“Though Vaguely Canine In Form…”

“…Flesh Hounds are more a horrific cross between dog and reptile.”

These six plastic 6mm scale Flesh Hounds [twelve shown with accompanying Bloodletters] were produced by "Games Workshop" for their tabletop wargame "Epic", and regrettably are now long Out Of Production (OOP). However I was jammy enough to stumble across a tub of these daemonic canines from the second-hand stall, “Lesley’s Bitz Box”, whilst visiting "Colours" at Newbury a few years ago, and as part of one of my recent self-imposed Weekly Challenges, thought I should paint up some of them.

“Found by the hundreds and thousands on the bone-littered plains surrounding Khorne's demesne in the Realm of Chaos”, the tiny figures were super-glued onto two thin strips of wood, and primed with two coats of "Vallejo" Heavy Red. They were then washed using "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade and very delicately dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo" Heavy Red.

"Games Workshop" WIPs - Both this 6mm Lander Raider and Rhino were uncoated by their previous owner

Later, each “bloody-minded daemonic beast” had their back spines and head crests ‘picked out' with a little “Citadel” Abaddon Black. As a final touch I also decided to dot their super-tiny teeth/fangs with a well-placed spot of “Vallejo” White, and then dirtied these areas up, along with the insides of their open maws, with some “Citadel” Agrax Earthshade.

Momentarily sticking with “Epic”, I have set aside some opposition to my 6mm Forces of Chaos in the shape of some second-hand Adeptus Astartes I was gifted a good couple of decades ago. There’s no actual rhyhme or reason as to the motley collection, and many of them have already undergone a somewhat thick initial coat of black paint – probably “Citadel” Chaos Black.

"The Iron Star Alliance is able to afford the most advanced technology and weapons for its military."

However, I thought a sizeable batch of space marines, assault marines, rhinos, land raiders, speeders and robots would make an enjoyable small(ish) project for the forthcoming Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge. Although, despite wanting this force to encompass as many chapters as I can cram in, I fear the black ‘prime’ is predominantly going to limit some of the units to being Black Templar, Iron Hand or perhaps Raven Guard…

Lastly, having recently finished painting three Paladin Annihilators by “Privateer Press” for “Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika”, I have revisited the rest of my Iron Star Alliance forces and re-painted all of their Arc receiver’s with a combination of “Vallejo” Brass and “Citadel” Reikland Fleshshade. I had actually used this palette on most of their backpacks before anyway, but I then spotted a couple of areas I have consistently missed on the older models which I decided to ‘pick out’ so that they would match-up better with the new Annihilators.

“The Harbinger Cannons’ Hunter-Killer Rounds…”

“…Enable the squad to spike to target enemy models that are not even in their line of sight.”

This 35mm scale metal Paladin Annihilator is made by “Privateer Press” and is the last of three figures which can be found inside the SKU: 83008 Paladin Annihilators – Iron Star Alliance Squad for Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika. The multi-part figure carries a rapid-fire weapon “that can hit up to three models with every attack” and “ignore cover.”

Once the warrior’s weapon arms and Arc receiver were super-glued in place, the miniature was primed in "Citadel" Abaddon Black and given two coats of "Vallejo" Gunmetal. It was then shaded using "Citadel" Nuln Oil and dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo" Gunmetal using a large make-up blusher brush.

“These smart rounds will curve around walls to hit their mark.”

Sticking with the slightly 'clean' metallic look of the Paladin’s previously painted battle brothers’ mechanically enhanced compound armour, I patiently 'picked out' the Annihilator’s knee-pads, central chest plate, elbow-pads, and the majority of his Harbinger Cannon’s housing in “Citadel” Abaddon Black. In addition, I applied a layer of "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna over the soldier’s spats, shoulder-pads, face-plate, and thigh-joints.

These areas were later given a coat of "Vallejo" Brass, a splash of "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade, and some delicate dry-brushing with a smidge more "Vallejo" Brass so as to bring back some of their shine after being shaded. I also painted part of each Paladin's Arc receiver with "Vallejo" Brass and washed them with "Citadel" Reikland Fleshshade.

"Games Workshop" WIPs - The 6mm Bloodletter is slowly having its details picked out

Finally, as I wanted this heavy support Paladin to stand out from the run-of-the-mill Enforcers, I decided to apply a combination of “Scalecolor” Cobalt Alchemy and “Citadel” Drakenhof Nightshade to the model’s helmet and shoulder-plates. To be honest, I would have liked to have employed this palette on some additional areas too, but chose to stick to just those pieces of armour which I could easily reach with a brush-tip on all three of the miniatures.

