We are just a bit over half way through September and I have decided that I will not enter the Armies on Parade this year. I haven't got the time to prepare my army and the board to a high enough standard for me to be completely satisfied with it. So instead of using up my idea on a board that don't stand a chance in the competition, I will wait until next year and deliver an entry that I can be proud of no matter if it wins or not.
I will keep working on my Dwarf army though, so that I don't get the same problem next year...
The work has been slower than I would have wanted, but the Ranger unit is almost done now. I need to paint some details on the banner, and the weirdly looking horn for the musician. Then there are a few hands holding axes that still needs paint.
When this is done the unit can go in to battle as Quarrellers, then I will paint up the axes (or crossbows for the ones holding axes in their hands already) that goes on their backs to make them Rangers. I will also paint up the pouches with crossbow bolts that they all will carry.
I hope to start doing this when I get home from work today.
I will also start to paint up my "Imperial" Dwarfs today as they will be the next unit out. They are Warriors, but because of their old style they look so different that I will need to field them in a separate unit. When I start to paint them up I will see if there are some single miniatures with the same look in the box I inherited. If so I will see if I can join them in to this unit to make it a little bigger.
The next unit to be assembled and primed is a unit of Longbeards. They come in boxes of ten and can be max thirty in a unit. I have three boxes, but I think I will make them with two full commands, so that I can either split them in one unit of ten and one of twenty, or in two units of fifteen each.
The three single miniatures I have worked on (two Rune Lords and a Warden King) are almost done. There are just a few details remaining to make them stand out a bit more. I need to paint some thin golden lines and gemstones on to their armor.
I tried to paint gemstones directly on their dark armor but that did not work as planned. Turns out I need a bright background of either gold or silver to get the right effect. I recently saw a video of Duncan at Warhammer TV painting gemstones, so now I know how to do it correctly.
mandag 19. september 2016
mandag 5. september 2016
Armies on Parade 2016?
I see that time is going real fast, so at the moment I am very unsure if I will be able to participate this year. I still haven't finished my Rangers, and I only have one unit of Ironbreakers that are done apart from the Rangers.
This is not enough to compete in the event, and I would rather wait one year and deliver a very good entry, than doing something hasty and use up the idea.
But I will see how it goes, as of now I am working towards the goal of having an entry to present on October 15th.
I am starting to see the end of the Rangers build. Saturday I painted all the skin, and yesterday I painted hair on ten of the Rangers. Today I will paint the rest of them, and hopefully start painting the crossbows.
Also on Saturday I detailed the bases for the Rune Lords and the Warden King. They are now washed, and the runes on the stones of the Rune Lords have been painted in gold. On the Warden King I have painted all the intricate patterns on top of the stone in gold, as well as the runes inscribed at the front and back of the stone. I am quite happy with how that turned out, but not that happy with the trim I painted on the cape of the Warden King, so I might paint his cape again in order to get the trim correct.
This is not enough to compete in the event, and I would rather wait one year and deliver a very good entry, than doing something hasty and use up the idea.
But I will see how it goes, as of now I am working towards the goal of having an entry to present on October 15th.
I am starting to see the end of the Rangers build. Saturday I painted all the skin, and yesterday I painted hair on ten of the Rangers. Today I will paint the rest of them, and hopefully start painting the crossbows.
Also on Saturday I detailed the bases for the Rune Lords and the Warden King. They are now washed, and the runes on the stones of the Rune Lords have been painted in gold. On the Warden King I have painted all the intricate patterns on top of the stone in gold, as well as the runes inscribed at the front and back of the stone. I am quite happy with how that turned out, but not that happy with the trim I painted on the cape of the Warden King, so I might paint his cape again in order to get the trim correct.
tirsdag 16. august 2016
Armies on Parade 2016 - Part 1
It's that time of the year again, and I now believe I have the plan for my board for 2016.
It will be a flat board this year, but I don't know if Games Workshop will sell single tiles this year or if I have to cut myself a tile from plywood.
On the board I will have the gate section from a Citadel Fortress and then I will make mountain walls going from each side of the gate and to the end of the board. What angle I will use will be decided when I see what else I want on the board and how I can get everything to fit.
Behind the walls there will be a few small scenarios. There will be a mine with two Grudge ponies going in and out of the mine. One will be on the way down with a cart that is either empty or carrying a little equipment, and one will be on the way up carrying a load of rocks of some sort.
There will also be a shaft going in to the thickest part of the mountain wall, and my unit of old metal Ironbreakers will either be on the way up or down from the shaft. These will probably only be visible if one looks at the board from behind.
On top of this section my Badyear Blimp will be placed. I think I know how to make it now. I will use styrofoam balls from Panduro and cut the ends off except from the one in front and in the back, so that it looks fairly blimpy.
