I'm stuck in the war gamers doldrums, and I don't mean a belt of calms and light winds between the northern and southern trade winds of the Atlantic and Pacific. I mean stagnation: a state of inactivity (in business or art etc). I think many gamers go through this. Periods of low motivation, in which the act of painting and modeling loses it's appeal. My longest strech lasted six years - I'm feeling it again now.
The fact is I have plenty to paint, and plenty to model, but I'm having a hard time 'wanting' to. I'm finding excuses not to paint far too easily. Take last weekend as an example. I had two days off before the weekend, and ended up with a wonderful four day weekend. Exactly how much painting did I do? Squat. And not the unmentionable lost race in 40k, I mean nothing.
So how do I get out of the slump? Gaming helps, but I'm nearly two weeks away from the next game, and I found that even leading up to the last game, I was still pretty unmotivated.
The fact is the tournament gave me such a charge and a firm deadline I painted hell for leather just to get there in time. Now, with no tournament on the horizon, my motivation is waning again. Perhaps I need to start planning my list for the next tournament - or maybe I just need to make sure I'm painting at least every other day. Either way, I don't want to give up and go another six years, so I need to find something to motivate me again.
One thing I will try to do shortly is to post some close up shots of my tournament models. Most are not 'done' painting wise (they still need highlighting) but I'll put up some pix of the ones which are done - like my big mek, or my Nob Bikers. Maybe that will motivate me to paint the rest.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Fields of Blood 2009
On September 19-20 2009 I entered my first ever tournament. Given how long I've been playing 40k, you would think I would have entered the tournament scene a long time ago, however tournaments have a reputation as brutal cut throat affairs that always put me off - I'm in this game for the fun after all, winning is secondary.
Well, at least when it comes to Fields of Blood, nothing could be further from the truth. The whole event was fantastic, every player was friendly, helpful and really just looking for a good time, and so the whole thing was much more of a 'Warhammer 40k party' than a competitive event.
I played OK - I was fighting off the flu the whole weekend so had a splitting headache for much of the time, and never seem to have enough time between games to eat or take breaks, so it was a bit of an endurance test too. On the positive side, I got to see some amazingly painted armies, and met some fantastic people.
This is the army I fielded:
It's made up of the following:
A Big Mek with a power claw and a kustom force field
Warboss on Bike with Power Claw
6 Nobz on Bikes, with 2 power claws and two 'Uge choppas and a boss pole
20 shoota boyz with 2 big shoota and a Nob with power claw, 'eavy armour and boss pole, in a Battle wagon with a Kannon, big shoota, deff rolla and red paint job
2x12 choppa boyz with a Nob with power claw, 'eavy armour and boss pole, mounted in trukks with rams and red paint jobs
10 burna boyz in a Battle wagon with a big shoota, deff rolla and red paint job
10 Lootas in a Battle wagon with a big shoota
I won three games and lost three.
My first game was against a Khorne demon army. I deployed badly, which is to say I deployed at all. I've found the best tactic when playing against all-deep-strike armies is to stay off the table in reserve to rob them of the initiative. This means I lose turn one altogether, and makes my entry to the table a bit random, but it eliminates a pretty powerful advantage for the enemy. At any rate, I didn't do that this time, putting everything but my Trukk mobs on the table. Craig, my opponent, deep striked just out of assault range, soaked up the firepower I could muster, then charged me. From memory It was not quite a wipe out, but it was pretty close to one. In my defense, the table may as well have been a clear board, based on the way it was set up - but that would have worked in my favour if I had put more thought into it.
My second game was against Necrons - this was a much closer game, which ended in a draw. When this happens, you tally up how many points of units you killed vs. your opponent, and if there is a 500 point margin, the leader wins. I had used my expensive Nob bikers and warboss to soak up the Necron shooting in turns one and two, which protected my force well, but cost me the game due to the points they gave up at the end. So while the mission was a draw, this counted as a loss.
My third game was against Eldar (sorry, no picture). I was warmed up by this point, and had learned some of the particulars of the tournament bonus points system, and the 'tie breaker' rules. I also picked up on a comment the Necron player had made - I was playing defensively. He didn't actually say that - what he said was 'I'm not used to an Ork player who holds back so much' but that was the gist of it, and the main mistake I had been making. No more. So this game I threw everything I had forward, and it paid off. I wiped out every single Eldar unit. I'm not sure, but that may be the only time I've every actually achieved a wipe out. I was patting myself on the back until the Eldar player said he had been wiped out in all three games - so I guess my win was as much due to his playing as my own. Oh well, it was my first actual victory, so I savoured it.
Sunday morning I got up bright and early and was ready for round four. My next opponent was using Sisters of battle - an army I have never played before. He was ready for me - I played aggressively and charged his lines, but he used a combination of Rhino walls and flamers to toast many of my boys, and used the thrice damned missile tanks to put great amounts of hurt on my Nobz. In the end I lost, but it was actually pretty close.
Game five was against Nurgle Demons. I used the lessons learned from my first demon battle and held my army in reserve, which worked a treat. Nurgle forces are pretty slow once they hit the table. Add to that some bad reserve roles by my opponent, and overall I did very well, ending in a decisive victory for the Orks.
Game six I played a very classic Space marines army (sorry, no picture of this one either) - in many ways similar to my Blood Angels force - which meant I knew where the soft spots were. Using my truks to hold objectives, I sent my Nobz and Wagons after his left flank, ignoring his right flank. He deployed spread across the table, and there were huge buildings providing good line of sight blocking, so I was able to divide his force in two, and only had to deal with one half. By the time he bought the rest of his force over, the battle was decided - almost. In turn six a desperate fight between one of my boyz mob and his librarian left only my Nob alive, who was able to run to the objective after killing the wierdbeaky with his power claw. There was a land raider hot on his heels, so if the game ended I would win, but if there was another turn, he would likely gun down my Nob in a hail of assault cannon fire. I gave the Marine player the dice and had him roll to see if we would play another turn. To my relief, the game ended, and in a role of the die victory was mine.
All in all it was a blast. It turned out I was given the lowest comp score in the tournament however, so ended up ranking pretty low. But who cares - I had lots of fun - and now I have a painted 1750 point force!
Sunday, November 1, 2009
When a huge footslogging horde isn't enough
I'm a big fan of WH40K Apocalypse. The fact is, when you have a collection as large as mine, it's the only time my army gets to really shine. It's also a great place to experiment, as in a big game the odd ineffective unit makes little difference to the end result. I'll often use Apocalypse to test out particular combinations of units, formations and super heavies.
The last two games I played were examples of what works and what doesn't when running big Ork lists in games with a lot of super heavies and firepower. In the first game I took a list along the following lines (some details may vary)
2 Stompas and 1 Big Mek Stompa in the Stompa Mob formation
3 Fighta Bombas
3 mobs of 19 boyz with Nobz and a Warphead in each mob, transported in each Stompa.
A battlewagon with Deffrolla carrying 15 burna boyz
Now this list was a bit of a departure for me as it was missing two units I almost always deploy - Nob bikers and Lootas, but I figured the Stompas would more than make up for the lack of firepower (they did) and the Stompas would also make up for the lack of close combat assault troops (they didn't).
The list played devastatingly well. The scenario, which I designed, had the Orks and Chaos allies marching across a 48" no-mans land with little cover to assault a fortified base with force field. I'll post the scenario details next time, but sufficve to say a 48" no mans land is a wee bit big when your lucky to get in four turns. That said the Warpheads came into thier own in turn three, deep striking their mobs onto the objective, while the Stompas played havok with the space marines. I took the 'Disruptor Beacon" assett, which worked brilliantly, as most of the enemy was made up of drop podding space wolves, which I was able to scatter very effectively about 18" in front of my Stompas (they were trying to drop behind me) which gave all my short range weapons something to kill. The lifta droppa also really qworked well - I picked up one Vindicator tank in a line breaker formation and dropped it on the other two. I immobilised all three, and destroyed the demolisher cannons on the two front facing tanks, with the third tank pointing off the table at the board edge where it couldn't shoot anything! Suffice to say the marines put a lot of effort into shooting at the Big Mek Stompa the next turn, and ended up popping the lifta-droppa so I didn't get much more fun - but boy was it a blast!
The following game I tried a different 'elite' style list:
Ghazkulls Bully Boyz:
Ghaz and 6 Mega Nobz in a Battle Wagon with Deff rolla and Kannon.
3 mobz of 10 Nobz in trukks with mixed power claws and painboyz, each led by a warboss.
A stompa
A green tide of 100 boyz led by a warboss and a warphead.
The problem with this list was apparant early on - too many eggs in one basket, and not enough targets to spread the incoming fire around. In turn one the green tide and the Stompa took most of the enemy fire, and thus the stompa died before firing a single shot. In my turn 1 I rolled for my warphead power and got a 1, so I re-rolled and got a 5, Ere We go. Now this meant the green tide would end up in a tightly packed circle somewhere, making it a prime target for any templates, so I took a bit of a risk and teleported it into what appeared to be a big cluster of imperial guard units. I scattered well, but then discovered that my opponents had merely placed their reserves on the table as a place to store them, and subsequently when they removed them I was actally out in the open behind imperial lines with nothing nearby to discourage scattering template shots. Suffice to say the whole tide was wiped out to a man in the next round of imperial shooting. That left my reserves, the three trukks and battlewagon, which I could only bring on half. I rolled on the wagon and one Trukk into the right flank using our teams flank march asset, and wiped out a 20 strong squad of Necrons, but then took a massive amount of fire which wiped out everything except the warboss leading my Nobz. At this point I had a sole warboss on the table, and two truks in reserve, and we had hardly made a dent in the enemy forces.
Turn three rolls around, and I decide to bring on my reserves at the opposite end of the table. Taking a closer look at my chaos allies and thier deployments, I see an objective with nothing near it 12" from our table edge, and another objective with only a small necron squad led by a lord. I suggest to one of the chaos generals that he concentrates on killng the Necrons, while my Nobz roll on at flat out speed to sit on the objectives. The last demon prince deep strikes onto one of the objectives held by the space woplves, and the other chaos general tries to blast the Necrons off another objective (unsuccessfully). Midnight rolls around so turn three ends up being the last turn, and given we are playing 5th edition rules for holding objectives, we have two objectives held, the imperial lapdogs hold one, one is contested, and the other two are not held by either side - go US! We win, but the game honestly felt like a thrashing. Go figure. I took away a few lessons:
1 - Boyz are expendable, you can lose a hundred of them in turn one and still win!
2 - Rember the redundancy rule - Orks need to have multiples of each unit to be effective. Don't take one green tide, take two! And for that matter, flank march em!
3 - 2500pts of Nobz in four units is overkill and frankly was a big waste. The free 'Rok Em Boyz strategem is just too random to be useful, and the work done by the Nobz could have been achieved by normal trukk boyz.
The last two games I played were examples of what works and what doesn't when running big Ork lists in games with a lot of super heavies and firepower. In the first game I took a list along the following lines (some details may vary)
2 Stompas and 1 Big Mek Stompa in the Stompa Mob formation
3 Fighta Bombas
3 mobs of 19 boyz with Nobz and a Warphead in each mob, transported in each Stompa.
A battlewagon with Deffrolla carrying 15 burna boyz
Now this list was a bit of a departure for me as it was missing two units I almost always deploy - Nob bikers and Lootas, but I figured the Stompas would more than make up for the lack of firepower (they did) and the Stompas would also make up for the lack of close combat assault troops (they didn't).
The list played devastatingly well. The scenario, which I designed, had the Orks and Chaos allies marching across a 48" no-mans land with little cover to assault a fortified base with force field. I'll post the scenario details next time, but sufficve to say a 48" no mans land is a wee bit big when your lucky to get in four turns. That said the Warpheads came into thier own in turn three, deep striking their mobs onto the objective, while the Stompas played havok with the space marines. I took the 'Disruptor Beacon" assett, which worked brilliantly, as most of the enemy was made up of drop podding space wolves, which I was able to scatter very effectively about 18" in front of my Stompas (they were trying to drop behind me) which gave all my short range weapons something to kill. The lifta droppa also really qworked well - I picked up one Vindicator tank in a line breaker formation and dropped it on the other two. I immobilised all three, and destroyed the demolisher cannons on the two front facing tanks, with the third tank pointing off the table at the board edge where it couldn't shoot anything! Suffice to say the marines put a lot of effort into shooting at the Big Mek Stompa the next turn, and ended up popping the lifta-droppa so I didn't get much more fun - but boy was it a blast!
The following game I tried a different 'elite' style list:
Ghazkulls Bully Boyz:
Ghaz and 6 Mega Nobz in a Battle Wagon with Deff rolla and Kannon.
3 mobz of 10 Nobz in trukks with mixed power claws and painboyz, each led by a warboss.
A stompa
A green tide of 100 boyz led by a warboss and a warphead.
The problem with this list was apparant early on - too many eggs in one basket, and not enough targets to spread the incoming fire around. In turn one the green tide and the Stompa took most of the enemy fire, and thus the stompa died before firing a single shot. In my turn 1 I rolled for my warphead power and got a 1, so I re-rolled and got a 5, Ere We go. Now this meant the green tide would end up in a tightly packed circle somewhere, making it a prime target for any templates, so I took a bit of a risk and teleported it into what appeared to be a big cluster of imperial guard units. I scattered well, but then discovered that my opponents had merely placed their reserves on the table as a place to store them, and subsequently when they removed them I was actally out in the open behind imperial lines with nothing nearby to discourage scattering template shots. Suffice to say the whole tide was wiped out to a man in the next round of imperial shooting. That left my reserves, the three trukks and battlewagon, which I could only bring on half. I rolled on the wagon and one Trukk into the right flank using our teams flank march asset, and wiped out a 20 strong squad of Necrons, but then took a massive amount of fire which wiped out everything except the warboss leading my Nobz. At this point I had a sole warboss on the table, and two truks in reserve, and we had hardly made a dent in the enemy forces.
Turn three rolls around, and I decide to bring on my reserves at the opposite end of the table. Taking a closer look at my chaos allies and thier deployments, I see an objective with nothing near it 12" from our table edge, and another objective with only a small necron squad led by a lord. I suggest to one of the chaos generals that he concentrates on killng the Necrons, while my Nobz roll on at flat out speed to sit on the objectives. The last demon prince deep strikes onto one of the objectives held by the space woplves, and the other chaos general tries to blast the Necrons off another objective (unsuccessfully). Midnight rolls around so turn three ends up being the last turn, and given we are playing 5th edition rules for holding objectives, we have two objectives held, the imperial lapdogs hold one, one is contested, and the other two are not held by either side - go US! We win, but the game honestly felt like a thrashing. Go figure. I took away a few lessons:
1 - Boyz are expendable, you can lose a hundred of them in turn one and still win!
2 - Rember the redundancy rule - Orks need to have multiples of each unit to be effective. Don't take one green tide, take two! And for that matter, flank march em!
3 - 2500pts of Nobz in four units is overkill and frankly was a big waste. The free 'Rok Em Boyz strategem is just too random to be useful, and the work done by the Nobz could have been achieved by normal trukk boyz.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Tactika - Combined Arms, Ork Style
I have been crafting my own combined arms approach for a while now. My version of a combined arms approach is what I call 'Lugwrenchs rule of thirds'.
Most Ork units are strong in one aspect and weak in others, as opposed to MEQ troops which tend to be more well rounded (specialized troops in MEQ are not as far down the specialty curve as most Ork units). As a result we Orks need to achieve balance in our army as opposed to in each unit. Individual Ork units are seldom a threat - it's when the whole army is used as a single 'body' that it becomes unstoppable.
Examples - Choppa boyz are not effective as a shooting unit, no way no how.
Lootas are possibly the worst assault unit Orks can take, besides perhaps Grots.
There are a few slightly more 'middle of the road' units, but not many. To categorize our list options:
Warboss - Assault
Big Mek - Special Support or long ranged support depending on wargear
Wierdboy - Special support
Nobz (including MANZ) - Assault (put them on bikes to make them diversionary)
Burnas - Assault
Lootas - long ranged fire support/anti infantry and light vehicles
Tank Bustas - Anti Armour
Kommandos - assault, diversionary unit
Boyz - Slugga boyz are pure assault troops, Shoota boyz are assault troops with a minor in firepower - but given the short range of their guns, tend to be assault troops. Shoota mobz are the closest to 'tactical' boyz were gonna get. Slugga boyz in a trukk can be diversionary, but seldom carry enough of a threat to pull this off well, although I have found that a trukk with a wrecking ball and boarding plank changes that sometimes).
Grots - Assault (yes, assault - what, your going to keep em out of combat with a 12" range?)
Stormboyz - Assault, diversionary
Warbuggies - diversionary, can run either anti-infantry or anti-tank depending on weapons
Warbikes - Assault, diversionary
DeffKoptas - diversionary, can run either anti-infantry or anti-tank depending on weapons
Battle Wagons - support/transport, or can be fire support. I don't recommend mixing the roles as it will weaken either function - either get the boyz there ASAP, or hang back and shoot.
Dreds and Kans - Assault, Anti-tank
Flash Gitz - fire support
Big Gunz - fire support
Looted Wagon - support/transport, or can be fire support. I don't recommend mixing the roles as it will weaken either function - either get the boyz there ASAP, or hang back and shoot.
Hopefully this is somewhat self explanatory. Diversionary units are units that can be used to distract the opponent away from the real threat. Fast and outflanking units do this very well, as the force the opponent to deal with them as a priority, buying your other units time. Assault units are not necesarily close combat units, but are units that need to 'get close' to be effective.
So my rule of thirds is essentially this - my force should be make up of one third assault units (Group A), one third fire support (Group F), and a third of diversionary units (Group D). Within each third, I tend to run one third anti-tank to two thirds anti-infantry in one group, and one third anti-tank, one third anti-infantry, and one third special support in the other two groups. This allows for a force that can deal with most threats, even when it is broken into smaller groups.
This somewhat forms the classic 'hammer and anvil' army - group D is the hammer which the opponent has to deal with first, and Groups A and F become the combined anvil. While the enemy is dealing with D, I advance towards the objectives with group A. and support group A with fire from group F. I typically play group D as expendable, and will usually populate it with a very hard to kill unit or two - Nob bikers are classic for this.
Note that it is not important to deploy each group together, however it is vital that each group has the same 'mission', a.k.a. has the same target units/area. Splitting two diversionary units onto each flank would not achieve this, however running bikers up the left flank, then deep striking in Stormboyz on the left flank would. Your goal is to pull the opponents attention away with a big threat, not lots of little ones.
Overall I have found that when I stick to this tactic, I win. When I get distracted and split a groups focus, it falls apart. That puts special emphasis on keeping the purpose and use of each unit and group in mind, and using the 'right tool for the job' when on the table.
Most Ork units are strong in one aspect and weak in others, as opposed to MEQ troops which tend to be more well rounded (specialized troops in MEQ are not as far down the specialty curve as most Ork units). As a result we Orks need to achieve balance in our army as opposed to in each unit. Individual Ork units are seldom a threat - it's when the whole army is used as a single 'body' that it becomes unstoppable.
Examples - Choppa boyz are not effective as a shooting unit, no way no how.
Lootas are possibly the worst assault unit Orks can take, besides perhaps Grots.
There are a few slightly more 'middle of the road' units, but not many. To categorize our list options:
Warboss - Assault
Big Mek - Special Support or long ranged support depending on wargear
Wierdboy - Special support
Nobz (including MANZ) - Assault (put them on bikes to make them diversionary)
Burnas - Assault
Lootas - long ranged fire support/anti infantry and light vehicles
Tank Bustas - Anti Armour
Kommandos - assault, diversionary unit
Boyz - Slugga boyz are pure assault troops, Shoota boyz are assault troops with a minor in firepower - but given the short range of their guns, tend to be assault troops. Shoota mobz are the closest to 'tactical' boyz were gonna get. Slugga boyz in a trukk can be diversionary, but seldom carry enough of a threat to pull this off well, although I have found that a trukk with a wrecking ball and boarding plank changes that sometimes).
Grots - Assault (yes, assault - what, your going to keep em out of combat with a 12" range?)
Stormboyz - Assault, diversionary
Warbuggies - diversionary, can run either anti-infantry or anti-tank depending on weapons
Warbikes - Assault, diversionary
DeffKoptas - diversionary, can run either anti-infantry or anti-tank depending on weapons
Battle Wagons - support/transport, or can be fire support. I don't recommend mixing the roles as it will weaken either function - either get the boyz there ASAP, or hang back and shoot.
Dreds and Kans - Assault, Anti-tank
Flash Gitz - fire support
Big Gunz - fire support
Looted Wagon - support/transport, or can be fire support. I don't recommend mixing the roles as it will weaken either function - either get the boyz there ASAP, or hang back and shoot.
Hopefully this is somewhat self explanatory. Diversionary units are units that can be used to distract the opponent away from the real threat. Fast and outflanking units do this very well, as the force the opponent to deal with them as a priority, buying your other units time. Assault units are not necesarily close combat units, but are units that need to 'get close' to be effective.
So my rule of thirds is essentially this - my force should be make up of one third assault units (Group A), one third fire support (Group F), and a third of diversionary units (Group D). Within each third, I tend to run one third anti-tank to two thirds anti-infantry in one group, and one third anti-tank, one third anti-infantry, and one third special support in the other two groups. This allows for a force that can deal with most threats, even when it is broken into smaller groups.
This somewhat forms the classic 'hammer and anvil' army - group D is the hammer which the opponent has to deal with first, and Groups A and F become the combined anvil. While the enemy is dealing with D, I advance towards the objectives with group A. and support group A with fire from group F. I typically play group D as expendable, and will usually populate it with a very hard to kill unit or two - Nob bikers are classic for this.
Note that it is not important to deploy each group together, however it is vital that each group has the same 'mission', a.k.a. has the same target units/area. Splitting two diversionary units onto each flank would not achieve this, however running bikers up the left flank, then deep striking in Stormboyz on the left flank would. Your goal is to pull the opponents attention away with a big threat, not lots of little ones.
Overall I have found that when I stick to this tactic, I win. When I get distracted and split a groups focus, it falls apart. That puts special emphasis on keeping the purpose and use of each unit and group in mind, and using the 'right tool for the job' when on the table.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Looooooonngggg Time, no updates!
Well, it's been an age since my last update. This is mainly because I have been focused on painting, and every time I get five minutes spare I have to decide whether to paint my minis or write about them, and painting wins.
One particular reason for the heavy drive to paint - I played in a tournament last month, and had to get a 1750 point list 'table ready'. I know some players think that means three colours, but I just can't bring myself to stop painting to the best of my ability. So I spent a few months painting in every spare minute I had. That included getting a Games Workshop fast attack bag so that I could take paints, brushes and minis to work and paint on my lunch break.
In the end, it paid off. I painted 77 Orks in the span of three months, and while some need some minor work done (still have teeth, final highlights and checks and dags to do on most of them) they look pretty good. I painted three battle wagons and two trukks, two 12 boy choppa/slugga mobz with Nobz, a 20 boy shoota mob with nob and two big shootas, six nob bikers, my warboss on bike, a big mek with kustom force field, ten lootas and ten burnas.
I'll post again soon with some pictures.
Oh, and as for the tournament, I had an absolute blast. I had three wins, two losses that were almost draws, and one loss in which I was positively thrashed. I'll write more later.
One particular reason for the heavy drive to paint - I played in a tournament last month, and had to get a 1750 point list 'table ready'. I know some players think that means three colours, but I just can't bring myself to stop painting to the best of my ability. So I spent a few months painting in every spare minute I had. That included getting a Games Workshop fast attack bag so that I could take paints, brushes and minis to work and paint on my lunch break.
In the end, it paid off. I painted 77 Orks in the span of three months, and while some need some minor work done (still have teeth, final highlights and checks and dags to do on most of them) they look pretty good. I painted three battle wagons and two trukks, two 12 boy choppa/slugga mobz with Nobz, a 20 boy shoota mob with nob and two big shootas, six nob bikers, my warboss on bike, a big mek with kustom force field, ten lootas and ten burnas.
I'll post again soon with some pictures.
Oh, and as for the tournament, I had an absolute blast. I had three wins, two losses that were almost draws, and one loss in which I was positively thrashed. I'll write more later.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
My Current Painting Project - 184 Orks
As I have mentioned in both my previous posts, I'm currently painting a 2500 point Ork force all at once. Most people I tell this either nod their heads knowingly (ususally because they have tried to paint a horde army themselves) or tell me I'm insane (typical response from Space Marine players).