Having finished another of my Weekly Challenges, I am already making excellent progress on the next. Somewhat embarrassingly, I’ve actually been ‘picking away’ at a tub of “Epic” Khorne daemons by “Games Workshop” since I first bought it from the second-hand stall, “Lesley’s Bitz Box”, whilst visiting "Colours" a few years ago. Next year I may well try to dedicate an entire month to the now long out of production (OOP) “tabletop wargame set in the fictional Warhammer 40,000 universe” and actually paint some Adeptus Astartes or Squats. However, the plan for the next couple of days is to simply add a few more Flesh Hounds and Bloodletters to my burgeoning Chaos force, and maybe assemble some of the cardboard buildings I recently discovered inside a long-forgotten box of second edition “Space Marines”.

“Shoulda Stayed In Your Graves, Wormfodder!”

“Pick your targets and shoot for their heads!”

This 28mm multi-part walking cadaver is predominantly made up of plastic pieces taken from the "Kings Of War" Undead Zombie Horde sprue by "Mantic Games". However, it has been slightly converted using the head of a metal “Mongoose Publishing” Zombie Judge, so as to better represent the shambling corpse of Judge Miller – who was killed by a ravenously hungry zed whilst defending Mega City One’s Gate One during the Judge Dredd epic storyline “Judgement Day”.

Like all the living dead figures I painted five years ago during Zomtober 2016, the doomed Judge was undercoated using a double layer of “Vallejo” Iraqi Sand and later washed with “Citadel” Biel-Tan Green. I then dry-brushed the living cadaver with (more) “Vallejo” Iraqi Sand, before picking out any exposed internal organs a combination of "Vallejo" Heavy Red and “Citadel” Carroburg Crimson.

"The weapons’ advanced smart lock-targeting system robs its targets of the defensive benefits of cover."

The dead lawman’s visible left knee-cap was treated to a layer of “Vallejo” White followed by a splash of “Citadel” Agrax Earthshade. In addition, I applied some “Vallejo” Heavy Red and (more) “Citadel” Agrax Earthshade to the Judge’s damaged helmet edging. This made the headwear actually appear a shade darker than the colour I usually use for this part of the Justice Department uniform, but I wanted to illustrate that the griminess of death had already started to take effect. I also used some “Citadel” Abaddon Black for poor Miller’s shredded lower uniform.

Finally, I decided to dirty my zombie up by applying some “Citadel” Agrax Earthshade” sporadically over the model, in order to give the impression of shadows and rotting flesh. As a last touch, I did the same thing with a little “Citadel” Carroburg Crimson, predominantly concentrating on the parts surrounding the walking corpse’s deeper wounds.

Other bloggers taking part in Zomtober 2021 are:

Rantings From Under The Wargames Table

PMPainting

Wargames Terrain Workshop

Dead Lead Project

Colgar6 And The Infinite Legion Of Toy Soldiers

Guru PIGS Blog

Apocalypse: Earth

"Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" WIPs - These Sorcerous Sentinels just need shading and dry-brushing 

Alongside the last of my entries for this year’s Zomtober, I have finished the second of three 35mm scale metal Paladin Annihilators produced by “Privateer Press” for Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika. The multi-part miniature was painted in precisely the same palette as its recently completed predecessor, and takes me one step closer to being able to field different five units for my Iron Star Alliance army.

In addition, I have almost finished four of nine Sorcerous Sentinels by “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio” I intend to have tabletop ready over the next few days. The quartet of Slayers have now had all their base layers finished, and just need some washes and dry-brushing before being ready for a coat of varnish and some static grass…

“Armed With Rapid-Fire Harbinger Cannons…”

“…The Paladin Annihilators provide heavy support to Alliance forces on the battlefield.”

This 35mm scale metal Paladin Annihilator is produced by “Privateer Press” and is one of three figures which can be found inside the SKU: 83008 Paladin Annihilators – Iron Star Alliance Squad for Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika. The multi-part figure carries a rapid-fire weapon “that can hit up to three models with every attack”, even those who aren’t “even in their line of sight.”

Having super-glued the futuristic warrior’s weapon arms and Arc receiver in place, the miniature was primed in "Citadel" Abaddon Black before being treated to a double-helping of "Vallejo" Gunmetal. It was then shaded using "Citadel" Nuln Oil and dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo" Gunmetal using a large make-up blusher brush.

"Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" WIPs - Three Sorcerous Sentinels 

Sticking with the somewhat 'clean' metallic look of the Paladin’s previously painted comrades-in-arms’ mechanically enhanced compound armour, I patiently 'picked out' the Annihilator’s knee-pads, central chest plate, elbow-pads, and the majority of his Harbinger Cannon’s housing in "Citadel" Abaddon Black. In addition, I applied a layer of "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna over the soldier’s spats, shoulder-pads, face-plate, and thigh-joints.

These areas were later given a coat of "Vallejo" Brass, a dash of "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade, and some delicate dry-brushing with a smidge more "Vallejo" Brass so as to bring back some of their shine after being shaded. I also painted part of each Paladin's Arc receiver with "Vallejo" Brass and washed them with "Citadel" Reikland Fleshshade.