Here is a picture of the original Goodyear Blimp. I am going for the sort of medieval version of this.
This is sort of what the air balloons will look like. I found this pic on Google image search.
The plan is to use styrofoam balls and glue them together (not sure if I will use 3 or 4 yet, will have to see when the compartment underneath is done). The balls will then be coated with strips of plaster, both to add them together and to make a surface I can paint.
The balloon will be given an eye-catching color, and the compartment underneath will be dark wood (probably Dryad Bark).
Then I will make some sort of rudder and either add it to the balloon or to the wooden construction.
In front of the wall on ground level, there will be trees, and among them the Ranger unit will be placed. At the same side of the table, there will also be a small cave where one or two Goblins is hiding, spying on the Dwarfs. They will be hidden by some moss that will appear as bushes on the board so the Dwarfs can't see them.
It will be a flat board this year, but I don't know if Games Workshop will sell single tiles this year or if I have to cut myself a tile from plywood.
On the board I will have the gate section from a Citadel Fortress and then I will make mountain walls going from each side of the gate and to the end of the board. What angle I will use will be decided when I see what else I want on the board and how I can get everything to fit.
Behind the walls there will be a few small scenarios. There will be a mine with two Grudge ponies going in and out of the mine. One will be on the way down with a cart that is either empty or carrying a little equipment, and one will be on the way up carrying a load of rocks of some sort.
There will also be a shaft going in to the thickest part of the mountain wall, and my unit of old metal Ironbreakers will either be on the way up or down from the shaft. These will probably only be visible if one looks at the board from behind.
On top of this section my Badyear Blimp will be placed. I think I know how to make it now. I will use styrofoam balls from Panduro and cut the ends off except from the one in front and in the back, so that it looks fairly blimpy.
Here is a picture of the original Goodyear Blimp. I am going for the sort of medieval version of this.
The plan is to use styrofoam balls and glue them together (not sure if I will use 3 or 4 yet, will have to see when the compartment underneath is done). The balls will then be coated with strips of plaster, both to add them together and to make a surface I can paint.
The balloon will be given an eye-catching color, and the compartment underneath will be dark wood (probably Dryad Bark).
Then I will make some sort of rudder and either add it to the balloon or to the wooden construction.
In front of the wall on ground level, there will be trees, and among them the Ranger unit will be placed. At the same side of the table, there will also be a small cave where one or two Goblins is hiding, spying on the Dwarfs. They will be hidden by some moss that will appear as bushes on the board so the Dwarfs can't see them.
Starting to look like something
I have managed some progress on the Dwarfs since my last update.
I am well underway with painting my Rangers. I have also started to paint up two Runelords and a Warden King.
As I see it, the Runelords and the Warden King have two layers of armor. I have chosen to paint what looks like chainmail or Gromril armor Stormhost Silver. This will be the color used for this item for all my Dwarfs to make a coherent look for the entire army.
Then they have another layer of armor on top of this, and this is painted Warplock Bronze. The reason for this is to both create a clear contrast to the silver and to the gold details and gemstones they have on their armor.
They also get capes of bright color. The Warden King has a bright red cape, and the Runelords bright green and clear blue. This will hopefully make them focal points on the board when they get there. This will be good both for the Armies on Parade and for future gaming as they are the leaders of the Dwarf community and should be seen on the battlefield.
The Rangers all get a uniformed look, where the only thing that is different is the shape of their beards and helmets and the color of their hair.
I have chosen to paint all chainmail Stormhost Silver, and their shirts and the edges of their armor is painted Elysian Green. They all have capes, and they are painted slightly darker in Castellan Green.
All boots and belts will be painted Mournfang Brown, as this is the standard color for leather in my armies. This will also later be applied to the bolt cogs they carry the crossbow ammunition in, to the cuffs of their arms and to the padding under the helmets.
For the garment they wear under their chainmails, I wanted the leather to look a bit tougher. So I went for Rhinox Hide for that. There will only be a small stripe between the chainmail and the boots that is visible, and to some extent the underside of the miniature where that can be seen, and this darker brown makes a nice contrast both to the boots and the color of the metal and chainmail.
Right now I'm in the process of painting the leather on to the Rangers, and the next step will be to paint the helmets. All helmets will be Warplock Bronze, and the helmets that have detailing will have this painted in Stormhost Silver. My unit Champions all wear the helmets with wings, and the wings will be painted Retributor Armour (gold).For the helmets with horns, the horns will be painted Stormhost Silver like the details. I strongly believe the Dwarfs use metal for their horns and not bone, as they are known for being really good at making metal artifacts.
When the Rangers are painted up, I will prime and paint the arms with the crossbows and glue them on before I wash the minis with the appropriate washes and drybrush the capes.
