Saturday 3 January 2015

It Begins.

So, one of the things I wanted to do this year was to create a hobby-specific blog of some kind. There's already a million other amazing blogs out there, (some say, maybe two million!) all of which will be doing it better than I am. However, I still thought it'd be a good way of keeping a record of completed projects, ongoing projects and thinking about doing stuff that is probably never going to happen. To all those that may find themselves adrift in the interwebs warp, I hope you'll be into what I'm up to. Pretty much everything I'll talk about will be somehow connected to Warhammer 40000 and its various offshoots, but I may drift into muckier (re Fantasy/Historical) areas too.

For my first entry I thought I'd share my small, but growing collection of Genestealer Cultists. Pretty sure everyone in the world loves these figures and they really do capture the vibe of the Warhammer 40000 universe around the early 90's. I've lusted after these three particular figures since they appeared and have only just got around to acquiring them without resorting to selling half a kidney. I'm pretty sure that these are all Jes Goodwin sculpts as they seem more refined than the Bob Olley interpretations and more in-keeping with the then emerging in-house style that Games Workshop was beginning to form at that time. They've all been painted in the same or similar pallet and style as the classic Mike McVey versions.

Predictable paint job number one

Predictable paint job number two

 In the future, everyone will need purple camo

These guys really were a joy to paint and the 20 year long wait to get my paws on them was more than worth it. All that time spent pouring over old John Blanche artwork and miniature catalogues as a kid and more recently, the amazing Bryan Ansell collection; if only I knew one day I'd have some! The Magus in particular has great tabletop presence and oozes alien menace. To start with, I'm planning on putting together a band of around eight hybrids of various generations to represent a Necromunda gang. From there I plan to paint up a similar sized force of Rogue Trader-era Imperial Guard to function both as Brood Brothers and as a small Guard army in it's own right. I doubt very much if they'll ever get gamed with as I'm both terrible with remembering any rules or making time to play. They'll be there if I remedy either of those things though!

I hope to put these guys to bed soon as I have one big project I want to work on in 2015 which is a Rogue Trader/Second Edition Eldar army. Was thinking about trying to get it done in time for BOYL, but we'll see how I get on as I'm painfully slow at painting!


13 comments:

  1. What a great start ! I've just been bit by the Genestealer (well by a Bob Olley running patriarch actually). Looking forward to seeing more here ;)

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    1. Aw, cheers fella! Just finishing off a load of Olley Hybrids as well as the Patriarch you mentioned - will get them up soon!

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  2. That is a great beginning - I really enjoy it when someone takes the time to think about how different sculptors approached the same subject matter.
    In any case, I really like your paint jobs - and your miniature photography is a real treat too: great table top setting, but with ample lighting and close-ups. Well done. Looking forward to seeing more!
    As I'm sure you've heard from other people, it will make following your website easier for some of us if you put in a "Followers" widget. In any case, keep up the great work!

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    1. Thanks for commenting! I don't think the sculptors get half the praise they deserve, some proper superstars out there too! There's so many different things happening around this period in terms of style and art direction that it's an endless source of radness - just stoked that people like yourself are into it too!

      Aw, hyped that the photos are going down well - not bad for an ancient camera and some kitchen spotlights!

      Thanks for pointing that out, still trying to get my head around bloodspot - will sort it out soon!

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  3. Always cool to see some love for the old-school stealer range, thanks!

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    1. Thanks Tim! They're be more of the original RT Tyranids in the next few months as I've been sitting on a small army of those for a year or two - I'm a big fan of that range too!

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  4. Great job on some true classics mate. Looking forward to watching this progress.

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    1. Thanks Ross! Stoked to hear that they're still received enthusiastically despite being a very popular subject! I'll be putting the Hybrids to bed for awhile now I've finished off enough for a gang, but will be revisiting their Tyrannic cousins soon!

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  5. Great work so far!
    You may have even empowered me to go for a second attempt at painting up a cult!

    All the best =)

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    1. Thanks so much for stopping by, it's rad to know that this stuff might inspire a new project or invigorate an old one! I'll be posting up a piece on cults in the next day or two if you're interested!

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    2. Always interested!
      For some reason I cannot join your blog?

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    3. Rad! Blogger can be a bit of a pain sometimes - I've tried several times to friend Eldritch Epistles and still haven't managed it!

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    4. Aha! No worries, I have cracked it =)

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