"Pendraken Miniatures" WIPs - Six based and primed Facehuggers

Finally, as I wanted this heavy support Paladin to stand out from the run-of-the-mill Enforcers, I decided to apply a combination of “Scalecolor” Cobalt Alchemy and “Citadel” Drakenhof Nightshade to the model’s helmet and shoulder-plates. To be honest, I would have liked to have employed this palette on some additional areas too, but chose to stick to just those pieces of armour which I could easily reach with a brush-tip on all three of the miniatures.

Alongside my first “Privateer Press” figure for over five months, I have been working my way through some of the other Weekly Painting Challenges I’ve set myself over the past month. As a result I have almost finished working on four 28mm Sorcerous Sentinels by “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio”, and my latest goal, randomly chosen via a deck of playing cards, of ten 10mm Face Huggers by “Pendraken Miniatures”…

“The Big Regimental 12cm Mortars…”

“…Fire a heavier bombardment at a longer range than the light 8cm mortars.”

This quartet of plastic 15mm miniatures are sold by “Battlefront Miniatures” and can be found inside the company’s 12cm Mortar Platoon blister for “Flames Of War”. The team consists of a two-piece mortar and four mortar loaders. You actually get four teams in the blister so as to build a full-strength platoon, however I picked these particular figures up off “eBay” as a single sprue.

As with all my other “FoW” German soldiers, the figures were initially super-glued onto wooden strips, before being primed in “Vallejo” German Fieldgrey WWII, shaded using “Citadel” Nuln Oil, and dry-brushed with (more) “Vallejo” German Fieldgrey WWII. Their details were then ‘picked out’ predominantly using “Vallejo” Heavy Sienna, Gunmetal, Buff, German Camouflage Dark Green, Heavy Brown and a series of “Citadel” Shades.

"Privateer Press" WIPs - This Paladin Annihilator has slowly had its detail 'picked out'

The beauty of these little kits is that each large base is almost like a tiny vignette in its own right, so despite the fact that each sprue contains exactly the same collection of sculpts, each team can still be attached to their stand in a myriad of different combinations depending upon where the holes for the soldiers are located. Ensuring that the weapon faced “the short edge”, I therefore repositioned the mortar loaders this time round to predominantly stand/kneel to the left of the formidable firing piece.

Moving on to the most recent of my Weekly Challenges, I have been making some steady progress on the first of three Paladin Annihilators I want to field for "Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika". These metal "Privateer Press" castings are a lot of fun to work on, but having used some previously-painted Paladin Enforcers as a guide, I’ve spotted a couple of common areas between the two different infantry teams which I’ve now decided to pigment “Vallejo” Brass and "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade, rather than just plain old Abaddon Black.

"Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" WIPs - These three Sorcerous Sentinels have been based and primed

This has invariably meant that I have dug out all my old Iron Star Alliance models and started ‘touching up’ these additional areas on them, as well as working through my trio of Annihilators. I have however, finally settled upon Cobalt Alchemy by “Scalecolor” for the heavy support troopers’ helmets. Combined with a shade of Drakenhof Nightshade, this should help better distinguish the rapid-fire harbinger cannon-carriers from their similar-looking brethren on the tabletop.

Finally, I have started basing and priming nine Sorcerous Sentinels by “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio” for this week’s monstrous challenge, which as usual was randomly chosen via a deck of playing cards. These “Otherworldly watchers” will be painted up in three batches, and will all follow the ‘official’ colour scheme of the Slayers from Peter Yates’ 1983 science fantasy film “Krull”.

“The Mortars Give Greater Firepower In The Artillery Role…”

“…At the cost of direct-fire infantry support.”

These four plastic 15mm miniatures are sold by “Battlefront Miniatures” and can be found inside the company’s 12cm Mortar Platoon blister for “Flames Of War”. The models consist of a two-piece mortar and four mortar loaders. You actually get four teams in the blister so as to build a full-strength platoon, however I picked these particular figures up off “eBay” as a single sprue.

As with all my other “FoW” German soldiers, the figures were initially super-glued onto wooden strips, before being primed in “Vallejo” German Fieldgrey WWII, shaded using “Citadel” Nuln Oil, and dry-brushed with (more) “Vallejo” German Fieldgrey WWII. Their details were then ‘picked out’ predominantly using “Vallejo” Heavy Sienna, Gunmetal, Buff, German Camouflage Dark Green, Heavy Brown and a series of “Citadel” Shades.

"Privateer Press" WIPs - These three Paladin Annihilators have been primed, shaded and dry-brushed

Disappointingly I was hoping to have also completed a second 12cm Mortar sprue I own, so as to field a minimum-sized platoon. But I still need one more dedicated hobby session with some of them to get the quartet finished and ready for action. However, there’s still enough 15mm figures on this single large base to satisfy my recent two weekly painting challenge targets.