All bases will be made with Astrogranite texture paint, and the sides of the bases will be painted with Mechanicus Standard Gray as they match perfectly. This is the same way the bases for my Ironbreakers are done, and I plan to make a small scenario on the board with them.
I am well underway with painting my Rangers. I have also started to paint up two Runelords and a Warden King.
As I see it, the Runelords and the Warden King have two layers of armor. I have chosen to paint what looks like chainmail or Gromril armor Stormhost Silver. This will be the color used for this item for all my Dwarfs to make a coherent look for the entire army.
Then they have another layer of armor on top of this, and this is painted Warplock Bronze. The reason for this is to both create a clear contrast to the silver and to the gold details and gemstones they have on their armor.
They also get capes of bright color. The Warden King has a bright red cape, and the Runelords bright green and clear blue. This will hopefully make them focal points on the board when they get there. This will be good both for the Armies on Parade and for future gaming as they are the leaders of the Dwarf community and should be seen on the battlefield.
The Rangers all get a uniformed look, where the only thing that is different is the shape of their beards and helmets and the color of their hair.
I have chosen to paint all chainmail Stormhost Silver, and their shirts and the edges of their armor is painted Elysian Green. They all have capes, and they are painted slightly darker in Castellan Green.
All boots and belts will be painted Mournfang Brown, as this is the standard color for leather in my armies. This will also later be applied to the bolt cogs they carry the crossbow ammunition in, to the cuffs of their arms and to the padding under the helmets.
For the garment they wear under their chainmails, I wanted the leather to look a bit tougher. So I went for Rhinox Hide for that. There will only be a small stripe between the chainmail and the boots that is visible, and to some extent the underside of the miniature where that can be seen, and this darker brown makes a nice contrast both to the boots and the color of the metal and chainmail.
Right now I'm in the process of painting the leather on to the Rangers, and the next step will be to paint the helmets. All helmets will be Warplock Bronze, and the helmets that have detailing will have this painted in Stormhost Silver. My unit Champions all wear the helmets with wings, and the wings will be painted Retributor Armour (gold).For the helmets with horns, the horns will be painted Stormhost Silver like the details. I strongly believe the Dwarfs use metal for their horns and not bone, as they are known for being really good at making metal artifacts.
When the Rangers are painted up, I will prime and paint the arms with the crossbows and glue them on before I wash the minis with the appropriate washes and drybrush the capes.
All bases will be made with Astrogranite texture paint, and the sides of the bases will be painted with Mechanicus Standard Gray as they match perfectly. This is the same way the bases for my Ironbreakers are done, and I plan to make a small scenario on the board with them.
tirsdag 19. juli 2016
progress is slow but steady...
I have assembled my unit of twenty Dwarfs with capes now, and decided they will be Rangers.
I did not like to give the musician a drum, so I found a weird looking horn in a Warriors box, and will use that instead. All of the Rangers will have crossbows that are loaded and ready to fire, the only exception here is the standard bearer and the musician, they will have an axe in their free hand, and the crossbow on their back.
Right now I am putting together the first unit of Thunderers for the army. This will be a unit with thirty Dwarfs (maximum allowed according to the new Age of Sigmar General's Handbook), and I plan to add a similar unit of Quarrellers in the future.
The Thunderers will also have a full command with a horn blower, a standard bearer and a champion. The horn blower is from the "Battle for Skull Pass" box, and he looks like no other horn blower I have seen before. I also added three regular Thunderers from the same set in to this unit. All the Thunderers from this box have the same pose, so putting three into a unit of thirty will hopefully blend them in. These three are unpainted, so I can paint them up from the start along with the rest of the unit.
So far I have glued together half the unit, and I hope to put together the remaining fifteen tonight or tomorrow.
When the Thunderer unit is glued together I will prime the units and single minis assembled so far, and start to paint them up. The plan is to paint the bodies, and then prime and paint the arms (and heads for the old Warrior unit) separately and glue it on before wash and highlights are applied.
I did not like to give the musician a drum, so I found a weird looking horn in a Warriors box, and will use that instead. All of the Rangers will have crossbows that are loaded and ready to fire, the only exception here is the standard bearer and the musician, they will have an axe in their free hand, and the crossbow on their back.
Right now I am putting together the first unit of Thunderers for the army. This will be a unit with thirty Dwarfs (maximum allowed according to the new Age of Sigmar General's Handbook), and I plan to add a similar unit of Quarrellers in the future.
The Thunderers will also have a full command with a horn blower, a standard bearer and a champion. The horn blower is from the "Battle for Skull Pass" box, and he looks like no other horn blower I have seen before. I also added three regular Thunderers from the same set in to this unit. All the Thunderers from this box have the same pose, so putting three into a unit of thirty will hopefully blend them in. These three are unpainted, so I can paint them up from the start along with the rest of the unit.
