Ev's Challenge - All Over (Or Is It?)

Greetings Paint Fans! The Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge has ended for another year, and even though I fell short of my target, I flatter myself that I was able to get some decent entries on the board.

Following the Fertility Goddess, I was able to submit an entry for Awdry's Atoll, a location which required Challengers to create a vignette on a CD base. Basing on CDs is something of a specialty for the estimable Sir Michael.

I give you The Riddle of the Sphinx;

"So, mortal, I ask you again; why did the chicken cross the road?"

Next up was a bit of scatter terrain for pre-industrial skirmish gaming, a dilapidated farm cart.

A couple of Pleistocene pussycats;

And more giants - two of them!

And finally, delivering on an earlier promise, some worshippers for the Green Goddess!

So that's all for the moment - but there's more around the corner...

Snowlord Curt has proposed a new Challenge to get us all through the COVID-19 lockdown; the Quarantine Challenge!

To quote the man himself, "With more and more people going into isolation, keeping safe and taking care of those around them, I thought it might be helpful to provide a space for people to keep in touch, post their hobby projects and to simply unwind."

This is a marvellous opportunity to support one another in our hobby, so I've signed up to paint some more - don't be too shocked, everybody!

More to come over the next few weeks, so keep your brushes sharp and stay tuned...

Ev

Ev's Challenge - Day 55 - The Journey Upcountry (and a Detour or Two)

Greetings Paint Fans, and welcome to my second round up of entries for The Tenth Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge!

I struck out from Sander's Sand Dunes, making my way inland to Millsy's Mill Pond, a deceptively calm stretch of water where old and forgotten figures were to be displayed, with provenance!

Well, they don't come much older than this chappie, a Daka Fal Adventurer from Citadel's line of RuneQuest figures, released in 1982. He's a member of the Sable Tribe of Prax (hence the horned helmet), and the priest of a cult of ancestor worshippers.

He netted me an excellent score, thanks to his extreme age, and so I felt emboldened to undertake a detour of sorts. I produced a Curtgeld entry, the price of admission to Challenge X.

This year, Curt asked us to produce a figure for someone else, not necessarily another Challenger. So, because my blolleague Millsy is sitting out this Challenge after having fought monster fires for the last couple of months, I decided he deserved a gesture of appreciation.

It's the old Warhammer Giant, a plastic model 110mm tall, and an imposing addition to Millsy's Orcs and Goblins, or Dogs of War armies. I really enjoyed painting this one; he's so characterful!

My most recent entry is this substantial lady, a Fertility Goddess from Reaper Miniatures.

Based on the Paleolithic Venus of Willendorf (only much, much bigger), she comes with a decorative base dotted with pots and baskets of offerings.

All I need to do is come up with some worshippers for the Green Goddess, and the vignette will be complete!

As she is an indisputably female figure, I was able to secure travel in Lady Sarah's Balloon, all the way to the other side of the island. This honour is vouchsafed only to those who have submitted a female figure as the price of passage.

I'm now at Awdry's Atoll, preparing a vignette based on an old CD. Hey, it's what Mr Awdry specified, and who am I to disagree?

What's up next?

Stay tuned...

Ev

Ev's Challenge - Day 28 - Not Even At Base Camp!

Greetings, Paint Fans, and welcome to the first of my entries for The Tenth Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge!

Doughty painters from the four corners of the circular globe are gathered at Challenge Island, landing on its deadly shores and beating their several paths into the interior to make their final assault on Snowlord's Peak...

Not exactly covering myself with glory this time round, I'm afraid. It's been a busy new year so far, and if I'm to meet my target of 400 points, I'd better get a move on.

I've made landfall at Sander's Sand Dunes, in the NW corner of Challenge Island. The stipulation for this locale is the colour red. Submit anything you like, as long as it features red. So here's my first entry for Challenge X.

It's the Orruk Megaboss, from GW's Warhammer Age of Sigmar. And no, I'm not buying into the new lawyered-up naming conventions. He's an Orc, pure and simple!

He was a gift from my young friend Patrick, who brought him back from a visit to Warhammer World in Nottingham (Rich Nerd Central). Given the fact that Paddy had gone to so much trouble, I couldn't not paint him up for the Challenge!

