Hermit Hole

eBay is the Devil and Other News

2011-05-03T04:26:00.000-07:00

I know I know, I took two solid months off with no update. I got distracted by various things...

I recently decided that my son and I need some more "hobby cash." I took a look around the "man cave" and decided to part with a lot of the stuff that is just gathering dust on the shelves. We are going to cut all the excess 40K armies, our one extra fantasy army and see what that gets us. We may end up parting with the D&D books as well as we never play.

The two of us finally got into Warmachine/Hordes. He selected Trollbloods (bah... that was the army I wanted) and I picked Circle. I have painted and based up my starter box and will post some pictures as soon as I get my camera to play nice. I took some last night and it decided to blur up on me...

The local hobby shop does not support Warmachine/Hordes but we rarely visit anyway so no big loss. We will just play in the garage and infect those around us into joining.... (insert evil laugh here...)

Now, on to the title...

So I mentioned we have been going through our stuff deciding what to sell and what to keep...

As a test we put up all the ultramarines as one lump painted lot and it made it to $80. I am content with that. Nowhere near retail, but at this point the models were valued at $0 in the garage gathering dust. I was hoping for at least $50 and they passed.

Here is the issue I have with eBay... Three days now... No word from the buyer. No money... What is the deal? This douche bid and won in the last 90 seconds... I was watching it.

Oh well... what can you do...

General Hermit

2011-02-24T15:25:00.000-08:00

A big thanks to David over at his blog for finally teaching me how to take photos. I think my header image looks outstanding.

Today I have my incomplete Imperial Guard Army.

My 1 Leman Russ

My 1 Painted Sentinel (1 more unpainted... but close)

I have two Vendettas that I still need to finish the base on.

Guardsmen

The model that I think is the best miniature photo I have ever taken. Looking at this guy might make you even think I am a decent painter.... Maybe...

Photo Cube Review

2011-02-23T14:21:00.000-08:00

It will tear your soul apart...

Wait... Nevermind that is the wrong cube...

Here is the cube fully packed.

Here is the cube unpacked and expanded with the white backdrop in place.

Here are three of the four color backdrops.

Here is the light packed and unpacked.

Here is the camera stand packed and unpacked.

Pros...
Packs up really nice.
Multiple backdrops.
Simple and easy to use.

Cons...
Lights get hot.
Feels like I still need more light...

I know my camera sucks... I have said that plenty lately, but I still feel that my lighting may be off. I plan on buying a painting light and will get that to shine in the top to see if that improves my lighting. I am new to this whole thing so it may be plenty.

All in all I am pleased with my purchase and if I had to score it, I would give it a 4 out of 5.

On a different note... Check this out...

Some amazing orks

Nice looking guard

Sept Hermit - Hindsight

2011-02-22T14:47:00.001-08:00

I need the mutant power of hindsight. What do I mean by this? Allow me to explain...

I want to be able to look at something as if I have known it for weeks, months, or even years... Yea... That would work.

Today, I have for your "viewing pleasure" (pffft... yea right) my Sept Hermit. Several years ago I saw a golden demon winner do his Tau with a similar color scheme and I though it was very unique and looked cool. This... what you see here... is my version...

My 1 Completed Crisis Suit... Yea... He needs a plasma rifle, but I love the look of the burst cannon...

My 3 Stealth Suits

My 1 completed Devilfish... Less the drones

My 1 completed Fire Warrior Squad

You may be saying... "Hermit, what does this have to do with mutant powers, hindsight, or professor x?"

Well... I will tell you, if you are still reading this, then my randomness should see normal by now. I will then tell you that I am getting to it... Be patient...

Overall, I like the way the models look. I think they do look unique on a table. I have never played with anyone who has something different like them.

My problems are that up close, they do not do it for me anymore. I am a fast/lazy painter. I tend to get stuff done in a hurry. I can paint squads quick. I can paint vehicles quick. This is a blessing and a curse. I have problems slowing down. I think I even convince myself that a model looks good when in fact if does not.

I would like you to scroll back up and look at the Devilfish again. Go... I will wait....

Did you see that time? It is not "clean." The yellow is horrible. The orange is horrible. The "lines" are sloppy. How did I let this pass inspection? A conundrum I know.... Will I fix it? Who knows, I have tons of other things I would love to do...

That paint job takes a lot of work too... There are like four shades of blue there, then a tealish color. Two shades of orange... Then Yellow. I hate orange and yellow. I just do not get how people get them to come out clean. Mine looks like rubbish.

I love the Tau models. I love what my paint job should look like, and it does look good on the table. I just can not endure that orange and yellow....

/sigh

I know... I need a better camera... Some of those images look like blurry crap...

Sanity

2011-02-17T16:10:00.000-08:00

Best Site Ever

I think there is a portion of this hobby that we all "know and love" that lends itself to a certain amount of insanity. I could look back at my blogs and see how fickle I am in my decisions.

I just made a purchase...

Here is my 1500 Point IG List that I am aiming for. It will be my standard gaming list until I buy and paint some options... Like that 12 Vendetta list I posted yesterday...

CCS
4 Meltas, Melta Bomb, Chimera, Heavy Stubber

PCS
4 Meltas, Melta Bomb, Chimera, Heavy Stubber

PCS
4 Meltas, Melta Bomb, Chimera, Heavy Stubber

IS
Vendetta

IS
Vendetta

IS
Vendetta

IS
Vendetta

Leman Russ
Heavy Bolter Sponsons

Leman Russ
Heavy Bolter Sponsons

Total comes to 1500 exactly. Do I really need the melta bombs? No... but I had 15 more points to spare and I like symmetry.

I will try and stick to just this project until at least this points value is fully painted and complete.

We shall see...

Plastic Wierdboy

2011-02-16T15:14:00.000-08:00

This is nothing new... I have had it for a while...

"Hermit, why did you post it then you nub?" You may be saying...

I got my Photo Cube today and the Wierdboy is my test. The Cube seems cool, but I think I need a new camera. The images seem blurry still... If you know why I suck, please let me know...

There he is in all his plastic glory. Not the best in the world but if you play orks he can be free...

Parts I used
-Ork Boy
-Ork Slaver
-Ork Nob (The one in the boyz box)
-Random Skullz
-Base from a Chaos Lord
-Cloak from a Chaos Warrior

He is simple really and I do not think he looks half bad. I have been debating making a second one and if I do I will make a proper tutorial.

Back to the Photo Cube...

I will do a full review later...

I want to play with it a bit first, but so far I like it.

Dirty Liar

2011-02-15T17:35:00.000-08:00

I recently made a post that I plan on updating once a month... kind of...

I have to be honest with myself... There is no way I can hold myself back from buying cool models.

The main reason I got into this hobby back in 1997 (Hermit you are old....) was because I enjoyed the models. One could not tell that from the quality of my paint job back then... but it was true none the less.

I think I just need to be a little more focused in my projects and try to pace myself better.

I have heard all the cool rumors about the new Grey Knights and I am overjoyed. I always found the models to be cool. Now they are probably going to cost a ton on the table so I can collect a small (1500 or so) force and it will be a neat little project. Just the sort of thing I need.

I have Tau I want to finish, but I will probably wait until the new codex... no matter how long it takes.

I have Necrons I want to finish, but I will probably wait until the new codex... no matter how long it takes.

Orks... Lets just face the facts here... I will never stop buying orks. I just love those guys and the crazy things that can be done. They are also a blast to play.

IG... I think this will be my current project. Did you know that my first ever fully painted army was a Catachan Army that I force myself to complete after the Catachan plastics were released? I sold that Army on Ebay shortly after joining the army. We were more or less broke... I miss those guys....

I came across this post this week and that gives me inspiration for doing something with the bases on my Vendettas. I will work on those suckers and try to do the Cadian 127th proud as I ninja (read pay homage to his brilliant idea) on my own two of nine. Kind of sounds like borg when phrased like that...

I suppose when it comes to buying new models... resistance is futile...

Fire from the Sky

2011-02-13T17:03:00.001-08:00

Dear internet...

I need 7 of you to buy and send me some vendettas...

I have this insane list I want to field just for the heck of it...

1500 Point IG

CCS (50)

PCS (30)

IS (50)

IS (50)

Veteran Squad (70)

Veteran Squad (70)

Vendetta x 3 (390)

Vendetta x 3 (390)

Vendetta x 3 (390)

This only comes up to 1490 points. Will it work? Who cares? Can you imagine the looks I would get if I put 9 vendettas on the table? It would be great. I would never field it all the time, but it would be a fantastic game.

Not to mention the fact that I have 27 Lascannons...

Granted... I could only target 3 units a turn...

I needs it my precious... Larfleeze demands it...

When this is done I could add it to my 15 deffkopta list, or my 15 sentinel list that was only legal back when you could attach 3 sentinels to your CCS...

If I spend my model allowance on one a month... it would only take over half a year to complete...

Check back in August dear reader...

Hermit vs Son Bat Rep

2011-02-12T12:52:00.000-08:00

Hermit : 1000 Point IG
CCS, 4 Melta, Plasma Pistol
Chimera, Heavy Stubber

PCS, 4 Melta
Chimera, Heavy Stubber

IS
Ventatta

IS
Ventatta

Vet Squad, Autocannon

Vet Squad, Autocannon

Leman Russ
Heavy Bolter Sponson, Heavy Stubber

Son of Hermit:
Chaos Termie Lord, 2 LC, Khorne
5 Beserkers
Skull Champ, Power Weapon
Land Raider

Chaos Termie Lord, Combi-Melta, Nurgle
6 Plague Marines, 2 Melta
Plague Champ, Power Fist

6 Beserkers
Skull Champ, Power Weapon
Rhino

6 Beserkers
Skull Champ, Power Weapon
Rhino

Defiler

Game was Seize Ground and Spearhead. I won first round and he failed to seize initiative.

End of Round 1. Score 2 - 1
Vendatta targets Rhino and wrecks it. Vendatta 2 targets Land Raider and immobilises it and 1 Lascannon is blown off. Leman Russ Targets Plague Marines with Battle Cannon killing 3.

Beserkers move out of wreck and run. Termie Lord and Beserkers disembark from immobilised Land Raider and run. Due to LoS Defiler has few targets and fires battle cannon at Veteran Squad killing 1. Remaining Rhino drops off third squad of beserkers in my son's quarter and moves out to contest.

Round 2 End. Score 2 - 2
Leman Russ, and thePCS Chimera kill the remainder of plague Marines. One Vendatta wrecks the Defiler. Vendatta, CCS Chimera and both Veteran Squads kill 3 Beserkers in Khorne Lord's Squad.

Beserkers squads now sitting on two objectives. Khorne Lord and his squad, along with Nurgle Lord continue to run forward trying to close gap. Land Raider fires remaining Lascannon Immobilising PCS Chimera.

Round 3 End. Score 2 - 2
Leman Russ has to shift for better lane of fire. One Vendetta targets Land Raider taking its second Lascannon. PCS and Chimera target Nurgle Lord and fail get past his save. Vendetta, both Veteran Squads, CCS squad and their Chimera kill off the Khorne Lord's squad and give him two wounds (I cheated and let him have eternal warrior...)

Rhino moves in closer and pops smoke. Khorne Lord and Nurgle Lord close the gap... Nothing else to be done.

Round 4 End. Score 2 - 2 (1 Contested)
Veteran Squad moves to claim objective deep in my quarter. Vendetta targets beserkers in my son's quarter and kill two. Leman Russ targets Rhino and misses. Vendatta and Veteran Squad finish off Khorne Lord. CCS and Chimera target and kill 3 berserkers in squad in top right quarter. PCS and Chimera target Nurgle Lord taking two wounds (again... cheater... eternal warrior).

Nurgle Lord pops PCS Chimera with combi-melta all guard make their save. Rhino close gap to be in contest range next turn. Beserkers in son's quarter move into cover smartly still holding objective.

...

...

No image for Round 5. Sorry I am such a loser... Table is cleaned up now too late...

/sigh

Round 5 End. Score 4 - 1
Vendatta destroyed remaining Rhino. PCS finally took down the Nurgle Lord. CCS Chimera moved to contest objective then melted the remaining beserkers.

4 Beserkers hunkered down in the woodline on in my son's quarter and we called it...

"But Hermit... what the heck was that ork trukk doing on the field? And those unpainted PCS... And that unfinished Chimera... You suck!" You might say...

I hear you... I do suck. I need to finish. My shame is my own...

I suppose if I deduct point for my unpainted crap and my proxy chimera it was a tie...

All in all a fun game. My son and I enjoy our games. Question for the Dad's out there... Do you let your son win? I do not. I cheat for him often, but never yield. I always give him a handicap, but again... never yield. I want him to get better. I want to challenge him. What are your thoughts?

Light Box Incoming

2011-02-10T15:02:00.000-08:00

Well I broke down and purchased a real light box. It should be here in a week or so.

Despite this awesome Tutorial for how to make one yourself I bought one. Yea... I know... That could have been more models... Yes yes, I hear you Larfleeze...

This one comes with a mini-stand for my camera, two photo lights, and the little tent. It should be a 16 inch cube and I guess I shall review it when it actually arrives. Then the whole internet (read both of you who come here) can laugh at me for still not having the quality of images on most real blogs...

Down with the Sickness

2011-02-09T09:05:00.000-08:00

I think I have some sort of sickness. I think we all have this sickness. What is it about the miniature collecting hobby that makes me want to own it all?

Have I been contaminated by Larfleeze?

I can not seem to stop myself.

It would be so easy if I could just say... Look... I only play orks, so there.

I can't...

