That Forge World Touch

Hey everyone time for an update on that idea of mine. So I had a go at trying to add a bit of realism to my models this week and the results were better than I had expected, I chose to use a picture of one of the first Blood Angel models I painted for the blog (the Sanguinary Priest). The reason for this is because I had used a clear background that I could filter out using the photoshop software I was using.
For this experiment I used free photo editing software called GIMP (yes I laughed too). The programme took a little getting used to but considering I have never done anything like this before I got the very basics in a couple of evenings. A lot of this project was down to trial and error and I lost count of the amount of times I started again. However, I persevered and I am very pleased with the result. The most difficult part of this was layering the images but once I'd learnt how to crop and cut the blending and airbrushing gave a little extra finish to the picture.

So here's the original...

 and here's the Priest ready to fly off into the sunset.

I had a lot of fun with this and as the software is free I recommend that you have a go too. Well I'm off to go create so more photo magic. See you soon.

In the (half a) Company of Angels

Welcome back fellow travellers to The Folly of War. The time has come to take stock of how my Blood Angel 3rd Company is coming along. So far I have added a few units here and there and I am now almost on my way to having a fully painted half a company of marines.
My model list totals thus:

• 3 tactical marine squads
• 2 five man devestators
• 1 assault squad
• 1 company command
• Captain Tycho
• Librarian

It has been great fun painting and researching the deeds of this oh so famous company of marines and finally I got to use them in a game. At the H and L Friday night club I played a 1500 point game against the new chaos codex. My opponant was Mr. Pidwell a fellow enthusiast of the fluff and an avid RPG(er). His army consisted of over 14 spawn, a lord on bike, 2 havoc squads, 2 plague marine squads and the infamous Daemonic Rapper E Didy (epidemeus). Now, I can hear you calling from the rafters "that doesn't sound too hard". Well, my eager readers unfortunately for me every model in the army had the mark of nurgle, including, the Havocs. For those of you who have put 2 and 4 together, you will have realised that for each kill a model does in the army E diddy gets to up the tally making the army better. I'm not saying 14 spawn are any good, but when these spawn have hatred, wound on twos with a re-roll and ignore armour, you do feel slightly (oh so slightly) inadiquate. On the plus side it was a highly entertaining game with a delightfully funny opponant (shame about the army). I left the game feeling better about 40k as looking at the 57 marines in the 1500 which, made me think with pride, what a good job I have done with the army. Even though I was slaughtered (to a man) I loved the imagery that both armies had inspired. The thought of a brave last stand against the diseased, rotting, monstroserties rampaging towards combined bolter, las and plasma fire was fantastic to watch and inspired me to keep plodding away at the rest of the company.

In other news I was trawling the BOLS site and came across an article about home made photoshopped backgrounds for miniatures. The cogs began to turn in my head and I thought I could do that. Over the next couple of weeks I am going to experiment to see what I can produce and I hope to show you something very soon...wish me luck. Finally before I would just like to wish everyone going to PAW this year the very best of luck as unfortunately I cannot make it this year. Until next time travellers farewell.... 

Welcome to the (Allies) Matrix

Remnants of SMS. Poor Dark Eldar
have never seen the light of day.

Welcome back to the bridge of the Folly of War. Its been a long time posting as I have been very busy with generally getting on with my life. Anyway thought it was about time for an update on how my Blood Angels are getting on and to talk about the new Allies rule. The problem I have is a very well known one in the wargaming world, "shiney model syndrome". SMS is a massive problem for me as a tournement gamer and one of the main reasons I started this blog. What it means is that I can never finish an army due to the attention span of a knat. As soon as I see a kit I want to build or paint, I drop all and go and start working on that. Why is that a problem I hear you cry! Well, let me explain. I start off very well when it comes to painting a new army. I end up getting the troops, HQ and maybe a couple of other choices done and then... it all goes wrong. I get twitches. I start thumbing through other codexes. Aggertation sets in as I scroll through countless different models on the Internet. Then it happens I start painting a new squad for a different army. Tragedy!!! time passes in an instant and before I know it another Mayhem passes by. "Looks like I'll have to use my Templars again", I declaire to the rest of my friends trying to brush aside moans of "When, are you going to get a new army!

