Regnak vs BPPV vs Hobbytime

Sorry for the lack of updates. I have been out of action for last 3 weeks due to BPPV (Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo) that triggered with the slightest movement of my head. I have spent the time basically lying still in bed or on the sofa. My Netflix backlog has reduced considerably but my hobby progress has been ALMOST non-existent. The last couple of days I have felt better and managed to get in a bit of hobby progress. I have almost finished my first 10 Marauders (waiting on a couple of special weapons and a shotgun I ordered from a bitz store) for a Renegade army I want to crack on with in the new year. They look like fairly simple conversions but it was actually a little tricky getting the torsos to sit right on the legs and required lots of cutting, trimming and gap hiding. Evening though they were fiddly I think they work really well and these test subjects will pave the way to a full army in the new year. That's all for now, hoping to add an update or two over the festive period once I'm off work.

Zombicide Black Plague

In a mad quest for forbidden knowledge and ultimate power, the necromancers have unleashed the apocalypse upon the living. Zombies have destroyed the King’s armies, and now roam the land, spreading chaos and death. Is it the end? Are we cursed to die, huddled in our homes? It’s a dark time, but not for those with a will. Draw your sword, span your crossbow, and ready your spells! For the few, the brave, it’s time for… Zombicide!

I have been meaning to pick up one of the Zombicide sets ever since Morpheus brought along his copy of Zombicide Prison Outbreak to one of my gaming groups boardgame nights a few months back. Since his game was set in a modern prison setting I thought I would pickup something a bit different to add a bit of variety to our community games pool. I set my sights on Zombicide Black Plague as I really liked the sound of the theme: Swords and Sorcery.. AND ZOMBIES?! SIGN ME UP!  I recently picked up a starter set at a very reasonable price on FEEbay. The set was listed as open but in mint condition and I am pleased to report thats how it arrived. The seller also included a few extra Survivors which I assume were bonuses from the Kick Starter set which were not mentioned in the listing but a very welcome addition. 

From a modelling/design perspective I really liked the look of the "Special Guest" packs that were released alongside the core set that include new survivors designed by well known illustrators like Adrian Smith and Karl Kopinski. I went with the set designed by Edouard Guiton (artwork above) and this will give my group a nice selection of characters to choose from.

I got in a quick couple of games with a friend so we can familiarise ourselves with the rules in preperation for the main group giving Black Plague a go in a few weeks time. I went with Kaila from the Edouard Guiton set and we got stuck in with the tutorial mission. Although we got swamped at one point were were able to complete the mission thanks to Kaila's excellent ability that allows you to remove an additional zombie of the same type as one that you just killed, Brutal!

Come Get Some!

At some stage in the future I hope to get some paint on these mini but for now gaze upon bare plastic! Another Zombicide update will follow once we have had our meetup.

Hobby is Happening.. Honest!

Sorry for the radio silence. Life has been getting in the way but I've managed to get a few things done. First up is a Warboss on Giant Cave Squig from Forge World. This model is oozing character, he is the perfect transition between the old and new look Goblins Grots. I repainted the squig several times and in the end settled on the classic red colour scheme which I think compliments that dark robes of the moon clan perfectly.

I have also begun work on Grom the Paunch and his chariot. I am happy with how his paintjob is turning out but am having a surprisingly hard time with Niblet. For some reason I can't seem to get him right, I have tried twice now and keep screwing it up. He's currently sitting in a bath of paint stripper ready for another attempt... when I have the patience that is. Third times a charm right?

And last up something non-Grot related. I have begun construction on a Marienburg Landship! A great looking kit that I am assembling for my future Empire army. I have the army in boxes/FW packets and this will become my next project once the grots are done (...or at least nearing completion :p). More updates coming soon!



Progress on the Wheat Field

I managed to get in some hobby time in today and the Wheat Field is nearing completion I need to add some “Stirland Battlemire” to the sides of the doormat to hide the black rubber that is peeking out in a few spots and also finish off highlighting the trees. As a final step I will spray the base with some watered down PVA to help it survive in the world of tabletop gaming. Here are a couple more pictures including one that shows the "Wheat" sections removed so models can move through the field.

