tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56609659148604810922024-03-06T05:53:26.650+00:00The Dark TemplarThe Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.comBlogger679125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-49262753085910122782021-03-23T20:39:00.001+00:002021-03-23T20:39:30.109+00:00Confronting The Pile Of Shame<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrDJnVwQdVtDePpoD78O2nek4BLuMZcSJSuUgwsIRFFQ4nGvxc7rleSYXOmgk9S258gudZ_5C6kSUa6lQplTeLuBI1L81uUt6YxlRHnErJWiTOjZYTjFAl7UZszbNExvtXlnruKGjEiPU/s1747/Infinity-plus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1377" data-original-width="1747" height="315" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrDJnVwQdVtDePpoD78O2nek4BLuMZcSJSuUgwsIRFFQ4nGvxc7rleSYXOmgk9S258gudZ_5C6kSUa6lQplTeLuBI1L81uUt6YxlRHnErJWiTOjZYTjFAl7UZszbNExvtXlnruKGjEiPU/w400-h315/Infinity-plus.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />When I heard that Salute was on for November this year, I got very excited… no seriously, like so over-the-top excited I nearly had a fit. My first thought was to get a loot list together, so I started thinking about all the bits I 'needed' to flesh out various miniature collections or projects. <p></p><p>I felt some nostaligia for the show and remembered all the cool loot I'd picked up at previous shows, then I actually started to seriously think about all the loot I'd picked up at previous shows and started to feel guilty. I went on a bit of a recce to see if I could even find the various bits I'd bought and that still floundered in the abyss that is the 'pile of shame'. The list of unbuilt – or even unopened – miniatures is frankly astounding.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPvLbjshqLzfGAeVOhiu-gZ_9qgLlvDC-PAqleKPY2DQVoPkCyaMvWlW5E2oCNRxkrigVjIreL5MuWmwycjQVAmjuIWSY-hFKq0sHIvQsC_BYAQBwmV5YcTMAHhsD77kXpEr_0YHq5kSM/s2016/IMG_5629.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1512" data-original-width="2016" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPvLbjshqLzfGAeVOhiu-gZ_9qgLlvDC-PAqleKPY2DQVoPkCyaMvWlW5E2oCNRxkrigVjIreL5MuWmwycjQVAmjuIWSY-hFKq0sHIvQsC_BYAQBwmV5YcTMAHhsD77kXpEr_0YHq5kSM/w400-h300/IMG_5629.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="color: #999999;">Just getting started</span></i></td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p>After finding a whole raft of metal in blisters and boxes, I decided to do something about it – maybe to make myself feel better before I bought more, or maybe to get back to old school miniture building (i.e. pinning skinny metal limbs to bodies with paperclips and trying not to slice a finger in the process).</p><p>Top of my list was a group of four Reverand Moiras for Infinity, that I bought circa 2011 – ten years ago! – and were still in their box. Then I found some Infinity related blister packs of characters. I stuck bodies into bases and, whilst these were drying, I continued my search for lost Salute treasure.</p><p>Before long I found not one, but THREE boxes of Rackham Confrontation models (and a couple of blisters). I can't even guess to the year I acquired these but it was at least fifteen years ago.</p><p>I decided to call time on my searching at that point – my cutting mat was full, and I was yet to start the pinning. Yes, I'd dug myself quite a hole, however, once the models are complete I can squirrel them away in a soft and cosy miniature case until I get around to painting them. </p><p>But that's a whole other mountain to climb!</p><p><br /></p>The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-64399910358740701642021-03-09T20:26:00.004+00:002021-03-23T20:40:35.070+00:003D Printing For Newbies – Part 1This guide is aimed at the complete newbie. When I started looking into 3D printing I knew absolutely nothing and took the plunge off the back of some hasty research. I want other people to avoid some of the pitfalls and blind guessing that I faced, so what follows is an overview based upon my experience and conclusions after 12 months of participating in the 3D printing hobby.<div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">So you're thinking about getting into 3D printing</h3><div><br /></div><div>The first question to ask yourself is what would you intend to print on your shiny new printer – miniatures? monsters? terrain? bitz?</div><div><br /></div><div>I see two main routes to take with 3D printing, that will give different results:<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYeMofg89On8ifVmXNikxSH80GzvCv_zWQ3A1gXEPb8Gsq-RJ7PaRIWsE5h11uPRwmyi3RrugHQ1EfdgTIQY86kZ93OdRC0_IuZuZthVcBzTVvaZUAgMeSMqmHC5plXA6fdIkYriE1MFI/s320/Elegoo-Mars.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><b>Liquid resin printing<br /></b><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Better for printing miniatures</li><li>Machine comes (almost) ready to print out of the box</li><li>Often has a smaller print area (so may struggle with big models)</li><li>Can be a messy clean up process<div class="separator"><br /></div></li></ul><br /><a href="https://www.blogger.com/#" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8oGm8Y3KJIgb3NJ6UMEV-nHU4MBJARPwqTK7UD76RVkoD7k0hdD9vJVz3gxgx3gPSROFZB44NTTYvx-C7LTQ-AKcW0kq-x9JfZDJhIPDy_75n0WZTMFN_hh5VeSlN0Xd4kV6t6kn82nQ/w320-h240/Creality-Ender-3.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><br /><b>Plastic filament printing </b><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Better for printing terrain</li><li>Machine requires some construction before you can start printing.</li><li>Often has a larger print area</li><li>Cruder prints so results will require some sanding</li></ul><br /><br /><br /><br /><b><i>At this point we're going to focus on the Resin printing – I went down the Resin route myself, so I have no real-world experience of using the filament. I will revisit this once my experience expands.</i></b><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><h3 style="text-align: left;">Resin Printers – how do they work (in a nutshell)?</h3><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiil0Jukc0h4Z6KOudf-hdHQ1nrOnqpt2BF9Vq3P8V6Y05rVKoLZ8DwSBjCxMIUJsyrlalFgMuw7MP6VsCEECRlOKhR6Wrsfky2u8U8c4ijycOHDFlMXopLGSb_JtuzBvQ7AMJ-eR-y1pw/s2048/Screenshot+2020-06-19+at+09.39.18.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2022" data-original-width="2048" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiil0Jukc0h4Z6KOudf-hdHQ1nrOnqpt2BF9Vq3P8V6Y05rVKoLZ8DwSBjCxMIUJsyrlalFgMuw7MP6VsCEECRlOKhR6Wrsfky2u8U8c4ijycOHDFlMXopLGSb_JtuzBvQ7AMJ-eR-y1pw/w146-h144/Screenshot+2020-06-19+at+09.39.18.png" width="146" /></a></div><b>PREP</b></div><div><br /></div><div>First all you need to download a 3D model file – a .STL or .OBJ – assuming you haven't created your own, and prep it for print. If it was a freebie you may need to fix it, but I'll cover that in a later post.</div><div><br /></div><div>The model will actually be printed upside down so has to contend with the laws of gravity, as well as things like temperature. To help avoid failed prints you will usually need to add supports to a miniature (like scaffolding). </div><div><br /></div><div>Once done, the file needs to be 'sliced' ready for print. All the software to achieve this is free, and there is tons of 'how-to' videos on YouTube to help you. Transfer the file to your printer (usually via USB) and you're ready to go.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXb4nBoaEZJ1a4GhQh75Ft0mdEL5yeMjzGO9Xezz-ACTp1KfBsKDg1tOwPDegp33w2TLdh5JmqskWKcFDHwKKqCN8nHjJDuIO7_f8n0yQp9Bnj7s2mWR5u3X1O_kbUlitdK02HUSewTOY/s2048/IMG_4436.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1915" height="137" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXb4nBoaEZJ1a4GhQh75Ft0mdEL5yeMjzGO9Xezz-ACTp1KfBsKDg1tOwPDegp33w2TLdh5JmqskWKcFDHwKKqCN8nHjJDuIO7_f8n0yQp9Bnj7s2mWR5u3X1O_kbUlitdK02HUSewTOY/w128-h137/IMG_4436.jpg" width="128" /></a></div><b><div><b><br /></b></div>PRINTING</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Once the printer gets started each 'sliced' layer silhouette is projected onto a screen with UV light, which cures the UV sensitive liquid resin to the exposed shape. These layers bind to the metal build plate, and build up over the course of several hours until you have a completed model – just like a traditional inkjet printer will print a line at a time until the page is complete.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>CLEAN UP</b></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26QZjolkJhof2kY7tDRU8Lx6oNSkqm6ubW1x7waxSz3hVPZ3X2TvemtbH-fCp9aepox_Q2nnd-xBZO_bIZPwlXn3O9ZJMrDfkslA4ugRcsohMwLwR4qFjEdSkKBKApldemjqxWH_P1sk/s1500/IMG_4438.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1072" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26QZjolkJhof2kY7tDRU8Lx6oNSkqm6ubW1x7waxSz3hVPZ3X2TvemtbH-fCp9aepox_Q2nnd-xBZO_bIZPwlXn3O9ZJMrDfkslA4ugRcsohMwLwR4qFjEdSkKBKApldemjqxWH_P1sk/w117-h162/IMG_4438.jpg" width="117" /></a></div>Before you do a thing you'll need to put on some rubber (nitrile) gloves – liquid resin is nasty stuff and you don't want it on your skin.</div><div><br /></div><div>With the print complete, remove the build plate from the printer and use a wallpaper scraper, razor blade, or similar metal tool to separate the print from the plate. The print is then washed in IPA (isopropyl alcohol) to remove any excess resin. Then follows a good bath in warm water (ideally in a sonic cleaner) to remove the alcohol and soften up the supports.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoDw1CKCdNYgPHt3W6sCF1SDSHjP1QGnab70AJCPfTVVTUzb2Ocz5pXv-Hf-CQM7xeyphrI_YbBD7S4ejzFtemXI0wCQiYYKp9yAtnGcFf42X9jlA_7uxoGZm50r3vVH4EPQokQ-ClvW4/s2048/IMG_4442.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1622" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoDw1CKCdNYgPHt3W6sCF1SDSHjP1QGnab70AJCPfTVVTUzb2Ocz5pXv-Hf-CQM7xeyphrI_YbBD7S4ejzFtemXI0wCQiYYKp9yAtnGcFf42X9jlA_7uxoGZm50r3vVH4EPQokQ-ClvW4/w109-h139/IMG_4442.jpg" width="109" /></a></div>Depending upon how well the supports have been placed, the removal process can either be very easy, or very tricky. This is the point when you are most likely to damage your model, possible snap something off or leave surface damage.</div><div><br /></div><div>Assuming everything went swimmingly, stick you model under a UV lamp for a few minutes to make sure it's thoroughly cured.</div><div><br /></div><div>And you're done.</div><div><br /></div><div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>TIMINGS</b></div></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_r3rMFtZfDvb-EbVEfUcS4UwYUbg3HXBgzIoXepoWyImQizHZq0Lh-8ZbMKy4EykQfnNIG4SgFjJa5O66moxzCvjs_T92XHu2Hmu733oCG4CB51z9OtxrGyg8kpMwSjojpEAzWo4Dm_M/s2048/IMG_4445.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1695" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_r3rMFtZfDvb-EbVEfUcS4UwYUbg3HXBgzIoXepoWyImQizHZq0Lh-8ZbMKy4EykQfnNIG4SgFjJa5O66moxzCvjs_T92XHu2Hmu733oCG4CB51z9OtxrGyg8kpMwSjojpEAzWo4Dm_M/w135-h164/IMG_4445.jpg" width="135" /></a></div>For an average, 32mm human model, the process takes me: 20-30 mins to prep the file; an average of 4-5hrs to print; and another 20 minutes to clean up. </div><div><br /></div><div>Obviously you would load your build plate with as many models as you can, so I might get 3-4 models printed within that same 4-5 hr print time.</div><div><br /></div><div>There are ways to improve on those times, with a better printer, different types of resin, etc. but we'll leave that for another time. It is also possible to buy 'wash & cure' stations to help the process – these units look not unlike the printer itself, but provide washing and curing facilities instead of having to do it manually. <br /><br /><br /><br /><h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNocwrRV_3SdDCGJZkWAfYQHQtr9cSwPeyqQEA5vh4q60gYDixWzbDPXhryexDQX8osV_pmDS6YJSL5VIIyz1kHe9xVq4Cj0mnXeaHJjFdxZe6QpNw4T7ur-2RN_BBhpFdk1FhEQRDCM4/s1024/IMG_4422.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="823" data-original-width="1024" height="372" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNocwrRV_3SdDCGJZkWAfYQHQtr9cSwPeyqQEA5vh4q60gYDixWzbDPXhryexDQX8osV_pmDS6YJSL5VIIyz1kHe9xVq4Cj0mnXeaHJjFdxZe6QpNw4T7ur-2RN_BBhpFdk1FhEQRDCM4/w462-h372/IMG_4422.jpg" width="462" /></a></div></h3><h3><span style="font-size: medium;">How much do the models cost to print?</span></h3><div>Depending upon the size and complexity of the model, and the type of resin you use, a typical 32mm miniature would cost less than £1 to print, often closer to 50p.</div><div><br /></div><div>Don't forget though, you will probably have to buy the file to print in the first place – they can range in price from say £3 up to perhaps £8 per miniature. The beauty is though, once you have the file you can print as many as you like!</div><div><br /></div><div>Then you have the bigger models – the dragons, greater demons, giants and the like. They can cost from around £10 for the file, but might only cost another £20 in resin to print. That's an enormous resin dragon for £30 instead of £200. And if you wanted more than one, then the price comes down with each one.