The Chattering Horde

And the winner is...

2012-03-04T22:33:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

...The Stormvermin! (tada~bugles etc.)

Let's take a look at the results shall we?

Stormvermin: 67% (29 votes)
Tie: Doomflayer, Clanrats, Plague Censer Bearers: 9% each (4 votes each)
Plague Wind Globadiers: 4% (2 votes)
Warpgrinder: 0% (absolutely no votes whatsoever.)

Well, that is a whole load o' love for the Stormvermin, and a disappointing kick in the crotch for the Warpgrinder. I guess not only do current Skaven players not field this thing too much, they also aren't too keen on seeing them painted...

...at least when one of the other options is the Stormvermin!

So, I guess that pretty much decides what I will paint and post a "Step-by-step guide" to next. It may have to wait a little bit though due to a pretty busy week, but I am looking forward to it.

A quick look around seems to show two distinct ways of painting these guys.

Use your main army colour on the cloth, and keep the armour in traditional metal (Boltgun Metal etc.) with lots of Devlan Mud (or black) as in the GW unit pictured above (an informal Google search shows this to be the most common approach.)
Use the main army colour on the actual armour itself, and do the cloth in a complimentary colour. (Kind of like Queek Headtaker's armour in the image below.)

Certainly, when GW does the latter it looks very striking (especially in red.) I think though that a good compromise between the time it would take to do approach "2" on all the models and a good effect would be to do only the Unit Champion with coloured armour, and the others with regular armour.

This could work because it would show that the Champion is not just special by being harder and meaner, but perhaps he also inherits the best armour with the colour. This would be a mark of leadership or favour AND a good way for him to be known when on the battlefield. I'd have to be careful to show that he isn't as important as Queek though - a good excuse to learn how to weather armour with scratches and chips?

I only have 20 Stormvermin at the moment, but who knows, once I get them painted up, perhaps that will spur me to buy more?

Thanks to everyone who voted and thanks in advance for your patience until I get this underway!

Cheers,

*Squeek*

Too much of a good thing?

2012-03-02T00:13:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

I thought that I would do a review of some Warhammer scenery...and you know what? I started to put together some thoughts, but the more I thought about it, the more those same thoughts came to be dominated by one thing only...

skulls,
skulls,
skulls!
From really big, carved skulls on Temples...

Temple of Skulls
Copyright Games Workshop

To lots and lots of small skulls (to keep out a draught?)...

Witchfate Tor. Tower of Sorcery
Copyright Games Workshop

To structural supports for "My First Megalomaniac's Evil Throne of Domination (TM)"..

Magewrath Throne and Balewind Vortex
Copyright Games Workshop

To 360 degree ornaments for your observatory...

Skullvane Manse
Copyright Games Workshop

To...

Deathknell Watch.
Copyright Games Workshop

...well, you get the idea.

Now, I know that this is entirely a question of personal taste, and actually, I love GW's wargame terrain pieces for the most part, but I guess I have to say:

ENOUGH WITH THE GIANT SKULLS ON ALL THE SCENERY ALREADY.

You have an incredibly talented group of designers at GW. Surely you can find some suitable alternative visual flourishes or design elements that still communicate the gritty reality of a fantasy world torn apart by war and conflict?

With respect,

*Squeek*

p.s. Having said that, I love the jacket.
p.p.s ...and no, I don't know who designed it.

Reader Poll - Choose my next painting project!

2012-02-25T14:13:00.002+09:00

*Squeek*

OK, now I need your help with a decision...

...what unit to paint next!

Please do me a favour and click on the poll on the screen to help me choose.
I will paint whatever you - the hated man-things, decide. (If you happen to be a Grey Seer, or other notable member of the great Skaven race, then accept my apologies for such an insult....)

I own the following models so really just need a decision. In brackets below you can see how many of the unit I actually already have "ready to play" and painted in my force.

The choices are:

Poison Wind Globadiers. (Currently: 0)
Plague Censer Bearers. ( Currently: 0)
Stormvermin. (Currently: 0 )
Warpgrinder Team(s) (Currently: 0)
Doom-flayer(s) (Currently: 0)
Clanrats. (Currently: 120)

My thoughts are:

Poison Wind Globadiers
Copyright Games Workshop

Globadiers?

Cool, but would almost never use them. Also not so keen on the fact that they all look so similar, so might do some light conversions with the weapons etc to shake things up a bit.

Plague Censer Bearers
Copyright Games Workshop

Plague Censer Bearers?

Not a huge fan of the models compared to the IOB and more recent plastics, and it seems as though not many people take them these days. On the other hand, I only need a small unit so they wouldn't take too long...

Stormvermin
Copyright Games Workshop

Stormvermin?

I have had these from my first purchase but just never got around to them. I only have 20, so they couldn't be a major force on the battlefield. They might be useful as a small bunker for my general or battle-standard bearer though?

Warpgrinder
Copyright Games Workshop

Warpgrinder?

Now that I actually have some Clan Eshin guys in my army, they might be helpful. On the other hand, why take the risk of a cave-in when the Clan Eshin unit can probably make its way to the enemy's backline without too much trouble anyway?

Doomflayer
Copyright Games Workshop

Doom-Flayer?

A big plus - it is a cool model and the fluff is great.

A big fat minus - most people don't seem to think they are too effective on the battlefield. (But then again, I never get to play any games of WFB anyway!)

Skaven Clanrats
Copyright Games Workshop

Clanrats?

Who doesn't need more Clanrats?

Now that I have a pretty strong core of my army built up, it might be fun to spend some time on units that don't seem to be essential to the Skaven in 8th edition, but I will leave that up to you - the voting public - to decide!

Cheers,

*Squeek*

Plague Monk reinforcements FINISHED

2012-02-23T22:15:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

Just a few lads to add to my small unit of PMs, which should taken the frenzied ones up to about 40.

As the beady-eyed among you will notice, even though I thought they were finished when I took these pictures I have forgotten to do the eyes!
...but I want to get these pictures posted anyway as it has been a while!

In a departure from my step-by-step guide to Plague Monks I didn't do any layering on these models. Instead I just did a wash of Devlan Mud (Ogryn Flesh on the skin) and then drybrushed the models with one or two lighter shades of the main colours. In addition, I started the skin as a Dwarf Flesh without a layer of Tallarn Flesh first underneath.

Also different is the fact that I used a Vermin Brown wash to add rust to the weapons. When I painted the first unit, I hadn't learned to do that, so I guess at some point I need to go back and "rustify" the other 30!

As these guys will be mixed in amongst the rank and file, I don't think much more detail is necessary at this point (except of course painting those eyes!)

All comments and feedback welcome!

Cheers,

*Squeek*

WIP - Plague Monk reinforcements

2012-02-18T13:58:00.002+09:00

*Squeek* Plague Monk update...

They stink, they reek, they spread disease. They're PERFECT for any Skaven army that has a Clan Moulder army, or even your regular Warlord Clan like mine. (Although lets be honest, frenzy can be a bit of a double-edged - and rusty - sword.)

I already have a medium-sized unit of thirty Plague Monks. They were one of the first units that I painted-up and posted a step-by-step guide for. After finishing some slaves, I thought that I should bump this unit up a bit, so the other night I started another ten. Ten is a good manageable amount.

I managed to lay down some base colours this week. (After being painfully reminded that PMs need quite a lot of filing on the tails, cloth and skin to remove excess flash...)

One of my favorite Plague Monk sculpts...

...love the way half of his head is covered by a skull and the other open

a possible Plague Censer bearer?

Deneb Stone for bandages.

One thing I did differently for this batch was to use Dwarf Flesh for the skin basecoat (rather than Tallarn Flesh). Slow, as it took several coats...

Just over the past couple of days, there was a good thread over on the Underempire about Plague Monk colours. One of the points that came up was that it is incredibly common to see monks in green, and were there any other colour options? I have kept to green, but I would love to see some good examples of alternatives! Any leads anyone?

I should have these guys done by the end of the weekend and will post again then.

Cheers,
*Reek*

More Failcast...

2012-02-14T13:00:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*
...sigh.
Failcast?
FineCost?
Fineshaft?

More examples of poor "Finecast" models come to light. I read an interesting entry over at Scott's Wargaming Blog (great blog!) that had some links to a particularly poor Beast of Gorgoroth model. Now, I've had bubble issues in the past, but this is In fact, shockingly poor.

Working at a company that sells a physical product, I know that almost any item that is manufactured can have issues. Despite everyone's best efforts, from time to time we have a defective item, and so do all of our competitors. For this reason it is only normal, and reasonable, to accept some small defects in a run of tens of thousands of units being produced. In addition, there is no evidence I have seen of GW not willingly replacing defective items upon request...

...but I also think it is reasonable to question why these same products are being promoted and positioned in the market as:
"incredibly detailed"
"high-quality"
"...the highest quality miniatures the world has ever seen."

The claimed "...new era in wargaming" seems to be off to a pretty poor start, especially when it appears to many people that:
- the quality of the product may actually have declined.
- prices have exponentially increased.
- for many people, there is in reality not a great deal of difference in detail between these and metal models.

If a company decides to tout their product as the best in the world, and raises their prices accordingly (despite it being the case that they could pass on some of the reduced manufacturing costs to the consumer, shipping weights being reduced) then the product had better be pretty good.

Whining?
SURE!

The people who complain the most about products and companies tend to be the ones who love the product and/ or invest a great deal of money and time in them.

And for people who say it is easy to fix (just "Green Stuff it", "put it in hot water and bend it back into shape" etc) these things might work, but when you are being charged top-dollar, you don't expect to have to try and fix these things yourself.

"Problem with the new Jag sir? Don't worry,
Green Stuff should sort out those holes in no time!"

It would be very interesting to know what the actual % rate of defective products is in a batch of Finecast models, as this would mean we could see if the rate was acceptable, or high. It might very well be entirely acceptable for this kind of production process. In my case, both of the two Finecast models that I have had big enough problems that I would consider the overall quality poor.

Maybe I was just unlucky, and I don't respond well to overblown marketing hype...

In the final analysis, this hobby has brought me hundreds of hours of enjoyment in painting and gaming. Collecting and painting miniatures can still be called great value for money in the long term when compared to the paltry return on investment (in hours) received from going to the cinema, eating out, or taking the family out for the day.

Happy Valentine's Day!

*Squeek*

Fifty Finished Goblin slaves (with pictures.)

2012-02-12T15:14:00.001+09:00

"Which way ladz?"

"That way you Goblin scum!"

Ahem, I mean "I've finally finished my first unit of Goblin slaves".

It took me a week to do them, working pretty much every night for a couple of hours on each stage of the painting process. I would do a base colour on all fifty, then back to the first one etc.

At the beginning of this unit, I realized that I would have to do something to break up the uniform look of these old WFB starter set models. I think I have been partially successful, but only a decent unit filler will really do the trick...
(I have something in mind - Rat Ogre holding the chains of a Goblin Warboss and a squig, all of them being whipped on by a master moulder...)

Here are some photos of the unit.

50 Goblin Slaves!

Clan Moulder "Cheerleaders" keep up the unit's motivashun.

Snotflikka leading from da' front.

Rats added to the movement tray

"Old bonez" da spearman

Snotflikka 'n friends.

Shoot from the back.

"I feel safer wiv my big choppa"

"We'ze in charge den?"

Here are some things you may have noticed I did with this lot.

Replaced a lot of the original spearblades with blades from Skaven weapons.
Removed weapon arms and replaced them with Skaven arms and weapons. (Some from the IOB clanrats, some from the Plague monks sprue)
Removed the original Goblin icons from their shield bosses and replaced them with Skaven icons. (From previous edition clanrats)
Replaced whole shields with Island of Blood triangular clanrat shields.
Added giant rats to some models.
Added "regular" rats to some models.
Mixed Goblins spearmen with Goblin archers.
Used a Skaven standard.
Added Skaven pennants from the Plague Monk set.
Added rats to the edge of the movement tray.

Pretty obvious, but still quite a lot of work...

All comments and crit welcome! Thanks for looking.

Cheers,
*Squeek*

How to Paint Queek Headtaker

2012-02-07T11:24:00.001+09:00

Queek Headtaker leaps into action.

"Between the line of Greatcannon, the Reiksmarshall and his assembled commanders surveyed the battlefield from atop the low hill.

Where only moments before he had been able to review the lie of the land, now it seemed that same earth had been carpeted by a rolling sea of dirty flesh and fur. The motion of the horde and the various hues of pelt before reminded him of a heaving sea ("but by all the gods, a sea of vermin!") Unlike the ordered waves that crashed upon the shores of his homeland, this sea seemed to twitch, shake, and constantly skitter with a nervous energy. Already, he could feel that energy begin to infect some of his men and their animals, causing both man and beast to look this way and that. The levies in particular seemed nervous ("damn the lower orders")

Preparing to give his final orders he turned to his party.

"Sir. SIR!" Came an urgent voice. "Look!"
Turning to pass his good eye over the enemy, he at once became aware of a different motion.

In the distance, the brown tide seemed to magically part as something came towards them...moments later (the distance being great) he could also hear a cacophany of high pitched squeeks and calls from the direction of this phenomenon. At last the front wave of vermin parted, and the cause of the commotion was revealed.
A lone figure, clad in red armour. Upon his back a crest of...was it... carved totems?