Stupid IP-protective names aside, it's a lovely figure. The assembly can be fiddly, but it avoids the solid-across-the-hems look of previous GW Orcs. I painted the head before adding the jaw plate, since it would have been nigh-impossible to get to otherwise. The sometimes tedious business of painting sub-assemblies is worth the extra time taken.

The base was built up with Milliput over an extruded foam core, and assorted Skullz™ were scattered around the resultant rocky outcrop (it's virtually the law when it comes to basing GW figures). I was going for a wind-scoured sandstone look, and I think it turned out nicely.

What's next? Well, I really have to produce a Curtgeld figure as the price of admission to Challenge X, but I'm to-ing and fro-ing on what it should be... Better be something pretty bloody spectacular if I'm to get some serious points on the board!

Stay tuned...!

Ev

Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge X

Tomorrow is December 1st and that means just one thing... the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge is just around the corner once again. OK actually two things, that AND fruit mince pies are also back on the menu! This is edition TEN if you can believe it and my eighth participation. Evan is also on board for I think his third or maybe fourth.

Looking back I can only thank Curt yet again for all the amazing friendships that have come from my involvement (of which his is right at the top of the pile!), never mind the huge pile of painted minis that have come about as a consequence.

Last year saw me sneak over the 10,000 point mark total in painted minis from the last 7 editions of the Challenge. To put that into perspective that equates to 2,000 x 28mm miniatures painted in a period of roughly 21 months, or around 95 per month. Not bad given that spans Christmas, New Year, my birthday and Australia Day all of which distract from the painting focus. I hope you enjoyed that little statistical diversion Miles, I know I did...

More lead (OK mistakes were made, a LOT more lead) is on the way and the prep has already begun on material at hand. Bring it on!

Cheers,
Millsy

Ev's Challenge - The Final Chapter

So the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge has come to an end for another year. And what a ride it's been! I've minioned for the first time (big shout-out to the Wednesday Warriors!), and I've produced a varied assembly of fantasy figures.

So what have I learned?

• Preparation, above all. While I could get away with doing things on the fly in previous years, work commitments plus the weekly minioning meant that I really should have gone in with a proper plan. I'm severely ADHD and a worrier by nature, so lack of preparation really is the enemy.

• Try and vary the subject matter. I have so many historical, 40K and horror figs still in the lead mountain, yet this time round it was almost all fantasy, and I think this got me in a bit of a rut. 

• Realistic targets. After last year, when I actually cracked 500 points, I thought I could do the same again. Not so, topped out at 479, worse luck! Time and resources are limited, and I have to take this into account next time.

Anyway, enough of the self-reproach, here's the last of my submissions for Challenge IX!

 An Oldhammer-ish Witch Hunter, a figure from the old Warhammer Quest boardgame. I have a lot of affection for these old sculpts.

A command section for a unit of Sun Dome Templars, the elite pikemen of RuneQuest's cult of Yelmalio. Aventine Miniatures Tarentine Phalanx, repurposed for Glorantha.

A terrain entry, a ruined Gloranthan temple to the River God Zola Fel. Despite its desolate and desert appearance, it was entered in the 'Water Feature' bonus round on the basis of its frescoes.

The remainder of the Sun Dome unit. I do like how they turned out!

A Reaper Bones Griffin - Reaper has given price-conscious gamers a cheap and easy way to get big flashy monsters onto the tabletop, and I am very happy with this big guy.

Here's the last of my Dwarven Blood Bowl team, the Durinhold Tectonics. Finally, they can compete in the big leagues! 1990s sculpts from Citadel's Gary Morley, loads of character.

Reaper Bones Brain-In-A-Jar™, aka Mr Akeley. This one, and the Mi-Go, were the only non-fantasy entries in my Challenge. Really have to mix things up a bit more next time...

Following up from the unfortunate Mr Akeley, my Curtgeld submission, Gazzzz, the Fungi From Gorgoroth. A cosplaying cosmic horror mashup from the pages of Lovecraft and Tolkien. In keeping with the Challenge's theme, 'Fellowship', he's a Tolkien villain as well as a constant trial to his long-suffering co-worker Bazzzz. Reaper Bones again, with some GW Black Orc and Gripping Beast add-ons!

And that's it from me for this year's Challenge. Will I still be painting and modelling outside Challenge times? I only produced one figure between Challenges VIII and IX; I think I should try and increase my output a bit and see if I can maintain some momentum. It's just wasteful having so many unpainted figs lying around!