</div><br /><br /><h3 style="text-align: left;">So which resin printer should I buy, and how much will it cost?</h3><div>The cost of resin printers can vary dramatically, as can their specifications. If you're looking at having a dabble at entry-level, you can spend as little as £200 – if you want the best quality miniatures possible you're looking at closer to £2000 or even more.<br /><br />From my experience, the most popular manufacturers (and therefore the best community to get help from) are Elegoo and Anycubic. They both have solid entry-level models, but also offer larger format machines.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>ELEGOO</b></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxs7pY6rP2IxuPlDqDGyIyLobrO9CdTFLs3CNayZh9EHM1GMonpKwnGvD-fgHD_nCLlicFiQMiMFqrjqpz1D9lqgEnP2oY-fffWHbXQ8wnsJqJNY5X24dRQV4Yf9kmoqPHRqc3tqL8FA0/s577/Elegoo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="383" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxs7pY6rP2IxuPlDqDGyIyLobrO9CdTFLs3CNayZh9EHM1GMonpKwnGvD-fgHD_nCLlicFiQMiMFqrjqpz1D9lqgEnP2oY-fffWHbXQ8wnsJqJNY5X24dRQV4Yf9kmoqPHRqc3tqL8FA0/w193-h292/Elegoo.png" width="193" /></a></div><br />Entry Level: </span></div><div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Mars Pro</span></b> <i>(currently £235 on Amazon)</i></div><div>Very solid entry level machine and a bit of a workhorse (this is the updated version of my own printer)</div><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Step Up:</span> </div><div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Mars 2 Pro Mono</span></b> <i>(currently £280 on Amazon)</i></div><div>Near identical to the Mars Pro but with some added extras, most notably a 2k mono screen which will improve the quality of your prints – this would be my recommendation based upon my experience with my original Elegoo Mars.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Larger Format:</span> </div><div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Saturn</span></b> <i>(found it on Ebay for £600-£700 – almost impossible to source)</i></div><div>This is the big brother of the Mars. It has a 4k mono screen and a much bigger build plate area, allowing you to print more or bigger stuff!</div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>ANYCUBIC</b></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim-Uzt0PXLcPUZj2NCB56i_r9UhPrERfUrm9o3d33AXqqqwwBxq_bpINTkdkewUVRLe0Y_Ustq7SJ8viznzlbZ-0I2sXdFWg19OIRyfcCp3i2JPAxM997QYLovyLEQkUGPZqy3HXw7dwQ/s508/Anycubic.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="508" data-original-width="383" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim-Uzt0PXLcPUZj2NCB56i_r9UhPrERfUrm9o3d33AXqqqwwBxq_bpINTkdkewUVRLe0Y_Ustq7SJ8viznzlbZ-0I2sXdFWg19OIRyfcCp3i2JPAxM997QYLovyLEQkUGPZqy3HXw7dwQ/w197-h262/Anycubic.png" width="197" /></a></div><br />Entry Level: </span></div><div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Photon</span></b> <i>(approx £300 but difficult to source it seems)</i></div><div>Another solid entry level machine</div><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Step Up:</span> </div><div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Photon Mono</span></b> <i>(currently £270 on Amazon)</i></div><div>2k Mono screen, and a decent sized build plate.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Larger Format:</span> </div><div><div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Photon Mono X</span></b> <i>(currently £800 on Amazon)</i></div><div>4k Mono screen, and a larger build plate.</div></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>There are of course other manufacturers out there, but these are the two that I am most familiar with.</i></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The tricky issue we have right now is availability. Some of the most popular machines that folks on YouTube are raving about are simply not available in the UK.</div><div><br /></div><div>My advice right now would be not to rush anything, do some research – YouTube is a fantastic source of unboxing and review videos (though be careful as many are sponsored by the manufacturers).</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Next time:<br /></b>We're going to talk in more detail about the kind of things you can print, and where to find them.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">If anyone spots any technical inaccuracies above, just let me know in the comments and I'll correct it.</span></i></div><div><br /></div></div><div><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Models shown in the above photos are from <a href="https://www.myminifactory.com/users/Artisan_Guild" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Artisan Guild</a> and <a href="https://www.myminifactory.com/users/EpicsNStuffs" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Epics N Stuffs</a><br /></span></i><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /></div>The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-4477020800778676632021-02-28T09:52:00.001+00:002021-02-28T09:57:33.493+00:00A New Era<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnOe7eCY_Q_l47BYco2NjEPnOVnsR8drcq9LagJk-R1n5tlJv-6VPTfh3aurmQhlo0Q1L3MbDdJo52_GVZV1f776823q7tYWjFVjTAqu_k1bCxDDpltbYoKHfra0vNJCeTRMkFSRkjNOA/s1026/IMG_5167.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="794" data-original-width="1026" height="495" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnOe7eCY_Q_l47BYco2NjEPnOVnsR8drcq9LagJk-R1n5tlJv-6VPTfh3aurmQhlo0Q1L3MbDdJo52_GVZV1f776823q7tYWjFVjTAqu_k1bCxDDpltbYoKHfra0vNJCeTRMkFSRkjNOA/w640-h495/IMG_5167.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>As you can no doubt tell, I've had something of a haitus from the blog. I've actually had something of a haitus from the hobby in general – life just doesn't seem to give time for hobby stuff (other than half an hour here or there), and that was before a world pandemic, social lockdowns, cancelled events and the additional stresses and strains (homeschooling anyone?).</p><p>So with no time for the hobby as I knew it, I found myself gravitating to something new – a different side of the hobby – and the result has been game-changing (excuse the pun). The hobby, or at least the model side of it, will never be the same again.</p><p>I've discovered 3D resin printing.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC5B6pny_E_X7KIOo6gw0mmdfeRzhTYT1rmNrXSmymSKsxVcjSQXoVa4OwqwX79Gq_BsGK_XB60qNlzuPcWj_wRBWVySaDsJQ8xpV8NPZijINMPnrlcXI3YXXL3ScT7guSad6T_KjI58I/s2048/LUCAE1301.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1596" data-original-width="2048" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC5B6pny_E_X7KIOo6gw0mmdfeRzhTYT1rmNrXSmymSKsxVcjSQXoVa4OwqwX79Gq_BsGK_XB60qNlzuPcWj_wRBWVySaDsJQ8xpV8NPZijINMPnrlcXI3YXXL3ScT7guSad6T_KjI58I/w403-h314/LUCAE1301.jpg" width="403" /></a></div><p>In fact, not just printing but designing, building, kitbashing all in a digital format, and then printing out the end result. Kinda like the first time you discover Photoshop and can do loads of funky things manipulating photos, then print out the finished masterpiece. I have lockdown to thank for that (and Games Workshop's ever soaring prices).</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0V9762ljn83bCJ4DrYw0TbieHYwprjUC__XC_B4Wy78ptHOqUDGXxMlXXURpFL83-qHg9ENw3CpAm2MBs6rXEVsqkbMaRdbNMIcZ8ycUVmZTXAi9p8bhxm7RspdEYuFwFnXDJUgDrC1k/s1020/IMG_5302.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="428" data-original-width="1020" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0V9762ljn83bCJ4DrYw0TbieHYwprjUC__XC_B4Wy78ptHOqUDGXxMlXXURpFL83-qHg9ENw3CpAm2MBs6rXEVsqkbMaRdbNMIcZ8ycUVmZTXAi9p8bhxm7RspdEYuFwFnXDJUgDrC1k/s320/IMG_5302.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p>I find myself in a position where I can print (almost) any miniature or bitz I want to, for a fraction of the price – and I can have it in my hand same day, no waiting for postage… I don't have to file down mold lines or stick it together with glue. I can quite literally have a new army, ready to paint, in a single day. And if I want to customise my plastic kits with specific bits, guess what… not a problem, and it'll cost pennies.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6xu2MV7aQHOABnR_RwvAVnHnG1LC_TQFfs88X1FtKqR-6TKhJfSodWKmEZC7As6qyRgoYDqYM4X9fMtveuiD6fHB8pUHwfJpdUjberOjxXo-zn3mX1jjyvob972KmSnP0BvXg7ovYzsI/s1500/IMG_4438.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1072" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6xu2MV7aQHOABnR_RwvAVnHnG1LC_TQFfs88X1FtKqR-6TKhJfSodWKmEZC7As6qyRgoYDqYM4X9fMtveuiD6fHB8pUHwfJpdUjberOjxXo-zn3mX1jjyvob972KmSnP0BvXg7ovYzsI/w161-h226/IMG_4438.jpg" width="161" /></a></div>This opens up a whole new world to a gamer – anything is possible – and as a creative person anyway, my mind has been blown. I have so many ideas now I'm not sure where to start – the only downside being, the pile of unpainted miniatures in my cupboard just grew exponentially!<p></p><p></p><p>Over the coming weeks and months I'll be looking into this new side of the hobby in more detail. I'll post up a complete newbie guide to resin printing, together with mistakes I've made and lessons I've learned. I'll also be doing a few tutorials as well as showing off some of the things I've managed to achieve.</p><p></p><p>So, I wasn't exaggerating when I called this post A New Era. Come join me on this whole new adventure!</p><br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-78502637144075515122019-07-02T21:21:00.001+01:002021-01-01T01:06:50.092+00:00Star Wars Legion ATST<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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At last I have a finished model to show you all. The speed at which I paint and never finish anything has become a standard joke in these parts, so I feel super accomplished that I finished something – even moreso that it's this monster of a model.<br />
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Standing at 190mm (19.5") on a 100mm base, the Imperial AT-ST for Star Wars Legion is a beast. I was given it as a Christmas present by Bull, after our <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2018/12/the-empire-invade-pevensey.html" target="_blank">Legion exploits at Awdry Towers</a> earlier that month, and it sat languishing in a box (as most of my models do alas) for several months. Something inspired me to dig it out a few weeks back and I became addicted to painting it, and also my wider Imperial snow-based army.<br />
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I glued it together and pinned it to the base, adding several 2p coins to ensure it didn't fall over! It got a basecoat of GW Mechanicus Standard Grey from a can, then I airbrushed some loose highlights with P3 Cryx Bane Highlight. I gave it a liberal wash of GW Nuln Oil and Agrax Earthshade. I then used more of the Bane Highlight with a sponge this time, experimenting as I went.<br />
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I lost track at this point of how the colour scheme evolved, although I remember applying GW Celestra Grey to the edges, and liberal amounts of GW Typhus Corrosion for the rust.<br />
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Whilst all this was ongoing, I came across talk of the <a href="https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/501st_Legion" target="_blank">501st Legion</a> from as far back as the Clone Wars (following Anakin Skywalker) through to being Imperial Troops (following Darth Vader). I loved the idea of this as a basis for my army so decided to add some markings to the AT-ST hull.<br />
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The black stripe down the front was easy enough – masking off the area and using a sponge to apply paint, touching up with a brush – the side markings were a little more tricky as it involved an Imperial symbol. My freehand painting is pretty rough these days, and I was not happy with the result (and didn't want to wait for a mail-order decal), so used the sponge to fade it back to obscurity. I like to think that they are always in some battle or other and things are getting worn out!<br />
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Once I got into the detail I got really addicted. More and more highlights and washes, till things were getting out of hand. I decided to call it a day and finish it all off.<br />
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My army is to be based on an ice planet (so I can build my Hoth table) so some resin rocks and liberal amount of snow was the order of the day for basing. I added patches of snow elsewhere on the vehicle, even going so far as adding icicles with Woodland Scenics Water Effects.<br />
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This one is now officially ticked off as complete. With so much else to paint I'm spoiled for choice, but this model has inspired me to crash on and paint an army and gaming table that would make Mr Awdry proud!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-30056975125911065062019-06-11T12:00:00.000+01:002019-06-11T12:00:13.103+01:00June Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Wow – it's been over two months since my last blog post, and what a crazy time it's been. Aside from mundane things like decorating and major earthworks that have eating into down time, the hobby is very much alive and kicking.<br />
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To begin with, though it seems a lifetime away, I had a cracking visit to Salute. I haven't been for a couple of years so was really looking forward to it – normally the kiss of death. However, I didn't hold back this time around and came home with a boatload of loot, chatted to quite a few people about their projects and products, and enjoyed myself thoroughly.<br />
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After my game of Kill Team with Bull, back at the beginning of March, I was buzzing for my Crimson Fist marines and (more so) my new gaming board and terrain. I has quite literally become an addiction, and I have been building lots of Sector Mechanicus bits and pieces to create the ultimate skirmish environment.<br />
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Once done I had some time to ponder and ripped half of it apart and rebuilt it _ with magnets galore – in a more modular and funky way. This felt a bit mad at the time, but has proved to be a genius move as the set of terrain I have is looking awesome.<br />
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Very happy bunny indeed. Most of it has a base coat, whilst some has been lavished with shade and even highlights. More on this another time.<br />
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My son even got in on the action, taking the time to construct a battlescape one afternoon, using lots of my 40k models. It was a good opportunity to dust a few old bits off and assess the model collection. I think I need more.<br />
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I managed to get a fantastic 2-day gaming session in with Bull at the end of May. Instead of picking up the Kill Team again, of which he wasn't really a fan, we took another look at Shadespire. I think it's fair to say that this definitely ticked a box for Bull, to the point I did think he might go out and make a rather large purchase of everything related (but he held his nerve!).<br />
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I had a bit of a lull after this marathon gaming event, but my son persisted with the big 40k displays. It got my enthusiasm back up again, and I've been spending my evenings building lots of Space Marine models I'd bought and had sitting in a box.<br />
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This last weekend was something of a highlight as I took him to his first ever wargame show – Broadside 2019 in Sittingbourne. Despite not being a fan of all the walking, and the fact he was a little short to see what was going on most of the time, he loved it. His biggest highlight was a demo game by Friday Night Firefight Club of Dinosaur hunting, using a modified version of the Congo rules. Of course, having been reminded of that amazing game we had at Awdry Towers, I had to buy the Congo rulebook!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-39759401299207931952019-03-30T11:13:00.001+00:002019-03-30T17:25:57.286+00:00Crimson Fists Kill Team – Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So as we head into the end of March, I thought I would sneak in an update on the Crimson Fists' progress.<br />
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I had raced ahead with my Comms marine, even getting so far as to test some red and black out the blue overspill. This did however leave the rest of the team lagging far behind. I got the bulk of them up to a basic blue coat, but it took a while for the Veteran Sergeant (with all his greenstuff additions) to catch up.<br />
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Last night I put in a shift to make sure they were all finished with the blue, with final highlights (I may got back with a touch of white at the end) and ready to see red! With the grinding bit over I'm looking forward to getting stuck into some details to bring their characters to life. Alas, with Easter fast approaching, my wife has decided that now is the time to tackle the redecorating of the living room – the second largest room in the house, and the one we've been putting off since we moved in five years ago.<br />
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With that in mind I expect progress to be slow, but I hit my self-induced deadline of the end of the month for the armour to be complete. OMG, I may actually painting some models here people – I may actually be able to tick something off the Hobby Bingo list (soon)!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-52735621346959345212019-03-24T19:45:00.002+00:002019-03-24T19:49:58.663+00:00Kill Team – Crimson Fists Primaris Sergeant<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The image above is the one <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/02/crimson-fists-kill-team-part-1.html" target="_blank">you've already seen</a> of Primaris Veteran Sergeant <i><b>Vorn</b></i>. He is the last of my 7-man Crimson Fists Kill Team to see any kind of undercoat, the reason being that I wanted to adorn his armour with a few unique elements so that he stands out on the tabletop.<br />
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Now I've not done any greenstuff sculpting for a very long time, so my skills are quite rusty, but I had my list of additions and gave it a go.<br />
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First on the list was a loin cloth. I wanted to add a bit of movement to the model and another colour, as they are turning out to be very blue! I supplemented this with some purity seals – on the belt and the shoulder pad.<br />
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I managed to find a rather nifty skull with roman numerals etched into it from the Primaris Apothecary model, so I added that to the shoulder pad first. I then also sculpted a (crude) skull to the opposite knee pad. I like the idea that this is some kind of icon for the team – Skull and VI – so may have to use it on the other models in various forms.<br />
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He is now on the painting table and should have caught up with the rest of the team's completed <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/03/painting-my-crimson-fists-blue-armour.html" target="_blank">blue armour</a> in the next couple of days!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-40630760291163535722019-03-20T14:00:00.000+00:002019-03-24T19:48:32.023+00:00Painting my Crimson Fists – Blue Armour<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
After the success of my <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/03/painting-my-kill-team-terrain-with.html" target="_blank">terrain sponge painting</a>, I pondered the prospect of using the same technique for painting space marine armour. The 7 members of my Crimson Fists Kill Team were the perfect opportunity to give it a try!</div>
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I picked out two extremes from my team – my Comms Intercessor and one of my Scouts. This should give me an idea of whether the sponge technique will work for models or not.</div>
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Step 1</span></b></div>
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As always, a spray undercoat was the first order of business. In this instance I chose <b><i>Chaos Black</i></b> as I wanted a dark feel to the armour.</div>
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Step 2</span></b></div>
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A solid base coat of <b><i>Kantor Blue</i></b>, applied as several thinner layers, came next. This should give me a sound starting point for my experiment.</div>
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Step 3</span></b></div>
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Next came a liberal coating in <b><i>Drakenhof Nightshade</i></b> – my new favourite wash! It gave the blue armour a boost in saturation as well as darkening the whole model and settling in the recesses.</div>
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Step 4</span></b></div>
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Now, this was the fun bit. Unlike my previous sponge experiments, I used a very small piece of sponge (which pretty much meant it went all over my fingers!). I started off by putting the smallest amount of raw <b><i>Kantor Blue</i></b> onto the palette and dabbing it around with my sponge. I then dabbed a large proportion onto a wipe, so the application on the model would be subtle. I then slowly build up the layers of <b><i>Kantor Blue</i></b> until I had a nice balance. I then mixed in some <b><i>Alaitoc Blue</i></b> in with the colour still on my palette and continued the process. Finally I used pure <b><i>Alaitoc Blue</i></b> in some key areas.</div>
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What I find interesting is that the sponge physically won't fit into spaces that would naturally be in shadow, so it's pretty hard to go wrong. The only mistake I made initially was too much paint on the sponge and it swamped the model. The effects look a little bit like dry brushing in these close-up photos, but from the tabletop it looks quite smooth.</div>
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Step 5</span></b></div>
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Finally I added some edge highlights with a fine brush. I started with <b><i>Alaitoc Blue</i></b> and moved on to <b><i>Lothern Blue</i></b>. I may go back a do a couple of tiny off-white highlights. I was also considering pushing the highlights back a bit with another wash before re-applying <b><i>Lothern Blue </i></b>to the most prominent edges. We will see. </div>
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Again, the colours seem rather extreme close-up, but it looks quite smart on the table. My problem in the past has always been that I'm too subtle with the highlights – they look great up close but non-existent on the tabletop.</div>
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And that is it for the armour.</div>
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The whole process took about 15 minutes for these two models (excluding drying time for the wash). I just need to rinse and repeat for the other five members of the team and I can move onto some red, or rather crimson, fists!</div>
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The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-66056193966693335122019-03-17T09:52:00.001+00:002019-03-17T19:44:09.052+00:00Painting my Kill Team Terrain… with a Sponge!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw7Slz-uulcLEY-HZUb0W1Xp9Q97gueSxht4BMl47fD7h66PDL9DkYf6YRD4AbgVppoK7QhVjWJuDffmN6BgjsG73NNpR9bIMWwNXSvCnMYWo74-J4GVsvjhZGttHfd1U4ByPpvPF6VOA/s1600/IMG_1136.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw7Slz-uulcLEY-HZUb0W1Xp9Q97gueSxht4BMl47fD7h66PDL9DkYf6YRD4AbgVppoK7QhVjWJuDffmN6BgjsG73NNpR9bIMWwNXSvCnMYWo74-J4GVsvjhZGttHfd1U4ByPpvPF6VOA/s640/IMG_1136.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Having acquired a rather large amount of GW's <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/02/collecting-kill-team-terrain.html" target="_blank">Sector Mechanicus terrain</a> for my new <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/02/making-kill-team-board_15.html" target="_blank">Kill Team board</a>, I had to face the task I normally fail at – painting it all!<br />
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I no longer have access to my airbrush, so I needed to find a quick way to get some colours down that would also satisfy my nitpicking attitude towards details and 'looking cool'. I decided to go down the route of the <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/02/making-kill-team-board_15.html" target="_blank">sponge technique</a> I'd used on my board.<br />
