Helbrecht Complete!

...well, mostly.  I still have to knock out the scenic base.  I was able to get him done in eight days, in time to enter him at WGC.  Unfortunately, logistics with the painting competition there went south, and results were only read for three categories, none of which were sci-fi.  Prize support, even winners' plaques, was nonexistent except for three categories that received free airbrushes (which were really cool) provided by Grex, and the belt buckle for Best in Show that Goatboy had done for trophies  The downside to that is that they apparently insisted their airbrushes only be provided to categories they chose, and everyone else was left out in the cold.

Since I'm local to the area, I threw my hat in to revamp how it's handled in the future, and I intend to turn the thing around and make it into a feature of Wargamescon, rather than an increasingly distant afterthought.  I've been meaning to get up to Reapercon to compete for a couple of years, anyway, so not being able to compete at home might actually motivate me to make the trip. :)

Anywho, I have some photos of Helbrecht on his temporary plinth for you all.

The back of the cloak seems lacking, but I was pressed for time - I will probably go back and do something on the edges while I'm painting the scenic base.

On to other things;  I'll post again soon!

Marshall Helbrecht Painting Time Attack!

Apologies, it's been far too long since I've posted anything.  Daemons have sapped a lot of my interest in messing with the Space Wolves of late, and other things have sapped my time away from messing with Daemons.  On that note, look for pics of the myriad horrors I'm working on for that army in an upcoming post.

Tonight, we're jumping right in with shots of my completed resculpt of Black Templar High Marshall Helbrecht, sans scenic base, which sculptor's block has put a bit of hiatus on.  I know GW has given the old crusaders a cold shoulder lately, but they aren't entirely forgotten.

You'll probably spot a few bits in there from other kits; I used a head from a Space Wolf sprue (and for a time considered leaving the mohawk on).  I pulled several parts from a finecast copy of the stock Helbrecht, but with it being finecast, I still ended up having to remake the candles on his backpack (which is a mark II pack to replace the unusable mk I pack that came with the model) from scratch.  Same went for his sword, which is decidedly small and unheroic - I built a new one using the blade of a Forge World terminator power sword.

On to the first PIP photos from 5/29!  I like to do the heads first on most of my pieces, and with gold featuring so prominently on this model I wanted to make sure my recipe was going to come out well, so I started on his pointing arm.

At this point, I began blocking in colors, since it's hard to get a grasp of the model when it's covered in a gold basecoat.  I've since completed the head in its entirety, but haven't taken more photos yet.  I have barely over 7 days until WargamesCon 2013, and the urge to put a piece in has resurfaced, so we'll see if I can get it done in time!

A mishmash of WIP

Wow, time really flies around the holidays!  Before I knew it, I was way behind on things.  I decided last year that it was time I headed back to school, and my classes have started up for the semester.  Unsurprisingly, my hobby time has taken a bit of a hit.

Nevertheless, I needed to get SOMETHING out for you dear readers, so bare with me as I attempt some semblance of catching back up on things in the Warhammer World.

First up, I have an early photo of a conversion of mine that has been raising a few eyebrows in my local gaming area.  I've since gotten it painted to a 3-color minimum for playing, but it needs more work before I'll be ready to unleash it on the internet.

I present what has been dubbed "The Hive".

It's a pretty simple repurposing of tree bark, a bastion and some milliput.  As a Space Wolf Bastion, it will get a compliment of icicles along the upper cornice, as well as some heroically large banners over the entrance.

Next up, I've got a hot item - a squad of Cataphractii Terminators.  I've added some subtle conversions to make them wolfy, and the painted one is about 90% done to test my scheme ideas and make it all come together.  I am particularly fond of the Reaper Cannon conversion, which was a kitbash of the stock SW Assault Cannon and a Chaos Reaper, all folded into a Cataphract arm.  My love of this kit has gotten me hooked for the Justaerin Terminator set that just came out, so Russ willing, you'll be seeing those converted into a Wolf Guard Command Squad soon.

Lastly, I have the almost completed results of my second foray into reimagining iconic heroes of the 40k universe.  He's also planned to be my primary piece for the 2013 painting competition circuit, which recently grew to encompass another pilgrimage to the US Gamesday in Memphis.  He's got a bit of fine detail left to be hammered out (or chiseled out... who would use a hammer for fine detail?), most noticeably the skulls on his sword and the bionics of the attendants on the base.  There is also some finecast to be repaired (my FAVORITE thing to do), but I guess it comes with the territory for now.  I'm excited to get painting on this guy, and will cover my progress pretty extensively here, so you'll get to see some better shots of all the angles soon... I'll probably make a trip over to the B&C to antagonize the Black Templar members with a PIP thread too, because I'm just like that.

I give you High Marshall Helbrecht.

Well, that's what I have tonight.  I don't intend to leave things as long as I did last time, so we should start to get back to some kind of regular posting interval, especially as I get closer to the summer convention time.

Thanks for reading!