"I Am Dmitri Bukharin -- The New Crimson Dynamo!"

"The Crimson Dynamo knows Iron Man -- and you -- brought down so easily -- are no Iron Man."  

This 28mm pre-painted plastic "Wizkids" model of the Crimson Dynamo is miniature number 52 from the Marvel "Heroclix" Xplosion range. "Considered to be the definitive version of the character", Dmitri Bukharin was the fifth man to don the Soviet power armour and made his debut within the pages of Issue One Hundred and Nine of "Iron Man" in April 1978.

Having given the figure an undercoat of "Vallejo" Heavy Red, Tony Stark's nemesis was treated to a heavy wash of "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson, before being dry-brushed with more "Vallejo" Heavy Red. I then gave the Russian super-villain a glaze of "Citadel" Bloodletter.

"Star Wars" WIPs - IG-88 and Chewbacca should soon be finished

Such a simple paint-job has given me a little time to potter about on three of my favourite "Fantasy Flight" plastic miniatures for the company's "Star Wars" board game "Imperial Assault". I've only just started to apply an initial layer of "Vallejo" Bronze on the brown-coloured leg-armour worn by Dengar but have already encountered something of a dilemma. The sculpt of the heavily bandaged bounty hunter really does contain an incredible amount of detail, and although I've initially 'picked out' the thin metallic straps holding his outfit together, I may eventually need to compromise such delicate brushwork simply to retain my own sanity.

Both IG-88 and Chewbacca however are proving reasonably easy to progress and have been appropriately dry-brushed and washed with brown and black ink respectively. The assassin droid just needs some additional highlighting, as well as some straps and wires to be painted, before being finished. Whilst the Wookie now needs another couple of brown dry-brushes before I start work on his weapon, satchel and ammunition belt.

Cyclopean Alien WIPs - The shaggy hide of these 'pulp' extra-terrestrials will be green

One of my aspirations for this year is to try and paint all the wonderful miniatures people have generously gifted me in recent years. These six Cyclopean Aliens were a surprise present from Roger of "Rantings From Under The Wargames Table" fame when we met at Salute 2015. Made by "Wargames Supply Dump", the metal multi-limbed creatures can be found within the manufacturer's Miscellaneous Miniatures range.

"Project OMAC Complete."

"The skies darken with the corrupted technology of his mentor."

These eight 28mm plastic “Wizkids” models of an OMAC are all miniature number 83 from the DC Comics “Heroclix” Collateral Damage range. These cyborgs were some of the many humans transformed by a virus into living machines in order to destroy all beings with superpowers. The OMACs were created by American comic book writer Greg Rucka, having been based upon a Jack Kirby character with the same name, and first appeared in “The OMAC Project” in June 2005.

To cover the miniatures' pre-painted colour scheme each figure was initially given an undercoat of “Vallejo” Gunmetal Blue before being washed with “Citadel” Nuln Oil. The Cape-killer’s were then slowly dry-brushed with more “Vallejo” Gunmetal Blue before their cyclopean eye was painted using a combination of Heavy Red and “Citadel” Carroburg Crimson. Their chest eyes were simply ‘picked out’ with “Vallejo” White before also being washed with the “Citadel” shade Carroburg Crimson.

"Annihilation Protocol Status - Engaged..."

These figures are incredibly difficult to buy in the United Kingdom, so in order for me to create myself a sizeable gang of Brother Eye’s minions I ended up ordering these eight models from the American E-Store “Troll And Toad”...

In addition to these wonderfully sinister sculpts, and sticking with "Wizkids" miniatures, I am almost 'done' painting the “Heroclix” model of Molly Hayes which I hope to submit into the Defensive Terrain Themed Bonus Round of the Sixth Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge.

Molly Hayes WIP - Having completed the mutant child's clothing, I now need only paint the concrete block

Having based and painted a trio of passing ducklings from the figure's original 'clicky base' separately, and completed Princess Power's pink T-shirt, cuddly animal hat and flesh, I need only 'touch up' and wash the large piece of grey concrete she is holding above her head for my small 'vignette' to be finished. 

