Empire Demigryph Knights

Finally finished.  I admit, they were a bit of a slog at times - lots of details, and I made my life hard by deciding to paint all the detailed decoration. Pretty pleased with the end result though.

Big, Angry Lizards

 A handful of ‘90’s vintage Saurus Warriors, to provide some proper muscle to back up their skink cousins. Just a quick ‘table ready’ paint job.

I think a skirmish scenario in the jungles of Lustria beckons.

Now, where did I hide those Amazons…

Tiny, Angry Lizards

I should be painting Griffins, but I’ve always been easily sidetracked.

A tidying the washing machine cupboard (don’t ask) unearthed a load of Foundry Conquistadors and a handful of old, unpainted lizard men, including some skinks, I picked up from somewhere on a whim.

A quick, rather than careful, paint job.  Still plenty of satisfaction in getting something table ready though.

Some Estalian explorers about to get a nasty surprise 

A few Saurus Warriors may follow.

Now, about those Griffins…

Fur, Feathers, Beaks and Claws

It’s not featured in any posts recently but I have, inevitably, got into Warhammer the Old World.  I’ve just had the one game so far, though overall it seems to be shaping up to be a pretty good edition.

I’m taking the opportunity to revisit my Empire army, and add a few things I never got around to back when they were available.  I was also given some vouchers by my lovely work colleagues for my 50th birthday last August, and decided they should go towards a nice big modelling project.

And so, arriving freshly assembled and primed with Colour Forge Ghoul Grey, are a lot of beaks, feathers and claws - in the form of an Imperial Griffin and some Demigryph Knights.  I’ve kept the Griffin heads separate, and assembled all the riders, so I can swap the out.  That said, I’m mostly aiming for a Karl Franz on Deathclaw look.

I’ll try to remember to update as I go.

Oh, and I also have a War wagon coming at some point ;-)

PS, the buildings are from Dave Graffam.

Just a dwarf…

 … playing a flute.  And why not?

Marauder Miniatures originally (before any recent re-releases).

I think my eyesight is getting too poor to do painted eyes that stand up to close scrutiny!

Vlad Krakhead (or, how I learned to stop worrying and love the mini)

And so we move on to the next ‘Heroic Fighter’ from Citadel, the weirdly named ‘Vlad Krakhead’.  I’d love to know what the Citadel studio were on when naming models in the late ‘80s.

I’d always rated this as one of the poorest sculpts from the set.  The pose is flat and unconvincing (why would you hold a massive mace in that position?), and the proportions are just a bit off somehow (just how long is that right arm?). Not Jes Goodwin’s finest work.  So my plan was just get it done and move on.

Instead, something unexpected happened. 

I really enjoyed painting him.  I’m not quite sure what the recipe was.  Perhaps my low expectations took the pressure off, maybe it’s the relative simplicity (when compared to modern minis) that meant I could concentrate on the painting - whatever it was, this chap was an absolute joy to paint, and the end result is a great match for the vision I had in my head.

Which just goes to show you never know how things will turn out, and the importance of just starting to get the paint on.

Sir Brut

 Sir Brut - another from the Heroic Fighters of the Known World set.  Probably the second best, after the Moon Duke.  This one already has a shield, as I added one some time in the early 2000s.  The eagle is one of the old Arcane Armorial transfers from Citadel.  Ideally I’d replace it with a more modern, curved heater shield, but it’s in too good condition to muck about with.

As much for my notes as anything, the surcoat was VJ Game Colour Gory Red, GW Mephistopheles Red and Sigvald Burgundy contrast paint, then VJ Game Colour Hot Red highlight.

Gladius

Another Heroic Fighter mostly complete (shields will be a job for the end). Four down.

Lord Aquila and Manfred

Time for an update on the Heroic Fighters set.  First up, I present Lord Aquila!

Arguably one of the weaker models of the set, the pose is quite static, but on the other hand - just look at that massive crest!  The weapon choice is unusual - it looks crude and primitive compared to the armour, almost Skaven like (they were both sculpted by Jes Goodwin after all)!  Perhaps a trophy from a defeated rat thing clan leader that he now carries around to intimidate them with.

Here’s a reminder of how he used to look.

I’d say my technique has improved at least a bit.

Second is Manfred.  He already got an updated paint job around 15 years ago, and sort of represented my breakthrough on effective shading and highlighting.  So all he has had is some chips tidied up and painted.

It’s odd how his pose is nearly identical to Lord Aquila, yet feels much more convincing.   Or is that just me?

Old Bones and Heroic Fighters

 It’s been a while since I last posted, partly as I’ve not really had time or space to paint or game - although I have spent quite a bit of time reading the new Old World rules and Army books (more on which another time).  I am trying to get a bit more done though, so here’s a quick ‘work in progress’ update.

First up: skeletons.  I’ve dug out my old skellies from the attic.  Most of these are a good 40 years old, going back to my early Warhammer days and plans, with a few eBay acquisitions over the years. Some have very poor paint jobs, many have never seen any paint all.  I did a batch a while back, but decided to have another go.  Paint jobs are quick and tabletop standard - they won’t hold up to close scrutiny, but I’m happy enough with them.

Inspiration came from the YouTuber Jordan Sorcery, who recently published his own Christmas themed Scenario pack, ‘Dead King Wenceslas’.  Maybe I’ll finally have them ready for a game next Christmas…

I’ll also admit that my mind has turned to a ‘Barrow Kings’ themed take on Tomb Kings for Warhammer.

Above is the full box, almost all originally from Grenadier Models.  There’s a funny story to this as well; just before lockdown I lost my glasses, had to get a new pair.  Those broke when my daughter sat on them, and I’ve had no glasses for about two years now. Dug this box out of the attic just after Christmas, opened it… and there were my dratted lost glasses!  At least I can see properly again.

Also about to take their place in the projects queue are the models from the Heroic Fighter of the Known World box set produced by Citadel many moons ago, which I have finally reunited from the various boxes they were stored in.  More on them another time but, for now, here are the very varied paint jobs they currently have from the old days (no giggling at the back, I was very young at the time).

Sir Brut, Manfred, and Harald the Hammer.  Manfred got an update in about the 2010s, and is still probably some of my favourite blending and highlighting work, so he will likely remain largely as is.  Sir Brut’s not bad either.  Harald was painted by my brother, so will mostly get a tidy up as well.

Ulrik Ukrikson and Gladius.  Ulrik’s already been consigned to the Dettol pot…

Vlad Krakhead, The Moon Duke (probably my favourite model of the bunch) and, last but not least, Lord Aquila - who has also taken a dive into the Dettol to remove that lovely Humbrol gold enamel paint.

Orctober wrap up

Orctober is over - what did I do with it?  Well, I didn’t take it too seriously, but did use it as motivation to get the bulk of my Orc and Goblin army tabletop ready.

Alongside the Wolf riders, bolt throwers and warlord, that mostly meant a lot of basing. Many of the models are still in old paint jobs, either my own from many moons ago, or as they were purchased secondhand, but they look coherent enough now.

Still about 20 goblins to do, plus I still have some more EM4 orca, and I need to sort some black orcs of some kind, but there is a table ‘legal’ army there now for both WFB and Fantasy Warriors.

Two bolt throwers, including a Notlob original

20 orc boys 

One of my giants (orc for scale)

The Wolf riders - will count as boars for WFB purposes

14 orc archers

Warlord and two shamans

20 more orc boys

A somewhat grisly standard

The three trolls

Another giant