Zuzzy, terrain mats

I just had to post on this. I found this today; http://www.zuzzy.com an american based company that produces latex battlemats that come tectured in many different, highly detailed rollable battlemats for your game!

Have a look for yourselves:

Constructing a new game; Residuum!

So I've started the construction of a new game system that, initially, will use the miniatures of several existing game systems. The idea is that it's a small skirmish game where a 'magic' lord along with a warrior and several minions will invade an area (usually populated city) to loot residuum. Residuum is a compound required either for magical rituals, as a fuel or as a financial product. However more than one lord needs the same residuum so battles are fought over the stuff in the confines of a city populated by unsuspecting villagers.

First try at doing a video battle report. We've learned alot what NOT to do next time. Will try to bring an English one next, but due to time restraint we just did it in the native tongue.

Hi grade, low validity army books by Mathias X

Hi bloggers, a new post so soon? Yes of course! I'm 'working'  so I've found all kinds of interesting things to share with you. I came across a site hosting some high quality custom homebrew armybooks filling the nooks and crannies of the warhammer word. Click on the link below to download the books:
http://battlereporter.freeforums.org/warhammer-army-books-fan-made-unofficial-f88.html

Sorry for the delay!

Sorry for lacking any backbone in keeping this blog updated. I know, I've been lazy and haven't updated my lavish and rich stories on how my undead army is proceeding, because indeed it is! No pictures now since I'm at 'work' but that can change.

In the mean time I'd like to focus some attention on the new gw miniatures comming out next januari (of februari for that matter). As some of you might know they're expanding the skaven line with some awesome new stuff. Too bad I came too late with the idea of hosting these myself (and profiting from the extra influx of viewers to my most wonderfull of wondrous blogs).

As of yet there's new models spotted for:

1. Hellpit Abomination
2. Doomflayer weapon team
3. Hellpit catapult
4. Warplightning cannon
5. A guy named Ikit Claw

Background foundation of the undead army of Miragliano

Shadowqueen of Miragliano (Vampire lord)

The shadowqueen of Miragliano is a vampiress that has lived for many centuries in the city of Miragliano where she was born. Before she became the shadowqueen, she was known as Constanza da Miragliano, princess of the city state. However in the endless layers of deceit, adultery, pleasure seeking and other abominations in court she met with the vampire count Reinhart Guhlfach from the empire. As the two met more and more often under the shadows of the night, enthralled by the counts embrace, Constanza finally accepted the counts embrace of the dark kiss, turning her into one of the undead.

Continue?

Yes, the black coach is still a fiction of my army, but yesterday I've been building a prototype out of cardboard to check for scale purposes. I felt like a genuine arts and crafts wizzkid building his own foldable dice as the entire model was cut out of one piece (at first).

It was clear that the first model was too high for scale purposes so its size was decreased a full cm in height to result in the picture. Although I'm satisfied with the scale, the model itself wasn't perfectly cut and measured resulting in flaps not fitting for example, but the idea was met. Of course it will need ornamentation, driversseats a carrosery/suspension, a place for the baggage carrier to stand, a baggage storage, yoke, horses, paint for that matter and some TLC. Though the part that might rub in to my hairs is that is an angled box, whereas the concept has curvature.

I used google sketch-up to make a basic print (free software) of the fold out without flaps with you can download here (for all those leeches).

The ornamentation will probably be made of greenstuff while I'm still looking at dollhouse things for the ornamental metal brackets that suspend the driverseats and such.

Keep you posted.
IG

Continuing the undead horde

So still not sure how I want to go at the coach. I continued on my undead figures today and finished the necromancer. Another great confrontation miniature that is joining my, still storyless, vampire army. The guy with the banner to the right will be my wight king BSB, while the skeletal figure on the left has no true purpose yet. The figure originally is a Lich, but I'm considering him as another necromancer or as a wight king. The picture also shows the scale of the worg I finished earlier, and you can see it's impressive!

Tried some OSL on the necromancer both from the tip of the staff (poorly visible in this angle) as well as the open hand. I'm considering to to the reflection of the light also on the figure that is supposed to go besides him, although I'm utterly uncertain who that is going to be. Hope I can get some comments there!

IG, out!

Working on a black coach idea

So I finished the vhargulf, and I'm working on a necromancer (no WIP shots sadly), and I was thinking; what do I do for that black coach? I find the idea of the coach awesome, but I just want an aristocratic coach, probably with a seductive vampiress inside. Not a hearse coach that has nothing but a coffin inside. Of course this is proving to be a challenge. I've made up my mind, but that doesn't make things easier. I'm going with the black death coach from the movie "brothers grimm". No plan yet as to HOW, but any comments are more than welcome.

Another day, another rant

At work at the moment, so time's o-plenty for writing something for the blog. I'd like to dedicate this post to some of the great artists out there in 2D art. Why 2D in a wargamers blog? Because I like it, but more importantly we can learn more from looking at other, but similar art disciplines then we can from looking at other miniatures. This is because, and thats especially true for those art forms you have little experience in, you have to take a fresh new look at techniques.

All too often painting miniatures is all about brush techniques. How can you dry the brush just enough to drybrush easy detail without getting a grain. How do I thin my paint just enough to blend different colors into each other or how can I get the tip so fine that I can paint a multi colored iris? What miniature painters forget are the basic art principles that trouble a 2D artist. Because he has no small annoying to reach corners, nor relief to but a wash or drybrush on, he has time for the other problems. What colors do I use, what composition do I like, how do I give the painting a feeling of comming to gether rather than an individual on a backdrop. Looking at these and more such problems, and seeing what insights other artists have to offer changes the way you look at painting miniatures to get that feeling of it all comming together. If all your colors come from the same palette you can create figures that really capture the essence, the ambience of what you have in mind.

To often good or even greatly painting figures still portray figures rather than composisitons. If you look at the current top 10 at coolminiornot, you'll see the images have a certain rightness about them which sets them apart from other well painted miniatures. It are mostly diorama's with great compositions, completenting colors of a similar palette and somewhat of a story to it. Looking at the high elf, we see that chose a color on the flag and clothes that matches that of his ocean; this is a common technique, bringing back a color in different parts of the image, to truely bind the image together. We also see work ahs been done on artificial structure on the rock. Patterns and color diversity is common in nature, while mini-painters tend to think and paint in surfaces. Adding a grain with toothbrush splatter or a sponge will greatly enhance the sense of realism. Thats what makes pigments so sucsessful, as they attach less reliable to the surface you get a random, natural look.
Another thing that great images have alike is that the artist had one or several lightsources in mind and stuck to it in such a way that light direction gives it a natural feel. But I digress, I meant to focus on 2D artists and yet again I averted to the wonderfull wargame hobby.

In my 2D art I prefer gritty over clean, heavily ages over tight, misterious over grand. My favourite artist in that aspect is Paul Bonner. I know him from his work on the Rackham confrontation line, although the other art is great as well. It is similar to an old Dutch artist Rien Poortvliet, who, besides farmyard and natural illustrations, drew the early gnomes with the pointy hat. Another artist I greatly admire, Steve Argyle, has a more clean and modern style, although his methods are chaotic and more similar to the other styles then you'd think. What you can see in the images of these artists, and especially the digital works, is that the palette is carefully chosen, the lighting hits not just everything but those area's that create a more interesting composition. Stuying these images, and copying their way of thinking greatly enhances your look on painting mini's that now your technical training should try to equal.

Keep the juices running, IG out.