Death Korps of Krieg Medusa

I had some fun with this kit after the initial construction issues. However at this point I am not sure where I want to go with it, which is why the top is not glued on yet. I may return to it later to add detail and clean up parts of the model, or I may put this on the shelf and call it done. I'm ready for something new right now.

One of the things I had not expected after resuming painting after a break, was how difficult it would be to relearn photography. I think it took a hundred photos before the tank looked right.

So does anyone want to tell me how much of a nightmare this model is on the battlefield, or has this tank been overcome by newer more dangerous ordinance?

Play Adept Magazine & Beer Cans

I realize the DKoK are supposed to be extraordinarily disciplined, but I wanted to give the Medusa a lived in feel. The Base layers and some oils have been completed, and I decided to make a little girly magazine and some beer cans to add to the interior. I'll be adding additional stowage, so the placement isn't finalized. I just wanted to see what people thought of my beer cans. I have not been able to paint any meaningful design on them without deforming them, so they would remain blue. Anyone have a source for 1/56 beer cans? I used aluminum foil wrapped around a cocktail straw to make these.

Ancient Imperial Guard Griffon Mortar Reborn

I think this model came out in mid nineties, and it has been in my collection for at least twenty years. This model is old. It is so old that the tracks still have road wheels hidden away out of sight. Somehow after all these years, this old AFV called to me. In this third incarnation the tank is painted to match my DKoK force. At least that is what I had intended. I should have looked at my DKoK before painting, as I exaggerated the modulation a bit much here. But no matter that, I'm happy this old mortar tractor is back in business. It can now sit on my shelf. Again.

Since I don't play 40k these days, but plan to do so when the new edition drops, does this model even exist in current 40k? If there is at least an existing model there might be some hope of there being rules for it. If I can't find rules, I can always pop the mortar out, and use the vehicle as an open topped Ogryn transport or something.

Death Korps Centaur Trash Cast

The Centaur model from Forgeworld is a lovely model. This incarnation of it is not. What is worse is that I think this model has 1000 coats of paint on it. Despite that, I had fun painting it up. Did I succeed in turning this model into something presentable? I'm not sure about that, but I think it could be embedded in a piece of terrain quite nicely now as a wreck and nobody would care. I'll do some more pigment and oil effects, and just maybe throw on some mud. It all depends how messy I want my workspace to become.

By the way, this is the first of my two salvage efforts. The other model is my original griffen which accompanied the first imperial guard box set I painted. I tried a harder on that model since it has impeccable lineage.

Trio of Death Korps of Krieg Vehicles WIP

I've decided to start painting some 40k again, so after a long hiatus, I jumped back in and started work on a trio of vehicles for my Death Korps force. Included in these vehicles is an original Imperial Guard Griffen self propelled mortar. The Griffen will get a post dedicated to it later, as it is one of my original guard vehicles dating back twenty years or so. What I want to discuss here is the Armageddon pattern Medusa. That kit, purchased just a few years ago from Forgeworld, was meant to be a display piece. Unfortunately, the kit is rubbish. None of the pieces fit together, and the only way I managed to get the brass etch and flooring in was to use a heat gun on the model after I had painted the interior. Then I had viciously chop off detail on the inside. The geometry simply doesn't work. This is a shame. I love the general look of the thing. Hopefully it will look like a reasonable AFV when completed. Don't worry about the ramp, It isn't completed yet. I just splashed some paint on it while getting the hard to reach internal areas painted prior to assembly.

What on earth is that Centaur doing that Griffen in the background?

Ogre Bust WIP

This Ogre bust was a gift from Roman Lappat, whom you might know as Jarhead from Massive Voodoo. My wife and I were traveling through Germany and stopped by to hang out and get some lunch with Roman and Eric. To my surprise, he provided a resin cast of one of his sculpts. With my hobby mojo low, this model sat on my desk for a few months. After cleaning my desk (ok..mostly) I needed some zen time, and set to work on it. I had forgotten how peaceful painting is. I really enjoyed playing with the flesh tones, but my focus was on the ogres eyes. I want this guy to look human. As you can tell the brown areas are not painted yet, and there is additional l work to do on the ogres scars, on his runny nose. I'm tempted to paint him as if he were crying, using gloss paint to make the tear marks. I think those could work well with the inevitable blood splashes. Maybe this ogre regrets killing but can't stop. There is definitely a sadness to the sculpt that I enjoy.

2017 Hobby Desk Cleaning

It has been a long time since I last posted. One of the reasons for that, besides endless travel, was the state of my hobby desk. My workspace had become terrible. Believe it or not, the photos above are of my cleaned workspace. It is not completed, but the paints are at least in racks. Imagine how it was before! Having a clean workspace is motivating. It also helps to get some of those long suffering half painted miniatures sitting on it completed. So, my goal is to finish my 1/72 scale British paratroopers by COB Friday. Once they are done, I'll have a clean slate for painting, and a clean area to do it in. (ok..it is going to take a few more days to completely de-clutter the desk, but this is pretty good all things considered!)

Arnhem 30K Style

The gaming club I am a member of, has altered the way I war-game in a positive way. Rather than seeing war games as winner/loser propositions, they have become a means toward story telling. It is in this vein that Eric and I decided to run a little campaign/rpg. I am in love with the Arnhem table, so we decided to use it as the first setting for the narrative. Weirdly, it works having World Eaters as the main protagonists. I won't spill all of the beans here, but following presentation includes a lot of hints to help Eric out. The game begins before the actual heresy, so at this point everyone is friendly.



The presentation setting the scene: