Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Warpwolf Stalker & NMM

Did some work on the WW Stalker.. my first ever attempt at NMM technique (non-metallic metal), which i used on the sword.  You can see on his armor i just went w/ regular metallic paints.  After seeing this picture, i've gone back and cleaned up the lower, shaded area of the blade and made the blend much smoother.

The blade is just black and white with various mixes to get the varying grays.  The gold detail work is a various mix of brown, orange, yellow, and white.  No science on this one, i just mixed to what felt like the right color to get the blend.



Pretty happy with how it came out for a first attempt at the technique.  I've seen tons of posts asking about how to do it, so i learned from their mistakes  Grin.  I'm not super thrilled on the silver part of the sword, but don't really feel like redoing it and its good enough for table-top lol

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Long overdue update

Its been forever since i've put an update in.. not because i haven't done anything, but mostly because I haven't done anything worth posting lol.  The FLGS has been running a Warmachine/Hordes league and so most of my free time has gone into playing matches rather than working on models.   Despite that, I have snuck in some time to get some modeling done, and I will be posting pics tonight.

Megalith is cut, reposed, greenstuffed, and based.  I just have a few more things left to sculpt and he'll be ready for primer.  He's been taking up all my time due to the extensive extra stuff i did to him.  WW Stalker, Druid Wilder proxy, and Blackclad Wayfarer are ready for paint.  Feral has seen no love, so i really need to finish his sculpting.  Also... I FINALLY got my back ordered Druids unit in, so those are almost ready to assemble.  Still have a few more bits to clean up the mould lines/flashing on them.  Also got some Swamp gobbers who're ready to be put together.

Its great having a FLGS in town again, and being able to play games at almost any time is awesome, but it really has slowed down the hobby work!

Edit:  Actually I did snap a couple of photos of megalith before i did any of the detail sculpting work.. just puttied in the holes left from the repose.. i'll get my latest up tonight which has more roots growing off, and details filled in on the plain green spots in these photos.



Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Infinity game - Yu-Jing vs. Haqqislam

Mike and I got a chance to play Infinity with the full rules did make it a lot more fun than our initial demo game.  Game has so many tactical options and is so balanced with the orders system it really comes down to who has better tactics rather some cheese uber unit/combo that crushes everything.   Everything has multiple counters, so this is a game where you can truely buy the models you like and have them all be viable competitively.



Battle report:

The shared border town of Shaqqfu-Jing suffered a 
devastating explosion today that left part of the town 
in ruins.  Traditional Islamii are being blamed for
the supposed  terrorist act, but rumors have surfaced 
reporting an  unauthorized SILK lab explosion 
causing the blast.  Haqqislamic troops were quickly 
deployed to eliminate the terrorist threat and
capture any "evidence" left behind.

Soon after a firefight erupted between the deployed 
Haqqislam and what appeared to be a Yu-Jing 
task force.  It is unclear what initially prompted the 
conflict, as the relations between the two nations
are generally peaceful in Shaqqfu-Jing.

The Yu-Jing forces systematically gunned down
the HI troops with frightening efficiency.   After the brief 
exchange, the orange army was seen positioned 
about blast's epicenter, rummaging through the 
rubble.   They appeared to leave empty handed.

This leaves one to wonder exactly what went down 
today in Shaqqfu-Jing?  Was this really a terrorist act 
or a governments attempt to shut down an illegal 
SILK lab gone bad?  Or was it a matter of destroying 
tech before it could be recovered by another faction?
You decide... more on this tonight at 10.


I won first turn and was able to secure some advanced defensive positions and lock down some firing lanes right off the bat.  Having 2-3 more orders available also gave me a big early game edge.  This was due to him having an expensive combat drop advance deploy troop (which don't generate any orders until they deploy).  Using these 2 advantages i was quickly popped 2 of his troopers and  widened the Order gap even further, and from there it was a matter of cleanup.  So yeah.. this game wasn't as even matched as our first two games lol.

PureBlood Warpwolf (Part 1)

Got some progress on this guy a few weeks ago, but have forgotten to keep up with the gaming blog.  The lichen greenery isn't going to stay, at least not in its current form.. i was just mocking up some greenery to get an idea of what i wanted to do with it.   This was my first beast i tested the top down light gray primer to preshade/highlight the model.  I'm going to start doing this with my models that will have some lighter/brighter colors.  Keeps the advantage of black primer with a little of the advantage of white primer while blocking out the shading/highlights for me ahead of time.   Hopefully it saves me a bunch of time over the gnarlhorn.

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Stone Keeper - Shifting Stones UA (Part 1)

Did a little work on my stonekeeper this weekend.  Got him put together and some ideas formulating for a base. I really love this model, so i want its base to do it justice.  My idea is to have him levitating with some rocks floating beneath him sculpted with GreenStuff and foam (wire hidden by vines and foliage).  Want him to be kind of hidden in a forest to signify his stealth ability.  A stony protrusion from a lush forest ground (lichen, vines, grass and mossy flock), and a tree (leaves done up with lichen, flock, and clump foliage).

Here's the mockup without any of the greenery or sculpting put on yet.

Battle Report - Cygnar vs Circle Orboros

This region had once been settled by peaceful farmers and workers.  The river and surrounding lands were a lush natural resource... that had all changed on a fateful day 1 year ago to this day.  Savage beasts and men poured in from the forest, killing with reckless abandon and smashing the structures of civilization to ruin.  Hence forth, this land would be a bounty for civilization to partake of no longer... it belonged to "them".  The mysterious black cladded pagans who culled the beasts into their warpath.

After the farmers and workers were driven out, the druids of orboros erected a stone monolith upon a very specific spot.  An intersection of two powerful leylines lay beneath the earth, right on the edge of the forest.  This sacrificial stonework would allow them to tap into it through offerings to the Devouring Wurm.   And so the blackclads protected their sacred site from that day forward.

One year later, a Cygnarian army looked to reclaim these lands, led by Commander Stryker himself.  The pagan savages would be defeated and forced to see their sacred monolith shattered.   The hiss of steam and rumbling iron upon earth echoed throughout the countryside as the battlegroup of an ironclad, charger, and lancer marched toward the ruins.

The always alert and watchful Circle, had noticed their approach from miles away and had already assembled a force led by the Stormwrath, Krueger.  Using the power of the monolith to amplify his call, he reached out to the most savage beasts of nature.  A feral warpwolf and a Gorax.  The presence of either would make even the bravest of men reconsider, let alone both together.  Not Krueger though, his power over beast was absolute, and these two were at his bidding.   At the stormlord's side, a master of stone magic levitated inside a triad of squat obelisk-shaped stones, intricately carved with runes.  Krueger sent the keeper and his stones to advanced positions ahead of the battlegroup to prepare their magic.



Krueger watched from beyond the monolith as the enemy took up their positions, centered between the ruined structures.  Wanting to secure the highground before they could establish a strong firing position, he imbued the feral with the power of lightning, causing tendrils of it to lick about from his claws. He then forced his will upon the Feral, driving him to race with all speed around the forest towards the hill, keeping him out of range and site of the Cygnarians.  He then called upon the power of the wind, conjuring a whirling gust of wind that encompassed his area of control as he took up position directly behind the great monolith.  The gorax was commanded to secure the forest entrance, while the stonekeeper shepard' his stones forward in a wide, flat formation.
[Krueger cast lightning tendrils on Feral, cast deflection, moved foward 6".  Feral warped for speed and ran 16" around the forest towards the cliff-faced hill, then riled.  Gorax ran forward, setting up between the monolith and the forest.  Shifting stones and keeper shifted forward 8"]

The veteran commander caught the subtle hints of movement and was quick to react, dispatching his lancer off to the left flank to contest the highground while the other two hulks of iron push foward to secure the center, taking cover behind the ruined wall.
Lancer ran to the top table edge.  Ironclad and Charger took up center positions behind cover of 1" wall.  Striker moved up.