"Lieutenant, my spyglass"

With practiced east the Reichsmarshall swiftly raised and extended his family heirloom, and shortly the creature came into view. It was not totems that adorned him, but skulls and body parts, some...fresh. Most disconcertingly, he recognized what appeared to be (due to perhaps being the least decomposed) the most recent addition to this macabre collection...
...Captain Valetius.

"Lieutenant."
"Sir?"
"Pass the word. There shall be no reinforcements this day."

How to Paint Queek Headtaker
I think that this process is good enough for "tabletop quality" (I.e. acceptable when viewed from a couple of feet away) Also, as I painted this guy a couple of weeks ago and I didn't take any notes all mixes are approximate.

Step 1: Preparation.

Remove the model from its sprue.
Carefully file or trim any excess flash from the model. (If the latter, use caution!)
Glue model to base.

Step 2: First basing.
I like to get the application of materials to my base done at this point to save trouble later. Doing it now allows you to correct any troublesome issues with sand or glue without worrying about any painting you might have done...

Sand or trim any flash from around the edge of the base. (It really shows up when you paint it...)
Paint PVA glue, optionally watered-down, onto the base, carefully avoiding getting excess glue onto feet or shoes (also claws, paws etc.)
Sprinkle a few pieces of crushed coral onto the base. (Obtained at the aquatic section of any pet shop) I find that 2-3 is enough.
Sprinkle sand over the base, so all remaining areas are covered.
Allow to dry.

Step 3: Priming/ Undercoat.

Prime the whole model. I use Citadel Chaos Black spray. Black is ideal for a model that will overall be darker in tone (and more forgiving for beginners like me as if you miss painting anything in hard to reach places it just looks like shadow.)
Allow to dry.

Step 4: Basecoat.
Here is what I ended up with after basecoats:

With basecoats only

basecoats only

In this step you will add the basic colours to the model. I used the following colours from Games Workshop (I haven't tried any other brands simply due to not having easy access to them.)

Note that I usually do the skin first, then cloth, then armor. I believe this is called "Inside Out" painting. It works because you are painting the hardest to reach places first. They are often small and difficult to reach, so you are likely to make mistakes. The good thing with this approach though is that when you work on the next layer out (often cloth) you get the chance to paint over any mistakes.

Mechrite Red: Armour.
Boltgun Metal: Weapons.
Chainmail: Chainmail highlights
Dwarf Bronze: Crosspiece on swords
Tallarn Flesh: Skin, tail, ears etc.
Bleached Bone: Loincloth, Teeth/ bones on helmet, skull pommel of sword.
Ice Blue: Edges of chain mail "skirt".
Snakebite Leather: Straps on vambraces, half of weapons.
Dark Angels Green: Jewel on clasp.
Calthan Brown and/ or Codex Grey: Rats on base
Codex Grey: Stones on base.
Shining Gold: Edges and chain of Warpstone pendant. Earrings.
Dark Angels Green: Warpstone on pendant. (not in the picture as I forgot to do it 'till later!)

Step 5: Washes.

After washes.

This step adds shadow and depth to what (at the moment) will look like a very "flat" model.
I use Games Workshop washes, again only because these are a known quantity for me.

Devlan Mud: Weapons. Breastplate/ armour. Rats. Chainmail etc.
Ogryn Flesh: Skin, tail, feet etc
Gryphonne Sepia: Loincloth/ cloth.

Note the following optional washes. I often do these after everything else is complete, but I list them here as they are washes.

OPTIONAL: Use a very watered down Vermin Brown if you want a rust effect on weapons etc. Immediately after applying, I dab at this with a tissue to vary the pattern of the "rust".
OPTIONAL: Use a very watered down Ice Blue on raised areas of Dwarf Bronze if you want a blue "Patina" effect to add some aging (especially around raised areas.)

Step 6: Highlights.
In this step, we build up the colours ("layering") in progressively lighter shades on raised areas to achieve more greater variation between light and shadow. This could be using progressively lighter,but separate colours (Tallarn Flesh ;Dwarf Flesh; Elf Flesh) OR by adding Skull White in ever-increasing amounts to a single colour.
I'm not great at it yet, but you can find a good guide at "How to Paint Miniatures".

Boltgun Metal: Reapply to edges of weapons etc.
Dwarf Bronze/ Shining Gold mix (1:1): Edges of crosspiece on swords etc.
Tallarn Flesh/ Dwarf Flesh mix: (1:1) Skin, feet, tail etc. then...
Dwarf Flesh/ Elf Flesh mix: (1:1) on the same areas, leaving some of the previous darker shade.
Bleached Bone/ Skull White mix: (2:1) Skull on pommel teeth, nails etc.
Snakebite Leather/ Skull White mix: (2:1) belt
Dark Angels Green/Goblin Green mix: (1:1) mix for the Jewel on clasp. Follow this with Goblin Green, and then Goblin Green/ Skull White mix (2/1).
Calthan Brown/ Vermin Brown: (1:1) Rats on base
Codex Grey/ Fortress Grey: (1:1) Grey rats on base
Blood Red: Eyes

(In this case, I think I went over the main areas of the armour in Mechrite Red using drybrushing as mentioned in the next stage, rather than hightlighting)

Step 7: Drybrushing.

Another step that adds highlights.

Put some of your highlight colour on your brush.Run your brush over kitchen paper (or a tissue is OK) until there is almost no paint on the brush. Then run the brush very lightly across the raised areas of the model to which you want to add the highlight colour. This should leave the highlight colour only on the raised edges. (Again, information on How To Paint Miniatures is a good guide!)

Mechrite Red: Raised areas of armour.
Chainmail: Weapon edges, edges of armour plate (where, if real, movement of the armour/ friction between plates would rub away the colouring)

Step 8: Final Basing.

The last step (phew!) adding colours to the base.

Calthan Brown drybrush across the sand (not the rocks/ crushed Coral)
Calthan Brown/ Skull white mix (3/1) drybrush across the sand.
Codex Grey: drybrush across the sand. Paint onto the rocks.
Codex Grey/ Fortress Grey mix (1:1). drybrush across sand and edges of rocks.
Fortress Grey: Drybrush across sand and edges of rocks.

Done!

I think that is it...

*Squeek*

p.s. You can see that I didn't use the back-banner for this model as it feels too extravagant to me. Instead I used some Green Stuff to cover the hole where the back-banner would be placed and I am saving it...possibly to adorn a War-litter?

Goblin Skaven Slaves update. Part 3

2012-02-06T00:04:00.001+09:00

*Squeek*

After giving myself a break from large units by finishing Queek Headtaker, Deathmaster Snikch, and Scar-Scath (Vermin Lord) I think it is time to return to reinforcing the core of my Warlord Clan.
For many Skaven warlords, "Core" probably brings to mind two essential unit types: Clanrats and Skaven Slaves.

Having come into a large number of old Goblin models, I thought it would be great to use them as "counts as" Skaven slaves. After all, the green-things are a constant nuisance to us Skaven, competing with us as they do for control of Dwarven holds, mines, and prime underworld real estate. (I imagine any generals of the lesser-races reading this will think it ironic that we Skaven should think of Goblins as an infestation! But, while infestation they may be, when captured they can prove useful in the vanguard of our armies - or perhaps the cooking pot!)

In two earlier posts (here and then here) I talked a bit about the simple modelling I did to make the unit look more "Skaveny". I have since added texture to the bases, primed the unit, completed basecoating and highlighting the skin. Basecoating the skin took me 2.5 hours for 40...(so much for speed painting!)

Primed

Basecoat of Calthan Green

Highlights of Calthan Green/ Snot Green

Drybrush with lighter shade of Calthan Green

Now I hardly ever get a game in, so I can't speak with confidence about any personal battlefield experience with my slaves, but the general opinion around the intertunnels is that they are pretty critical to any Skaven army! If possible, they need to be deployed at a minimum of 40-60 troops (any comments on that dear reader?), as this will give them plenty of ranks to stop them running from combat AND allow them to die in droves (exactly what we want so they hold up the enemy unit.)

More updates over the course of this week, at the end of which I hope to have finished up the full unit of 50.

*Squeek*

Skaven Vermin Lord/ Scar-Scath finished. (Pics)

2012-01-31T00:49:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

"For but a brief instant following its appearance, the meeting went completely silent and still (unheard of in any gathering of Skaven, let alone where so many warlords and their egos were present),following that, the only movement was a barely controlled twitching of whiskers and shivering of collective fear.

Not a sound, neither skittering of claw nor click of yellowed teeth,could be heard. Even loyal wolf-rats become momentarily immobile despite the musk of fear hanging heavy in the air. Loyal guards without the chamber, usually so alert to such scents and signs of trouble within and ready to take up arms, held still, lest whatever had come into being should deign to notice them.

Where but a moment ago Warlord Rentnail had preened and puffed his chest the attendees could see but little. Only a charred and smouldering pile of rags and a glint of the jewelry he had favoured, now melted and fused with charred bone, remained to show he had even been there. (Unusually, none made a move to scavenge such useful - if gore-covered - resources)

The Vermin Lord cast his burning gaze around the room. Fixing in place all present, the red pits of his eyes effortlessly quelled even that most primeval Skaven impulse - flight before overwhelming power.

"Yes, yes warlords,now hear-listen the word of the 13 and obey"

Thus spake Grey Seer Riknit.

Alone among them in gathering his wits, he was determined to take advantage of this silence among his audience to unveil his grand plans to unite them, however briefly, in attacking the hated man-thing citadel to the South. Though his scheme would be somewhat affected by the loss of the ever-impressible Rentnail, the Grey Seer knew that it would be only a matter of moments before a new leader arose to fill that position of leadership...

More troubling was that despite appearances, (and unknown to his audience) it was not he who had not summoned this embodiment of the Great Horned One...
...and if not he, then who?
...and of even greater concern...
...why?"

-------

Tonight I nearly finished-up Scar-Scath, Fiend of Vermin (my "counts as" Vermin Lord).

Some photos:

All comments and criticism welcome! Hopefully I will have some time to post more pics and a proper write-up soon.

Thanks for coming by!

Cheers,
*Squeek*

Painting update: Scar-Scath

2012-01-29T22:20:00.001+09:00

*Squeek*

After finishing Queek Headtaker and Deathmaster Snikch, I decided to stay on single models rather than units. To that end, I finally turned to the 800lb gorilla on my shelf...
...Scar-Scath, Fiend of Vermin.

Part of the BaneBeasts range over at Maelstrom, I thought it would be pretty cool to use him as a Vermin Lord (I'm not a big fan of the GW VL model.) I got him ages ago and never got around to him. To be honest, as a beginner, I found the thought of working with my first resin and a larger model (which would show all my mistakes ...) to be a bit intimidating.

To make things a bit easier on myself I am doing the model and base separately (the detail on the base would be very difficult to reach with Scar in the way.)

Priming.

Before priming the whole thing, I got Scar in the position that I wanted and held him in place with Blu-tack. While still blu-tacked, I then primed with Citadel Chaos Black spray. After it was dry I carefully separated the model from the base and peeled off the Blu-Tack. This left me with an unprimed area. This is useful because I know exactly where to glue in the future and also because I think my glue will work better on an unprimed surface.

Microart Studios Base.
Microart Studios has a great range of bases. I have one of their Ancient Bases 50x50mm parts that Maelstrom sent me (to replace the missing Scar-Scath base that should have come with the kit.)
Colours I am using:

Codex Grey: Flagstones
Bleached Bone: statue, columns
Knarloc Green: leaves
Calthan Brown: branches/ roots
Snakebite Leather: Base edge

I also had time to do the washes:

Gryphonne Sepia: statue, columns
Thraka Green: leaves
Devlan Mud: flagstones

On reflection I think I should have used Deneb Stone for the columns and statue as they currently look very yellow. I'm hoping though that layering using a Deneb Stone/ Bleached Bone should build up to a lighter overall shade and correct that. Topping it off with a nearly white drybrush will also (fingers-crossed!) help.

One thing I have learned (and still try to remember when being critical midway through painting something) is not to judge a piece until it is finished. (Often everything comes together right at the end and looks better than you think!)

Scar-Scath.
On Scar himself, I went with a very basic set of basecoat colours:

Tallarn Flesh: Skin
Boltgun Metal: Weapon
Snakebite Leather: Belt, weapon grip
Calthan Brown and Bestial Brown: Fur
Bleached Bone: rags/ wraps, nails, bone skulls, bone ornaments
Dark Angels Green: Warpstone chunk. (OK, it isn't really warpstone, but I think I can make it look close for a thematic tie-in! )

These are basically the same colours I use on my clanrats.

Washes:

Devlan Mud: metal, fur, rags/ wraps.
Ogryn Flesh: Skin, hands etc.

The next stage, layering, is going to be a big challenge for two reasons:

Getting the colours right on the stone/ statuary on the base.
Layering those large areas of skin on Scar.

I will try to post another update later this week. Wish me luck!
:-)

Cheers,

*Squeek*

p.s. Super-quick additional photo update - pretty much got the layering and highlights done on the base...

Queek Headtaker finished!

2012-01-26T18:03:00.002+09:00

*Squeek!*
If there is one Skaven "Hero" that truly lives up to that word, it is probably Queek Headtaker, of Clan Mors. Aside from having some pretty good stats for a Skaven, I like the fact that he is just simply an evil killer!

