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Modeling => Projects Blog => Topic started by: Blazinghand on September 18, 2017, 08:58:44 PM

Title: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on September 18, 2017, 08:58:44 PM
In the realms of modelling and painting, I'm somewhat of a beginner, but I have big ambitions: many magnetized and painted aspect warriors and hover tanks! I'll post what I'm working on here.

Most recently, I've succeeded in magnetizing the turret of my Falcon hover tank.

(https://i.imgur.com/aMDjTvz.gif)

The turrets now can change out with each other and retain the ability to rotate! The Night Spinner turret is still in progress painting-wise, but the magnetization and assembly are done. I still have to figure out what to do with the rear hatch, since in the case of a Night Spinner or Fire Prism, the rear hatch is supposed to be sealed. I may try to find a way to have a detachable fuel cell or Eldar doodad over the door there as is on the normal model.

I've also been working on this Fire Dragon Exarch:

(https://i.imgur.com/AMzFWRq.gif)

A little less impressive, but I want to be able to take him with different loadouts. These days, the Dragon's Breath Flamer is pretty good, but I may want him using a Firepike (if they make it stronger) or a Fusion Gun (if I can find a bit for it) once the Codex comes out. Since Fire Dragons for the most part don't have wargear options, I might as well make the Exarch as customizable as I can.

Next on deck for me is finishing my Wave Serpent hulls, and a big Autarch conversion project. I have a spare DA Exarch and a lot of bits that I hope to make into a Swooping Hawk Wing Autarch. Or, if I'm feeling very ambitious, a Swooping Hawk Wing / Warp Jump Generator / Foot Autarch with magnetization. I have some Dark Eldar Scourge wings I want to try to use as the wings for the Autarch, which would look really great.




Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: magenb on September 18, 2017, 11:28:56 PM
The Autarch is the only elder infantry I've been game to magnetize, even then it was just the back pack options, way too thin for my liking  :-\. nice to see some other options :)


The feather Scourge wings would look sweeeeet on an Autarch.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: dog_of_war on September 19, 2017, 08:02:18 AM
Great job magnetizing the exarch. The only eldar models I've had the guts to magbetize are the wraithlords. I'm impressed you were able to do so with such slender models as magenb suggested.

Scourge wings are stellar. I replaced all of my swooping hawks wings with the scourge bird wings and they work so well. Looking forward to seeing what you do next.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Cavalier on September 19, 2017, 08:08:27 AM
Nice! Love the GIF's too thats sweet. Magnetizing is always worth it. I just magnetized up a bunch of options for my Serpents. The Dragon Exarch is impressive. Thats really small model to work with and drilling into the metal isn't easy. Props man, looking forward to more
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Ynneadwraith on September 19, 2017, 08:26:12 AM
Awesome work :) being primarily on the art side of things i've never even considered magnetising so it always impresses me, especially as other people have said with a model so slender.

What's the paint scheme?
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on October 2, 2017, 02:51:42 AM
I worked on basing this weekend. My old metal Wraithguard are still walking around on 25mm bases, making them very unstable and top-heavy. So, I decided to make 5 new 40mm bases for them, as well as upgrading an old 40mm base for a weapons platform.

First, I brushed a 1:1 mixture of white glue and water onto the bases. Then I dipped them into a bowl with a mixture of sand and chopped up wine corks, and pulled them out. After drying, I tapped them a bit to get the excess sand off, and I added a couple more pieces of cork with some glue to make them look good.

(https://i.imgur.com/6p2OO7h.jpg)
The image with the legs on it is for my Autarch, who is still in progress. I'll post photos of him when I'm done.

Next, I primed the bases grey. Then, I laid down a basecoat of Mechanicus Standard Grey. After that dried, I added a bit more texture and filled in some blank spots (and added some texture to the rocks) using Astrogranite texture paint. Next, I highlighted by drybrushing the raised bits and sand with Administratum Grey to make the sand and upraised texture pop.

(https://i.imgur.com/G1KaENv.png)

Lastly, I washed with Nuln Oil to make the cracks and recesses visible.

(https://i.imgur.com/riE8zh6.png)

Other than a bit of touch-up, these are now done! My Wraithguard and weapons platform will soon be rolling onto the battlefield in style.

Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Saim-Dann on October 2, 2017, 08:04:42 AM
Wow, Blazinghand!
From the magnetizing to the gifs, then onto the basing. Very, very nice. Showing some serious skills there, mate. Thanks for the inspiration... Be well!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: dog_of_war on October 2, 2017, 08:19:32 AM
Looking great. Thanks for the step-by-step tutorial. It was very informative.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 6, 2017, 09:55:05 PM
In my latest project, I have been magnetizing my Wraithguard (new plastic ones) and my Support Weapon Batteries (old metal ones). The Wraithguard are still a work in progress, but I have magnetized one support weapon. Watch me swap out this Shadow Weaver for a Vibrocannon!

