Ev's Challenge - The Final Chapter

So the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge has come to an end for another year. And what a ride it's been! I've minioned for the first time (big shout-out to the Wednesday Warriors!), and I've produced a varied assembly of fantasy figures.

So what have I learned?

• Preparation, above all. While I could get away with doing things on the fly in previous years, work commitments plus the weekly minioning meant that I really should have gone in with a proper plan. I'm severely ADHD and a worrier by nature, so lack of preparation really is the enemy.

• Try and vary the subject matter. I have so many historical, 40K and horror figs still in the lead mountain, yet this time round it was almost all fantasy, and I think this got me in a bit of a rut. 

• Realistic targets. After last year, when I actually cracked 500 points, I thought I could do the same again. Not so, topped out at 479, worse luck! Time and resources are limited, and I have to take this into account next time.

Anyway, enough of the self-reproach, here's the last of my submissions for Challenge IX!

 An Oldhammer-ish Witch Hunter, a figure from the old Warhammer Quest boardgame. I have a lot of affection for these old sculpts.

A command section for a unit of Sun Dome Templars, the elite pikemen of RuneQuest's cult of Yelmalio. Aventine Miniatures Tarentine Phalanx, repurposed for Glorantha.

A terrain entry, a ruined Gloranthan temple to the River God Zola Fel. Despite its desolate and desert appearance, it was entered in the 'Water Feature' bonus round on the basis of its frescoes.

The remainder of the Sun Dome unit. I do like how they turned out!

A Reaper Bones Griffin - Reaper has given price-conscious gamers a cheap and easy way to get big flashy monsters onto the tabletop, and I am very happy with this big guy.

Here's the last of my Dwarven Blood Bowl team, the Durinhold Tectonics. Finally, they can compete in the big leagues! 1990s sculpts from Citadel's Gary Morley, loads of character.

Reaper Bones Brain-In-A-Jar™, aka Mr Akeley. This one, and the Mi-Go, were the only non-fantasy entries in my Challenge. Really have to mix things up a bit more next time...

Following up from the unfortunate Mr Akeley, my Curtgeld submission, Gazzzz, the Fungi From Gorgoroth. A cosplaying cosmic horror mashup from the pages of Lovecraft and Tolkien. In keeping with the Challenge's theme, 'Fellowship', he's a Tolkien villain as well as a constant trial to his long-suffering co-worker Bazzzz. Reaper Bones again, with some GW Black Orc and Gripping Beast add-ons!

And that's it from me for this year's Challenge. Will I still be painting and modelling outside Challenge times? I only produced one figure between Challenges VIII and IX; I think I should try and increase my output a bit and see if I can maintain some momentum. It's just wasteful having so many unpainted figs lying around!

So stay tuned...

Ev

Ev's Challenge - The Saga Continues

Day 49 of the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge, and we're past the halfway point.

I'm just past the halfway mark on my own 500 point target as well, so all going according to plan, I might just squeak through...

So what have I done since the last update? Let's take a look!

The brutish Manticore, a staple of the medieval bestiary - a Reaper Bones figure which will give any band of adventurers pause.

A Reaper Bones 'Avatar of Resilience', a humanoid rhino, now repurposed as a Broo with the addition of goat horns and weeping sores. Broos are the chaotic bringers of disease in Greg Stafford's world of Glorantha, the setting of the wonderful RPG RuneQuest.

The Durinhold Tectonics, a Blood Bowl Sevens team yet to make it to the top-flight leagues. But they're a plucky lot and will undoubtedly get some reinforcements soon! These were old Blood Bowl figs from the 1990's, so the basing scheme was an homage to the Oldhammer Era. A moment of silence, please, as we remember Citadel Goblin Green, the most popular basing colour of the good old days... (sniff)

Next up is a Deep Cuts Medium Fire Elemental from WizKids, a transparent plastic cast which was finished in yellow and red inks to preserve its translucent quality. I drybrushed the tips of the flames with black to suggest a smoky fire, and picked out a few areas in opaque yellows to keep it interesting. Quite pleased with the final effect, but don't ask about the water elemental I've been working on - that's proving to be a tricky one!

Three Bugbears, more Reaper Bones sculpts, and a lot of fun to paint. Lots of textures to keep the painter busy, and a unified colour palette really tied the group together, man.

Lastly, an entry for the 'Mercenary' bonus theme round. A Citadel Miniatures Ogre Maneater from the 2000's, he's been languishing on the north face of my Lead Mountain (which is situated in the Garage of Shame) for a good many years now.

He's actually made of metal - fancy that! Old metal Ogres appear to be undergoing a bit of a renaissance this round, with my blolleague, the estimable Mr Mills, submitting a corker of an entry. Call me old-fashioned, but you can't beat the satisfying heft of a large chunk of metal on the tabletop!

That's all for now, more updates to come!

Stay tuned...

Ev

Ev's Challenge - The Story So Far

It's Day 24 of the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge IX (well, day 24 or thereabouts, depending where you are in relation to the International Date Line), and I thought it's about time for an update on my own output so far.

First up was a Viking take on Santa Claus, the Jarl of Yule.

A Wargames Foundry figure, he looks superbly unimpressed at the next selection, an Ice Troll from Reaper Miniatures. He's one of their Bones range, and repays the effort taken to pick out the details.

The next submission was for the Bonus Theme Round 'Reconnaissance'. I picked a couple of H.P. Lovecraft's Mi-Go, the alien fungi from Yuggoth (aka Pluto). They are spying on the humans in preparation for a mission of conquest, and one has purchased a telescope to help in the task. Unfortunately, he's completely failed to take into account his species' complete lack of eyes.

The latest submission is this little fellow;

A toy scorpion re-purposed as a tabletop gaming piece and given a shiny new coat of paint, Mr Stabby is just the thing to keep any party of desert adventurers on their toes!

That's all for now - stay tuned!

Ev

AHPC Bonus Round Entry - Nasty Hobbitses!

The first Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge IX Bonus Round is up and contains some amazing stuff. My entry is the iconic Warhammer Fantasy Dogs of War unit Lumpin Croop's Halfling Cocks.

Make sure you check out all the fabulous work and vote for your favourites!

Cheers,
Millsy

Holiday Project: Dice Rolling Tray

While I was in Queensland last week I took the opportunity to spend some time in the shed with my father-in-law. To give us something to do while we yacked away we knocked up a dice rolling tray for my games table from off-cuts of timber from his past projects.

The sides are 20mm thick hardwood and the base is 5mm plywood. The internal dimensions are
10.5" x 9.5" x 2" deep - yeah I know, I love mixing decimals and imperials ;-).

I've given it a few coats of a lightly tinted semi-gloss varnish which hasn't changed the timber colour much but has brought out the lovely grain. I lined the inside with a black felt and glued a layer of some to the underside to prevent scratching.

Initial test are very positive. Nothing has escaped a decent throw and there's a very satisfying thunk as dice bounce around inside. Overall I'm really pleased with something that cost absolutely nothing but time and that very well spent in great company.

PS. Miles, happy to be critiqued :-)

Cheers,
Millsy