Thursday, January 27, 2005

BOOM

Sorry for the lack o presence. The Video card arrived and the new PC is done. All hail the new behemoth! At least for 2-3 years when it starts becoming slow and sluggish.

As soon as I get my files and old links off the ole 800, we'll be good to go. :)

Doom went over real well. and its much easier to sort the minis when they are painted. :) Forgot to take pics. Will do so next trip to boardgame day.

Sunday, January 23, 2005

DOOM in a WEEK part 6

I didnt get to do much Saturday.

I gave my minis a light spray of dullcote but the morning fog turned to fine mist and then to light rain. I couldnt give them another spray and as the temperature dropped like a lead brick in a pool of warm pudding, external conditions are bad for additional spraying.

So off we went to run errands.

With a bit over 3 hours to go before heading out to the local shoppe for game day. I have a few touch ups to remedy. Most of it being to paint the critter bases grey.

The next set of photos (i'll post them tonight) will be of our game today. I'll also be making an edited PDF of the whold process available for download, so I can clear up the photos off my webspace (which I hit the limit on putting this project together :P )

Update:
I started to paint the bases and noticed that the weather did inded have an effect on the DUllcote.. the nasty "white Haze" effect which is caused by excessive humidity has taken hold on some of the figs. Another blast of dullcote will remedy this, but I need it to be a bit warmer and dryer before hand.

Bases are done and drying.. time to hit the store! Be back tonight!

Friday, January 21, 2005

DOOM in a WEEK parts 4 & 5

Note that part 4 didnt happen yesterday. Not that I didnt get any work done, I just didnt type or post pics. Luckily I have pics so I can recreate my steps here.

Here we go:
THURSDAY
My Cyberdemons needed some work. I quickly drybrushed some extra fleshtones in the bald spots. I then dropped some pink/purple spots on the arms, red for the eyes, some extra gunmetal on the chestparts, and an extra drybrush of alumimum on the back bits. then decided to give them a burnt umber(ish) wash to pop out the teeth and some of the muscles. Why do a wash when Im going to dip? I dunno.. It seemed like the thing to do at the time.





I started to draw my attention to the marines. I painted the bases the appropriate 3 colors, three fleshtones, metal armor, then a thin layer of paint over the armor again, to match the base color. Note how some of the metallic color shines through, especially on the Blue marine.



FRIDAY
Last but not least, the Mancubii.. And Look! Boomhowler and his buds are coming to help me!


First, a quick dab of red for the eyes.


Looking up my reference material HERE, I decided that there should be a better way to approach the manc. After some consideration, I decided to give 'em some pink and berry-colored spots.. why? I dunno. These were the last of the batch and I figure I get a bit more creative... so this is getting closer to how I normally paint..

First I gave a liberal coating of a pink/purple skin in the darker areas of the figure, and most of the upper torso. Then a dark berry wash.

While the wash was still wet, I quickly did the following:
Dabbed little dots of the same berry color around the shoulders and some on the belly. The damp surface causes them to 'bleed' a bit.
Go back to my base pink/purple skintone and do some blending swipes on the nose bits and on top of the heads.
Still with my base pink/purple skintone, I added some extra dots on the shoulders over the berry dots... the end results are here:




A quick swipe of brown for the toes and off the to dip they go!

Next:
The Cygnar Attack!




Whoops! That's Bunny's Cygnar figs in progress. Not bad for a girls' first time, eh?

Tomorrow will actually be the final touch ups and another visit to the STUMP!

Thursday, January 20, 2005

oop!

Ive changed the settings.. now anyone can leave comments. :P

Cheap PC BUILDING, Part 5

I hope everyone is enjoying DOOM IN A WEEK. It's been loads of fun for me. They might even be all done if I didnt stop to take pictures all the time and post notes about it.. :P

I did a quick check on the status of my online parts.. they should start coming in today. Happy as a pig in swill I is!

