Wall of Fire, MkII Style
When MkII was released Privateer Press resized the "wall template" used by some spells, making the fold-up cards that came with models like Feora and Gorten obsolete. Although I liked the fold-up wall for ease of handling, I decided to make a new flat set so models could be placed directly on them if necessary.
Buh-bye now
Here there be Planeswalkers
Last weekend our Manaburst campaign finally got off the ground. The actual play portion of the night wasn't too long - we spent a lot of the session going over rules and took our time with the scenes to make sure that all of the rules were explained as we went. Slow-paced that it may be, the session seemed to be a success. By the end of the night everyone had gotten the basics of the system and were getting into the flexibility it afforded them.
Character generation was slow at first while everyone wrapped their head about the phases and aspects that FATE uses, but before long we had a fairly diverse group of planeswalkers who, for the most part, had a united enemy and had met each other in their travels-at least in passing.
Ada
Ada's original conception was that of a construct capable of aiding its master in research and ritual. She quickly became indispensable to his experiments, able to observe and record all that transpired while his concentration was elsewhere.
Many years after her creation, Ada was given sentience when a powerful spell cast by her master inadvertently bound a being of primordial magic within her shell. The reaction not only destroyed the ritual but also flung Ada from the plane, sending her careening through the Blind Eternities for the first time.
Concept of Magic: Flow of Aether
Different Strokes: Technique and Painting Speed
Recently I've been experimenting with a few of the techniques that the Privateer Press painting staff talk about in their recent books. It's taken a while to adapt to a new way of doing things but after getting used to it I've been able to increase the speed I can paint a figure pretty significantly.
Vice Scrutator Vindictus
Manaburst Research – Trappings of Magic
Although I haven't been writing much about it, I've been making some notes on how I plan on using the Spirit of the Century system to run a Magic: the Gathering-inspired campaign for my group that I've previously mentioned. One of the unknowns I since the beginning is how to handle magic - a decision made harder since I really have no idea how magic works in MtG's Multiverse.
Sure, that card game has its mana-powered magic, but it's made for a turn-based card game and can be considered slower and less fluid than I'd like for our campaign. I still had two questions to answer before I could design my magic system: how exactly does one gain and spend Mana, and does summoning pull a preexisting creature to the summoner, or does it create a simulacrum. To answer these I decided to ask WotC directly... so to speak
Switching it Up, Keeping it Fresh
To help keep motivated after spending a fair bit of time on my exemplars' armor, I switched up things a bit and started working on some side projects. I found a couple Hordes figures I had started to work on and forgotten about, and started work on some figures for a new RPG campaign.
The change of pace has helped me keep productive, but the subject matter isn't really helping the problem I mentioned previously of not pushing my skill. It seems like a lot of my RPG figures tend to get rush jobs - especially the plastic ones. But at least it's still painting; I'm building momentum. 
Glutton for Punishment
I've noted a few things before on my blog: I hate painting Exemplar and I'm suffering from brush burnout. You'd think I'd pick different a different model type for my newest project. But alas, I just started my Exemplar Errant Seneschals and Unit Attachment instead. Sometimes I wonder if something's seriously wrong with me.
I spent a few evenings with Hulu on the laptop near my painting desk working on the models' armor and made some decent progress. I'm still working on some more detailed shading at the moment, but I'm going back and forth between wanting to take the time to do some really detailed shading and getting burnt out working on them.
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- Knights Exemplar Errant Seneschals
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- Knights Exemplar Errant Unit Attachment
This has me thinking - I wonder if army painting is causing my abilities to stagnate. It seems like there's less motivation to push my skill to the next step when in the back of my head I can always fall back to "Well, this just has to look as good as the rest of my models." Might be time to shake things up a bit.
RPGs: Metal or Plastic?
I've always enjoyed painting pewter figures over their plastic counterparts. The heft makes them easier to handle and they feel like they just take paint better (a trick of the mind, I'm sure). Plastic models are far easier to customize and modifty, but pewter makes for a more solid figure that I prefer for some intangible reason. Lately though, I've found my opinion switched when it comes to using figures for role-playing games. The pewter is still preferable for painting, but plastics seem more beneficial at the table.
Wayne's character "in the belly of the beast"
I think that this is primarily due to the resilience of plastic. Dropping (or even just knocking over) a pewter figure can result in damage. Beast case scenario, that means a weapon or arm has to be bent back into place, but worst case scenario it means something snapping off that needs pinning and replacing... in multiple places. And that's not to mention the repainting necessary.
In contrast, plastic figures have a resilience that lets them take a fall better. The relative elasticity of the medium, combined with the model's lighter weight, means an accident with a plastic miniature is far less catastrophic than its metal counterpart.
Diminutive Denizens Update: Jun 6, 2010
- Uploaded new miniatures:
- Update to the generated RSS feed to better integrate with feed readers.
Hardcore: Down to the Wire
With just a couple days left before Privateer Press Weekend at DieCon X here in St. Louis, I'm still scrambling to finish a few last minute figures before Saturday's Hardcore event. Surprise surprise, it's down to the wire with me scrambling to finish a everything up in time. It really shouldn't be a surprise, though. :)
I also have to clean up a few models and finish assembling my Exemplar Errant Seneschals in case I want to use them later in the weekend. They definitely won't be painted for Hardcore but I might toss 'em in another list to give them a go in one of the other formats.
Despite being behind, I'm looking forward to the event. Last two years have been fantastic, and this year promises to be no exception.
Basic Basing
In a previous post I mentioned that I use concrete patch as a basing material. It's an alternative to sand that's a rock solid way to model dirt to-scale on a base. It requires a bit more effort than the traditional glue and sand but I think the end result is worth the extra work.
Base WIPs
The most difficult aspect of working with the concrete patch is that in order to attach models, you have to clip the pewter tab from the base of the figure, give it a quick filing, and pin it to the base. I've always preferred that method anyway, so it's no big deal. But if you're used to just gluing and slotting the figure, then switching to concrete patch is going to involve some extra steps.
Usually I'll glue the pin to the miniature and drill a hole on the base, cover the base in concrete patch, and before it sets, press the miniature down where it'll ultimately stand, and remove it. Once the concrete patch dries, the indentions left by the miniatures feet will cup them in place securely.
If you want add accessories to a base - things like small rocks, gears, or the like - the patch itself will hold them in place if you press them in before it dries. For the most part this has been all I'll need to do, but occasionally if a piece is loose I'll pop it up after the patch dries and glue it back down into the same divot, making it very secure. For tiny rocks made from cork I'll just put a drop of glue over it while attached, and that is usually sufficient. I prefer superglue over craft glue for these steps.
As for painting my bases, I picked up a recipe for craft colors a few years ago that I use for all of my bases. I can't remember the source anymore, but the combination works great. One note though, before going into painting - make sure you have an extra old brush. Drybrushing over concrete patch will ruin a brush like nothing else.
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Recent Posts
- Wall of Fire, MkII Style
- Here there be Planeswalkers
- Different Strokes: Technique and Painting Speed
- Manaburst Research – Trappings of Magic
- Switching it Up, Keeping it Fresh
- Glutton for Punishment
- RPGs: Metal or Plastic?
- Diminutive Denizens Update: Jun 6, 2010
- Hardcore: Down to the Wire
- Basic Basing
Recent Comments
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