Sunday 30 July 2017

"Hey! Who Turned Out The Lights?"

"It's a swarm in a suit. But it's learning."
Officially approved by the BBC, these six metal models of the Vashta Nerada are "designed" by "Warlord Games" for both collectors and the company's "Doctor Who: Exterminate!" Miniatures Game. Based upon the microscopic beings from the May 2008 television story “Silence In The Library”, these sculpts depict the "shadows that melt the flesh" inhabiting the 51st Century spacesuits of River Song's hapless archaeological team.

Initially primed with two layers of "Vallejo" White, "the piranhas of the air" were all subsequently washed with Pale Flesh and heavily dry-brushed using more White. I then shaded the vents of their Archeological Expedition Suits with some Strong Tone Quickshade by "The Army Painter" and 'picked out' their former occupants' skulls with "Vallejo" Iraqi Sand. Finally, I washed the grinning cadavers with some additional Strong Tone Quickshade and delicately gave each 'face' a light dry-brush of (more) "Vallejo" Iraqi Sand.
"It's how they hunt. They latch on to a food source and keep it fresh."
Noticing that my clumsy paint-jobs had already seemingly eradicated any trace of the miniatures' tombstone-like teeth, and spotting that on "Warlord Games" publicity paint-jobs they had not only been individually highlighted white, but also superbly shaded florescent blue in order to replicate the spacesuit's interior lighting, I was then left with something of a dilemma. Did I boldly try something similar and potentially risk ruining an area of each figure which was already rather 'soft' in visible detail and 'filling up' with pigment fast, or simply leave well enough alone, and settle for their deep set sockets to draw the gamer's eye to their sinister faces and "inspire a fear of the darkness"..?

Tricky decisions aside, I have started working on a number of the Nottingham-based manufacturer's other "Into The Time Vortex" miniatures in earnest. Apparently next month will now only see the release of Ashildr (from "The Woman Who Lived") and the Ogrons, as a result of the Slitheen being delayed in order for their pack to contain the extraterrestrial family's appropriate gaming cards for "Doctor Who: Exterminate!"
"Into The Time Vortex" WIPs - Sea Devil, Zygon, Judoon and the Twelfth Doctor
As a result I won't be quite as 'pushed' as I thought to get my current "Warlord Games" metal mountain reduced, so alongside my six Sea Devils (from Jon Pertwee's Seventies era), I have added both some Zygon reinforcements, and the Twelfth Doctor himself. I've also got some additional Judoon and Silents in the paint queue, as half a dozen miniatures seems to arguably be the acceptable minimum when using a faction in "Doctor Who: Exterminate!", and I am therefore somewhat keen to ensure I can field at least three Recruitment Cards of these 'Nu-Who' monsters.

Of course "Warlord Games" announcement that the Slitheen will now probably accompany models (and cards) for the Movellans, Victor Kennedy, an Abzorbalovian, the Genesis Ark, Supreme Dalek and Special Weapons Dalek means that September and October could well see a torrent of 'essential' purchases. To make matters 'worse', the company have also confirmed that "cards will be produced for all existing sets" and "be available as downloads and physical card booster packs" in the future; something which will undoubtedly encourage me to finally tackle my backlog of Tetraps, Clockwork Droids, Professor Yana and the Ghost.

20 comments:

  1. hehe, its interesting to see you have the same dilemmas running through your head as I do. Shall I do this - shall I do that, but what if A ruins B, maybe I should just..... and so on hehe.

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    1. Cheers Tarot. Personally I find it incredibly interesting why people paint the same mini differently, and the thought processes behind such decisions. Good to hear you do too :-)

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  2. Great work on the Vashta Nerada Simon, the sea devils outfit looks awesome, and the other 3 are progressing well. As to your dilema with the faces on the Vashta I would be tempted to leave it if your finding the detail is already full of paint

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    1. Thanks very much Dave. The Vashta Nerada will indeed be left alone :-) The Sea Devils are currently being progressed now, so I'll hopefully have some updated WIPs posted soon.

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  3. "my clumsy paint-jobs" - you're having a larf Simon. They look fantastic and your technique descriptions are excellent 'tutorials' in their own right :-)

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    1. Cheers Wargame Addict. That's very much appreciated indeed!! I appreciate the 'tutorials' can get a bit samey, as I tend to write them to remind me how I did something. but its nice to know someone else is enjoying them too.

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  4. They do look good (though I still like your home grow ones better). In fact they all look wonderfully painted.

    I think I recognised about half of the names you recounted in your up-coming figures list, though one name stood out....Special Weapons Dalek!!!!!!

    Oh yes now we are talking.

    Cheers Roger.

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    1. Thanks Roger. The Special Weapons Dalek will be released as part of the Maximum Extermination pack, alongside the the Genesis Ark and Supreme Dalek from the relaunch. Does that mean you'll finally own some 'Nu-Who' minis in the near future?

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    2. Go and wash your mouth out with soap!! no one wants to hear language like that, you dirty boy!

      :-)

      Cheers Roger.

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  5. The Vashta Nerada look very creepy and you've done an excellent paint-job on them (leave them as they are would be my suggestion).

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    1. Cheers Joe. I'll be taking you up on that suggestion and leaving the minis well enough alone.

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  6. Excellent work with the Vashta Nerada (or 'skully spacesuit thingies' as I would have called them - I can never recall their actual name). :)

    Your Who stuff looks great together. :)

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    1. Thanks Leon. The skulkie spacesuit thingies do seem to go well alongside the Doctor and his companions, imho.

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  7. Those Vashta Nerada are interesting sculpts, and shine up really nicely. White is a hard medium, especially in gloss. But you do nice toning though.

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    1. Cheers Hils. I'm tempted to pick up another box and own an uneven nine Vashta Nerada :-)

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  8. Your Who collection is becoming an army unto itself.

    Really like the green/blue on the Sea Devil.

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    1. Thanks Dai. I do have a little bit of a "Warlord Games" "Doctor Who" mini horde now...

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