Tag: gaming

Painting Legion of Everblight: The very beginning

My workspace

As I’ve written about before I have quite a few tabletop war game miniatures. I’ve also mentioned how I needed a plan, motivation, or some sort of painting group in order to get through all the models I have lying in boxes and cases. Ask the Universe and it gives back they say… Not too long ago two of my friends, independent of each other, started holding group painting sessions! I used one of those opportunities to finish my Battlefleet Gothic Necron fleet and just today I went to another one to start painting my Horde Legion of Everblight models. I’ve been putting off painting these models for well, years now, because they’re mostly flesh and flesh is notoriously difficult to paint. Give me armor any day and I’ll happily slap the paint around. It’s very difficult to mess up painting leather or metal. Flesh though? That’s hard and I was scared. Scared because I don’t know how to paint it and scared because the pros who do make it look so good.

Six hours of work

Thankfully my friend is not only an experienced painter but well versed in various flesh painting techniques. I spent six hours today at a table next to him as he guided me through how to add paint flesh that looked vibrant and had depth. Basically, it all comes down to lots of layering and selective use of washes. I added the base layer and two additional layers to all four of them and then concentrated on a single model for the rest of the time in order to learn as much technique as possible; so that in the future I could complete the rest of the models at home. The final model, which took the lion share of time, has nine layers of paint, four washes and used a total of seven different colors in various blends on it. Oh, and it still isn’t complete! The mouth, including teeth, all still needs to be painted, washed, and highlighted. I’m hoping I get faster as I go along.

Base coat, and two layers of paint. You can see the beginnings of the shading here
Five+ layers of paint, includes highlights and two washes.
All done except for the mouth!
From the other side

Once the mouth is painted the only thing left to do would be to paint and flock (fake rocks and grass) the models base and I’ll be done. This wasn’t easy to do and I’m not completely happy with the results my progress throughout the day really improved. I’m hoping by the time I get to the really big models I’ll have the technique down and can turn out a really great looking model. Of course, if I do I’ll tell you about it here.

Chiptunes that Bury Deep into Your Cranium and Stay There

Never figured it out, still awesome after all these years

It shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who spent countless hours on weeknights and weekends in front of their televisions as a kid playing Nintendo that to this day I find myself humming bits and pieces of game soundtracks.  Despite the limited ability of the old NES music designers managed to squeeze out of it, with the help of additional soundchips in cartridges, some astonishingly catchy music. Furthermore, despite all the technological advances these old catchy tunes remain the bedrock on which new music for old franchises are built upon. That tune that plays whenever Link gets a new item in the Legend of Zelda? There from the very beginning! Mario’s theme? Yup. Vampire Killer? Check! The music might be tweaked, reworked, remixed, and molded but behind it all you still find these iconic, simple ditties.

Ditties that have been firmly lodged in my head for over 20 years at this point! Here are the ones I find myself humming in elevators most often! Not all of these are from the NES but the majority are. (Click the images to listen to the songs.)  It shouldn’t come as a surprise that many of the tunes showcased here are from games that I go back to play over and over again. How else do you think they became automatic responses for me?

Wicked from Castlevania 1 Stage 3
Bubbleman's Theme from Megaman 2
Wily's Stage 1 from Megaman 2
Frog's theme from Chrono Trigger
Bloody Tears from Castlevania 2: Simon's Curse
Overworld theme from Super Mario Bros. 2
Opening Theme to Shadowgate
Stage 3 theme from Metal Storm
Kraid's Lair from Metroid
Act 4, Part 2 theme from Ninja Gaiden

There are some more quite a few more (like Terra’s theme from Final Fantasy VI, or the second stage music from Shinobi 3)… This is enough to get you started though! Youtube is a great resource as are quality fan sites (think The Castlevania Dungeon) If you want even more chiptunes and don’t care if they’re from video games check out 8-bit Peoples.

So, folks what are your favorites pieces of 8-bit and 16-bit music? Please let me know in the comments! I’m always looking for great tunes as well as great games that come with them!

Prepare for Combat! A Necron Fleet Approaches

NECRONS!
These should be on a backdrop of stars but I suck at photoshop

Only last week I was bemoaning the fact that I had massively invested in a hobby that I seemed unable to participate in anymore. Turns out, making public my own deficiencies was exactly what I needed to get motivated and do something about it! I’ve put three of the unconstructed kits on Ebay, and have finished painting my Necron fleet for Battlefleet Gothic. That leaves me with only… Okay, still a lot going on there but it is a start.

TOMB SHIP!
Bad things "live" here

Serendipity played a role in me painting over the weekend. The same time my post last week went a friend of mine was setting up a painting party! I RSVPed and I spent four or five hours yesterday finishing up the Necron fleet, as well as painting my figurine for our D&D campaign. Now that it is complete I just need to carve out some time to make a gaming mat (black felt with white paint speckled across it) and find someone with another fleet to roll some dice against!

NECRONS!
Some Dirges, a few Jackals, a dash of Scythes and Shrouds

I Need a Plan! To Get All of this Painted

Where am I going to find the time to paint all this?

This is everything (I think) that I still have to paint for my tabletop wargaming hobby. What all is there? Let’s see a Space Marine drop-pod, marine squad, terminator squad, predator tank and random figurines; a boxed Mordheim set (includes terrain and figures); a Battlefleet Gothic Chaos fleet and Necron fleet; a pretty large Legion of Everblight squad; chaos space marines (if I can’t sell them) and noise marines (ditto with the sale); a Vampire Lord; a Dark Elf Corsair Lord; Necron Flayers;  and, a Beastman Shaggoth.

Out of the games you see here. I’ve never played Hordes, Mordheim, or Warhammer Fantasy. To be fair I don’t have a fantasy army; nor do I plan on getting one. I just have these three models that I’d like to paint up someday. I’ve only played Battlefleet Gothic once. I do have a large Space Marine army but, I don’t think it needs another tank or any more troops in it. In fact I’m thinking about selling the entire army (maybe 3000+ points?) seeing as I never use it.

This used to be a hobby that I took a great deal of enjoyment out of. Both aspects of it: the painting and the playing. Now? Now, seeing these things in my closet just makes me feel guilty. Guilty for spending so much money on it all and guilty for not doing anything with it all.

I suppose the question is what do I do now? Do I try to paint these things up? Do I try to find the time and energy? If I do paint them. Will I then have the time/energy to play them? If not do I simply sell them? I’m somewhat worried that I’m losing part of myself here if I let this all go; at the same time, is that so bad? Perhaps I’m no longer that person?

I guess I’m asking you all what am I supposed to do with all this stuff now?

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