What happens is that I start reading blogs and trolling the net on my break at work and see something really cool. I then think to myself "Self, we need that. I think we could paint that up to where it would like nice on a table top."

I made a post a while back where I listed all the things that I currently needed to finish. That list is pretty big. Not massive, but enough to keep me busy for a while. I do not need any other armies.

BAM!

That is when it happens. I troll through the net and find something like this. I think I could pull off something like that. Do not get me wrong, my Deathwing would not look nearly as nice as his, but I think I could do make it look decent.

I own all these codex... codeci... whatever... And then want to try out a small Dark Eldar list... Blood Angel.... Space Wolf... Black Templar... Dark Angel (I have some Ravenwing, but need more per the Larfleeze comment above.)

Where does it end?

Money. Money and time. If these two items were limitless I think I would have to own a wharehouse for all my junk...

/sigh

Storage on the Cheap

2011-02-08T15:27:00.001-08:00

I recently came across a new blogger, Lyashk, who was writing about a customized case he had finished and was working on a tutorial for how he did it. I called him out demanding images, and he has quickly responded... Cool Case.

I realize I am not an uber blogger. I do not have a high readership. I do know that I get a decent amount of traffic. If you come across this blog and have found some storage on the cheap please let me know. I am not saying I do not like the GW cases or the Battle Foam Cases. On the contrary, those cases rock...

My issue is I would rather invest my cash in models and not a fortune in cases.

Here is my set up in case you are wondering...

The game room with $34 shelving from Lowes/Home Depot (Local DIY store)

A Plano style tackle box that I picked up from Bass Pro Shops. Walmart, Target, and many other stores would sell the same.

Various armies and how they fit in the plano style boxes. I would not recommend for "delicate" models but it works great with plastic guys. As you can see I have several different sizes all fitting in there.

I want to emphasize that I do not think my way is the best. It is a work in progress and I have a real hard time carrying vehicles and such with this system. If you have ideas/links please share.

Hive Fleet Hermit

2011-02-07T14:50:00.001-08:00

Today's Gallery post is Hive Fleet Hermit. This is one of the oldest armies that I still own. I may not be the best painter in the world, but I have improved over the years. I am not quite satisfied with these guys, but... meh... oh well.. They are there and yet another army that I can have small games with.

As with the Ultra-Hermits I have several low level lists of Nids. I have enough models to where I can play a variety of types of armies. I own the new codex, but have yet to buy a single new miniature. All that stuff is "ancient"...

I was trying to achieve a realistic bug look to them. I painted them dark with "toxic" scorpion green dots all over the army. Individually they may not look that nice, but in one big mass I think I accomplished what I was aiming for. I think I am done for good with them though. If I ever go back to the nids I will try a different color scheme..

Too many projects... Not nearly enough time.

This post wraps up my completed armies. I have over 3k of painted orks not including my Stompa, but I am trying to hold myself to only posting my fully painted forces. Kind of forcing myself to complete the job to show off my work... For what it is worth...

My son is trying to finish up his chaos and he wants me to post them too. If you are reading this... and you lurk... I implore you to shower him with compliments when I post his chaos... It will do him good...

Ultra-Hermit

2011-02-06T12:14:00.001-08:00

To continue with my fully painted mini-armies, today I preset my Ultra-Hermits.

My images are still not up to par. I know... I am working on that. I found this though and fully intend on trying it out...

Photo Box

I really have not full list for my Ultra-Hermits, they are just there. I have made numerous 500 point battles with them and have enough guys to be flexible. I could probably field 1000 points or so if I really tried. These guys are just here... Starter boxes from several editions of 40k for the tactical squad. The assault marines, well... I just really wanted to paint them.

Necro-Hermits.... Necrons?

2011-02-05T13:30:00.000-08:00

Here are the Necro-Hermits...

I know...

Another massive army, but I am a creature of habit and often buy things just because they are there. Do I have any thoughts of every fielding 2000 points of these small armies? No. I do enjoy painting them up though and if "Ka" has it in store then the army will grow one cool model/unit at a time.

This Army Weighs in at a massive 500 Points on the dot...

Lord (140)
Res Orb

Warriors (180)
10 Warriors

Warriors (180)
10 Warriors

The observant among you may have noticed that lone destroyer lurking in the background.... He currently does not have a slot in the list and is all alone as I used his two brothers for parts.

Did you see that Necron Lord?

He was a warrior at one time that now has a Destroyer Torso, a Banner Pole from a Chaos Warrior, A cloak from a Chaos Warrior, and some green stuff. Perhaps not the greatest conversion work in the world, but I like him.

You may have also noticed that thumb like object in one of the images.... Yea... I maybe need a few things... I need a better camera? I need a proper photo area? I need better lighting in the Garage/Cave/Gameroom.

Saim Hermit

2011-02-04T15:33:00.000-08:00

Ok...

After the demoralizing post the other day about how much I have left to do I figured I would maybe post some of the things I have complete. I will start off with my very meager Saim Hermit Army.

Weighing in at a mere 500 (492 to be exact) points it is perfect for a fun game with friends or my son...

Farseer (108)
Jetbike, Singing Spear, Guide

Guardian Jetbike Squad (152)
6 Guardians, 2 Shuriken Cannons

Guardian Jetbike Squad (152)
6 Guardians, 2 Shuriken Cannons

Vyper (70)
Starcannon, Shuriken Cannon

Greatest Game of 40k... Ever...

2011-02-03T15:04:00.000-08:00

I think the pictures say it all...

Does 40k get any better?

Did you see the quality of those miniatures?

Does a father's heart good to see his daughter's playing on "Daddy's World" with their own "armies" and their very own pink dice. They ask me quite often for a sister's of Battle Army of their own...

I tell them "Some day girls."

And hope one day GW makes a plastic "Space Girl" army for my daughters.

Taking Inventory

2011-01-28T11:02:00.000-08:00

This is something that I am going to try and do on at least a monthly basis...

It may help to keep me "honest" and on track about what my son and I are buying for our gaming habit and may shame me into making sure it all gets painted. The bright side is I have not bought any models in over 6 months. The down side... I have not painted in over a year... Time to catch up :)

The aftermath of the last 40k game between my son and I.

Tau

IG

There are also 12 more Guard that need to be painted.

Ravenwing

Sadly, all I did was that one test model to see if I liked how it looked. I did like it, but then rediscovered WoW and forgot the rest...

Orks

This is the list that is going to be painful.
5 Converted meganobz in the imaged above.
10 Grots
10 Stormboyz with one Nob
5 Lootas with one Mekboy
1 Converted Painboy
9 Boyz with Big Shootas
6 Boyz with Rokkits
61 Slugga Boyz
22 Shoota Boyz

At this point in time I do not plan on buying any more models until all of that is complete. However... I have said this in the past and just look at that list.

/sigh

I may take some terrain breaks and I will post here if for no other reason that I can look back in a year and chuckle.

Like a Yo-Yo

2011-01-28T09:34:00.000-08:00

I have realized that my personality + WoW = bad combination.

I have played WoW off and on for maybe 5 years now. I started about 3 months after release and have played both horde and alliance since then. I have never really grown bored with the game. I love the game. I love leveling multiple toons. My problem is I tend to go all out with my current hobby. With a "never-ending" game such as WoW, that caused issues. I wanted to spend more and more of my time playing and less and less time with my family. I love me some WoW, but not more than my family.

So...

What to do now?

My son and I have a rather substantial collection of 40k (perhaps you heard about the addictive personality...) My have been toying around with the idea of playing Warmachine or Hordes as well. We have played a few "proxy" games, but have yet to buy any models. I think that will be changing soon.

We are not going to quit 40k, but small games of 40k just do not feel the same. Army composition is just horrible for a small game. My definition of small here is maybe 45 minutes to 1.5 hours. Something that can be played during one evening without taking the whole evening. Our games of 40k are limited for this very reason. Our proxy games of Warmachine and Hordes at the 35 point level can fit in here nicely. We have a 4 x 8 table in our garage/playroom and lots of terrain. We could split that in half and get in multiple games during one evening.

I have been considering getting back into the modeling portion of this hobby for a while and maybe even posting some v-logs or something.

Only time will tell.

I have stated this in the the past and do not mind repeating it. This blog is as much for me so I can look back at my progress and time spent as it is for the people who stop by... Both of you....

My 2nd Favorite Zone

2011-01-07T07:22:00.000-08:00

I would have to say that for me, Nagrand is the best zone of all time. The reason I feel this is a collection of factors that all add up to a really good zone. I have hit Nagrand on all my toons that have made it to Outlands (7 so far) and will continue to do so. It is the most refreshing area of Outland. When you get to Outlands you are faced with destruction, then more destruction, then more destruction, with a side of funky mushroom forests. I liked the quests in the area. I liked the mobs in the area. I find myself wishing there was more Nagrand… somewhere…. Someday…

With that out of the way I can now continue on to today’s topic. My second favorite zone thus far in WoW… Uldum. I know there is a lot of debate on Uldum. Some complain about too many cut scenes. Some complain about not liking Harrison Jones. Some complain about not liking the Nazi flavor. Some just complain and do not know why.

I hear all these complaints and cry RUBBISH!

I am not saying they are not entitled to their own opinion, I am just saying that I like it for those very reasons that they do not. This is ok. It is more than ok. Blizzard will never be able to please everyone, not should they try. I found Uldum refreshing. It was new. It was exciting. It was fun.

I have always liked Tanaris. I have always liked Silithus. I like how Uldum feels like a natural flow from those areas. I love Egyptian mythology. I love silly references that some people get and others do not. I do not see it as lacking in imagination, I see it as a quirky sense of humor that appeals to my geeky nature.

The crocodiles… The hyenas… The Nazis… The Tol’vir… The little sand pygmy people… Even the camels!

All in all, it will never replace Nagrand in my heart, but it is the “Nagrand” of Cataclysm.

Northrend - So Fresh and Clean...

2011-01-04T14:24:00.000-08:00

I hit level 70 on the troll Druid. Still rocking...

This will mark the 7th time I have strolled into Borean Tundra and now...

Well, now it feels fresh again.

I have already started my cooking and fishing dailies in Dalaran. I have this sick compulsion to be a fisherman & chef on each and every toon, can not stop now.

One of the first quests I get to do is drive a warmachine around and run down some scourge. How can you not love that?

I am going a little more slowly now than I would like to go, but I kind of promised my son I would wait on him and level with him... Within reason. I told him if he goes to slow I will have no choice but to laugh maliciously and out pace him :)

Dark Eldar

2010-12-27T13:53:00.000-08:00

Dark Eldar

I bought myself the new Dark Eldar codex for Christmas. I have not entirely convinced myself to play them just yet, but having the codex never hurts. I am still and ork... I think I will always be an ork...

Variety is the spice of life...

Or so I hear.

In other news my Troll Druid hit level 51 last night, only 34 more levels to go until... well... until I can grind out rep I suppose :)

What am I up to?

2010-12-23T06:44:00.000-08:00

I have created another druid, this one a troll.

My son and I are still into 40K, although have not done a lot in the last year. I have been struggling with building a Dark Eldar army, but my son would rather I not. I am into mobility and really take advantage of this aspect of the game, and my son would rather I just fight like a man...

My son and I have also dabbled in Privateer Press games like Hordes and Warmachine. I am partial to Alligator Men, and my son is more into Steampunk Russians.

If it is a game, we have probably played it at one time or another. I even took my son to his first comic book convention this past summer. We had a blast and may make it a yearly event.

A Frenzy of Leveling

2010-12-22T06:52:00.000-08:00

Troll Boomkin

Per yesterday's post... I did it.

I decided not to transfer my Night Elf Boomkin and just moved an heirloom equipped one from Arathor. I am not slowly making my way through the levels so I can play current content with my friends.

I gained 5 levels last night....

Not bad, but not the best either. I will need to step up the pace some :)

A Little Help From My Friends

2010-12-21T14:50:00.000-08:00

So my dear readers...

Yes both of you...

As of the writing of this post I have a level 19 Troll Druid with full heirlooms making his was to a long time friends new server. Llanion Have not played with him in quite a while, but I was told one time that friendship can stand the test of time. I know from my perspective, I can still call him a friend.

If you are here, and you are reading this... There is no way you have not heard of the immortal Ratshag. He burst upon the blogging scene about the same time as me, but the guy is genius. His "guest" blogs are inspired. I can not really call him a friend, but I will make an effort to become one. We talked a good bit back then via blog messages encouraging each other and I even visited his server one time to get my "Pink Shirt."

I will be asking Stoppable Force to join his guild Builder's League United. I have never met this individual, but I have high hopes that between Llanion and Ratters that I should have no problem.

Return of the Hermit.... Maybe...

2010-12-17T04:21:00.001-08:00

I subscribed to sitemeter a loooooong time ago in a web-galaxy far away and it still shoots me e-mails from time to time to let me know how my dusty old blog is doing. For some odd reason, despite how long it has been since my last update, there are those of you who still stop by on occasion. I am not sure what "content" here kept you coming back as I see this as nothing more than rambling or maybe mildly amusing, but thanks for your support.

So...

I have been playing WoW again. I say that in the same way a drunk might say he decided alcohol is really not so bad... I hit 85 with my Boomkin on day two and have been in heroics. I have already bought all that I can use from the Justice Point vendor and now face the long Valor Point grind for an upgrade.

Heroics...

They hurt. They are insanely fun though when you get a group that tries. I feel as though I am in a 5 man raid each time I join up. Raid? Yes Raid. You sit in the LFD tool for 40 minutes as a dps waiting on a spot. There are then several wipes, sometimes a great deal more as you make progress. These bosses have a lot of fun mechanics and I am loving the encounters. Total time once in may be between 2 - 3 hours. So really... just like a raid night :)

A little story....