Speaking of my Weekly Challenges, randomly chosen via a deck of playing cards, my seventh goal will be to pigment three 28mm miniatures. To be honest I have plenty of partially-painted models which I could have selected for such an objective, but ultimately went with a trio of Paladin Annihilators for "Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika". These metal "Privateer Press" castings were originally started way back in April of this year, and will help me ‘flesh’ out my starting Iron Star Alliance force rather nicely.

"Mongoose Publishing" WIPs - Three Cleaners from the "Judge Dredd Miniatures Games"

Sticking with ‘groups of three’ I have also been working on some Cleaner sculpts by “Mongoose Publishing” from their now OOP “Judge Dredd Miniatures Game”. These are essentially juve perps carrying a hand-club, and should be ready in time for my next Zomtober entry. All my submissions this year are based around the classic “2000 A.D.” comic strip “Judgement Day”, which contained a great action sequence inside the Romero Block Hopshop where Dredd, Hershey and Spencer saved a group of hapless citizens from some flesh-hungry walking cadavers.

In addition, I wanted to be able to field some minor threat-level criminals for my games of “Judge Dredd”, which could also become the targets of the living dead should the different random hazards crop up within the same game. This actually occurred in one of my most recent battles, where a mob blitzer was suddenly supported by some zombies. At the time we simply had the zeds ignore the gun-toting potential meal so the game could continue apace. But it would be nice in future if the criminals could suddenly find themselves fighting off the living dead, and even seeking the co-operation of the Justice Department against an overriding common enemy.

“The Paladin Weaver Can Channel Destructive Fury Cyphers.”

"Accompanying the Alliance’s forces on the battlefield..."

This 35mm scale metal miniature of a Paladin Weaver is produced by “Privateer Press” and can be found inside the Iron Star Alliance Command Group Starter Set for Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika. Able to “unleash all manner of psychokinetic ruin upon those who would face the Paladins in battle”, the three-piece figure also comes armed with a “null hammer, a battle staff capable of knocking Arc off any opponent it strikes.”

Having pinned the solo right arm and backpack in place, the entire assembly was primed in "Citadel" Abaddon Black before being treated to a double-helping of "Vallejo" Gunmetal. It was then shaded using "Citadel" Nuln Oil and dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo" Gunmetal, courtesy of a large make-up blusher brush.

"...The Paladin Weaver acts as a living focus for the Warcaster’s offensive arcane might."

Initially, I had planned to turn my Iron Star Alliance miniatures into a somewhat rusty and battered formation, arguably more in keeping with their supposed "aggressive expansion throughout the galaxy". But in the end, I actually chose to predominantly keep to the somewhat 'clean' look of their metallic compound armour, and instead just 'pick out' various areas of interest on each figure.

For the Weaver this meant applying some "Citadel" Abaddon Black to the Paladin's skirt, neck plate, elbow-pads, and the shaft of his null hammer. In addition, I layered the model's spats, shoulder-pads, face-plate, hand-weapon and central chest-plate with "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna, and later gave them a 'lick' of Brass followed by a splash of "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade. These areas were later delicately dry-brushed with a touch more "Vallejo" Brass to try and bring back some of their shine after being shaded.

"The Lord Of The Rings" WIPs - These three Uruk-hai Bezerkers are at various stages

Lastly, in an effort to somewhat further break-up all the metallics on show, I applied some "Vallejo" Turquoise to the central front and rear portions of his loincloth and washed them with "Citadel" Drakenhof Nightshade. I also decided to paint the miniature’s cyclopean ‘eye’ with a combination of “Vallejo” White and Fluorescent Blue so as to make it ‘pop’ that bit more from the rest of the figure.

With the latest of my Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika miniatures finished, I’ve managed to make some further progress on the remaining metal Uruk-hai Bezerkers I want to field for my 500 point Middle-Earth Strategy Battle Game Isengard army. The plan is to have seven on these old “Games Workshop” sculpts following one of my Captains, alongside a contingent of already-painted Uruk-hai Scout bowmen, and then move on to pigmenting a quartet of crossbowman to follow another evil Hero of Fortitude…

"The Yeti Has Become An Icon Of Cryptozoology."

"Supposed evidence of the Yeti's existence include anecdotal visual sightings, video recordings, photographs..."

This 40mm tall "collector's miniature" of a Yeti is produced by “Zealot Miniatures” and can be bought from their Litchmyre Dungeon Collection range. Cast in "quality PU Resin" and sculpted by Boris Woloszyn, the figure comes in three separate pieces which can easily be super-glued into place without the need for pinning.