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I spray undercoated everything with <b>Leadbelcher</b> (what an awesome spray can that is!). Immediately things looked better. I then painted the area I wanted to colour up un <b>Rhinox Brown</b>. A couple of thin coats later we were ready to rock and roll.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizNtVOa5gRBFn-JYfnAyDWKBNR4SO_I71wDxTVRTcSKNmaXwSk0iAuGvjbtA_d6lOCx0PuSC-X8J3_u2zZP9HCT3RKK7oPMAKq79FIqVNxBiNmAzQtE8yv69_d9fS6vLN59lVJ-ENW5z4/s1600/sector-mech-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="831" data-original-width="1000" height="331" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizNtVOa5gRBFn-JYfnAyDWKBNR4SO_I71wDxTVRTcSKNmaXwSk0iAuGvjbtA_d6lOCx0PuSC-X8J3_u2zZP9HCT3RKK7oPMAKq79FIqVNxBiNmAzQtE8yv69_d9fS6vLN59lVJ-ENW5z4/s400/sector-mech-1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I started by mixing <b>Rhinox Brown</b> and <b>Mephiston Red</b> on my palette and began sponging the colour on, subtly at first but then I got bolder. I added more <b>Mephiston Red</b> and let the sponge do the mixing. The colour was beginning to focus around the central part of each segment, leaving wonderful dark shadows at the edges.<br />
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I gave the red areas a wash of <b>Baal Red</b> (now sadly no longer available) then, once thoroughly dry, applied more <b>Mephiston Red</b>, moving up gradually to <b>Evil Sunz Scarlet</b> and even a little <b>Wild Rider Red</b>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAT1TyQmmhxXVzasCtICqX-asjE2yPhP1IggORsvxR8MGxGWYhGCI6lup7hw4T4nWddxl-vr9diL_6_Q9xzxTHs7lf_CWQ2yGLvbQSXXJTyuRqohop3zf14WFF78q4McPZfL8UKSt8nDA/s1600/sector-mech-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="797" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAT1TyQmmhxXVzasCtICqX-asjE2yPhP1IggORsvxR8MGxGWYhGCI6lup7hw4T4nWddxl-vr9diL_6_Q9xzxTHs7lf_CWQ2yGLvbQSXXJTyuRqohop3zf14WFF78q4McPZfL8UKSt8nDA/s320/sector-mech-2.jpg" width="255" /></a></div>
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I retired the sponges and tried out some edging colours with a fine brush, going through my cycle of reds, and things were starting to look good. However it was not dark or dirty enough.<br />
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Next I touched up the <b>Leadbelcher</b> where the sponge had contaminated the metal with red, and washed the metal areas in <b>Nuln Oil</b> then, once dry, the whole thing in Agrax Earthshade, concentrating on the recesses and clearing the glaze away from the central highlight areas almost completely. Understandably I had to leave it 24hrs to dry!<br />
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I was very happy now, but felt I needed to highlight the individual plates within each segment. Again, I cycled through my reds, but pushed on to a <b>Fire Dragon Bright</b> and even touches of a flesh tone (don't recall white one – Kislev?). I finished with some <b>Agrax Earthshade</b> in the recesses between the plates to add contrast to the highlights.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYcxXw2zv_kjBwR7ZXLh9woRFwVm9bJZRjfJrtBMPkbsLNVrwL1D1_0V4MsLaPPSrUpBbJD-dl1dJTrRyMYqrwDixj-VhMEiQWdNuMQQ7VGmAwB8URairanPLqjjEV3uPqxzGvQGRKYKg/s1600/sector-mech-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="732" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYcxXw2zv_kjBwR7ZXLh9woRFwVm9bJZRjfJrtBMPkbsLNVrwL1D1_0V4MsLaPPSrUpBbJD-dl1dJTrRyMYqrwDixj-VhMEiQWdNuMQQ7VGmAwB8URairanPLqjjEV3uPqxzGvQGRKYKg/s320/sector-mech-4.jpg" width="234" /></a></div>
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I'm calling these red sections done, except for maybe a huge stencilled number and sone distressing at a later date. The plan is to approach the metal parts in a similar fashion, getting the overall highlights to a mid-tone then some edge highlights quite bright.<br />
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I'm just happy that I'm close to my first piece of painted terrain in almost 15 years!!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-66165974752912417722019-02-28T14:00:00.000+00:002019-02-28T14:00:03.644+00:00Collecting Kill Team Terrain<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoQPlw6u8-3mXpOvM0ytOksCXocShH4rS6ocZ0Dn-_xAk4yKfdY8djbJ1cVmAnQtApu9SS78D16zuNB2A5nfvWeGm-Nu2gIwzb5esSX8SoPoQ34yEJqcXSRBAE5V2W8_lJhkEea-bjXZ4/s1600/IMG_1137.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1306" data-original-width="1600" height="521" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoQPlw6u8-3mXpOvM0ytOksCXocShH4rS6ocZ0Dn-_xAk4yKfdY8djbJ1cVmAnQtApu9SS78D16zuNB2A5nfvWeGm-Nu2gIwzb5esSX8SoPoQ34yEJqcXSRBAE5V2W8_lJhkEea-bjXZ4/s640/IMG_1137.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Preparation of the Kill Team board continues, as time has become generally limited to finish my team. I'll admit this is probably the most expensive route to go, but the hope is that I will have a decent set of terrain that works well for both Kill Team and Necromunda.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB67boOirF9pyfsNijCy_gIbpes2I8IOalBZJE-om-NVILlacqklK2qZy3WMw08wpRDACiApBfqhRQu3vJIcrLIt0gUDxfkDXWMGstbaipHl0FL3cBEBOi5ORuG4x_lugCRs1nJJJJItE/s1600/IMG_1111.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1139" data-original-width="1600" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB67boOirF9pyfsNijCy_gIbpes2I8IOalBZJE-om-NVILlacqklK2qZy3WMw08wpRDACiApBfqhRQu3vJIcrLIt0gUDxfkDXWMGstbaipHl0FL3cBEBOi5ORuG4x_lugCRs1nJJJJItE/s640/IMG_1111.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I started with the Ryza ruins from GW, which are relatively cheap and provided a good basis. I then bought in to the idea that I was creating an abandoned/ruined manufacturing zone, and things started to… erm, escalate. I love the look of the Manufactorum (above in grey plastic) and it would also bring height to the table (which is always a double edged sword!).<br />
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By this point I was bitten by the terrain bug. I have always loved the Armoured Containers, and they would be perfect for my setting, so they were next on my shopping list. I only have one built at present, but there are two more waiting in the wings.<br />
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Then came the 'pièce de résistance'. An Adeptus Mechanicus specific kit, I found it lurking away from the other terrain in my local GW store. It is an absolute beauty, and makes an awesome centrepiece. The fact it cost less than the Armoured Crates was a bonus.<br />
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So that is the collection so far. All lacking a bit of paint, but that will come – I'm very much looking forward to getting some colour on this lot and creating an awesome gaming environment in which to play Kill Team.<br />
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Stay tuned for more Kill Team!<br />
<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-34585549435809792452019-02-15T14:00:00.000+00:002019-02-19T19:50:21.218+00:00Making a Kill Team Board<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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By way of a side project, alongside my A Tale Of 3 Armies <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/02/crimson-fists-kill-team-part-1.html" target="_blank">kill team building</a>, I decided to make a Kill Team board and have some new terrain for it. I haven't managed to complete my last two board projects, but somehow this one seemed very do-able, even given the limited time I have these day. Once I'd started I got the bug to get it done. I took inspiration from the Malifaux board I made all those years ago, <a href="http://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2011/05/malifaux-board-part-4.html" target="_blank">mimicking the potato printing process</a> to create patterns and textures.<br />
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I bought a piece of 4x2 6mm MDF and cut the length down so it was 30cmx24cm – slightly wider than the 'official' kill team size of 30cmx22cm (which is a really odd size and surely just so it will fit in a box), but I'm ok with that. I bought a trolley full of tester paint pots at the same time, in a variety of colours, and chose a dark brown to base coat the board. I used a roller so that I would get some subtle texture, but not too much – I made the mistake of using some filler to texture <a href="http://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2011/05/malifaux-board-part-3.html" target="_blank">my Malifaux board</a>, and it proved to be quite an issue.<br />
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I gave the base coat 24 hrs to dry thoroughly (not a quick process in a cold garage). Then came the fun part!<br />
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I cracked open the other tester paint pots and found myself an old car washing sponge. I used a fork to rip up the surface of the sponge so it was very ragged but in a random, natural way, filling the floor with bits of sponge in the process!!<br />
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I went back to my original dark brown paint and dabbed it quite heavily over the basecoated board, to fill in any bits I'd missed and to add more texture.<br />
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Whilst this initial pass of brown was still wet, I poured different tester pot colours into my paint tray and used the sponge again, letting the colours mix naturally as I dabbed, trying to keep the coverage as random as possible. There were blues and greys and browns and greens, and gradually they began to mix in the tray and on the board, so each application got more subtle. I tried to keep the lighter colours concentrated near the centre of the board, as that is where most of the action would take place and it would become the natural focal point.<br />
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After tidying up the incredible mess, I left the board for two days to dry in the chilly garage – even that was only just long enough (the paint on my sponge was still very wet!). I brought the board indoors to put some terrain on it and photograph it, thinking it was done. But something didn't feel quite right – it felt too light in colour, not grungy enough.<br />
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My solution was quite extreme.<br />
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I managed to find some old bottles of Windsor & Newton ink – Nut Brown and Black. I mixed the two in a bowl, with only the smallest amount of black, as I recalled it was very strong. I added some water and a bit of old matt medium and washed the entire board using a sponge, making sure as best I could that the coverage was even and there were no lines. The board was almost black – I could hardly see any of my sponged on patterns!!<br />
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With the ink still wet, I got a clean sponge dipped in water and started dabbing it lightly and quickly around the centre of the board to thin the ink coverage. It was a very gradual process. I kept going until I felt I had the right balance and the results were looking grungy enough for me. I then (gingerly) brought the board indoors to dry thoroughly in the warmth.<br />
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I have to say I love the final result. It has surpassed my expectations and I have created a new board process along the way. I will probably add some furniture pads underneath to protect whatever surface I'm playing on, but aside from that (and a coat or two of protective varnish) we're done.<br />
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I did consider adding scenery elements (skulls, discarded weapons, etc.) to the board but I want this to be easily stored, so purposefully kept it as flat as possible. Similarly, I thought about printing tyre tracks, footprints, explosions, etc on there, but again decided to keep it neutral so it can be used for any game. The scenery placed on top will create the real atmosphere for the gaming and I wanted the board to be nothing more than a backdrop for that.<br />
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Expect to see this board a lot on the blog in the future!!<br />
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The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-52247349463848631372019-02-13T14:00:00.000+00:002019-02-13T14:00:08.845+00:00Crimson Fists Kill Team – Part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwHjER2yWwl6Pi6R66AvSPHlRK9nmLK1zw0v4VmLWrPF2yQCnlAI75Hzawxmuh1l4VOVIbKYFHwxawd0O6_V5Bsa8mFdkimVZAfasRMfdhAb_AXftsK42ocgZCSu49XfLgpA5MkoNjrwc/s1600/crimson-fist-kill-team.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="1000" height="516" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwHjER2yWwl6Pi6R66AvSPHlRK9nmLK1zw0v4VmLWrPF2yQCnlAI75Hzawxmuh1l4VOVIbKYFHwxawd0O6_V5Bsa8mFdkimVZAfasRMfdhAb_AXftsK42ocgZCSu49XfLgpA5MkoNjrwc/s640/crimson-fist-kill-team.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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With my Kill Team list in hand I sat down with a box full of plastic sprues to construct my first ever kill team. I have built all seven members of my team to an initial stage, and will now go back to each and give them some extra bits to flesh out their individual characters. So with this first stage of building complete I thought I would take the opportunity to introduce them.<br />
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This is Gunner Marine <i>"Dutch"</i>. He was part of the rebuilding of the Crimson Fists, after the Rynn’s World invasion by Waaagh Snagrod that left chapter numbers decimated. During his time as an Astartes he has seen many a battle, not least the second invasion of Rynn’s World, this time by Daemon Prince Rhaxor. <i>Dutch</i> faces all these conflicts with the same dry humour and unflinching calmness.<br />
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This is the first model I built, mostly from Sternguard Veteran bits. It was the first time I’ve put a space marine together in a while, so was a great first experience. Given that there are Primaris in the group, who do not have the same connection to the chapter and Rynn’s World as the regular marines, I want these veterans to be oozing character and Crimson Fist-ness.<br />
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This is Gunner Marine <i>"Fury"</i>. Another veteran who has seen his fair share of wars, he too was part of the rebuilding post-Waaagh Snagrod. He is a bit more cynical than <i>Dutch</i>, as well as being rather hot-headed for a Crimson Fist marine.<br />
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This is another Sternguard model, with bits coming almost exclusively from that box set. I wanted to add a couple of marines with their helmets on, so this guy was a good candidate.<br />
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Crimson Fist Scouts <i>"Reese"</i> and <i>"Hicks"</i> are my light troops. Recent additions to the ranks of the Crimson Fists, they both showed remarkable promise, so have been given the task of surviving some covert missions with the rest of the Kill Team. They both tend to be a little rash at times, but full of enthusiasm and always volunteering for the crazy plans.<br />
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These guys are standard Scout models aside from their head swaps (which involved a lot of drilling into the body piece to fit!). The only other bit to note is that <i>Hicks</i> on the right has bare arms! I used the arms from the Heavy Bolter Scout model (in lieu of any Necromunda Goliath bits) to match my vision from <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2016/08/40k-narrative-dark-templar-part-1.html" target="_blank">my favourite scout pic</a>. Needs tidying up with some greenstuff, but came out ok.<br />
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This is Primaris Gunner <i>"Bane"</i>. Like the rest of the Primaris in this Kill Team, he is quiet and stern. Never feeling the need to talk a lot, he just goes about his job, firing his Auxiliary Grenade Launcher and taking down the bad guys.<br />
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A very straightforward model to build, using bits from the Intercessors box set. I hope to add a little more character, but not too much.<br />
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This is Primaris Comms Officer <i>"Vector"</i>. Cold and calculating, with an acute aversion to unnecessary risks. He is likened (by the more cruel brothers) to a droid in his demeanour, lacking empathy to those around him, basing many a decision on logic and mathematical probability.<br />
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Another model from the Intercessors box set, except for his head which is from the Primaris Medic. I want to do a bit more to this guy to emphasise the comms officer role he has – unique version of armour, antenna, etc – it needs to be obvious what he does.<br />
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This is Primaris Sergeant <i>"Vorn"</i>, and the Leader of our Team. He feels an immense sense of responsibility to the Chapter when commanding, and has no time for joking around. This dour attitude affords him few friends, but his leadership abilities in a firefight afford him complete loyalty from his troops. They trust his judgement implicitly.<br />
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I used the body from a Primaris Sergeant model in the Easy-To-Build kit as the starting point, using Intercessor bits and a chainsword from the Blood Angels Primaris upgrade sprue.<br />
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These casualties will make great Objective markers. It's a pity that GW don't do more of these as they're quite awesome. The one on the left came from the <a href="https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/Space-Marine-Primaris-Apothecary" target="_blank">Primaris Medic</a> and the one on the right came from <a href="https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/Haarken-Worldclaimer-2018" target="_blank">Haarken Worldclaimer</a>, both exotic basing elements.<br />
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So that's the team. The next stage will be to add some more bits and greenstuff to draw out their characters more, then it's on to paint!!<br />
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The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-35172384205976703062019-02-09T12:00:00.000+00:002019-02-09T14:41:17.874+00:00Tale of 3 Armies – Introduction<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So in <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/01/new-year-new-army-or-three.html" target="_blank">a previous post</a> I talked about my hobby plans for this coming year. I also spoke about the fact that I couldn't decide which chapter to paint up my new space marine army and that I had decided the only route forward was to do all three as Kill Teams instead. So that's the basic premise for this project – three viable Kill Teams, one Crimson Fists, one Dark Angels and one Blood Angels. Then as a bonus round (if I'm not completely fed up with the whole thing), I will attempt a Mk 6 Dark Templar Kill Team (simply to get my DT project kick started).<br />
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I went out to the local GW shop and bought a ton of plastic kits… but where to start?<br />
Next, I read some forums and blog posts about space marine kill team composition and tactics and soon had a plan for my first team.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Crimson Fists</span></b><br />
Given that these are the guys I've been looking to build for decades, I thought I'd start with them. I already had a few left over Imperial Fist shoulder pads that I could make use of immediately, so no excuse to delay. The team will be made up of Scouts, regular Marines and Primaris and I want every miniature to be unique and characterful in some way – ideally I want to be able to feel the individual personalities, as well as easily identify them at a glance on the table top.<br />
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Once this project is done and dusted, if I've enjoyed creating my Crimson Fist gang, I would like to fill out the numbers to make legal 40k squads and try and get a 500 or 1000pt army together. But that is one for later in the year.<br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>Terrain</b></span><br />
As a side project (in for a penny, in for a pound) I also plan to create a Kill Team board and collect and paint some suitable terrain for it. I see this as an easy win to be honest – I already have a 4x2 piece of 6mm MDF and buying, building and painting a small Citadel terrain kit would be quick and bag me a square on the <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/02/wargame-hobby-bingo.html" target="_blank">Wargame Hobby Bingo Card</a>!<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">The Other Armies</span></b><br />
Whilst I'm not thinking too much about those at present, I have already acquired the upgrade sprues for both Dark Angels and Blood Angels. I don't want the composition of the three kill teams to be the same, so there will be some variation in number of regular vs Primaris marines and the weapon load out. Some may be more efficient than others on the gaming table, but I'm not too worried about that at present.<br />
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Stay tuned for the first update!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-68802861267518810642019-02-07T13:37:00.000+00:002019-02-07T13:37:17.657+00:00Wargame Hobby Bingo<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic-zv_mK26BDzddMPtjPuoNJuoP_pVddh5aQchB5_B0_OrdejnOI0_dzW16wo7_mZTkbfjLrmLgkX6nOKNe17N2O5Gl283kYZo_SLkHD5eoRLLMAj1vSNzbw8039b4KVTuZfQsVCgCBMw/s1600/Wargame+Bingo+Card.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1382" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic-zv_mK26BDzddMPtjPuoNJuoP_pVddh5aQchB5_B0_OrdejnOI0_dzW16wo7_mZTkbfjLrmLgkX6nOKNe17N2O5Gl283kYZo_SLkHD5eoRLLMAj1vSNzbw8039b4KVTuZfQsVCgCBMw/s320/Wargame+Bingo+Card.jpg" width="276" /></a></div>
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I found an article on <a href="https://robhawkinshobby.blogspot.com/2019/01/happy-new-year.html" target="_blank">Rob Hawkins' blog</a> about his Wargame Hobby Bingo, and at the time thought that it was something that our good friend Mr Awdry would embrace completely. Never really considered it myself as hobby time is so subdued at present that any one of the activities listed would be a bit of an ask, and there was no hope of ever getting close to completing the whole card.<br />
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Recently I started my <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2019/01/new-year-new-army-or-three.html" target="_blank">Tale Of Three Armies project</a> (which I will be posting about soon) as a bit of a distraction and a means to scratch an itch or two. Things are going well, if slow, and I'm enjoying myself doing what is comfortable – kit bashing and converting space marines. Then <a href="http://28mmvictorianwarfare.blogspot.com/2019/02/the-doom-riders.html" target="_blank">Mr Awdry posted</a> this week about his Doomriders and the fact they allowed him to tick off one of the boxes on his Wargame Hobby Bingo Card, so I took a closer look at said card. I realised that my current endeavours would actually qualify for box-ticking (once there is paint present) and that in a short matter of time I could have as many as six completed squares on the card!<br />
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As a result I find myself remarkably motivated to get some of these bits ticked off the list, and do you know, this time it may just happen!The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-47056634036846185772019-01-26T16:07:00.001+00:002019-01-26T22:40:54.843+00:00New Year, New Army… Or Three<div>
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So given that it is a new year (and we're already at the end of January), what are the hobby plans? Do I have any hobby aspirations for the year?</div>
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The first part of the year will be taken up working… on the upcoming <a href="http://www.anvil-eight.com/" target="_blank">Anvil 8</a> releases. We've got a monster of an RPG book to put together as well as getting collateral ready for this year's gaming shows. That's going to leave very little time for personal hobby goals.</div>
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However, this last month I have got back my excitement for 40k. I dug out some of the old models and have been doing a lot of reading of blogs and books. I really want to get my <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2017/07/return-of-dark-templar.html" target="_blank">Mk6 Dark Templar</a> project off the ground – I know, I know… again! In the past there has always been a plan, but the scale of the project was just too overwhelming to get stuck in. As a consequence the project never really got out of the gate.</div>
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I've also really got a bug to do some Crimson Fist space marines. I've wanted to do them for years, but never did, and it would allow me to use up some of the Imperial Fist bits I've got left over from that doomed project. To complicate things more, I like the idea of doing some Blood Angels again – they were the first chapter I was drawn to all those years ago. Maybe some Dark Angels too – the colour scheme I borrowed for my Dark Templar for all those years.</div>
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But if I can't get one army started, then the notion of starting 3 is ridiculous. I was being torn in lots of different directions – leave the Templar on the back burner, do Primaris Crimson Fists, so Mk7 Crimson Fists, do Primaris Blood Angels, pick up the <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2014/08/40k-iron-warrior-tanks.html" target="_blank">Iron Warriors</a> again, arghh!</div>