I've been collecting Orks since second edition, and have a very large force. Depending on how I choose certain options I can put between 6000-8000 points worth of assembled Orks on the table. I have another 4000-5000 points in boxes - a good amount of the stuff in my games cupboard:
I've been collecting Orks since second edition, and have a very large force. Depending on how I choose certain options I can put between 6000-8000 points worth of assembled Orks on the table. I have another 4000-5000 points in boxes - a good amount of the stuff in my games cupboard:
I've had my Orks for over a decade now (since 1993) and while I had made some progress in painting my old 2nd edition Orks, Games Workshop went and changed the whole look and feel of the army (f0r the better) rendering my old painted boyz obsolete.
Since then I haven't painted any. This is because I was actively painting my Blood Angels, at the rapid pace of one squad per year. But the irony is, I have always enjoyed gaming with my Orks more, and so decided my Blood Angels had seen enough attention, and it was time to give the boyz some love. So with new resolve I selected a good core footslogging force to start with, and began to plan the project.
The force you see above is made up as follows:
- two thrity-strong mobs of slugga & choppa boyz, each with a power claw equiped nob
- two thirty strong shoota boyz mobs, one with three rocket launchers and one with three big shootas, both led by power claw equiped nobs
- one thirty stong 'ard boyz mob with sluggas and choppas, led by a power claw equiped nob.
- twelve Lootas, led by two meks with kustom mega blasters
- six mega nobz - one with a combi-rocket launcher and one with a combi-skorcha
- ten nobz, with two pain boyz (these will be in separate units) and two grot orderlys.
- three Kanz - one skorcha, one shoota, and one grotzooka.
- One Deff Dread with a big shoot and a skorcha
- One Warboss with power klaw and twin linked shoota, with attack squiq
- One Big Mek with Kustom Force Field and Power Klaw
Starting in November, I started cleaning and assembling units. This took about two months, at an average of an hour a night, though I did get a number of units done in addition to the 184 lined up for painting. Once the assembly and cleaning (that is removal of mold lines and flash for the uninitiated) were done, I set up an assembly line to base the units. Some painters like to leave the bases until after the models are painted. These painters are insane. If I can offer one piece of advice, it is to base your models before you undercoat them and paint them. The undercoat and paint bind the basing materials onto the model, and look far more integrated than post-paint basing.
The other thing I cannot emphasize enough is the 'glue and dip' method of basing is also a mistake. This is the technique that you see in White Dwarf, in which you paint some white glue onto the base of the model, then dip the model into some sand or other basing material. This method leads to a lot of chipped and flaking bases, trust me. The method I use is a variation on this that provides a much more solid base - I make a mix from PVA Glue and water (about 1:1) then add the same amount of basing material - in my case three grades of silica sand. You can pay a lot of money for basing materials, or you can buy it for a few dollars a liter from most hardware stores - just ask for clean silica for making textured paint. Mix all three grades together - fine, medium and course, in a plastic container with an air tight lid, then stir in the water/glue mix until it is thick but wet.
When the mix is ready, spread it onto the base of each model, and let it dry overnight. This produces a nice course terrain, and it is rock solid.
After basing the models (this took about 4 hours effort all told) I ensured they were fully dried, then proceeded to undercoat them all black. This took a full 2.5 cans of Chaos black spray!
Following that, my plan is to take the whole army through the following steps, not moving on to the next step until every model is completed for a given step.
1 - Drybrush astronomicon grey on all clothing - DONE
2 - Drybrush all weapons, some armour, and key parts of the Kans, Dred and MANz boltgun metal - DONE
3 - Paint all skin Orkhide Shade
4 - Pick out some armour, gun parts and other minor details in Dwarf Bronze
5 - Paint belts and staps scortched brown
6 - spray wash with 3 coats of badab black wash
7 - Pick out detail and paint chips and scratches with chainmail
8 - Paint skin with Knarloc Green
9 - Highlight skin with Goblin green
10 - top highlight skin with Scorpion green
11 - Paint teeth snakebite leather
12 -Paint eyes bleached bone
13 - highlight teeth bleached bone
14 - paint eyes blood red (fully covering the bleached bone)
15 - extreme highlight teeth white
16 - Paint any minor details unique to any models
I figure making a solid go of this, averaging 5 hours a week, I can finish in 3-6 months. I'm up to step 3 now, here's a current progress shot of my Warboss and Big Mek:
Friday, March 13, 2009
My Workbench
In a blatant act of looting from MoodDuck over at Dysartes.com, I decided I'd show you my work area for painting and modeling. So to get the ball rolling, here is my desk:
The actual desk itself is one I built about five years ago to use as a computer desk. When my wife and I consolidated down from two PCs to one, we used her desk (having two PCs is a bit unnecessary when you have kids, as you barely have time for one person to use it, let alone both). The desk is a bit higher than a normal desk, as I built it so that the keyboard tray, now removed, was at the right height for myself. This makes the work surface of the desk a good height for painting - though it could be a little higher. I'm thinking about building some blocks to raise the desk another 200-300cm at some point.
