LotR: Combat Hex Cave Troll Re-Based

Got the big fella re-based and touched up a bit. Not a lot of work had to be done to make him "table-ready"--a nice find for $5 in the FLGS discarded bin!









And here are some comp shots with Dwarf Rangers:





I think that trio is going to need some back-up!

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

LotR Dwarf Ranger Unit Pics

Here's pics of a complete Dwarf Ranger unit, plus one (I miscounted). You might notice I jazzed up their bases. I figured they needed some punch, since they spend a lot of time tramping around foothills and forests outside of Dwarf hold-fasts.









Next post I should have that Combat Hex Cave Troll re-based and ready to roll.

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Oh Captain, Dwarf Captain!

I wanted a plastic Dwarf Captain to go with my Rangers, but converting these figures to get exactly what I wanted seemed too much bother at this point. So I took the easy route and selected one of my favorites of the plastic Rangers and simply painted him again using a slightly varied color combo to make him stand out.

Here's where I ended up:







In my story line the green cloak was a gift from a Wood Elf ally, a rare thing among Dwarves. I think I will name him Argan Whitebeard. His grey beard means he's a crafty fighter and cagey leader, a survivor of a hundred battles.

Another Captain option is this lovely metal Ral Partha figure who scales up pretty darn well with the Rangers. Check it out:





He's got a cloak, and that mace makes an excellent two-handed weapon. I think this guy will lead my second unit of Dwarf Rangers.

Next post I will show some pics of the whole warband of Dwarf Rangers.

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Hobby Methods: Five Foundry Paints

Some folks have expressed a desire to hear more about the process I go about in painting stuff up.

Well, with the release of GW's all-new paint line, it got me to thinking about the paints I currently rely most heavily on: Wargames Foundry 3-step palettes. Today I'd like to quickly name the 5 palettes I use the most, and why. Here they are in no particular order of importance.

1.) Rawhide 11 I've used this amazing earth-tone for everything from leather to cloth. It will even work as a monstrous flesh tone. Very versatile. Features heavily on my LotR Dwarf Rangers, but you'll also see it a lot on my other figures.

2.) Phlegm Green 28 For me this is the best acrylic green going. I can often "feather" between shades A and B and get the desired effect, saving C for that final line to make an edge pop. This is my go-to color for cloaks.

3.) Granite 31 This wonderful 3-step gray really blends well across all of its layers, and when I don't paint a cloak with Phlegm green, it often gets painted Granite. Also excellent for gray hair and beards.

4.) Native American Flesh 120 I started using this flesh palette about a year ago and it has quickly become a mainstay for me. Pot A provides the ruddy, darker undertone I like, but I can quickly take it higher by moving through B and C, and I can always start with B if I want a lighter skin tone.

5.) Bay Brown 42 I use a lot of browns in my painting, and no brown performs better than Bay Brown. Originally formulated for painting horse flesh, I am not sure I've painted more than one horse with it! But I can tell you I have painted hundreds of belts, packs, boots, and jerkins with it. This color blends supremely easily across all three levels, and for my money provides the truest brown you will find.

I want to note that all of the above paints (and most other Foundry paints I have used) cover a black undercoat with ease, and for me, that's a critical point to make. If you have no experience with Foundry paints, the first thing you may notice is the price--they're not cheap at $16.33 for a 3-pot palette, but you get what you pay for.

I can only speak to my personal experience, but I will contend that using these paints has made me a better painter. They'll make an average painter good, and a good painter great, and that has to be worth something.

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

LotR: A Trollish Project

While rooting through the "misfit toys" at my FLGS I came across the awesome Combat Hex Cave Troll from Sabertooth's short-lived pre-painted line.

Intended to be 40mm scale, this Cave Troll actually will make an awesome piece for my LotR Strategy Battle games in 28mm.

Here are some initial shots of him out of the box:







The paint-work on him is pretty great. The task this week will be to get him off of his hex base and onto a proper GW round plastic base. I'll provide updates as I go.

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Skaven: Classic Plastic

I painted up two classic plastic Skaven yesterday. I figure I will throw these guys into the back ranks of my Stormvermin unit to fill it out a bit more.

Surprisingly nice details on these models!







Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Based Objective Counters

I recently took some Armorcast resin crates from their 28mm range and mounted them on some Gale Force 9 pre-cut 45mm bases. These counters make excellent objective markers for sci-fi skirmish and 40K Kill Team style games. They also make excellent counters and terrain for Pulp and Wild West games.









I used my usual Liquitex Resin Sand mixed with sand flock for the texturing, and added some tufts to finish them off.

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

LotR: Dwarf Rangers

I've got a bunch of Dwarf Rangers done for LotR Strategy Battle Game, but I just added two more. This will allow me to field two large warbands if I want to.









Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

The Band of the White Hand

Managed to finish 8 Uruk-Hai scouts, enough to actually play a small game with.











More to come for this game: more Scouts, an Isengard Troll, and Warg Riders are all on the docket.

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Reaper Dwarf Warrior

I received my first order of Reaper Bones figures--these are unpainted plastics from Reaper, based off of some of their classic metal minis from years gone by.

Let me say that I am extremely impressed, and you can read a more detailed review of the four packs I got on Play Unplugged.

Here's the Dwarf Warrior right out of the package:



And here he is painted (that's a Litko base he's mounted on):









He'll be the fighter in my all-Reaper D&D adventuring party, and here is a shot of the final quartet:



Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

Skaven Warpfire Team

This plastic Skaven Warpfire Thrower team came from the Isle of Blood boxed set, and I finished it up this past Sunday for use in my Skaven army. I think I'll attach it to my Stormvermin unit.

I believe I have a pressing appointment with the Undead this Sunday, and I may need to light things up a bit! Do zombies burn?







Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

LotR Uruk-Hai Scouts

I've had this plastic boxed set of GW Lord of the Rings Uruk Hai Scouts for about 6 months, but last Sunday Rico and I played the LotR Strategy Battle Game for the first time in a long time, and it was a blast!

I have a huge army of Dwarves already done, and I will show them off sometime soon, but I wanted to do a "bad guy" force to go along with them. I settled on Isengard. I plan to do the 24 Scouts, a unit of Warg Riders, and an Isengard Troll. beyond that, we'll see.

Anyway, here are some pics of my first two Uruk test models.











The paint jobs on the box cover are very dark, and I actually think you need a lot more skill to pull a paint job like that off--I went with a little more earth tones, a bit lighter.

I've got 22 more to go, so my method may evolve over time. These guys are also on the standard slots, as base size is pretty important in this game and I want them consistent with my other stuff.

Thanks for visiting!

--Scott

A Mysterious Cleric

Got the third member of my adventuring party done--a Reaper cleric I found on the shelves at my FLGS (Phantom of the Attic, in Pittsburgh).





And here is a comp shot with the other two party members:



Thanks for visiting!

--Scott