Seeing the enemy's plan play out, Krueger forced the Warpwolf deeper into their flank.  As the beast took position at the base of the highground, it instinctively warped its body to form a tougher hide and bony armor.  The gorax's savagery was kept in check as Krueger sent it to skirt the forest edge and protect that flank, staying within the shadows of the trees.  The shifting Stones once again shifted to improve their position, expanding out the triangular formation to encompass a larger area.  Krueger needing a better vantage took to the sky and flew from his hiding spot to skirt the tree tops.  He whipped up another whirl of wind to deflect any ranged attacks.
[i]Krueger upkeep lightning tendrils on Feral.  Feral warped armor and moved into base with the high-ground piece.  Gorax moved forward, ending w/ just the tip of his base in the forest for concealment.  Krueger cast skyborne and deflection, then flew forward into the forest[/i]

Stryker, worried that his flank would not hold against the fast-approaching warpwolf, ordered his jacks to reposition and pull towards the highground.  He imbued the charger with a powerful sniping magic, giving it a supernatural aim and positioned himself near the ruined building.   The charger unleashed a powerful blast from its dual cannon, but failed to injure the feral who had the cover of earth and Krueger's storm wind as well as his protective armor warping.  The ironclad lumbered forward and readied itself for the incoming onslaught.
[i]striker cast snipe on charger, moved forward (might have shot at feral but dont' remember exactly.)[/i]

In seeing the enemy's reactive manuever from his sky vantage, Krueger wasted little time in capitalizing.  He flew forward then called out ancient words to the darkening sky.  Suddenly a swirling black cloud dipped down from the sky in a vortex!  The tornado snatched up the Ironclad and launched it through the air, letting the hulk crash land in a vulnerable prone position!  The fall caused major structural damage to the 'jack. The shifting stones combined their magic to teleport the Gorax forward into a flanking position on the other side, then Krueger urged the feral to unleash its full fury upon the exposed Ironclad.  The beast charged in, lightning tendrils still desperately grasping for a conduit.  The ferocity of the beast was unmatched as its claws melted through the iron armor like butter, ripping it to shreds, giving the lightning its much desired conduit!  Arcs leaped from the scrapped jack into the nearby Charger, giving it a bit of a jolt!
[i] Krueger's tornado rolled incredible and dealt like 13 damage thru armor, the feral's charge finished it off, getting a little extra electro-leap damage on the charger[/i]



Stryker, seeing the dire situation unfold, burst into action!  With Krueger's wind wall down, he focused his will into the Lancer, channeling a rumbling earthquake spell through its arc-node!  The feral was unable to hold its ground and fell prone!  The commander ordered the Charger to unleash a devastating volley of cannon fire into the feral beast while taking his own pistol shots.  The lancer followed suit and charged in to skewer the Feral from its backside! The beast's bones were shattered and flesh battered leaving it will no spirit or mind to fight, but it still stood, heaving for every breath.
[i]Bad dice rolls on damage prevented zac from having an excellent retalliation allowing the feral to live (with 4 health dots and no mind or spirit).[/i]

Next turn, the stonekeeper failed to hit with his Rock Hammer.  Krueger healed the feral for 2, reviving its mind and spirit, then moved forward and chain lightning'd the Charger.  It did decent damage to the 'jack and chained into Stryker for a few points of damage.  the Gorax used his animus primal then charged the Charger and scrapped it.  The feral forced to regenerate and I forgot to shake the prone effect on my feral so he spent his turn standing up and changing his facing to avoid back strikes.  The stones shifted to form a protective screen for Krueger.

Zac then regained his honor with some good dice rolls and went slice 'n dice mode with stryker on the feral in melee combat.  Stryker pwnd his face! And popped his feat giving everything +5 armor!  The lancer then ran to move into position on Krueger's side of the high ground, putting a dangerous threat on the warlock's exposed flank.

My turn... The gorax auto frenzied, but had nothing in range and no charge targets.. it advanced towards the closest (stryker) and ended its activation.  Realizing i couldn't hurt anything with all his stuff having +5 armor, i retreated.  Stones ported Krueger back behind the forest and he camped fury (since gorax generated 0 and feral was dead), i was in dire need of all i could get.

Zac spent his next turn repositioning his lancer back with his warcaster, and sending said 'caster to kill the Gorax, again in melee combat.  Apparently he doesn't fall into the category of men mentioned at the beginning of this battle report about being afraid of the most savage of savage beasts!  He slayed the beast using all 6 focus.

With the feat wore off, Krueger got crafty...  he cut himself for 2 fury to max out, then advanced 6" to get a good linear angle on the Lancer and Styker.  He cast tornado and took a gamble didn't boost to hit, needing a 7.  It hit with an 8(!!) and threw the lancer back 3"!  The perfect amount i needed to LAND on Stryker and knock him down!! 1" less and no stryker.  1" more and no stryker!  It was THAT close!  ehehhe.  So with striker and lancer prone, the stone keeper advanced and lobbed a rock hammer at them... AoE 3 POW 14... boom.  Ended the poor warcaster's life and Circle's sacred monolith remained protected.


AWESOME game zac!  It was really back and forth (dice gods were with me tonight lol) and if i hadn't gotten that super lucky 3" throw, i probably would have been done, cause i had no beasts left for fury, and my shifting stones aren't much for fighting...  This game taught me the huge value of knockdown abilities... your earthquake is pretty nasty, especially with arc nodes.  Tornado is quickly becoming one of my favorite spells, tossing jacks around and setting up nice auto-hit charges :D   That terrain setup was really enjoyable i thought as well.. nice and symmetrical (for the most part) game-play wise, but different in aesthetic.  trees vs ruined buildings

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Feral Warpwolf (Part 1)

Haven't gotten much done on Circle Orboros army lately, mostly because i've been busy trying to plan out some terrain building (i'm on a mission and will be blogging progress on this).  Also, i've got 2 Infinity starters i've been tinkering with.  That said.. I do have an update.. My feral warpwolf is nearing completion on the modeling side of things.  Just need to finish the greenstuffing and the base (which i have a really cool idea for).

My idea is to have him hunched over a ripped up body, posed to look like he's guarding his fresh kill, looking up as an intruder approaches, and he's quite pissed about it. I plan to beef up the arms and legs a bit as well.

Here's my progress:

I brough his left arm way down, giving him a much more natural and hunched over look.  

 Here's the other side.  This arm i brought out a bit and it will be holding a ripped off head, complete with blood spine!  I still need to rotate his awkward wrist position clockwise a bit, to fully eliminate the "ghey pose" and adjust the fingers to be grasping the spine/head bit.  You can see the head bit in the bottom right of the pic.
And here's a close up of the head bit.  I pinned a paper clip in that will be modeled and bent to resemble a spine.  This head is perfect since its hair is whooshed back and its mouth is open in a scream.  That will give me the easy effect of a horrifying death and dangling hair.

Ok, had to edit in a quick update... Really wanted to get the first chunk of meat down on one of his arms so i did.. here it is.. muscles aren't quite fully sculpted, as i need this first chunk to dry first, then i can tie it all together and blend it smooth, cover join w/ fur, etc.  
I had a sort of epiphany sculpting this.. as i'm still really new at this i have much to learn... I realized sculpting whole pieces at once is near impossible because you have nothing solid to "push" the greenstuff against.. just more squishy putty that ruins your overall shape.  So I tried a "blocking out" method artists use when drawing.  What you see is basically an upside down teardrop for the basic shoulder shape, then 3 ovals stuck on and roughly shaped to the shape of the anterior, medial, and posterior deltoids (shoulder muscles).  When this is dry and solid, i'll be able to put down a fresh layer of GreenStuff, pull the bottom tips of the deltoids together to form their normal join between the tricep and biceps, and the blend the shapes together and get rid of any unwanted lines. I also need to put a little bit of putty on the tricep to beef that out a little to correctly proportion the rest of his arm and bring that part of it together.