So...

Last night I am doing my daily valor point heroic and I get in a group of 4 other people from the same guild. My first thought is that is going to be a good run. There should be no rage-quitters from a guilded group. My second thought is, nice... Herioc SFK, one of the easier ones in my opinion.

The group chooses to not use CC... that should have been my first clue.

The group does not bother to explain the first boss to each other.... that should have been my second clue.

I stayed through this. We wiped twice on the first boss and it was only my brez, innervate, and tranquility combo meal that saved the third from being a wipe. No thanks issued, none required... I was doing my job.

Second boss...

Again no explanation. Again a wipe. Three wipes to be exact with no explanation. I run back in, I am the only one to take the portal, I rez the priest and eat while the rest of the gang runs through the instance. We all gather, I buff...

Now I am back at my fishing spot....

Yea...

I got kicked. No explanation. Just kicked. A 40 min camp in the LFG tool to join a fail group, to be kicked with no explanation as to why. My thoughts? I think they wanted to bring another guildie in the hopes that maybe he knew how to explain the fights to them.

Otherwise...

Cataclysm is amazing....

FFXIV

2009-10-24T11:14:00.000-07:00

FFXIV

I really have nothing else to say.

I loved the first version of this game and only quit because I went to Iraq. Now do not get me wrong there were many annoying things about the first one.

Rare Mobs...

Spawn Campers...

Once you hit 20 or so, unless you were leveling your Best Master you had to be in a group...

The concept of the Delevel still makes me cry lol

All of that though in no way takes away from my memory of this wonderful game. I loved the fact that you could do any and every "profession." On the same toon, you could be any and every class. All you had to do to change classes was go to your "mog house" and change. You would then pick up right where you left off.

I loved how they did the expansions. Unlocking the Ninja, Beast Master, Dragoon, Paladin, Summoner. Great little mini-quests. I did not make it to the next expansion, but I loved what I got to play.

Now I read on a Good Friend's Blog that there is a new version coming out next year? I am so stoked.

I was eagerly anticipating rocking the next WoW expansion, but if this pans out the way it has already done in my head... sorry WoW. I love you, but I am not "in love" with you :P

Solo Mode Unlocked!

2009-10-21T15:12:00.000-07:00

Before I get started allow me to make a few preliminary comments...

1. I have raided. I have numerous fond memories of Raids and if I had the "time" would love to do so again.

2. I have run instances. I have numerous fond memories of instances.

Comments over...

I want Blizzard to release a solo mode for instances. I want it to have three options... Solo, Regular, Heroic. I do not know how.. but I need this to happen.

You may have noticed that the name "hermit" appears frequently around here. I am some what of an introvert. I do have friends, but limit them kind of like Sheldon on the Big Bang Theory. When I game I am the same way. I would say that 80 - 90 percent of my time is spent doing solo tings. Farming, grinding, crafting, pvping, or leveling an alt.

I am trying to limit the impact that WoW has this time around on my family life. I do not want it to take up too much time that should be my families as a proper father and husband.

I really do not want to have to invest the time looking for a group that may or may not work out. I would rather be able to just step up and select solo mode.

The only person's time I would be on is my own.

The only person that I would have to wait on is me.

The only person that could do something stupid and get me killed is me.

Blizzard... Feel free to ninja this idea.

I would be happy if the only loot I could get would be world loot, gold, and maybe badges for gear. I would love access real loot but not sure that would be fair to those who love the groups.

At least this way a "hermit" like myself could still accomplish all the quests that I would like to accomplish. I could farm recipes from old world raids / instances. I could go into the next expansion still rocking epics without having to find 9 other people on my schedule.

Best 40K Game Ever!

2009-10-20T08:40:00.000-07:00

Last night a couple friends came over to the house for our weekly night of death and destruction. We were going to play a little doubles match...

My Son (Chaos) & I (Wolves) vs Carlos (Nids) & Nick (Blood Angels)

A couple of notes before I get started...

First
I have been playing 40k this time around for around a year. While there are things that I miss about 4th, 5th has been good to me. I am not gloating about my skill, far from it, but I have 1 loss under my belt in 5th. That loss came on my very first tournie game round 1, I did a lot better in 2 & 3. I have become the man to beat in my small gaming club (just 7 of us.) A lot of these guys are relatively new to the hobby and they really are not sure what the other armies can do just yet. I on the other hand, have played every army but Witch Hunters, Daemon Hunters, and Chaos Demons. I chalk it up to more experience than skill for my wins thus far.

Second
No, I am not really starting a wolf army to jump on the bandwagon. As my blog has shown I own a sampling army of everything but Witch Hunters, Daemon Hunters, Chaos Demons, and Dark Eldar. I just enjoying collecting... or rather maybe it is a sickness?

Back to the story at hand...

The game was great. We rolled up Seize Ground Spearhead. I lost the roll for our team and we were told to deploy first. My son and I deployed in mass, both rocking a more or less all assault army. I may write up a battle report later... I really need to start doing this...

Long story short.

Hermit & Son got the first charge and it was nasty... 10 Thunderwolves, Khorne Lord, 6 Beserkers. Call this wave 1.

Dante & Stealers got the second charge and it was nasty... Dante, Honor Guard, Assault Squad, and Genestealers. Call this wave 2.

Hermit & Son got 3rd and final charge and it was nasty... Nurgle Lord, 8 Plague Marines, Defiler, Wolf Lord, Wolf Priest, 12 Blood Claws, 6 Beserkers. Call this wave 3.

There was some shooting... But the game was all about that spot on the field covered in bodies.

NECROHERMIT

2009-10-11T10:23:00.001-07:00

This is a WoW update... for a 40k update tune in later :)

I started a Death Knight yesterday. I love the concept and wish that all classes could get revamped to take this kind of experience into account. It really was cool.

It took me about an hour to find some addons that I was okay with and get the UI just right. Perhaps when I get everything perfect I will list my addons here just in case anyone is interested.

Blizzard has this new thing where you can change realms. That is old news...

Now you can change gender, change faction, and change realms. That is news to me and something I think I will be taking advantage of. I have 4 70 level characters. I have 2 on the Alliance side and 2 on the Horde side. The few people that I still know and keep up with are Alliance side on the Skywall server so I will migrating that way. I will be moving my Horde Lock to a Human Lock and my Tauren Druid will become a NE Druid.

Poor Pathetic Soul

2009-10-09T15:27:00.000-07:00

There was a time when I was an Alt-Aholic. I played and invested a large amount of time into a game equally as addictive as 40K. Last May I quit... cold turkey.

I have been "sober" since then. That was over a year ago.

I returned to my previous love of Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40K. My addictive qualities were equally apparent and I now own a sampling of almost every army in 40k and 4 in Fantasy. That is not going away...

About 2 months ago I started having over heat issues on my well worn ibook G4. That little fellow served me well through the Army and overseas in Iraq. It died. My blog soon followed as my last post was in August.

I just bought a new family computer, still saving for my new one...

As I type this entry I am installing WoW...

I am not quitting 40k.

I am not quitting my blog.

This blog shall be henceforth reflect my efforts to play "CASUALLY" in WoW (insert laughter here) and 40k while still enjoying the love and affection of my family, food, sleep, work, and that ball of fire known as the sun...

How?

Indeed...

I have created a schedule... Yes... I am not lying... What kind of geek creates a gaming hobby schedule... Well... Did you miss all of that above text? You know the black writing in English?

Wish me luck....

Escalation League

2009-08-15T18:20:00.000-07:00

Some friends and I have been getting together and playing a lot of games lately in my "Dungeon" / Garage. We have been gaming on Monday nights and Saturday afternoons. It has been going well and we have a good group. We have been toying with the idea of putting something together and we finally broke down and did.

Here are our rules...

40K ESCALATION LEAGUE

Week 1 5 Sep 500 Annihilation Pitched
Week 2 12 Sep 550 Annihilation Spear Head
Week 3 19 Sep 600 Annihilation Dawn of War
Week 4 26 Sep 650 C&C Pitched
Week 5 3 Oct 700 C&C Spear Head
Week 6 10 Oct 750 C&C Dawn of War
Week 7 17 Oct 800 Seize Ground Pitched
Week 8 24 Oct 850 Seize Ground Pitched
Week 9 31 Oct 900 Seize Ground Pitched
Week 10 7 Nov 950 Random Random
Week 11 14 Nov 1000 Random Random
Week 12 21 Nov 1250 Random Random

RULES
• 1 Troop Selection is required.
• No Model with more than 2 wounds allowed.
• No Save or 2+
• No Model with an AV of 34+ (Add up all the sides)
• Anything else in your codex may be fielded up to 2 HQ, 3 Elite, 6 Troop, 3 Fast, and/or 3 Heavy.
• If you lose you roll once on the “terrain” chart.
• If you draw/tie you roll once on the “terrain” chart.
• If you win you roll twice, and get to pick which roll to keep, on the “terrain” chart.
• You may trade 2 “terrain” for another roll.
• No more than 2 “terrain” gained per week allowed.

TERRAIN (2d6)
1. How? Really… How did you roll this on 2 dice?
2. Elite – An Extra Elite. This Elite may have a save of 2+
3. Save – You may field a single “unit” with a 2+ Save
4. HQ – An Extra HQ. This HQ unit may have more than 2 wounds, and a save of 2+
5. Heavy – An Extra Heavy. This Heavy may have any AV.
6. More Points – You may field an extra 50 Points.
7. Troop – An Extra Troop.
8. Fast – An Extra Fast Attack.
9. Veterans – You may add +1 to any of the following stats for a single “unit”. WS, BS, S, T, I, LD, A.
10. AV – You may field a Vehicle with any AV.
11. Wounds – You may field a single “unit” with more than 2 wounds
12. CHOICE – You may choose any one “terrain.”

Still Alive

2009-07-26T13:04:00.001-07:00

I am still alive.

Life has a way of catching up to us and things become "confused" for a lack of a better word. I abandoned the blog-o-sphere without a note and apologize. I allowed my blog to become a "chore" rather than an expression of my local gaming, and because of that it became a burden.

I allowed myself to get into the rut of, I must post as people... both of them... are expecting an update. I started this blog for fun, but every now and then "duty" takes over.

I have done a lot of painting and building in my time off though.

I have 500 points painted of the following...

Saim-Hermit
Sept Hermit
Necrons
IG (Although this list is changing soon to incorporate two vendettas)
Tyranids (Both horde version & Genestealers R Us)
Chaos (My Son's Army)
Ultra Hermits
WAAAGH!!!! Hermit (Both speed freaks version & Foot Sloggers)

I am currently painting up a 500 point Ravenwing.

I have plans on building each of these forces out to at least 1000 points. I will try and get some pics up of my progress sometime this week.

Hermit out.

Storage on the Cheap

2009-06-08T09:20:00.001-07:00

Plano 3600 Series

I am sure by now that most of you have struggled with the storage issue. I am sure that I am not alone here.

Per my last post... see below... These are a great storage solution.

The plastic boxes have customizable inserts that gives you some flexability in what it holds. The way that I have them gives me 36 "chambers" that can fit two space marines easy. So far I have been able to fit the following in with ease:

* Terminator (SB & PF)
* Terminator (SB & PW)
* Black Reach Captain
* Genestealer
* Two Space Marines
* Black Reach Space Marine Sergeant
* Two Guants
* Two Necron Warriors
* Khorne Beserker
* Chaos Lord (Terminator Armor & Lightning Claws)

As you can see they are pretty versatile and not that bad price wise either. Amazon lists them at $6.58 at the time I write this, but I found my batch at a Bass Pro Shop for around $4.50.

Spread the Wealth

2009-06-08T09:09:00.000-07:00

In between my various trips lately I have been undergoing a mission...

What is that mission?

Ah, allow me to explain...

I have a new goal in the 40K world that stems from showing my hobby off to the various people that I meet. In an effort to support that goal I have decided to slowly collect 500 points of all existing plastic armies.

This accomplishes two things at once for me.

1. It allows me to be able to paint a large variety of things so that I do not get burnt out on any given force... read millions of orcs...

2. It allows me to playtest my other armies against a large variety of models.

3. It allows me to showcase for any who care to see what ever army they may be interested in.

As of right now I have the following :

* Ultramarines
* Saim-Hann
* Tyranids
* Orcs
* Necrons
* Chaos Marines (Khorne & Nurgle)

This week I will be picking up the Tau or the Imperial Guard Box. I am going for Tau first, but it will be an "impulse" buy... so if they are out, then the Guard are next. I figure I should be able to keep this going for a while, and still collect my "real" army. Space Wolves and Dark Eldar should be next in the works.

The really good thing, in my opinion at least, is that they are all painted so far. I finished up my Saim-Hermit this weekend, and quickly painted up 20 Necrons and a plastic Lord this weekend.

Who knows, I may branch out and have a couple of different 500 point builds later or slowly take them up to 1000 points... only time will tell.

All Apologies

2009-05-26T16:10:00.001-07:00

Does anyone else hear Kurt in the background...

Sorry for the lack of updates, been hectic around here as of late. This post will be a minor update for my loyal readers... I owe both of you lunch or something...

I now have enough to field 500 points of Saim-Hermit. I broke down and bought some red spray paint and some Testor's Window Tint stuff. I have the vYper (odd spelling thanks to Sherpa... I saw him do it and thought it looked cool... NINJA!) and 4 jetbikes painted up. I have 1 "Farseer" painted red and tinted, along with 8 more jetbikes.

