Slaaneshi Minotaurs - Realm Of Chaos Oldhammer Army

As everyday life dramas and work activities have ruled the days recently, only a few bits of hobbyness have managed to flourish. Most notable this morning are these Slaaneshi Minotaurs for my Realm Of Chaos army that were constructed last night. These are based on Tree Kin that I got during a lengthy visit to GW Covent Garden following a meeting (I also learned how to play the Hobbit game, which was fun). I've added spare branches from the dryads in order to add some bulk.  

The Tree Kin are much maligned but I really like them, even if they're a little small without the added foliage I've bestowed upon them. As with the dryads I think these can be made to look more Slaaneshi than standard Beastmen - they also fit really well into the narrative for the army, which I'll get around to explaining at some point! 

The End Of The Maelstrom / Mierce Miniatures Saga

The Maelstrom / Mierce Miniatures saga ended well, with me receiving all my missing miniatures from the once BaneBeasts range. If your order slipped through the net then I recommend getting in touch with them too. Over the next week or so I'll do a few out of the box reviews. In short though, the quality of all the miniatures is excellent. This is a company you should certainly keep your eye on if you're on the look out for character models or monsters to be striking centrepieces for your fantasy armies.

A Necron Shaped Money Pit Just Opened Under My Feet

I have no Necrons. But my goodness, this is so cool. Necrons in the future then...? Forge World you crafty bastards...

Forge World Event Models And GW Forest Goblins Available For Miniature Exchange

The basics: I have both of the new FW event models - the Empire Warrior Priest and the Death Korps of Krieg Quartermaster - and the forest goblin sprue from the Arachnarok Spider. I'm annoyed with eBay and not interested in making a profit from fellow hobbyists. I'm open to offers for exchange on these models, pictured here:

The details: I want to try something different. I'm not interested in making money on these because I'm more interested in a hobby community than a free market where people make profit out of things we all enjoy. I was lucky enough to go to the FW open day, others weren't. I got the FW models to sell, but exchanging them makes more sense to me. The same goes for the forest goblins.

So if you're interested in any of these then why don't you make me an offer? I don't have anything that I'm specifically looking for. I would prefer new and unpainted models though, so if you have something that's been sitting around for a while or maybe an impulse buy you might want to swap, get in touch. Obviously I'm not promising anything at this stage (it's not a contest or giveaway) but if we come to an agreement then I'll send whichever model(s) you want to you 2nd Class recorded delivery and you can do the same. I think it might be easier if you're in the UK though that's not to say I'll totally exclude sending them further afield. And no cash offers please as that would be against the spirit of this!

Either drop a comment here or email me at: david [dot] mellor [at] ymail [dot] com - photos of what you have on offer would be appreciated :-) And I'll amend this post and add another once I've swapped all models so no one makes a late offer. If this works I might do the same for other 'as new' stuff I have on my sprue pile... 

3D Printing And The (Un)Certainties Of The Future

I know very little about the technicalities of 3D printing. Actually I know very little about 3D printing at all. So it was with great interest that I read this article on the topic Jake Thornton's blog. I recommend taking a look through the article and the comments as it's informative, insightful and realistic. 

A Geek Manifesto

Beastly Guardsmen From Victoria Miniatures

One manufacturer I've admired for some time but never purchased from is Victoria Miniatures. Now I'm extremely tempted with the new range of abhuman guardsmen, which could work very well in my genestealer cult (once I bring that project out of hiatus). Here are the details on those beastmen:

Contents are:
7 individual Broolian Beastmen heads
6 Armored Trench raider Torsos
6 pairs of Broolian Beastmen legs
6 Pairs of Trench Raider Arms with weapons
3 Trench Raider Hand Weapons
6 Combat Knives
6 Trench Raider Pouches
2 Sprues of Stick Grenades
4 Pairs of Leg Armor Plates
5 Groin Armor Plates
1 Shotgun Strap
6 x 25mm Round Plastic Slotta Bases. 

This set is currently available on a pre-order basis. Kits will be shipped in May-June on a first come first serve basis. Limited advance sets will be also available to purchase at Adepticon 2013. 

The Future for the Broolian Beastmen.
Late 2013 a resin version of this squad will also be available. Vic Minis is keen for collectors of the metal version to let us know how you would like the Broolian Beastman range expanded with future releases.
Bits from this set will also become available individually.

Plague Hulk - My Entry For The Forge World Open Day Competition

On Sunday I went to the Forge World Open Day and entered the painting competition. This was first time that I'd shown my work in public and I was rather nervous. It was, though, an amazing experience, which really made me feel part of the community. It was also an immense pleasure to have some of my work in a display cabinet with other dedicated and talented hobbyists, and to display my work in GW HQ only meters away from classic and contemporary works of painting wizardry. Thanks again to everyone who gave me wonderful and positive feedback, including one of the FW designers who thought I'd won (I didn't).

By pushing myself to participate/compete I've now got the confidence to work harder, stretch my abilities and enter more competitions. My work is very different to the vast majority of what's out there, but seeing it side by side with the 'mainstream' I've had an opportunity to reflect on how it holds the same value, despite standing out for its stylistic and painterly departures. I began painting as a therapeutic exercise in dark and difficult times: I hope you'll forgive me blowing my own trumpet a little because it has evolved into a genuinely self-asserting craft.

Slaaneshi Beastmen - Realm Of Chaos Oldhammer Army

I think it's worth pointing out again due to some confusion following my post about my Slaaneshi Chaos Warriors that these units are for a Realm of Chaos army to play with 3rd ed rules, not a warband. This army will contain a warband - I've just not got around to rolling it up yet, having been sucked into the temptation of a full force. Right, moving on!

I'm trying to think creatively about Slaanesh because I think it's really the least war-like and most insidious of all the ruinous powers. Regular troops rarely cut it for me as simply aligning out of the box fighters to the Dark Prince often ends up looking odd to my eyes. Basically, there needs to be a satisfactory narrative.

I'm still crafting the overall tale of my champion, his warband, and this overall army (note again the distinction please ;-). For beastmen though I always knew I'd need something different, even if I still wanted them to be wild and 'of the forest.' Step forward perverted dryads. These really fit the bill for me - and it certainly helps that they come in a box of 12: a handy Slaaneshi multiple! These twisted sisters will work rather well with my overall narrative too. And if you're interested in such things, I'm hoping to get that written up later this week. I hope the Oldhammerers among you will approve.

Forge World 2013 Open Day Photos 3

Some of the painting competition entries and some others from the displays.

Forge World 2013 Open Day Photos 2

Forge World 2013 Open Day Photos 1

I'll be adding more later today. Sorry for the duplicates!