It occurs to me...

...that I really should be updating this blog more and providing more actual content (including the rants and opinions promised in the header).

Thing is, I'm having one of my frequent creative motivation fails due to combinations of work stress, tiredness and other stuff I won't go into here. I want to paint and stick and convert stuff (I know all you modern hipster kids use more exciting terms like "kit-bashing" now, but to me it's "conversion", always has been always will be... :P ) but the motivation to actually do so just isn't there.

I need an incentive. Something to really aim for.
What I need is the definite promise that I'll get a battle once I have x points* of Orks/Marines/Chaos/Flying Monkeys painted.
So the next step is to find someone willing to make that committment... I am a modern man, and not afraid of such things, but I'm aware that it's a big step for some.

*Only experienced wannabe intellectuals should use algebraic terms in the course of normal writing. Do not try this at home, kids.

Space Wolf Army List

HQ
Battle Leader "Veidulfr"	95
Frost Axe	15
Saga of the Hunter	10
Elite
Lone Wolf "Einarr"	55
Power Sword	15
2 Fenrisian Wolves	20
Troops
7 Grey Hunters	195
Plasma Gun	10
Power Fist	25
Drop Pod w/ Deathwind	55
8 Blood Claws	150
Power Sword	15
Plasma Pistol	15
Flamer	free
Total	495

D&D Miniatures

So, I now have the miniatures to paint up for the rest of the party... well, kind of. The Sister of Sigmar I was intending to convert into a Cleric is still MIA, but I do have the Paladin (Reiksguard Knight on foot) and Rogue (that Mordheim Kislevite ranger with the ridiculous tits) ready and awaiting undercoat.

Space Wolves

Got the new Codex yesterday, plus a box of power armoured Wolves...

I now have a Wolf Guard Battle Leater with frost axe, a Lone Wolf with power sword, 5 Grey Hunters and 5 Blood Claws... I've got enough left over to make another three or four models if I can find some damned legs for them. I think an army may be on the cards. And a proper one at that, not the aforementioned use-the-bits-to-convert-Wolfy-looking-Chaos-Marines (which may still come later 'cause it's an awesome idea).

Of course dopey twunt that I am it turns out that at some point I demolished the Games Day 2003 Wolf Priest for a conversion that never happened. Go me.

Fallen Angels and The Bloodied Host of Lord Khazak

Having recently finished reading Fallen Angels, the latest book in the Horus Heresy series, I have been inspired to make a small squad of these betrayed and tragic figures which will count as a Chosen squad in any Chaos Marine army I care to create.

Fallen Angels colour scheme

Also revisiting my planned Space Wolf-esque traiors, the Bloodied Host of Lord Khazak... having been a follower of Nurgle for many years I've recently become rather disillusioned by the increasing cartooniness of the miniatures workshop are releasing, and so my focus has turned to Khorne... a much misunderstood god in that most people focus on the "me big warrior kill lots people" stuff and don't look at Khorne as also being the embodiment of martial pride and the "warrior code". In much the same fashion people tend to focus on Slaanesh being all about sex, Nurgle being all about disease and Tzeentch being all about magic without bothering to explore the deeper aspects of each god... this isn't actually helped by Workshop themselves focussing on these things. For example, if I were to do a Slaaneshi army the focus would be extreme narcissism... hmmm, Brotherhood of Narcissus. Space Marines as the embodiment of physical perfection... I wonder how easiy it would be to scuplt a muscle curass for a Marine?

Anyway, I digress... the Bloodied Host of Lord Khazak... basically a rogue Wolf Lord who thought the Space Wolves were soft because they were not all at war all the time. So he and his great company buggered off, and over the years ended up worshipping Khorne. The force is rapidly diminishing as warriors die but they will not stop until there are none left standing. Pumped full of combat drugs the warriors of the Bloodied Host never cease their endless war against everybody and each battle is remembered in songs which are sung as the warriors march forward. Just lately a squad of Fallen Angels has been fighting alongside them, fine warriors with skills honed over 10,000 years of war... but why have they joined the Host? What is their agenda?

Bloodied Host of Lord Khazak colour scheme

Torin Underk

Torin (front)
Originally uploaded by Mr. Dreadful

Sent forth by the clan to make sure Dorrick doesn't get himself into too much trouble...

Dorrick Hargrimsson

Dorrick (front)
Originally uploaded by Mr. Dreadful

A hard-drinking, bad-tempered Dwarf Ranger. Dorrick dislikes authority and tradition and ended up becoming a caver, patrolling the area around his ancestral home fighting oozes, orcs and anything else that happened to turn up. Recently he has left his home in search of adventure, a path which has taken him to the disease-stricken mining town Dovick's Pass...

D&D Miniatures

So, last night I played my first game of D&D in bloody ages... and quite enjoyable it was too. I've decided I'm going to paint up a couple of miniatures for Mrs. D and myself so we can has three-dimensional prettiness rather than card counters (which while good are gonna go manky sooner or later).

