Sunday, March 28, 2010

Tropical U-boat Crew

Another crazy ebay deal… Not entirely sure WHY I painted these up right away… but I did.

(Remember: click on the pictures for a bigger version)


These are the Tropical U-boat crew from Brigade Games. Here they are stumbling through the jungle of some uncharted island in the south pacific searching for some ancient lost temple – oblivious to the unspeakable horrors that await them…. (MWA-HA-HA-HA-Ha-Ha-ha-ha-ha…!)

I already have some U-boat Crew that I painted up almost 2 years ago (from Artizan Designs) – they’re not what you might call “dressed for the tropics”, however.

Now all I need is a U-Boat!! (I'll probably scratch build myself on at some point...)

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Yakuza and Secret Agents


A couple new things rolling off the workbench…

(Remember: click on the pictures for a bigger version)


These are Yakuza from The Foundry’s Street Violence line.


Some secret agents from Copplestone Castings Kiss-Kiss, Bang-Bang line…

Coming soon on Tim’s Miniature Wargaming Blog:

So much stuff crowding the workbench these days, it’s hard to say… Some tropical U-boat crew have been getting some paint on them this evening and are closest to completion.

I’ve actually embarked on another massive re-basing project. Oh, I’m not totally rebasing entire armies for some new rule set or anything… just getting all the skirmish guys on one size of base… or at least more of them on a similar size base.

When I had first started basing skirmish game figures on washers I was putting them on ¾” washers… smaller than your average plastic base – which always seemed ridiculously huge to me. Anyway I shortly realized that some figures just wouldn’t fit on that size so I started putting more on 7/8” washers – closer to the size of your average round plastic slotta base – though not so thick!

At first I put stuff on the larger base “as required” but was finding a lot more were required so I eventually started putting ALL my skirmish guys on the 7/8” bases… The only things I was still basing on the ¾” bases were the WW2 stuff. This was really only for consistency – almost all of the WW2 stuff is on ¾” bases.

I’ve started with the Rippers/Victorian/Horror/SF and the Pulp Adventure figures (and started on a few WW2 figures).

I’ve been having a hankering to play WW2 stuff for the last couple days… which is odd, as I thought I’d gamed it to death and if I ever commanded another panzer on the tabletop it would be too soon… but I’ve bee eyeing the 28mm Russians and thinking about shifting a few of the unfinished ones to the workbench, and been thinking about rebasing a few of the 15mm guys to get them all on bases with a common frontage (so I could try out the HOTT Variant).

Well I'm pretty much through with ebay... and now that I'm done I can tell you where I've been finding all sorts of goodies (now that I don't have to worry about being outbid by you..!?).

The first place is Mindsports. Mindsports is a game distributor out of Calgay Alberta Canada, that deals to game stores, that seems to be blowing out dead stock - I've pickes up tonnes (well.. many kilograms) of lead and boardgames for pretty cheap - Clan War, Ral Partha/Iron Winds fantasy, Battletech/Aerotech, Silent Death space ships, the Kryomek critters, etc - all sorts of odd and unusual stuff. Oh and Mighty Armies 15mm fantasy stuff shows up form time to time - which I don't care about - but some of you might...

Antoher place I've been picking up a few things is Gem Games and Hobbies - odd and unusual figures from Foundry, Copplestone, Star Wars, 40K, Call of Chulhu, West Wind... I even picked up two packs of Brigade Games Tropical U-boat crew?!

Maelstrom Games (who also have a non-ebay Web Store) are out of hte UK. I have to say I have never had any troubles with anything coming from the UK - it's generally cheaper and quicker than from the States next door!? Anyway... Maelstrom has a lot of GW, Warlord Games, and other stuff at a bit of a discount (generally 10-15% off the suggested retail), they ship worldwide for free... and with the pound sterling in the tank... it was just too great a temptation - I just bought some Bolt Action Miniatures Falshirmjäger from them. Last year when I was picking up GW LOTR stuff I grabbed a couple things from them as well. They have a mailing list you can get on and they email you when they've got a sale or promotion they've got on (like they do RIGHT NOW - 17.5% off suggested retail the voucher code is: EARLY-EASTER - only applies to their webstore - not ebay, though the ebay store seems to be selling things at the 17.5% off price anyway...)

Red Dragon Games, out of Atlanta Georgia, seems to put up a raft of 40K vehicles and sets for bid twice a week - starting at 99¢... If you're patient you can get a pretty good deal... I just got a Tau Devlil fish for under $20 - brand new, including shipping... Now I know what you're thinking... "Tim, what the f@*K do you need a Tau Devilfish for!?" and... well... all I go to say is it looks cool! and it was a pretty good deal!? ...and I'm playing sci-fi skirmishy games and don't really care what the model are "supposed" to be...

Another place I haven't picked up anything from recently but I have in the past is Hoard O Bits - they crack a lot of GW box sets and sell the off as bits - including the starter box sets for 40K and fantasy - so I picked up a lot of goblins and dwarves from them just over a year ago... they seem to have expanded into selling a lot of other neat minis - Reaper, hasslefree, etc..

Other things I've picked up here and there... When I am on a spree (like I have been recently) and picking up lots of good deals it's because I do a LOT of searching - fairly wide open ones - because some things get miscategorized - or the people selling them don't know what they're selling... I always use the .com site - as opposed to the .ca or .co.uk version as it seems to show a lot more results - though you need to specify "worldwide" in your search to get ALL the goodies showing up...

Anyway... like I said, I'm done... I have WAY too much to paint... and should get back to that!

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Dang...

Another load of ebay goodies arrived today bringing the total of acquired foot up to 418...!? ...and there's even more on the way... (Good week on ebay - or "bad", depending on how you look at it).