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Then this morning, whilst purchasing a boat load of plastic miniatures to be a part of whichever route I take, the answer came to me – <a href="https://warhammer40000.com/kill-team/" target="_blank">Kill Team</a>!</div>
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Kill Team requires only half a dozen models or so to play (in the case of marines). I can create multiple viable 'armies' for each of these chapters by building and painting only half a dozen of each chapter. Just enough to dip my toe into a particular paint scheme before moving on – no time to get bored. In addition to this, each model is it's own character in Kill Team, so there are no rank and file models to paint – again, no reason to get bored. Even I can paint six models (if I put my mind to it).</div>
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Hopefully this solution will allow me to scratch an itch or two I've had for a while, and have playable armies at the end of it. But where to start?</div>
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The first thing I need to do is re-read the Kill Team book, see what's available for each chapter, and get some starting lists down on paper. This will give me a shopping lists of the models I need to build, and then the fun can begin.</div>
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Fingers crossed there is some progress!</div>
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The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-79831430514704096572018-12-19T11:39:00.001+00:002018-12-19T11:39:54.637+00:00How I Paint Stormtroopers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After last months <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2018/12/the-empire-invade-pevensey.html" target="_blank">game of Star Wars Legion</a>, and the fact that my Stormtroopers looked rather pitiful, I decided to do a test model to see how I could effectively paint them. Stormtroopers should be very easy to paint but somehow have proved challenging, both for Imperial Assault and now Legion.<br />
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(Apologies for the shocking colour balance on the photos!)<br />
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Originally this leader model had been spray undercoated (poorly) with GW Corax White, which is actually more of an off-white. I found a similar paint pot and gave the model a good undercoat of Celestra Grey. <br />
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Then I got started on the White. Relatively thin consistency was applied to all the armour plates, leaving shadows and joints untouched. This continued for several layers, repainting over the armour, concentrating more and more on the highlighted areas to get a (sort of) gradual effect. I went back with a thicker white to the purest highlights to make sure it was a pure white.<br />
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Then came the tricky bit – painting all the black elements of the under armour, vents, etc. These we highlighted with sparing amounts of Mechanics Standard Grey then a tiny bit of Administratum Grey. Once dry it was washed back with some thinned Nuln Oil, which was also used on some of the deeper recesses in the armour.<br />
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The red shoulder pad was base coated in Khorne Red and highlighted with Mephiston Red.<br />
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Content that this was complete. I covered the base in Astrogranite Debris, highlighting with Dawnstone and Administratum Grey. I then daubed a mix of snow flock and PVA to a large proportion of the base (my Hoth theme) and left it for 24hrs to dry.<br />
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To finish, I gave the whole model a matt spray varnish then went back in and brushed on gloss varnish to the armour plates.<br />
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Overall I'm pretty pleased with how he came out, although it took an age – an hour or so per evening over a large part of the working week. Not sure how practical that is for the remaining three squads, but I'm prepared to put more effort into the leaders, so I'll continue with those first.<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-22854360282786919482018-12-03T14:26:00.003+00:002018-12-03T14:27:09.975+00:00The Empire Invades Pevensey<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So given that Mr Awdry had a birthday last week, myself and Bull braved torrential rain on Saturday to visit Awdry Towers and participate in a first game of Star Wars Legion.<br />
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I had spent the last week feverishly painting my Imperial troops… and failed miserably. Mr Awdry on the other hand managed to paint most of his troops and build an Ewok village and Imperial bunker. In truth I had spent the majority of my available time reading through the rules and watching gameplay videos (which proved far more useful).<br />
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We started with the basic tutorial and went through everything step-by-step. It proved to be quite an exciting game. Han Solo showed his roguish tricky side that we all love (or not, grrr) and Vader turned out to be the intimidating, deadly presence I had hoped (albeit moving at a pedestrian pace).<br />
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After a brief interlude for pizza and a chinwag, we jumped back in – Bull taking over the command of some of the Rebels – with lots of our shiny extras, including a rather slick looking snowspeeder. My Imperials had nicked the win in the last game, but it was not to be this time. The flyer proved to be a tough and deadly addition to the Rebel lineup and a distinct lack of cover on my side of the table left my Imperials exposed from almost all directions.<br />
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Despite being disappointed that my shiny purchases had not lived up to expectation, I came away quite taken by the game. On paper it's rather 40k like, but in reality it's not – it shares more in common with Imperial Assault and X-Wing (which is to be expected). There are a few neat mechanics and overall it feels balanced (though I still don't quite understand why a trained, "precise" and more expensive Stormtrooper is a worse shot than a Rebel trooper!)<br />
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Expect to see more Legion stuff coming soon(ish).<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-50173373494608627232018-11-10T15:40:00.001+00:002018-11-10T15:40:07.063+00:00Painting Lord Of The RIngs Undead<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So my painting exploits. limited as they are, have settled upon my Lord of the Rings models. I've got some base colours down on the Uruk-Hai and even pulled apart the Mordor Troll to turn him into an Isengard Troll instead, but that's for another post.<br />
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As an aside from all that brown paint, I decided to have a go at the Army of Undead… or at least the first ten models. They were sprayed with GW … White spray (which is actually light grey, and a pig to use at it leave bobbles on your models if the temperature is not optimum) then I touched up the undercoat with Administratum Grey (above). Then came the cool bit.<br />
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I saw a blog post somewhere a while ago (though I cannot remember where or find it for love nor money) a neat trick about using the GW technical paint Nihilakh Oxide for undead, so I thought I'd give it a go. It's quite a thin, runny paint so I put some on the palette then lathered the model in it to see what happened. Oh yes, these guys were swimming in it (quite literally when I knocked over the stupid paint pot!)<br />
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After leaving it for a while to dry I got to survey the results.<br />
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I really like where this is going. The colour in the photo is a little off as it's still quite green like the previous image, but looks good.<br />
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I suspect I should have painted the models white before applying the Technical paint as this would have made the high areas, and overall colour brighter. Having said that I'm happy to leave that for the King of the Undead to make him stand out more.<br />
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I MAY go back in with some thin white highlights along edges, but this would open the door to shading and another layer of the oxide…<br />
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I'm happy for this to be a quick win – Hurrah, I painted something!!<br />
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There are still another ten of these guys not yet built but I'll probably go back to my Uruk-Hai until I can order the King of the Dead to lead them. I also managed to acquire Saruman to lead my Uruks, as well as Lurtz and a couple of the Uruk Captains, but I'm in no hurry. I'm happy to have something I can post about!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-88921223591523739112018-10-31T18:07:00.002+00:002018-10-31T18:07:45.846+00:00October Construction<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Having acquired both the Lord of the Rings starter set and the Star Wars Legion box set within the last month, there was only ever going to be one outcome – construction!!<br />
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Not being able to decide which to build first I decided to build both at the same time. And the outcome is as expected…lots of grey models. Of course this was all further complicated by the fact that I purchased an additional box of Uruk-Hai Scouts for LOTR and Imperial Scouts for Legion.<br />
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However, this has proved to be a very relaxing past time over the last month (which was needed) and will shortly involve actual brushes and paint. I currently have two basecoated units of Stormtroopers (waiting for a light grey wash), half a unit of undercoated Uruk-Hai Scouts (due a brown basecoat) and a unit of undercoated Army of the Dead.<br />
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The rest of the models consist of the remaining Uruk-Hai Scouts, a Mordor Troll, two units of Morannon Orcs, a unit of Rohan troops, then Imperial Scouts, Darth Vader and Scout Bikes.<br />
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I hope to post some images of the painted units as they progress, but which will happen first I cannot say.The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-62801263079315875542018-10-14T17:50:00.001+01:002018-10-15T08:47:41.605+01:00Star Wars Legion – Getting Started<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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As soon as this game was announced there was an inevitability that it would appear in our house at some point – a 40k-esque wargame but with Star Wars characters – I'm just amazed that I held out so long.<br />
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I was at the Tabletop Gaming Live show at Alexandria Palace a couple of weeks ago on my birthday, and saw it being offered for a ridiculous £55. At that point the restraint melted, almost buckling completely as I threw in the Boba Fett expansion as well, and I came home a happy man – happy birthday to me. I'd seen the videos, read the blogs, but now I would finally get to see what was in the box.<br />
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The first thing to greet you when you lift the lid is Vader's mug staring at you. This is the rulebook and I have to say I've struggled with it a little. It doesn't seem as clear as the Imperial Assault rules were – maybe because it's a different game, maybe because I'm a year older and my mind is going, but I had to resort to third party YouTube videos to get the drift.<br />
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Removing the rulebook and token sheet reveals… lots of plastic bags!<br />
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This felt like a bit of a let down. The outer box itself is stunning and maybe I was expecting to have an unboxing experience like the recent GW releases, which in turn is trying to emulate what Apple does with their products. This felt very bargain basement cheap in comparison – all your bits in ziplock bags and chucked into a box to take home. It did not match the quality of the outer box, or indeed the Imperial Assault experience.<br />
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Then I was hit with another blow. Six years ago I wrote a blog post about <a href="http://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2012/04/in-box-cryx-starter-battlegroup.html" target="_blank">unboxing a Warmachine Cryx starter set</a>. My main criticism was the material used to produce the models – a sort of plastic resin – which didn't really work with plastic glue (my adhesive of choice) and meant working with excessive amounts of superglue.<br />
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Guess what – yup, same material here. The issue I have is how are models without tabs supposed to stay on a base when they're simply superglued in place – it's a disaster waiting to happen. It would mean that I have to pin virtually every model to it's base.<br />
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On the upside, the models are that little bit bigger than Imperial Assault which means we lesser mortals have a fighting chance of picking out the amazing details.<br />
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The stormtroopers are almost all 2-piece models and go together relatively easily. There are a set number of poses and I thought it was an opportunity missed not to have these a little more posable – my two units are going to look identical without the intervention of some fancy painting.<br />
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The big winner for me though has to be the Boba Fett additional model. He came in a host of pieces, which was quite radical compared to the models in the main box, but went together very nicely. I wasn't sure of the pose when I first saw it, but once the model was together it was a winner.<br />
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In fact, I don't even feel the need to add the clear plastic flying base – I'm just going to pin him on his base. I'm really looking forward to painting this guy!!<br />
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Given that Mr Awdry has now joined the ranks of Legion owners, we can look forward to a game or two next year I think. I have firmly decided to base my models for a snowy Hoth environment, and will (try to) build a few bits of terrain to match. I will also need a new snowy gaming mat (shame!).<br />
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I think had this been any IP other than Star Wars then this box set might have found a home in the back of the gaming cupboard never to be seen again. However, once the models were built (the bit I normally enjoy but didn't this time) I am looking forward to getting some paint on them.<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-81190473106975383252018-09-23T14:43:00.000+01:002018-09-23T14:43:08.394+01:00Getting Started With Age Of Sigmar – Storm Strike<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Age of Sigmar was something that never appealed to me. GW decided to defy every gamer's belief and bin Warhammer, and AoS was the replacement – a pseudo 40k set in a multi-realm universe where pseudo Space Marines (or rather their fantasy equivalent) once again took centre stage. I wasn't interested. I had a fleeting interest in Warhammer as a game, loved the world it was set in and really like the model range that was developing. That had all gone now and I was cross, so lord only knows how the avid Warhammer gamers felt!<br />
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However, time heals many things and, as I don't play much of anything now, I find myself taking a greater interest in many things I would never have considered before. I have a handful of the new AoS miniatures as part of my <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/search/label/Shadespire" target="_blank">Shadespire</a> collection and really liked those, so found myself browsing the AoS range. Long story short, I am now in possession of the £25 Storm Strike Starter Box and the £5 "Getting Started with AoS" book and model.<br />
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<b>STORM STRIKE</b><br />
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This box set have everything you need to get started at the most basic level. It comes with a handful of sprues that provide half a dozen or so models each for two players, as well as dice, rulers, a gaming 'mat' (poster!) plus basic rules and background fluff.<br />
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I have to say I'm mighty impressed.<br />
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First of all it was £25 (…actually I bought it from an online supplier and it only cost me £20)!! That's everything for the same price as a box of marines. The models are stunning – they may be 'easy-to-build' variants, but they're great and come with ridiculously lavish bases.<br />
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I have only built the Stormcast Eternals at the moment but it took less than 20 minutes to build the lot. The 'army' is the size of a Malifaux crew, which is my preferred model count, and they are chunky things – very solid. The gold coloured plastic is a little garish but that should only spur me on to paint them (or at least undercoat them!).<br />
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The rulebook is a printer version of the basic PDF that can be downloaded for free online – it's a light version of the rules so you will probably need to invest in the big book if you're sticking with it. There is also a build/paint guide and the main Storm Strike book. This main book is like an old-style 40k codex, so reasonably thick and well printed/finished. It contains lots of intro stuff, plus an extensive section on how to build, paint and game with your miniatures.<br />
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The thing that really impressed me with the main book though was how the scenarios (sorry, battleplans) are laid out and develop. It's basically a step by step intro to the game and in some instances may only have a single miniature on a side. Each battleplan focuses on or introduces you to a new rule and by mission 4 you're using everything in the box. The book rounds off with where to go next, as well as going into some depth about the background to all the units/factions involved in the box set and the universe they inhabit.<br />
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This is one of the best miniature wargame starter box sets I've seen. It was priced perfectly and had enough info and intrigue to provide great value for money as well as draw in a new player (even someone as cynical as me!). They do have two other starter sets that are closer to £50 and £100, which give you more models and even the full hardback rulebook, but this felt like a true starter set aimed at complete starters. It doesn't involve great investment and would make a superb Christmas or birthday present (shame my wife won't venture into a GW store!).<br />
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<b>HOW TO GET STARTED</b><br />
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I'll be honest, the only reason I bought this was because there was a 'free' model included for the £5 pricetag. A stunning, single sprue Stormcast caster dude, the likes of which would normally retail for £15-£20. It was a no-brainer, even if you're not that interested – he'll be awesome to paint (£5!?!).<br />
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Immediately I jumped in and started to build him. Very straightforward to put together even though he's not an 'easy-to-build' model. He did come with a tiny pile of stones that were starting to float, to add to his base. I could see straight away that they would have snapped off very quickly, so clipped them and just stuck down the base stone to plug the gap in his base instead. His base is not nearly so elaborate as the models in the Storm Strike box set.<br />
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The Get Started book is very similar in size and finish to the Storm Strike book (even has the same image on the cover to confuse me even more) but has even more info packed into it. There are sample armies, a battle report, lots of background info as well as in depth explanation of the different painting techniques employed. It goes through the basic rules in principle, laying out the different phases without giving any actual rules away.<br />
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This was another win for me. It is the perfect precursor to the Storm Strike box set, and a great introduction to not only AoS but fantasy/skirmish miniature wargaming in general. It allows you to dip you toe in without spending more than your lunch money. I would have loved something like this way back in 1990, and I know it's the kind of thing my son will pour over for hours (when he's a little older).<br />
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Alas that's not the end to the GW fan-boy. Next time I'm going to go through the GW Battle of Pelennor Fields box set for the new Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game rules. Yes, I jumped in with both feet!!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-86553914706149283162018-08-06T22:30:00.004+01:002018-08-08T22:03:58.870+01:00Donnybrook Witchfinder<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I've had almost 3 months away from the blog doing 'stuff' but felt compelled to add a random post after yet another top drawer day of gaming at Awdry Towers.<br />
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You may remember our last major outing to the <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.com/2017/08/congo.html" target="_blank">Congo</a> – Michael goes all out to construct a gaming table that sucks you into the narrative and builds the tension via email before we even leave home (and yes, we get homework!). It really is a pleasure to take part in one of Michael's adventures.<br />
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So he's been going on about doing a Witchfinder game for well over a year now, but things had stalled somewhat. When we managed to get a day booked into the diary back in June for the first Saturday in August, I suggested that Witchfinder might be a welcome change of pace. And so it came to pass.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The gaming table in all its glory</i></td></tr>
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I love the fact that Michael decided to abandon his original plan to use the Witchfinder rules he's purchased and decided to mould his game around the Donnybrook ruleset. That's the sign of a true creative mind!<br />
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Now, I'm not a fan of the old blackpowder and flouncy hats era, but Solomon Kane I can buy into, so I took a leap of faith (so to speak). The rules themselves are…odd. They use the now very common practice of using different sided dice to represent different ability levels – D6 being your recruits and D12 being your heroes.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The Witchfinder leads the Poachers</i></td></tr>
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Anyway, Michael had gone full tilt and created a raft of characters and units, very colourful and rather cleverly named, for us to use with their own rules and abilities lifted from the rulebook. Very excellent stuff.<br />
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Now, I'm not a fan of the random. I'm a bit of a control freak you see. That comes from being a tournament player for so many years where you tried to eradicate or circumnavigate random events as part of your strategy and tactics. It also comes from writing my own rules – too much random can leave the player with a feeling that they're on a passive ride with no influence on the outcome. Donnybrook flies in the face of wisdom and creates a game that is so random and chaotic you have no choice but to embrace it. You certainly can't have a serious game with these rules because you cannot have any real form of control over the outcome. Balance?…pah!<br />
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Activation is determined by drawing cards from a deck containing all of the characters and units taking part – the activation deck if you will. That's all fine, a very good mechanic. However, there is a Turn Over card in there too, and when drawn the deck is reshuffled and you start again. The outcome of this is that a single unit or character can go several times in a row, or in my case, not have a go at all for several turns. This creates an immense amount of imbalance and randomness – and that's before you throw the random event card in there too (which on one occasion sent an entire unit of Bull's troops home because they missed their families)!!<br />
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So as you can see the hilarity was never far away. Even when you were on the wrong end of the random you kind of had to smile. The big finale was a great example of this. I had finally beaten Michael's Villagers by the skin of my teeth, his last unit the Angry Mob in full flight towards the table edge. Up pops the Random Event card and attempts to drop a new unit of elite troops emerging on a flank as a relief force for the Villagers – luckily for me Michael didn't have enough models to fulfil the criteria, so it turned out to be travelling performers instead, else I would have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory no doubt.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Evil is coming!!</i></td></tr>
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Needless to say, we had a fab time. We played three games during the day – same scenario – which meant we each got a couple of goes playing as well as a go being the dealer and overall games master.<br />
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In the first game my Villagers managed to hold off the advance of Bull's Cultists, despite some early losses. After lunch Michael's Villagers were swept aside by Bull's Cultists, only to be beaten again (only just) by my Cultists. So the Cultists have definitely broken through the outer defences and the village of Muchwhinging could soon become the focal point of the next skirmish.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The Witchfinder and Doxy face off against the evil Gareth of Oldham</i></td></tr>
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We learned a lot about the rules and had them down by the end pretty much. We definitely missed a couple of things out, and we felt the characters were generally underpowered (aside from the doxy's stiletto heel through the chest of my vampire hero!!) but a great time was had by all.<br />
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It was such a good day that I've been inspired to create a fully immersive experience of my own for another time – stay tuned for more on that!<br />
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Bull has written up a fantastic piece about the day – <a href="http://bullcher44.blogspot.com/2018/08/a-day-of-gaming-that-will-long-live-in.html" target="_blank">read it here!</a><br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-49427271203109434412018-04-29T13:37:00.002+01:002018-04-29T13:37:35.534+01:00A Zombicide Start To The Weekend<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>So it turned out there was an Exit guardian!</i></td></tr>
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I haven't played ZOmbicide Black Plague in some time. We reckon it's probably been at least six months which, considering it's our go-to game, is strange. I haven't played Green Horde since it arrived at Christmas, I only opened the box to get a look at the models up close.<br />
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That all changed this weekend.<br />
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Friday at work, being the last Friday of the month, was Free Project Friday and Team Social Afternoon. We ended up playing Zombicide Black Plague in the meeting room – an 8-player mash-up with many first timers and all the big monsters. It was fun, took a while and realised I'd forgotten a lot of the details in my absence from the game. There was lots of cheating in the end to ensure we won, but it won over a couple more admirers so no doubt more gaming in the future.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>An opening win with Green Horde, by the skin of our teeth</i></td></tr>
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To be honest that was the warm up, because the morning after myself and Bull travelled to the now very shiny Awdry Towers to get our first taste of Zombicide Green Horde. I'd heard lots of tales about how the new version plays but you never know for sure till you try it yourself.<br />
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We managed to get through the first game with a win, but it was touch and go at the end. The game felt claustrophobic and the swaggering confidence often seen when playing Black Plague was gone. The hedge and water mechanics were good additions – don't end the game in the water end of a map, it's a nightmare. The trebuchet was awesome, though it didn't see any action in our opening game.<br />
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Game 2 was a challenge indeed. So much so we had to press the restart button after a few turns in as we had made some fatal mistakes in our early strategies. Take 2 was going swimmingly. We had got to the trebuchet and were pretty much owning the board. However, as we confidently headed towards a second victory, fate stepped in to slap us in the face. We ran out of runner models, meaning all runners on the board get a second go – combined with a 'runners get an extra go' card flip we were wiped out in a single turn within reach of the finish line.<br />
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Our problem was two-fold. We were using just the contents of the Green Horde starter box, so no fancy weapons and limited zombie models. It meant we didn't have the volume of dice when attacking to clear out the masses of zombie models coming at us. The majority of weapons were only hitting on a 4+ at best, so even a handful of dice was only going to get you so far.<br />
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Needless to say we all had fun and thoroughly enjoyed a re-introduction to Zombicide.<br />
There will be more to come!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-65948147574932187902018-03-18T14:04:00.001+00:002018-03-18T14:04:23.454+00:00Imperial Assault – 3 Player Battle<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Thursday this week saw a reintroduction to Imperial Assault, as Ryan and I showed Rich the ropes –He took to it like a duck to water!<br />
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We hastily put together three Skirmish armies – Imperials, Rebels and Scum (sorry, mercenaries). Using the 4-player Hoth board layout, we lazily chose the deployment areas nearest to our seats. We were concerned that Rich would be piggy in the middle and get battered on both sides, but we needn't have been concerned – he just went gunning for Ryan who realised he'd chosen an awful deployment zone and was boxed in completely.<br />
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Rich got the honour of using the newly acquired Boba Fett mini for the first time. He was one of the stand out characters of the game, able to inflict a lot of damage and heal himself quite nicely too. The Wampa and Nexu also proved to be intimidating, even if the former was something of a one-hit wonder – Fugs taking it down with prejudice after it scored its first kill.<br />
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The Nexu on the other hand was having a whale of a time, actively looking to <i>Cleave</i> as many Rebels as he could. The Rebels were gradually losing number under a devastating assault by the Mercs – Fugs just couldn't get out of his deployment zone and ended up retreating to where he started.<br />
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In the meantime the Imperials, led by the simply awesome Vader, marched slowly from the opposite end of the board. Rich had left a couple of Tusken Raiders to hold a console in his deployment zone, and these were both dispatched by Vader in a single attack.<br />
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The Mercs were getting low on numbers now, after the Rebels rallied. But just as Fugs thought he could see some light the Imperials arrived, strolling past Boba Fett to take up the fight with the Rebels. Seeing that things were about to go south quickly, Fett took the opportunity the fall back and ensure he would at least survive the game.<br />
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The Imperials had been nicking the points along the way, finishing off units that were already on the ropes. As such it didn't take long to Vader to claim victory, with the Rebels on around 18 points and the Mercs on a misrepresented 6.<br />
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It was a great way back into Imperial Assault, all in preparation for us starting a campaign game next week. Stay tuned!The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5660965914860481092.post-51950378770327664002018-03-12T19:56:00.002+00:002018-04-29T20:54:13.695+01:00Necromunda: Opening Exchanges<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We'd had <a href="https://the-dark-templar.blogspot.co.uk/2018/03/necromunda-2018-begins.html" target="_blank">a week or so to prepare</a>, and now it was time to see how this new edition of Necromunda actually played!<br />
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Last Monday I had a day off, so Bull and I arranged to have a gaming day. We managed to get three games in as well as the post game bits. I'd brought my new MDF terrain, and it made a superb centrepiece to the gaming table.<br />
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Game 1 was a very cagey affair. Bull had his heavy on the mdf silo tower which gave him excellent line of sight to pretty much the entire board. My guys were hunched at the bottom of the stairs, preparing for a three-pronged attack (though no idea how that would actually pan out).<br />
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My two big shooters – Ganger and Boss both with Grenade Launchers – made their way up the stairs to the main platform, flanked by a couple of Gangers in support. My Hammer-wielding Champion went left, supported by a couple of Juves. The remainder went through the middle and to the right.<br />
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The mission was simple to kill the other guy, without taking too many casualties yourself. I was having the expected day – lots of awesome shooting, knocking guys down, but nothing going through to cause any concern to my opponent.<br />
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We managed to knock the Orlock Heavy on his backside, right after he ran out of ammo. Then my Grenade boys managed to deck (almost) the entire Orlock gang thanks to blast templates!<br />
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One of my Juves was hit badly, then hit again and went out of action. Not long later a second dropped. I managed to take out one of Bull's Gangers before the Orlocks pulled out.<br />
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One of my Juves missed game 2, the other was going to have to see the Doc – but he wanted to charge me more than the Juve was worth, so we let him die and recruit a new Juve!! No mercy!!<br />
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Game 2 was a "Defile the Relic" mission, but we hadn't got more than a handful of turns in before both Gangs failed bottle tests!!<br />
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Still, more xp and cash going into the pot.<br />
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We rolled for game 3 and got Sabotage. The Orlocks would be defending a piece of terrain in the middle of the board and my Goliaths (with their huge bulk and 32mm bases) would be sneaking in to destroy it hoping the sentries didn't detect them.<br />
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In fairness, despite a lack of any kind of strategy, my boys got quite far in before the Orlock Juve got the fright of his life, walking round a corner to literally fall over the Goliath Boss!<br />
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Once the alarm was raised it all kicked off – my boys were trying to shoot the terrain piece, the Orlocks trying to shoot us! Eventually the terrain piece blew and I had to survive the rest of the turn so I could Bottle out and escape. It was a blood bath. No inch was given. It really was a free for all. I was lucky to escape with a couple of casualties, both of whom will miss my next game. Bull also lost a couple, with similar end results.<br />
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We went our separate ways, after totting up the cash and xp, to contemplate how to spend our winnings. I blew through a lot of cash, upgrading key models. I also managed to get a Move increase for my Boss and a Toughness increase for one of my Gangers. I have no doubt Bull has done the same, so the next game will be ramped up to a new level.<br />
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Have a read of <a href="http://bullcher44.blogspot.co.uk/2018/03/necromuda-returned-woot-woot.html" target="_blank">Bull's perspective of the day</a>…<br />
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…as we prepare for round 2!!<br />
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<br />The Dark Templarhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03051984305736707874noreply@blogger.com0