So far I have glued together half the unit, and I hope to put together the remaining fifteen tonight or tomorrow.
When the Thunderer unit is glued together I will prime the units and single minis assembled so far, and start to paint them up. The plan is to paint the bodies, and then prime and paint the arms (and heads for the old Warrior unit) separately and glue it on before wash and highlights are applied.
torsdag 14. juli 2016
Planning unit sizes
I was at Games Workshop yesterday, and got a peek at the new General's Handbook that is comming out in one and a half weeks time.
This book gives Age of Sigmar point values, and rules for unit sizes. I just had a quick look at the section for my Dwarfs, but the book covers the entire model range.
I found that the Warriors can be minimum ten strong and max forty. The Quarrelers and Thunderers are both minimum ten and max thirty.
So I will make my caped Dwarfs a twenty strong unit will full command. I'll see later today if I can use them as Rangers as I originally planned, or if they will be an elite Thunderer unit (elite will only count for the fluff, as there are no elite unit as such in the rules).
That leaves me twenty-eight Dwarfs already cut from their sprues (but still missing arms), and twenty-four Dwarfs on the sprues in the remaining two boxes (after I have removed eight caped ones to fill the caped unit).
But I also found some plastic Thunderers in the stash of inherited Dwarfs, so I will add them to the units I am building now.
I will have to see if I need one more box of Thunderers/Quarrelers to get enough weapons to make what I need, but I will arm the different units after I have selected the Ranger unit tonight, and then I'll see how the other units will be.
Games Workshop is running a campaign all over the world, where good fight against evil and the results from all fights in all of Europe will be added together to see how the fight has gone in the end. You can join either by playing games, or by painting units and showing them to the staff at your store, so I plan to get my Dwarf units painted up to boost the good side with painting-points.
Yesterday I assembled my second Runesmith, with a hammer and a rune so freshly forged the smoke is still streaming from it.
This book gives Age of Sigmar point values, and rules for unit sizes. I just had a quick look at the section for my Dwarfs, but the book covers the entire model range.
I found that the Warriors can be minimum ten strong and max forty. The Quarrelers and Thunderers are both minimum ten and max thirty.
So I will make my caped Dwarfs a twenty strong unit will full command. I'll see later today if I can use them as Rangers as I originally planned, or if they will be an elite Thunderer unit (elite will only count for the fluff, as there are no elite unit as such in the rules).
That leaves me twenty-eight Dwarfs already cut from their sprues (but still missing arms), and twenty-four Dwarfs on the sprues in the remaining two boxes (after I have removed eight caped ones to fill the caped unit).
But I also found some plastic Thunderers in the stash of inherited Dwarfs, so I will add them to the units I am building now.
I will have to see if I need one more box of Thunderers/Quarrelers to get enough weapons to make what I need, but I will arm the different units after I have selected the Ranger unit tonight, and then I'll see how the other units will be.
Games Workshop is running a campaign all over the world, where good fight against evil and the results from all fights in all of Europe will be added together to see how the fight has gone in the end. You can join either by playing games, or by painting units and showing them to the staff at your store, so I plan to get my Dwarf units painted up to boost the good side with painting-points.
Yesterday I assembled my second Runesmith, with a hammer and a rune so freshly forged the smoke is still streaming from it.
tirsdag 12. juli 2016
just a quick update
I still haven't found my box of Dwarf sprues, and I have really looked everywhere for it by now. I am sure it will pop up somewhere someday, as I know I haven't thrown it away. But luckily I discovered that one box of Thunderers/Quarrellers have the arms to make a unit of both. I feared that the crossbows used the same arms as the guns, but they come separate. This means that with one box and extra bodies, I can make thirty-two Dwarfs and not just sixteen.
So I will try and count how many different bodies I have and decide how to arm them after that.
I will check how the old metal Thunderers look compared to the plastic ones, and if they can blend in to one unit, I will see how many units I can make. If they don't blend, then I will at least have one full unit of Thunderers in plastic, and split the rest between a Quarreller unit and a Ranger unit.
For the Rangers I will need to do something special as I would like the musician to have a horn and not a drum, but I will see what I can manage. If arms can be swapped between Quarrellers and Warriors, then there are no problems but I suspect the Warriors are built like the Miners and if that is the case then I would need to do some chopping and then it depends on how the instrument is fixed to the arm.
I will start to assemble the torsos tomorrow and see how soon I can have some units ready for painting.
I have assembled the Runelord using the big beard, and the book and hammer. I think I will get one more to assemble with the head that is pictured on the box and the other arms (hammer and a freshly made rune). I also assembled the Warden King, but there were no optional parts on him.
They are both standing in a couple of pieces. The Dwarfs themselves are completely assembled, but they are not glued to the bases, and the Warden King base is in two pieces for easy painting.
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