The Meh-Teh was initially undercoated with two layers of "Vallejo" White, and then somewhat drowned in Pale Grey. The "large, bipedal ape-like creature" was then thoroughly dry-brushed using (more) "Vallejo" White, before having both its teeth and claws pigmented in "Citadel" Abaddon Black.

"Privateer Press" WIPs - These three Paladin Annihilators have been primed, shaded and dry-brushed

I was actually tempted to leave the Abominable Snowman alone at this stage, but in the end thought that its teeth should probably be ivory(ish) in colour. As a result I picked all its sharp fangs out with "Vallejo" White and subsequently washed them using a little "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade. I did also contemplate doing something with the monster's sunken eyes. But decided not to do anything special in these areas in order to draw the on-looker's attention straight to the Yeti's formidably-sized mouth.

Having finished the third of my models taken from the "Zealot Miniatures" catalogue, I have also managed to make some progress on the first three of six Paladin Annihilators which I own. These two-piece "Privateer Press" castings for "Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika" were actually reasonably simple to assemble, and didn't require any extra pinning. Indeed, at least one arm-peg fitted into its hollowed shoulder so tightly it arguably didn't even require super-gluing.

"Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" WIPs - This Treant is slowly have all its mushrooms and leaves 'picked out'

Although these welcome reinforcements for my Iron Star Alliance will predominantly follow the "Vallejo" Gunmetal and Brass palette of my other Paladins, I've yet to decide whether the three-soldier unit's heavy support status should be marked out in some way other than them just carrying their rapid-fire harbinger cannons. I've recently acquired a few more metallic paints from the "Metal N' Alchemy" paint range by "Scale 75", so may well decide to 'pick out' either their helmets or a shoulder-pad in a noticeable blue or red.

Lastly, I've almost completed working on a Treant "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" recently released as part of their ever-increasing Fantasy range. Having patiently dry-brushed my way around the 72mm tall miniatures with different shades of Brown, I have now almost finished painstakingly pigmenting the peaceful creature's eyes, mushrooms and numerous leaves...

"Brain Moles Hunger For Psionic Energy."

'They will attack victims by psionically burrowing into their brains.'

These three 15mm long pewter models of some Brain Moles are produced by "Otherworld Miniatures", and can be bought from their Dungeon Monsters range under Code DM30. Sculpted by Paul Muller, the single-piece castings depict the burrowing animals watching for the approach of their psionic prey.

"Small, furry, and nearly blind", the tiny creatures were attached to 25mm plastic slotta-bases and primed with two layers of "Citadel" Abaddon Black. Their furry hide was then dry-brushed with "Vallejo" Heavy Charcoal before being shaded in "Citadel" Nuln Oil.

"Brain moles eat small insects when they can't get psionic energy."

I picked out out their tiny webbed feet, tails and star-shaped noses with a little "Vallejo" Heavy Warmgrey, and later washed these areas with "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson. As a final touch I dotted their diminutive eyes with a dab of "Vallejo" Heavy Red and (more) "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson.

"Zealot Miniatures" WIPs - This Yeti has been primed, shaded and dry-brushed

Having finished this trio of power leeching dungeon denizens, I have turned my attention to another of my alternative sculpts for "Frostgrave" by "Zealot Miniatures". This Dorset-based manufacturer has really fired my imagination with its incredible range of snow-based monsters, and this particular 40mm Yeti was the first of Boris Woloszyn's figures to catch my eye.

I've only currently purchased a few resin models from the Litchmyre Dungeon Collection, as I wanted to see just how well the company's "quality PU Resin" worked as a modelling medium. But having now assembled and pigmented a couple of figures, my long term-plan is to acquire a fair few more of their wandering monsters, as well as enough heroes with which to form an adventuring warband.

"Privateer Press" WIPs - This Wayfarer is slowly having all of his detail picked out

Fortunately, despite this distraction, I have still found the time to make some healthy progress on the Iron Star Alliance Paladin Weaver I plan to field for my games of Warcaster: Neo-Machinika. This "solo" unit by "Privateer Press" is absolutely covered in intricate detail, but should soon be finished now all its brass-coloured areas have been base-coated with "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna.

This posting and many others can now be viewed on the main "Fantorical" website.

(Lead) Mountain Musings - "Frostgrave" April 2021

"From far and wide, wizards flock to the frozen ruins of Frostgrave..."

Thanks largely to "Osprey Publishing" announcing the release of their new science fiction skirmish rule-set "Stargrave" in four weeks time, this month's attempt to reduce my slightly decreasing stash of metal, plastic and resin models will primarily focus upon my backlog of "North Star Military Figures" for "Frostgrave". Admittedly, I've been trying to paint a (second) warband for my excursions into the frozen city since last December, but I'm hoping my New Year resolution of pigmenting two models for every one newly bought will help better motivate me in this endeavour.

In addition, I'm rather keen to work my way through a rather intimidating array of animals and monsters I have previously bought for my Felstad bestiary. The vast majority of these creatures were purchased to thwart my somewhat snowbound adventurers as random encounters on their travels. However, I have also found a number of tropical-based critters from the wargame's sibling publication, "Frostgrave: Ghost Archipelago" too.

"The Paladins are the federation's military elite."

Alongside this 'cunning plan' I hope to completely finish all of my Iron Star Alliance units for "Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika". My collection of these all-metal "Privateer Press" paladins has momentarily got a little out of hand after I lost patience with a long-running pre-order which seemingly was never going to be delivered, and resultantly purchased some Enforcer and Annihilator reinforcements from a different webstore. Incredibly, no sooner had I received these gun-totting extra personnel than I was informed that my long-awaited pre-order had miraculously been posted.

I have though wasted absolutely no time in trying to get these extra soldiers assembled, based, primed and painted. Indeed, I have already completed all three of the recently arrived Paladin Enforcers which make up my second infantry squad, and am currently working on the first of six 'rapid-fire harbinger cannon-carrying' heavy support figures.

March 2021 - "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" sculpts have dominated the month

Progress wise, the past thirty-one days have resulted in an incredible amount of fully-finished miniatures, many of which are still sat waiting in the wings to actually be posted. Indeed, despite only hitting a fairly 'middle of the road' tally for March as far as this website's articles are concerned, on paper I actually managed to equal my highest pigmentation output since my records began a little over seven years ago.

A lot of this success has been due to my high interest in the "Supers Unlimited" range of heroes and villains by "Kitbash Games". But I am equally indebted to "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" for their latest successful Kickstarter, Lurkers From The Deep, which has galvanised me into working my way through some of their model range in anticipation of receiving my pledge's modestly-numbered rewards in two months' time...

"The Enforcers Are The Paladins’ Standard Infantry Branch."

"Trained and equipped to fight in coordination with the Iron Star Alliance’s Warcasters."

These three 35mm scale metal Paladin Enforcers are produced by “Privateer Press” and can be found inside the Iron Star Alliance Command Group Starter Set for Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika. The multi-part figures carry "an assault rifle with a bayonet" and are able to "attack with both weapons simultaneously in a blur of violence and firepower."

Having either pinned or super-glued the trio's weapon arms (and one leg) in place, each miniature was primed in "Citadel" Abaddon Black before being treated to a double-helping of "Vallejo" Gunmetal. They were then shaded using "Citadel" Nuln Oil and dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo" Gunmetal using a large make-up blusher brush.

"The Paladins are the federation’s military elite."

Sticking with the somewhat 'clean' metallic look of their leader's previously painted mechanically enhanced compound armour, I patiently 'picked out' a number of details on each sculpt with a little "Citadel" Abaddon Black. This included the Enforcers' knee-pads, central chest plate, elbow-pads, and the majority of their assault rifles.

In addition, I applied a layer of "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna over each soldier's spats, shoulder-pads, face-plate, and thigh-joints. These areas were later given a coat of "Vallejo" Brass, a dash of "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade, and some delicate dry-brushing with a smidge more "Vallejo" Brass so as to bring back some of their shine after being shaded.

"We have a firm location reading and an accurate track."

Lastly, I painted part of each Paladin's Arc receiver with "Vallejo" Brass and washed them with "Citadel" Reikland Fleshshade. I was planning on also applying a combination of "Vallejo" Turquoise and "Citadel" Drakenhof Nightshade to my Iron Star Alliance warriors, as I had done on their Paladin Commander. However, much to my disappointment I found that none of the three figures were wearing any cloth garments whatsoever.

With over half of my Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika miniatures now finished, I have also completed another of my old 28mm FedSec Troopers made by “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio”. This gas-mask wearing figure comes from their now out-of-production Federated Security Starter Set and was painted up to be one of Supreme Commander Servalan's goons from the BBC science fiction television series “Blake’s Seven”.

“Can You Alphamaniacs Smell What The Alpha Male Is Cooking?

"Woo! Oh yeah!"

This 36mm tall resin model of Alpha Male is produced by "Kitbash Games", and was bought as part of my pledge from their highly successful "Supers Unlimited" Miniatures "Kickstarter" in August 2019. Transformed overnight with a physical prowess to match his larger-than-life wrestling character, I actually plan to use the casting as a Third Reich super-villain known as Áchtung for an upcoming Weird War Two campaign utilising some homemade rules.

Having super-glued Albert Mannheim onto a 28mm lipped base, I first primed him with a double layer of "Vallejo" Heavy Skintone before shading "the bad-boy" in "Citadel" Reikland Fleshshade. I then applied some "Citadel" Abaddon Black to the big star's boots, lengthy hair, moustache, prominent eyebrows and leather belt, as well as delicately dry-brushed his laces with some "Vallejo" Heavy Charcoal.

"Privateer Press" WIPs - The Paladin Enforcer is slowly having all his detail 'picked out'

The wrestling heel's toe-caps, belt emblem and spikes were given a 'lick' of "Vallejo" Gunmetal and washed with "Citadel" Nuln Oil. Whilst his trousers were treated to a combination of "Vallejo" German Fieldgrey WWII and "Citadel" Biel-Tan Green so as to help tie-in the figure with my Weird War Two setting.

I also picked out the heavily-muscled maniac's gold bracelet using some "Vallejo" Gold and "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade. One particularly noticeable mistake I did make was to 'pick out' both of Mannheim's eyes, whereas the actual sculpt shows him winking with one eye closed. Fortunately, I didn't actually like the look of that facial expression, so having painstakingly 'dotted' both eyes I wasn't going to go back and paint over one socket with "Vallejo" Heavy Skintone.

"Frostgrave: Ghost Archipelago" WIPs - The Shark's watery base has been sculpted and painted

With another of my "Kitbash Games" super-villains completed I've continued to make some excellent progress on my Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika. Iron Star Alliance Starter Set, to the point where I've almost finished all three of its Paladin Enforcers. Despite some 'build-issues' with the multi-part metal miniatures, I've been rather enjoying these "Privateer Press" sculpts, and resultantly even ordered a second unit to add to my force from "Firestorm Games".

Slightly left-field has been my decision to pigment a few old Frostgrave: Ghost Archipelago animals and monsters I recently found. I'm not necessarily planning on playing the fantasy wargame in the lost isles, but, having never fully-painted a water-based miniature before - at least not one where I'd need to sculpt the waves on its stand - I thought I'd give the resin Shark maw by "North Star Military Figures" a go...

"It Remains Unknown If This Sentient Fungus..."

"...Is a native or mutation triggered by hazardous wasters."

This 28mm scale white metal model of an Ambulatory Fungoid is sold by “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio” and can be bought alongside a Horned Urz cub as part of their Alien Pets 2 deal. Sculpted by Andrew May, and originally produced as a freebie to all backers of the company's Colony 87 - The Third Wave - 28mm Sci-Fi Civilians Kickstarter, the creature is designed to be used with the company's other "Colony 87" sci-fi civilian miniatures "for any RPGs and tabletop wargames."

"Growing in the vast labyrinth of tunnels, sewers, Maran-Tchi cysts and chambers below the outpost", the alien was initially undercoated using "Vallejo" Sombre Grey before being shaded in "Citadel" Nuln Oil and dry-brushed using (more) "Vallejo" Sombre Grey. I then painted the walking mushroom's top with "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna and sporadically spotted its irregular lumps with some White using a piece of torn foam.

"Privateer Press" WIPs - The Paladin Enforcer is slowly having all his detail 'picked out'

This entire area was subsequently shaded with plenty of "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson and its spots reapplied with more "Vallejo" White over the same bumps as before. This gave the impressive of some dots slowly emerging alongside others which were already fully-visible. As a final step I 'picked out' the Fungoid's numerous eyes with a combination of "Vallejo" Heavy Grey and "Citadel" Biel-Tan Green.

With the latest of my "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" alien pets finished I have managed to keep my momentum going with the three Paladin Enforcers I'm currently pigmenting for "Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika". These multi-part metal miniatures by "Privateer Press" were a little fiddly to assemble, but now they've been primed, shaded and dry-brushed I'm hoping to now be on the home straight to getting my Iron Star Alliance Starter Set completed before the end of the month.

"Kitbash Games" WIPs - Lightning Bug has had all his "Vallejo" Brass shaded and dry-brushed

In addition, I have tried to dedicate some hobby-time to getting my Lightning Bug by "Kitbash Games" ready for the tabletop. The somewhat small resin super-hero was actually released as part of the manufacturer's first "Supers Unlimited" Kickstarter. However I have waited until recently to purchase the fellow after some casting failures saw its sculpt get revised to be both "slightly bulkier and approximately 1 or 2mm taller in relative terms."

As with so many of the figures from this range I have also decided to steer well away from both the 'official' character and colour scheme, so as to use my miniature as part of a Weird War Two campaign I have planned using some homemade rules. To this end, I won't be giving the model a predominantly black costume, but rather a red and brass one in order to better represent the Soviet splendour of the Bolshevik Bug...

"Fearless And Eager To Prove Themselves In Combat."

"The young officers who command the Paladin forces in battle lead from the front."

This 35mm scale metal miniature of a Paladin Commander is produced by “Privateer Press” and can be found inside the Iron Star Alliance Command Group Starter Set for Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika. The three-piece figure comes "armed with a shoulder-mounted, self-targeting pulse cannon and wrist-mounted fusion sword", and "can attack with both its melee and ranged weapons in the same activation."