(https://i.imgur.com/NKHdRps.gif)

Pretty nifty. I'll be able to play with both of them and decide which I like better, or which fits my army the best. The D-cannons are still being stripped of paint, but they will be magnetized as well.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Saim-Dann on November 6, 2017, 10:04:36 PM
G'day BH's!
Magic stuff, mate. Another lefty? Sign of a truly creative genius... Be well!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 7, 2017, 04:20:00 AM
Here are those bases I made a while ago, now with Wraithguard attached:

(https://i.imgur.com/0O3ObjO.png)

Still need to figure out highlights on the body and gems, and what to do about the heads (my thin layers of white aren't working out too well). I may try a layer of light gray, then another layer of white and leave it at that.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Saim-Dann on November 7, 2017, 07:15:53 AM
Looking good Blazinghands!
Doesn't even have to be light grey, mate. Just a smidgen of black to the white so that it still looks white will do.

We did the same when signwriting sooooo many years ago. If we didn't have enough white. We'd just add a dash of black to thicken it up a bit. Nobody noticed.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Cavalier on November 7, 2017, 07:28:06 AM
Hey Blazinghand. I got a super easy fix for those heads. Just use Celestra Grey. Its seriously amazing. Its super light grey that goes on like a dream. I use it for EVERYTHING. If you pop over to my project log you'll see I used it on the wings of my Corsair, but if you go back through the thread... everything thats painted white started out with Celestra Grey. A lot of times I dont even bring the Celestra up to white because it reads as white visually just by contrast alone. Seriously give it a go its amazing.

You could also use Russ Grey to highlight the bodies. Thats another favorite color of mine. It'll give your guys a nice ghostly vibe with the shades of grey.

Anyway man looking good, keep it up just a bit more and these guys will look real nice. And trust me get Celestra Grey!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 13, 2017, 05:18:55 PM
So I still haven't given the white heads a try, but I have gotten to work on a squad of Dire Avengers that have been kicking around the garage for nearly 10 years now:

(https://i.imgur.com/WFOIBvN.png)

Still need to do gems, highlights, and of course the Exarch's head. I stopped by the store to pick up some flesh colors and will take a crack at things tonight. Still deciding what transfers should go on the flag!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Saim-Dann on November 14, 2017, 06:59:21 AM
G'day Blazinghand!
Paint-the-flag, paint-the-flag!!
You've got the skills and the eye, mate. With such a large surface, give it a crack.   
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Ynneadwraith on November 14, 2017, 10:15:56 AM
Hell yeah paint the flag :) freehand is actually really quite fun, and eldar runes are a good way to ease yourself into it.

One of the tricks I find to getting things to look crisp and the same thickness is to do a first pass painting the rune on, and then go back over the edges where necessary with the base colour.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 16, 2017, 03:28:40 PM
Hmm, I'll give that flag a try when I get the chance. I've actually been doing some work on my Autarch. A history of his pieces:

Legs: Dark Eldar Wyche legs
Torso: Eldar Dire Avenger Exarch torso
Head: Eldar Dire Avenger Exarch helmet (though I may change this for an un-helmeted head)
Wings: Dark Eldar Scourge wings (not yet attached)
Pauldrons: Wraithblade shoulders
Left Arm: Dire Avenger Exarch pointing hand with shuriken pistol mounted on wrist. Shuriken pistol clipped off, Forceshield from Wraithblade added in its place

So, a lot of work coming from various sources went into this! Today's story, however, is about the right arm. The new rules for the Eldar Autarch on foot (which this will be, with the Faolchu's Wing relic to be the rules for his wings) has a weapon called the spar-glaive. I originally planned to model this with a Dire Avenger Exarch power glaive arm, but a power glaive is a pretty wimpy weapon compared to a spar-glaive. How can I model the more powerful spar-glaive?

It actually turned out to be pretty easy. I took a ghostsword from an Eldar Wraithblade, cut the blade off of it, and put it in the place of the blade from the Dire Avenger power glaive.

(https://i.imgur.com/8JVKvWq.png)

I used these little alligator clip guys to hold it in place while the glue dried. That's a pretty big glaive! Compared to the old power glaive, it's huge:

(https://i.imgur.com/VQNIedu.png)

Here's how the Autarch is looking with the new weapon:

(https://i.imgur.com/LMIGxue.png)
(https://i.imgur.com/3BoZSNB.png)

So at this point I consider most of the conversion and modeling work done. I may want to find a way to get his right leg to look more armored, but I might just put a grenade belt there and call it a day. I still need to get a basecoat down on the arms and shoulders, basecoat the helmet (or find an unhelmed head and paint that), another basecoat on the legs, then do all the more detail-oriented painting. Once I'm done painting the model I will attach the (separately painted) wings.

Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Saim-Dann on November 16, 2017, 06:53:48 PM
Wow, Blazinghand!
There's a lot of work there, mate. Looking blessed nice so far. Are you pinning these pieces or just gluing them?... Pointy ears forever!!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 16, 2017, 06:58:34 PM
I was hoping just to rely on glue, but things to seem a bit wobbly, including where the one foot from the wyche legs touch the ground. not sure what to do with that. Attaching the scourge wings might uh, balance him back a bit to even things out, but stability and good connections are a concern.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Saim-Dann on November 16, 2017, 07:07:27 PM
Definitely start pinning, mate. When the odd model of mine falls off the table, they just bounce and everything is still in place.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: dog_of_war on November 16, 2017, 07:44:48 PM
Simply stunning conversion work Blazinghand. Love the chosen pose as well. Seems a very 'take charge of the battlefield' look, as if he's saying "onwards brothers."

If you're finding he's a bit wobbly, try gluing a coin or a washer under the base. Always balanced out my orks when I've used oversized bits on them.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 17, 2017, 01:43:24 AM
I feel like there is still some highlighting work to do and a lot of clean-up, but the Autarch is basically painted now, and ready for action on Saturday!


(https://i.imgur.com/d0Wrb2B.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/DOOL3qu.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/fQUbMXF.jpg)

I think the wings add a lot. I'm glad I went for DE Scourge wings over Swooping Hawk wings.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Saim-Dann on November 17, 2017, 02:29:17 AM
Niiiiice!
Your right, Blazinghand. Those wings are far more majestic than the Swooping Hawks. You've done an amazing job, mate. Fell proud.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: SeekingOne on November 17, 2017, 02:51:09 AM
Scourge wings are great :) If I ever do Hawks, they would have those wings 100% (unless GW rescuplts them).

Good job!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Cavalier on November 17, 2017, 07:12:53 AM
Nice! That is a sweet conversion Blazinghand. Those wings look so damn good. I really like the blade too... might have to give that a go on my Shining Spears exarch (I use the Avenger Glaive for spears). Love the base as well. Great stuff man keep it up!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Ynneadwraith on November 17, 2017, 09:06:53 AM
Love the glaive dude :) that's a lovely conversion, and the use of crocadile clips to keep it straight would have saved me hoirs in re-positioning while stuff dries!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 17, 2017, 02:52:28 PM
Thanks! The alligator clips thing has actually been a huge help for things like this. The glaive was unusually difficult, but I actually have somewhat unsteady hands. For painting and such it's not a problem since I can rest my wrist on something for painting, but holding two things together is pretty rough, even with relatively quick-drying super glue. It also has been helpful for holding onto bits by a small amount so I can paint them individually. I used the alligator clips to hold onto the wings when painting them.

So, I actually still have a bit of a sprint between today and the tournament I am playing in tomorrow. My list is:

Eldrad Ulthran
Autarch
Warlock

5 Dire Avengers, Exarch has 2 Catapults
5 Dire Avengers, Exarch has 2 Catapults
5 Rangers

5 Fire Dragons, Exarch has DB Flamer
5 Fire Dragons, Exarch has DB Flamer
5 D-Scythe Wraithguard
5 D-Scythe Wraithguard
8 Wraithcannon Wraithguard

4 Wave Serpents, each with 3 Shuriken Cannons

So, how close am I to done with this?

DONE: Autarch, Eldrad, Warlock, Rangers, Wraithcannon Wraithguard. In Eldrad's case, he has a grey undercoat, his cloak is painted blue, and his staff+armor are painted gold. Not really done, but perfectly legal

ALMOST DONE: D-Scythe Wraithguard, Fire Dragons. The D-Scythe Wraithguard all have their heads detached, but the heads are done. 5 of them need their guns to be painted (just a basecoat will be good enough). Fire Dragons are done except Exarch guns are unpainted.

NEEDS WORK: Dire Avengers, Wave Serpents. One squad of Dire Avengers is done and just need to be put on bases. The other squad has gotten its blue basecoat but still needs guns and plumes to be basecoated. Wave Serpents are all done-ish, but need the shieldbanes to be added. 2 of them need canopies to be added. I want to check all of their underslung guns to make sure they're fine as well, but in terms of painting they're good to go.

I think I can wrap up the D-Scythe Wraithguard and Fire Dragons in about half of an hour. The Dire Avengers and Wave Serpents will take more time. Tonight will be a sprint!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Aurics Pride on November 17, 2017, 04:11:49 PM
Love that kitbash! Great posing and really good choice of bits, the Scourge wings look great!
Good luck on getting all that stuff completed and good luck in the tournament!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 18, 2017, 04:35:47 AM
It was a sprint, but I got everything up to tournament standard. I won't be winning any awards for best painted army, especially since some of my models were "based" onto bases of the correct size by simply gluing them, base and all, onto a larger base, but it's legal.

Let's see how it plays!

(https://i.imgur.com/nt9aTEJ.jpg)


PS: here's an example of getting some old Wraithguard "rebased" to the new correct size quickly and easily:

(https://i.imgur.com/2NxZQSx.jpg)


...yeah. But I got the job done.

