More mech action.

In amongst a rather slow hobby week, I have managed to get another mech finished for the Tunnel Fighter army:

Click the Pic!

He is the first of the six mechs that accompany the standard infantry units so it is good to get the ball rolling. I have also managed to get the second one to a washed state and am waiting for it to dry before I crack on with the final layer and details. I have another mech that is ready for the wash stage and then I will have to go back to basics and under-coat, base-coat and wash the rest of them...so they will take a little longer than the ones I have managed to chomp through lately.

Once I have completed the first three of the basic mechs, I will build and paint the three APCs I have...that way I will complete mech units before moving on too far. Once those are done, I can order the final four APCs and paint the remaining mechs while I wait for delivery and assembly.

You see? I have a plan!!! (but you know how often they survive contact with the enemy).

On to other things and I am still waiting for my sci-fi troopers to arrive from Ramshackle Games...but there is nothing untoward about it, I expect that the latest venture into sci-fi has caught Curtis off guard with the amount of orders I expect he received.

Today I went into Reading and had a rather nice salad in Pret A Manger...well worth the four and a half notes it cost me. While I was in Reading, I visited Eclectic Games at the bottom of town. There was a small sale going on and I decided it was time I bought a box of Mantic Games Dwarfs (Iron Clad Command) as well as my first Warmachine miniatures...some Horgenhold Guard troops. It is funny but the two metal Guard cost me two pounds more than the Mantic box of ten plastic Dwarfs. I recall a post I made earlier about the cost of miniatures and the value we place on them.

I have no idea what I am going to do with my latest purchases but am looking at the possibility of making them a little more sci-fi.

Who knows?

Well, this coming week I am on late shifts so I have no idea whether my sleep patterns will allow me to get much hobby stuff done...but I really hope to have the remaining two mechs done...

I guess only time can tell.

See you through the heat haze!

What if...??

I have recently joined a forum dedicated to Space Dwarfs.

If you visit it, you will see that it is a very young forum but there is some interesting stuff there. That brings me on to what has been occupying my mind lately and that is...why are there so many people who fervently cling to the GW view of Dwarfs in Space?

GW initially had a nice little band of Space Dwarf militia. They then built up the background to include Guilds and then they ruined everything by making them into some sort of a Hell's Angels cult. As much as this would have been fine...even cool...for a human army, for Dwarfs it was the dreaded straw that broke the camel's back and they ended up a big joke that got wiped out in the most evil way possible...they just got pulled from production with no explanation.

Eventually...'they got eaten by Tyranids' was the reason they disappeared.

They just weren't cool any more was the real reason.

Since then there have been the odd murmur about Demiurg but that, as they say, was the end of that.

So why do people cling to the Fantasy Dwarf in Space that GW started all those years ago...fat, bearded Dwarfs with a knack for making things...living in Holds and Guilds and being miners, just like their fantasy brethren.

Familiarity?

Who knows?

Grymn are really cool miniatures. They are everything Space Dwarfs should be...but the die-hards won't even look at them because they aren't fat and don't have a beard as a mandatory fashion accessory.

The GW idea of Space Dwarfs (or Squats) has gone. The army lists have disappeared in the dim history of the WH40,000 legends.

So what army list would best suit a 'NEW' version of an old idea?

I would suggest that the Space Marine Codex would be the best place to start.

HQ - The Squat Lords had Exo armour and Guild heavy armour which could be represented by Terminator or Powered armour.

HQ - Living Ancestors could be Librarians.

Elites - Hearthguard are elite warriors that also had access to similar armour so they could be represented by Terminator or Powered armour veteran squads.

Troops - Scouts could represent the Warrior brotherhoods (both close combat and standard troops).

Fast Attack - I hate to say it but bikers could be represented by Scout bikers or even normal Space Marine bikes for the Hearth-guard/Guild bikers.

Fast Attack - Gyro-copters could be represented by Land Speeders in their various types.

Heavy Support - Scout Squads with extra access to heavy weapons could act as heavy weapon squads.

Heavy Support - TANKS...Thunderfire Cannon (Thudd Gun anyone?)...Dreadnoughts...

On top of that, throw in some Techmarines and Servitors and you have the Guild Technicians covered.

Thinking of armour types, the basic troops would be in Carapace and the Guild/Hearth-guard/HQ units could be in either Powered armour or Terminator/Exo armour.