I had kind of quietly resolved to myself to paint twice as much as I buy this year, but that would mean I'd have to paint over 800 figures this year... which I totally DID do last year... but I spent an absurd number of nights staying up WAAAAAAAAAAY past a sensible bed time to crank that many out... I may have to just resolve to paint more than I acquire... acquisitions x1.5 might still be possible...?

doh...

Monday, March 22, 2010

More Marauders

A couple more mercenary recruits for Morgan’s Marauders.

(Remember: click on the pictures for a bigger version)


The dude with the heavy flamer is a Imperial Guard Catachan sniper from Games Workshop (pictured here entirely without their permission!). The other five are are Viridian Commandos from I-Kore’s Void game, currently available from Scotia Grendel.

Coming soon on Tim’s Miniature Wargaming Blog:

Silence...

Well not really... I am probably going to take a break from painting for a week to work on some other projects; some long overdue bike maintenance, building some easels for me and the kids to paint at, updating the other blogs, sorting, tidying... that sort of stuff.

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Colours

Last week or so neldoreth made a comment about how he took a while to figure out a paint scheme for even a simple scheme like on Tommy the LHAC I had a good chuckle as I'm totally the same way; AGONIZING over the stupidest little things!?

Right now it's all these sci-fi things I'm working on. I finally sorted out the two main forces... K’s Kommandos in Greyish camo, Morgan’s Marauders in greenish camo... and I think I've settled on burnt orange for some Imperial Marines (I figure they don't care if you can see them and they want you to KNOW that they don't care if you can see them, because they are the Big Stick and they are there to settle things once and for all and you are in for a world of hurt and you deserve it if you've let your conflict grow to the point where it's attracted the attention of Imperial Authorities...!)

But I have a bunch of others I'm not quite sure what to do with... I just picked up a couple Starship Troopers figures, I have a pile of Eldar, more assorted VOID stuff, some Kryomek Nexus Marines, a couple old Copplestone/grenadier "Troopers", and some other stuff... disparate groups that I'd like to paint in recognizably different schemes...

The Starship Troopers I agonize about the most at the moment.. probably because I just got them and I'm fired up to paint a couple. Do I paint them in grey and black like the movie...? or in green and black like the animated series...? Something completely different...? if so, WHAT!? URRRRRR!!!

The Eldar I’m also really torn about – flashy and colourful or drab..? Solid colours or patterned…? I did a sample one ages ago, but I’m not totally excited about it…

I’d like to do some 28mm figures up as 28mm Timashek Legionaires, in that crazy orange/black/yellow camo scheme, but I’m not sure which figures to use…

I also have megalomaniac visions of doing some as Hammer’s Slammers… didn’t they wear khaki…?

I’m getting beyond colour, here… now getting into the question of what figures to use as what…

Back to colour, I have a small handful of Imperial Guard Tallarn and I’m not sure if I should do them in some sort of desert camouflage or paint them in more traditional middle eastern colours – like something that might jive with the Afghans that I already have…? I’d kind of like to go with the desert cam, but I may go with the other option simply because I just don’t have that many Tallarn – not enough to make much of a force – and they aren’t exactly cheap and easy to find these days…

…and this is just the Sci-fi stuff I’m currently agonizing about… don’t even get me started about the historical and fantasy stuff…

I should just go paint some stuff that I know how I want to paint, and worry about the rest later...

One Shot, One Kill (or Two… )


“If you run, you’ll only die tired”

Sgt. Winchester does sniping for Colonel Morgan. You’ll only even know he’s in the neighborhood when your buddy’s head explodes in fine reddish–pick mist…


The figure is a Imperial Guard Catachan sniper from Games Workshop (pictured here entirely without their permission!)

Coming soon on Tim’s Miniature Wargaming Blog:

There’s a couple more or Morgan’s Marauders on the workbench... some civvies… an Imperial Marine…

Friday, March 19, 2010

Morgan’s Maruauders


Seven new recruit’s for Morgan’s Marauders. This is the mercenary unit I’m using all these Viridian Commando’s and Imperial Guard Catachans in (like the sentinel and these guys)

Morgan's Marauders are a rival mercenary unit operating in the same sector as K's Kommandos. "Rival" because they just always seem to be operating on the other side. Also Colonel Morgan (and his crew) have a special hatred of K's Kommandos and Commander K in particular (Commander Karla "K" Reynolds has a "Major Enemy: Colonel Morgan" hindrance). This is because Colonel Morgan believes Commander K ordered the execution of some of his boys that were taken prisoner waaaaay back on Darkton X.... What really happened...? Who knows... But the Marauders will take no prisoners when they're fighting K's Kommandos!!

(Remember: click on the pictures for a bigger version)


The figures are Viridian Commandos (not to be confused with Viridian STRIKE Commando’s – which I’m using for another unit…) from I-Kore’s Void game. They are apparently still available from Scotia Grendel.

Coming soon on Tim’s Miniature Wargaming Blog:

I think I’ll go back and finish up the rest of the Strike Commandos… then maybe some more of these… Or maybe some Pulp adventure or Victorian Horror…. Or maybe some ECW cavalry….

I did win another batch of Kryomek Aliens on ebay yesterday – which will bring me to 25 of the little guys, six of the bigger baddies, and two HUGE baddies… so as soon as those arrive I’ll be painting them up… then I’ll be all set for a big ol’ bug hunt!!

Actually I have quite a haul of ebay goddies arriving soon… mostly sci-fi stuff, but also a couple packs of West Wind’s Vampire Wars stuff. After that I’m going to have to lay off the toy purchases for some time…

I’ve also been doing a bit of re-basing… bringing older stuff up to current standards and sizes…