Having pinned and simultaneously super-glued the solo unit's cannon and shield in place, the entire assembly was primed in "Citadel" Abaddon Black before being treated to a coat or two of "Vallejo" Gunmetal. It was then shaded using "Citadel" Nuln Oil and dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo" Gunmetal using a large make-up blusher brush.

"Privateer Press" WIPs - The Paladin Enforcer is slowly having all his detail 'picked out'

I had originally intended to make all my Iron Star Alliance miniatures appear somewhat rusty and battered from their "aggressive expansion throughout the galaxy". But in the end decided to predominantly keep the somewhat 'clean' look of their metallic armour, and instead simply 'pick out' some of their more apparent details. As a result I applied "Citadel" Abaddon Black to the Commander's knee-pads, central chest plate, elbow-pads, and repulsor shield. 

In addition, I layered equipment and weaponry such as the model's spats, shoulder-pads, face-plate, pulse-cannon and fusion-sword with "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna, and later gave them a 'lick' of Brass followed by a splash of "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade. These areas were later delicately dry-brushed with a touch more "Vallejo" Brass to try and bring back some of their shine after being shaded.

"Kitbash Games" WIPs - Doc Cosmos, Alpha Male and Lightning Bug

Lastly, in an effort to somewhat further break-up all the metallic pigments on show, I applied some "Vallejo" Turquoise to my Iron Star Alliance leader's loincloth and washed it with "Citadel" Drakenhof Nightshade. I also decided to paint the garment's elaborate rear clasp with a combination of "Vallejo" Brass and "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade to make it look even more ornate.

With the first of my Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika miniatures finished, and work on three Paladin Enforcers well on their way too, I've made a bit more progress on some of my "Supers Unlimited" resin figures. These costumed vigilantes by "Kitbash Games" are in various states on completion, with characters such as Doc Cosmos being 'taken back' to an early stage courtesy of a re-priming, whilst those like Alpha Male are very close to being given a protective coat of "Vallejo" Matt varnish...

(Lead) Mountain Musings - "Supers Unlimited" March 2021

"Kitbash Games" WIPs - Magma, Lightning Bug and N-Rage

This month's effort to whittle away at my mountain of metal, plastic and resin models will primarily focus upon a selection of figures by "Kitbash Games". Apparently "bound together by their connections to mysterious Star Stones", I've bought a good half-dozen more of the resin figures from the company's recently successful Supers Unlimited Teamstarter 1: Aegis Kickstarter campaign, and whilst I don't plan on using them for either "Pulp City" or the "Super Mission Force" gaming system, I do hope to get them on my Weird War Two tabletop soon.

I have also been rather busy basing and priming all the other miniatures I own from the "Supers Unlimited" range, including the formidably-sized Magman and N-Rage, who will be 'repurposed' as the fiery Axis super-villain Vesuvio and the equally powerful atomic-charged Nuklearmann respectively. I'm particularly looking forward to applying my brush-tip upon Magman, as I have never tackled a lava-based model before, so have watched a fair few painting tutorials on "YouTube" in order to work out a reasonably straightforward technique.

"Privateer Press" WIPs - The Paladin Commander is slowly having all his detail 'picked out'

In addition this month will see me settling down to finish off the six 35mm scale models which can be found inside the Iron Star Alliance Command Group Starter Set for "Warcaster: Neo-Mechanika". These multi-part metal castings by "Privateer Press" caused me quite a headache when I initially assembled them back in December 2020, especially the heavily-pinned Firebrand Warjack, and as a result I found my enthusiasm for the project was badly dented. 

Fortunately, the promise of some pre-ordered reinforcements potentially arriving in the near future has galvanised me into some semblance of action, so I have started 'blocking off' elements of the Paladin shock troopers in "Citadel" Abaddon Black to either use as a basis for some additional layers of "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna and Brass, or to simply leave as is. I'm certainly not planning on going for the bright yellow palette depicted on the box's artwork, but probably more of a blue and bronze colour scheme which is a bit Ancient Egyptian in nature...

February 2021 - Models from a variety of manufacturers have been successfully painted

Productivity wise, the past four weeks saw a noticeable improvement on my output, which whilst still disappointingly low compared to previous years, was nonetheless more than twice the progress made last month. This tally was particularly pleasing as it both ensured I finally had enough "Atomic Mass Games" models to field a full ten-figure roster for Marvel Crisis Protocol, and saw me slowly whittle away at my overly large collection of miniatures by "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio". 

Furthermore, I'm pretty much on an even keel when it comes to my New Year's resolution of painting two models for every new one I buy. My recent purchase from "Kitbash Games" has admittedly brought me to the very edge of that annual aspiration. But for now I'm still just ahead of the game, even though the latest successful "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" Kickstarter, Lurkers From The Deep, should see me receive an assortment of sixteen government agents and law enforcement officers in May 2021.