Next up I will continue work on the Merchants Cottage and also get some base colours down on an Arachnarok Spider for my Night Goblin army.

Man O'War eBay Score!

Everything included in auction

As I get older I find myself looking back with fondness on all the games I used to play as a wee nipper and wanting to recapture some of this childhood magic in my adult life. One of the games I used to play way back when was "Man O'War". I ended up getting a cracking deal on a set in very good condition. The previous owner had basically assembled the ships, pushed the tokens out of their surround and then packed everything back in the box where it has remained ever since. The cards are still sealed and the ship sails/banners unused. Even the box was described as being in good condition with just a small knock on one of the corners.
 

Some extra ships included in auction

Also included in the auction was an Imperial Greatship (undercoated, one mast needs a slight repair) and a Dwarf Nautilus squadron (basecoated). Buying stuff counts as hobby progress, right? Expect some Man O'War posts in the future but for now my Night Goblins will be taking priority in preparation for a big AOS game my group has planned for a months time.

Iron Maiden - The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Progress, Progress, Progress!

I had a few days holiday from work and was surprisingly productive. I completed another 10 Night Goblins bringing the total to 20 so I now have the minimum unit size that can be fielded. As usual I had lots of fun painting these models, I mean look at them! Whats not to love?! This unit includes a few of the old "Netters" and "Clubbers" models and I plan on adding another 4 in a future update.

Next up is one of the old Squig-Herder teams. Unfortunately the light was crap when I took this photo so the colours have come out looking a little flat but they are painted in the same way as my other Goblins.

And last up for my painting accomplishments is the White Dwarf Subscription Goblin Warboss. This guy was really fun to paint. I did a little work on him every night for a week and I think he ended up pretty good. As mentioned in a previous post the mushrooms are a mixture of the ones you get with the Mangler-Squigs and the ones I reviewed from TheBattleForge. I overdid it a bit with the weathering powder on the rocks and plan at some stage to tone this down. I also need to redo a few of the red and white "Fairy Tale" mushrooms to match the 2 realistic coloured ones but for now I'm calling this done! 

WIP project wise I threw together some simple LOS-blocking scatter terrain using some of the many resin accessories I have accumulated. I have also primed a few bits of terrain such as the Cottage and Wheat Field and pictures of these will follow once I have made some progress painting them.

And talking of the Wheat Field, I found this guy in my bitzbox and think he might come in handy for watching over the crops. He's an old Mordheim model from the "Frenzied Mob" set.

And lastly this Box O' Fun arrived. More details on this soon...

10 Night Goblins walk into a Wheat Field...

I kicked myself into gear and finally got to chuck some paint on 10 of my old metal Night Goblins. I have around 50 to get through so I thought it best to split them into chunks of 10. I started out with the goal of doing a quick paintjob that looks good from a metre away but up close is fairly basic. This didn't really go to plan and I spent far too long on each one although they turned out (I think) pretty good. Since taking this picture I noticed I forgot to paint the banner top, DOH! I will fix this and make a custom banner ASAP. I sooooo love the old metal Gobbo's. They are so full of character which is something I think the current range has lost. I mean, check this out:

That Guy in the middle, easily my favourite pose!

Work also began on one of my many terrain projects, a wheat field:

I took a bit of MDF and added sections of walls/fences from GW's excellent "Walls & Fences" kit. I then used some Polyfilla to mold these to the base and also build up some raised "bank" sections to help better hide the door matt rubber base. Next up will be the basing stage. At his rate I will have a small farm soon! I've got some annual leave from work coming up next week so I plan to continue on with these and other projects so expect some updates soon.

U.K. Subs - Down on the Farm

Forge World: Troggoth Hag, Merchants Cottage and Stone Bridge

A quick update to show you all what I'm working on at the moment. First up is Forge World's excellent Troggoth Hag. I have always loved this model and since I have got some Moonclan Grots on the go it gave me the perfect excuse to add Her to my army. Since taking this photo I have sorted out the moldline which annoyingly I didn't notice until after I had taken the picture. I need to do some work on her base and then I'm hoping to get Her primed and some base colours down when I'm next off work.

Next up is some progress on the Merchants Cottage. I used some polyfilla and milliput to level out the base and then added a mix of woodland scenics fine and medium ballast to the base. I need to prime this and then get the painting underway.

 polyfilla and milliput added to base

 

PVA and woodland scenics ballast added

And last up is one of my latest acquisitions. I managed to score a mint in box long OOP Forge World Stone Bridge for my ever-growing scenery collection. I really love the design of this and hope to pair it up with a Re-painted Pegasus Hobbies River Set. More on that soon.

Box Fresh!

Dragons-eye view

 

Troggoths-eye view



Ulver - Trollskogen

Product Review: TheBattleForge - Mushrooms and Toadstools

I have been searching around for a company that makes a variety of Mushrooms/Fungus that I can use as basing features for my Moonclan Grot army and came across the excellent "TheBattleForge". They are UK-based company which being a fellow resident of this little Island is something I prefer when making online orders since you tend to pay a lot less postage (FREE in this case!) but more importantly your stuff arrives quicker. Their website is easy to navigate with categories and subcategories clearly displayed so you know exactly where you need to go. For my first order I finally settled on the following items:

Giant Elf and Fairy Woodland Mushroom and Toadstools x15 pack

 Giant Field-Mushroom and Toadstool x15 pack

Giant Goblin Mushroom and Toadstool x20 pack

I placed my order late one evening and 3 days later the items arrived. They were shipped in a padded envelope with the items divided up into small bags and stapled to the order confirmation. As you can see in the below photo the mushrooms come with their own "pins" at the bottom of the stems making attaching them to bases even easier. Just drill a hole in your base, add a splash of superglue, pop the pin in... jobs a good'un! 

I was really impressed with both the service and products from TheBattleForge. They are priced well and FREE UK postage gives you even better value for money. These will help add some really nice details throughout my army. Speaking of which, I have been working on basing the White Dwarf Subscription Goblin Warboss and added two of the small mushrooms from the "Giant Goblin Mushroom and Toadstool x20 pack". The resin ones on the right were left over from the Mangler Squigs kit.

TheBattleForge Mushrooms on the left. Pretty fetching huh?!

I will definitely be making more orders in the future. Check their full range of products here: http://www.thebattleforge.co.uk

Forge World: Merchants Cottage WIP

In my ongoing quest to acquire OOP Forge World terrain I ended up with two of the Wood Cutters Cottages. One I purchased a year or so ago was still mint in box and I have built that stock. The other came poorly assembled by the previous owner complete with a fairly thick splash of paint and has been sat on a shelf awaiting some inspiration... and inspiration has struck! I have decided to turn this "spare" one into a Merchants Cottage. The main structure will remain as is but I have removed the wood pile and axe (as seen in the stock picture below) and attached the cottage to a beveled MDF base. I used a section of fence from GW's "Walls & Fences" kit and then selected some resin accessories to help change the look from "Wood Cutter" to "Merchant". A full product review for these bits and info on where you can purchase them will follow in a future article. Here is the current progress:

The Stock Cottage

First try. Looks ok I guess...

Bingo! We have a winner.

And as always, here is an appropriate song for this post:

Sellsword - Merchants of Menace

I see a bad moon a-rising

I see a bad moon a-rising
I see trouble on the way
I see earthquakes and lightnin'
I see bad times today

The time has come to resurrect this much neglected blog in a bid to keep me on track with my newest project for Age of Sigmar: Moonclan Grots (Aka Night Goblins!). I will be chronicling my progress (I hope!) and if all goes to plan there will also be a few other authors joining the blog so we should get some actual content appearing at last! I have gone through and removed the majority of old posts as I want a fresh start. Thanks to everyone who followed and commented previously, I hope you enjoy the new direction!

Creedence Clearwater Revival - Bad Moon Rising