Hope to have a step-by-step painting guide up over the weekend, but in the meantime, a few photos! (more comments below)

The original Games Workshop model:

Colours:
As you can see, although similar to the Games Workshop colour scheme used for packaging and on their website it isn't quite the same. I originally intended the Mechrite Red used on the armour to be a darker base colour, onto which I would add Blood Red. However, after getting through the washes the Mechrite Red started to grow on me. As it is darker, it seems (to me) to suit the Skaven more than a brighter shade.

Like the GW model, I used a lighter colour on the cloth between the legs, in this case a Bleached Bone (washed with Gryphonne Sepia) and then drybrushed in lighter shades.

Finally, on "my" Queek I have part of the cloth edge to the armour in Ice Blue, which ties in a bit with my Warlord Clan - quite subtly I think.

Finecast:
I've mentioned this before, but my limited Finecast experience so far has been pretty dire...
...and regrettably, this Queek Headtaker casting only reinforces that experience. Painting the model has only made the poor casting more noticeable. Although difficult to see in my photos, the horns on the helmet are quite deformed, and where the crest joins the main part of the helmet is also odd, with some bubbles.

Given more time I might come back and file them back to decent points and repaint them, but I'll leave them alone for now.

Back Banner:
I left this off totally.
Holding the model together before gluing I found it difficult to reconcile just how large the back-banner is with my image of Queek! In battle, I figure him being incredibly fast - a strange combination of Skaven skittishness with deadly efficiency, something that I couldn't really imagine with that huge back-banner. Maybe his back-banner is removed by an underling before battle?
Using Green Stuff, I covered the hole on his back where it would have been positioned.

As always, all comments and criticism welcome!

Cheers,

*Squeek*

p.s. I added Queek to my Warlord Clan page.
EDIT: I have now added a "How to Paint Queek Headtaker" page

How to Paint Deathmaster Snikch

2012-01-22T18:26:00.002+09:00

*Squeek*

"The candle, just for a moment, guttered. To one engrossed in his studies, such as Master Evan Redwood of the Esteemed College of Engineers, such a movement would have passed unnoticed. Even to a man who was not a scholar (and therefore even at the best of times disinterested in the mundane) it would prompt
no raising of the head.
No renewed focus on the immediate environment.
No inkling of the arrival of an assassin nearly unequaled in skill by any other living practitioner (and few undead or Daemonic)..."

How to Paint Deathmaster Snikch
Please note that I think that this process is good enough for "tabletop quality" (I.e. acceptable when viewed from a couple of feet away) I make no claim to be a good painter, but I still hope this will be useful.
Also, I don't write anything down as I am painting, (being an amateur I have a hard time just painting!) so all mixes are approximate - please experiment and adjust as you wish!

Step 1: Preparation.

Remove the model from its sprue.
Carefully file or trim any excess flash from the model. (If the latter, use caution!)
Glue model to base.

Step 2: First basing.
I like to get the application of materials to my base done at this point to save trouble later. Doing it now allows you to correct any troublesome issues with sand it glue without worrying about any painting you might have done...

Sand or trim any flash from around the edge of the base. (It really shows up when you paint it...)
Paint PVA glue, optionally watered-down, onto the base, carefully avoiding getting excess glue onto feet or shoes (also claws, paws, bottom of robes etc. Etc)
Sprinkle a few pieces of crushed coral onto the base. (Obtained at the aquatic section of any pet shop) I find that 2-3 is enough.
Sprinkle sand over the base, so all remaining areas are covered.
Allow to dry.

Step 3: Priming/ Undercoat.

Prime the whole model. I use Citadel Chaos Black spray. Black is ideal for a model that will overall be darker in tone (and more forgiving for beginners like me as if you miss painting anything in hard to reach places it just looks like shadow.)
Allow to dry.

Step 4: Basecoat.
In this step you will add the basic colours to the model. I used the following colours from Games Workshop (I haven't tried any other brands simply due to not having easy access to them.)

Chaos Black: Back of cape
Chaos Black/ Mordian Blue mix: Inside of cape. (Chaos Black/ Mordian Blue mix 2:10) I felt pure Mordian blue to be too bright for Snikch, but that is just me!
Mordian Blue (pure) on the cross on the breastplate on the base.
Boltgun Metal: Weapons, including throwing stars on belt, breastplate on base, tip of hood (looks like a small mace head)
Dwarf Bronze: Crosspiece on swords, rim of breastplate on base, Bracers on wrists
Tallarn Flesh: Skin
Bleached Bone: Skeleton on base, teeth, nails, bandages on feet/ face
Blood Red: Eyes
Snakebite Leather: belt
Dark Angels Green: Jewel on clasp, poison on blades
Calthan Brown: Rats on base

Here is what I ended up with after basecoats:

Note: For this model, I actually went straight to highlights (step 6) and then did washes. However, at this point I would usually do washes and then highlights. Your choice!

Step 5: Washes.
This step adds shadow and depth to what (at the moment) will look like a very "flat" model.
I use Games Workshop washes, again only because these are a known quantity for me. In this case I also made my own wash too...

Devlan Mud: Outside of cape. Weapons. Breastplate on base. Rats.
Ogryn Flesh: Skin, tail, feet etc
Gryphonne Sepia: Bandages on feet/ face, skeleton on base.
Mordian Blue/ Black ink wash: Very watered down mix, applied to the deep folds of the inside of the cape and on the hood.

Step 6: Highlights.
In this step, we build up the colours ("layering") in progressively lighter shades to achieve more greater variation between light and shadow. This could be using progressively lighter,but separate colours (Tallarn Flesh>Dwarf Flesh>Elf Flesh) OR by adding Skull White in ever-increasing amounts to a single colour.
I'm not great at it yet, but you can find a good guide at "How to Paint Miniatures".

Chaos Black/ Mordian Blue mix: Inside of cape. First use a slightly lighter mix of Chaos Black/ Mordian Blue (mix 1:10) than you used as a basecoat. Then one more (slightly lighter shade) on the tops of the ridges and folds.
Mordian Blue/ Skull White mix. (10:2) on the cross of the breastplate on the base.
Boltgun Metal: Reapply to edges of weapons, including throwing stars on belt, breastplate on base, tip of hood (loos like a small mace head) etc, but leaving the wash in areas where shadows should be.
Dwarf Bronze/ Shining Gold mix (1:1): Edges of crosspiece on swords, rim of breastplate on base, Bracers on wrists etc.
Tallarn Flesh/ Dwarf Flesh mix: (1:1) Skin, feet, tail etc. then...
Dwarf Flesh/ Elf Flesh mix: (1:1) on the same areas, leaving some of the previous darker shade.
Bleached Bone/ Skull White mix: (2:1) Skeleton on base, teeth, nails, bandages on feet/ face
Snakebite Leather/ Skull White mix: (2:1) belt
Dark Angels Green/Goblin Green mix: (1:1) mix for the Jewel on clasp and poison on blades. Follow this with Goblin Green, and then Goblin Green/ Skull White mix (2/1). For the poison, have the lighter colours at the top of the poison, on the blade, and leave the "drops" of poison darker.
Calthan Brown/ Vermin Brown: (1:1) Rats on base

Although taken after completion, this detail shows highlights on the hands, cape, poison etc.

Step 7: Drybrushing.

Another step that adds highlights.

Codex Grey/ Chaos Black: (5:1 mix) Trousers, on raised folds, and back of cape, on raised folds.
Chainmail: Weapon edges

You can just see the folds of the cape have been drybrushed Codex Grey

Step 8: Final Basing.

The last step (phew!) adding colours to the base.

Calthan Brown drybrush across the sand (not the rocks/ crushed Coral)
Calthan Brown/ Skull white mix (3/1) drybrush across the sand.
Codex Grey: drybrush across the sand. Paint onto the rocks.
Codex Grey/ Fortress Grey mix (1:1). drybrush across sand and edges of rocks.
Fortress Grey: Drybrush across sand and edges of rocks.

Base detail.

Step 9: Collapse!

(_ _')

All comment and criticism welcome!

Cheers,

*Squeek*

Complete Deathmaster Snikch!

2012-01-22T12:45:00.001+09:00

*Squeek!*

Deathmaster Snikch

I finished up the Deathmaster last night and thought I would share a few snaps today. Overall I'm torn between thinking it came out OK and thinking "hmmm, could do better".

Anyway, there were a couple of things that I did differently here than before.

The first one was to use crushed coral on the base in addition to sand. Obviously not a big thing, but I do agree that just sand and flock can look a bit dull. The crushed coral, when used sparingly (2-3 pieces seems right) adds a very nice rocky texture without being too intrusive. I got this technique from reading the "How To Paint Miniatures" website (an excellent resource for basic techniques when starting out)

Fortunately, my kids recently started keeping fish, so crushed coral is abundant around here!

Secondly, I did more highlighting on the tail. I am not sure if I am happy with how it turned out, as it looks a bit too bright in places, but it may grow on me.

Thirdly, I did a couple of layers of highlights and then washes. Usually I do all the base colours first and then washes. I don't really see a big change, but that could just be me!

In terms of colour, I went with dark shades of Mordian Blue on the inside of the cloak, as I didn't want too much black, despite the fact that Snikch is an assassin extraordinaire.

Here are some more pics:

Base colours only.

Base detail: Note deformed toes on left feet...

Detail

Tail and cape

If you look closely at the rat emerging from the armour in the bottom image you can see that it has no face. This is one of the casting problems that I described the other day. Not noticeable from tabletop distance at all, but still annoying. (Yes, to a certain extent my fault as I could have fixed these with greenstuff.)

(EDIT: Just added "How to Paint Deathmaster Snikch" painting guide.)
All constructive comments and criticism welcome of course!

Cheers,
*Squeek*

p.s. I couldn't find a painting guide for Deathmaster Snikch on the Games Workshop site, so I will try to post a step by step guide in the next few days.

More filin' n' cuttin'. Goblin Skaven slaves update 2

2012-01-21T23:59:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

So yesterday I started to put together a unit of Goblin Skaven slaves. These gobbo spearman models came from the 4th edition starter set (thanks for the info yesterday Ian!) As I discovered after a days work, they still all looked too uniform due to the static poses.

After sleeping on this problem, I decided today to reduce the number of spears.
Firstly, I thought that would make them look immediately less uniform.
Secondly, this would allow me to do more conversions from the bits box with handweapons. Finally, I reckon this would be more in keeping with slaves too.

So here they are after 3 rounds of choppin' and changin'. (Sorry the pics aren't great.)

1. As assembled. Facing diagonally.

2. At the end of day 1. Too many spears!

3. More hand-weapons, less spears.

Overall I think it had worked. The unit feels more rag-tag (at least compared to yesterday). What do you reckon? (Sorry the pics aren't great)

In addition to filing each and every single gobbo head smooth (!) I also spent some more time on individual conversions in the hope that this would give the unit more character and break up the outline if the unit as a whole.

Gobin wiv' special headgear.

'ome made spearrgghh

nice for cuttin' and choppins.

no cleva capshun ere.

Wiv man-trap.

curly-wurly blade.

big choppa

Although I am no great modeler, I am actually quite happy with one or two of them as I think have taken on a character of their own.

I reckon that with the addition of some rats to bases and shoulders I should be done and ready to start adding texture to the bases, and then move onto priming. To take a break I will then go back to Snikch and Queek. (Snikch has some washes on now, so I should finish him tomorrow.)

*Squeek*

Goblin Skaven Slaves. Part 1.

2012-01-20T23:02:00.002+09:00

*Squeek*

"Green things, your time has come to serve a great-great cause. The Great Horned Rat calls his children to war, and all those that hear the call must answer! Forward...and feel the lash!"

So I have read about (and occasionally seen) on the web "counts as Skaven slaves" units made up of other models. Popular options might include models that look raggedy enough (Empire flagellants) or fit neatly into Skaven lore. Good examples of the latter would be Goblins (as small, or smaller than your average clanrat) and Dwarves ("hates, HATES them we does", said in best Gollum voice.)

When a colleague cleared out his attic and offered me some WFB models he found I offered to take them. What I got was 2-3 boxes worth of old Goblin archers, Spearmen and Orcs, about 35-40 of each. Can anyone identify what edition they are?

At the time I wasn't really sure what to do with them. While Squeek and Snikch were drying today I decided to get out the greenskins. Despite having recently said that I would try to avoid doing large units for a while I immediately wanted to see if i could make these guys into a unit of slaves.

Goblin spearmen

Goblin archers

Some immediate problems presented themselves:

Every single model was based at a diagonal. Therefore every single model faced sideways when ranked-up.
As an old set, each model was identical in pose and main armament (spear and shield). Great for goblins, not so good for slaves.
Spears...a forest of ramrod straight, identical spears. Most sources I read say don't bother with spears on slaves, so I certainly didn't want all of them like that.

So, after opening my bits box and getting out my tools I decided to see what I could do to make them into the rabble I wanted.

Here is how I spent my afternoon.

A.) Cutting each gobbo off their bases with a craft knife, I then filed down the feet and bases and glued them on facing front and center.

B.) I removed 70% of the original goblin shield and replaced them with shields from the latest style clanrats (triangular) and previous generation clanrats (circular).

C.) I clipped, chopped and glued my way through an assortment of spears, hand weapons, pouches and banners to try to vary the unit somewhat.

Here are some examples:

So guess what? I FAILED to make the unit the way I wanted it to...

