Painting Cygnar Commander Coleman Stryker.

So here goes - a series of posts describing how I got to where I got to! It's a painting by numbers guide to see what occurred. Feel free to leave me any advice and tips!

This particular Stryker is from the plastic Cygnar Battlegroup and I used a combination of Formula P3 paints and GW/Citadel. It was quite easy to put together but you need to clean all mold lines before you do as some are quite inaccessible after assembly. I left the sword arm off to paint and add later to allow a bit more 'space'.

Step one was the spray black undercoat.

Step two - I used P3 Battlefield Brown for the base colour for the gloves, trousers and gold armour.

Step three - GW Chainmail on silver metal tubing, pipes, buckles and chain armour. P3 Gun Corps Brown on the cloak, 'loin' cloth and wooden handle of pistol. The lighter brown leather colours on gloves, boots and straps was P3 Bootstrap Leather. The blue trim on shoulder and cloak is P3 Exile Blue followed by the P3 Cygnar Blue Base. The face is GW Bugman's Glow. The gold is GW Gehenna's Gold which I found to be quite reddish/orange compared to the old GW Shining Gold.



Front




Back

 With me so far? Take a breath...

Step five - HAIR! I wanted to follow the art from the Warmachine rulebooks so I went for a quite cartoon-like hair colour. Thinking about it I thought might tone it down, it looks like his head's on fire - but then again why not have it a bit extreme? Thus I left it. GW Mournfang Brown undercoat, then Blazing Orange, which I mixed with GW Golden Yellow to get the highlights. Before I added the highlights I put on a GW Reikland Flesh wash.

Head on fire.



Orange Armour...

 Step six - I added some P3 Cygnar Blue Highlight to Blue Base to begin highlighting the blue trip. I will wash with  GW Azureman Blue and then highlight again. There is GW Gryphone Sepia on the Gold armour and GW Nuln Oil on the silver metal. The goggles have  GW Codex Grey rims and will have dark to light blue highlights eventually. Finally, I used P3 Rucksack Tan on the trousers and used GW Agrax Earthshade wash on the leather straps etc. Still not sure what to do with the gun wrist yet.

Step seven - I didn't like the way the gold was coming out - it was too orange. So I mixed GW Burnished Gold and GW Chainmail and drybrushed heavily. I then used GW Agrax Earthsade wash with some water to get a duller more subdued gold.

Step eight - I added P3 Arcane Blue to the previous blues to get a little highlight on the trim etc. but no wash yet. I added GW Mournfang Brown to some of the pouches and other strapping for variety and used the brown GW Agrax Earthshade on these. I also retouched some of the trousers to get a more even paintjob. There you go. Next up the cloak and highlights to the armour and washes to the trousers and the wrist and... Laters...

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Posted in: Warmachine

Aha Fables! Volumes 1 -17 by Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham et al.

Volume 17 of Fables, called 'Inherit The Wind' collects together issues 108-113 of the Fables series. And what a series. Without doubt a classic and a 'must-read' as far as I'm concerned.
I think I'll start with the covers, which in themselves are wonders to behold. Each is visually stunning and breathtakingly drawn. There is detail and beauty in just about any cover you could pick at random. Not only that, but there are a number of superb artists who have contributed 'gems' to this fabulous series. Just to take one - Adam Hughes in Volume 17 does a fantastic mini-story called 'Porky-pining'- in an Art Deco style. It's fantastic. And funny.

Without spoiling too much -  the series tells the story of the lives and loves of characters and creatures from the realms of fairy stories, myths and legends and it imagines that they have been forced to live among 'mundies'. That's us normal folk, so you know, and we don't know their true nature. They live in Fabletown, of course, (undetectable to us) and have had to flee from an evil enemy (who is he?) seeking to subdue them to his authority- as well as doing the same to countless other worlds in his quest for Empire. There's Snow White, The Wolf, Little Boy Blue, The North Wind, Beauty and the Beast and many, many more. And theyr'e not quite how you remember them either - just check out Pinocchio!
There are battles, births, betrayals, burials and betrothals and no character is safe. Willingham admirably manages to weave a fluent narrative through the pages of so many issues. By the time we get to Volume 17 various sinister perils have been faced. There has been heartache and heartbreak, but also a healthy dose of humour and hope. (I'll stop with the alliteration now.)
The artwork is generally carried out by Buckingham, whose style is quite 'traditional', in a kind of comic book way. That's not to be patronising though. I often have liked work that breaks from this style - Mignola, Sienkiewicz, O'Neill, Miller etc. But this is vivid, energetic and full of character. Can't wait for the next volume...

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Posted in: graphic novels

Warmachine - A painted Magnus the Traitor!

At last a finished warcaster!

bACK.

FrONt

AnD WITh tHe MANgLeR.

As you can see the colouring is much as I have described in previous posts. I like the posing on Magnus but didn't quite get the hands connected right if you look closely. The sword and hands come as one piece (and the back pack as well). I did pin them, so it's secure, but the lower (real) hand is slightly out of place with the armour on the forearm. I think I may play around with the colouring of the sword a bit but generally it's now done. Phew....

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Posted in: Warmachine

Flames Of War - British Sherman V,StuG g - painting of.

A quick post to cover the painting of the first two models from the Actung! Flames Of War Starter Set.

A) British Sherman V.

