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| "On the battlefield, commanders simply point teams of these constructs at the enemy and let them go." |
These three 40mm tall metal Hammerer models were produced by "Wizards Of The Coast" for their 2002 edition of "Chainmail", and each boxed kit came with a separate body, left arm with cutters and right arm with hammer, as well as a (disconcertingly small) 25mm stand. Sculpted by Jim Warner, the "Good Construct" was part of the rule-set's Thalos faction; a force which "consisted largely of humans along with a few half-elves, gnomes and gnome created constructs."
Each of the automatons were originally undercoated with "Citadel" Abaddon Black but were subsequently treated to a double layer of "Vallejo" Gunmetal Grey. They were then washed with "Citadel" Nuln Oil, before being dry-brushed with more "Vallejo" Gunmetal Grey in order to better bring out a lot of the models' details, such as their gnome runes.
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| Air Elemental WIPs - The "Dungeons And Dragons" model has been washed, dry-brushed and re-washed |
Because the "heavy, solid, and deadly" Hammerer gets its name from the powerful hammer-arm" it wields, I felt the automatons would be ideal to represent some of the Police Robots found patrolling the crashed spaceship in the "Dungeons And Dragons" module "Expedition To Barrier Peaks". In addition, their pincer-arm, which "is used mainly for lifting things", would arguably allow them to 'moonlight' as Worker Robots too.
This meant the constructs had undoubtedly spent "several decades" standing motionless in the vessel's lower cargo bay, until such time as a computer malfunction had ordered them to erroneously start clearing the hold and periodically discharge "more of the [craft's] unwanted goods" outside. As a result I treated each figure to a light coat of "Mig Productions" Extreme Rust Wash, and then dry-brushed the vast majority of the enamel type wash away with "Vallejo" Gunmetal Grey.
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| Cybermen WIPs - These two Cybermen represent the Seventies and Late Sixties |
Sticking with "Dungeons And Dragons" I have made some considerable progress on my plastic Air Elemental by "Wizards Of The Coast". The miniature from the "Elemental Evil" expansion has been both washed and dry-brushed, and now just needs to have his brown ink striations blended in with the rest of its swirling vortex to be finished.
I have also turned my attention towards two more of the miniatures found within "Warlord Games" "Nightmares In Silver" collectors set. These two Cybermen, one from "Revenge Of The Cybermen", and the other from "Invasion" have been washed with "Citadel" Nuln Oil and will require a hearty dry-brush of Ironbreaker before I can begin 'picking out' all their cybernetic detail...
Great job on the hammerers Simon, on the elemental try stippling a lighter brown in the wash marks to give the effect of particles in it. Great work on the Cybermen
ReplyDeleteThanks Dave. I'll give that stippling a try as I haven't dry-brushed the Air Elemental yet. I was hoping to get some more, and post them together (doing one as Jez's candy-floss ghost), but they're too expensive to justify. The Cybermen are slowly being progressed, with another one to be posted in a few days time :-)
DeleteVery nicely done with the Hammerers, the trio looks excellent. :)
ReplyDeleteI wasn't even aware of a 2000's edition of Chainmail. Shows that the the retro-revival thing has been with us a while. :)
Thanks Leon. I was a huge fan of "Chainmail" but it only lasted a year and was then replaced by the plastic "D&D" range which is currently so popular. A shame really, as some of the sculpts, such as these Hammerers, were then replaced by inferior plastic variants.
DeleteHave you ever seen the original Chainmail Simon (which is even older than D&D - and only later turned into the first ever D&D white box game back in 73). Stems right back to "The Castle and Crusades Society" which later became Tactical Studies Rules (TSR).
DeleteI certainly know of it, Steve, with Gary Gygax coming out with the first version in 1971. But I've never played nor owned it, just the 2002 version.
Deleteyessss that`s right (you sure know your stuff).
DeleteThe hammerers would grace many tables Simon, excellent find and well rendered. The air elemental is progressing well.
ReplyDeleteCheers Andy. As gnome constructs go, the Hammerers are awesome :-) Hoping to get the Air Elemental on the tabletop soon too!!