I have the Farseer in quotes as he will not really be my farseer bu rather one of my 5 warlocks later. I did a real simple conversion and ordered up some dire avenger bits. I really liked the exarch sword, so I ordered up 5. I also got the exarch chest piece and bare head. Not sure if the warlocks are supposed to be girls or not, but I liked the look so went with the dude.

For my Farseer I plan on Ninjaing another bloggers work and copying CJ. I thought that looked really good and will make my farseer stand out... Unless of course I ever meet up with CJ at a tournie or other event :)

Now...

You may be asking yourself... "Self... What is that testor's window tint Hermit is talking about?" Well... your self could not possibly answer that question as clearly you do not know. Unless of course you know what it is, at which point your are just messing with your self...

Ahem...

The Testor's Window Tint is a really neat product that a local gamer introduced me to. It is like a spray on wash. It is getting the look that I want for my jetbikes pretty quickly. At least the base coat and saves me a lot of work.

Sorry no images today... Lazy... Will post updates of Saim-Hermit soon.

Curse My Lack of Imagination...

2009-05-21T14:50:00.000-07:00

I found this to be absolutely amazing. Check out the full thread here...

Tau - Droid Federation

Reading through the pages it looks like everything is either green stuff or modified 40k bits... Necron, Tau, and some dabbling in other kits...

Much Improvement

2009-05-19T06:34:00.000-07:00

Last night my son and I played a game of 40k. He was tying out his Chaos Army that we are working on for him. I am building him a Plague Marine force, based off of what is nasty and what he likes. A blending of the two that fits the way he plays. I allowed him to choose what 500 point force I was going to play. My orks with new Warboss on bike, or my Saim-Hermit. He chose Saim-Hermit.

Saim-Hermit (500ish)
Farseer on bike, Doom, Shining Spear

6 Guardian Jetbikes, 2 Shuriken Cannons

6 Guardian Jetbikes, 2 Shuriken Cannons

Vyper, Starcannon, Shuriken Cannon

Nurgle Marines(900ish)
Chaos Lord, Terminator, Mark of Nurgle, Lightning claws

6 Plague Marines, 2 Meltagun, Champion, Power Weapon, Plasma Pistol

6 Plague Marines, 2 Meltagun, Champion, Power Weapon, Plasma Pistol

6 Plague Marines, 2 Meltagun, Champion, Power Weapon, Plasma Pistol

Defiler

It was a fun game. It was a tie, more importantly my son is learning from previous games. When I field my orks against him he spreads out so that my Warboss and company can not pile into everything at once. When I play Eldar he plays close so that I can not easily pick him off.

I managed to kill the Defiler and a couple of Plague Marines.

He took my Farseer and Vyper.

He killed more points that I, but not enough for a victory. He was close though and made sure that I knew it.

Forgeworld Warboss on Bike Painted

2009-05-14T17:48:00.000-07:00

As I have said before... I am not the best painter in the world. I am quick though...

Here for your viewing pleasure is my version of the Forgeworld Warboss on Bike. I love this model. The funny thing... I really have no intentions on fielding him. For the occasional Apoc game he will come out to play, otherwise he will just look dead sexy beside the stompa on my shelf.

Well... So now you know why I have posted so little this week... :)

Show & Tell

2009-05-12T04:17:00.001-07:00

I did not make it to the B-More Gamesday, I was busy hard at work in Miami... However, a buddy of mine made it. He waited in that long Forgeworld line around lunch for about 2 hours. He managed to grab the a bunch of Salamander stuff, and for me... He picked up a DeffRolla and the Warboss Biker.

The Warboss Biker is just sexy. The Deffrolla will require some modification on my part to get it to work. The way it is designed it does not "fit" onto the battlewagon.

I will keep you updated on how it all goes...

Hermit vs Trekkie

2009-05-08T14:02:00.001-07:00

Well... I saw the new movie today.

I will have to say this... if there is even a small trekkie located somewhere deep inside your being, then you need to see this. I thought it was a great movie. It had everything that a Trek Movie should have.

Kirk...
Spock...
Explosions...
Crazy Unbelievable Fight Scenes...
Hot Chicks...
Green Chicks...
Logical vs. the Illogical...
Nemoy...

As a matter of fact the only thing that was missing was Picard, Data, and Klingons (Namely Warf.)

Now I do not call myself a Trekkie... Although I have been called this before. In my opinion a true Trekkie knows episode numbers... I do not know episode numbers. Have I seen every episode?

Ummmm....

Can we forget that last question? No? Well maybe not every single episode of every single series... It took me a while to get into Voyager. There... See... I am not a Trekkie.

I have always been that Geek that goes to the movies opening day/night, or the Conventions and makes fun of the guys that show up dressed up...

Did I want to dress like a Klingon?

I do not think that question is any of your business... And the answer is yes.

The point is I did not.

Back to the topic at hand. I found this movie amazing. I plan on taking my wife to see it when I get back home. I have her excited about it finally. She wanted to see the previous 3 but I ruined them with my grumbling... I complained about the last 3 horribly both before and after. Well... I had high hopes for Locutus... but other than Picard the rest of the movie sucked :(

Hermit Hybrid

2009-05-06T15:46:00.000-07:00

I am sure most of you have seen the Kingon ads by now. I think they are great. I want the stupid Star Trek Glasses and as soon as I get back from this trip I am going to try and get them all at once.

I am a Hybrid Geek. I play D&D. I read comics. I love Star Wars & hate George Lucas. I love Star Trek while hating Wesley Crusher & William Riker. I have seen every episode of Babylon 5. I have Star Wars Miniatures. I read the Lord of the Rings Trilogy over again before each of the movies was released... and the Hobbit. I loved the Matrix... and wish they would come out with II & III. I have planted numerous Lawn Gnomes in my yard... both in and out of my garden. I play 40k.

Yep...

I am a non-specialized geek. A Geek of all Geeks if you will.

All of this to say... I am really looking forward to this new Star Trek Movie. Now I have seen them all. I have seen most at the theater. I have seen most on opening night... I will be watching this one this Friday unless things change.

Well... nothing of value here today...

I did manage to visit Key Largo and Key West today... My job sure is tough...

Traveling Hermit

2009-05-05T16:02:00.000-07:00

I am traveling this week so the blog may or may not get neglected :( I should be back this weekend and will return to the regular scheduled program....

In case you are wondering... I am in Miami :) I am getting paid to be in Miami. Yesterday I ate lunch on South Beach and my coworker and I got paid good money to sit around and enjoy the sights... We accomplished our mission before lunch, so the afternoon was ours.

Today... We hung out at the Dolphin Mall and ate at Texas de Brazil... Can you say gluttony? I can... Nothing makes you need some quality PT like eating there...

Tomorrow is Key West. We will be getting up real early to drive down and hopefully be done by lunch so that we can go enjoy some more beach sights...

Hard work... I know... Someone has to do it though, might as well be the Hermit :)

Below is my travel set up.

Yea...

I am in Miami and I am painting models...

Shush! I am happily married and painting these little guys rather than going clubbing is what keeps it that way :)

Tater Dread

2009-05-01T17:15:00.001-07:00

Ok...

One more, but this one is truly awesome... err... Orksome

Tater Dread

Check this Site Out

2009-05-01T17:02:00.000-07:00

Chest of Colors

I just stumbled upon this... here is a sample....

Hermit-Geek to the Rescue

2009-05-01T09:30:00.000-07:00

At my son's school this year they have this project that they are doing. It is not being limited to a science project, just anything you want to write about, then talk about, then create a display for.

My son and I have been watching this new show on Spike called Deadliest Warrior. The show places two of histories deadly warriors into a fight and lets a computer simulation determine the winner. I really could care less how accurate the show is, we enjoy the crazy fights and weapon demonstrations.

Up to this point his favorite warrior has been the gladiator. I do not know why... it just has.

Well for his project he wants the two of us to build a Colosseum cut out with some gladiators and roman soldiers and stuff. I think it will be great.

Now here is where my title comes into play... duhn duhn duhn! "Hermit-Geek to the Rescue"... See... That is called suspense... I just did that right there...

We are going to build it like we would terrain and paint it up like models. I will have to look for some gladiator types miniatures when we go to the hobby store tomorrow.

I am looking forward to this project and will post an image...

What? Bah... You will enjoy the image or else....

Contagion

2009-04-30T04:12:00.001-07:00

When I played WoW (World of Warcraft) I had this sickness... The sickness was called
Altivitus. In short I was always creating new toons / characters to play. I wanted to be able to experience all aspects of the game. I have my primary 4 toons, but that was just not good enough.

I have discovered / realized recently that this "Contagion" is spreading. I now know that this same infection affects my 40k too. I have this insatiable need to play many different builds, with many different armies. Most of the time it is sparked simply by seeing a really cool model. Sometimes it is sparked by seeing a cool conversion such as the Dakkalith from the previous post. Whatever causes it... I have it.

I love my orks I think because they have the most diverse collection of models. If I so choose I can take any vehicle from any model and put some orky know-how to it. I will be able to field that model, and it will work. Take for instance the upcoming Valkrie release. Do I currently play IG? Nope. I want a huge Cadian force, but am trying to hold myself back.

What will I do then? Hmmmm... Sounds to me like WAAAGH! Hermit is getting a couple of fighta-bombas. Will it be the best option? Nope. Will it be used in 95% of my games... Nope. It will look crazy on my gaming shelf though for all (rather the people that come to my garage) to see.

What is the cure? I am not sure there is one. If you are still reading this... I am afraid that you have been infected... I hope that you are immune.

What I need to make the symptoms less painful would be a Mercenary / Pirate / Raider list. When I first started this hobby I played fantasy and this Army list came out called Dogs of War. I thought this was simply amazing. The ability to have a large variety of models that look different so that one such as me could try them all. I want that for 40k.

I recently bought a Vyper and painted it up to my gaming standard. I like the model, which is sitting in front of the marines on my shelves. I purchased 4 Jetbikes to go along with him to start my Eldar army. I am wondering now if I still want to follow that army through... or was it just a need to paint that really cool model up?

I want to paint some Cadians. I want to try out my own version of Ron's Marines. I want to paint some Crisis Suits, a Pirahna, and a Hammerhead. I want to paint up a squad of Grey Knights. I want I want I want...

/sigh

I am going to have to develop my own Dogs of War rules for 40k even if the only place I can use it is my garage.

Dakkalith?

2009-04-29T17:47:00.000-07:00

Have you seen this? I found this to be simply amazing.

I found it on this guys blog...

Scarpia

Sadly in reading through some of his posts it appears that he no longer plays 40k. However... I think a monolith converted into a battle fortress count as battlewagon just for fun sounds amazing. I think it would look dead sexy next to my Stompa.

I will not call it a looted Monolith, and I do not choose to get into a fluff debate. I will just call it "Orkspiration" and say that some Mekboy decided to build a rolling pyramid.

Monday - Hermit Game Nights

2009-04-27T17:49:00.000-07:00

Monday's have become Hermit Game Nights around my house. My wife has a Bible study she goes to so the house is all mine from 6ish to 9ish... well... me and the kids.

Anyway...

So the guy I "converted" to miniature war gaming, Nick, has been coming over working out his Marine build. He is getting better quick, which is a good thing. He has been getting more Saturday games in than me too... So... It will not be long before my padawan confronts the master... heh

He is building up a Salamanders army and it is looking good. He is painting a lot. He has a lot of free time on his hands with a medical retirement from the Army. Really cool guy and picking up on the nuances of the game fast.

I have been running my basic Ork list and want feedback. I do not want to improve it. Nay! What I want is to make sure I have not cheesed him. I do not see my army as overkill, it is the standard 1500 that I run, just want anyone out there that comes across this to give me their thoughts.

Again... I am not trying to improve. What I am after is to make sure that I am not overpowered cheese here. We end up calling most of the games do to pending wipe. We have loads of fun, and that is what counts... I want to keep it that way.

Here is my list...

Warboss
Powerklaw, Twin-Link Shoota, Attack Squig

9 Nobz
3 PK, 3 Big Choppa, 3 Choppa, 3 Bosspole, 3 Eavy Armor

Battlewagon
4 Big Shoota, Zzap Gun, Armor Plates, Ard Case, Deff Rolla, Grot Riggers, Red Paint Job

19 Boyz & Nob
Big Shoota, Pk & Bosspole

Battlewagon
4 Big Shoota, Zzap Gun, Armor Plates, Ard Case, Deff Rolla, Grot Riggers, Red Paint Job

11 Boyz & Nob
PK & Bosspole, Trukk, Red Paint Job

4 Deffkopta
4 Twin-Link Rokkit Launcha, Buzzsaw

4 Deffkopta
4 Twin-Link Rokkit Launcha, Buzzsaw

Meganobz Conversion

2009-04-25T17:48:00.001-07:00

Ok. So... this is my first real attempt at conversion work. I have done minor things. Nothing major or significant.

I took one of the black reach terminators and went to orky town on him. I kept the whole terminator in there... buried under ork bits. I chopped off both hands and added proper orky ones.

I filed down the head into a "neck", added some green stuff to build up the armor around the head then added a nob head. I like the burna looking head. I added an armor plate up top to fill in the space.

I gave him a nice "skark" looking spike on top. I used some "gobs" for the boots. and some shoulder armor to take some of the marine look away from the arms. I added the burna backpack to his back and put on a nice armored ork loin cloth.

Oh...

Those guys behind the conversion...

Do not mind them, they are just a few of his friends.

Currently they are a nice "GRAY TIDE" one day they will grow up, get painted and be a proper GREEN TIDE.

