August 2014 Update

A hobby is a hobby. It's not a job.

Missing Mojo
My real life has been busy and frustrating in equal measure. I put a lot of effort into work in order to keep up to speed, and it has paid dividends. I have a new job - a promotion, at that - starting in September, and it will be a somewhat unusual experience to be in a position of authority. On top of that, my dad has had some health issues which've meant it's pretty hard to keep on top of the grim darkness of the far future.

This year has passed us by without INQvitational 2014 materialising. I'm frustrated and disappointed that that's been the case. Still, others have stepped into the breach - Peter has organised a number of games this year (as you can see from this post by Migsula) that've gone very well indeed. The INQ28 forum on the Ammobunker goes from strength to strength, with a number of new posters regularly appearing. Jeff Vader himself seems to outpace everyone else put together, of course.


+DEI CASTIGATOR+
These summer holidays have played host to an unusual milestone, though.

Those of you who are familiar with my internet exploits may remember the Castigators, my DIY Chapter. You can read up on them here, on the Bolter and Chainsword. I posted that thread nine years ago, which is crazy when you think about it. Crazier still when you consider that in those nine years I've never had a completed 40k Castigators army. Abortive attempts have never really managed to get me to where I wanted to be.

And it feels to me like that's nearly always the case - my projects never quite seem to materialise as I want them to. This blog is a shadow of its former self - with all the previous posts disappeared - because I was involved in an effort to create an INQ28 website, which never quite turned out how I wanted it to. I'm not the central innovator of the INQ28 scene anymore - I'm not one of these elite hobbyists - I'm just following the crowd.I want to get some more games in, I want to play around in the 40k universe, but it is difficult with work and family and SWMBO and friends who've in some ways moved on from wargaming.

I've found it difficult to get comments on my latest project, The Battle for Swordpoint. I'm hoping to use it to tie together a lot of the projects that're lying half-finished in my workroom at my parents' house. That's made it somewhat harder to sustain the enthusiasm, but I feel like I might be getting somewhere in trying to create true-scale Space Marines I'm happy with.

My initial attempts were been sporadic. Based on Sebastian Stuart's Brother Stavus, I first started working with plastic terminators, using power armoured arms. Originally I was very happy with the concept, though it does produce Marines that look like T-Rexes - they have very short arms.

My most complete true-scaler, painted by El Diablo

For the Requiem event, I moved towards techniques favoured by Apologist, particularly the use of terminator-armour for the arms. Here you can see the next True-Scaled Marine I made - this one a Chaos Marine, made partly with Dark Vengeance bits and partly with the Terminator Lord kit.

The Dark Apostle created for the "Requiem" Event.

But it was seeing this Grey Knight by Thomas Kyrsting that changed everything for me. He was the first modeller I'd seen who used Tartaros legs for true-scaled Space Marines, and it seemed to work so well that it ignited something in me. I began work on a true-scaled Black Templar for the 2014 INQvitational:

 

This has led me to my project - to create a squad of ten Deathwatch and a small true-scaled force of Castigators. I have begun with the Deathwatch - being more individualistic and unique, it allows me to refine my technique before embarking upon the Castigators. The Deathwatch have always been a real favourite of mine - for a player like me, knowing I'll never have five different 12,000-point armies, it allows me to include some of the Chapters that I love and wish I could collect. 

I currently have four of the Deathwatch in a semi-serviceable condition: The Black Templar you see above, reworked slightly; a Scythes of the Emperor Marine; a Space Wolf; and a Black Shield Librarian. 

The Space Wolf, made with parts from the limited Krom Dragongaze, and the Scythe of the Emperor

Tancrede, a Blackshield of questionable origins and unquestioned psychic ability.

Of course, it takes time to finish these guys, and it will likely take me quite a while to get it all done, but I am pleased to be sharing my progress with you and hope you'll all enjoy it. 

I will try to update when I have some progress to share.

Hope you're all well, 

Mol.

A Long Overdue Reprise

Hey, all.

A lot of stuff has happened since my last post. We're in the midst of a new Imperial Guard release window, and I've bought myself a box of Scions and the Taurox, which I'm hoping to repurpose as a civilian vehicle. I'm trying to hold off and see what ideas present themselves on the internet, so that I can be suitably inspired. I do feel at the moment as though a lot of my modelling is rather derivative, rather than breaking new ground. Still, I want to try to post a little more on here so that you can see what I'm up to - and, perhaps, so that it inspires me to post a little more.

In the past month I've been eBaying quite a bit of the spare figures and accumulated bitz that I've accumulated over the last few years. With finances the way they are, I cannot truly justify spending lots on Warhammer - but if I can earn some money with my bits, then I don't have to feel guilty about spending some of it...

 February's Fallout
 My last post mentioned that I was due to go to Warhammer World, to attend an event being organised by PDH. The day went rather well; we had a healthy turnout of players and fun was had by all.

I played two games of Inquisitor; the first was a pleasant surprise in that I didn't have to GM! The duties were ably taken by Peter, and it was a nice experience being able to enjoy myself and not knowing the surprises that were round the corner.

The second game, as you can see above, featured Inquisitor Harrow battling against the insidious forces of Salia Veeta, Slaneeshi Cult-Mistress. This was a game that we hope will set the stage for the 2014 INQvitational (more on that later) but was also nice in that it was unambiguously good-against-evil. Well, insofar as a hulking, half-cybernetic monster of a man can be considered good...

After discussing a set-up with Peter and Jake, we created a backdrop on the agricultural world of Orlock II; a relatively normal Imperial planet currently being purged by the ambitious and proud Inquisitrix Calline. Having failed in the election of the Helios Cabal, Calline had been stung and had thrown herself into her duty with abandon. For the cult-mistress Salia Veeta, it seemed prudent to end her business on the planet; her underlings had organised a meeting with a sect of the Dark Mechanicus, where she was trading her cultists for goods far rarer.

Inquisitor Harrow, having hunted Veeta since the wicked woman had killed his former pupil, was leaving nothing to chance and was storming the meeting with what forces he could gather. Surely he could not let her escape his clutches once again...

 It was a game unlike any other I've played, and a real spectacle that was a treat for spectators at Warhammer World. Reinforced by some models freshly-painted by Steve, Harrow  arrived in force:

Harrow's retinue consisted of:

• Inquisitor Gillam Harrow with Gun-Skull and Cyber-Mastiff "Terror"
• Pyremaster Korbin
• Trooper Drexler
• Father Piotr
• Gunner "Banner" Cobb
• Remembrance "Mem" Vane
• Hogan Stovall

Harrow had managed to marshal some reinforcements from the local Arbites precinct; they were all he could bring with him in his haste to capture Salia:

 

Peter's Slaneeshi heretics were small in number, but rather potent: 

 

 Salia Veeta had arrived to attend to Dwimmer-Craft Izsefin, a trusted lieutenant of hers. She had also brought the daemonhost Plisrpijn, bound within the body of her own daughter.

Bruticus had brought a group of Dark Mechanicus individuals, and something altogether more insidious:

The female tech-priest leading this group is flanked here by the Toymaker atop his mechanical spider-walker, a murder-gholam construct on the left, and the traitor astartes known as The Friendless.

With the forces assembled, it was time to do battle... but more on that in my next post!

The weather outside is frightful...

You may not be aware, but England is in the grip of ferocious weather. Fitting then, that a storm should be brewing in the Dalthus sector, too!

Tomorrow - the 15th of February - a small group of hobbyists are descending upon Warhammer World for a series of INQ28 games. Foremost among these will be a ferocious clash between Inquisitor Gillam Harrow, of the Dalthan Ordo Hereticus, and the noted heretic Salia Veeta (played with aplomb by the devilish PDH). If that isn't bad enough, the Dark Mechanicus "Toymaker" (from Bruticus) will be in attendance - and a freaking Chaos Space Marine!

I hope to put together a battle report for this game - please stay tuned over the next week or so!

Excited to tell you more soon,

-Mol

A Return, of Sorts

Hello, all.

So, I "closed the blog" in June. I promised an update in the "next few weeks." And now it's January 2014 - eight months - and I'm posting again. A lot has happened in the intervening time - what with work and moving house, it's been tricky to find the time to post. My production has slown to a crawl, and I've felt bad about that. Other people have far exceeded my output, and put me to shame!

Still, I'm never able to flee from the dark millennium for too long.  I probably won't be particularly prolific in the short term, but we will see.

Still, I think it's worth sharing something funny from Warseer...

Keep your eyes peeled!