With about two weeks left until the tournament, I’m really starting to feel the pressure of this fast-approaching deadline. It’s the same feeling you get when you’ve left an assignment until the last minute, and you’re not sure if you’re going to make it, but the thought of not completing cannot be entertained because if you do, then you know for certain it’s not going to be done before the deadline. It’s exactly the same when it comes to painting. When time gets tight, then the only thing you can do is to buckle down and keep on painting. With perseverance comes success. At least that’s what I’m hoping...
Thus far, my progress I’m struggling a little to make any headway when it comes to getting paint on miniatures. The weather has made using the spray gun difficult at best, and this is compounded by my inability to correctly dilute Dwarven Bronze to a consistency that will not only spray evenly, but also provide adequate coverage. My most recent efforts were too diluted and neither sprayed evenly nor allowed for even coverage. As a result, I’ve decided that all subsequent work with these miniatures will be done by hand, as this is the only way I can ensure an even layer across the entire miniature while minimising the potential loss of detail. This is frustrating for me as I’d hoped that by purchasing the spray gun, the amount of time spent applying base colours would be reduced. Hopefully with further experimentation however, I can find the right recipe for use in the future. The important thing is that the majority of them have been given a decent coating and are ready for washes to be applied. In addition to these bronze behemoths, the unit will also be accompanied by a pair of black-maned mountain wolves. Stronger and fiercer, with greater intelligence than the other species of wolf that populate the mountains around the Lupine Tribe’s homeland, only the most accomplished warriors are deemed worthy enough by the pack alpha to follow into battle. My unit of Chosen will sport two of these majestic beasts as part of the unit, acting like miniature unit fillers to add a bit of bulk to the unit itself while also reinforcing the army’s theme. The progress I’ve made on these two thus far can also be found below.
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| WIP Chosen |
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| The first of my Blackmane Wolves |
Meanwhile, my Horses have been feeling the caress of a GW Brush as I base coat them all by hand. I’m finding that this is by far a faster means of getting paint on the models due to the large amount of flat area and the quantity of paint I can apply using a base coat brush. I’m hoping to use a range of browns, with a small smattering of greys and at least one or two black horses across both units when all is said and done. Ideally, between the horses and the riders, I’m hoping that each Horseman will look individualised enough to be recognisable as Marauders, but unified enough for both units to look coherent. The results of my efforts thus far can be seen below:
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| Marauder Horses WIP |
With these two units on the go, I’ve also begun focussing some of my attentions on the 16-odd Marauder infantry that need to be assembled and painted. For the most part, the assembly aspect consisted of cleaning up and rebasing the miniatures I currently have, along with some minor tweaks here and there so they look WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get). Combine that with some minor repair work that’s long overdue and the unit will soon be ready to take to the battlefield. Before we get too far into it, it must be noted that trying to clean mould lines on miniatures that are already assembled is soul destroying. Of the 15 Marauders that I re-based, all but 1 of them required me to scrape off mould lines that were rampant on the miniature. This will hopefully (or unfortunately) be just the first of several Marauder units I’ll be fielding in the future; I’d like to have a second unit of about 40 as part of my Khorne faction (toting Great Weapons for some extra killy-death action), and possibly a third at 30 strong with the Mark of Slaanesh to act as a bunker for my Sorcerer. In saying that, I’m not particularly looking forward to converting 70-odd Marauders to heft great weapons / flails etc, no matter how effective they are on the tabletop (especially if they are in the same condition as the last 15). Come to think of it, I’m not sure I even have 70-odd Marauders left out of my veritable horde that is currently sitting in my bits box (Ah 8th Edition, how you’ve changed the definition of Horde forever). This is something I will need to investigate further. Until then however, I’ve included some pics of the WIP Marauders.
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| The upcoming unit of Marauders |
Truth be told, I’m looking forward to getting these units completed so I can begin work on my Nurgle faction. I’ve chosen Nurgle as the basis of my next expansion as it provides me with modelling opportunities and colour pallets that I haven’t used before. I’m hoping that by using Nurgle as my next theme it will provide the opportunity to use some of the new Beastmen Kits for the conversions I have in mind. Nurgle units now due to rulings made in subsequent FAQ’s. The advantages provided by the Mark of Nurgle now pale in comparison to those of Tzeentch or Khorne, making it the perfect ace-in-the-hole if I can learn to use the army well enough. In saying this, it’s just as likely that the army will fall flat on its face, prompting me to redirect the points paid for the Mark of Nurgle into another mark, or perhaps just more troops. I aim to have a large portion of this army armed with Great Weapons, as I believe it reflects the ponderous nature of Nurgle (and will hopefully look ace on the table top).
Well, this is another hobby update under my belt. Let’s see how the stats are looking:
Number of Days until Trickster’s Blade: 16
Number of Units Completed: 5
Number of Points painted this fortnight: 38 (1 Wolf that counts for 2 Chosen Warriors with Halberds)
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