Hopefully no one will stoop this low with their alliances...

SMS has begun... but this time I was ready for it. The best thing about 6th edition for me is the Allies Matrix. For those of you who thing I am talking about the 4th Matrix film let me explain. The Allies Matrix allows you to play with to different armies in one game, depending how well the two forces get along. For me this is the answer to all my problems. My Blood Angels have reached the dizzy heights of about 1500 points and is lacking one squad of terminators. Usually, this is about the time I get board and wonder off but now my wondering has paid off. I have decided to ally a small contigent of Eldar (space elves). The story behind this fragile alliance is that the Eldar are keeping a close eye on Mephiston as they believe he could be key player in the future of the Eldar's existance. I love the idea of an outnumbered Blood Angel force fighting off countless hoardes to be mysteriously saved by an unknown Eldar force hiding in the shadows. The potential for allies is massive and I have been thinking of doing a combined themed force for ages. There are so many different stories of it happening in the background, such as humans allying with orks, Tau with tricked into fighting Dark Eldar and Marines fighting with Guard.

Now I am still under the clock. There is not long till Octoberfest and I have these units to paint:

5 Terminators

5 Pathfinders

5 Dark Reapers

1 Farseer.

 

In addition to this I have been painting 10 Dire Avengers and finishing Brother Corbulo. The army is shaping up and I really hope that I can get these finished and ready for Octoberfest but time is ticking. I really don't want to have to use my templars again. However, this all depends on the points limit of Octoberfest. If it is 1750 I will be fine but 2000 will be a stretch. I hope to post more regularly as I am off holiday next week and back to the everyday trudgery of life. See ya.

Finecast, Greenstuff and Mephiston

Welcome back citizens, this week aboard the Folly of War I take a look at Finecast and turn my hands to developing my sculpting skills. I finally took the plunge and invested in my fist Finecast miniature. For those of you who have been living in the eye of terror for the last year, Finecast is GW's all singing all dancing resin cast miniatures. There has been a lot (understatement of the year) of complaints about this new substance but I was willing to decide for myself about whether or not I liked it.


This is what my Mephiston would be based
on.

Firstly, the cost of Finecast is high. Compared to other miniature companies that use resin to cast their models (Privateer Press etc...) the cost of Finecast is huge. Now the model I wished to use was Astorath the Grim and he cost me £15. Even if I was using the whole of the miniature (I only needed the body for a Mephiston conversion) it is still steep. So far not impressed. Next up, Quality. GW prides itself on the on the quality of their products. Unfortunately, this particular model must have tip-toed by the quality control monkeys as the Jet Pack for the model had been obliterated by an air bubble. This was hugely disapointing as I expected the model to be fully formed (and gold plated at that price). There were also several other parts where the model had smaller bubbles and to top it off, the axe had snapped into. Things were not looking up and if it wasn't for the fact I did not need the pack I would have returned said model post haste. I am glad I didn't because something amazing happened...



His Jet Pack obviously over heated!



Having worked with metal miniatures for a long time conversion work with this material was (lets be honest) as painful as sawing your own leg off with a spoon. For my Mephiston conversion to work I had to made several modifications to Astoraths legs and feet. If I had been working with a metal mini I would be still sawing and pinning and not writing this. Finecast was a delight to work with and allowed me to repostion with the bare minimum of effort. On top of this when it came to painting the model I was amazed at the detail that could be seen on the model. Each muscular grove in the armour can be picked out with a brush meaning that washes and inks sit better on the model.

My final verdict... 5/10. If work shop can sort out the casting issues I don't mind paying for excellent quality models but I want excellent quality and air bubbles will not do. If you have had any problems or indeed successes comment below.

Disco Meph is in the house.

So on to Mephiston himself. I love Mephiston. He is possibly one of my favourite characters in 40k. The Vampire/Space Marine has got awesome rules and a fantastic back story. Nothing, not a thing could keep me from having him in the army...except when someone pointed out his current model looks like a 70's disco dance. I was not going to tolerate such a smear on Mephiston's honour. I would re-Vamp him (see what I did there... cause he is a Vampire and.. erhem). I knew that Astorath was the perfect stand in as he has the same armour but there was one tiny snag. Meph has a cloak and I have never sculpted anything larger than a playing card on a hat. So off I went into the warp (Internet) to find tips on how to make cloaks.

So here are some top tips on how to make a greenstuff cloak.

Tip one: Use vegetable oil! This kitchen cooking staple is great for working with the very sticky green stuff. I used to use water but found that it dried to quickly and I ended up with green stuff mess. I also lay the green stuff on cling film this allowed my to shape sheets of green stuff without leaving finger prints.

I first, needed to create a thin (2mm) sheet of green stuff, large enough, so that it is the same size as the model that will be having the cloak. I Smothered the green stuff in vegetable oil and pressed it flat between to sheets of plasticard. When I was happy with the shape I laid it flat on the cling film. Once the greenstuff had cured a little I chopped it into a triangle shape using an oil covered knife. Finally, to create the effect of flapping in the wind I used paint brushes.

Tip Two: If you over lay the paint brushes in an over and under pattern you can create a smooth finish.

Once the whole thing was dry I then attatched it to my newly converted Meph and Ta Dah...

And give us a twirl Meph...

 

Overall I am very happy with the out come. I feel that I have kept the style of the original model but updated him to match the current range of GW's Blood Angels. Well of I go into the warp, Mephiston leading the way. I can't wait to see him on the battlefield. Thats all from me this week so I'll see you soon.

6th Edition First Impressions

Welcome, welcome, as we set sail into the heart of the unknown, aboard the Folly of War. These last couple of weeks have been busy ones both with work and with painting. My Blood Angels army is steadily growing (I'm verging on 1500 painted!) and I have been feverishly playing games of 6th edition to try and smooth over any rules issues. So far I have played a total of 4 games and have won a grand total of... 0. However, this has not in anyway been a bad thing. Each game has given me a new aspect to learn or changed the way I have interpreted the rules. For example, I found out that jump packs must decide which phase they will jump in (movement or assault). If they jump 12" in the movement they do not get the hammer of wrath rule or re-roll to charge.

Another area where the game has changed dramatically is aircrft (I am trying to stop calling them Flyers as it makes me sound like I have the vocab of a 10 year old child). Now, I have a bit of a soft spot for aircraft, as my dad used to work at Heathrow and my girlfriend's dad works at Duxford. So, when an opportunity to include models that add an extra dimension to the gaming table I flew (pun intended) at the chance to make plane noises during the movement phase (they should've added something along the lines of this in the new book. "You must make a neeewooaaaah noise every time you move an aircraft else the engine stalls and it crashes").  Using aircraft is so much fun and can really freak out your opponent if they have no AA. Watching the desperation of an army unload the entire contents of their guns just to bring down a single plane is very entertaining... right up until the point that your opponent does hit your Stormbrick and it comes crashing down, killing the majority of passengers insides (damn you Jamie!!!).

I leave you with pictures of my Librarian dread. I have used the same chipping technique as before but I wanted to go another step forward with painting the Force Weapon. Using blending and washes I gradually built up a crystalline looking blade. Using 1:1:1 mix of Hawk Turquoise, Bleached Bone and Regal Blue (or equivalents if you cant get them any more) I gave the blade a solid coat then added more Bleached Bone to highlight and used Regal blue wash for low lighting. Lastly, streaks of white were added to create a reflective shimmer. Next, on the to do list of the angels is 5 scouts, another dread, a drop pod and the one I am putting off the most 7 Sternguard. Right, those marines won't paint themselves. Navigator set course to the Baal System we need reinforcements!!