So what we need is fat, bearded Dwarfs with a hint of Old-school runes/mining/berserking and wearing a mix of Carapace, Powered and Exo armour. There should be a bike design that suits them, a few miniatures to represent the technical side of their army...maybe a cool Gyro-copter and a few chunky walkers/dreadnought styled vehicles...not to mention tanks, Thudd guns and even drilling machines...

I think that about covers it...

Hmmm...

See you in a bit :)

Another week...

...and another two mechs have been finished:

Click the Pic!

That makes all 4 of the close-combat mechs for the army are done:

Click the Pic!

I have another mech on the painting table as we speak and with 4 complete so far, I have another 7 to go. The next mech is a standard Scopedog with rifle.

For the Tunnel Fighter army to be finished I have to buy 4 more APCs and finish painting those plus 3 more...and finish the mechs...so not too far to go.

As you will probably have noticed, my muse has taken me back to the Tunnel Fighters again. The Enforcers are still waiting for paint...as are their vehicles and a group of Kindred...but I guess they will get their time in the sun when they are ready.

On to ther things and Kev White (of Hasslefree Miniatures) has been sculpting Grymn again and has come up trumps with these two Naval Officers:

Click the Pic!

Click the Pic!

When they get released, they will make a fine addition to my Grymn horde.

E-Bay has been kind to me again. I threw a 'silly' bid on an item...and won at an insanely low price. I won a box of 3 Orca battle-suits from Warzone for less than £7-00...I have seen them go for in excess of £30-00 before so I am rather happy with the win. I haven't a clue what I am going to do with them but I am sure I will think of something.

So it is Father's Day. At some point I am sure my two teen-aged children will remember but I am not holding my breath...

See you at the DIY isle in the supermarket :)

Mech Sunday.

As part of one of my regular changes of direction...I decided to pain one of the mechs for my Tunnel Fighter army:

Click the Pic!

He is a little patchy in places but completes the dark-green Mech unit (Mech, troops and APC) and will get a pic taken a bit later on with the complete unit. That makes two out of eleven units finished...not far to go then ;)!

I am currently painting the mech for the light-green unit...so that will hopefully be more or less finished by the end of the day...probably just the base to paint.

I received a further three APCs from Scotia Grendel yesterday but have cunningly hidden them away until I have finished the mechs for the units that already have APCs...that way I can finish units before moving on. It is difficult for me to do this when I know I have more little APCs sitting there...begging to be assembled...

On one of the forums I visit I saws some rather interesting Sci-Fi troopers and decided to buy some. They haven't arrived yet but they are resin miniatures from Ramshackle Games. I will get them assembled and painted and put a review up so that everyone can share the info.

I have had another up and down week where sometimes I fancy painting detailed stuff and sometimes I don't...so I have managed to base-coat the heavy patrol part of my Enforcers gang. They still need a tidy up and a wash before progressing further...but the mechs have taken over for the time being...so I can't say when they will be done.

Finally...don't forget to leave a comment on this post: What makes a Space Dwarf . I am trying to gather as many ideas as I can before I move on to sculpting and I have been reading all of the comments so far...so maybe more than one style may be required...

Well...that is it for today :).

See you through the drizzling rain!

So...what makes a Space Dwarf?

I thought that I may have a go at sculpting a 28mm scale Space Dwarf.

It may not happen immediately...but the idea is there.

So...if you could buy the perfect Space Dwarf, what would it look like and what weapons/equipment would it have?

Would it be more like a Grymn, or more like a fat, chunky fantasy Dwarf with a big bushy beard?

Would it have a uniform or just 'appropriate clothing'...like a mercenary?

I am talking about a standard trooper so nothing too extreme...armour no heavier than plate/carapace (no powered armour just yet).

Feel free to comment :) .

I just can't stop...

Welcome to new follower Alexandros! Good to have you aboard. Please feel free to enjoy your stay, take away any ideas that you like and comment on http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifwhat you see here!

So...I had a day off today and apart from buying a pair of shoes, some trousers and a bacon sandwich, I have been painting the first five of the Enforcers. It is a slow process because I have been burning the candle at both ends at home and at work...so I am taking everything steady.

I had a choice...dig out some of the mechs to paint up so that I would have finished Tunnel Fighter units or buy more APCs while I am in the mood to assemble and paint them.