"In Space No One Can Hear You Scream."

"Bring back life form. Priority One. All other priorities rescinded."

This somewhat oversized 40mm pre-painted plastic "Wizkids" model of an Alien is from the "Horrorclix" AVP Alien Verses Predator: Aliens Collector's Set. Based upon the "highly aggressive extraterrestrial creature that stalks and kills the crew of a spaceship" in the 1979 science-fiction horror film "Alien" and designed by "Swiss surrealist artist" H.R. Giger, the success of this creature has "spawned a media franchise of novels, comic books, video games and toys."

Unsurprisingly, considering the simplicity of the monster's colour scheme, I initially gave it an undercoat of "Citadel" Abaddon Black and then simply dry-brushed it with "Vallejo" German Grey. The model was then washed with "Citadel" Nuln Oil before I gave it a second, much lighter dry-brush of more "Vallejo" German Grey. Finally the Alien's mouth was painted using a combination of "Vallejo" Gunmetal Grey and "Citadel" Nuln Oil, whilst its head's carapace was given a coat of Abaddon Black.

Alien WIPs - The central extraterrestrial is Grid, the Alien who killed Chopper and Celtic in "AVP"

Having finished this test piece, I have subsequently started painting several more of the Alien miniatures found within the 'Whoever Wins, We Lose' boxed set. These additional figures are a very much appreciated gift from the incredibly generous Bryan, who runs the highly popular "Vampifan's World Of The Undead" website.

Based upon the 2004 motion picture "Alien verses Predator" a few of the models actually come attached to some rather nice looking Aztec-influenced stone columns. These little vignettes are very dynamic but would look rather out of place upon some of the tabletops I want to use these lethal extraterrestrials with. So I somewhat regretfully separated the figures from their 'clicky bases'. However as I wanted to use the terrain as some objective markers, I then just re-based the ornately carved columns on to some thin 40mm circular bases.

Alien WIPs - The Alien Spawn Marker will require some careful dry-brushing once the alien is finished

I did though leave one of the miniatures attached to its column, as I felt the pose would look silly simply being stuck to a bare base, and also thought it would look rather good as an Alien Spawn Marker. As a result I only removed the overly large human upon whom the creature was about to launch. Initially I had hoped to super-glue the hapless explorer to a base of his own. But unfortunately the sculpt was noticeably bigger than even some of my 35mm miniatures and thus has simply been put to one side for now...

In the meantime I have managed to undercoat all the Alien models with "Citadel" Abaddon Black, and heavily apply a dry-brush of "Vallejo" German Grey to them.

The Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge 2015 - WIP - Week Six

Molly Hayes WIP - The mutant child's pink top needs finishing before being shaded, as does her toy animal hat

With the Sixth Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge now into its sixth week, I’ve spent a little time working on the “Heroclix” model of Molly Hayes, which I hope to submit into the event's Defensive Terrain Themed Bonus Round.

Having finished painting the little girl's white trainers and dark blue jeans I'm now slowly applying several layers of pink onto the mutant's top and cuddly animal hat. In addition I've started work on the huge piece of grey concrete the diminutive powerhouse is holding above her head in order to protect a trio of passing ducklings from any hazards.

"Imperial Assualt" WIPs - Chewbacca and IG-88 could leap ahead of the painting queue

Along with a trio of Rebel soldiers, I still have one more “Fantasy Flight” bucket-head to complete from the company's "Imperial Assault" Stormtroopers Villain Pack. But that hasn't stopped me basing and priming a wonderfully hairy sculpt of Chewbacca for the board game, as well as a model of the assassin droid IG-88.

As I've previously painted a "Wizard Of The Coast" version of the Wookie, and plenty of "Reaper Miniatures" Cyber-Reavers recently, I'm hopeful that these two figures shouldn't take too long to finish, especially the Holowan Laboratories robot.

Fangtooth WIP - Still lots to do on this bulky metal miniature

Finally I am still trying to paint my Union "Guild Ball" team, and have found some time to progress Fangtooth's flesh despite the miniature itself not actually being eligible for submission to the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge. This rather formidable-looking brute by "Streamforged Games Ltd" is covered in plasters and bumps, and as a result has proved rather time-consuming. Once all the foul-smelling player's flesh is finished I will still need to shade and highlight it, along with his chains...  

"No. I Am Your Father."

"I find your lack of faith disturbing."

These three 28mm scale plastic “Fantasy Flight” models come from the company’s “Star Wars” “Imperial Assault” range and can be found inside the Core Set and Stormtroopers Villain Pack. The trio were completed as part of a larger submission for the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge Epic Fail Themed Bonus Round and based upon the Empire’s attempt to recapture the stolen Death Star plans from the Rebel Alliance...

"These aren't the droids we're looking for."

Darth Vader was initially given several coats “Citadel” Abaddon Black, as for some reason the soft rubber-like model did not seem to like the rather oily Base colour. However once I had a reasonably even undercoat in place it became a reasonably undemanding miniature to paint and I was able to dry-brush the Sith Lord’s clothing with “Vallejo” Charcoal before washing it with “Citadel” Nuln Oil. Once this was finished I applied some Ironbreaker to his neck chain, shoulder plates, light-saber, chest and belt units. These were then also washed with Nuln Oil.

Originally I had tried painting his laser-sword with a combination of “Vallejo” Heavy Red and “Citadel” Carroburg Crimson. But the end result was much darker than I wanted, so it was soon redone using “Vallejo” Dark Vermillion and the “Citadel” Glaze Bloodletter. There is also a definite curve to his weapon’s beam. I did consider heating the model and straightening it out but found myself constantly gripping Vader at this point whenever I was handling him. As a result I felt that it would soon bend back towards the cloak (or worse break) during gameplay so left it alone.

"Open the blast doors! Open the blast doors!"

Having finished the “enforcer of the Galactic Empire” I set about undercoating his ‘escort’ with “Vallejo” White before heavily washing them with Pale Grey. This transparent acrylic not only gave the bucket-heads some much-needed shading but also helped me ascertain where the joins in their overlapping plastoid composite plates were so I could ‘pick them out’ using “Citadel” Abaddon Black.

"Commander, tear this ship apart until you've found those plans.

Once all the ‘gaps’ between their standard Stormtrooper armour had been finished, I washed them with some Nuln Oil, and allowed some of the Shade to occasionally brush over the adjoining areas in order to create some heavier shadowing. Finally their E-11 blaster rifles were simply painted with more Abaddon Black.

"I Am C-3PO, Human-Cyborg Relations. And This Is My Counterpart, R2-D2.”

"Don't blame me. I'm an interpreter. I'm not supposed to know a power socket from a computer terminal."

These two 28mm scale plastic “Fantasy Flight” droids come from the company’s “Star Wars” “Imperial Assault” range and can be found inside the Artoo-Deetoo and See-Threepio Ally Pack. The pair were completed as part of a larger submission for the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge Epic Fail Themed Bonus Round and based upon the Empire’s attempt to recapture the stolen Death Star plans from the Rebel Alliance...

See-Threepio was initially undercoated using some “Vallejo” Heavy Sienna, before the droid was given two coats of Gold. He was then heavily washed with some “The Army Painter” Strong Tone Quickshade before being dry-brushed with more “Vallejo” Gold. I then picked out his various 'belly pistons' predominantly with "Vallejo" Heavy Blue" and Heavy Red.

"The City's central computer told you? R2-D2, you know better than to trust a strange computer."

To begin I applied two layers of "Vallejo" White to Artoo-Deetoo and then heavily washed him with Pale Grey. This transparent acrylic helped give the model some much-needed shading and also helped me to ‘pick out’ the little robot's numerous panels. These were then either painted using Heavy Blue and “Citadel” Asurmen Blue or “Vallejo” Gunmetal Grey and “Citadel” Nuln Oil. As I wanted to add a little more colour to the miniature I decided to use a combination of “Vallejo” Heavy Red and “Citadel” Carroburg Crimson for the astromech droid's wiring.

Having realised that the robot's dome was actually metallic, it was given a coat of “Vallejo” Gunmental Grey and a wash of “Citadel” Nuln Oil, before being dry-brushed with more “Vallejo” Gunmetal Grey. I then ‘picked out’ all the details and plates on the Artoo unit’s ‘head’ with Heavy Blue and some additional “Citadel” Asurmen Blue.

"Heroclix" WIPs - Molly Hayes, the Black Panther and (another) Crimson Dynamo

With my entry for the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge Epic Fail Themed Round finished I am already working on the "Wizkids" models I hope to use as my Defensive Terrain submission. As a result I have already separated my "Heroclix" Molly Hayes miniature, and the three ducklings the super-strong adolescent is protecting with a piece of concrete, from their 'clicky stand', and placed them upon two different circular bases.

In addition, simply in an effort to try and make some headway in my substantial collection of "Wizkids" models, I have re-based and undercoated a highly detailed "Heroclix" sculpt of the Black Panther and the rather large eighth Crimson Dynamo.

"Imps Are Generally The Smallest And Least Powerful Of Demons."

"A mass of flesh defined solely by a giant mouth..."

This 28mm metal model of an Imp is made by “North Star Military Figures” and can be bought together with a somewhat larger Minor Demon as code FGV302 from their “Frostgrave” range. As I wanted this miniature to be similar in appearance and colour to the “spindly insect creature with vestigial wings” depicted upon the blister I initially undercoated him with some “Vallejo” Heavy Bluegrey and painted his legs with Heavy Red. I then washed the grey areas with “Citadel” Nuln Oil and the red areas with Carroburg Crimson.

In order to try and make the Imp appear as if he was transforming from stone to demonic flesh, I dry-brushed the upper part of the model with more “Vallejo” Heavy Bluegrey, and allowed the paint to just slightly encroach upon the legs and abdomen as well. I then further tried to merge the two dissimilar coloured areas together by dry-brushed Heavy Red over the adjoining areas as well. The creature’s toes, head-horn and wing-horns were ‘picked out’ using a combination of “Vallejo” White and “The Army Painter” Strong Tone Quickshade. Whilst his eyes were created using “Vallejo” Dark Vermillion and “Citadel” Carroburg Crimson.

White Gorilla WIP - Having finished blending my Imp's red and grey areas, I've started work on this great ape.

Having finished the first of my "Frostgrave" demons, I have since started work on this formidably large White Gorilla, as well as a couple of other models based upon the "many dangerous animals [which] now call the area home." Having finished dry-brushing the hairy brute "Vallejo" White over a Pale Grey wash, I've started to pick out his areas of flesh. Though I'm not sure I'll be sticking with the black tongue, finger and toe-nails depicted on the miniature's packaging...

In addition to the quite considerable number of "North Star Military Figures" littering my painting table, I am still managing to progress some more "Heroclix" models. This H.R. Giger "Horrorclix" alien figure (on a 40mm round base) is as overly large as it was ridiculously expensive. But should make for an impressive tabletop extra-terrestrial once I've lightly dry-brushed some additional finishing highlights to it's carapace.

"Wizkids" WIPs - H.R. Giger Alien, eight OMAC Operatives and the fifth Crimson Dynamo.

I actually own eight of the OMAC Operative models, having ordered a load of them from across the Pond after 'successfully' painting a pilot piece back in September 2015. However, having immediately undercoated them all upon their arrival, I have never managed to find the time to wash them with some "Citadel" Nuln Oil and start building up the cyborgs' metallic blue highlights. Until now at least...

Lastly this slightly under-sized thinnish sculpt of the fifth Crimson Dynamo, as worn by Dmitri Bukharin, is perhaps unsurprisingly proving rather simple to paint as a result of it being entirely red and therefore simply needing a bit of dry-brushing and a couple of ink washes being applied to it. However, as I've subsequently discovered I also own the "Heroclix" model of Gennady Gavrilov, the eighth Crimson Dynamo, I may now wait until both figures are finished before submitting them to the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge.