The Beard Bunker

... or a short essay on my motivations for starting a collection. A little while ago Em restarted her long abandoned pending Wood Elf project. For the last few weeks the army book has been laying around the house, and an increasing number of plastic tree-like bits have been spreading across our hobby space. During a painting binge one evening (I'm currently attempting to paint 70 skeletons in a single batch and incidentally is the main reason why I don't have anything new to show you all) I innocently said... "I really like the Wood Elf models, but I wouldn't collect any" To which Em said... "Well, what does make you want to collect something?" I was instantly plunged into a massive existential conundrum focused around why I make the hobby choices that I do. I think I might have replied at the time with something along the lines of 'erm... the blue one's?!'. I didn't draw this, Charle M Schulz did. This is his work that I...

Warhammer 40K's eighth edition still has me gripped firmly by the Jacobs , so I've been farting through Astra Militarum Imperial Guard units like a champ. The thing about Imperial Guard armies is that they tend toward the numerous, so as previous posts have explained, the main objective for this army is that they should be quick and easy to paint . At a friend's request, I'm going to go over how I weather my tanks. This is basic stuff, so if you're after something more advanced, I suggest you read Mark's post on the subject . Now, here's one I prepared earlier: Capt. Dewi Kusuma's Executioner, No. 2 squadron's command tank. Like I say, basic. It's never going to win an award, but it can sit on a table without me wanting to report myself to the commissar. Here's how it's done... Step one: basecoat Seriously, just flat colours. The lenses/periscopes etc will get done post-weathering. I did use a wash on the tarpaulin and the he...

This week I have mostly been painting pink. Lots of pink. So much so that my paint palette looks like Barbie has killed and skinned a Unicorn on it (Unicorns have pink blood right?). This isn't because of some weird gender reveal plot for a baby we don't have (and not planning to have). No, this is because I managed to acquire yet more minions for my growing Tzeentch Chaos army. What self respecting Sorcerer wouldn't have mastered the art of summoning demons out of the warp? Not mine that's for sure. I do have to admit that my paint collection is very limited in the number of pinks it contains. So limited that I didn't have any . Not knowing the paint range very well I simply ordered most of them and set about learning how to paint pink. My first comment on this is that it's hard. Not hard as in technically hard like trying to play Bach on the spoons, but hard like pushing a rock up a hill, repeatedly. I did try a simple basecoat/w...

This week I've managed to get finished a few extra henchmen for my Frost Grave war band. As you progress in Frost Grave you are able to hire additional minions to help with either finding of new treasures and artifacts or to fend off other wizards and their war bands. For my additions we have some hapless adventurers who are only in it for the money.   First up we have a Ranger. She's the nice outdoorsy type and enjoys walks in the woods, archery, and rustic haberdashery. Rangers have a good mix of speed, improved health, and ranged abilities.     Next we have added a thief to the war band. He/She (I honestly can't tell the gender from the model) is a fully paid up member of the thieves guild, and thus is contractually obliged to wear nothing but black. Thieves are slightly faster than you average pleb, but they don't have much more going for them. Their main advantage is they are cheap to hire.  Last but no means lea...

Today, Maisey and I bring you our first 40K 8th edition battle report. It will cover the splodes,  who done them, and why they was done. At the end, Maisey's providing a reflective plenary on his tactical learning points. The backstory (w hy was the splodes done?) There wasn't officially any backstory, but my subconscious provided one anyway: Inquisitor Drake  has heard rumours of heretic astartes poking about in some pre-Imperial ruins on Samalut IX . Putting on his brownest trousers, Drake has come to put a stop to... whatever it is they're doing. Upon arrival, he requests assistance from the most mobile Guard units available and heads for the traitors' last known location. He normally likes to plan things meticulously, so this sort of tactical improvisation scares the hell out of him. The armies (who done the splodes?) Both forces weigh in at a power level of 70. The Imperial force consists of a mechanised battalion (+3CP) from the Ankran 107th, and a...

This is a post of two halves orbiting around the theme of “ I PAINTED THIS. ” Over the last year, I ’ ve made the shocking discovery that having deadlines results in getting stuff done. Conversely, anything without a deadline was either done slowly or not at all. Fancy that. Annual hobby progress log & plans for 2018 Lately I ’ ve been doing the hobby equivalent of spring cleaning: finishing off the last little bits of various projects. Last year was billed as the Year of Finishing, and I ’ d call it a moderate success. In 2017 I … Finally finished my ork speed freaks in time for   the SamalutIX campaign (with some last-minute help from Maisey). Made a   warband for Frostgrave in time for, well … playing Frostgrave . Painted the genestealer cult army in Deathwatch: Overkill plus bonus genestealers (with help from  Andy ) in time for the Deathwatch mission to Kursanov Prime . Painted the   Tabletop World guard tower . Expanded my BFG fleet...

Way back in 2014... Excuse me while I have a little dizzy moment as I realise that was FOUR YEARS AGO!! ... ahem... Right back in the room. Back in 2014 I introduced a little side project as a break from my endless undead army. This was a band of Ogres named the One Finger Tribe: The Protecterors of Ostland and their back story can be found Here- Blood, Sweat, and Flab. Since then I actually finished the rest of the tribe but had rudely neglected to share them with you. So without further ado I give you, The One Finger Tribe: Nargutt Onefinger: Leader of the tribe. Lost 4 fingers on one hand after winning a bet over who could catch a spinning dagger out of the air. Nargutt isn’t the greatest leader, but he is the biggest and strongest, which is enough to keep him in power for now. Comehere Chickenchaser: Short of brain power, big on chickens. What he lacks in intelligence he makes up for in violence, an affinity with gut magic, and his now infamous offal and...