Stuka Update and The Casual Gamer

As promised, here's the final picture of my Stuka before flying off to bomb France tomorrow. The paintjob is far from the best, but I think it's decent enough. The bright greens were toned down, and the panels are now more visualised.

I am really looking forward for a picture of the whole German force. Hope everyone can make it tomorrow.

The Casual Gamer

Recently, there was a...discussion...regarding what constitutes a casual gamer. These are only a few from the long list of definitions that were brought up:

• One who builds and plays his army by the fluff.
• One who builds and plays with unconventional army entries.
• One who plays in large scale games.
• One who plays with house/home-brewed/unofficial rules with opponent's consent.
• One who does not complain about the official rules.
• One who thinks outside the box to exploit the rules in the codex/armybook in a certain manner that encourages the community to be similarly creative.
• One who is not a rules lawyer.
• One who doesn't play in tournaments nor being a tournament-centric person.
• One who simply wants to have a game.

Whatever the definition might be, I am not going to argue as I perceive all of the above to be correct, even though some may seem a bit off. As long as one is consistent and not contradictory with the definition that he preaches, it is fine by me. On a personal note, my definition of a casual gamer is: One who approaches the game in a casual manner. For all I care, you can bring the most broken army list or even TA-ed me in the game, but if your attitude is right, there shall never be any problems.

That's all I have to say. Sorry if it turned out to be a mini-rant, it's just something that I need to let out off my chest. But, do spare a little time to think about what I've just said.

Stuka Revisited

As Khairul pointed out, the Stuka needed some line washing on the panels to make it a bit more realistic. FYI, line washing is one of the methods to add depth when painting vehicles (preshading is another popular method). Here's my second attempt on the Stuka.

Did I nail it, or is it still too thin?

My FOW army is pretty much done so, what shall I paint next? Since my 'refurbished' Nurgle Daemons will be put on hold till Iron Painter, most probably it'd either be Eldar or one of the WFB armies. Till next time guys.

Note to self: Bring the camera to the service centre in the near future. The focus tend to blur a lot recently, the inner lens may need to be inspected.

Onwards to France!

Hi all, it has been a long time since my last post. However, that doesn't mean I'm slacking though. We'll start things off with my tanks. In my previous post, I've asked whether my tanks were too dark. All of the feedbacks agreed that they were a bit on the darker shade. Pictured below is my second attempt on the grey; did I get it right or have I overdone it?

Both Arzmi and Khairul also commented on my previous army list, as playing with only four platoons is very risky in view of the new 3rd Edition missions. After a slight tweak to my list, I've moved on from the Mittlere Panzerkompanie list to the Leichte Panzerkompanie list, and proceed to purchase some of the products needed. Later on, I've realised that I've made a silly mistake when the products arrived. Initially, the plan was to purchase 3 Panzer IIC and some infantry platoons BUT I was careless enough not to amend the number of products required in the order purchase. Lo and behold, only 1 Panzer IIC in the package. Rummaging through the Blitzkrieg book once again, I've ended up with the Leichte Pioneerkompanie list. The fact that I already have the Luftwaffe 88 artillery and the MG team infantry (from Late War) have greatly facilitated the list building. Here's the army shot.

My list was made to play a 1750pts game. The extra Panzer I B, Panzer III and MG team infantry will allow me to go up to 2000pts (if anyone is willing). If you noticed, the paint scheme and decal placement of my Stuka is a bit different from what was posted in the Blitzkrieg book and the online site, but it is not from my simple whim. The reference was actually based from one of the WW2 forums online. However, the execution aspect is another matter. Here's the Stuka up close.

The miniatures themselves will also get a new ride. The days of travelling in the Vendetta box is a thing of the past, they will now travel in this. Credits to Edwin for being true to your words.

Since everything has been painted, my troops are ready for war. Onwards to France!

Slow March

Compared to what my colleagues have done, I'm at a snail's pace. Pictured below is what I managed so far, pending the detail works. Painting metal colours straight on will be a bit off since it's too shiny, so perhaps I will use light off-grey for the metal parts.

Anyway, is the grey too dark or is it just nice? Feedbacks please, thanks.

