Astra Militarum: Commissar Yarrick

This wasn't on the original list for this year, but I picked the model up as part of the birthday celebrations and challenges at my local GW store. Time ran away from me in the end, so it's a little rougher than I'd like on the jacket, but everything else is servicable.

Studio Miniatures: Die Verdammten

Zombie. Nazis.

Second only to Illinois Nazis on my favourite kind of Nazi. That's all the acceptable Nazi types though. It's a short list.

So anyway, these are quick and dirty. About three hours to finish all 20, which gives you an idea of how many corners were cut and shortcuts taken. I needed a shambling hoard for a small diorama idea that's forming in my head, and these were perfect.

I picked them up at Salute a couple of years ago. It was probably the fact they were so nicely boxed as an old war film/B-movie in a VHS box. Dr Faust's YouTube channel covers the good and the bad pretty well (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMtbFEcXd2g) but in short ... at first glance it looks like there are loads of different sculpts in the box - in fact there are two.

They do provide lots of arms and a couple of spare heads, so with a bit of cutting and snipping it was possible to achieve a decent variety of poses. After that it was a case of throwing colour on, adding depth to the colour with brown and green inks, then a spot of drybrushing and more inks. Add unhealthy skintones, matt varnish and a few different shades of blood and it's all done!

Now to work out the rest of the diorama ...

Grey Horde: March 2018

So where are we at the end of March? About here.

Bought: 7
Sold: 0
Painted: 19 Space Marines, Anonymous 2.0, Handsome Jack, 2x Morticians
Total: -14

My original plans were rerailed a little by attending Banshee's painting class at the beginning of March and getting the bug for painting busts. So a number of busts have been ordered! In mitigation, I've completed two busts and all my Primaris Space Marines, so that was nice - as they've been sitting around for a while.

This is despite one of the busiest months of my career, and a degree of long-distance travel ... so all in all, a positive month!

Work underway on two busts, Sergent Corwinn from Wonderlands and Tesla from Infamy.

Corwinn's face feels like it's close to finished, and Tesla is starting to come together.

Space Wolves: Primaris Hellblasters

Here's the Hellblasters to finish up the Primaris Marines from the Dark Imperium box.

This has taken way, way longer than I wanted - and there has been a good mix reasons and excuses for not wrapping them up earlier, but they're finally out the way. I'm happy with how these guys turned out, but painting in batch does mean you repeat the same errors on 20 figures simultaneously. That's a little demoralising. Next time I'd complete a test figure to 100% before diving in on the whole set - but that's what blind enthusiasm gets you.

I'll post up a few groups shots when possible, as they should look pretty good all on the table.

Space Wolves: Primaris Intercessors Squad #2

So, here's more Intercessors. Yep, definitely more of them.

That's all the standard troops done now, so just the Hellblasters to go. Nearly there!

Space Wolves: Primaris Intercessors Squad #1

It was important for me that all the models in the Primaris force should have different heads. This did make batch painting helmets impossible, but has added a nice feral feel to the force.

I'm pleased with how a few of the faces turned out. Always room to improve, but Ginger Gingersson in the shot above just worked super well.

Space Wolves: Primaris Lieutenants

Fatigue has set in with Space Marines now. Batch painting 17 of them has been draining me and I didn't realise it. But we're onto the home stretch now.

Space Wolves: Primaris Captain

I sorely want to be painting other things now, but have a need to get the Space Marines wrapped and back on the gaming table. So here's the first in a run of tabletop-ish Marines to see that happen.

Mr Lee: Handsome Jack

I went on a painting workshop last weekend with the talented Alfonso "Banshee" Giraldes to learn colour theory, bravery and to paint better and quicker. It was a wonderful weekend where I learned so much, from both Banshee and the other attendees. At some point I'll post the figure I painted but that's for the future.

However, during the workshop, Banshee said "imagine how far you can go in five hours". So I imagined.

Here's my attempt to do Handsome Jack justice in that time frame. It's not perfect, and a lot of rework was done, but think my painting is going in a good direction and enjoying harnessing the newfound enthusiasm.

The figure is from the excellent Mr Lee (https://www.mrleesminis.com/) and I picked it up at Salute last year and left it languishing in a drawer, but the workshop really fired me up to try painting more busts. My total to-date was one before last weekend and I'm now at three, it's all very exciting.

Geek Pit

Since getting back to the hobby, I've wanted the "perfect" geek pit. That's never actually obtainable, but with work finished on our house earlier this year, it's been something to aspire to.

I've had a perfectly servicable desk but trying to run that and my PC on a small stand behind it wasn't working well. No real flow for me.

Ten months on and I finally got access to a larger space and was able to put new units it. So now there's 3.6m of nerd wall and it's all mine!

One space for computer, one space for painting station - and sufficient wiggle room that my daughter can pull up a chair alongside me when she wants to paint as well. I got to pull the 5.1 surround out of storage and hook that up too. Very exciting.