I think the problem is that even doing all that, the body position is just too static...
...and they are ALL like that, so you can't escape the feeling of immobility that it brings. Also, it would be too time consuming to do something with the shield arm on models where I have removed the shield, but right now those arms just kind of sit there looking weird.

Finally, they look too well-armed (and a little too LONG-armed in some cases) to really be slaves.

What to do? Four possible solutions come to mind:

Try mingling some archers in there to mix things up a bit.
Add a couple of packmasters.
Add some rats to some of the gobbo bases.
Create some kind of unit filler of a reasonable size. This would break up the visual profile of the unit and add some appropriate Skaven "DNA" (a spare rat ogre holding onto chains running to the gobbos?)

Any ideas out there that might be simple to do for a relatively inexperienced modeller like myself?

Cheers,

*Squeek*

Deathmaster Snikch Finecast Update, Bubbles,and More!

2012-01-18T00:38:00.002+09:00

*Squeek*

Managed to get some early work done on Queek Headtaker and Deathmaster Snikch, as well as some assembly on Scar-Skath.

I hadn't worked with any Citadel Finecast before this, so I was very interested to see how this new material would be to work with.

Would it live up to GW's claims about crisp detail?
How would the moulding be?
What kind of preparation would be necessary?

Well, first impressions upon opening Deathmaster Snikch and Queek were a mix of the good and the bad.

First, the good:

-Detail is quite good.

-Easy to glue.

-Easy to file.

That's about it.

Next, the bad:

Bubbles...

-Bubbles. Some significant detail lost from the casting process meant lots of time working with Green Stuff to fill in unsightly gaps. Maybe I was just unlucky, but these missing chunks seemed to be in particularly obvious places - not something I have ever noticed on metal or other plastics.

Sure, I have seen plenty of gaps between parts before, but these were whole areas missing on limbs etc.

-Fiddly to remove from the sprue. (Lots of bits that take a bit of time to work out whether they are part of the model or not.

-Thinner areas of the material felt very prone to breakage. (I didn't do anything extreme to see if they were!) A case in point being the Deathmaster's cape.

-Detail didn't seem that much better than metal or regular plastic to me. In fact, some fine detail was broken or miscast.

Hmmm, not so good to my eyes, but what do you think? Let's take a look at the Deathmaster first...

(Sorry that these are a bit difficult to see. I don't have time today to edit the photos with arrows and pointers etc.)

Notice the hole in the leg, above the knee.

Missing material in the center of the cape.

Rats head on the bottom facing us (just above base) is deformed and missing

On Queek Headtaker, nothing quite as serious, but still annoying considering GW's claims to amazing detail...

Front legs of the rat on the base - at right - miscast/ partly missing.

MASSIVE ISSUES? DEAL BREAKERS?

No.
In fact, some might argue they are all part of the hobbyist's life.

That is fine, but as GW charges (I seem to remember) significantly more for these than their metal equivalents, I can't think that the quality being worse would be acceptable to most people. Personally, I want to paint and display/ wargame, not patch and fix.
BTW, although many people say that metal has less detail, it doesn't seem to be a huge difference to me.

...but maybe I am just disappointed at the time of writing from having to get busy with the Green Stuff...

(It was still sticky at the time of the photo, so I will file it a bit tomorrow.)

Anyway, I also started to work with Scar-Skath, from the Banebeasts range, who I am planning to use as a "counts as Vermin Lord". If you remember, this was the model where I didn't receive a base with the kit when I received it from Maelstrom Games (but I did receive the run-around before everything worked out just fine.)

Note the replacement Micro-Art base that in the end Maelstrom kindly sent me.

And although I had to greenstuff some gaps on Scar, these were gaps between parts, not filling in chunks of missing model!

What have your experiences been with Finescast and resin models in general?

Cheers,

*Squeek*

Skaven reinforcements - completed!

2012-01-16T23:54:00.003+09:00

*Squeek*
Following a very quiet Christmas (in painting terms at least...) I spent some of last week working on more Skaven Clanrats to reinforce my current core units. I managed to finish these up tonight.

By themselves, 15 clanrats don't add up to much. However, put them with my other Clanrats and I am now up to about 135 Island of Blood clanrats. Not a huge number by some standards, but enough for three units of 45, which I don't think is too bad. (I also have old, 4th generation clanrats, but I prefer to use them as slaves as they have an even more subhuman and degenerate look to them.)

I tried one or two new things this time around:
Firstly, a more extreme highlight on the edges of cloth items. I wanted to see how this would look from "Tabletop distance". Actually, I don't think it looks too bad! Here is a close-up:

Detail: Blood red edge highlights on cloth.

Secondly, as you can see in the unit images above, I have kept in a couple of Clanrats using different colours to add just a touch of variety among my units. In this case, the Blood Red used could mean they could be from Clan Mors or possibly Clan Moulder (I wonder what their stories are? Renegades?) What do you think?

Thirdly, I followed a different process for rust. Usually I use a very watered-down Blazing Orange wash. This time though I used a very watered-down Vermin Brown and then (for some models) stippled on a bit of (again watered-down) Blazing Orange. Kudos to the My Wargame blog for the tip. You can see how it turned out below on the clanrat's blade.

Detail: Vermin Brown and Blazing Orange rust washes.

Next project is decided...
...Queek Headtaker!
My first ever Finecast! Looking forward to finding out with my own eyes (and ratty fingers) what working with this new material is really like...

*Squeek!*

Out with the Old...in with the?

2012-01-05T22:30:00.002+09:00

*Squeek*
Ah, 2011...
...What happened in 2011?

Well, not a lot when it comes down to actual WFB battles, but quite alot if I just think about painting my Skaven army. I'm not a prolific painter, mainly due to having a job that seems to involve quite a lot of travel, but I did manage to finish up a few pieces and projects:

1. Two Island of Blood Warlords. (Guide here.)
2. Another unit of Clanrats. (Guide here.)
3. A Screaming Bell/ Plague Furnace (Dual-use conversion guide here.)
4. Hellpit Abomination.
5. Gutter Runners.
6. Plagueclaw Catapult/ Warplightning Cannon (Dual-use conversion)
7. Warhammer Chapel.
8. Citadel Realm of Battle Gameboard.

So where is the Chattering Horde now in terms of battle readiness? I spent a bit of time the other day getting everything out and this is what I ended up with. Not sure how many points this is - and note that I didn't lay things out in formation as they would be for a game...

Doooooomwheeeel!

Clanrats

Heroes and Lords

Grey Seer

Warlord with Banner

Battlestandard Bearer

Clan Eshin Gutter Runners

Artillery: Plagueclaw Catapult and Warplightning Cannon

Jezzails

Slaves

"Push the Screaming Bell - push for victory!"

Hellpit Abomination

Rat Ogres

Giant Rats

Plague Monks

Gutter Runners

Forward! Yes, Yes!

So what about 2012? Well, still plenty to do that's for sure!

Scar-Skath (counts-as Verminlord)
Doom-Flayers.
Stormvermin.
Deathmaster Snikch.
Squeek Headtaker.
Nightgoblins (counts-as slaves)
Plague censer bearers.
Warp-grinder weapon teams.
Poisonwind Globadiers.

I must say that next I am tempted to take a break from large units. This might take the form of either a couple of characters or possibly some unit fillers (the thought of painting 50-100 Goblins fills me with dread, although Night Goblins might be fast as I could work straight off a black undercoat...) It would also be nice to try characters in order to practice doing some detail...

And my New Year's resolution? Get some games (and hopefully some wins) under my belt. Do you have a gaming resolution? If so, what is it?

Cheers,
Squeeek!

P.s. All the discussion about a new Tau Codex also means that I might get distracted too, so I had best crack on with my warband!

Finished Citadel Realm of Battle board

2012-01-01T16:23:00.001+09:00

*Squeek*
One of the great things about Expat life are the famed "leaving sales" when a fellow traveler decides to head home.

If you haven't experienced one before the concept is simple...
...everything must go!

Furthermore, because everything must go (in Japan, you have to pay to throw away big items so people really do want to get rid of everything) you sometimes get really, really good deals on everything from bikes to furniture to - you guessed it - Citadel Realm of Battle Gameboards.

In my case a really good deal meant I picked up mine for the fine price of...
...0 Yen.

Usually in Japan this item would cost 33,800 yen. This is a whopping 282 Pounds Sterling (155 is the list price in the UK) or 439 U.S. dollars (290 list price in the US) at time of writing. I know, very lucky!

The catch?

Some of the original boards missing.
No clips to hold them all together.
Some boards already painted up (not a bad thing, but it meant a consistent look would be difficult!)
I had to carry the whole lot home on the train (heavy!)

Anyway, to cut a long story short I decided to add some new boards to get the set I wanted.
First I went to Tokyu Hands and got some two foot square wooden boards cut up to relace the missing 2 pieces. (610x610x9) They didn't have any 10mm width wood, so I also bought a also bought a few packs of 1mm circular rubber feet. (BTW, Tokyu Hands = Best Shop EVER!)
I also ordered the scenery painting pack from GW HQ in Tokyo and then waited for a day with suitable weather to arrive. (These was NO WAY the Skaven Queen would let me do all this in the burrow itself...)

Eventually, I spent a beautiful (if cold) day in the garden getting everything made up. Here are the results (Sorry about the poor quality of the photos. The light was really tricky.)

Some dry glue still shows.

Unweathered corner:

At this point, I hadn't done any weathering or drybrushing on the rock formations I had painted, so that's why one of the rock formations looks much more "Codex Grey" than the others! See EDITS below for updated images.

1mm rubber feet.

EDIT: Added the images below of the "unweathered" rocks after washes and drybrushing.

It came with the original carrying bag, so I thought I would post a few shots so you can see the size of that (audio CD to scale):

Lessons learned:
1. To avoid ridges and wrinkles when flocking, definitely do follow GW's advice in the scenery pack about how to flock the board. (Also available HERE on the GW website) . I spaced this at least once when distracted and it does look awful if you mess it up.

2. If you intend to go"Full Grass" as I did, it is worth the effort to save and recycle every blade of grass/ flock you can. Work over paper and gather up any spill. Transfer all the original grass to ziplock bags before you start so you can seal up between uses and to keep safe in case you drop the bag etc.

3. Do consider packing away with a layer of added protection between each board.

4. Use the PVA in the painting pack sparingly or be prepared to purchase another couple of tubes before you start. (Non-branded works fine of course) I may have got the ratios wrong when making up watered-down PVA but I went through it pretty quickly!

Overall I think the sturdiness of the Realm of Battle Board is pretty good and the mould quality is very high. I have both the older "Roll Up" battlefield and the fold-away cloth battlemat, but when not travelling I will definitely go to the trouble of using the board for the overall impact. I do like the hills and slopes that are moulded in.

Would I pay full GW Japan prices for it? No, not when they are so much higher than the UK or US (and having blown everything on Christmas presents for the family!), but if I had the budget I would not any worries about durability stop me. I expect this product will last.

Now I just need more scenery to compliment the board. A lone Warhammer Chapel doesn't really do the trick!

Cheers,
*Squeeek!*

Completed Warhammer Chapel

2011-12-30T15:54:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*
I've been away a long time... (Curse you Skyrim and Battlefield 3!)
...but now I'm back, and hope to continue to update the site with Skaven-related painting projects. I have also decided to add other bits and pieces. Naturally, these will all be relevant to my Skaven hobby and Warhammer Fantasy Battle.

Case in point, WFB scenery and terrain - the first of which is this Games Workshop Chapel that I bought before Christmas and have just finished. I will add new terrain and scenery pictures to the new "Scenery" page of the blog, but in the meantime I thought I would share some pics and (below them) some lessons learned.

Hope you like it - all constructive criticism welcome!

Completed model, with washes and drybrushing

With Clanrat for scale

...Clanrats!

Stages:
1. Basecoat.

2. Washes:

3. Drybrushing:

Finished item.

Washed and Drybrushed

The kit comes with lots of options, including weather vanes, chimneys, decorations for the roof, door options and more, (which you can see on the GW Chapel product page) but I decided to keep this one very simple and dispense with most of the bits and pieces. The simple fact is that I tend to take my scenery with me when travelling to a game and the more bits there are, the more likely they are to break off!

Lessons learned:
1. Allow more time than you think for painting structures. They look simple, but actually they contain as much, or more detail, than most troops. Skulls, decorations, window panes, statues, rivets, cracks etc can all take a long time!
2. Add statues later. Paint the main structure first, and paint any statues or other objects to be added separately. In this case, it was an real pain to get behind the statues to paint the building structure and it still looks untidy. If I had painted the structure first and then glued on already-painted statues it would all look better (and have save time in terms of touch ups.)
3. Don't rush your drybrushing. I did, and the roof ended up looking "streaky". Make sure that your drybrush really is nearly devoid of paint, and then drybrush lightly at first, building up from there. Mine came out OK but only when viewed from a distance.
4. Pay extra attention when gluing walls together. Despite having filed everything down, when I glued the main structure together I ended up with a lot of walls and corners that didn't quite match. This is really visible when painted.

Overall though, I think it looks fine when viewed from a distance.

Thanks for visiting and see you again soon, when I will post pics of my completed Citadel Realm of Battle Gameboard...
:-)

Cheers!
*SQUEEEK!*

Whirling death!

2011-10-29T20:17:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

"Ahh, what is that noise? A scraping, squeeking, high-pitched whine, interspersed with occasional screams?

It can only be the sound of unwilling slaves being forced into the path of an oncoming Doom-Flayer (one naturally has to test every item on loan from Clan Skryre - for could not my many rivals bribe my suppliers into giving me dodgy equipment?)

Fortunately, my unwilling subjects being sliced and diced into fleshy cubes makes the remains of this experiment even more edible, ensuring my clan's tunnels are quickly gnawed clean by my servants
(bar the odd piece of cloth and offal...which surely adds atmosphere to my burrow)."

The Doom-Flayer has a couple of things going for it:
1. A very characterful addition to a Skaven army.
2. Quite a nice model (now available as Finecast)
3. A decent number of attacks - if you are lucky. (Artillery dice at strength 4)
4. Decent front armour? (3+)
5. Cheap (55 points)

On the other hand...
1. Shockingly poor survivability. (1 wound? ONE WOUND!)
2. Only as tough as a man-thing. (T3?)
3. Terribly vulnerable to the side and rear. (5+ to the rear)

Depending on what you read, the "Skaven Segway" can be useful when used as a hammer unit against a low-toughness opponent who is already engaged with your Clanrats or Stormvermin - or a complete failure! Having never used one, I can't make any recommendations except to say that the advice of keeping it close to it's parent unit makes sense. (As a weapons team, it benefits from a 4+ ward save against shooting.)

I've got hold of a couple of these (metal, not Finecast), so will post photos when done!

*Squeek*

2011-10-11T00:11:00.003+09:00

*Squeek*

Just a small update today of my ABOUT ME section. I struggle to remember the games systems that I enjoyed reading or playing in my youth, but made an attempt to update the list today...

...It may turn into quite an essay.

Some good memories there. Any of you all played any of the systems I list when you were young? (or still do?)

*Squeek!*

Rat-men alternatives?

2011-10-10T14:21:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

After finishing-up my Plagueclaw Catapult/ Warplightning Cannon and adding it to my Warlord Army list, I'm thinking about what path to take next and have settled on one of the following:

Another 10 Plague Monks to boost my unit up to a more respectable (more deadly) x40.
A unit of 20 Stormvermin.
A couple of Master Moulders.
A Warp Grinder (to go with my Gutter Runners.)
Scar-Scath (to use as an alternative Vermin Lord)

Any ideas or recommendations? (A few people have asked me to do the Stormvermin before, so I might go with that.)

In the "Other random thoughts and machinations dept." (the darkest tunnel to the left of my burrow) I have been thinking about alternative models that have recently taken my fancy. This isn't because I don't like the GW Skaven (I do) If you are like me you may want to consider alternative models for ~~a couple of~~ several reasons:

a.) Spice up your ranks with something unusual as a talking point to your army.

b.) Take a break from painting the same models.

c.) Introduce sculpts that have an alternative back-story.

etc.

A word to the wise: Before investing your warptokens (dollars, pounds or otherwise) always checkout the sizes of non-GW models carefully before purchasing. Think about whether they will be suitable complements to your army in terms of size. Also, if the model will be adding any rules to your force that are outside a Warhammer Army Book, then definitely check first with your opponent for permission to field that unit or model.

(Yes, I know Warhammer Forge is part of GW, but even so...)

Here are some rat-men themed models that recently caught my attention:

The Warhammer Forge Skaven Warlord on Brood Horror

Please visit: Warhammer Forge for more information

To anyone who has been looking for a decent alternative mount for a warlord this beauty (?) has to take the cake! If you are like me and you haven't scratch-built or converted anything to use as a Bonebreaker Rat-Ogre or Warlitter and your Warlord still has to unceremoniously trudge into battle, this could be just the thing (if you have many warp-tokens that is...)

While many Skaven players overall seem to prefer a Warlitter to a monstrous creature, this would undeniably have impact on a gaming table, as well as the ranks of your enemies!

I haven't checked out the rules, but something to remember may be that if this is a monstrous creature (and surely it is) it can't join units, so would be a pretty good target to be cannon-sniped by an opponent. Also, as a Forgeworld item you would usually ask your opponent's permission to field this.

BaneLords Quick-blade

Please visit BaneLords for more information

This awesome looking standard bearer definitely brings something different to the table in terms of rat-men aesthetics. (If there is such a thing). As Pete Dunn over at the excellent Fields of Blood points out, Quick-Blade brings a more brutish, hulking look to your army (btw nice paint job Pete!)

I am a big fan of the BaneBeasts and BaneLords sculpts having purchased Scar-Scath from them.

(Lizard-man/ Slann Player? Check out Keirioc-Cro...)

Avatars of War Vermin Clan Lord

Please visit Avatars of War for more information

The Vermin Lord has a small range of weapon/ arm variations. He reminds me of Queek with those banner poles, although (thankfully) not quite as extreme in terms of "attachments"!

I hadn't heard of Avatars of War until recently, but you can see that they have a great looking selection of lords and heroes for a variety of fantasy races, as well as units for some of them. Based in Spain, they have developed a system for miniatures battles using cards and only 5 or so minis per side (Find out more about Arena Deathmatch here)

Choices, choices! When I do get to play it is usually with a small, casual group of friends, so I don't think there would be any problems in fielding these models. The only problems (as usual) are warptokens and time!

Comments of course welcome.

*Squeek*

Dual Use Plagueclaw Catapult/ Warplightning Cannon Conversion Guide

2011-10-02T15:26:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

The current GW Skaven Plagueclaw Catapult/ Warplightning Cannon box allows you to make one or other of these fine warmachines (I think that was the intention anyway).

However, if you are low on Warptokens, you may want to consider this simple conversion for being able to keep this kit "Dual-use" so you can have either model in your army depending on your need.

Step 1:
Clip away the wires on the front of the Warplightning cannon. Then, attach the Plague Claw Catapult basket to the back of the WLC arm.

Your catapult/ cannon assembly will then look like this.

Step 2:
Assemble the catapult body but DO NOT GLUE THE FLOORBOARDS INTO PLACE ON THE FRAME YET.
Put the whole assembly in the frame first (there is a "tall" frame configuration and a "low" frame configuration - use the "low" one.) Make sure you don't glue the axle in place. You should be able to rotate the whole catapult/ cannon assembly around the axle freely.

Step 3:
File away a small curve in the floorboards of the frame, so that the whole cannon/ plague claw catapult unit can rotate freely.

Note how the cannon parts can now rotate past the floorboards.

Step 4:
Finally, attach the floorboards. If you do this and you DON'T GLUE THE CREW IN PLACE (I put them separately on bases) you should be able to rotate the whole arm so it is either pointing:
a.) "Forward" (towards the spikey front of the unit) in "Warplightning cannon mode" (with the PGC basket facing downwards)
OR
b.) "Backwards" in "Plagueclaw Cannon Mode" (with the PGC basket facing upwards.)

a.) Warplightning cannon mode...

b.) Plagueclaw catapult mode...

Once it is all painted up you should have something like this:

I hope that this is useful. As with my Screaming Bell/ Plague Furnace conversion I didn't have any magnets with me, so this conversion relies on a bit of clipping and filing only. I am sure there are easier ways to do this, so please add your comments below!

As I have said before...
...Clan Skryre is CUNNING yes-YES?

*Squeek*
p.s. Don't forget that I have put up a step-by-step painting guide for this model here.

How to paint a Plagueclaw Catapult/ Warplightning Cannon. Step-by-Step Guide.

2011-10-02T14:52:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*
Below you will find a (long!) step-by-step guide to painting a Skaven Plagueclaw Catapult to what I reckon would be "Tabletop quality". This is the Games Workshop plastic kit that can usually be assembled as either a Plagueclaw catapult or a Warplightning cannon. (For a step-by-step guide to painting the metal Warplightning Cannon kit click here.)

Note: this guide focuses on painting, rather than assembly. The kit comes with instructions for several variations to suit different tastes. For my model (as you can see if you look closely) this is actually a simple conversion of the kit that allows me to use it as either a PCC or a WLC.

Before you start:
1. Don't glue the body of the unit to the base until after you have finished painting the whole thing main structure.
2. If you want to make the item "Dual-use" at time of assembly DON'T glue the barrel or axle in place. The barrel/ central structure should be free to rotate. (Friction should be enough to hold the whole thing together.)
3. For ease of painting, you may want to keep the 3 main pieces of the unit separate until after painting (left frame, right frame, and catapult/ cannon.) This will make it much easier to paint the frame. (Trust me, it is MUCH harder to do if you glue it all together first. I suffered...so you don't have to!) I didn't glue the model to the base until everything was painted up.

Step 1: Assembly and Undercoat.
1. Prepare the model by filing away any mould lines. On this model, you may find quite a few on the beams of the catapult frame and the barrel of the cannon. They may not look big, but they will show up even more when you paint the model, so take the time to remove them now!
2. Paint PVA glue onto the base, and dip in modelling sand. Allow to dry, and then tap the base to remove any loose sand.
3. Undercoat all parts using Citadel Chaos Black undercoat spray (or equivalent.)
4. At this point, I drybrush Calthan Brown onto the bases of the crew and the catapult followed by a second drybrush of Calthan Brown/ Skull white 80/20. I then paint the base edges with Snakebite Leather. (I just prefer to do this at the beginning of a project, rather than at the end.)

Chaos Black Undercoat.

Step 2: Basecoat(s).
Apply thin layers of colour (better to reapply a colour than have a layer that is too thick and obscures detail.)
a.) Catapult:
Calthan Brown: Wooden frame.
Boltgun Metal: PCC Claw, metal parts, wheel rims, nails, blades, spikes on frame.
Dwarf Bronze: WLC barrel runes, cannon assembly.
Mechrite Red: Wires/ tubes on frame and on the warpstone boulder.
Bleached Bone/ Sunburst Yellow: 80/20 mix on the PGC "Payload" (the "gunk"!)
Dark Angels Green: Warpstone, WLC "barrel".

b.) Crew:
Tallarn Flesh: Skin, Tail, Face, feet.
Boltgun Metal: Armour, tools, weapons.
Snakebite Leather: belt, gloves.
Bleached Bone: Teeth.
Blood Red: Eyes
Ice Blue: Cloth.
Regal Blue: Lenses on engineer's rangefinder (if using that part.)

After basecoats, before washes etc. (Note how "Shiny" the metal is.)

Step 3: Washes.
a.) Catapult:
Devlan Mud. (simple eh!)

b.) Catapult payload:
Bleached Bone/ Sunburst Yellow: 80/20 mix, with Thrakka Green (not TOO much. Just enough so you get a runny green/ yellow.)
Thrakka Green. (between the bubbles. )

c.) Crew:
Devlan Mud: Armour, weapons, cloth.
Ogryn Flesh: Skin.

Step 4: Drybrushing
Now that you have added some depth and shadow to the model by using washes, drybrushing will help to give contrast by adding highlights so the whole thing doesn't look too dark . In this case, to keep things simple and fast, drybrushing will be as simple as using the exact same colours that we did before and done only once. To get more contrast, or for a better effect, add a little bit of white to the colour. If you want an even better effect, do 2-3 gentle layers of drybrushing, each time adding a little more white. (You can find a great guide here: Guide to Drybrushing on How to Paint Miniatures)

Detail of drybrushing - Calthan Brown

You don't have to drybrush all colours for a model that is just for tabletop play...
a.) Catapult.
Calthan Brown. (Wood frame.)
Boltgun Metal.
Dwarfbronze.
Mechrite Red.
Bleached Bone/ Sunburst Yellow.
Dark Angels Green/ Snot Green. (70/30 mix) (On the warpstone. Then a further drybrushing with 60/40 mix.

b.) Catapult payload:
Bleached Bone/ Sunburst Yellow: 80/20 mix.

c.) Crew:

Boltgun Metal: Armour, tools, weapons.
Ice Blue: Cloth.
(If you havn't already drybrushed the bases on the crew, do it now. Calthan Brown, then Calthan Brown/ Skull White 80/20 mix)

Step 5: Highlights
Highlights add more realism and visual interest to the model, and make the detail of the model stand out more, especially when viewed from a distance. This is as easy as adding a tiny dot of a brighter colour to a point, or "edge highlighting" where you use a brighter colour on edges.

a.) Catapult:
Chainmail: Spikes, nails, edge highlights on the barrel.
Shining Gold: edges of any Dwarfbronze area on the WLC.

b.) Catapult payload:
Bleached Bone/ Sunburst Yellow: 70/30 mix.

c.) Crew:
Chainmail: edges of armour etc.
Shining Gold: edges of engineer's rangefinder.
Snakebite Leather/ skull white: 80/20 mix. Leather gloves, belts etc.
Dwarf Flesh/ Elf Flesh: 70/30 mix (on skin, arms etc.)

Dwarf Flesh/ Elf Flesh highlights

Step 6: Details
a.) Rust.
Rust wash on nails, bolts, blades etc. (VERY watered down Solar Macharius Orange, dabbed on, and then quickly dabbed off with a tissue so it stays in cracks etc.) You can also paint thin streaks of rust onto the model where rusty streaks might occur, such as metal that would be immobile - nuts, nails etc.

Rust on blades at the front of the frame.

Rust on nails and metal fittings, with streaks painted on.

b.) Warpstone Glow.
Using the same shade as used when drybrushing the warpstone, gently drybrush areas of metal near the warpstone chunks, where the glow of the warpstone might be reflected.

Warpstone glow added to Bronze assembly.

c.) Lenses on the Engineer's Rangefinder.
On the lower edge of the lens, apply 2-3 progressively lighter shades of Regal Blue towards the lower rim of the lens, and the same shade at the top of the lens, topped off with a dot of Skull White. (A great tutorial for painting a lens can be found over at Advanced Tau Tactica.)

Blue lens on rangefinder.

Step 7: Final Basing.
At the beginning of the project, I prepped the bases by drybrushing them. Now I want to add some grass/ flock.
1. Paint on areas of PVA glue to the base.
2. Dip in modelling flock and allow to dry.
3. Once dry, glue the model to the base.

Voila!

NOTE: You never really finish a model, as there is stuff you can always add. In this case, next steps might be:
- Add some bronze patina to "age" the bronze.
- Add some detail to the base to make it more interesting (grass, rocks, arrows embedded in the mud etc.)

Thanks for looking!

*SQUEEK*

Finished Plagueclaw Catapult/ Warplightning cannon!

2011-10-01T23:17:00.001+09:00

*Squeek*

"Elf-things (and other low toughness enemies..) BEWARE!!
Today a new era of long-distance fetid death-dealing mechanical dominance begins! Yes,yes. Behold, a simple process has given us the dual-use Plagueclaw catapult/ Warplightning cannon conversion!

As yet untested in battle (although tested on slaves) this wonder saves many-much warptokens for any warlord AND requires no warlock-like engineering skillz or dark artz to assemble..."

Now all I need is a suitably Skaven-like name!
-Plaguelightning dispenser?
-Plaguelighting cannon?
-Warpclaw scatterpult?
-Clawlightning hurler?
Fellow children of the Horned God can you help me choose a name??

Ideas and comments below please after some more pictures...

Some of the things that I tried here and found challenging:
-Blue lenses on the crew's range-finder/ binoculars.
-A glow of warpstone on the metal around the warpstone core.
-The gunk of the plagueclaw's horrible payload!

*Squeek*

Plagueclaw Catapult conversion update 2

2011-09-28T22:11:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*
I managed to get some basecoats down this week on my dual-use Plagueclaw catapult/ Warplightning kit.
- Frame.
- Base.
- Crew.

Here you go...

Only time for a few photos, but I hope the next update will see us at the stage of having done some different brown basecoats (to add some variety to the wooden frame) washes and maybe highlights too...

*Squeek*

Plagueclaw Catapult update...

2011-09-20T23:31:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

Just time for a quick update and some pics today...

After finishing my Gutter Runners/ Night Runners, I was torn between starting to paint up x20 Stormvermin and doing another warmachine. In the end I decided to do a warmachine. Although I like the SV models, I don't have enough of them to be really effective at the moment and I wanted a break from doing units of rats and do something that might be (relatively) quick.

So, the other day I started out with the new Warplightning Cannon/ Plague Claw Catapult box. Inside are the parts to make one or the other, but it occurred to me that it must be pretty easy to make it "dual use", as I had done with my Screaming Bell/ Plague Furnace conversion.I got some comments that I could have used a much simpler approach for that conversion, so this time I tried to make things simpler, and I think I have found a way to do it.

I'll post a full entry once everything is painted-up, but I can give you the idea here.

Firstly, you'll need to clip away the wires on the front of the Warplightning cannon. Then, attach the Plague Claw Catapult basket to the back of the WLC arm.

DO NOT GLUE THE FLOORBOARDS INTO PLACE ON THE FRAME YET.
Put the whole assembly in the frame first (there is a "tall" frame configuration and a "low" frame configuration - use the "low" one.)
Make sure you don't glue the axle in place.

File away a small curve in the floorboards of the frame, so that the whole unit can rotate freely.

Finally, attach the floorboards at the "front" of the model. If you do this and you DON'T GLUE THE CREW IN PLACE (I put them separately on bases) you should be able to rotate the whole arm so it is either pointing "Forward" (towards the spikey front of the unit) as a Warplightning cannon (with the PGC basket facing downwards) OR "Backwards", (with the PGC basket facing upwards.) as in the photos below.

Warplightning cannon mode...

Plagueclaw Catapult mode...

Although at first I didn't think it looked right, I have actually come to like it more and more. After all, I'm sure that our Warlock Engineers could find a way to strengthen the WLC so it wouldn't shake itself to bits every time the PGC fired right?!

...Clan Skryre is CUNNING yes-YES?

*Squeek*

Avast me hearties!

2011-09-18T22:09:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

www.games-workshop.com

Skaven?
Galleons?
Blood, adventure and battle on the high seas?

What's the connection you may ask...

...why, of course it is the latest release from Games Workshop - Dreadfleet.

GW Describes Dreadfleet as:
"...a boxed game for two (or more) players that includes everything you need to make war on the turbulent seas of the Warhammer world. At your command are two fleets of ships - the Dreadfleet led by the Vampire Count Noctilus, aboard his gargantuan sea-hulk the Bloody Reaver, and the Grand Alliance commanded, by the Pirate Captain Jaego Roth who recently stole the Heldenhammer - the pride of the Imperial Fleet, and one of the largest galleons to ever sail the seas.

As your ships engage in furious battle, it's down to you, the fleet captain, to make important split-second decisions. Do you bring all guns to bear on the closest enemy warship, or do you sail into position for a furious broadside? What happens when the warship catches fire, or worse, the powder kegs ignite? Exactly how much punishment can your warship take before it sinks without a trace? Are those Undead seagulls or flying piranha fish? And, when all else fails, do you have the courage to ram your foe, board their ship, and engage them in a duel to the death?"

The box seems to include a fair amount of bits 'n pieces, including a gaming mat, which looks pretty good.

www.games-workshop.com

I note that the game and all the stuff that goes with it are under the "Gaming" section of the GW homepage and not under specialist games. I guess that means you will be able to play it in a GW retail store (unlike some games, like Blood Bowl, which some stores *cough* Jinbocho Tokyo *cough* won't allow you to play on their premises...)

The Dreadfleet page has all the details. If you are interested don't forget that Dreadfleet is only available "While stocks last" (hence the hourglass symbol on the images above.)

It all looks pretty cool, but I have to say that I am probably not the kind of player who would be into this... ...until I noticed one of the ships that seems to come with the set, and which can only belong to the Children of the Horned Rat:

It is some kind of sea-going blindworm? Surely only Clan Moulder would have the ability (and talent pool of the likes of Throt the Unclean or Skweel Gnawtooth) to turn one of these enormous beasts to their foul purpose. (I love the way the beast appears to be led on by the glowing Warpstone brazier attached to its forehead!)

Which brings me finally to Clan Skurvy, the pirate ratmen!
I have heard that more detail for these terrors of the high seas can be found in the book, "Uniforms and Heraldry of the Skaven". I don't have it, but I hope to lay my hands on it soon. Even without the book though, interested Warlords, (or should that be Admirals?) can find more info around the net. GW in fact has an article on one pirate clan, Clan Skurvy. Click below to find out more:
Chris Peach's Clan Skurvy.

I really like the colour-scheme and it would be pretty cool to add a unit of these nasty-looking lads to my own Warlord Clan. Not only would they liven up my army with a different colour, but also for the fun fluff: cutlasses, eye patches and braces of pistols would be great! (No doubt there wouldn't be any parrots - far to tasty a snack to last long, and repeating "Pieces of Warpstone, Pieces of Warpstone!" would surely mark anything down for a messy death.)

Has anyone got any plans to buy Dreadfleet? Or has anyone played it? Let me know.

Cheers,

*Squeek*

The Gutter Runners Join the Ranks...

2011-09-06T22:01:00.001+09:00

*Squeek*

Just a quick post today to follow-up on the Night Runner/ Gutter Runner painting guide I posted the other day...

...pics have now been added to my Warlord Clan Page.

So, what's next?

My first Plagueclaw Catapult? (At least one of my likely opponents is a High-Elf player...)
A second Warplightning Cannon?
A small unit of Storm Vermin? (x20)

In a way I want to avoid the StormVermin until I can afford to get another 20 or so. I'm not sure just having my current 20 on the field will be much use...

...what do you other Warlords think?

Cheers,

*Squeek*

How to Paint Skaven Night Runners/ Gutter Runners

2011-09-03T23:43:00.001+09:00

*Squeek*

My Clan Eshin troops have arrived and are now ready to join my Clan. Below you will find a guide to painting up the most common troops of that mysterious clan of assassins, the Night Runners.

At time of writing, these come in a boxed set of 20 plastic figures. One thing to note is that under the 8th edition rules, Night Runners are not very popular on the battlefield. Many warlords seem to view them as overpriced (in points terms) and not as flexible or as lethal as Gutter Runners. For this reason and because of the high price of Gutter Runner models (which come in a small blister pack with only 3 models in) many warlords will use NR models as "counts as" GRs. (After seeking the agreement of their opponent of course!)

Why this lengthy preamble in a "How to paint" guide? Well, intending to use these models as either NRs or GRs, I have gone for a darker colour scheme than I would have done if I was only going to use them as NRs. In fact in friendly games I may even use one or two of the models as Assassins, so the less colourful the better I reckon!

Step 1: preparing the model.

- After assembling each model, file off any excess plastic ("flash").
- Carefully paint PVA glue onto the bases and around the feet of the character.
- Immediately dip into modelling sand, remove and let stand until dry.
- Remove excess sand by tapping the base of the model.

Step 2. Undercoat.

- Undercoat all models using Citadel Chaos Black spraypaint (or equivalent).

Step 3. Basecoat.

The following citadel colours were used.
- Base top: Calthan Brown (overbrush or drybrush over sand)
- Base edges: Vermin Brown.
- Fur; Vermin Brown or Calthan Brown.
- Weapons/ studs; Boltgun Metal.
- Pouches; Calthan Brown.
- Leather Caps; Calthan Brown/ Snakebite Leather mix (1:1)
- Bandages/ straps (where tiger-claws are on hands); Calthan Brown/ Bleached Bone mix (1:1)
- Skin (Face/ Hands); Tallarn Flesh/ Dwarf Flesh mix (1:1)
Note: Leave cape/ armour/ trousers and boots untouched and in the Chaos Black undercoat for the time being.

Tip 1: To save time, on a unit of Skaven I usually leave 25% of the unit with black fur (the Chaos Black undercoat), and do 25% with Calthan Brown fur, and the remaining 50% with Vermin Brown fur (or another brown). This also adds a bit of variety to the colouring of the unit.
Tip 2: To save even MORE time, consider using the tip above, but just roughly drybrushing the fur instead of actually painting it. If you do this as the very FIRST basecoat, it doesn't matter if you accidentally drybrush other bits of the model brown because you will be tidying up as you go along.

Step 4: Washes.
- Fur: Devlan Mud.
- Skin: Ogryn Flesh.
- Weapons: Devlan Mud.
- Weapons: (after Devlan Mud is dry) A very watered-down Solar Macharius Orange wash, stippled on, and dabbed off with a tissue while wet. (For better effect, once the first wash is dry, stipple on another layer)

Step 5. Drybrushing.
- Fur: Depending on the fur colour you originally used, very lightly drybrush a lighter shade of that colour.
E.g. Vermin Brown? Vermin Brown/ Skull White mix (80:20).
Calthan Brown? Calthan Brown/ Skull White mix (80:20).
Etc.
- Black clothes, armour, trousers etc: Codex Grey/Chaos Black mix (80:20)
-Skin/ tail: Dwarf Flesh.
- Base: Calthan Brown/ Snakebite Leather: (50:50 mix)

Step 6: Highlights.
- Eyes: A dot of Blood Red
- Teeth: Bleached Bone (gently running your brush along the teeth is easier than trying to pick out each tooth one-by-one IMHO.)
- Edges of pouches/ Leather Straps: Snakebite Leather.
- Weapon edges: Boltgun Metal or Chainmail.

Step 7: Final Basing.
- Brush small areas of PVA glue onto the base.
- Dip into flock to simulate grass or apply electrostatic grass clumps if preferred.

Done!

Let me know if you have any suggestions for improvement of course!

Cheers,
*Squeek*

Gripes, Groans and Great Blogs...

2011-08-30T22:47:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

There are lots of blogs out there to enjoy about Warhammer and tabletop wargaming, but one my favorites is "Fields of Blood".
Always a good read.
Always thoughtful.
Always well-written.

Recently, I particularly enjoyed two posts there by Pete Dunn, a NZ based tournament player, organizer and blogger.

The first was about how the recent change in GW policy that restricts internet retailers selling GW products outside of certain zones has resulted in loss of revenue for GW. You can find that here:
"Scorched Earth or How GW Managed to Destroy $1000 of Sales"

I highly recommend you visit Fields of Blood and go back there to enjoy the posts and other content.
That particular post allowed me to give vent to some of my own recent feelings about Citadel FineSHAFT and the policy mentioned above, which I put up as a comment (great comments and contributions from people on the post above btw), but which I shall include here...(Read the post at the link above first for context.)
--------------
"Great points here and a great discussion!
Living in Tokyo I had shared my money between the local GW operation and also international suppliers until the recent imposition of martial law by GW. I have to say that since then I have become less and less sympathetic to GW recently for two reasons.

1. The "FineSHAFT" debacle. So far I haven't seen a single decent explanation from GW about the price increases for the vast majority of these items. (Jervis could have addressed this in his White Dwarf article about Finecast, but chose instead to repeat the party line.)

As examples, (and this is where I am similar to Pete in his feelings about local pricing)
- Queek Headtaker is 18.34 GBP in Japan, or 74% more than the UK. (UK price 10.50)
- Skaven Jezzail set is 55.81 GBP in Japan, or 86% more than the UK. (UK price is 30.00)
Both are more expensive than NZ (which also suffers from grossly inflated prices.)

Yes, getting these things to Japan is expensive, but hey, now that GW don't use a commodity like Tin, and considering that the materials used are so light etc. shouldn't prices be MORE reasonable? Don't tell me that the incremental increase in the definition of FineSHAFT models justifies that price increase? (Although I guess the new material may had had millions of pounds-worth of R&D poured into it.
("Poured"...Geddit? Oh, nevermind.)

2. I recall that part of the GW initial argument about their "Scorched Earth" policy was about supporting local gaming bricks and mortar etc. What a surprise then to find that they have recently closed around 5 GW stores around Tokyo, retreating to their two main stores, including my local.

So, LESS support and MASSIVELY INCREASED prices.

All of this would probably be bearable if GW actually treated us like customers, rather than suckers.
How? Explain openly the ACTUAL underlying business reasons for these increases rather than pump out the marketing BS and spin we have seen to date.
OH, wait, that's RIGHT, the underlying business reasons are GREED and OPPORTUNISM, rather than better models and supporting the community, so I guess they have to resort to the party-line they have used so far.

Even if I am totally wrong, I still can't shake off the feeling that I am being played by GW, and I don't like it.

(Takes deep breath) Wow! Even if I am totally wrong, I at least feel better having said this now!
Just want to finish by saying that I always valued the support of the GW shop staff, their overall friendliness and passion for the hobby, so this isn't actually directed at them."
-------------
Soooooo,
QUESTIONS:

How do you guys feel about Finecast?
What are your thoughts on the "Scorched Earth Policy" (As Pete calls it?)

The second post I am really enjoying started the other day with some some thoughts by Pete about Composition Systems for casual and tournament play. Again, a really good post, with some very interesting and thoughtful replies by readers - AND further replies by Pete.
You can read the post here:
"Comp Systems - The Case for Hard Caps"
and the follow up here:
"The Case for Hard Caps - Part Deux"
I was particularly interested in this thread because as someone who very rarely gets any games in, and who hasn't ever played in a tournament or really given this area any thought at all it got me thinking about tournaments, T.O. responsibilities and the thought and time that must go into them.

MORE QUESTIONS:

Have you played in any tournaments?
Did you enjoy them?
What do you reckon to Pete's points or the comments?
and finally, as I am enjoying reading all these other blogs so much...
What SINGLE WFB, 40K or tabletop wargaming blog would you recommend if you could only recommend ONE and it couldn't be your own?

Cheers,

*Squeek*

Clan Eshin Approaches...Can You Hear Them? (Presumably Not!)

2011-08-28T00:41:00.001+09:00

I'ze in ur base stealin' ur stuf

*Squeek*

"Yes, yes, many rumours had reached my ears through the farsqueeker that my negotiations with Clan Eshin had been troubled, but NO, for today, a set of new faces could be seen around my halls...
Clan Eshin reinforcements!
Obviously, the offer of my freshest slaves, more warptokens, 40% of all the spoils of my next campaign, and a "Favour" in the future were enough to convince the clan that they should assist me..."

So, I finally got around to doing a couple more stages on the Gutter Runners/ Night Runners I put together a few weeks ago.
- Removing mould lines (filing)
- Adding modelling sand to the bases (painting on PVA glue to the bases, and then dipping in sand.)

- Undercoat with Citadel Chaos Black spraypaint.

I'm hoping that it won't take me too long to finish off these guys as much of their uniform will be dark colours or black anyway. (famous last words.)
I'll try to put up some shots of them once I have finished the basic colours...

*Squeek*

New Forge World Skaven Models

2011-08-24T22:19:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*
OK, let me be totally honest with you - I don't know how new they are exactly, but I just came across a link to these the other day and they are new to me at least!

MASSIVE "Want"!

Skaven Exalted Vermin Lord. (Copyright Warhammer Forge)

Skaven Brood Horror (Copyright Warhammer Forge)

For more images of these kits, please visit the Warhammer Forge site.

If you aren't familiar with Forge World (and therefore Warhammer Forge) now might be a good time to check them out. Basically they make high quality resin kits for the various GW systems such as 40K and (now) Warhammer Fantasy Battles.

This includes:
- Conversion kits for vehicles. (40K)
- Supersize models such as Titans (40K) and Giants etc. (WFB)
- 100% new vehicle types (40K and WFB)
- 100% new troop types (Chaos Dwarves!) and models. (40K and WFB)
- Monsters (WFB)
- Terrain. (40K and WFB)
- Experimental rules sets for some of the above. (Visit their website for more info about these.)
- Beautifully illustrated books covering every detail of specific 40K campaigns.

Thanks to some trading and the generosity of my gaming colleagues, I have an Imperial Armour book (it is F.A.B.) and also a set of "Hazard"XV-9 Close Support Armour for my Tau (since getting into WFB I haven't painted these though...)

Forge World "Hazard XV-9" Tau armour
(Copyright Forge World)

Some things to bear in mind about FW models and ranges:

These aren't cheap! (Rightly, many would argue, considering the size and quality.)
You would usually need to check first with an opponent whether you can use a Forgeworld model in a game, as their rules are not contained in Army Books etc. (Most people would usually be fine with you using a model to stand-in for GW model, after all, Forge World are part of GW, but is is the rules that you need to confirm you can use.)
I understand (not having been to a tournament myself) that whether or not FW models and rules are allowed is entirely up to the "TO" (Tournament Organizer) so check with them before going to a tournament.
FW models are resin, and so if you haven't worked with resin before (like me) you may want to check out some guidelines for assembly.

I'd love to have these in my Skaven army, but thanks to other recent efforts to bolster my forces don't have the warp tokens to invest in reinforcements like this (at least, that is what the brood-queen in my clan would say...)

I can't wait to see what else comes out of Warhammer Forge!
:-)

Until next time...

*Squeek*

I'm a slave...

2011-08-20T21:05:00.000+09:00

...to painting slaves.

From Warhammer Online Wikia

*Squeek*

I haven't done any painting for a long time, so it was with horror that I opened my "Clan cupboard" and realized I must still have a good 70 to 100 figures left to paint (and a couple of warmachines too) before my clan is truly finished.

Having purchased some Night Runners I got good advice that I should paint them up quick because they are so useful (as Gutter Runners). However, after assembling them and taking a look at my horde I realized that my slaves are still far too few in number to be really useful...and as everyone seems to think that it is slaves that are actually our most important unit I thought I should buff up my unit size a bit first.

If you take a look over at my clan you can see that I use previous edition Clanrat models as slaves. I really much prefer the Island of Blood clannies, so use them as my core troops. (I think the older generation look really weak and slave-like compared to them.)
So here they are!

I think they have come out OK, considering that painting these models is actually a bit of a chore and I didn't lavish too much attention on them.

Some errors I made, mainly through laziness, that could/ should be avoided in future:

1. As I have had these undercoated and lying on the shelf for ages I didn't check that they had been carefully sanded to remove mould-lines/ flash. If you look closely it really shows. These older models in particular suffer from this is on the:

a.) Feet.
b.) Spearheads. Particularly along the back ridge of the spear.
c.) Shoulders. The pauldrons in particular.

2. When buying these older models secondhand (especially from eBay) always check with the seller that you are going to get the tails. Many of my lot are missing tails and it annoys me now. (I tell myself that in my clan, slaves are punished by having their tails clipped off. Or they lose them in fighting? Or perhaps sell them in exchange for food?)

3. Overexuberant rust washes! This is a Solar Macharius Orange that has been heavily watered down, but it looks way to "orangey"...

4. At the time I added sand to the bases before undercoating the model, I wasn't careful enough about the application of glue. Most of these models have sand on their feet. It doesn't sound like a big problem but actually it makes painting the feet a lot harder - and it looks bad.

I used the save overall techniques as used before in my Clanrats/ Slaves 4th Generation Guide but with the addition of a Solar Macharius Wash to get the rust effect.

So...now that I have done another 21, that brings my number of slaves to 51. I can increase that number another 40 by taking out one of my 3 units of 40 clanrats, but I really should consider painting up another 50 actual slaves.

Gutter Runners next I reckon, as they should add a whole level of new tactical options to my horde.

*Squeek*

New enemies to kill kill?!

2011-08-13T11:51:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*
They may squash us, they may eats us, but they will never defeats us!

...the tunnels are abuzz with rumours of new tall things, shortly to arrive from their mountain fastnesses.
...our brothers in Clan Eshin have sent many scratchings and whisperings to beware of BIG ONE reinforcements - whisperings that any Skaven Warlord would be wise to heed, judging by the images being disseminated!

See below - burn them into your memories - for soon we shall learn all about them and discuss ways to bring them to their knees for the Great Horned Rat!

Die big things! DIE!

*Squeek*

Goodbye Games Workshop...

2011-08-10T22:16:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

I hope I haven't got this wrong...

...but I was sorry to hear from the manager of my local GW here in a suburb of Tokyo that they, and four other GW branches, will be shut down in the next few weeks. I had popped in to buy some new brushes, "magic sauce" (Devlan Mud) and the latest edition of White Dwarf when I was told.

I wasn't really concentrating too hard on the Japanese used at the time, as I had a long day at work, but it only struck me later that maybe the manager was talking about being closed over the Obon Holiday period? However, one thing that makes me think I heard the manager right was that I notice on their store locator page they now list only 2 GW Hobby Centres (Jinbocho and Nakano).

As some of you will remember, after the big earthquake I wrote in to GW to see if all the staff were fine and was relieved to hear that they were. I don't know if I heard right and the store really is closing permanently, but IF so, I hope that the employees at those stores will keep their jobs elsewhere within the organization. They were always exceptionally polite and helpful.

お疲れさまでした！

Domo-Kun salutes you GW Machida

In other news, the GW Japan website has moved over to the Games Workshop UK site in look and feel, and all access is now being redirected there from Japan.

*Squeek*

Army Lists page added - comments please!

2011-08-04T22:53:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

A group of Snotlings gamely take on a Clanrat unit...

As many of you will know, I have not been much of a general so far...
...to my shame, not enough battles, and pretty much NO wins!

HOWEVER, I am getting more interested in playing more games now. I now feel I have enough troops painted to swap in and out units to vary my army and play at a wide range of points (Up to around 2500-3000 I guess...)

So I have created an Army Lists Page - you can see the link at the top. I have just added an army I threw together in Army Builder the other day. I would be very grateful if people could comment on these lists when I put them up - but please:

...read the list carefully before commenting and note what I am trying to do with the list. e.g. The first list is a "General" list for taking on all-comers, and NOT a particular enemy army, so when commenting, please think about whether it could serve in that role!
...bear in mind that I am not a competitive gamer, so none of the lists I post are aimed at winning tournaments or competitions.
...understand that even if you aren't a fan of using software personally to build army lists (and there may be errors) I find it convenient to use such software, and I play with a group of friends who don't mind the odd error or two in points totals!
...try to provide constructive criticism rather than just point out weaknesses. If you have a recommendation, why would you recommend a unit etc? (I have been very happy to recently receive comments and emails from people like me who are beginners with Skaven, and who enjoy The Chattering Horde as they find it helpful. Building army lists is one area we beginners could certainly do with some input and help!

So, do please hop on over to the Army Lists Page, take a look and let me know what you think of the list(s)!

Cheers,
*Squeek*

Micro Art Studio Ancient Base...

2011-07-31T13:28:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

"Wait? Do you hear it?
What is that sound??

Yes, YES! It is the skittering of verminous feet over the tumbled ruins of our defeated enemies. Could there be any sound more joyous to the ears of the Children of the Horned Rat??"

(Apart, possibly from hearing the lamentation of their women)

Actually, that sound was the paws the delivery man upon the stone floor of my chamber as he backed out of my presence, having just delivered a package to my lair. A package containing a 50x50mm "Ancient Base", manufactured by Micro Art Studio in Poland. (Some of you will remember that this is the base that was arranged for me by Maelstrom Games as they had sent me a model without a base, necessitating a long and drawn-out series of emails about a replacement. My thanks to Tim at Maelstrom for sorting this out - much appreciated.)

Here are a couple of photos:

Now, I doubt that I will be able to paint this up to the level found in the image on the Micro Art Studio website...

Image from Micro Art Studio

...but I am excited to get hold of this as I think it will go really well with Scar-Scath, who I will be using as the Verminlord for my Skaven army. If I can get it right I think it will look great to have him standing over the ruins of a fallen race, perhaps with some Skaven or Giant rats scurrying forward at his command!
;-)

A word on the manufacturer. If you haven't already done so, definitely jump over to Micro Art Studio. I haven't used anything of theirs before, but from what I can see they have an amazing range of high-quality bases to fit just about any scenario or need. I am particularly interested in the range of movement trays. I tend to make up my own by there are times when something that looks really professional would be just right, such as a centerpiece unit or for a unit with a special character etc. (You can also purchase Micro Art Products from Maelstrom Games too.)

To the guy(s?) at Micro Art Studio - great job!
To Tim at Maelstrom - thanks again for sorting this out!

Now, let me slink back to my broken throne and return to my thoughts of domination and warpstone (and cheese, as teatime approaches...)

*Squeek*

Wannabe Ninjas or "Stinking death from above"? Decisions, decisions....

2011-07-27T13:36:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

I've been away from my Clan for a long time...but now I have returned and (having first offed a couple of would be upstart warlords) it is now time to add some new capabilities to my growing horde.

The question is, what capabilities do I wish to add first?

The choices are...(don't worry about the warptokens...)
a.) Night Runners/ Gutter Runners.
or
b.) Plagueclaw Catapult.

Considering my current warlord clan units I can see some positives for either of these.

The Night Runner regiment seems to be a typical unit of skirmishers, with pretty average stats. I have never tried them, but from reading around some options seem to be:
+ Useful for racing across the field to complicate enemy battleplans?
+ Handy for trying to get to enemy war machines?
+ Ranged attacks with slings? (can you poison them?)
+ Tunneling with a warp-grinder and popping up behind enemy lines?
+ Hiding an assassin? (they seem like a low-threat unit so would probably be ignored by some enemies.)
+ Can be used as Gutter Runners in friendly games and would then get the "Sneaky Infiltrators" rule, allowing them to come on from any table-edge at some point during the game. An opponent knowing this might keep a unit back to protect any warmachines on his backlines, giving him less combat strength against my core units.

On the other hand, even the GW website says "These units of fast skirmishers are notorious for the low survivability of their troops". (Yes, I know that this is based mainly on the back story for the unit as only individuals who survive in this unit make their way to the Gutter Runners, but still...)
- Expensive?
- Low survivability?

The Plagueclaw Catapult would add another long range death-dealing Skryre device to my arsenal. I already have a Warplightning cannon but am interested in the PGC for use against large, low-toughness blocks of enemy infantry such as High Elves or Gobbos...
+ No armour saves allowed (against the toxic splash. Mmmmm, yummy.)
+ Causes panic
+ Large template
+ Can also be used as a Warplightning cannon (with a bit of careful modelling.)
but...
- inaccurate?
- strength 2?
- a misfire of 3-5 allows your opponent to place the template anywhere...and that will cause some major havoc on our own (low toughness) troops.

Any thoughts? Have you had any successes with either of these units? I'd like to hear from anyone who has any ideas.

*Squeek*
p.s. At the moment my likely (regular) opponents are Orcs, Gobbos and High Elves.

Conversion for Dual Use Plague Furnace/ Screaming Bell Kit

2011-07-11T05:50:00.001+09:00

*Squeek*
Hello my fellow Warlords. This entry in the Chattering Horde is for your beady eyes only - NOT for the man things, as in this entry we will look at a relatively easy way to keep your Screaming Bell kit as "Dual Use".

As you will know, the kit contains parts for both models, but usually, people use it as one or the other. Of course, using parts located on the scavenge pile of the inter-tunnels, you could always scrounge spare parts, but why do that? Especially when even without Warlock Engineer skills or Clan Skryre ingenuity you can achieve the same end? Yes, yes, you see it now!

So how do we achieve this? Arm yourself with a craft-knive, some plastic glue and a bit of patience, and read on!

WARNING: Before anything else, just remember that you are NOT going to glue the Bell or the Plague censer axle between the two stone columns on the platform.

BELL RINGER CONVERSION:

1. Locate the Rat-ogre bell puller.
2. Carefully cut away part of the circle at the end of his chain, in a direction towards the bell puller. This cut should allow you to clip the part onto the end (axle) of the bell.

3. OPTIONAL: As you aren't going to glue the bell-ringer's chain to the axle of the Screaming Bell (you will just gently clip it on and unclip it) you may find that you may need to add a bit of weight to the bottom of the bell-ringer's platform. This is because otherwise the weight of the bell can pull the platform up in the air. I used a couple of spare bits from some Tau XV Broadside models, but I'm guessing that a couple of coins in the right place would do the trick. Image below:

4. Clip the chain onto the axle of the bell to use!

To convert the Plague Censer, there are two steps. The first is to convert the axle on the plague censer, the second is to convert the chain pulled by the Plague monk team that mans the equipment. See below some photos and more information.

PLAGUE CENSER AXLE CONVERSION:
1. You are going to make an extension of the Plague censer axle. Take 4 parts of sprue.

2. You are going to cut two equal lengths and glue these to the Plague censer axle. They will need to be a few centimeters long and at one end be joined so that the Plague Censer swinging team can clip their chain to it (see below). You will see in the picture below that I have scored the sprue parts and added some chips. Once painted this will help these parts look more like lengths of wood.

PLAGUE MONK TEAM CONVERSION:
There are two parts to this. The first is to work on the chain. The second is to make a new platform for the Plague Monks (because the platform supplied with the kit is being used by the Rat Ogre bell ringer!)

1. As with the Rat Ogre conversion (above) we need to make sure we can easily clip the chain of the plague monk team on and off the new axle that we added above.
2. Carefully cut open the circle at the end of the chain that the Plague Monk crew are holding. The picture below will give you an idea of the size and angle of the cuts to make.

3. Using the platform that is supplied with the kit as a model in terms of size, cut a new platform for the Plague Monk crew from plasticard or any other fairly thin board/ card. You will then need to glue the monks to their new platform. Using a craftknife, score the surface of the platform so that when painted it will feel more like wood than smooth plastic. (The image below isn't ideal, but should give you an idea of this!)

You're done! Now you can exchange the Screaming Bell and Plague censer depending on your battle needs! The images below should help you see how the final pieces all go together. A few words of caution - treat these conversions with care and be careful when substituting the different parts. (The chains in particular are fragile).

Hope this is useful - go forth and be victorious!
*Squeeeeeek*

Maelstrom Games Customer Service update.

2011-07-02T23:04:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

It's been a long time since I've been on the Chattering Horde due to work and other commitments, but I thought I should post an update on the problems I had been having with Maelstrom over the fact that they had sent me an incomplete shipment.

In mid-June, a Maelstrom employee, Tim, left a message on the post where I had complained about their poor service, encouraging me to get in touch.

To cut a long story short I:
...received a full explanation of the reason for the problem.
"I'm sorry that up to now you have a bad experience with customer support from Maelstrom Games. This isn't the experience we want our customers to have. "

...was offered a solution.
"In your case I'd like to offer you an quick solution as it sounds like you really need that base - something I sympathise with, it isn't an ideal situation and I can only apologise."

...was dealt with in a timely and courteous manner.
"Needless to say that you can be sure that I treat this issue with the up most importance and I will personally make sure that a replacement base is issued."

...was informed of the follow-up action that would take place.
"Needless to say that you can be sure that I treat this issue with the up most importance and I will personally make sure that a replacement base is issued."

All good so far. I have taken up Maelstrom and Tim on their offer, and I hope that I will be able to report to you soon that all is well once the item I ordered is in my cold, clammy paws.

Thanks to Tim for making the effort to get in touch, and also for trying to resolve the issue. All I need now is to receive the item I ordered and all will be well! (Ironically, the item I asked for was also out of stock, but I hope that it won't take too long...)

When I get the item, I'll post another update.

In the meantime...

*Squeek*

Skaven - Slayer Sword Winning Diorama at Games Day France.

2011-06-04T18:46:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*
Sniff, sniff, a tear comes to my beady (jaundiced) eye to see this. This amazing diorama took home a prize at Games Day France...

From www.games-workshop.com

As the blog says at GW, there is just so much detail to admire in this piece. I love the added parts on the Screaming Bell and the fact that there is someone (or something) in the sewer to the right? (Can't see clearly because of the angle of the photo.)

To see this diorama and other really cool models from the France Games Day scurry (or slink, depending on your clan) over to the Games Workshop blog to see this diorama in more detail. The link is here.

Congratulations to Remy Tremblay!

*Squeek*

Maelstrom Games - Please fix your customer service.

2011-05-29T17:46:00.000+09:00

*Squeek*

An unusual post this, and not one that I write lightly.

Many of you will know Maelstrom Games. A fine company that was recommended to me, from whom I have purchased several items, and whom I have recommended to others on account of their good prices and the excellent service they provide. (Although sadly, thanks to a new misguided policy from Games Workshop I am unable to buy any GW models from them from now on.)

Longtime readers of this blog may remember that I am a fan of Maelstrom's Bane Lords/ Bane Legions range. In a post dated December 19th, 2010, I took a look over some of the amazing new models that Maelstrom Games was putting out in their Bane Beasts range, including the incredibly cool Scar-Scath, Fiend of Vermin. I was very positive both about how good the range looked and the painting. Subsequently I was thrilled to receive comments on that blog from Ben Komets, who painted some of the models in the range, and also Rob Lane from Maelstrom Games.

In February, I placed my order online for Scar-Skath and duly received the model.

For some months since, I have been in touch with customer service at Maelstrom Games as I am unhappy with the item I received. Why? Well, after receiving the model, I noticed that it didn't contain a base.

"Didn't contain a base? Surely a trivial thing?" you may say.

Well, not really. To my mind I paid for an item that included something, and that something wasn't there. The entry for this model on the website contains the following text:

"contents:
this contains
1x Scar-scath, Fiend of Vermin 1x Head
1x 50x50mm base"

I decided to contact Maelstrom customer service and request the base. Since then I have been in touch with Maelstrom and there have been some 9 emails back and forth on this.
Here's the history.

February 13th 2011. I place an order for Scar-Scath with Maelstrom. As usual, excellent online service, a decent discount (Free postage!) and immediate email confirmation.
Feb. 15th 2011. Order despatched. Good job Maelstrom - nice and fast!
Feb. 28th 2011. Scar-Scath arrives, and is unboxed! (Sense my happiness here.) Due to work I didn't have to time to start on the model. I notice a few days later that there is no base.
March 4th. 2011. I write a polite email to Maelstrom, see below. (ME=Squeek, MS= Maelstrom. Note that I have not included the rep's name as this is a public post, but it was included in all correspondence.

-----------
ME: (Mar. 4th 2011)
Dear Maelstom Games,

Hi there.

I received the Scar- Scath model and I am very excited, it looks great. However, although the website says that this model contains a 50mm base no base was in the box upon arrival. Could I ask you to send the base to the address in my order confirmation email below please?

Thank you in advance.

Best regards,
----------
MS: (Mar. 5th)
Hi, Sorry the website is a little pre-emptive, the bases aren't available yet, sorry about that.
----------
ME: (Mar. 5)
Dear ...,

Thanks for your reply. I appreciate you getting back to me, but I can't tell from your answer when the bases will be available or whether you will send one to me when they come out.

Could you let me know please?

Thank you and best regards,

------------

MS: (Mar. 10)
If you want we can indeed send it on when they come in.

----------
ME: (Mar. 11)
Dear ...,

Thank you very much for your reply - I appreciate it.

I would definitely like you to send it on please. Do you have any idea whether we are talking days? weeks? etc. until the come into stock?

Thank you again for your reply.

Best regards,

-----------

NO reply from MS at this point. A month later I therefore send a reminder email:

----------
ME: (April 14th)
Dear ...,

I hope you are well.

Is there any update on when the base that was missing from the Scar Skath model that I purchased will be in stock or when you would be able to send it to me? It has been over a month since the model arrived.

Thank you very much and best regards,
----------------

MS: (April 19th)
Hi,

We have just started getting them cast by the resin guys, one should be on it's way asap.

--------------

ME: (April 20th)
Dear ...,
Thanks for the info and the update.

Best Regards,
---------------

Having not received anything since that date and after waiting one month, I sent this.

ME. (May 22nd)
Dear Maelstrom Games,

Hi there.

I am still waiting to receive the base for the Scar Scath model that was missing from the box that I was sent in February. One month ago I was told that the base that accompanies Scar-Scath "...should be on it's way asap", but it still hasn't arrived. Since receiving the model in February I have asked several times about this item. (see emails above.)

I am a big fan of your site and your models, but I feel as though I am being given the run around. While it may not seem to be a particularly important issue (the model itself isn't damaged or other parts missing etc.) the model, for which I paid in full, should be shipped as advertised, including a base.

Please confirm the status of this item and when I can receive it.

Thank you for your time and I hope to hear from you soon.

Best regards,
------------------

Sadly, I have received no answer to that email either.

So, I find myself writing this post on my blog. What do I want? Just the missing piece, sent to me.

Let me be clear about a few things.
a.) Mistakes happen all the time. We are human. No problems. The fact that the item as ordered was missing something isn't a big deal...the problem is the subsequent lack of contact and a failure to follow-up/ provide resolution.
b.) I believe I have at all times been polite and been in touch with Maelstrom to seek resolution. A lack of response is not only unprofessional, it is rude.
c.) I paid for something that didn't get sent to me. Why should I go to the additional hassle of finding an alternative base or making me own?

Let me finish by saying again that I don't want any problems for the customer service rep at Maelstrom, I just want the missing piece. There are thousands of satisfied Maelstrom customers out there and I have been one of them. I wish to continue to use Maelstrom (even if I can't buy GW from them) The fact that I am writing this blog post shows that I care about Maelstrom's business.

Scar-Scath sits unpainted on my shelf.

Damn shame about that.

*Squeek*