Sorry for the lousy photos. I suck at photography and it is hit or miss with me. I am still trying new things in the game room with the lighting too...

In that last image... that is not too much shadow, it is just sunset on planet hermit...

By Popular Demand

2009-04-24T16:38:00.000-07:00

Ok... so everybody asked me...

"Hermit, how did you build the Proxidar so quickly? How did you get so much detail? We could use some guidance... tips even."

Well... My loyal readers... both of you... Here is my Tutorial...

PAPAERHAMMER and YOU

A list of materials...
Bowl
Spoon
Cereal
Milk
Scissors
Marker
Pen
Plastic Bag
Crayons
Bases
List
Inspiration

Step 1
Get your bowl, spoon, cereal and Milk. Eat. Repeat this step until cereal is gone.

Step 2
Cut up the cereal box.

Step 3
Gather your bases, pen, marker, scissors....

Step 4
Get your list...
Step 5
Take a base, your pen, and some cardboard. Place the base on the cardboard and trace.

Step 6
For those tricky models get yourself an image and draw it out.

Step 7
Now that your models are traced, you need to cut. Get your scissors and star cutting.

Step 8
Now most of you would recycle what is left. Some of you may discard it. These are both wrong. What you need to do is save all this extra stuff. In the modeling world we call this stuff "sprue" and bits. You need to put all this extra stuff in a bit box to use for conversions later...

Step 9
You may be asking yourself... "Self... but the Hammerhead has a turret?" You would of course be mentally imbalance and should seek help... You should at least be polite and answer yourself though. Tell your other personality or whatever you crazies call it that we have that covered. Get your scissors, pen, and cardboard...

Step 10
They make these little "button" things that are silver and brass. I did not have any. What I did have was an old folder. I cut the hinged tab things out. I punched a hole in the "turret" and the hammerhead. Push the hinged tab thing (yes that is the technical term) into the holes and you have a functional turret.

Step 11
Time to label. Get out your marker...

Step 12
Squads Hermit Squads! I hear you. CALM DOWN! Now... get out your crayons so that you can make proper squad markings...

Step 13
Now this is a big topic on the interweb... How best to transport your models? I have heard the talk about Battlefoam. I have seen and used Sabol Army Transport. I have seen and used the GW cases. I have even used Plano and other plastic boxes... All rubbish. Overpriced and not nearly cool enough. There is a secret company out there that makes great transport containers. Perfect. It will hold all of your models and fit in a backpack....

I hope that this tutorial has been informative. I know some may say "Hermit you suck." Well that is your choice. This is a free country.

I know some may complain that this is a hobby and paper models are just crap. Well... perhaps. I think unpainted models are crap too...

When all is said and done, this is a game folks. I play for fun. I am not rich. When my son and I, and my "trainees" want to game and try out new armies I am not going to go out and blow my mortgage on the newest army. This is cheap, and works just fine for having fun.

/cheers

Give Up

2009-04-24T04:16:00.000-07:00

Been waiting on my jetbikes from E-bay for over a week now. Got an e-mail yesterday stating that "My items have just been shipped." Nice...

I had been holding off on doing anything orky with the expectation that any day now I would be able to build and paint some jetbikes. Bah! No such luck now.

Last night after I got finished digging in my yard (Yay! Yard work) I sat down and could no longer put off the assembly of some orks. A couple months ago I purchased lots of black reach orks along with some orks to make shoota boyz. Well last night I sat myself down to assemble them. I now have 35 complete along with another 50 that are just legs and torsos...

/sigh

Quite the discouraging task.

Image ninjaed from Despair Inc

Attack of the Proxidar

2009-04-22T17:57:00.000-07:00

So here is my finest work yet. Perfectly based. Perfectly painted. I put this all together in one evening and it adds up to 2k.

I mean come on! Just look at that detail. Did you see the blending on that one Wave Serpent? Amazing! Highlights, shadows... I have simply outdone myself...

2000 Point Robotech

2009-04-21T16:19:00.000-07:00

Ok... So this is not really Robotech. It was false advertising... When I first thought of it though I though... hey... This reminds me of that cartoon I watched as a kid with all the Zentradi. It had jetbikes, and walkers and cool flying things... yea...

So here is what crazy idea that I came up with. I love crazy lists... and this is one of them.

NEW & Improved List (I did not realize the Walker weapons would not be twin-linked... thus the change)

Autarch
Avenger Shuriken Catapult

Autarch
Avenger Shuriken Catapult

9 Dire Avengers
Exarch, Bladestorm

Wave Serpent
Twin-Linked Brightlance, Star Engines

9 Dire Avengers
Exarch, Bladestorm

Wave Serpent
Twin-Linked Brightlance, Star Engines

Vyper Squad (3)
Brightlance

Vyper Squad (3)
Starcannon

Vyper Squad (3)
Eldar Missile Launcher

War Walker Squad (3)
Eldar Missile Launcher

War Walker Squad (3)
Starcannon

War Walker Squad (3)
Scatter Laser

Did you see that? 2000 points with 9 vypers and 9 war walkers... crazy. Is it a good list? I do not know... Do I care? Nope lol

As some of you may know I love to field crazy things... This certainly qualifies... Time to start buying up some models...

Sherpa, if you are reading this... Now who seems crazier :) Great job on those trees again.

Ninja Post

2009-04-20T03:19:00.000-07:00

Bit Box

I just stumbled upon this post. You may have read it. You may already do this. If not.. I think it is an amazing idea. It beats my cardboard bit box easy.

My Starter Eldar

2009-04-20T03:02:00.000-07:00

Ok... so here is how my first 500 points of Eldar shall go down. It may not be the most tactically sound, but it is what I want to see on the table. Often times I will play an army list that is weak just because it is how I want to see it fielded. I have my lists built all the way out to my proposed 2000 list, where in theory is where I want to stop.

500 ELDAR

FARSEER [113]
Farseer ( 55), Jetbike (30), Shining Spear (3), Doom (25)

GUARDIAN JETBIKE SQUAD [152]
6 Guardians (132), 2 Shuriken Cannon (20)

GUARDIAN JETBIKE SQUAD [152]
6 Guardians (132), 2 Shuriken Cannon (20)

VYPER SQUAD [80]
Vyper (45), Star Cannon (25), Shuriken Cannon (10)

In other news. I made up some "CD" terrain this weekend to test how I liked it. I think it turned out ok. I used the wrong type of glue on a couple of them and it really stands out, but otherwise I am happy. I will create some more and perhaps even do my very first ever tutorial... Not like this simple stuff needs one... This way I feel important though :)

Saim-Hermit

2009-04-17T18:29:00.000-07:00

I have watched too many of Fritz's videos as of late... Between him and my good blogging buddy Sherpa I just had to start my own.

At this past Hobbit RTT that I attended I really love my deffkoptas. That got me thinking... Why not do a whole army like that? hmmm...

Ravenwing? Nope

Dark Eldar? Nope (really close though)

Eldar? Nop... Yep!

Better yet... I shall run Saim-Hermit along side of WAAAGH! Hermit, and to a lesser extent my UltraHermits. I have a trend going... must keep with it.

Below you shall see how I put my meager painting skills to the eldar. I have 4 bikes on the way and just need some fantasy elf bits to convert up a seer council and start playing to do Fritz proud.

Final Round

2009-04-15T19:46:00.000-07:00

Ok... So... No photos of round 3...

I know I know. I had the camera. You see what happened was this...

I was playing a chaos player with Lash. I reached for my camera and he passed his psychic test. He then promptly rolled some dice and moved my camera just out of reach. It seemed like every time I went for the camera he used the power. I spent the whole game reaching for it, getting oh so close... but just came up with an epic fail.

It was a very close game. We both had an objective and both contested. We both killed the highest HQ of the opponent. The third "goal" was victory points. I killed more than he did and received 5 points for the game. A very informative game, as this was the first time I had seen lash... ever... Just an evil power. Lash + Demon Prince Ate my Warboss and all 10 Nobz in combat in one turn. Well... His close combat phase followed by mine that is.

So... What do I have for you? The following images of the painted armies for your enjoyment....

On another note... I am going camping for the weekend... Catch everyone later :)

Hobbit RTT - Round 2

2009-04-14T16:34:00.000-07:00

Ok... Here is how round number 2 went down.

I was up against some Eldar. Prior to the battle my Warboss from the previous game had a pep talk with the Nobz. In so many words he told them not to leave him behind this time, stick together, and chop some things. If things were chopped and less Nobz were shot... Maybe said Warboss could have a ride home.

As you can see from the photos it was really not going well for my opponent. I am sorry but I am lousy at names... I think his name was John... That is what I shall go with....

John was new to fighting orks and was really shocked when on turn two I charged both Wraithlords and both Wave Serpents. I crushed all 4. The Fire Dragons and Guardians piled out the back and were stuck. I just moved my Deff Koptas around in a haphazard way... flying to and fro wrecklessly as orks are prone to do...

Things went down hill from there for John. I felt bad as he was a really great guy. Unless I am playing a complete prick I hate to crush anyone. I love a close game, and love to win... just not like this was going. If you know John, tell him I said he is welcome to a rematch anytime.

He really had lousy rolls. Missing when he really needed to not miss. He managed to take down one of my Warbosses with massed Dire Avenger fire from two squads.

Between this game and and the previous I had ONE perfect game... 1 out of 20 from the first game (I killed a command platoon) and 19 out of 20 on this one.

Hobbit RTT Round 1

2009-04-13T18:02:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are some images from Round 1 of the local Hobbit RTT. This is an example of how not to win :)

This was a great first game. My opponent was friendly and we had a good time.

At this point you may notice a lonely Warboss talking to a Sentinel. He is asking the Sentinel...

"Hey... Have you seen a squad of Nobz around here? We rode together and now I think they left me?"

Now in this next image you may be thinking... Is that Warboss hiding? You would be sadly mistaken. You see what happened is that the friendly Sentinel from the previous image told the Warboss he thought he saw his Nob friends in the bunker...

Here the Warboss is just looking for his ride...

Hobbit RTT = Great Fun

2009-04-13T03:50:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday was my first ever 5th Edition RTT and my first set of real 5th edition games. I have a blast! It was loads of fun and I met a bunch of great local players. Now that I have got the first out of the way and my Army is properly painted I can start playing more often somewhere other than my garage.

List Here

My first game I was up against a Steel Legion army. It was fully painted, and Eric (the guard player) knew how to play it well. My orks smashed any guard unit they touched which just left them open to getting turned to paste by all that fire coming my way. I was tabled really, with only 1 Warboss surviving due to his cowardice. Loads of fun, and even with the nasty loss, still a great game.

My second game was against an Eldar player. I am not sure he ever played against orks as he was a little shocked by how quickly I hit him. Turn two did not go so well for him as I dropped both of his Wraithlords and two Wave serpents. It went down hill from there. Another good game, but... be honest, I would rather have my guys wiped off the board than to return the favor.

My 3rd game was against a 1k sons Army. He had a "lash" sorcerer / demon prince combo. Both had some insta-kill thing working along with re-rolling hits / wounds so my mob really didn't do anything against him. I killed his troops with my deffkoptas, and then shot his sorcerer and demon prince with my battlewagons and koptas. We tied for almost all of the "objectives" I only won by victory points.

I would say that the Chaos army list was my least favorite to play, even though it was the best game. It just seemed like every turn, shooting phase, assault there was something new. Orks just seem so much simpler. This turn they will hit you with their axe... I even own the Chaos codex... but I guess it might help to actually read it lol

I have lots of photos to show off and will post them up soon.

Closer to the Green Tide

2009-04-10T03:47:00.000-07:00

Last night I managed to finish up 10 more boyz. This puts me at 30 boyz total painted, 20 assembled and unpainted, and 70 unassembled waiting to be... well... everything. I am making slow buy steady progress. However... my total model count left to paint is going up???? Crazy.

A friend recently got the Black Reach set... I got all the orks. I also picked up a box of assault Marines to add to my "training" army.

I am looking forward to dropping the Green Tide Formation along with my Stompa and Deff Kopta Formation.

3 Formations = x
If Formations = Painted
Then x = Win

Wow... where did that come from....

On a less math geeky noted, I have a converted M.O.S.H. ork. I am not sure I am happy with it. I may throw a picture up anyway when he gets painted. I still have to make the "Wagon" and Tent. I may make these my objectives.

Hobbit RTT

2009-04-09T03:27:00.000-07:00

This Saturday will be my first RTT or any Tournament for 5th edition. It will mark the first time that I have played 5th edition with anyone other than my son or friends at my house. I did a lot of playing with 4th edition, but the Army kind of got in the way and I am just getting around to starting back up. I am going for the fun and to "introduce" myself to the local gaming community. I have gone down to the Hobbit on Saturday, but have really yet to play. This will be my first... Wish me well.

Here is what I am taking...

Warboss
Power Klaw, Twin-Link Shoota, 'Eavy Armor, Attack Squiq, Cybork Body

Warboss
Power Klaw, Twin-Link Shoota, 'Eavy Armor, Attack Squiq, Cybork Body

Nobz
3 Power Klaw, 3 Big Choppa, 1 Kombi-Skorcha, Count as Troops

Nobz
3 Power Klaw, 3 Big Choppa, 1 Kombi-Skorcha, Count as Troops

5 Deffkoptas
2 Buzzsaw, 5 Twin-Link Rokkit Launcha

5 Deffkoptas
2 Buzzsaw, 5 Twin-Link Rokkit Launcha

5 Deffkoptas
2 Buzzsaw, 5 Twin-Link Rokkit Launcha

Total 1995

I just want to see both my battlewagons and all 15 Deffkoptas on the table at the same time. This seemed like a good opportunity to show them all off. Win or lose... I am ready for some fun.