The miniatures are both dwarves and one is a Citadel dwarf with greataxe (for Mrs. D) and the other is an old Marauder dwarf with crossbow (for myself).

WIP pics to follow in the next day or two.

Pictures!

I have found the USB doohickey and now can show you pictures of my five Orks plus the WIP of Warboss Gogthug!







Hurrah!

STOMPA!

Doing more work on the ol' Stompa... more gubbinz and small arms and heads and stuff.

Also thinking I may undercoat the Snazzwagon today as it's reasonably nice out.

Five Orks Finished!

Hurrah! After much procrastinating I've finally got five whole Orks which are suitable for use on any battlefield. Again, hurrah!

I also have resumed work on my Deff Dred and have made a new bionik arm for my Warboss on account of the old one no longer being rules legal.

Unfortunately the inbuilt SD reader on my PC is a force of pure evil and decided to wipe the card rather than letting me transfer the photos of all this wonderfulness onto my harddrive.

So images of my work will have to wait.

Scenery

Intending to make some scenery this weekend. Photocopied a load of templates from ancient White Dwarfs and dug out all my foamboard.

Now I just need to work up the motiviation to actually do it.

Five Orks Nearly Done!

Wheeee! Just a bit of detail work left to do!

Then onto the next five!

No pictures though, my PC has decided it cannot read the SD card from me camera and I've lost the USB widget.

A Little Tidy Up II - The Quickening

Okay, the painting area was tidied up... and then untidied again to accommodate all the little trinkets, gewgaws and nicknacks discovered whilst tidying the spare room.

It is now tidy again.

Now I just need to attain sufficent motivation to actually paint something.

A Little Tidy Up

Lamp is still in Iszy's possession... so I'm going to tidy the painting area and set out all the stuff I'll need so at least it's ready for when I get my lamp back.

Slight Fail

Iszy needs my anglepoise lamp for her college work.

Bum.

Well, at least I've started painting. This is more than I have ever managed before.

Nearly Painted Orks and Grotz

Batch painting went reasonably well... lack of iPod and caffiene didn't help. Nor did my body's tendancy to seize up if I sit down too long. Junkfood was kinda managed but I missed getting a McAdditives breakfast due to leaving the house late (though I did manage to pick up a nummy sausage bap from BHS) and the lunch I had with Iszy was spectacularly uninspiring (it stopped me being hungry and that was about it... if only she was allowed more than 30 minutes for lunch. Ironically I get a full hour for lunch, but am too far away from town and am ususally too busy to make it worth bothering with).

It seems that 50 models was a bit much for my fist attempt at batch painting, but jumping straight in the deep end was what I needed to convince me that it's not so bad after all... if I can get some basic stuff done on 50 models in a day, fully painting ten in an afternoon should be a doddle (though still a little alien... I'm so used to taking at least two days per model).

But yes, all metals painted. Skin basecoated and washed on both sets of models. Next is clothing. This will hopefully happen today after I've been to town to pick up the Dredd Casefiles #11 and the rest of Gutsville.

Undercoated Orks

I has undercoated my Shoota Boyz and Gretchin... all ready for batch painting on Friday.

50 models in one day? Ambitious, but I reckon as long as I have my iPod, caffiene and junkfood I'll manage.

Squeeeeeeeee!

Of course the stupid bloody thing eats up the side bar... oh well. Once I've got a few more posts here it won't be a problem.

Imperial Guard

Yeah.

I'm supposed to be doing Space Marines and Orks.

But I've also been re-reading the Gaunt's Ghosts novels having finally got my hands on copies of First and Only and Honour Guard that weren't part of collected editions.

And whenever I read Gaunt's Ghosts I want to do Imperial Guard.

I should probably finish my Orks first though.

A Small Change of Direction

This really isn't working as an army building blog; partly because I keep procrastinating and buying new shinies instead of working on the ones I already have, and party because my free time is often taken up by other things (far too often at the moment: crashing in front of the TV because w*rk has fried my brain yet again).

So I have expanded the purpose of this blog to include more general wargaming type stuff... rants, opinions, pictures of soon-to-be-released shinies... and maybe some of it will have nothing to do with Warhammer 40,000. Anyone who wishes to know more about my life outside wargaming should read The Extraordinary Adventures of Mr. Dreadful, available from all good internet connections.

I Broke Again...

I bought Gretchin.

And Stormboyz.

Bad Doug, no cookie.

But luckily there's lots of time to get stuff painted before the Stompa comes out.

Batch Painting Ahoy!

Right, I am booked in for an all-day batch painting session with Jeff at my local GW on the 30th of this month.

I will paint an army dammit!

In other news the 2nd wave Orks are out, and I broke. I bought a Battlewagon, Kaptin Badrukk and 2 Nobz Mobz. I am bad, but at least I bought them with Christmas money.