Toss, crunch

Toss and crunch. That's the sound of me throwing down the gauntlet, then it landing in the snow. In other words, here's my entry for the Warhammer Forum Winter Challenge. Let's see yours!

As you can see, I managed to angle the banner so it does not cover the face and hammer, while still showing the banner design. It's based on slate and coconut shell, and it might look like it could topple over but it's pretty stable. This guy will stand on the front corner of a regiment in game which is why he's edged over to the side a little.

The icicles are made from a clear plastic rod from a flying stand, heated and softened in the flame of a candle, then gently stretched used pliers, then carved a little with a craft knife. Not too bad for a first attempt, they are surprisingly tough, hopefully they will  survive the rigours of gaming (and if they don't, I can always whip up some more).

Not much opportunity for grime in all that lovely crisp snow, but note that the bearskin cape has been dragged through a little blood, and the hammer is a bit gory. Gotta have blood and snow together, always good  - maybe I should add a few drops of the red stuff in the white stuff, though I was trying to avoid it looking too much like a Khorne nutter, even if 99% of people would say that he is when they see the red armour.

Chaos Standard WIP 2

Hello guys, how are you coping with the winter freeze? Inspired to paint a winter themed figure? Here's the latest on my entry to the Warhammer Forum challenge, and also my chaos army standard. As you can see I have attached the arm so that the face and hammer is not obscured, while still getting a reasonable view of the standard itself. A design for which is still to be decided, if I can't come up with something more original it will have to be the boring old eight pointed star we all love - despite appearances I don't want this fella to be Khorne marked.

The other major thing to do is the base, this will add some contrast to the darkness of the figure as it stands at the moment. Some nice thick snow and a few icicles, maybe a withered bush. Just a few more touches here and there and he will be done.

Apologies for the sub-standard photo, it's just a WIP after all and I can't be bothered to set up the "studio" for a shoot.

I'm sluggishly trying to get back into posting some progress but commission work, real life, training, x-mas, and a funeral have kept me busy enough...

Well back to progress (or something of the sorts), I acquired some more golgfags ogres and I thought that I would show some 'before' and 'after' pics of them.

and some progress on the last four bulls. Still in heavy WIP

Thanks for watching and let's just hope that I can get my mojo (and free time) back

Chaos Standard WIP

I have been painting quite a lot of elves recently so I fancied something a bit dark and dirty as a contrast. So last night I switched on my daylight lamp, decided it was nothing like daylight, but painted some anyway.

This will be my entry into the Warhammer Forum winter theme  challenge, if I can get it finished on time. The picture is crappy so I will try to highlight a few things.

The base is made from slate and some coconut shell. Notice the funky texture, cracks and little hairs? These should look really nice with a bit of snow sprinkled on top. I might also take the plunge and attempt some icicles. There are a few tutorials kicking around, always wanted to have a bash at that.

The main figure is an Avatars of War chaos sculpt. I love their stuff, I really do, but sometimes the detail can be a bit soft, forcing you to highlight edges and corners to accentuate the sculpt. Having recently painted a lot of nice, sharp plastics, this can be a bit of a letdown.

The banner is a plastic GW bit. It will be a deep red background with a black symbol, to match in with my chaos army, I just need inspiration for the actual symbol.

I have a couple of other figures on my table at the moment, a hag queen to lead my ghouls into battle, and a nice biggish model for my VC army. With luck I will have all three finished by the end of the month.

VC WIP 1

Hey guys, how long are you hibernating for?

I started work on one of my favourite Vampire Counts models, so I reckoned on making the base a bit more elaborate. It's not a new idea is it, having a zombie or two on a base, but it sure looks good. A bit more exciting than the usual sand and flock. This is the progress after a bit of glazing and (shock, horror) some drybrushing. The bits of rock are made from a coconut shell - amazing textures, it even has little hairs growing from it which I will paint up as withered grasses. Get out into the forests and find one now!

Action!

Hey guys, here's a recent commission piece which was a first for me, a finecast figure with no bubbles! It was still a pain to clean though, I always feel as though the figure is going to disintegrate in my hands as I gingerly scrape off the damned mold lines and tons of flash!

I was given total freedom over the painting scheme. At first I considered black and white, as per 1930's hollywood movies, but decided that was a bit too radical. But it did inspire me to aim for a sort of sepia palette, with a flash of colour in the red megaphone and contrasting green gems. I also very cleverly put "WD 2012" on the clapper board - pleased with this flash of genius I sent off the pictures to the client. He liked them, but pointed out it was the 2013 figure. Curses! A little job to start the new year then.