Also, their paint scheme is "spray grey primer, basecoat blue on the body leaving the gun grey, and paint a very light grey on the head" which is pretty unimpressive, heh.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Saim-Dann on November 18, 2017, 05:57:04 AM
Niiiiice!
Blood will drain from a lot of faces when they see 4 Wave Serpents and three Wraithguard units. Congrats on making the deadline, mate. Best of luck with the tourney. Wave the 40K Online banner high and proud... Pointy ears forever!!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Ynneadwraith on November 18, 2017, 06:08:53 AM
I'm liking the creativity in getting stuff done ;) it's all stuff you can come back to later and patch up as well so all's good :)
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 19, 2017, 06:29:10 AM
I got back from the tournament. Here's the list I ran:

Blazinghand's List - Ulthwé
1996 pts, 1 Battalion, 1 Vanguard - 7 CP
+HQ+
Autarch on foot with Star Glaive, Relic: Faolchu's Wing, Warlord Trait: Fate Reader
Eldrad Ulthran
Warlock with Witchblade
+Troops+
5 Dire Avengers, 1 is Exarch with 2 Catapults
5 Dire Avengers, 1 is Exarch with 2 Catapults
5 Rangers
+Elites+
5 Fire Dragons, 1 is Exarch with DB Flamer
5 Fire Dragons, 1 is Exarch with DB Flamer
5 Wraithguard with D-Scythes
5 Wraithguard with D-Scythes
8 Wraithguard with Wraithcannons
+Dedicated Transport+
Wave Serpent with 3 Shuriken Cannons
Wave Serpent with 3 Shuriken Cannons
Wave Serpent with 3 Shuriken Cannons
Wave Serpent with 3 Shuriken Cannons

A typical Deployment for me:
Each of the 4 Wave Serpents carry either 5 Scythe Wraithguard, or 5 Dragons + 5 Avengers
8 Wraithguard with Wraithcannons in Webway Strike Reserve
5 Rangers is Appear Unbidden Reserve


I played in all three rounds.


Game One

First game, I faced off against an Ultramarines player, Joe. His list was, (roughly):

Ultramarines
+HQ+
Captain (Chapter Master Upgrade)
Lieutenant
Chaplain in Terminator Armor
+Troops+
5 Space Marines, 1 has Lascannon
5 Space Marines, 1 has Heavy Bolter
5 Space Marines, 1 has Heavy Bolter
5 Space Marines, 1 has Heavy Bolter
5 Space Marines, 1 has Heavy Bolter
+Elites+
5 Assault Terminators with a mixture of hammers and claws
5 Assault Terminators with a mixture of hammers and claws
+Transports+
Razorback with 2 Lascannons
Razorback with 2 Lascannons
Razorback with 2 Lascannons
Razorback with 2 Assault Cannons
Razorback with 2 Assault Cannons


We played ITC Mission 1. As Secondary Objectives, I selected Big Game Hunter, Recon, and Headhunter. My adversary selected Big Game Hunter, Headhunter, and one other Secondary that I forgot.

For deployment, I deployed my transports full of Aspect Warriors and Ghost Warriors, wth my Warlock riding along in one and my Autarch along with Eldrad in the open. Rangers and 8-strong Wraithguard unit in reserve. My opponent deployed a fort with his lascannon tac squad, captain+lieutenant in the back, a row of razorbacks, and infantry in front. He put his two flyers on one flank. Our deployment was the corners deployment 12 inches back from the diagonal.

(https://i.imgur.com/VuERh7z.png)

Luckily for me, Joe's list was pretty similar to that of my friend Kingsley who I often play, in broad strokes. He had Razorbacks, characters to give them rerolls, space marine infantry with heavy weapons, stormtalons, and deep strikers–much like my usual opponent's list. Kingsley usually runs Plasma instead of Heavy Bolters, Devestators to get in more lascannons, some Dreadnoughts, and his deep-strikers are Imperial Guard rather than terminators, but the basics are the same. There's a castle of infantry and vehicles with a lot of firepower, and he'll drop some stuff on my head.

I basically moved everything forward, and dropped in my Wraithguard and Rangers aggressively from deep strike. I succeeded in smashing into Joe's stuff. 5 of my Fire Dragons and the 8 Wraithcannon Wraithguard chewed through his flyers and razorbacks pretty well. His Stormtalons never even got to move. The 10 D-Scythe Wraithguard drew a lot of fire but brought down (with the help of Shuriken support) most of his infantry.

He used his deep-strikers well, though. He brought in the Terminators and Chaplain behind me and popped a Wave Serpent in shooting. They were able to charge and surround and kill 5 Fire Dragons, 5 Dire Avengers, and Eldrad. Although Eldrad wasn't originally in the assault, a careful pile-in after the Aspect Warriors died meant that he couldn't escape. His Terminators and Chaplain weren't able to kill anything else, and I ended up picking off the Chaplain with some shooting when I caught him out of position as he raced ahead of the Terminators.

Overall, it was a tight match but I ended up winning since he didn't have a good answer for the Wraithguard. Assault cannons were ok, but his many Bolters and Heavy Bolters just couldn't do the heavy lifting needed, and his Lascannons had too many other things to shoot at.