A Small Flames of War Update

Legio Malaysia has recently made it official that the Operation: Case Yellow campaign will start in September. In response to that announcement, this is what I had assembled as of this moment.

Those pictured above are approximately a third of my 1500pts list, which is as listed below:

• HQ: 2 Panzer III
• Platoon 1: 6 Panzer I B
• Platoon 2: 3 Panzer III
• Platoon 3: 4 Panzer I B + 1 Panzer II C
• Platoon 4: 4 10.5cm IeFH18

Yes, you read it right. There'll be no secret to this project; it is a simple 16 tanks with 4 artillery guns Mittlere Panzerkompanie list. However, some of the other participants are considering to play 1750pts during the campaign. If that's the case, I may have to either add more Panzer III or a Luftwaffe AA artillery platoon. The 6-rad Recon halftracks actually came to my interest, but the cheapness in their points value doesn't go in line with the actual retail price, so I had to drop that plan. Putting that aside, I'm targetting August 24th for all those listed above to be fully painted.

Stay tune for more updates.

New Honour Achievements

I've been cheeky again...so cheeky that some of my friends are beginning to call me the 'Secret Squirrel'. Hahaha :D

Blaming myself for poor schedule management, I was unable to complete the Great Slaanesh Daemon project in time for Golden Kris (although I'm confirming that it will be my entry for the Large Model category next year). But, nobody could have guessed what else was coming their way. I've managed to (secretly) complete another of my personal Primarch Project though. Obtaining a miniature from Scibor's as the base of the project, The Death Guard was entered in the Single Model category.

It's a really nice solid resin model, and minimal green stuff is needed to patch up some odd gaps here and there. Not to sound arrogant, but it turns out that my painting effort has somehow gave justice to the awesomeness of this model. This was proved by the recognition given by the Golden Kris 2012 painting judge.

Golden Kris 2012 - Third Place Single Model Category

Golden Kris 2012 - Third Place Flames of War Category

Somehow I managed to win something in the Flames of War category too. Luck was probably on my side. Now, I'm really looking forward for Golden Kris 2013.

Operation Bagration is a GO!

As was mentioned a few times already, May 18th marked the beginning of the Legio Malaysia's Flames of War Firestorm: Bagration campaign. The start to this campaign couldn't be better.

Katyusha Barrage

For my first game, my Panzerkompanie was pitted up against the Red Army; hordes of infantry and tanks. This by far, was my toughest wargame across all formats I've ever played. Greatly outnumbered and continuously pressured by multiple barrages and insanely superior numbers, I rode my luck all the way as I somehow managed to turn the tide. The Most Valuable Platoon (MVP) for this game was my Gepanzerte Aufklarungs platoon as it mowed down two squads of 20 infantry bases all on their own. Mounted Assault MG Teams in 3rd Edition rocks!

Start

End

Again, this is the craziest and the most epic game ever. I am really hoping that I won't have to go through this experience again, the stress level was a bit too much (was profusely sweating and the chest was pounding inside throughout the game). Credits to Shukur for this epic battle.

***

Update: Realised that I have yet to post any picture of another Firestorm platoon I've painted for the campaign. Here is the 10.5cm Artillery Battery Firestorm Platoon, and I'm sure Khairul is going to love the platoon markings I've made for them. For certain reasons, I'm not going to post that particular image up, you'll have to see it yourself.

10.5 cm Artillery Battery Firestorm Platoon

Bagration Update: The Motor Pool

It's D-1, or to be exact, less than 24 hours for Legio Malaysia's Firestorm: Bagration campaign to start. Soviet players, these are what you're going to face when our paths soon cross.

All of those above, roughly sums up to 3000pts. For the Fatherland!

Double Rifles and Bagration Update

Have been rather busy lately and getting caught by a nasty fever doesn't help either. Doesn't mean I was just sitting idle though, as I managed to do quite a lot before the illness. The World Without End extended league kicked off on May 4th and the Firestorm: Bagration campaign on May 18th is closing fast; there was no more time to waste.

Inquisitorial Dreadnoughts, powered down

The Dreadnoughts were the first models I worked on. Just some minor highlight and detail works to make it tabletop-worthy and presentable. Still far from what I originally envisioned but it'll do for now, as those two Stormravens are far from presentable. Next up, are the Flames of War stuff and I'll begin with the Firestorm Troops that will be used for the campaign.

