Tyranids WIP: Xenomorph Carnifex

I'll be playing the Tyranids in the upcoming Apocalypse battle with the gaming group. I assembled and primed lots of Nids. The aim is to at least basecoat the models for some colors hehe! But I did take a break and experimented with something I wanted to add on to the army for a long time.

So the above pic is a close up of a Xenomorph Alien toy I bought a couple years ago. I really liked the unique transparent skull head of the model. So I decided to kinda replicate it on my Nids. There was no unique monster or Tyranid skulls, and there sure wasn't any transparent plastic carapace that I could get or make on my own. I decided to paint the internal skull onto the head carapace instead.

I painted the skull design first. The colors for the skull was done with a basecoat freehand of Baneblade Brown. I then added Ushabti Bone to the mix. The final highlight was Ushabti Bone with white. I then outlined the gaps with a thinned down mix of Scorched Brown mix with black. Then 2 coats of Devlan Mud wash with concentration more to the sides for the effect of the skull fading into the dark flesh.

For that semi-opaque and translucent effect of the carapace, I added a coat of Gloss Varnish onto the initial paintjob to make it smooth (pic above).

I then added some Ulthuan Grey (very watered down) mixed into the Gloss Varnish.

 I let it dry before applying another similar coat.

My focus here is mainly the head of the creature, but the rest of the mini is just basecoated Warlord Purple.

Top down view of the beast's skull. I plan to do this for the entire army, right down to the small gribblies. It's a bit of work but I think it really makes the model stand out more.

Well, its back to basecoating the rest of the Nids :)

Its been really hot where I live of late. Stay cool and classy everyone! And have a great week ahead.

Flesh Tearers WIP: Veteran Sergeant

I finally had a game this weekend at the local game shop Titan Games. It was blast! A very close game which saw us both just throw our units in charging headlong into close combat. My opponent was playing the new Khorne Daemonkin and it was exciting throughout.

I decided to give the Vet Sarge a quick lick of paint for his efforts. He put the deciding shot which felled a mighty Chaos Lord. Who unfortunately turned into a Bloodthirster! I painted a symbol on his tabard to remember his heroic act. The tactical squad next to him did not appear too pleased with result of the Chaos Lord's demise.

He is armed with a combi-melta which delivered the said shot to the Chaos Lord. But he did spend the next few turns capturing the objective and surviving all the incoming shots.

The Flesh Tearers symbol proudly displayed now on his left shoulder pad. He keeps his combat blade at the ready for when he gets stuck in glorious close combat.

Again this model is from the new Blood Angels tactical squad box set. The details once painted does give a lot more substance to the miniature.

Here are some pics of the battle:

This was the deployment on Turn 1. I had not played in a while and am not able to remember the mission. It was a diagonal deployment and there were 5 objectives. I had first turn and there was no night fight.

Above pic is my Storm Raven arriving from reserves and disgorging the Death Company and Furioso Dreadnought. They would later wreak havoc amongst the Obliterators and Chaos Space Marines squad.

Above pic is Turn 3 I think. The Chaos Spawn had engaged my Assault Squad with the Cultists close behind claiming an objective.

I think this is still the bottom of Turn 3 with the Bloodletters also closing in. Pict recordings stopped at this point as the clouds turn a crimson red.  Khorne's power blotted out all communications as his Blood Tithes increased to new heights! The later appearance of a Bloodthirster was a bowel clenching moment for me. Only sent it back to the warp after shooting AND assaulting everything that could at it. I shudder to think of 2 Bloodthirsters appearing on the field at the same time.

Well, that's all from the weekend for me.

Have a great week ahead everyone :)

WIP: Sisters of Battle- A First Model

I managed to get some miniatures of Sisters of Battle aka Adepta Sororitas. It was a difficult choice picking a color scheme. I really liked the Order of the Sacred Rose. Not only because of the brilliant white and red contrast but also now because the order has taken part in the defence of the Cryptus System as well. But white has been quite a difficult color to paint for me. Decided to go with it and give it a go :)

I went for a test model and selected this Sister Superior. I went with a white primer, and then layered on some white on it to smoothen out the base coat. I think its really important to have a smooth base coat, as other colors layered on top will look good as well.

I then layered back on Ulthuan Grey as the main color base. Then I used Badab Black ink in the joints and connecting plates of the armor. I cleaned any mess up with Ulthuan Grey. For the armor highlights, I used pure white.

The red robes were given 2 basecoats of Khorne Red and then I layered on Mephiston Red, I added Fire Dragon Bright to Mephiston Red for the raised areas of the cloth.

I would have liked to use a black primer, but was concerned that the basecoat would be too dark for Ulthuan Grey to cover fully.

I kinda liked how it turned out. Now for the remaining 99 sisters to be painted lol!

I may slow down on some painting over the next month as I have managed to land a part time job. Good to stock up on the old warchest haha!

Take care everyone, and may you also find time for hobbying in the midst of the daily grind ;)

Gaming Swag from Holiday: The Doom that Came to Atlantic City

I came across this board game called the Doom that Came to Atlantic City by Lee Moyer and Keith Baker. I was browsing the shelves at a local games shop- Good Games in Sydney Australia. It appears to be based loosely on the Monopoly board game, but with Lovecraftian influence. I have always been an avid reader and collector of Lovecraft's books and games, and decided to make the purchase.

The game board itself is gorgeous and colorful. Really great quality.

There are also cards for each of the Elder gods in the game to provide special in game bonuses to the player. Each Elder god's abilities are different.

Also the Community Chest and Chance cards with some name changes and more interesting Mythos influenced effects. Other cards as well for more Lovecraft flavor. The custom dice is also a nice touch.

But it is the figures that really sealed the deal for me. Each figure sits comfortably in a specially shaped spot in the box. The figures are sculpted by the very talented Mr Paul Komoda. I did a search for Mr Komoda and man, his art work and sculptures are really impressive and out of this world!

So here is a closer look at the figures, which for me is the highlight given my love for miniatures.

Nyalarthotep

The first figure is that of Nyalarthotep. Amazing detail on him. I figure he can be used for a Tomb Kings army for fantasy, or a C'Tan for a 40K Necron army. My fav figure in the set.

Ithaqua

This one looks scary to me. Ithaqua is supposed to inhabit the frozen forbidding ice worlds. He also appears in Antartica in some stories. He can be used in a snow themed daemon army.

Shub Niggurath

Also known as the Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young.

The detail again stands out here, and the palpable sense of horror reflects the sculptor's skill here.

Hastur

The King in Yellow. He can be used to represent a wizard or lich lord. I was making plans to do a Nurgle based army with minions all in tattered yellow robes based on Hastur.

Tsathoggua

Also known as the Sleeper of N'Kai. This is my least favourite figure, but it is also very well done. It could be painted up as a statue with eyes that are alive. Or fielded as a furry Slann Mage Priest lol!

Azathoth

This formless horror emits a feel of dread and confusion. The details are again amazing. A painter could choose to paint the bone and flesh of the figure to make it stand out more. In wargaming, it could be an objective marker or used as a Chaos Spawn.

Yog-Sothoth

This cosmic entity is again another representation of the formless horror of the outer realities. Its horror also lies in its shifting shape. Again another potential Chaos spawn or used to represent a character that is truly made up of the stuff of Chaos!

Cthulhu

And a foray into the Lovecraftian universe would not be complete without Cthulhu itself. Again highly detailed, but its static pose means it can be used for an objective or a prized Relic in a narrative campaign.

A size comparison of the figures to Warhammer 40K and Fantasy equivalents. I look forward to learning how to play the game itself though as I have heard really good feedback on it.

I also did a bit of research on the game and noted its rather difficult journey in coming to fruition. As a miniatures collector, I would definitely recommend getting the game. I am looking forward to painting the figures.The figures alone are worth the cost. I got this for a cool $100 SGD.

Hope you enjoyed this post and the talents of the game's creators.

Cheers!

Flesh Tearers Death Company: Squad Helorius (WIP)

Woke up with the break of dawn again with paintbrush flashing in the dusky orange light. Did a quick paint up of the last member of Squad Helorius.

This doomed battle brother wields the standard chainsword and a plasma pistol to smite his foes with.

I had run out of the new Death Company Marines and this one is from the new Blood Angels tactical squad sprue.

I'm basing my 1850 point list on the Defenders of Cathedrum. I was unable to fully replicate all the wargear in the picture of the Exterminatus campaign book. The Death Company there were using jump packs and all my jump packs were stuck on my Assault Marines lol! I will compensate by giving them a Rhino or just chuck them in the Storm Raven.

Not sure how well a list based on a picture in a campaign book will work, but it will be fun!

Squad Helorius

All together now! Blood for the Blood G....Angel!!

I hope to keep up the painting. Now to put some sand on those bases haha!!

Have a super week ahead everyone!