Game One Result: Victory!


--


Game Two

In Game Two, I faced off against Trent's Raven Guard. His list was:

Detachment: Patrol of Cadians
Commissar
20 Conscripts
20 Conscripts

Detachment: Vanguard of Raven Guard
Captain
Lieutenant
Primaris Ancient with Standard of Emperor Ascendant
5-man Tartaros Terminator Squad - 1 Power Sword, 4 Power Fists, All Combi Bolters except 1 Reaper Autocannon
7-man Jump Pack Veteran Squad - 1 Thunderhammer, 1 Power Fist, 1 Power Sword, 4 Bolter/Chainsword
Venerable Dreadnought: 2 Twin Autocannons
Razorback with Twin Autocannons, Storm Bolter
Razorback with Twin Autocannons, Storm Bolter
Razorback with Twin Autocannons, Storm Bolter

Detachment: Battalion of Raven Guard
Captain (Would be upgraded to Chapter Master)
Lieutenant
5-Man Intercessor Squad with 1 Power Sword, 1 Grenade Launcher
7-Man Scout Squad with Sniper Rifles and a Missile Launcher
6-man Scout Squad with Boltguns
Relic Leviathan Dreadnought with Grav-Flux Bombard, 2 Heavy Flamers, Storm Cannon Array

We played ITC Mission 2. For Secondary Objectives, I picked Reaper (which could easily earn me lots of points with those big Conscript Squads), Recon, and Big Game Hunter. He picked Behind Enemy Lines, Big Game Hunter, and Headhunter.

I did my usual deployment, though I took care to keep Eldrad and the Autarch out of line of sight of his Scout Snipers that he deployed early on. He set up with a solid screen and kept his jump pack troops and terminators in reserve. Our deployment was table quarters.

(https://i.imgur.com/2V0BXxg.png)

This turned out to be a pretty straightforward game. With the exception of his FW Dreadnought, all of my opponent's units were units I understood. And I figured I could take them in a brawling match. I deep striked my Rangers into my own backlines, and my opponent sent in both of his deep strike squads into my back lines, but had to send them in behind my Rangers and pretty far back to be out of range of my guns (since I could use the Forewarned stratagem to shoot at incoming deep striker). Once he had committed his 400 points of deep strikers to the back of my deployment zone, my Wave Serpents burst ahead, and brought the fight to his gunline. His Conscripts went down pretty easily, with my 4 Serpents putting out 36 shots a turn that are quite accurate and hit hard. I lost some guys on the way in, and had to hold back my 8-strong Wraithguard squad for 2 turns, due to his effective screening, only bringing them in on turn 3. When I brought the Wraithguard in, my opponent remarked, "wow, I never really had a chance, did I?" and the battle in his deployment zone went from "pitched" to "stomp" pretty quickly.

This game was won on the deep strike of his guys into my backline. He actually fought very well with his gunline, carefully repositioning his screening units and forcing my characters to stay out of the action with his snipers. Down (locally) several hundred points though, it wasn't enough for him to win.

Game Two Result: Victory!


---


Game Three

Going into this game, I was feeling pretty good, but also pretty tired, since it was my first tournament. At this point, there were 3 undefeated players. Due to score, it was very unlikely I'd take first. However, if I beat my opponent (the top-scoring player with a 1-1 record) I could potentially take second, if the loser on the top table lost hard enough. So, for the final game, I repositioned to the second-from-the-top table, and faced off against Adrian's Death Guard. His list was (working from memory for this one since I don't have a copy):

+HQ+
Typhus
Necrosius
Malefic Lord
Jump Pack Sorcerer
Jump Pack Sorcerer
+Troops+
19 Poxwalkers
19 Poxwalkers
17 Poxwalkers
+Elites+
Tallyman
10 Blightlord Terminators
+Heavy+
Plagueburst Crawler
+Lord of War+
Mortarion


Quite a list! And with Deathguard, which i'm not familiar with. I identified the poxwalkers as "potentially threatening, but not really a problem" and all the characters as "potentially a big problem" as well as the Terminators as "a big problem" and Motrarion, of course, as "the biggest problem" given his stature. I ran my Warlock with Protect/Jinx, hoping he could cast it on a juicy target like Mortarian to make that Invulnerable save a bit more manageable. Ultimately, my ability to win this game would come down to handling Morty and the Termies.

We got short table edge deployment, and laid things out.

(https://i.imgur.com/Lh4cY0e.png)

At this point, it was starting to get late, I'd played 2 games in a row, and I was making mistakes. I mishandled Eldrad, letting him get charged by deep striking Terminators. I forgot to move a squad of Wraithguard one turn. I didn't keep the crew together: 2 wave serpents went up the center, and 1 went around each flank, rather than all 4 travelling together in a manner allowing for mutual support.