It's not exactly a top notch paintjob but I hope it fulfilled the standard that my fellow Legionnaires had hoped for. The following are some of my own stuff that you'll soon see in the campaign.

StuG IV

Marder III H

Gepanzerte Aufklarungs

I'm pretty much ready for the campaign. Perhaps it will be good if I do an army shot of my current 'motor pool' before the campaign. If you noticed closely, the Gepanzerte Aufklarungs vehicles' machinegun are still missing. Still have that and a platoon of 10.5 cm artillery battery to finish. That's four days left, wish me luck!

Bagration Update: Infantry DONE

As the title says, finally completed the infantry models (as pictured below). The one on the left is the MG team for the Armored Panzergrenadier Platoon (to be used as Firestorm troop in the campaign), while the one on the right is the MG team for my own Gepanzerte Aufklarungs Platoon. Next step after this, will be the vehicles.

Bagration Update: Back to Factory Mode

Looking at Jeff, Khairul, Shukor and Syamael's progress in the past one week, it was all about Flames of War. Definitely don't want to be left behind so, I've decided to go into factory mode again; painting the Firestorm platoon and my own stuff at once. Managed to get the camo pattern done for all the vehicles, and made a good progress to one of the infantry squads.

For the Panzergrenadier squad, only 4 steps left for completion; uniform highlighting, skin, flock, base rim paint. The same can't be said for the infantry squad inside the container, which still need a lot of work. As for the vehicles, none of the detailing (tracks, guns, etc) has been done yet, but I'm planning to do it on per squad basis. There's a limit to the factory mode so, priority to the Firestorm first and then the StuG platoon. That's all, gotta go back to painting. See you next time.

(Hmm...why did the green camo appeared grey-ish on some of the vehicles?)

Preparing for the Firestorm: Bagration campaign

Legio Malaysia, the local gaming club I'm associated with, will be running the Flames of War Firestorm: Bagration campaign starting May 18th. Of course, I'll bring my Panther-heavy Panzerkompanie to the table. In the last campaign, we've noticed that we've been lacking a few Firestorm troops and to avoid the similar issue in the future, each of us has volunteered to paint up the Firestorm units that we're going to need for the campaign. Such is the beauty of having similar-minded people in the club; 'we' comes before 'me'. So, in one hobby night, this was what I managed to assemble.

My current run of outstation duties will soon end. Really looking forward to paint them all, and perhaps, another same/different Firestorm platoon.

Still learning...

The last Legio Hobby Nite was quite a fruitful one, spent the whole session plus another half an hour at home to produce this dude below. As you can see in the 360 picture, it's not exactly perfect but I'm quite happy with the result (coz I know that I can't paint like this when I started the hobby). Foreseeing myself spending the future four Hobby Nites painting this dude's friends.

Hope the next one will be better, especially on the current feeble NMM attempt on the sniper gun. On a side note, these stuff arrived in my mail a few days ago ;p

Armoured Monsters

This current post will feature a lot of tanks. First up, would be the only unit with an armour value in my WIP Minotaurs list; the Land Raider Achilles. As per fluff, Minotaurs are rather well-equipped with Mark VIII Power Armours, along with multitude of Predators and Vindicators. However, ever since Forgeworld put up a Minotaur-aligned LR Achilles, I'd simply fell to the lure and must make one myself.

However, it doesn't take away from the fact that it's a Land Raider Chassis, with its usual predicaments during assembly.

 

You guessed it, gaps and warps. Each and every single Land Raider I've assembled (FYI, this is the fourth) had the same problem, but I didn't found any similar complain from the community. Just my dumb luck, perhaps. After leaving it overnight, I ended up with this.

Finally, it's starting to look good. There's some unsightly gaps at the front panel, near the tracks which I need to cover up with Green Stuff. All in all, it's a good kit to look at when it's assembled. I later discovered however, that Vern (another fellow hobbyist) received a miscast of the multi-melta sponsons where the sponson slot was on the supposed outer side of the gun. Dude, if you want it to be assembled as per picture, I'd suggest you to drill through the slot and patch it up a bit with Green Stuff/epoxy putty.

