Hobgrots Speed Painted

I have managed to find some time to continue my speed painting experiments. 

This time on some Hobgrots - black undercoat, then a dry brush of white. I then painted and put a black wash over the metals. 

The skin tone was a mix of crusader flesh and yellow - the cords blood red and plaid bone. 

Then the metal was touched up and highlighted (although I then had to do another wash due to heavy handedness …), teeth were done, as was the skull. Like the chaos space marines this lot will need a spray varnish, then I will do their bases. I have another 12 Hobgrots to do - these one will have shields - although I have to change out the metal ones I have used for plastic one as there is an imbalance on some of the minis.

Overall I am happy with these - a much better experience and practice in using speed paints. They seem to have a decent level of shading on them - I am going to try on some Chaos marauder types, but I will check the coverage of the dry brushing a bit more carefully but I start applying paint properly.   

Been away

The good lady and I had a mini break - must still be love after all these years. 

We visited Chester - a very nice city in indeed. 

Loads of history there - English Civil War, Romans (apparently a zoo too - but we didn’t visit).  The city walls are still pretty much intact and worth a stroll around - double level shopping (lots of shops shut due to the poor economic situation) with the Rows. We had a good wander around and saw reactor trying to get some kids to do some Roman drills. The streets are pretty - a bigger version of Ludlow. 

I would have to say a prettier city that Exeter - where the good burgers knocking down the city walls by 1819, who then followed up the Luftwaffe damage and demolished Bedford Circus and built some nasty 50s and 60s things which have been since replaced. 

On the return journey back we stopped off a Chirk castle just over the Welsh border. 

A nice little castle - with access to the dungeon and other rooms (the state rooms were shut in the time we were there). There appeared to be some good walks in the area including part of Offa’s Dyke - which I wanted to look at (as we had done part of the southern end around Chepstow a few years ago) … but the path was closed. Would visit again sometime, with more time. 

Morts 

More Chaos Marines and speed paint experiment

So I think I have finished the last 2 Chaos Space Marines. 

I am not sue that they were the right figures for the speed paint experiment - but they are done. Need to do bases and spray varnish - as the paint reactivates. Well I might paint the tongue on the paulrons faces. 

I have started some Hobgrots - I have painted the metal work and intend a wash over that before applying the speed paint over the black and dry brushed. 

A couple in this basic state - just got to pick the  skin colour and wash the metal with black/brown. 

Morts

DK’s Warrior Knights Birthday bash!

So on Saturday the collective gathered together for DK’s annual birthday bash of games and food - apart from Sylon who had a better offer of hospitality at Sandy Park … although the result went the wrong way.  

We started at Helen’s diner for full English. 

Very nice - but you can’t go too wrong with a breakfast. Over the course of the meal there was some vigorous fingers pointing between DK and Snake-eyes over the roles and responsibilities of sales and purchasing …

Best move on to the games. DK had selected Warrior Knights (2006 Fantasy Flight Games edition).  So after about 90 minutes of rules explanation we were ready to start …

Then after and 69 minutes plus we finished the first turn … of what is a really a simple game - pick 2 cards out of 12 to play in 3 rounds, add 2 random  cards to each round, shuffle and play the rounds - by revealing the cards players put in …. Factor in the raising of money to pay for troops, the risk of revolt, the blessings or otherwise of the faith and that’s the game. 

Tiger King tried to keep the leader of the church and the speaker of the parliament for most of the game as these seemed to give some serious advantages.  The game played very closely without any taking  any major advantage. Mainly because we didn’t know what strategy to take. 

Key moment were when Snake-eyes attacked DK and took his stronghold - meaning that DK couldn’t score victory points in what turned out to be the final round …

This then caused some debate as DK had to give up a city, part of the penalty for losing the stronghold, which DK retook with the garrison which had just been evicted .. Snake-eyes was bit best please - but it was DK’s birthday party, so we couldn’t be too mean. 

The final scores were 19 to me (for just trying to hold on to the cheapest cities in could take and very little else), 17 for Steedo (usual trying to get others to do his fighting) and Tiger King (testing out various strategies - controlling the church and parliament, trying to block expeditions), Snake-eyes on 16 (after valiant attempt to steal victory by beating up DK) and DK on 13 (but unable to score in the final round). The game did improve once we got to grips with it, but there is still lots of depths to explore - but I’m not sure that I actually enjoyed the game that much - it just didn’t spark for me - perhaps after another game it will (possibly the long first turn…). 

DK then provided us with a very nice pork casserole. 

DK did get into some trouble with his better half by feeding us his children’s chocolate and cake … 

After the feast we tried War of Whispers - where you work to secretly influence the world powers fight - so sometimes you are working with somebody to improve a faction or against them to weaken a faction - it reminds me of the King is Dead. But with bells and whistles. 

I enjoyed this game - the mechanics were simple - and with the cards (which I didn’t really explore), plenty of depth to investigate. 

The result were Tiger King 29, Steedo 24, DK and myself on 20 (Snake-eyes sat out the game to get the rules right). Then I had to go - the reminder played another game of War of Whispers and as I understand it Mission Red Planet. 

A good day of games and food.  

Morts

 

The Rings of Power

So I managed to watch the first season of the Rings of Power - my thoughts. 

It’s fantasy tv, but it is not Tolkien. 