The most costly mistake was dealing with Mortarian. When Mortarian made his appearance, I didn't plan for how to deal with him in a tactical sense. I moved the bulk of my forces up onto the center objective on the elevated platform, but allowed Mortarian to walk right to the center of it. From the center, he zoned out my deep strikers from coming in on that platform: my 8-man Wraithguard squad I had hoped would drop in and toast Mortarian couldn't drop in. I had set up a great turn for them too, falling back some units out of assault with Mortarian, etc. Ultimately, these are mistakes that could have been trivially avoided, but as a day goes on and fatigue sets in this happens.

In the end, my Wraithguard had to come in elsewhere and shoot at sub-optimal targets (zombies and terminators) and Mortarian was able to clean up about a third of my army without dying. After that, it was all over but the shouting. I picked up a couple more victory points through some careful Eldar trickery, picking off a character here or there, boosting onto objectives, etc. I'd say I probably doubled my number of points beyond what would have happened if I gave up when all was lost, so I feel pretty good about that. Still, I wish I had been able to give this game my all. Adrian was a sportsman and a great opponent, and I'd like to get another crack at him. Maybe next tournament!

Game Three Result: Defeat!

Overall, the tournament was a great experience. This was true both with the games (a lot of fun, everyone was sportsmanlike) and with the social aspect. It was cool to hang out and chat with other players, play against a bit more variety in list, and see what the local scene was like. I'll surely attend the next one in the area.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Looshkin on November 22, 2017, 08:32:07 AM
Great reports Blazinghand. I was pleased to see you come through the first 2 encounters convincingly*. That 3rd though? That sounded rough. It's a tough list as well...I'm fairly surprised that he was only 1-1 when you met.

Anyway, great reports from what sounded like a really fun day. Congratulations on doing so well. I'm sure next time you'll come out on top.




*That first army looks really beautiful from that zoomed out shot. Was it pretty impressive?
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on November 22, 2017, 01:06:14 PM
The first opponent with the tan army had a really good look. He had good highlights and wash to give his tanks  and infantry that kind of battle-haredened look, and he got the ultramarine blue to fit in quite well on the shoulders and as stripes on the vehicle. Sadly, I don't have more photos of his army, but it was one of the better looking ones out there. Here's a higher res image of the set-up: https://i.imgur.com/tbQBawM.jpg (https://i.imgur.com/tbQBawM.jpg)
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Cavalier on November 23, 2017, 06:37:10 AM
Great bat-reps Blazinghand! Really well written and I really got a good feel for the game. I wish I was as concise! Really nice run too. I think you played really well. Too bad you got tired in that final game because I think you could've nabbed a victory there. Also in the 2nd bat-rep vs the Ravenguard... did you just race away leaving all those deepstrikers in the dust? If so I salute you sir! I've done something like that a number of times and its just hilarious. Anyway I really enjoyed the bat-reps, congrats on a great run!

BTW where did you get those ITC mission packs? They look fun... are they up on the FLG site?
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on March 31, 2018, 05:00:48 AM
Finished basing some models! My Warlock, Farseer, and Rangers squad are all rocking some new bases. I've decided to start using dead grass flock to liven things up a bit.

(https://i.imgur.com/AWrUHpK.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/bZcJj5V.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/fy2Ti6c.jpg)
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: dog_of_war on March 31, 2018, 07:39:17 AM
I've always liked dead static grass. It just screams battlefield terrain to me. Looking good Blazinghand.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Cavalier on April 1, 2018, 07:49:25 AM
Looking really nice Blazinghand. It looks really nice in contrast to your blue scheme. Also the Rangers look awesome in that camo pattern. Those old sculpts are such classic. Love it!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Ynneadwraith on April 6, 2018, 10:29:00 AM
Yeah those bases look ace :) definitely suit your scheme. Nice work!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Dread on April 20, 2018, 04:06:33 PM
I really like your blue combos. Stunning and elegant. Really shows the Eldar sensuality. Keep it up.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Grizzlykin on April 20, 2018, 04:22:07 PM
Jumping in on the band wagon!

That's some really clean modeling work from I was always to lazy to do this and now I kinda regret it sometimes.

Really great modeling that's for sure the only thing I would say and it might just be due to you camera but I feel like you might be applying you paint a tiny bit too sick. But I might be totally wrong. It feels like your winged character on the wight wings like there is a surplus of paint in lower part of each of the feathers.

Still really great job and did play a real bunch of game really nice to see :D Keep it up.

Looking forward to you next kitbash
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Myen'Tal on April 21, 2018, 12:33:24 AM
As everyone else has noted, really cool Autarch(?) conversion, likely way beyond my own modding ability ;) :P. I'm loving the Seers best, just really have that glamorous look that Craftworld Eldar ought to have. Also the vehicles look great too, and so do those Ultra Marines you faced in the Tournament!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on January 31, 2019, 01:29:36 AM
Working on a couple new flyers - a Crimson Hunter Exarch I've had on the docket for a while, and a Hemlock Wraithfighter. I'm pleased with the basing, but still have a lot of work to do on the CH Exarch.