Deletelove the hammerers
ReplyDeleteThanks Martin :-)
DeleteThe three Hammerer models sent immersive shivers down my spine, oh Simon,they are simply incredible. What an awesome addition to your Barrier peaks game they will make. You are like George Lucis, little tiny tit-bits of enthusiasm fuelled hot bricks.. teaser nuggets t make us more and more impatient and longing to see the finished cinematic production "In a galaxy far far away, Simon Lucas films bring us "Expedition To Barrier Peaks" - running title `The Phantom Peaks` hehe.
ReplyDeleteI adore what you have done to the Air Elemental, and am enjoying the insight into your mind, a work in progress as your game creation gets nearer and nearer to readiness.
The retro Cybers look so cool too. Dum-ud-a-dum-ad-a-dum-ad-a OOOOOooooo!!!! <-- DW music
Cheers Tarot. What a fab comparison :-) I originally started this blog simply to document my painting palette on miniatures and any issues I had (for when I'd next need to paint a model again). But these days I appreciate that my descriptions are a little dry and samey, so I like to explain why I went about doing something (or not as the case may be) as well.
DeleteI do see the change in trend and massively like it. I think we all do xx
DeleteI`m jealous of those highly cool 40mm tall metal Hammerer models, they look INCReDIBle. WOW they would dominate any in game table top session, wouldn't they?
ReplyDeleteAir Elemental looks suitably fiendish, I do like how you have accentuated the non-corporeal facial features, quite inspirational actually.
The Cybermen look really great too. Seeing yours made me look proudly at my own too, sitting looking lovely in my glass cabinet. Two dozen beauties, and an equal number of Cybermats.. with Missy looking cool at the head of their formidable column.
Thanks Steve. I have tried to source some more Hammerers but they're seemingly rather rare this side of the Pond, and expensive on the other side. i think the face is going to make or break the Air Elemental, so fingers crossed it works out for the best...
DeleteI look forward to seeing your Cybermen, they certainly seem to be the 'in' painting subject currently :-)
I paint pretty quickly Simon, so my Cybermen (from both Exterminate and the Missy set) were finished pretty much in one session the day of I got them - about 2 to 3 hours to assemble, convert (some), paint, base, and varnish in total. I`m n--e--a--r--l--y ready to start my long run of genre specific battle reports (AAR`s) for `The Bat`, Dredd, and Doc Who, all rolled into a cauldron mix of sheer Irish witchery lol. Like your M&DRG/D&D Barrier Peaks, I want it to be right before I make a start..... from seeking out each `piece` I need, assembling each piece of the weave, finite-ing the components, planning the plot lines, and generally..... well you know exactly don`t you, as it just what you are doing too ***grins knowingly***
DeleteI would imagine the Hammerers are pretty ruinous, and only the lucky few (like you) will ever get a look in. Anything from "Chainmail" holds its value in weight for gold.
Well I for one am very much looking forward to your "The Bat`, Dredd, and Doc Who, all rolled into a cauldron mix of sheer Irish witchery", Steve.
DeleteYep, the "Chainmail" minis are undoubtedly expensive, and I was especially lucky to pick mine up at a time when they weren't quite do desirous as they appear to be now. Unfortunately, as you say though, that does mean that adding to them will be difficult to say the least, but I'll be keeping my eye for them at shows etc.
ditto, about your Barrier Peaks Simon :)
DeleteI MIGHT be able to put my hand to 2 more for you (but don`t hold me to it). know a guy in Cork who has a couple, which he hasn't used in years. He thought about it... about adding them into Frostgrave as large Constructs, but then decided to buy the proper golem minis at the last minute (that`s how I know about it, cos he mentioned having them). I`ll see if he still has them: I doubt he`d want anything for the pair and hes a kindly soul. He left D&D/Chainmail a long long time ago and is a Malifaux and Frostgrave man nowadays.
ReplyDeleteI won't hold you to anything, Steve, I've more than enough minis to paint as well you know, so please don't put yourself out on my behalf :-) I've never been able to get into "Malifaux" unfortunately, despite having a painted force - tried it a couple of times at conventions and simply hated the card mechanics. The 'fluff' sounds marvellous though. Obviously, I can however fully understand why someone would want to get into "Frostgrave" ;-)
Deletein case you're wondering why he doesn't nab them for himself - we don`t use actual metal/plastic minis any more for our D&D or Pathfinder games you see, we actually use the Pathfinder Pawn sets nowadays, and have well over a thousand of these cool card rendered critters: NPCs, Heroes, Monsters, townsfolk, animals, etc etc. We tend to use these alongside card terrain (from card castles and buildings, to card walls and card trees) as they fit together aesthetically so well.