The shelf on the back is a recent addition - I built it out of MDF about a month ago. Before that I had all my paints in a plastic drawer unit, which kept them out of the way, but made it difficult to find the right colour when I needed it. No problems now, the shelf holds all my paint, and a lot of other bits and pieces as well.
The blue painting tray borrows some design elements from the tray made by Games Workshop, but it's a bit bigger. It's another custom build job, and was actually my first ever wood working project. I've since drilled out a number of additional holes for more brushes and tools.
Some people may see all this as a bit elaborite for paint toy soldiers, but I like to be organised, and the benefits this set up provides are worth it - I spend more time painting, and less time organising each time I paint. I have ruthlessly worked to remove all impediments to painting, and also to remove all inefficiencies. This allows me to overcome the biggest challenge I face in my painting - procrastination. This has to be the main reason I haven't got more models painted and ready to game with. I think it's true for many people. Lets look at an example of this - sya you have 45 minutes until it's time to sit down for dinner. if it's going to take thirty minutes just to dig out the paints, brushes, miniatures, water, newspaper, pallet and lights just to get started, that 45 minute gap you had becomes 15 minutes, and you go from painting ten models in that time down to maybe two or three. Only painting three models in a 45 minute gap feels unrewarding - or much less rewarding. If your painting area also happens to be the dining table, then you'll need clean up time as well and the 45 minute gap is gone before it starts - so you don't bother, and another day goes by with no progress towards completing your army.
This all sounds like a big push to build your own desk - it's not. You can solve much of the problem with just a painting tray and a shelf to keep it on, as it can be quickly picked up and put to use. I have the luxury of a bit of space at home, so I'm able to dedicate a desk to it.
You might notice a few oddities on my desk if you look closely. Have a look at this close up shot of my painting area:
The actual desk itself is one I built about five years ago to use as a computer desk. When my wife and I consolidated down from two PCs to one, we used her desk (having two PCs is a bit unnecessary when you have kids, as you barely have time for one person to use it, let alone both). The desk is a bit higher than a normal desk, as I built it so that the keyboard tray, now removed, was at the right height for myself. This makes the work surface of the desk a good height for painting - though it could be a little higher. I'm thinking about building some blocks to raise the desk another 200-300cm at some point.
The shelf on the back is a recent addition - I built it out of MDF about a month ago. Before that I had all my paints in a plastic drawer unit, which kept them out of the way, but made it difficult to find the right colour when I needed it. No problems now, the shelf holds all my paint, and a lot of other bits and pieces as well.
The blue painting tray borrows some design elements from the tray made by Games Workshop, but it's a bit bigger. It's another custom build job, and was actually my first ever wood working project. I've since drilled out a number of additional holes for more brushes and tools.
Some people may see all this as a bit elaborite for paint toy soldiers, but I like to be organised, and the benefits this set up provides are worth it - I spend more time painting, and less time organising each time I paint. I have ruthlessly worked to remove all impediments to painting, and also to remove all inefficiencies. This allows me to overcome the biggest challenge I face in my painting - procrastination. This has to be the main reason I haven't got more models painted and ready to game with. I think it's true for many people. Lets look at an example of this - sya you have 45 minutes until it's time to sit down for dinner. if it's going to take thirty minutes just to dig out the paints, brushes, miniatures, water, newspaper, pallet and lights just to get started, that 45 minute gap you had becomes 15 minutes, and you go from painting ten models in that time down to maybe two or three. Only painting three models in a 45 minute gap feels unrewarding - or much less rewarding. If your painting area also happens to be the dining table, then you'll need clean up time as well and the 45 minute gap is gone before it starts - so you don't bother, and another day goes by with no progress towards completing your army.
This all sounds like a big push to build your own desk - it's not. You can solve much of the problem with just a painting tray and a shelf to keep it on, as it can be quickly picked up and put to use. I have the luxury of a bit of space at home, so I'm able to dedicate a desk to it.
You might notice a few oddities on my desk if you look closely. Have a look at this close up shot of my painting area:
You'll notice the artists canvas, and the plastic container with a sponge in it. The canvas is an idea I looted from MoonDucks article linked above - go read his reasons for it, as I took his advice and have to say it was a brilliant idea. The plastic container is my wet pallet. This brilliant idea save me more time, and saves me heaps of paint. It allows me to work for hours without my paint drying in the pallet (in fact, if I put the lid on the container, I can come back days later, give the paint a quick stir with a brush, and keep using it). Instructions for making one couldn't be easier:
- Get a sponge, a shallow plastic container (sandwhich size is good), a small square of baking paper (a.k.a. parchement paper) and some water.
- Put the sponge in the container and wet it down so that the water just sits over the top surface of the sponge.
- Trim the paper to fit over the sponge, press it on, let it sit for a minute, press down any paper that is lifting.
- Your wet pallet is ready for use. Using a brush, take some paoint from the pot and put it on the pallet. Wipe off excess paint on a clear spot on the pallet. Thin as needed, but note that you may not need to thin your paints quite as much.