(https://i.imgur.com/XjUl9mJ.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/4XczOBa.jpg)
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Myen'Tal on January 31, 2019, 08:19:57 AM
The basecoats on those flyers look very smooth, BH, and I love the pattern you have going on the wings! Cannot wait how you progress!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: magenb on January 31, 2019, 03:14:05 PM
Looking good so far, are you planning on marking the Exarch differently to a standard CH?
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Ynneadwraith on February 1, 2019, 12:13:49 PM
I do love the eldar flyers :) looking forward to these coming together!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Dread on February 1, 2019, 09:53:36 PM
I really like the smooth dark blues. The accents really bring it out. What color are you going to do the spirit stones? Did you use the blue on the bottom or black? Weapons colors? Oh, well hurry up and finish them haha.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Looshkin on April 3, 2019, 05:39:26 AM
Really nice, clean start on those flyers Blazinghand. I look forward to seeing future developments.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Calamity on April 3, 2019, 07:37:19 AM
Yes I too would love to see what you do next with those flyers.  :)
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on April 18, 2019, 02:00:13 AM
Ah, unfortunately I've fallen down the Age of Sigmar hole and am working on some Aelves these days. I'll take some progress photos this weekend...
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Myen'Tal on April 21, 2019, 01:47:15 PM
Ah, unfortunately I've fallen down the Age of Sigmar hole and am working on some Aelves these days. I'll take some progress photos this weekend...

Oooh, what kind of Aelves, I wonder?  ;D
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on May 12, 2019, 06:57:40 PM
For Mother's Day, I decided to paint up a miniature of the family cat as a gift for Mom. I went with the Stonehaven Miniatures cat (https://www.stonehavenmini.com/products/sh0004), because I've seen it around and it looks pretty cat-like.

The Miniature

(https://i.imgur.com/D9xCR1Y.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/yo0ykVN.jpg)

The Stonehaven cat is a one-piece metal miniature that comes with a very small base. It shipped in a padded envelope and arrived intact with no damage.

(https://i.imgur.com/H122sYJ.jpg)

It's very small. It's about the size that you'd expect a cat would be for 40k or AoS scale.

(https://i.imgur.com/JYXGYjC.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/jIdzaK8.jpg)

Very nice detail, though the collar isn't what I'd want it to be. I'm guessing that having a collar ridge right in the valley of where the neck meets to torso would lead to casting irregularities, so instead the cat has a necklace-like collar. Only a couple of streamers - one off the nose, one off the tail, one off the side, all easily cleaned up. The face could use more detail, and the nose seems a bit wide, but overall it's what I was looking for.

Painting the Mini

Painting this miniature was quick and easy, even when trying to paint a 3-color calico cat. It plays very well with both drybrush and wash techniques due to the many crenelations and detail from the fur. Because it is so small, I went for brush-on primer. One thing to note is that the mini is so down low close to the base that it is hard to paint the underside. Getting it to look like the family cat was pretty easy!

(https://i.imgur.com/B3mTQ1B.jpg)
The family cat.

(https://i.imgur.com/YK0EdTT.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/x8qOGze.jpg)
A stirring likeness!

Overall I'd say it's a fine mini and easy to quickly paint, great for whatever you'd need a small cat mini for - say, as a familiar for your D&D character.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Myen'Tal on May 12, 2019, 07:15:34 PM
Adorable cat, both the real life and miniature varieties. Cool idea for Mother's Day. Good work.

Still waiting on those aelves  ;D.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on May 13, 2019, 05:04:16 AM
There's a swordmaster in the size comparison pic! I'll see what I can get up in the next few weeks.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Alienscar on May 13, 2019, 11:01:35 AM
The face could use more detail, and the nose seems a bit wide, but overall it's what I was looking for.

Looks good Blazinghand and as MyenTal said a neat idea for your mum.

I agree with your assessment of the models face and when looking at your photo of the bagged model the face has the look of a lioness rather than a domestic cat.

Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: magenb on May 13, 2019, 08:19:39 PM
interesting find, it would go well with a number of customized Yvraine builds or even the old warlock.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Dread on May 13, 2019, 08:20:57 PM
Kudos for tackling the cat for your mom. It's very difficult to replicate something like that but you did great. Proudness!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on June 26, 2019, 05:33:48 AM
I've given GW's new contrast paints a try. For my Warhammer Fantasy RPG campaign, a couple of my players don't come from a miniatures background, so I picked up a couple cheap resin minis from Reaper Miniatures, primed them, and speed painted them in a couple hours using contrast paint.

(https://i.imgur.com/dGyseuZ.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/MkBdovf.jpg)

From left to right:

Viktor the Witch Hunter, Karl the Priest of Sigmar, and Aeseric the Aelf

Primed with flat gray primer.