The power supply showed up today and the IDE card should be here shortly behind (ordered the same day, so one would think so). So acortech.com is getting bonus points for speed, but none for not telling me via email about them being shipped. They do have order status on their website, which links directly to USPS/ UPS pages. the problem is that my 2nd package isnt showing up properly.

pcontime.com is getting another look. They called me to ask if I wanted a retail boxed Video card for $5 more. The plain one didnt have a box. It came in a bag with no drivers, support or warranty. It sure sounded like they throw the card in a priority box and ship it off. This makes me rather suspiscious. Advertise one thing, upsell to something else. For $5 I didnt really think about it. In hindsight, I might have put the order on hold while I checked out more options. The card should be here Monday when I will finish assmbly and load that sucker up. :)

Anyway... I threw the PS in. Which required me to take out the CD drives and the CPU fan. Not a big task and not worth wasting bandwidth posting pics about it. :P

Back to painting minis..


Wednesday, January 19, 2005

DOOM in a WEEK part 3

Hello Again!

Some quick notes before we start:
Yes, I am working on other figs besides these as I go (only I take my time with them).. so technically, Im doing more than whats in the doom box. I'll even point out where Im doubling up, so you can see where I'm maximizing my paint time. Take THAT Mr. Ray! ;)

This is NOT the way I normally paint minis. I wanted these done ASAP, that means quick paint and dip. I usually use dip for Rank & File minis, or to help enhance what I consider an OK paintjob.

all that aside,
----------
Well, last night I couldnt sleep. Instead I decided to watch bubbahotep and paint the metal bits on the figs.. (I also painted some of Boomhowler's weapons while I was at it)




I started at 9 AM and started by giving the zombies grey jackets. (i painted boomhowler's boys skin afterwards with the same base color)


I noticed some of the figs base coat didnt cover very well, so I touched up the archviles and trites by drybrushing some "putty" color on it. I gave any critter with teeth and toes a quick swipe of teeth and toe colors. :P




I let the lot dry for a bit, then I went downstairs to dip the first batch.

For those not in the know, the dip is actually tinted polyurethane. Specifically, Minwax Polyshades line, Tudor Color, Satin finish.

Other colors can also be used, but Tudor seems to be the favored. Being a polyurethane, Dip also provides a great 1st sealer coat to protect your minis. Gloss finish will actually protect the minis better and since I plan on giving the lot a quick spray of dullcote, the dip's finish doesnt really matter, so I usually buy what they have in stock.

You will also need some mineral spirits for cleanup and/or thinning the dip.



If you have rubber gloves, great! Otherwise tweezers or other holders might be in your better interest. I'll be using a holder since the can is small and my fingers are big.

So with a garbage bag on the basement bathroom counter (dip is dangerously damaging to most countertops and surfaces), we line up the readied figs and start..

Shake/stir the can, then open and let some of the bubbles dissipate.

Whatever you use, fingers or holder, submerge the fig up to his feet... Like so..




Now I take the fig out and let the excess dip run back into the can.

Normally, when the dripping slows down, I shake the fig inside a garbage can to get rid of any more excess. Im particually lazy today, and actually skip this step. I expect some extra pooling, but since these are quick paints, I dont care. Nyahh.

For a quick comparison, heres what a zombie looks like before & after the dip..



Anyway, I dip all my readied minis..


Here are running pics and commentary of some figs...

This archvile shows the good and bad of dipping.

The Bad: As I didnt follow the normal dip procedure (shaking off excess) you can see were the excess pooling starts to show, here in the neck. You also see the big enemy of dips, the mold line.
Good: plenty of coverage in between the ribs, the shading behind the eyesocket, fingers and palm of the right hand (although a bit too much dip) show great definition.

Here is a pic of dipping beauty.

First off, the dip gets in every nook & cranny on the metal, instantly seperating the bits and making them look like individually tended to parts.
Look how you get a thin line separating the gumline from the flesh, and again (slightly more pronounced) in the teeth. check out the shading up and down the arm. This is why dipping is the savior of miniature painting novices. This picture shows how dip makes a rushed paintjob a good one.

Heres that zombie again..

Look at how the dip shades his pants, gives his face definition and seperates his clothes from his skin..

Again, I didnt follow the standard dip procedure, so I expect some excessive pooling and a few "blobs" here and there, but I expect that in this process, so I dont really care.

Polyurethane requires 6-8 hours to dry, I usually let them dry overnight. but seeing how I was done at 11AM, I took a shower and went off to probate office, the tax office and the bank. Home by 3:30 to do some blending on Boomhowler's skin and some extra drybrushing on their weapons.. :)

Next: I dunno.. but it'll be fun! Watch out for Hellknights!




Tuesday, January 18, 2005

DOOM in a WEEK part 2

TUESDAY
As I have no intention of using my expensive Vallejo paints on this project, I have my giant collection of Craft Paints to choose from.



With a quick search, you can find lots of DOOM 3 color references, but sadly, most of the monsters are.. Grey.. if not grey, then Gray. You get the idea. So rather than use a pallete of greyscale, I've decided to give the the beasties some color similar to DOOM and DOOM 2. Not all they way grey, but maybe washed out colors.. nah.. an assortment of fleshtones, please!!

About 4:00, I hit resume play on my ROTK DVD and off I went..

In order to maximize assembly-line painting, the first thing I did was get them all arranged by critter type..


Then off to painting zombies.. I started with a combo of green and putty for zombie skin.. and went to town. TOR where art thou?? :P





Then adding Tan and Goose Feather to my mixed zombie base.. I painted the Hell Knights flesh.
Knowing that these would be dipped and the paint I put on was more or less a straight base coat, I saw no reason to be neat..



For the Muncubus, I added some grey and green to the paint mix...



at this point, I readied some Green and grey again.. I had poured a bit of green out and thought I'd use in on the zombies pants, the the rest on the marine pants.




For the pinkies I used some of this flesh-looking color from Anita..



Then on to the Imps..
I had Tan & a medium brown. Not sure which I would go with, I pour a bit of both out.

These are closer to the actual colors

Proving how off a Camera can kill true colors..


Anyway, I opted for the darker brown..

Next up, the huggy monster

and the cyberdemons.


Next up, the trites(?) MOre (you guessed it grey and a touch of dark brown..

by now my zombies were ready for some pink wound touch ups. a drop o pink in the belly holes, plus on thier heads where the sprue knots are.
YOu can see some trites in the background.


While I had the pink out, I decided to do the insides of critters' mouths, some bits on the cyberdemon and do some spots on the pinkies.


I experimented with some color in the Zombies' jackets, but need to go a different route.. I stopped at about 8:30.. so far.. so good!

More tomorrow!

DOOM the Boardgame MINI PAINTING

Soon to be retitled DOOM IN A WEEK. Look for future postings under that title.

The goal: to have all my DOOM boardgame minis ready for Sunday, which was our next campaign attempt. Quick painting and dipping are the key here..

Day 1 was Monday, actually.
10:00
I grabbed all the minis, dumped them in a plastic bin, and gave them a quick rinse in some soap and water. To save time I actually did this in the shower.

I then laid them outside on the stump to dry (it wasnt cold yet.. a mere 50ยบ).. off I go to run some errands.

Heres a pic right before I left:


I also had to glue the 3 Cyberdemons together. For size comparison, here is a pic next to a Warjack..



Coming home, I gave them a quick coat of Primer. For some reason, the primer ACTED AS A WASH. I thought it was a fairly older can, so I grabbed a new can (bought during my errands) and had the same results.. I think its due to the dropping temperature.. the can says use between 50-80 degrees.. after 3 attempts, I get enough primer on the figs to satisfy me.

As a side note, I used the primer INSIDE in my storage/laundry room on some warmachine figs, and got the same result).. WTF???

I let the figs sit overnight in the bin to ensure all the primer dries properly.



NEXT: Line 'em up & Knock 'em down!

Cheap PC BUILDING, Part 4

Pics from the initial parts install:

This pic is of the case itself. Yes, its on my chair.. I have minis drying on my workbench. :P

case

Here, the MB with CPU and MEM installed, all other wires connected, save for the power, which will be added when the new PS arrives.
inside



You pop in guides on one side of the drive...


...and slide the drive in.



Then you lock the them in by sliding the cage locks to the right. Neat.



Looks like this.. yay!



More as new parts arrive..