Stompa got Base

2009-04-07T18:05:00.000-07:00

Here are some shots of the latest completions. I am happy with the Stompa Base. I have seen better. I have seen lots better. But I have seen worse too... This one makes me happy and looks as good as anyone at the local hobby store. Until better painters / modelers move into town I am safe :)

Hermit Games Day

2009-04-05T16:21:00.000-07:00

So... Saturday is here...

Table set up... Check

Models ready... Check

Lists ready... Check

Dice and Templates ready... Check

Pizza and drinks ready... Check

Camera ready... Check

Well, not so much. The camera was there. The camera was ready. I just was not ready. I forgot to take photos. Bah!

No worry, it was a good game on Saturday. All went according to plan. Many questions were asked, and all involved had loads of fun. I decided to let my son invite a friend over and he played pokemon and wii all day. I figured the two new guys would get more out of it one on one.

Marines won by the way... Both guys now want to play Marines.

Today after church there was a baby shower. I am not going... On my way out the door, Nick (the guy who just started playing 40k) asks what I have going on. I say nothing. He says... want to play 40k again? It is on... This time... photos!

Following is how the game went down. I upped the points to 1k each, per Nick's request. He wanted to field some of the guys he already painted...

Newflash incoming... He just started playing. Has had the box since Wednesday... Already has 9 Marines painted up and his Dread... shame shame on all those with no models painted :P

My son asks to play and wants to field his Nids. No Problem. 1k Nids vs. 1k Marines vs. 1k Orks (WAAAGH! Hermit) I break the board up into three chunks and I take the "odd" spot.

Nick wins the roll and wants to go last. Cool. My son is next and wants to go first. Done. I am in the middle. My son begins moving his force. No shooting, just moving. I go second. I leave my lootas on their hill shoot at the gaunts and hit nothing. The rest of my force moves towards the marines getting ready for round 2. The marines move closer to my orks and my son's nids. Note... I allowed him to make "tactical errors" hoping he could learn more from mistakes. I pointed them out at the end of each turn. he managed to kill 1 ork with minimal shooting. He killed some genestealers on the opposite flank.

Turn 1 End

My son runs some more and engages the two Dreadnoughts with his Broodlord and Genestealers. He takes the arm off one and stuns the other. This combat goes on for most of the game. I fire at the guants with my lootas and take some down. I charge the first Marine squad and the captain with 2 squads of Orks and both squads of Deff Koptas. The Warboss and Nobz just run having horrible difficult terrain rolls. The Marine squad is slaughtered the Captain fails his leadership and falls back. He falls back and the orks give chase assaulting the Marine squad right behind. The Deff Koptas "hit and run" moving back. In the next Marine turn the terminators shoot at the koptas, one goes down and another has a wound. In the assault phase the captain and remaining squad are wiped out. On the other flank the Dreads kill a few more genestealers, and get stunned again. The other squad of Marines fires at some guants.

Turn 2 End

My son moves his guants towards my lootas and the rest of his army moves closer. The genestealers and broodlord still locked in combat. I call the WAAAGH! this turn and send my Warboss, 10 Nobz, and both boy squads at 5 lonely Terminators. The poor guys never knew what hit them. The last marine squad kills a few more guants and another genestealer... one lost an arm and the other is now immobile.

Turn 3 End

The guants close in on my lootas and between them and the zoanthrope there is one loota left... who passes a leadership test. I am evil and remove the close models so my son cannot assault (Such a great father...) The Carnifex joins the fight with the Dreads and has his way with them. Guants charge into the last Marine squad just to hold them so the Carnifex and Broodlord can say hey next turn. Orks run... Deff Koptas zip across the board to support the lonely loota.

Turn 4 End

My son for some reason tries to shoot my last loota to death rather than charge... and fails. His carnifex and Broodlord make short work of the last of the Marines. My 2 ork deff kopta squad charges what is left of the guants and kills them. My orks charge his Carnifex, and gaunts. Nothing remains when they are done.

Turn 5 End

Last turn of the game I tell my son... "Charge or get charged?" He charges his warriors, Broodlord, and remaining two genestealers at my orks. He kills 6 total, then gets killed. On the other side he charges his zoanthrope at my deffkoptas... Nothing happens... I miss he misses. My turn. I charge my Warboss, Nobz, and last boy squad into one Zoanthrope, then my remaining Deff kopta into the other. Only orks left on the field.

Turn 6 End
No Pics... To quote my son "Nobody wants to see more picks of stinky orks anyway..." I have to agree lol

Calm Before the Storm

2009-04-03T20:10:00.001-07:00

Here are some images of the playroom. Notice how it is all set up for tomorrow's training day? Marines vs Nids vs Orks. My son vs Brandon (Teen from Church) vs Nick (Friend from church). Looking forward to a good time. It may not be Adepticon (Wish I was there) but we shall have fun none-the-less.

750 Points for each force. In a nutshell here are the lists...

Marines
Captain
10 Man Tactical with Missile Launcher & Flamer
10 Man Tactical with Missile Launcher & Flamer
5 Man Terminator Squad
Dreadnought with Multi-melta

Nids
Broodlord with 11 Genestealers
3 Warriors with Venom Cannon & Devourer
20 Guants with Fleshborer
20 Guants with Fleshborer
2 Zoanthropes with Warp Blast

Orks
Warboss with Power Klaw
10 Nobz, 3 Power Klaw, 3 Big Choppa, 3 "Regular", 1 Skorcha
11 Boyz, Nob with Power Klaw, Big Shoota
11 Boyz, Nob with Power Klaw, Big Shoota
9 Lootas, Mek

I plan on having them play "Kill them all" for 6 turns with table quarters randomly chosen. It there is time, then they can switch armies and go again. We shall see...

Wish me luck...

Almost complete...

2009-04-03T04:30:00.000-07:00

Last night I was motivated to venture back into my painting area. I managed to complete the following...

Both Crew for my Trukk

Three new grots added to Stompa (Pending Base)

Painted terrain features on Stompa base and began work on Grot Swarm

Painted 2nd Black Reach Ork Boss (Minor Conversion work to make him different)

Painted 3 Nobz with Big Choppa

Painted 1 Nob with Kombi-Skorcha

Painting in smaller chunks is the way to go. I have lots more models to go, but progress helps stimulate motivation I think. I am excited about knocking another 5 Nobz out tonight and possibly finishing up my Stompa Base.

Currently I have this left...

5 Lootas (Primary colors applied, need detail)

9 Slugga Boyz (Primary colors applied, need detail)

9 Shoota Boyz (Primary colors applied, need detail)

2 Big Shoota Boyz (Primary colors applied, need detail)

2 Rokkit Launcha Boyz (Primary colors applied, need detail)

3 Nobz with Big Choppa (Primary colors applied, need detail)

3 Nobz with Power Klaw (Primary colors applied, need detail)

1 Ammo Runt (Primary colors applied, need detail)

4 Stormboyz & Nob (Assembled & Primed Black)

1 GW "Forest" (Assembled)

1 Trukk (Still on Sprue)

65 Boyz (Still on Sprue)

Tomorrow I get another set of the Black Reach Orks from Nick... so the numbers shall increase. Not that I am complaining... It is good to have a horde... Better to have them assembled and painted... But still good :)

Gateway Drug

2009-04-02T04:07:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday after church my family (Wife & 3 kids) went out to Ryan's (a buffet style restaurant) with another couple (Nick & Lisa) with a little girl (Riley). Over the course of the meal video games came up. During that discussion Dawn of War II came up.

Now as Nick and I are waxing poetic over Dawn of War II he asks if I have ever played the first one. I scoff at the idea and say of course. I played the first one. I then go on to drop that I have been playing "Dawn of War" since around 1997. He looks a little confused and says he thought the game was a lot newer than that.

I then begin to try and explain 40k...

He makes a lot of comparisons to DoW throughout my oration asking how this works... or that works...

To make a long story, a little bit shorter... Last night before I go to church (Wed is youth night and I and the teacher) I get a text asking...

"Would you be willing to trade your marines for my orks?"

Stunned! That describes how I was...

Nick had gone out earlier that day and picked up Black Reach, the Marine Codex, some paints, and a few other things. Amazing. What started as a great video game conversation about DoW progressed into a "sales pitch" for my hobby from me and now I can welcome a friend to the addiction that I now endure.

This Saturday around noon will be his first game. I have Nick and a kid from church who also wants to learn how to play coming over to my house to play in the garage / gaming room. I think I will have them do a small game about 750 points as I have 3 (4 if you count proxy) armies that could be used.

I have around 1000 points worth of Space Marines... 3 Tac squads with flamer, Missile Launcher, and Vet. 1 Dreadnought with Multi-Melta. 5 Terminators. The captain from Black Reach.

I have around 1000 points worth of Tyranids... 2 Squads of 20 Termaguants with fleshborers. 6 Genestealers. Broodlord with 6 Genestealers. 3 Warriors (Venom Cannon, Devourer). 2 Biovores & 2 Old School Zoanthroapes. 1 Carnifex with scything talons.

I have lots of star wars miniatures (stormtroopers and clone troopers yay!)that proxy as guardsman just fine. Plenty of Jedi that become officers. They even have special weapons and I have oversized models (read sentinels). I can do 2000 points easy with my pretend guard.

I have orks... of course I have orks....

All in all it looks like I will have a good Saturday. I will try to remember to take pics.

Into the Unknown

2009-04-01T04:01:00.000-07:00

I have to confess that I have a fear of the unknown. Trying new things gives me chills...

Everywhere I go in the blogosphere I am intimidated by these awesome painters, modelerers, and assemblers. I see guys who spend hours upon hours painting one figure to an unbelievable standard. I see guys who can take a pile of green stuff, or plasticard, or foam core, or any other thing that their "lovecraftian" minds can fathom and turn it into amazing miniatures / terrain. I see that magnets are taking over, with lots of people making their little toy armies modular.

Where do I stand?

Upon the precipice of fear. (Not even sure what that means either.....)

What I need is like a hobby book for dummies. I want to make things modular, but have a fear of jacking my models all up. I want to take my time on a model and make it "perfect" but the 100s sitting on my painting table laugh at that idea. I want to break open that fresh pack of green stuff and sculpt out my own conversions, but have never done anythign more elaborate than a rock or mushroom.

Why then do I read blogs about my hobby? That hobby or course being 40k and to a lesser extent Fantasy with a little D&D for flavor...

I read hoping for inspiration. I read hoping that something will stick. I read because I know that I have improved since I started gaming / painting back in 1997.

I remember a time when I scoffed at the idea of shading. When I painted, each section of the model got one color. My original skaven model (first ever painted) was one of the old style one piece rats. I painted the fur bestial brown... all of it. I painted the hands, nose, and feet a lighter shade (forget the name of the color - may have been bubonic.)I painted the clothes (all of them) enchanted blue. I painted his nose and eyes black. I painted his claws and teeth bleach bone. Finally I painted his sword chainmail and his base goblin green. I was done.

I have gotten a lot better. I now know what shading and highlighting are.

I guess I read hoping to continue to improve and maybe one day I can start posing cool tutorials as well and give back to the community as well.

Idea Ninja

2009-03-31T06:12:00.000-07:00

Ok.... So I "ninjaed" this idea from another blog that I read but right now can not remember who it was or I would give them proper linkage.

I have added a Workshop reminder over there....

No...

Over there ===== >

Yea.

It is more for me than anyone else. Perhaps seeing what I have left to do will motivate me to get back to painting.

PokeDistraction

2009-03-31T04:05:00.000-07:00

As I look around my painting / gaming room / garage I notice that over the last two weeks I have made very little progress.... I realize why that is. I have had a pokedistraction.

My son and I are having a race with the new pokemon game, Platinum. We are racing to see who can get all 8 badges and beat the elite 4 first. Right now I am a little in the lead, but I keep slowing down so he can catch up. I do not want to make it obvious, but want it to be close. Not to say I am better than him at it, just more "dedicated". He gets side tract quite often while playing.

For those of you who do not know, it is a really good rpg under all that cute pokemon. I have suffered through the scorn and ridicule of my peers for a long time as I have played all the little pokegames.

I was able to teach my son how to drybrush this weekend. He has two spawn he is using for his chaos army but was not sure how to paint them up. We talked about it as he was concerned that he would mess it up. He has had a hard time lately with not painting "as good as me" as he calls it.

I took him on a tour of many of the blogs that I frequent to let him see plenty of people that are far more talented than me. I wanted to show him that as long as you do a good job and are happy with your work, then that is all that counts. As we get better we can always go back and redo or replace some of our original work.

My son got pretty good at drybrushing and enjoys it. It is a simple but effective technique. I just wish now that there was a "drybrush" army for 40k (skaven) that he could be happy with.

I will post some pics of his progress as soon as I get finished with my pokedistraction.

Dragging the feet

2009-03-29T15:32:00.000-07:00

My paint table has been crowded for quite some time. I am not making much progress. This past week was a tough one. I had a good friend lose his 5 year old son. I had to be the one to break it to his teenager. That is a tough thing to do. I am his Youth Minister at Church and they figured he would take it best from me. I am glad that I was there for him, but not something I look forward to ever having to do again.

I think where I stand right now is that mass painting burn out. I have painted a lot of orks since Christmas. A lot of orks. No... you did not hear me... A lot of orks. While I am still all about the orks, I think I need to paint up something special to "revive" me. take an orc break and do something different.

My plan is this...