The wet pallet and canvas allow me to stop and start painting in moments, which means I can squeeze the maximum painting time out of any gap I can find, which is not always easy. For those readers with kids, you can really appreciate what I mean.
You'll notice other aspects of my desk that may have obvious benefits - an iPod speaker dock for tunes, adjustable lamps for lots of glourious light (two lamps eliminates the deep shadowing you get when using one - especially important when painting models with a black undercoat). A comfortable chair, and all my brushes and other tools in easy reach.
You may also notice what isn't there - distractions. The one thing I don't like about MoodDucks desk is his PC - this is a big distraction that screams "don't paint them, the web beckons!". I find that the best way to keep myself focused to to remove anything that draws me away from my painting.
Thats enough for now. Next time I'll show you my current project - 184 Orks all being painted at once!
ColdWind Out.
You'll notice other aspects of my desk that may have obvious benefits - an iPod speaker dock for tunes, adjustable lamps for lots of glourious light (two lamps eliminates the deep shadowing you get when using one - especially important when painting models with a black undercoat). A comfortable chair, and all my brushes and other tools in easy reach.
You may also notice what isn't there - distractions. The one thing I don't like about MoodDucks desk is his PC - this is a big distraction that screams "don't paint them, the web beckons!". I find that the best way to keep myself focused to to remove anything that draws me away from my painting.
Thats enough for now. Next time I'll show you my current project - 184 Orks all being painted at once!
ColdWind Out.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
A new power arises...
Hi Everyone, I'm Chris, a.k.a. Coldwind, and welcome to my BLOG. This will be mainly a place for me to post about my Warhammer 40k hobby activities - painting, modeling and converting, and possibly the odd ramble or rant.
A bit about me - In real life I'm an IT manager at a Telecommunications company in Sunny (some of the time) Wellington, New Zealand. I've been playing Warhammer and Warhammer 40k for quite some time now - since 1989 - so twenty years and counting...
At the moment I collect Orks and Blood Angels, and have started a Dark Elves army for Warhammer. I'm a collector first, as my large cabinet full of not-yet-assembled miniatures would show. The problem is I feel like I'm buried in plastic and white metal, so I have resolved to dig myself out, by painting and assembling everything in the next two years (not in that order of course).
To that end, I joined a new gaming group late last year, run by the manager of my local Games Workshop. This has given me a new driver to get me building and painting more (and buying more - so I'm not sure if I'm digging myself out, or deeper...) and it's been a lot of fun too. The group alternates between normal games and Apocalypse games, which means I often get to field most of my assembled army. I'll put up a list of my Ork horde to date at some point soon, and will do the same for my Blood Angels too. It's fair to say the Orks are getting most of my love at the moment though, with all the great new units and vehicles Games Workshop has released in the last eighteen months.
My current painting project is the biggest I've ever undertaken - I'm painting 2500 points worth of Orks in one go. That's 184 models. It's a bit of an insane undertaking, but if I stay with it, I'll have the majority of my boyz squads painted, along with most of the other foot slogging units in my army. I finish them, and I'll move onto my Trukks, Wagons and Stompas! I'll put up some work in progress pics as soon as I work out how to.
It's probably worth noting that this blog is intended to serve myself first, everyone else second, so while your comments are welcome, I'm not going to be posting for the benefit of the audience. That's a round about way of saying I may not post often, and my posts may be boring, so reader be forewarned.
ColdWind Out.
A bit about me - In real life I'm an IT manager at a Telecommunications company in Sunny (some of the time) Wellington, New Zealand. I've been playing Warhammer and Warhammer 40k for quite some time now - since 1989 - so twenty years and counting...
At the moment I collect Orks and Blood Angels, and have started a Dark Elves army for Warhammer. I'm a collector first, as my large cabinet full of not-yet-assembled miniatures would show. The problem is I feel like I'm buried in plastic and white metal, so I have resolved to dig myself out, by painting and assembling everything in the next two years (not in that order of course).
To that end, I joined a new gaming group late last year, run by the manager of my local Games Workshop. This has given me a new driver to get me building and painting more (and buying more - so I'm not sure if I'm digging myself out, or deeper...) and it's been a lot of fun too. The group alternates between normal games and Apocalypse games, which means I often get to field most of my assembled army. I'll put up a list of my Ork horde to date at some point soon, and will do the same for my Blood Angels too. It's fair to say the Orks are getting most of my love at the moment though, with all the great new units and vehicles Games Workshop has released in the last eighteen months.
My current painting project is the biggest I've ever undertaken - I'm painting 2500 points worth of Orks in one go. That's 184 models. It's a bit of an insane undertaking, but if I stay with it, I'll have the majority of my boyz squads painted, along with most of the other foot slogging units in my army. I finish them, and I'll move onto my Trukks, Wagons and Stompas! I'll put up some work in progress pics as soon as I work out how to.
It's probably worth noting that this blog is intended to serve myself first, everyone else second, so while your comments are welcome, I'm not going to be posting for the benefit of the audience. That's a round about way of saying I may not post often, and my posts may be boring, so reader be forewarned.
ColdWind Out.
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