...so I have three more APCs are on the way from Scotia Grendel :).

I have been thinking a lot about my hobby lately.

With GW bringing out the 'Finecast' range, I have been thinking about the cost and quality of miniatures.

I quite happily pay £15-00 for five Grymn. That would make a squad of ten £30-00. They are metal and mostly single pose.

...So how much would a squad of ten troops cost me from other manufacturers...whether metal, plastic or resin?

Ramshackle Sci-fi troops are £16-00 for 12 resin troops.
Heresy Sci-fi troops are £36-00 for 12 metal troops.
Ground Zero Games sci-fi troops are £13-20 for 10 metal troops (they are 25mm scale).
Pig Iron Heavy Infantry are £18-00 for 10 metal troops.
Black Scorpion Sci-fi Aliens are £21-50 for 10 metal Aliens.
Games Workshop Space Marines are £23-00 for 10 plastic tactical marines.
Games Workshop Imperial Guard are £18-00 for 10 plastic miniatures.
Forgeworld Space Marines are £50-60 for 10 COMPLETE resin tactical marines.
Forgeworld Imperial Guard are £35-75 for 10 resin miniatures (Death Korps)
East Riding Miniatures Interpol troops are £12-50 for 10 metal miniatures.
Copplestone Castings future wars troops are £17-00 for 10 metal miniatures.
Em4 Sci-fi troopers are £5-10 for 10 plastic miniatures.
Em4 Sci-fi troopers are £12-80 for 10 metal miniatures.
Antenocitis Workshop GOT troopers are £40-00 for 10 metal/resin miniatures (I'm not sure of the material).

So...we have a squad of ten miniatures ranging form a rather amazing £5-10 to a staggering £50-60!

That got me thinking about the huge debate that constantly goes on about the pricing of certain manufacturer's miniatures...and I would say that I quite regularly join the chorus of 'that is expensive'.

When you look at it, the cost of miniatures is nothing compared to the value we place on them. Some people like to buy cheap, easy to paint miniatures so that they can rank up a huge army cheaply and with minimum painting effort. Others would be happy to spend an armies worth of cash on a select few miniatures that would be painted up to the highest of standards over many months.

Let's not forget the amount of value we place on where the miniatures have come from...are they from a huge company with an extraordinary range of products or are they from a struggling 'boutique' manufacturer who has to sell enough miniatures, just to stay afloat?

With metal prices being very high and the cost of plastic rising, we are all going to notice that the miniatures we love so much are increasing in price. There will come a time when we look at our collections and stop seeing the time and effort that went into them and start seeing the cost and value that we have lavished on them.

The big question is...'When will they become too expensive to buy?'

And there is only one person who can answer that...and that would be you.

...and another thing...

The shelf in my cupboard has started to bow under the weight of Tunnel Fighters...I think it is time they moved to the varnish table soon so that they can be varnished and packed away...

See you over the plains of reflection...

Enforcers Converted.

I managed to get a few moments to finish the conversion work on the Enforcers today. I didn't manage to finish the Cyber Mastiff but at least I have the troops ready for paint:



I now have to work out how to paint them just how I want them :).

See you through the cell window!

Saturday posting?

I have decided to post an update today because I may be at work tomorrow for a while and I can't guarantee that I will be able to post...so better early than not at all.

I have had a mixed week this week, what with one thing and another but I have had a couple of things ticking along...

First up, I have finished all four of my APCs for the Tunnel Fighters:

Click the Pic!

Only another seven to go...once I have bought them of course!

A couple of days ago, I got a message from Andrew Rae over at Statuesque Miniatures and he had noticed the Enforcer gang that I am putting together. He mentioned that he had a bunch of miscast miniatures that may be of use to me and was kind enough to send them over. If you check out this link, I am now the proud owner of ten of the little dogs...One of which may end up as a Cyber Mastiff and the others are likely to end up as part of an urban Grymn search patrol.

Thanks go out to Andrew for his generosity!

I have also joined a forum this week. It is very small at the moment (with a handful of posters) but if you are into Space Dwarfs and want to add to the resource there...make sure you take a look and join in...Here's a link:

Space Dwarfs Online

Well, I have to be up early tomorrow to see my charges into the air so I'll bid you tarra for now.

See you across the airfield!