The Tomb of Horrors Awaits...

 Hello all, welcome back to the blog.

Today I'll be showing you all how I painted Acererak, creator of the infamous Tomb of Horrors.  I got the model at the local game store a little while ago, and finally got around to painting it. 

Reference for the paintjob.

To start off with the undercoat, I first covered the whole model with black gesso, then sprayed white primer from above. This makes it so the surfaces towards the top of the model would be brighter than the surfaces on the bottom. This will help reinforce the highlights on the model later. 

Next I put on the basecoats. Black for the robes, purple for the dangly robe pennants, medium green for the face brooch, light green for the skin, gold for the neck decoration, red for the trim, brown for the staff, khaki for the skill and bones, and dark gold for the crown. I then hit the smoke around Acererak with thinned green paint, so the transition from black to white primer could be seen through the green tint. This gives the illusion of the smoke thickening as you get closer to the bottom.

Work in progress.

Next, I painted everything except the smoke and the robes with Agrax Earthshade. This brought out the detail in the model, and added definition to the different materials. 

Third, I added highlights to the model. I added grey to the robes, pinkish purple to the dangly cloth bits, tan to the wood and bones, light green for the brooch, lighter green for the skin, and light gold for the neck and crown. I left the red alone, as it was a small area and was surrounded by dark colours. I then overbrushed the top of the smoke with white, to further reinforce the smoke effect. I painted the base black, painted the eyes red, then called it done. 

The finished product.

 And there we go, Acererak is done, ready to trap the latest adventuring party. I am happy with this model, and I am excited to use it in the future. 

Happy painting,

FP01

Top 5 Guides for New Hobbyists

 Hello folks,

This time around I am going to share my top 5 recommended guides for those just getting into the hobby. These are all videos discussing the very basics of the miniature wargaming hobby, so if you are an experienced hobbyist, these may not be for you. Still, read on, as there may be new knowledge you did not know that could be useful to you.

Please note: these videos are in no particular order, as I think they are all fantastic guides in their own way.

5. Goobertown Hobbies Painting Fundamentals

Great guide for painting, done by the Bob Ross of miniatures.

We are starting with this video by Goobertown Hobbies. In this guide, the viewer is shown how to do the basic techniques of miniature painting in a step-by-step, easily digestible guide. The viewer is shown, using a limited palette of paints, how to paint a set of fantasy miniatures to a nice, tabletop-ready standard.

4. Tabletop Time Complete Guide

Painting with a touch of comedy.

This guide, by Tabletop Time, is a good source of information on how to paint miniatures using the basic GW Intercessors + Paint Set. It shows how even with only a few paints you can make some miniatures to put on the games table. 

3. Black Magic Craft Miniature Basics

Great for the grimdark.

From a terrain maestro to a painting prodigy, this guy has a variety of talents to share. In this video, he shows how to paint a swordsman in a simple scheme with easy techniques. 10/10 would learn from again.

2. Squidar Miniatures - Things I wish I knew

Tips from a master.

This video is great for hobbyists looking to avoid some mistakes or pitfalls that are commonly made by new painters. This video goes in-depth about things you can use, tools you need, and general hobby techniques.

1. Midwinter Minis - Build and Paint Your First Warhammer Models

Step-by-step goodness.

This video is a great step-by-step guide for the entire building and painting process, going into detail about what techniques to do, how you do them, and what you need, using two people's first models as examples. The methods shown in this video are easy, achievable, and produce a good looking model in a simple, quick process.

And there you go! Five videos perfect for beginners to the hobby. These videos, and their related channels, are the perfect places to start for those interested in the miniature wargaming hobby.

Happy painting,

FP01

T5 Orks are a thing now.

You saw the title, folks. Orks are going up a point of toughness. 

   

This may not seem like much, but as stated in this Warhammer Community Article, all greenskins, including grots, are going up a point of toughness.  While this may not seem huge at first, that extra point could cause big waves in your games of Warhammer 40 000. 

First of all is that most infantry weapons will be wounding Orks on 5s. Even boltguns, arguably one of the best base infantry weapons in the game, will be wounding at the same rate as the lasgun, affectionately known as the "flashlight." 

This means that most armies will not have an effective way of combating the 30-strong units of Ork Boyz, outside of heavy weapons, which frankly are not that spread out in units outside of vehicles and a handful of dedicated heavy weapon squads (like Devastators or Dark Reapers). This means that there isn't a good way to avoid a mob of Orks overrunning your midfield objective holders and hacking them away with their -1 AP choppas (That's another new thing. Not too bad for Marines but other armies might be in trouble). 

I think that extra point of toughness makes the Orks of 9th edition much more powerful than they were previously, to the point of brokenness. I am not looking forward to dealing with this sort of thing. Alas, we can only wait and see what GW does with the Orks when their Codex releases.

Happy painting,

FP01