I did have high hopes when it was announced a few years ago - more Tolkien In the screen must be a good thing (the Children of Hurin would make a dark but amazing show) and some of the second age stories are great. I was a little concerned when I saw the trailer .. climbing ice cliffs with dagger …

But I have to say I was disappointed (although currently less so that the Hobbit movies, which make me sad …) … some of the characters weren’t true to the lore as I understand it. The pacing, timings and plot devices were strange to say the least. 

Some of visuals are spectacular to be fair. But the remake of Clash of the Titans had good visuals, but the story telling was nothing on the Ray Harryhausen classic - you have to have a good, well written story and characters to make people care.

So some of the things I don’t like are - 

Galadriel - she is so angry and just doesn’t make sense for a princess who spent most of the 1st age in Doriath with Melian the Maia. She would be directing others to act on her suspicions … She also wasn’t sent back to Valinor by Gil-Galad - but she wouldn’t be allowed in anyway as she is an evil being trying to commit genocide on the orcs - nice for the lady of light. Also the fight scene where Xena, sorry Galadriel takes on 4 or 5 numenorean volunteers just looked so poor and fake. I feel for the actress as she is only doing what is asked of her …

Gil-Galad - why is he such an idiot? We have to leave … in weeks. The elf who almost took down Sauron …

The dam breaking sword mechanism - WTF … really? Just break the dam … 

The amazing 3 Numenorean ships that can carry an extensive camp and some 300 armoured cavalry, who manage to arrive exact when needed to a battle they knew nothing about … that was a stroke of luck. 

The Southlands boy Theo - nothing against the actor but what’s he for … apart from being the weak link to give up the sword McMuffin to break the dam.

The fact that distances don’t matter - Mordor to Eregion in 6 days … took the fellowship to tad longer … obviously they didn’t spare the horses.

The magic mithril which apparently was formed after a fight between an elf hero (Glorfindel?) and a Balrog at the top of a mountain … but this mountain was on the way out of Gondolin which is in Beleriand - now under the sea - nowhere near the lonely mountain - I get the idea to reference the fight, but to move the location and give it the creation of mithril - why?

The forging of the 3 rings (before the forging of the 9 for men or 7 for dwarfs) and touched by Sauron with his suggestion of alloying Mithril with other metals. Now I am no expert in metal work, but I am guessing that a dagger has a iron/steel blade then a decorative silver/gold hilt (although could be iron), but we are talking about Galadriel’s dagger - so why do we melt the whole thing when we could just take the hilt off. But what do I know.  

The meteor man and the priestess following him - how can he be a Istari? As I understand  it they were sent to middle earth in the third age (about a 1000 years into it according to the Lord of the Rings appendix B), to help and prepare the free peoples against the returning darkness/Sauron. The priestess’ there was no explanation as to what they were about for about 3 episodes and they didn’t last long after we found out …

The “missing” Isildur and Celeborn - were is the risk - we know they survive and have to live. The call back to the movies with Isildur/Aragorn’s horse …

Things I’m not worried about - the Harfoots, who cares about them. Although I did find Nori rather annoying. I don’t mind Arondir, although the love story with Bronwyn is a bit naff and unnecessary (like Bronwyn to be honest).

Elf hair cuts and multi-ethnic casting, no big deal - although I would guess that historically populations would be more homogeneous in general - except in the cases of cities at the crossroads of the world (Byzantium etc.), otherwise multiculturalism would be thing now  

I did like the Uruk/Elf Adar - I like this character and idea. The fact he survived the war of wrath and was look after the orca had legs I think , what they do with it remains to be seen.

There is so much potential here but instead of having time jumps to show the fall of Numenor and the raise of Sauron, as they did in the House of the Dragon, they have condensed the time line to make no sense at all - surely changing the human actors as they get older but not changing the eleven ones would be a great way demostrate why the numenoreans become jealous of the elves and fall to darkness.

I have to say I have much prefer the Witcher and even the Wheel of Time - although I am told that this was a poor adaptation, I thought the story made more sense that the Rings of Power.

I summary they have the outline of a great story by Tolkien, but have failed to write characters or a story that people care about and they have broken the lore … 

Morts 

Almost Hallowe’en …

So it has been a busy month September - back to work, returning Thing 2 back to University, some decorating for the new sofa (arriving on the 2nd Oct). And we had the big “O” in at work … seemed to go ok, an early visit might be the way forward.

Have managed to squeeze in a wild camp out on the moor - a rather delayed train journey to Okey (but got some money for that)and sore hips for not inflating the air mattress enough. 

An ominous looking evening - but all was good (apart from the rave a couple of miles away in Fernworthy). 

Sunrise - nice. 

The views north from Hangingstone. 

A look back down the East Okement…

Gaming wise things have been quiet - due to work getting in the way. The Old World rpg which Tiger-King was bullied into running, has failed to restart due people being away (work again) the GM getting COVID (very last year).

Until today I haven’t done much painting - but I did some undercoating yesterday, managed to get some more things ready for the painting table - unfortunately the 2 cans of white primer I had found in the shed were knackered, so my plan for some zenithal undercoating was buggered up - apart from by dry brushing. 

Any how I was able to do a bit with the gunmetal for the scenery and Necrons. 

Large raw plugs to be used as force field holders - seems to work. 

Heavy weapons - I got these years ago for the Starship Troopers. I used the speed paints over the black and gunmetal - I think it works. 

I also did some more speed paints over gunmetal to get some nice effects - speed paints over the metal gives a metallic effect which look good. 

Morts