Vallejo Russian Uniform - armour.
Citadel Boltgun Metal - tracks/metal.
P3 Gun Corps Brown - straps/wood/boxes/handles.
Citadel Desert Yellow/Catachan Green - fabric stowage.
Citadel Gryphone Sepia/ Devaln Mud wash over most of model. Devlan only on tracks.

Citadel Kommando Khaki - uniform.

I'm fairly happy with the outcome though the wash makes the model slightly shiny. Matt varnish and decals needed...

StuG G Middlestone  (a very Shiny paint) from Vallejo for the armour colour. As above for everything else.

Vallejo Reflective Green and Flat Brown for the stippled camouflage. Not exactly happy with the effect but it looks OK with Gryphone Sepia wash all over. Some more skill needed with the stippling effect but it looks acceptable. Decals needed.

Finished  one of each.One more StuG G and two more Sherman Vs to go. See Monkeyreado vids. on YouTube too.

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Posted in: Flames Of War

Incursion board game, Game Of Thrones Living Card Game and starting Flames Of War. Who's a busy boy then?

Ere are sum vids wot I dun.

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Posted in: board games,Flames Of War,LCG

B.P.R.D. Volumes 1 - 14.

Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense

Left to right: Johann Krauss, Liz Sherman, Abe Sapien, Roger, Kate Corrigan.

In this series Mike Mignola takes the members of the BPRD and gives them life beyond the associations with Hellboy. Much in the same way as the 'Hellboy' series, Mignola creates a central storyline (a 'war' with subterranean 'frogs' that threaten to overwhelm and destroy the planet) with a number of short stories and character exploring 'asides'.  Again, in the same way as the 'Hellboy' series, other contributors come to Mignola's aid - most notably Guy Davis and John Arcudi.

Mignola admits that he wasn't quite sure where the series was going to go at first. Arcudi, he says, helped give the story a more definite trajectory and focused the narrative threads on the war that was brewing beneath the surface of the earth and BPRD's role in challenging it.

I think what's particularly good about the series is that it also allows  the development of the characters in the BPRD team. Eerie Krauss  goes through grief, Abe Sapien a crisis of confidence, Roger (the homunculus) a search for identity, and other characters like Captain Daimio  and Liz Corrigan strange and often devastating experiences. There's also the strange Fu Manchu style character and his attempts to manipulate Liz Sherman's power. So it's not just about the 'war' with the strange frog creatures (seen in earlier volumes of 'Hellboy') that drives the plot. But I don't think you'd ever expect that from Mignola anyway.The plot itself is healthily complex, there are man bits and pieces of information you need to maintian in your head as you go along - thanks Mr Mignola - enaging though, and thoroughly enjoyable.

Arcudi and Davis do a fantastic job in my view. Although I can see that the artwork may not be to everyone's taste - it isn't like Mignola's work if that's what you like - it does remain true to the simplicity of colour and frame sequencing that characterises past Mignola work. As you can see above the characters are evocatively drawn and the frogs are consistently meancing throughout the series. Overall a well recommended read for those seeking to persue the battle with the occult into areas beyond 'Hellboy'. It's not just a 'spin-off'.

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Posted in: graphic novels

Hunger Games Trilogy review - Suzanne Collins

I'd seen lots of teenagers reading this and, a bit like the Potter/Northern Lights  bandwagon, I thought I'd hop on. First of all my overall impressions, so if you don't want to read all the hot air below, you can read this and move on!

A good read, but don't be surprised if you don't find the descriptions all that detailed. It's very narratively driven, quite cinematic in construction even and I think it was a bit of a stretch for three novels. However, as teen fiction (which is not to be condescending), it really works. It's easy to read, the characters are strong and the action is constant and consistently engaging. There are also some interesting 'versions' or distorted images of our modern world in here too to add a more thoughtful quality to the action. Recommended - especially for those readers who like science fiction but maybe don't read all that often. A 'page turner' as is often quoted!

So, I'll aim to avoid spoilers - but beware if you don't want to know anything at all!

Katniss Everdeen, her friends and family, live in a post apocalyptic world where the population lives in a number of scattered districts with their own distinct communities. There is some technology, but life in these districts is basic. Everything is run from the Capitol, which 'rules' over the districts. Life there isn't basic.
It's explained that because of previous problems between the districts and the Capitol a Hunger Games has been devised to help oppress / punish the districts. The winner ensures themselves luxury for their families and the losers, well the losers .....die. The novels follow Katniss through her experiences of the games and the changing nature of the world around her. It's not always an uplifting read, quite a number of horrendous things happen to the characters. There's a tragic love triangle, alcoholics, plenty of awful injuries, vicious mutants and heartbreak. Perhaps that's why it's been so popular!

Another reason that I think it's hit a nerve, is that it deals with a number of contemporary concerns. There's the Big Brother TV style watching of the competitors every move. There's the 'pleasure' of the death and gore, like the audience are watching some sort of action movie. There's also an interesting take on the cult of celebrity mixed in. So for a modern audience, the novels do have something to say. It does feel like action for action's sake at times- but there is a point to the trail of death and destruction which seems to take the novels beyond Arnie Schwarzenegger territory. (Remember 'Running Man'?)

I read speedily though the first novel. The action is well-paced and the premise interesting. I did feel that the second novel was slightly more of the same and then by the third I wasn't quite enjoying it as much even though the action comes thick and fast. It was quite a bleak story by the third installment and the only respite from this comes in the Epilogue. I do think though, that it really is a worthwhile read. My 14 year old son got through all three fairly rapidly and recommended it heartily. I'm glad I've read them too.

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Posted in: books