will no longer be able to update these files, I'm not sure what I'll do.  I'll probably try to fumble through the files myself and hope I can figure out the program to make my own files.  Unfortunately, I may not have the time to do so.  If nothing else it reminds us how fantastic the crew over at AB40k Maintainers are for sacrificing their time to keep these files up to date.

What about you?  Do you use Army Builder for Warhammer 40k?  What will you do if they are no longer allowed to update their files?

Blight Drone Sculpted and Painted

Welcome back one and all.  Over the last week or so I've spent most of my spare time putting together the blight drone and painting it up in time for tonight's post.  There are a couple things which I could still do yet, but for the most part this what it looks like.

Initially I was unsure what coloring I would use for the skin areas.  I finally decided upon the green with brown highlights because I needed the coloring to tie together with the rest of the Nurgle themed army.

I used two different rust effects on this model.  The armor plating looked quite a bit like beaten copper so I decided copper with green antiquing solution would work best.

For the engines I wanted to add some variety to the model, so I used iron and applied the rust antiquing solution.  Something that's always bothered me about vehicles in 40k were they were always supposedly made of the same materials.

In the end I think the model is fairly believable (for a bloated machine daemon from the warp).  The model was a blast to make and put together.  Painting it was a breeze and should be very easy to do again.  Only the engines are somewhat time consuming to make, but not so much to make the model frustrating to create.

Overall, this is a model I am fairly proud of since I was able to create it from start to finish.  This model was completely made by me, which makes it the very first I've done which doesn't have any parts from other sculptors.  I hope you all like it!

Blight Drone sculpt progress

Welcome back everyone.  Here we are again with another blight drone sculpt update.

When I began this project a week ago, I wanted to ensure I was able to create duplicates of the model after it was completed.  Unfortunately, to do so I would be required to think outside the box when it came to preventing undercuts which would compromise the recasting process.

As such, I needed to create the gun and engine sections separately.  The problem this creates, however, is it becomes difficult to make sure the pieces match up after the resin casting.  After making the gun section and duplicating it in resin, I used plastic around the gun and placed it on the model.  To ensure it matched up, I added sculpt around the front area to match with the gun.

The engine is another story, and will lead to a copy of a copy.  Right now the epoxy on the rings are curing, but in a day or two the engine will be ready for a recast and I will be able to check for alignment of both sides.

Still, there is a lot to add to the main body.  I want to begin trimming away at the armor plating to create the edges a metal plating should have.  I'd also like to add some barrel bits which appear wedged into the body area and wire openings for fitting later on.

I admit it is difficult not to rush ahead on the project.  I am used to my scratch builds taking a lot less time than this is, but I know in the end I will be rewarded for being patient.  Having the potential to create whole squads of drones is a benefit I just can't pass up.

Edit:  A friend pointed out to me that it appears the engines are too small to believably lift the drone.  As such, I've decided to add my own twist to the model by adding a second set to the rear armor plate.  Four engines!

Fickle Friday- Evolution of Sculpting Thought Process

Good day, fellow hobbyists.  Today I'd like to share my evolution in sculpting and how it has affected my thought process when going into a new project.  Sit tight, this may be a long one!

When I first began doing sculpting with various epoxy and clay putty, there wasn't much thought put in ahead of time as to how the model should look when finished, or even how I should arrive at the next step to make the process easier.  I figured I'd be able to slap on some more stuff to give the detail the model needed to look the part.  For the most part I was able to succeed, though admittedly the results were somewhat amateurish and obviously slapped together.

Early Blight Drone Attempt

As you can see above, there wasn't much that went into the Blight Drone I had created.  It looks vaguely like the FW model only in shape.  It lacks details and can not be duplicated easily.  Overall I've found this isn't really what I want and have begun anew (though that shall be shown someday in the future).

However, as my sculpting improves, I've noticed a trend in the units I've been making; everything I build I end up needing multiples of.  This can be very frustrating when one gets built and I no longer have a desire to make 2+ more by going through the same process I did previously.  It can be very time consuming to build a model from scratch, and sculpting each one is becoming more time intensive than it is worth.  I dawned on me I needed to find another solution.  The flying Daemon Prince of Nurgle is a perfect example of this.

I fly, I swear it!

The conclusion I've come to is I need to start thinking ahead on how I can sculpt each section with the final product to be resin cast in mind.  Arms, legs, and protruding bits with large undercuts all need to be done as separate pieces and finally fit together to ensure a final product which can be easily put together seamlessly while at the same time allowing for easy reproduction.  Hopefully in the end I'll be able to save money on materials as well.

Above is the rough outline of the Blight Drone body I've been working on for the last 2 days.  It's beginning to take shape and if timing goes as planned I should have, at the very least, a finished body piece ready to recreate.  I'm planning on doing the turbines differently than the Forge World model (more of a barrel shape), which will be easier to cast as one piece.