Bugmen Warriors Update

I've had more than a few inquiries into the Aegis Figures Bugmen Warriors of late.  Well, I got 10 sets cast up recently, so anyone interested, let me know!

To celebrate their return, I painted a new one up!

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Monsters & Magic Review Posted!

My review of the  Monsters & Magic RPG is now up on Play Unplugged!

Check it out here!

Thanks for reading!

--Scott

Nobody Asked Me, But...

A bit of this, and a bit of that, on gaming...

• I am wondering when the RoboTech RPG Tactics Kickstarter plastics hit, if using them to play Alpha Strike on hex-boards from Memoir '44 might be an option?  Anybody else thought of this?  These would nicely fit the 1/285th scale plastic models that should be available by year's end.  We shall see. 

•  
  
  I've just finished reading and reviewing a new RPG, Monsters & Magic by Sarah Newton, and I am stunned at how splendid it reads how much fun it looks like it will be to play!  This fantasy game blends old and new school elements, and you can read my full review this weekend on Play Unplugged.  Should be up Saturday or Sunday.

• I wait patiently (well, not so patiently) for the Bones "bomb" to hit my FLGS.  I cannot wait to dive into the amazing releases coming.  This will infuse my personal hobby-crafting with renewed enthusiasm. 

• A library colleague of mine just turned me on to Lev Grossman's The Magicians, and while I am late to the party, man, it is good!  Makes me even more eager for the Mage 20th Kickstarter to begin. 

• Just re-read Captain America: The Bloodstone Hunt, and it remains one of my favorite Mark Gruenwald stories. It combines pulp adventure, visually interesting characters (Zaran, Crossbones, Diamondback), and centers around one of my favorite Marvel characters of all time, Ulysses Bloodstone.  

Hopefully I can get some more painting done this weekend!

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Reaper Bones Knight

Another entry in my growing Bones collection!

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Reaper Bones Wood Elf

Got a Bones Elf (Short) Bowman done last night.  I did not realize his bow had been miscast until I saw a few pics of him online.

Oh well!

I used the Army Painter Soft Tone ink on this one and was able to get some nice effects with minimal work. Good stuff!

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Reaper Bones Medium Dragon

Been on a bit of mini-hot streak painting Reaper Bones figures of late!  Today we have their awesome Young Fire Dragon.

Check him out!

He'll make an ideal leader for a fantasy skirmish project I have percolating.

We shall see.  Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Reaper Bugbear Redux

As promised, more pics of the Reaper Bugbear, this time with some better light!

A meeting of the Minds! 

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Reaper Bones Bugbear

Last night I painted a Reaper Bones Bugbear using an old method with some new tools.  My buddy Jan hung out with me a couple of weeks ago and he brought me a bottle of the Army Painter Strong Tone ink--this is the water based stuff, not the oil-based "dip" stain I have used on and off for the last 12 years.

Anyway, after priming him black using Vallejo brush-on primer, I laid some base colors on him (a mix of Foundry, GW, and PP), then applied the Strong Tone.  Wow!  It lit him up like a firecracker!  Great stuff!  Check it out!

Pictured with Bones Bathalion.

I did very little highlighting after the wash, but I am very pleased with the outcome.  Needless to say, I cannot wait until more Bones hit the store shelves.  I hope more Bugbears are included in the second wave of Bones releases.

I'll try to take some other shots of the Bugbear with other models (and in better lighting) later this week. 

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Off The Shelf: An Evil Adventurer

Baraka Ein-Arm comes from the Terronus: Isle of Goblins Goalsystem game and D&D supplement I did more than five years ago (time flies!).  His true origins stem from a Warhammer Fantasy Role-Play campaign I ran back in the late 1990's.

My good friend, Kurt M., played a dwarf scholar named Baraka.  It seems he could not keep his hands off of one of the famous Doom Stones, and so he and the rest of his group quickly went Chaotic Neutral, if you know what I mean!  They were sort of like Red Lanterns well before DC Comics decided to add extra characters based on different colors.

Anyway, after having his arm snipped off by a Chaos mutant, Baraka used the Stone of Earth to fashion himself a new one!  What could go wrong?

A scale comp with Reaper Dragon Man. 

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Zannark, Initiate of the Sapphire Lodge

Finally finished my sorcerer character, Zannark, Initiate of the Sapphire Lodge.  This mysterious and dynamic figure will make an ideal NPC or player character in any fantasy game, including Pathfinder!

Check him out!

Facing off against a Tiefling I painted a few years back! 

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

SuperSystem: A Henchmen Development

Last week I worked up some SuperSystem stats for the models in my buddy, Rusti's kickstarter for Crossover miniatures.

In doing so I developed a new way to do lower-powered henchmen groups and still keep them at 85 pts.

Here it is:

Another Wave

BP Cost: 15 pts.
AP Cost: n/a
Effects: Only Henchmen groups may possess this power. When a henchmen group possessing this power loses its last member, it reforms at full strength at the beginning of the next combat round within the owning player’s initial deployment area, or if there was no clearly defined deployment area, place the group anywhere on the table, but not closer than 15” from any enemy model. 

Ok, based on some excellent feedback and suggestions, here is another version of Another Wave:

Another Wave

BP Cost: 10 pts. + 5 pts./lvl.

AP Cost: n/a

Effects: Only Henchmen groups may possess this power. Any time a henchmen group possessing this power loses its last member, it makes a Resolve + Iron Will check with a difficulty based on its level. If it passes the check, it reforms at full strength at the beginning of the next combat round within the owning player’s initial deployment area, or if there was no clearly defined deployment area, place the group anywhere on the table, but not closer than 15” from any enemy model.  If the player fails the check, he removes the henchmen group from play as normal and they’re gone for the remainder of the scenario.

When a player purchases this power for his henchmen group, he selects a level and pays the additional cost.  The level determines the difficulty number for the Resolve check to reform:

Level 1 = 4 goals (5 pts.)

Level 2 = 3 goals (10 pts.)

Level 3 = 2 goals (15 pts.)

Again, it still needs some testing; if you're a SuperSystem player, give this rule a shot and see if you like it!  

Thanks for visiting! 

--Scott

Off The Shelf: Reaper Wererats

Continuing with my series of posts showing off minis from my collection that have not yet made it to the blog, we have Reaper's excellent Wererats!

These guys played a big role in my Teen D&D Westbrook games I ran for the library back a few years ago.

Sculpted by Jason Weibe, these figures represent quintessential wererats, deadly foes for low level parties!

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Off The Shelf: Otyugh

Back in the late 1990's WotC released Chainmail and a host of awesome minis for it.  One of my favs, and really one of my best uses of the old dip method of painting, was the Otyugh.

Check him out!

That garbage eating aberration will make short work of that lone warrior for certain!

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Model For My Sorcerer

In addition to running Pathfinder at my local shop, I have been thinking about it a lot. Reading various sourcebooks and basically immersing myself in the PF RPG helps me to keep my enthusiasm and interest level high. 

In keeping with this, I decided to make myself a PC of my own.  I rarely play spellcasters, so I thought it might be fun to build a Sorcerer.  It will get me more familiar with the spellcasting rules and provide me a fresh angle on the game.  Whenever I make a PC for a game like PF, I think of what sort of mini I will use to show him on the tabletop.  I immediately went to Reaper and found this guy:

So now I am hoping he shows up soon because I am raring and ready to go to get some paint on him!

Once he's done I will show him off here and also discuss some of the decisions I made in designing him as a 1st level Sorcerer in PF. 

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott