More work needed!

So the weekends efforts have not gone well. This is the best of the bunch but the organic look I was going for ended up dirty and the gun is a disaster. I'm not as bothered by the sloppy painting, the point was to get a working colour scheme not produce a Golden Demon winner. More to follow if I can get a scheme to work.

So I've assembled some termagants and tried a few washes to see what kind of effect I can get. Although I'd love to field a rainbow 'nids army expect to see more progress towards a final scheme tomorrow.

The weekend is here.... and I have plans.

This weekend I have the house to myself for the first time in several weeks and I'm planning on testing some 'nid paint schemes. Given some of the examples of personalised Hive Fleets in all corners of the warp at the moment I've been inspired to see if I can come up with a novel scheme I'm happy with which doesn't take me hours per model (I'm very slow by most standards and when it comes to painting a swarm of gaunts I don't want to have to spend 18 months to finish a small army!).

I've just been shopping and now have a box of 12 Termagants. The plan is to assemble some this evening, undercoat tomorrow am and start testing paint schemes tomorrow afternoon/evening. I have a plan for a couple of approaches, borrowing heavily from other peoples beautiful schemes and throwing in a few ideas of my own but I'll not let you in on it yet just in case it looks terrible.

I'm hoping to post some pics of the various attempts at some point on Sunday. If I can find a scheme I'm happy with that doesn't take 6 hours per model I will be investing as heavily as I dare into a new ‘nid army over the next few months. Here's hoping I come up with something acceptable! :)

A hero is born.

Alaric Castillion, Cleric of the Eccleisiarchy stands ready to punish the enemies of mankind!

It arrived! The joy of getting things by post

This blog is going to be focussed on my efforts to collect, build and paint 40k armies but it will encompass all aspects of my 40k addiction. I will be getting some pics of my early attempts at painting Space Wolves up this weekend but I have to interrupt the mini madness before it begins as Amazon just delivered me a shiny copy of the Dark Heresy core rules!

I've not played a 'pencil and paper' RPG in over a decade and technically I'm not about to start again - a few of the 40K Freebootaz, myself included have decided to give DH a shot and we're going to try to play by forum. I'm sure you'll read about our exploits through this conduit of all things irrelevant as we find our way but for now suffice it to say I'm excited. The main reason I play 40k over other miniature wargames is the setting and the fluff.... DH will feed my fluffy love very well (that's fluffy love not furry love - the distinction is important!).

I've played a wide range of roleplaying systems in my youth but I was almost always the GM/DM so I'm really looking forward to being a player and throwing myself into the purging of the galaxies unclean.

More to follow (I have a lot of reading to do!).....

Once upon a beginning....

So... where to start?!

I’m a lifelong gamer and have played many different board games, video games, miniature wargames, collectible card games and pencil and paper roleplaying games. I played both Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy Battle until about 15 years ago when I ran out of cash, competitors and interest (having recently discovered both beer and women which between them sapped my free time and wallet).

I have been considering rejoining the 40k hobby for about a year and in October I found myself in a GW store checking out the minis. When I last picked up a paint brush I played 2 armies – Space Wolves in 40k and Skaven in fantasy. On entering the store I found out that the new Wolves codex was coming out at the end of that week and the Skaven codex was only a month away. I took this as a sign from the Allfather and left the store with a copy of Assault on Black Reach, a starter painting kit and a copy of volume 1 of the Space Wolves Omnibus. Since then I’ve immersed myself back into the 40k hobby (I have no intention to start square-basing again) and I’m so very pleased to be back.

In this blog I intend to document my progress in getting back into the hobby and hopefully spur myself on to get an army or two painted for your comments and/or ridicule. If anyone actually finds my fumbling attempts to build and paint minis entertaining enough to follow all the better.

I’d like to think that this blog could serve to illustrate that we all start as noobs and may even inspire some other gamers in the early stages of 40k addiction who can’t see how their minis will ever look like the better examples the web has to offer. In reality drunken banter, wild speculation and poorly judged opinion may be more common. If nothing else you can feel you’re doing your part for the mentally ill by giving my unstable ego a boost. As a warning I may occasionally use naughty words, although I will try my best to self censor. I mean no personal offense by anything I post but I am who I am.

Before I release what is sure to be a monumental post in modern blogging history out into the warp I’d just like to thank everyone over at 40k radio for keeping my interest in the hobby while going through the first few difficult months where my modelling and painting truly sucked and I couldn’t find a single person to play against. I’d also like to thank the 40k Freebootaz for their constant inspiration when it comes to modelling, painting, playing and living Warhammer 40,000.

See you in the warp...