Viktor's cloak is Gryph-charger Gray with a touch of Cygor Brown. His tunic is Aggaros Dunes. Skin is Fyreslayer Flesh, boots are Cygor Brown. My store didn't have any metallic contrast paint on hand, so I did the metal parts the old way. The studded leather is Aggaros Dunes with Ironbreaker Gray (watered down) layered on top, blades are Administratum Gray with Ironbreaker Gray layered on top, then washed with Nuln Oil

Karl's cloak is Aggaros Dunes with the upper parts layered with Nazdreg yellow for the faded look. Flesh is Fyreslayer Flesh. Tunic is Cygor Brown, boots are Cygor Brown with Ork Flesh on top. Karl's Dagger is Administratum Gray with Ironbreaker on top and Nuln Oil wash.

Aeseric's Cloak is Cygor Brown. His hair is Nazdreg Yellow and his flesh is Fyreslayer flesh with a small amount of Cygor Brown mixed in. His tunic, armor, personal effects, etc, are Militarum Green, and his staff is Leviadon Blue.

Overall, I still need to get a feel for how these paints work, and try them when I have more time to appreciate them. For cranking out a few models in 2 hours, though, they were quite nice and easy to use. My players who aren't into the hobby were pleased that they had minis to match the other players who also play wh40k, so there's a happy ending to this story.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Myen'Tal on June 26, 2019, 10:00:09 AM
Keep experimenting, Blaze! I've wrote down some tips about contrast paints somewhat recently on my blog, feel free to give them a look. A bright under coat like white, off white, and light grey is good for contrast. Also when you thin, don't use it like water and dip the tip of your brush in it. Grab an old brush and thin by the brush load. Sometimes I have to use two brush loads to make it smooth enough to coat a light area, depending on the paint, so that it won't splotch and build up too much.

Also, thin coats are necessary if you thin it down quite as bit like I do.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Dread on June 26, 2019, 08:12:03 PM
You are right to be proud of them, 2 hours and you did what most people do in 4 hours or more on one mini, great stuff. Charge them to paint theirs for them, I know they would happily pay you for that kinda quality. 8)
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: magenb on June 26, 2019, 08:24:13 PM
They look good. I've noticed people using a slightly darker primer, then they do a really quick squirt of lighter primer from above to make more of a transition.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Looshkin on June 29, 2019, 04:28:48 AM
For a couple of hours' work, they look great! I bet the group were chuffed to bits all having painted minis.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on September 16, 2019, 05:24:42 AM
I've been pretty sidetracked from my Craftworld Eldar and my Aelves!

Some minis I've painted for general use:

(https://i.imgur.com/0ev5iHl.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/kSupC5n.jpg)

These were more resin reaper minis. I still had to straighten out the valkyrie's weapon when I took the photos, but some warm water and a little bending did the trick.

My latest work on some minis for Warhammer Fantasy RPG:

(https://i.imgur.com/mS5hQIW.jpg)

This old school sigmarite priest mini is ready for combat! the tiny warhammer pales in comparison to what GW makes today.


I've also worked on my perry bros Hwacha/Shingijeon historical Korean rocket artillery minis. The platforms themselves are done, and now I just need to paint the crew:

(https://i.imgur.com/eDCYAdp.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/0LmSuUc.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/dZB7PFa.jpg)

Re: the High Elves, I've done some base coating on a couple of my Phoenix Guard, but nothing worth photographing yet.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Nutty on September 16, 2019, 10:38:19 AM
Cool stuff! The DnD minis look like they were fun to paint; especially the cat.

The Eldar are a bit darker & dirtier (like they've been deployed for a long time) than I'm used to seeeing but it gives them a more grizzled feel, and it works really well for them.

What's next in line to be painted?
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Myen'Tal on September 16, 2019, 05:09:17 PM
These look pretty cool! Don't really play D&D myself, but I am into the lore and books somewhat, so I can appreciate these :)! Great job, looking forward to what's next!
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Calamity on October 1, 2019, 09:08:30 PM
Fantastic stuff Blazinghand!  I especially like the rocket batteries!  Looking forward to seeing what comes next!  :)
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on April 8, 2020, 07:12:36 AM
Now that we're on lockdown out here, I've been able to work on the Samurai Chaos Lord conversion I've been planning for a while...

(https://i.imgur.com/2GLc00I.png)
(https://i.imgur.com/T1xoDNW.png)
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Myen'Tal on April 8, 2020, 08:36:54 AM
That looks pretty sweet, Blazinghand! Cannot wait to see the finished model! Him drawing the blade out of the scabbard is so samurai 8).
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: magenb on April 8, 2020, 06:22:20 PM
Looking good BH. Are you going to try for a top knot?
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Blazinghand on April 8, 2020, 07:00:15 PM
Looking good BH. Are you going to try for a top knot?

I've decided to try something a bit more free-flowing, using the Space Wolf Conversion Kit head with the long hair.

(https://i.imgur.com/H1YREWt.png)

Other than that, the main conversion is replacing the left arm with the Reiver "drawing a combat knife" left arm. To make the blade seem longer, I cut off the end of the sheath and added another sheath to it.
Title: Re: Blazinghand's Blue Craftworld Eldar
Post by: Dread on April 8, 2020, 08:08:50 PM
I like it, it has pizzazz! Choice of head is cool and the sheath, such a good idea. Can't wait to see him based and all.