Storm Brick Part 2

The dust has settled and the fog of war has lifted and I have finally played some games of 6th edition. Although there seems to be a lot of nay sayers out there I for one am a happy customer and it has given me a boost towards finishing my Blood Angels. This last week I have concentrated on finishing my Storm Raven and apart from the odd detail I am done. This was an interesting project from the start as my feelings towards the Storm Brick... er Raven were very negative. However, a bit of plasticard here and a hobby saw there I had something that looked plausibly flyable. Now for the paint. I have never been very keen to take a risk with battle damage. Many of my models have always had a "fresh from the factory look", but I was desperate to try out some new techniques.

Firstly, I wanted to try paint chipping. This was hard for me to start because it became one of those moments where I didn't want to ruin all the perfect highlighting I had achieved. Bravely I bit the bullet and started the chipping process. Using Wild Rider Red I stated to pick out chip points on the hull. Next I used Scorched brown over the top to indicate rust or older paint. Finally I used Boltgun metal for the exposed metal armour. The result was pretty good and I may go on to use this on my normal marines too.

Next was the soot from the engines. Not having any weathering powders was a downer so I resorted to that old reliable dry brush technique. It has worked a treat. I am really happy with the model I can't wait to use it on the battlefield.

Over the next week I am going to paint the Librarian Dread. I used a spare Dread Knight Force sword to make the dreadnought's force weapon. It looks way, way, way cooler than the silly force weapon. I hope to produce some of the same paint chipping techniques on the main body of the model. Also I want to use the crystallised blade effect on the sword which I did on the Sanguinary Guard. I have also taken a keen interest into the world of 40k Flying Machines and I am uuuming and ahhhing about whether I should by a Storm Talon to ally with my main force (Blood Angels can't take them but I would make a small space marine force with scouts and a Master of the Forge and paint them Blood Angel Colours). This by far is my favourite new addition to 40k. Ok, Ok I know it is a sneaky way of GW saying come and buy more toys but I honestly don't care!!! I love the 40k background and the idea that I can now take some steal legion to team up with my 3rd Company Armageddon Strike Force is amazing. With the holiday coming up I plan to be posting more and more so stay tuned....

Can I Have A Free Hand?

With added free hand company shoulder pad.

Welcome back to the Folly of War, this week I want to talk about free hand painting on models. There was once a time when I used to love transfers. Back when I was a lad (before I had even glued my first space marine), I used to make airfix models. I can remember the constant battle with my parents to find somewhere to paint as airfix used oil based paints and God help me if I got any on the carpet. Once the plane was assembled and painted, I would go through the process of cutting the tiny transfers from the sheet and placing them in a bowl of water. Then repeating this step again and again because the transfer would split, folded or more commonly stick to (my mum often wondered why I was suddenly tattooed with RAF and German Iron Cross symbols). As soon as I hit making Space Marines my use of transfers stopped dead. I will always remember the frustration of trying to apply the Blood Angels symbol to a curved shoulder pad, followed by the inevitable teenage tantrum and finally ritual using of the transfer sheet as a paint pallet just so I felt better. Now what has this got to do with free hand painting I hear your cry....

Well let me tell you. I have always loved the iconography of 40k and squad markations of battle groups in WW2 so leaving models without squad numbers and symbols is just a no go for me. It wasn't until, I started working with Animatronica that I became interested at adding free hand detailed on my miniatures. He had painted a fantastic Baneblade Tank to go with his Chaos Alpha Legion just around the time when the Apocalypse rules came out. He named the Tank The Tower of Snakes (if you wish to see some of his work click on the blog of the same name) and had painted an amazing hydra down the side of the of the armoured tracks. It was stunning and I asked him how he achieved such an amazing results. He explained that you must always draw out your design, this gives you a base to work from and then build up the colours as you would for normal highlighting.