ReplyDeleteI really like your hammer guys, and the Elemental is a massive improvement isnt it. Nicely done. And the Cybermen are such fun.
Thanks ever so much, Hils. Steve was telling me all about your Pathfinder Pawns the other day over the phone, and having looked them up I can easily see the attraction. They are very well drawn and its easy to quickly build up quite the collection - I'm really tempted to do "ECW" with cardboard 'flats' tbh.
DeleteI`m so glad you looked up the Pathfinder Pawns. I so nearly got himself to post some good links for them to you, as I figured you might be interested. But I knew you were busy so thought I`d not bother you for now. But yes, they are highly attractive and strangely more-ish, and like many things, look even more so in the flesh.
DeleteOoooh now the ecw flats are simply stunning. I know because Stevie asked me to do all the initial work on them (I haven't started them yet, but perused them enough to be highly impressed by the detail and the way they are going to look when finished). I don`t think you`d regret the purchase Simon, but if you plan to cut up the book, buy two copies (as some of the designs are on the back of other pages). So if you want to keep a perfect copy, you would actually need two to cut up, and one to keep. Unless you just plan to colour photocopy each page, in which case ignore all I just said.
Cheers Hils. I spent a while with a chap selling the "ECW" flats (and other books) at the Bovington show, and he explained how best to scan the pages into my laser printer. He thought they'd come out superbly well on thin card, and showed me the ones he'd done - very nice indeed.
DeleteThe Pathfinder Pawns are tempting too, and just the sort of thing you need for mass-gaming on a budget; or if you simply want to churn out a dungeon's worth quickly. All very tempting imho :-)
best part about the Pawns, its so easy to carry to the club.. light as a feather and takes up little space.
DeletePeter Dennis is a very obliging and helpful man. Yes, thin card printing should work just fine for the ECW (or the other) range(s).
Attractive brushmanship, very excellent all round. Heavily conducive to making me feel I want to stop work and play now LOL.
ReplyDelete"Heavily conducive to making me feel I want to stop work and play now" - That should be a strap-line for the purpose behind this blog, Dave :-) Much appreciated!!
DeleteAnother great haul. I don't know how you find the time.
ReplyDeleteCheers Phil. A lot of these models currently are silver dry-brushes, so they don't take all that long :-)
DeleteThe Hammers are brilliant Simon, love the subtle weathering and more Cybermen! I feel my resolve weakening!
ReplyDeleteThanks Michael. Much appreciated indeed. I'm sure the Cybermen would look awesome hidden amongst your "Congo" landscape too - like some long-lost Cyber outpost which has long been worshipped by the local natives... and whose finest braves get occasionally get upgraded...?
DeleteMore super work, Simon.
ReplyDeleteCheers Roger.
Cheers Roger. Hoping to give plenty to choose from for this year's "Top Ten"; there's only five months to go :-)
DeleteI think I'll just be happy to get ten miniatures done this year!!
DeletePlenty of time left for you to hit your stride yet, my friend, and your "VBCW" stuff is awesome :-)
DeleteGreat job on those hammerers I like the weathering your doing on your metals lately. They look suitably battle worn.
ReplyDeleteThanks Simon. Really enjoying all the rust etc, as its straightforward stuff but turns out well imho.
DeleteThe 'hammerer', reminds me of something from 2000AD )or possibly Futurama) and 'm just loving your various Cybermen versions too.
ReplyDeleteCheers Joe. The Hammerers do look like something from Tharg's imagination. I'm still working my way through all the Cybermen from the Collector's Set, so there are plenty more to come.
DeleteHammerers are extra cool. Theyd fit well in vampifans 2000ad games too.
ReplyDeleteElemental is cool. Too cool. Stick him in a cone and call him a 99. :)
Thanks Dai. The Hammerers would indeed. If I can get a spare Air Elemental then he'll actually be painted pink :-)
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