So stay tuned...

Ev

Ev's Challenge - The Story So Far

It's Day 24 of the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge IX (well, day 24 or thereabouts, depending where you are in relation to the International Date Line), and I thought it's about time for an update on my own output so far.

First up was a Viking take on Santa Claus, the Jarl of Yule.

A Wargames Foundry figure, he looks superbly unimpressed at the next selection, an Ice Troll from Reaper Miniatures. He's one of their Bones range, and repays the effort taken to pick out the details.

The next submission was for the Bonus Theme Round 'Reconnaissance'. I picked a couple of H.P. Lovecraft's Mi-Go, the alien fungi from Yuggoth (aka Pluto). They are spying on the humans in preparation for a mission of conquest, and one has purchased a telescope to help in the task. Unfortunately, he's completely failed to take into account his species' complete lack of eyes.

The latest submission is this little fellow;

A toy scorpion re-purposed as a tabletop gaming piece and given a shiny new coat of paint, Mr Stabby is just the thing to keep any party of desert adventurers on their toes!

That's all for now - stay tuned!

Ev

AHPC Bonus Round Entry - Nasty Hobbitses!

The first Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge IX Bonus Round is up and contains some amazing stuff. My entry is the iconic Warhammer Fantasy Dogs of War unit Lumpin Croop's Halfling Cocks.

Make sure you check out all the fabulous work and vote for your favourites!

Cheers,
Millsy

Goodbye 2018, Hello 2019

G'day All,

I'm a little late with my annual looking back / looking forward post this year because I've been on hols. It's something I enjoy though as I always find it motivating and it helps kick me into gear for the year ahead. Here we go...

This year has seen the Distractability Index at close to an all-time high and whilst that has got loads of stuff done, it means a LOT of it wasn't from Glorious Plan Millsy 2018 (or maybe it was?).

Focus! Focus damn you!!

The plan for 2018 consisted of three main goals...

1. Continuation of the 55 Days at Peking Project

This one stalled big time. Too much of a good thing proved to be a bit of a killer for the enthusiasm but I did still manage to knock out a unit of Japanese Infantry.

I also managed to get a couple of games in which was great fun.

On the plus side I jumped on the Warbases Boxer Rebellion Kickstarter and will be shortly receiving another 8 beautiful building kits in the post. Add those to the table plus a few unfinished items and it will really look the duck's nuts! Enthusiasm restored.

2. More Warhammer Fantasy Empire

Great progress with the Empire in 2018, largely thanks to the first Old World Army Challenge spurring me on. It's back again this year and I'll be continuing my Empire so there will be a lot more stuff completed in 2019.

3. Other Stuff Yet to be Decided

I hinted that SAGA Crusaders might make an appearance and they did. Well, the start of them anyway... The rest are prepped and will be appearing over the next few months in AHPC IX. I'm also tray basing as you can see for use in To the Strongest!

Now I mentioned earlier that the Distractability Index played a bit part in 2018 and here's proof...

Konflikt '47 United States Army

Unplanned and not even on the lead pile. One beer, a chat and suddenly I have a large (but painted!) US Army for Konflikt '47 and Bolt Action.

Kill Team

Another "where the hell did that come from" effort means I also have a Heretic Astartes Kill Team, the Half Dozen Second Cousins of Chaos...

Fantasy Skirmish Warband for Frostgrave

If Evan gets his finger out we might actually play a game one day...

And quite a few randoms as well...

For King and Parliament

Finally, Simon Miller's For King and Parliament got designed and laid out. It's proved a huge success and I'm absolutely stoked for him!

Glorious Plan Millsy 2019

Finish the SAGA Crusaders
Already started, fully prepped and I'm keen as mustard to get these done.

Konflikt '47 Germans
Yep, I bought another army. Double face palm.

To the Strongest Later Medieval
TWO armies for this, of which I already have approximately 60% of the material in the Cupboard of Shame - Burgundian Ordonnance and Italian Condottieri.

Warhammer Fantasy Empire
There's another 1000 points to be painted for OWAC II.

More Commission Design Work
I currently have another two projects on the go, both well advanced. One is for an existing client and the other a new one.

Plus goodness knows what else!

Happy New Year people. Looking forward to seeing all your stuff and welcoming you here in 2019.

Cheers,
Millsy