Devastator Sgt with Tycho's personal banner.

So starting small I started on some campaign badges for my Black Templars. This was easy enough, a simple shield shape with a red stripe. From then on nothing could stop me I moved on to chapter badges and then finally banners. I can have the most fun with the banners because you record your own victories and also historical battles. One of my Marshals has a banner of Helsreach Spire. Free hand painting takes time but with practise the results can be superb. I began to develop my own styles and techniques which suited my designs. One such technique I use now is to block out the design in silhouette with black and then build up block colours. I have had a lot of fun with painting my Blood Angels and I have increased the amount of free hand work on the marines. I hope that some where out there in Internet land you have a go too. Before I go I will leave you with some more Blood Angels goodness. Captain Tycho is almost finished with non traditional colour scheme. I'm leaving the gold armour behind for red. Personally I feel that the gold armour is far to garish and I want to tone him down.  Next week I plan to cover the 6th edition release so stay tuned.

Devastators with added light effect on the plasma cannons.

Captain Erasmus Tycho of the 3rd Company (work in progress).

Nurgle's Rot




Assault Marines as promised.

 

A very short post this week, due to an unfortunate case of Nurgle's Rot (stomach virus probably picked up from work). This has given me another opportunity to think about new projects and  existing projects. The Blood Angels are coming on and I have now moved on to painting a unit of devastators and the army is filling out nicely. Why the sudden interest in 40K? Well a certain 6th edition of a certain round based game is (rumour has it) only two weeks away. There is a lot of murmurs all over the Internet and all I can say I just can't wait. It got me thinking how my armies are going to be effected by rules changes. In the last edition my Templars changed radically and I feel this is going to happen again. Whether this is for better or worse only time will tell? Illness leaves you with a lot of thinking time. Is starting a new army now a good idea? Should I have waited...Nah even with drastic sweeping changes armies can be built, modified, tested and modified again. An army is a living thing and it should be allowed to grow and change.  If you have opinions about this please feel free to leave a comment.




My painting table in all its glory.

 

Finally before I go to pass another nurgling here is something that has keep me sane during the low points of my illness. So in the light of all this euro 2012...

 



The Death of an Army

The Storm Talon

And so it came to be... Silence in the 40k Universe. The death of my Black Templars. Now is the winter of my discontent (and other Shakespearian melodramatic prose). My hopes for the 40K flyers were simple.

1. Could the Black Templars use the Storm Raven?

2. Surely they could use the brand spanking new Strom Talon... surely?

Tragedy. This months White Dwarf did not deliver either of my dreams and therefore have condemned the Templars to a life of "friendly games" and being stuck in their case for an eternity of penance (or until they get a codex update). Surely all White Dwarf had to do was print a little sentence saying "Can be used by Codex marines, Space Wolves, Dark Angels and Black Templars may use this." Not hard. It did even take me very long to type.

However I am not keen on GW bashing so what I will say is can we give them a round of applause for the Dakka Jet. The sculpting is superb and I feel of all the new flyers it really captures the background of the Ork army. This all points to the release of 6th Edition 40k. Are flyers going to be a new class? Are we going to see more anti aircraft. Are Skimmers going to be harder to hit? Has anyone noticed the fighter ace rules? Why the need to separate skimmers? The way this is written makes me feel that skimmers are going to become 6's to hit across the board unless they have some additional rules in a models codex. Who knows except for the creators, not long now though!

!st Squad of the 3rd Company

So what to do? Well on the up side I have continued to paint more Blood Angels and have now finished my first tactical squad of the army. I have found that all of the free hand work that I did on my Templars has given my marines more of an individual style. After some practice I have started to free hand a modified chapter symbol. This has been fun to paint and I hope to finish my next assault squad soon. Well I'm of to give my figure case a space funeral (like Spock). See ya next week.