This is what I have at the moment, and I just realized that my patching up work on the front plate was not up to standard. I guess I have to either repatch and repaint, or utilize the imperfection for battle damage. The later sounds more logical, what say you all?

Up until this point, this is how I painted this beauty.

Primer: Black, with an overbrush of White.

Basecoat: Two layers of GW Desert Yellow.

Primary Colour: Two layers of GW Dwarf Bronze

Secondary Colour: A light overbrush of GW Burnished Gold.

After bringing the model under a brighter light, it appeared that I may need to do at least another layer of Dwarf Bronze and redo the Burnished Gold overbrush. That being said, I may need some expert opinions on what I should do next. The way I do the infantry was to liberally wash them with Thraka Green and then a light wash of Hawk Turqoise. The question would be, should I do the same for the Land Raider? After all, it's a far bigger model than the infantry models.

Let's move on to second segment of this post, more tanks. One of my resolutions was not to start any new army in 2012, and therefore I had to cheat a bit; this army was started on December 27th, 2011. I was not too fond of WW2 history (personally, what's done is done), and therefore I need some strong triggers to start an army of this genre. The first one, was the location of Legio Malaysia, our gaming club, which is at the nearest possible proximity of Battlefront Miniatures. Second, support from fellow hobbyist. After months (years, perhaps) hearing the awesomeness of the game, slowly the interest grow within me. For this, I had to give credits to Jeff, Azlan, Iskazri, Khairul & Arzmi. The third and final trigger, credit was all Khairul's. He lend me some FoW books to read and gave me two tanks to paint. There was reluctancy to paint them at first, but after reading the books, they've totally won me over. The two Panther A tanks were an awesome start to my army.

That was the exact condition of the Panther A tanks that I received. Thanks to this also, I managed to get a rough idea regarding the base colour. There's only a limited pallette of VGC paints in my possession, the equivalent for this colour would be Tamiya Dark Yellow and GW Desert Yellow. The lesson I've learnt here was; gotta be creative in searching for equivalent colours, doesn't necessarily have to stick to only one brand. The next thing I did was, checking out the LGS for their FoW stock the next day. Lady luck was upon me as they happened to have 'some' Panther A in stock, and Jin Aun was also trying to sell off his Tigers for cheap and concentrate on his Russian army. These was the loot for the day.

Exactly six days after that, my army is 99% painted and ready for war. The remaining 1% would be the placement of decals/logo on the tanks, will consult the guys this hobby night regarding the matter. Listed below are the steps I took to paint them.

1. Primer: Black, with an overbrush of White.

2. Two layers of GW Desert Yellow.

3. A medium overbrush of GW Terracota.
4. Lining with GW Catachan Green. (Redid with Tamiya Olive Green since Alvin pointed out the green was too thin, thanks Alvin!)
5. Sponging with GW Boltgun Metal for battle damage.
6. Wash with 1:2:1 GW Chestnut Ink:Gloss Varnish:Water
7. Sponging with VGC German Grey over the Boltgun Metal areas to accentuate the wear and tear (Thanks to Alvin & Jeff!)
8. Random sponging of GW Desert Yellow.
9. A random light overbrush lining of GW Terracota.
10. A layer of 3:1:2  GW Charadon Granite:VGC Opaque Bluegrey:Water for the treads.
11. Drybrush the treads with GW Graveyard Earth, then GW Desert Yellow.
12. Picking up the details with these colours; GW Adeptus Battlegrey, VGC Charred Brown, GW Codex Grey, and GW Rotting Flesh before giving them some washes of GW Ogryn Flesh and GW Badab Black.

After all the steps above were done, these are what I ended up with...

And that's it, these thirteen tanks sums up to approximately 2500pts. By the way, this is my first time taking pictures of FoW minis. Would they do just fine or do I need to put shots of individual tanks? I do realize that I'll need a better background lighting since they're at a much smaller scale than what I usually do. Tell me what you guys think of it. Was thinking of painting either an Aufsklarung platoon or a couple of Pumas next, but let's just settle with these guys for now.