I think I am going to work on some Cadians. What? Crazy? Yea I know. Take a break from one "horde" army for a "legion" of Cadians. Yea yea... I hear you.

This is my thought...

I can paint some Cadians up to about 1k or so. Just troops and heavy weapons. Save the tanks and setinels and stuff for the re-release. When I come back to the orks after some Cadians, I need to force myself to paint in smaller chunks. I think the mass blocks of orks that I paint at a time is what hurts...

Wish me luck....

Weekend Update with Wildhermit...

2009-03-22T16:48:00.001-07:00

Well there was some painting going on in my garage this weekend. There was also a little basing. These are some update spots and with any luck tomorrow this little project will be complete. I will consider my Stompa finished once the base is done and all 10 of those little grots are painted up on there. I bought a box of gretchin and decided to use those to decorate as opposed to actually fielding them.

I do have this odd notion to one day show up to an apoc game and field 180 boys and 180 gretchin but that is quite a few psychotic break downs away...

Orkspiration!

2009-03-20T04:18:00.001-07:00

Orkspiration of course being Orky inspiration...

I have yet to include any mad docs in my army. When I build my forces, not just orks, if I do not like the models or what the "fluff" is like then I just ignore them. In the past I have done this with Commisars, Ratlings, Ogryn, and more recently the Mad Doc. I just do not care for the model. I understand the fluff, but just do not like them.

M.O.S.H.

It came to me as an epiphany...

Mobil Ork Surgikal Hutt

Now this is something I can get behind. I have a purpose for it. I could even create an objective for it. I could conver a Trukk with some plasticard on the back and body parts sticking out. Paint some Red Crosses on it and... well... you get the picture.

I think I can even come up with a simple Nob Conversion that will make me happy and be obvious as to what it is supposed to be. I will use the Burna cloth mask, from the loota sprue I think, and create my own back pole. I will put a red cross on the pole and of course M.O.S.H. Add some "doktor" what-nots... and presto... One Ork Field Surgeon.

My biggest problem is time. I can come up with the cash to buy what I need. I have the ideas to create what I need. I have not enough time to complete a 1/4 of what I come up with.... /sigh

I need one of those life pause buttons... I could click it complete all current projects... Then move on...

A Brief History...

2009-03-18T09:18:00.000-07:00

If you are reading this here, then you are probably already aware that I have this odd "sickness" or compulsion, wherein I must paint any model prior to its fielding. I am not sure why this is, but it is.

I can remember my first fully painted 40k Army. When the current Catachan plastics were released along with the plastic Sentinel I went crazy. I refused to play with any of them until I made myself paint them. Up until this point I really had no probelm.

I had a half painted Black Templar Army. This was before they even had a rule set. I played them as Vanilla Marines with Black and White Armor. At this time I thought that was going to be an easy color scheme to pull off. Much "globbed" white later I changed colors. I think I have the ability, meager as it is, to do a much better job now if I ever go back to them.

I had a partail painted Tyranid Army. Super easy paint scheme. I was following an Aliens movie concept and going bluish black with bleached bone and scorpion green highlights. Despite the ease of colors all those guants just wore me down. I now have more or less the same scheme on my sons complete Nids, imagine that.

I saw these new "soldiers." I was in the Army... They were in the "Army." I was around cool armor... They had cool armor. I really could not resist. I thought they were the coolest looking plastics ever. I fell in love with the Sentinel and still love that model today.

I bought a few boxes and started painting. I learned how to paint eyes and faces in general while doing those Catachans. I really had no choice. I am no expert, but I can paint a mean "table top worthy" face now. I went typical Army colors. Camo. I developed my own Camo Scheme and applied it over a light brown shirt and dark green pants. I wanted to mimic my uniform as close as possible. At the time the Army used the BDU and I picked colors and a pattern that I thought looked close.

I even painted my 12 Sentinels and 4 Tanks to match. I loved them. I still do. To this day they are the only Army I regret selling. I was a poor married SPC in the Army with a young son and we needed the money. I did what I had to do and do not regret the choice, just the fact that I gave them up. I miss those fellas.

That being said...

The pending re-release of the guard has me all worked up. I do not think I will do Catachans this time. I want to do Cadians. I will do a similar paint scheme but do not think I will be repeating the intricate camo scheme. Just a nice clean look.

The only chore...

I am still painting my horde of Orks, and do not think I will ever call them complete....

I have a feeling that the Cadians may fall into the same boat.

I guess the positive side here is that when I grow weary of painting hordes of orks and red vehicles with crazy mad max styling, I can take a break and paint ordered legions of soldiers and "Dress right Dress" vehicles. HOOOOAAAAAH!?

The Motor Pool

2009-03-14T07:03:00.001-07:00

The Stompa is done... For now. I am debating making a base for him as he is a little "wobbly." The only thing that has changed are his horns. While I was waiting for the undercoat to dry I took these pics. His horns are not that weird brown color :)

This is what he looks like with his fleet around him...

Color Red

2009-03-10T15:32:00.000-07:00

I get home today a little earlier than normal. Things are looking good... I can foresee some decent progress being done on the Stompa. I am excited.

I prep my garage by turning on the ceiling fan, then the door light, then my "painting" light.

My Painting light is one of those industrial shop type lights. I bounce it off the ceiling and it does a pretty good job. I am no professional here...

I gather some paints and move to the table and my stool.

Taking brush in hand I dip into my Mechrite Red and begin painting my Stompa. I get down to just the back panel and what do I discover... The bottom of the paint pot.

The bottom of the paint pot is the most insidious thing I can imagine that can happen to a painter with time on his hands...

No worries...

I always keep extras for tragedies such as this.

I rise from my stool and make my way to my shelves to search for my backup paint pot...

Nope... Nope... Nope...

Not there...

/sigh

An entire evening set aside, approved by my lovely wife to devote to painting the Stompa... and no paint...

Can you feel my pain lol

Here is the Clutter

2009-03-09T18:13:00.001-07:00

Some Images just to show how bad it really is in there...

Chaos

2009-03-09T17:51:00.000-07:00

No... Not as in the demons or daemons from the warp... I mean as in lack of order, or disarray. That is what can best describe my gaming area / painting area / playroom / garage. My 4 x 8 table is covered with "stuff." Half finished projects that need to be completed.

I have a Stompa now. He is built. He has been primed black. The red undercoat has begun... Yes. He is a he. All orks are "hes", so therefore, the walking stomping idol of gork/mork must be as well :)

In no particular order here is a list of "incompletes"

Stompa
5 Lootas
Warboss
10 Nobz with Various weapons
Wartrukk
10 Shoota Boyz
10 Slugga Boyz
60 Boyz (not assembled yet... just arrived today from E-Bay)
2 Big Shoota Boyz
2 Rokkit Launcha Boyz
2 Random Ammo Grots
A Games Workshop Wood
Some "Fish" Terrain...
Carnifex

A note on the "Fish" terrain. I picked up some random sale junk from my local pet shop this weekend. I was in there buying my girls hamsters some things and did a "sale check." I plan on putting this together... eventually.

Must finish some stuff... Need more hours in the day... Or at least one of those cool life pause buttons.

Nothing much to say...

2009-03-03T14:34:00.001-08:00

Well I am back from my "World Travels" now but really do not have much of an informative update from the 40k side of my life.

The Stompa comes out this week...

I have already bought mine and I am just counting down the days until pick up. Just like with the Battlewagon I will get that sucker painted and displayed up here ASAP.

I really need to sit down and put some quality pics up on here. I started this blog as a place to "show off" my meager skills and proclaim to the gaming world of my existence... only fitting that I do it well.

Information Lockdown???

2009-02-08T09:28:00.000-08:00

I am TDY, visiting a small island nation. This is a really neat place, I will post pics upon my return. I have to visit the MWR (Internet Cafe) to get the internet and things have changed since last time I was here. You Tube is now blocked... Facebook is now blocked. I am certain there are lots more things I could use to occupy my time that are also blocked, but have given up trying. At least Blogspot is not blocked.

I brought my Gameboy DS and have just started playing Crono Cross. A great game that I have beaten before back when it was on the Nintendo... or maybe playstation. Can not remember right now, but it was one of those. I also brought some D&D stuff so that I can work on my son's campaign. I plan on having him something he can run with his friends when I get back. My son has this friend that comes over every other weekend so this will give us something else to do.

There is this commercial that is out right now about a business traveler with a little daughter. He goes on this trip and his daughter smuggles her little monkey in his brief case. I was inspired by that commercial and on this trip I plan on doing something like that for my kids.

I bought this little fuzzy "thing" from the NEX (Navy Exchange) that I plan on calling a Banana Rat. It is not really one, but my kids will still think it is neat. I will include him in some of my photos of the island. Just something special for them to make up for the time I have to be away from home.

Such a Slacker

2009-02-06T16:38:00.000-08:00

Well my game did not go down. My son and I went out to the Hobbit to watch some people play, but we did not get to play ourselves. I am currently TDY, and will be out of the loop until much later this month. My posting may be a bit sporadic until I return home.

On a brighter note, I have 5 more nobz, 11 more boyz, and another Black Reach Warboss waiting on me when I get back home. This will bring me up to the following...

Warboss, PK, Cyborg, Eavy Armor, Attack Squig

Warboss, PK, Cyborg, Eavy Armor, Attack Squig

10 Nobz, 3 PK, 3 Big Choppa, 3 Slugga & Choppa, 1 Shoota/Scorcha (I just like it)

Battlewagon, 4 Big Shoota, Zzap Gun, Ard Case, Extra Armor, Grot Riggers, Red Paint, Stikkbomb chukka

10 Nobz, 3 PK, 3 Big Choppa, 3 Slugga & Choppa, 1 Shoota/Scorcha (I just like it)

Battlewagon, 4 Big Shoota, Zzap Gun, Ard Case, Extra Armor, Grot Riggers, Red Paint, Stikkbomb chukka

15 Boyz, Big Shoota, Nob with PK

15 Boyz, Big Shoota, Nob with PK

15 Lootas, 3 Mekboyz

5 Deffkoptas, 2 Buzzsaw, 5 TL Rokkit Launcha

5 Deffkoptas, 2 Buzzsaw, 5 TL Rokkit Launcha

5 Deffkoptas, 2 Buzzsaw, 5 TL Rokkit Launcha

2 Extra Big Shootas & 1 Rokkit Launcha

This is not a list per se, just a total of what I have so far. I would like to have options at the 2k level. I plan on fielding 180 boyz just for fun. That will be started right after I pick up my prepurchased Stompa from the Hobbit and paint that up. I should get home just before its release... /joy

I bought my son a box of Khore Beserkers and 2 Chaos Spawn. That will give him some more Chaos to paint up. I really need to get around to posting his pics. He is doing a really good job for someone his age. Much better than I did at his age, and I am very proud of him. He plays the Tyranids that I bought and painted for him, but he wanted to start his own, like in Fantasy so I let him pick. He will be using my ultramarines as chaos until he gets enough. They will be recent "converts."

First 2000 Points

2009-01-27T16:42:00.000-08:00

I am done. I can finally allow myself to play a game of 40k with someone other than my son at The Hobbit rather than in our Garage/Gameroom. This will be my first "real" game of 5th edition. I have been out of the hobby for quite some time. I have not played regularly in about 6 years. I am not looking for much "success" early on as most of the local gamers have marine drop pod armies from "Primer Mountain" or "Plastic Grey" Legions. However, I am going to try and get my first game in this Saturday. I did not build this list for any real reason other than I really liked the Deffkopta and wanted to field all 15...

Warboss, PK, Twin-Link Shoota, Attack Squig, Eavy Armor

10 Nobz, all with Eavy Armor, 3 PK, 1 Burna/Shoota (Just because I saw the new kit and had too... )

Battlewagon, 4 Big Shoota, 1 Zzap Gun, Various upgrades...

19 Slugga Boyz, 2 Big Shoota, 1 Nob with PK

Battlewagon, same as above

5 Deffkopta, 2 Buzzsaw, Twin-Link Rokkit

5 Deffkopta, 2 Buzzsaw, Twin-Link Rokkit

5 Deffkopta, 2 Buzzsaw, Twin-Link Rokkit

4 Lootas with Mekboy (Just because I bought the models and they are painted... They are kind of growing on me... )

That brings me to 2000 points. Not the best designed list in the world, but it shall evolve as I buy and (more importantly to me) paint up some more models. I currently have 5 more lootas on my paint table along with 4 more nobz. I need more boyz so I can go all "Green Tide"...

Wazdakka's Angels

2009-01-24T18:14:00.000-08:00

I like to write up crazy lists. I am thinking now that I have my 2 Battlewagons, 15 Deffkoptas and 2k points of regular Orks, maybe I can start getting some other fun things.

Wazdakka Gutsmek (180)

10 Nob Bikers, 4 PK (550)

6 Warbikes, Nob with PK (210)
6 Warbikes, Nob with PK (210)
6 Warbikes, Nob with PK (210)
6 Warbikes, Nob with PK (210)
6 Warbikes, Nob with PK (210)
6 Warbikes, Nob with PK (210)

If I get this warboss from forgeworld ($50.70), these nob bikers ($69.38) for three, and this from Games Workshop ($35) for three.

Wow...

That really adds up.

$680.08 and that still leaves me one bike short. Bah!

Maybe I will just buy 17 Nobz, 30 boyz, and scratch build some foamcore bikes :)

Special Unit 2

2009-01-20T05:38:00.001-08:00

Attention!

There is a Special Unit 2 marathon on the Sci Fi Channel today. That show is so awful... so so awful... Yet somehow I still watch it...

It is kind of like fast food. I know that it is complete rubbish, yet still I find myself in the drive through during the week.

Snow Day

2009-01-20T04:25:00.000-08:00

Woot!

Snow Day!

I have to say that even as an adult this simple exclamation brings a smile to my face. I am currently sitting at home on 2 hour delay hoping the Base will close for the day. The Snow (Read Ice hazard here in the south) is still coming down at there and if history is an indicator Bragg will close a little later. Nice.

I just got back from Va Beach and my "Armada" of Deffkoptas were waiting for me. They are now assembled on my gaming table just biding time for me to get around to painting them. Now do not get me wrong, I do not really see 15 Deffkoptas as "competitive", but it will be highly entertaining...

I am debating making up some scratch built Killa Kanz now. I would like to field 9 of them and really do not want to buy 9 of them. I do not think they would be too hard. They are essentially a soda can with arms and legs. I think if I even manage to incorporate enough bits they may even count as "legal."

"The Siren's Call"

2009-01-14T15:52:00.000-08:00

This post is brought to you by the fine voices in my head...

Do you know what a Siren is? In a nutshell, they are fine looking things that dwell in the ocean and lead sailors to their doom. In The Odyssey the main protagonist, Odysseus has himself chained/tied to the mast of his ship so that he can hear the siren's call but not follow them to his doom. Said doom being of course being the rending asunder of his ship as he collides with rocks.

Now for me, the Siren has beckoned recently. That siren of course being, The World of Warcraft : Wrath of the Lich King. I have resisted that fell temptress, but fear my resolve is fading. Just the other night I saw, not for the first time, the Ozzy WoW commercial. That was my toon. He picked almost the same model that I did. He tempts me... Wildhermit and his unborn brother Necrohermit want to live.

I have resisted. I hope to continue to resist. I know that if I were to (incoming geek alert) fail my "will" save, then it would be only 4-5 months before I had several 80s and was bored again. I just have a desire to see the new (read same content with a new face) content. I shall remain strong...

/whimper

On another note, local hobby stores are the devil. Today at lunch time I walked into my local store, The Hobbit, to pick up either 1 of 3 things. I wanted in this order...

1. Wartrukk
2. Boyz
3. Nobz

Out, out, and out. All out of stock. Blast. This money is just sitting in my pocket. Yet another siren calls. This one is not WoW... This one is named "Burning a hole in my pocket." So what do I do?

A. Make small talk, and walk out with money intact.
B. Spend 45 minutes looking at what they do have and talk myself into buying something.

Yep, you guessed it hermitfans, I bought some Lootas. I had no plans on putting them in my army, but now I do. I stood there and held many boxes. I even held a Vyper and an Eldar Jetbike in my hand (See what you caused Sherpa). The voices in my head held a congressional meeting and deemed it urgently mandatory that something must be purchased lest an unsettling trend be started whereby things are just not purchased.

I needed something to paint (blasted shipping delay on you foul deffkoptas), and so I chose lootas.

/sigh

Serenity / Firefly

2009-01-12T04:27:00.000-08:00

Well... I guess I am a dirty liar. I know I saw a commercial for it... Two of them at least. However, I can not seem to find any information about it on the Sci Fi website, wikipedia, or the internet as a whole...

Perhaps I was just delusional...

Sorry Gles

/epic fail

Time Check!

2009-01-11T15:58:00.001-08:00

My goal for the weekend was to build my battlewagon and 5 nobz and paint those suckers up. I just managed to finish. I was in a "rush" as those 12 deffkoptas should be here any day now. I will post pics later.

Battlewagon Progress

2009-01-10T13:03:00.000-08:00

So here are some pics of my new toy...

"Great Merciful Crap"

2009-01-09T09:51:00.001-08:00

Simply Amazing...

I guess I finally have to make my first Forgeworld order. I have avoided the ork warbike "issue" for a while now. Not really that into them. Until... until I saw this guy. It looks like I will be another one of those "Nobz on bikes" guys now...

15 Deffkoptas backed up by a warboss on bike, his nob buddies, and maybe some boys hanging out in trucks... Or I could just field him as Wasdakka and make my bikers into troops... sigh... there goes the wallet again...

Only 39K to go...

2009-01-08T16:56:00.000-08:00

Just a quick nonsense post to say that somehow I broke 1000 on my Sitemeter. Now for the two of you that visit my blog... That means each of you has logged 500 visits.... Woot!

State of the Waaaaagh!

2009-01-08T03:29:00.000-08:00

Ladies and Gents...

My meager ork horde is well on its way. Yesterday I ordered 12 more Deffkoptas from The Warstore. I also picked up a Battlewagon and a box of the new Nobz from my local store, The Hobbit. It would have been cheaper to get from The Warstore, but I like to support locally too.

My first impression of the new kit... I love it. The Battlewagon just simply rocks, or at least it does for me. My favorite bit from the sprue... This little grot in a gun mount hatch. The little guy is so cool. I am thinking about hitting ebay and looking for more of the grots in turret bits. All of the turret guns and hatches are the same size too so it is modular. You can move all the guns around to suit your orky vision. There are a few extra bits, but not that much. I need to pick up some Trukks and some bikes now just so I can mix bits.

I hope to have it all painted up in a few days and will post a pic when complete. I am not rushing or anything, just want to get it in a game.

The Wallet Bellows in TERROR!

2009-01-06T16:55:00.000-08:00

I have a sickness that occurs every so often. I tend to get obsessed with the hobbies that I enjoy. I can remember when the plastic sentinel kit came out for the Imperial Guard waaaay back when. You were able to field 3 as part of your HQ. You were able to field 3 as a single Fast Attack... So... What did I do? I bought 12 of course and worked out that I could fit all of them in a 1500 point game. Did I do it all the time? No. I did field it for fun though.

I get these ideas in my head and just want to see how it would work out. I just want to have fun with the hobby of mine, that some call a GAME. I enjoy winning, to be sure, but I enjoy the course of the game even more. I have had great times losing horribly because things happen that are just absurd.

The Wallet Bellows in TERROR!

What does this mean? Well orks have struck me as something that would be highly entertaining to play. I have 3 Deffkoptas... Why should I not have 15? Why indeed... Did you know that a man could field 180 Grots as troops, plus quite a lot more for Heavy support Krew? I know this. What would it be like to field 180 ork boyz? How about 9 Killa Kanz? I need more money or at least a wallet that does not bellow like a little girl every time I get an idea....

I have longed for an eldar force for many a years. I want lots of options for them too... The fact is I want too much... far too much. I want another Imperial Guard Army... I want my Tau back... Bah... Christmas just passed too...

Need more stuff

2009-01-03T18:37:00.000-08:00

Goal complete!

I managed to paint the following :

20 Slugga Boyz
15 Dwarf Warriors
24 Goblin Spearman
16 Goblin Archers
2 Deffkoptas
1 Castle Terrain

My son managed to paint :

3 Chaos Knights
10 Chaos Hounds
1 Chaos Lord on Juggernaught
1 Goblin Spearman

All in all a very productive weekend. I have nothing left to paint now. I have some more terrain that I would like to put together and my son has lots more to paint. I think I will be picking up a couple of Ork Wartrukks and a Battlewagon this week. That will give me some more junk to paint.

I have to get around to taking some more photos too. I will have to create a section for my son's models as well.

On a non-related note... Serenity / Firefly is back... Now if only Farscape would return I would be truly happy...

A Proud Dad

2009-01-02T18:22:00.000-08:00

Well based upon my last post I am making good progress for my "to do" list for my time off. I am not painting my son's Chaos models. I started painted the Chaos Lord on Juggernaught and quit. I am not painting it or any others. He is. Now my son is only 9. He has never painted before. He has only watched me paint. He has 1000 points of Chaos, fresh from Christmas. I struggled with letting him paint or even encouraging him. He never asked, he just assumed that I would do it and he would watch.

I am a proud dad for one reason. I asked him if he would like to paint his own, no matter what they looked like. He accepted the offer. I was reluctant at first because I was worried that he would "mess them up." I had to put that idea to rest. That was the wrong attitude if I was ever going to get my son really into gaming. I have to allow him to mess up. I have to allow him to fail. Most importantly, I have to encourage and guide him while he does it.

I have to admit, they are not up to my standard. Does that matter? Should it matter? No. No. No. They are his models. They are his to play. His to enjoy. His to mess up. His to paint. His to be proud of. His to change and grow with. I am proud of my son for enjoying what he does. He is much better than me when I started. Much better. When we take his models to play at our local store, The Hobbit, he can be proud too because...

1. They are painted.
2. More than likely his opponent can not say the same.
3. He did it himself

Busy Bee

2008-12-30T03:54:00.000-08:00

Today is like Friday for me... I have a nice long 5 day weekend starting at COB (Close of Business), and it feels nice. I have some goals that I intend to meet and they are as follows:

1. Finish painting my remaining 16 dwarves
2. Paint my son's Chaos Lord on Juggernaught
3. Paint my son's 10 Chaos hounds
4. Create a "stonehenge" terrain piece
5. Clean up my "birdhouse" castle and paint it up

That does not seem like an insurmountable list. I think that I can accomplish this and still get in the appropriate amount of family time, eat, sleep, and still game. I also need to think about ways to "show off" what I paint and create. Not that what I do is anything great, but that was one of the goals for redesigning my blog. I wanted to be able to show people I know what I do and maybe inspire them to join in.

I live in a military town and we have a nice local gaming store called the Hobbit. Lots of room for gaming, and never any shortage of people to play with talk to, but not much in the way of painters / modelers. Any given saturday you can walk in and see games of 40K, Fantasy, Flames of War, D&D, Warmachine/Hordes, or various board games spread out on the tables. (As a side note the Hobbit bought/rented/leased out the bingo hall next door... so plenty of room.)The down side is that when it comes to 40K or Fantasy the bulk of the gamers do not mind rocking grey plastic, black/white primer or even unfinished/unassembled models.

I do not mean to sound like a gaming snob, but I put a lot of time/effort into my models. I am no pro. I am no Golden Demon winner. I can put out a product that looks decent on the table though, and that is all that matters. If you are just starting that is cool, bring what you have and lets play. However, I have seen a lot of these guys there a lot, they did not just start. They have had the time to at least start painting. I realize that there is a large portion of the gaming community that just wants to play, and that is fine, I just want more of them to pain too...

All of this to say... Here I want to be able to show case what I have, what I have done, and what I need to do in the hopes that perhaps one of my gaming peers will be inspired or motivated to pick up a brush. It does not take much talent to put out a decent product (just look at some of my models in the links for proof.) Which brings me back to the issue at hand... I need to find a better way to display my product. I used to own my own web site and I had my images displayed. Here I just have links to my .mac. Anybody have any thoughts? I guess I will keep looking...

Screen Monkey

2008-12-29T03:43:00.000-08:00

Thanks go out to Sherpa for the cool link ==>Screen Monkey

My son and I ran a small 1000 point game last night. I played the Chaos Warriors he played my Dwarves. I wanted to show him some of the ways he could use a force like the Chaos Warriors. He is only 9 years old and does pretty well for himself when we play, but it never hurts to show him when faced with a new force. I destroyed my poor Dwarves and my son is really exited to play again, this time with his Chaos.

My son has the advantage when we switch sides I feel, and that is fine by me. My dwarves have their work cut out for them stopping the powerful horde. I still can not decide which army I really want to play for fantasy. I am only playing the dwarves because we have the Battle for Skull Pass set. I added a few more models and that is keeping me occupied for now. I am torn between the Lizardmen and the Skaven, both of which are getting updates sometime in 2009.

/sigh... We shall see.

A Fine Day

2008-12-28T11:30:00.000-08:00

Well Christmas has come and gone and it was a good family time. My son really enjoyed his Warriors of Chaos starter army, coming in at 1037 points is not bad for a good start. I have told him that I plan on getting him a sorcerer and a shaggoth and the rest is up to him.

I got a Dremel tool for Christmas. Well, actually I got a gift card, but it turned into a Dremel quickly. I have already put it to good use and started making some more terrain. I built two 4 x 4 "tables" that I have sitting on my pool table currently. It makes a nice gaming surface. I was going to go ahead and build terrain on it but my wife talked me out of it. She wants it to double as a ping pong table, so it shall.

I guess my next project shall be creating some modular 1x1 terrain sections to go on the table. That way I can do a city fight if I want or other specialized games. I will keep it nice and green for standard Warhammer Fantasy sessions, but I have always liked the modular look too. This will give me loads of options and will only require more shelving.

Warriors of Chaos

2008-12-23T03:03:00.001-08:00

My son does not know it yet, but is getting the Warriors of Chaos box set from me for Christmas. I let him look at all the available models and armies and that is the one he wanted to play most for Warhammer Fantasy. Normally I would not want to play Chaos or allow him to play Chaos, but I do not mind as we can just more or less avoid any of the overly "evil" elements. We are going to tackle it like a Germanic tribe. These guys are just going to be our Vikings, Goths, or Barbarians. Just some "Conan" type people trying to get by in the nasty Chaos Wastes. I think that they will be fun to paint and we will have some good games with them versus my dwarves.

I am still undecided on army I really want to play / collect so will stick with the dwarves for now. We bought the Battle for Skull Pass set and I have painted up most of the models from there. I added another box of dwarf warriors with hand weapons and shields and we shall see how the Chaos Armor does against my Dwarven Mithril. I am thinking about jumping on the Lizardmen bandwagon come February as they were one of my first ever armies. I collected them when I bought my very first Games Workshop product the Fantasy box set with Brettonia versus Lizardmen many years ago.