New Primarus Tank!

A quick one guys. Not one for rumours and leaks but below are the upcoming Primarus grav tanks. Looks awesome!

Capt Tycho

The Hobby Secret and the Light Bulb moment

Hi guys,

I recently had a light bulb moment while sat painting some terrain.

We, as miniature wargamers, spend more time on Hobby than actual gaming. Well the guys in my gaming group do and I certainly do so that got me thinking.

FYI: For any muddles (muggles to the wargaming world - I just made that up) reading this when we say Hobby we mean the actual building and painting of our models and terrain.

Time is a precious commodity. Firstly, unless you have other plans that defy nature time is limited which adds value. Secondly, businesses spend millions trying to convince us to spend time with or on products and services via adverts, marketing, promotion and offers. Again, this adds value to your time. Your time is worth alot guys. So why would a reasonable person waste it?

Like I said before we as wargamers spend a fair amount of time on the Hobby side. We assemble models, make terrain and paint. Oh we do like a good paint don't we. Playing the game and the social getting together is the real draw for me and I bet alot of you are the same. Thats the end result. The achievement for investing your valuable time. The more you invest the better the end result.

The light bulb moment came sitting with my two year old daughter painting terrain. We had quality time together and we got some terrain painted as a result. *Bing*

In our working lives we manage our time as we have to reach certain goals during the day. We have to finish our work. If we don't we don't get rewarded (paid or allowed to continue in employment). So why not apply that way of thinking to our Hobby. So I did.

We have all had that recurring phase of the "can not be arsed" to paint, model and sometimes even game. Too many of these days and we have lost a member of our happy waring family. So how do we avoid this? Well we all work, we all have family and muddle friends, some of us have young children and we all have real life problems and trials on a daily basis.

A friend said I inspired him to do more Hobby with my Hobby mantra. A nugget of what I thought was common thought but I guess it is not so what is it? What is this secret??

"Do something when you can everyday. Make it a habit"

This sounds impossible doesnt it? Granted sometimes it is just not possible. Real life likes to throw us curve balls in various shapes and sizes so sometimes it is impossible. However, I bet most of the time the justification to not paint or model or even read some rules is just lazyness. Think about it. You know I am right.

I do more hobby now than ever yet I have alot less time. How is this possible? Simple, I do something to put towards my Hobby each day. Somedays I paint, some days I build, or read, make army list and a million other little ways. I used to waste my time. Id watch tv or play a computer game. There is nothing wrong with that but I have noticed I do them alot less now. My time is otherwise invested.

I have a paint station (thanks wife) that takes two minutes to crack out and I keep a small squad of guys in the box ready to paint. That has been a great help and I recommend it to anyone. Organisation in the key to time managment. 

I jump at the 20-30 minutes of time when my daughter decides to paint or is interested in something I am doing and we get to spend time together and have fun. Maybe when she is older she will want to do her own Hobby with me(fingers crossed).

Doing the above means you are investing time in your Hobby that we have established is valuable so therefore, you are adding value to your Hobby. I amazed myself with what I can get done in a short amount of time. A full Soviet Army made and painted for Bolt Action in a few weeks, an American Army, Blood Angels, Imperial Fists and soon I plan to start 30k Thousand Sons. I have made loads of terrain, read rules and made lists. I have organised myself.

Thanks Robin you have made your Dad a better time manager and a better wargamer.

REMEMBER
"Do something when you can everyday. Make it a habit"

Cheers
Capt Tycho

Making Hedges for Wargaming

Making Hedges for Wargaming

Hi guys,

Above is my first real attempt of a tutorial of sorts posted on my new youtube channel. I hope to add more content going forward as and when I can.

Thanks guys.
Capt Tycho.

Bolt Action: Stalingrad Soviets (Paint Guide)

Hi guys, after a few hours research on google (how did we cope without it) for uniform colours the first thing to note is that the Soviet Army uniforms come in a wide range of colours and shades. At the time they came from various sources and the Soviet Union was a vast area with millions of soldiers. Hmm, what to go for then.

I guess the classic "look" is greeny yellow sort of Khaki colour but the photos on Warlords Infantry box shows a more yellow/brown colour.

So I decided to just make something up! I knew I wanted a yellowish colour so decided to prime with a black primer rattle can (GW) then used Desert Yellow (Army Painter) rattle can which gave me a dark yellow base.

The plan was to use a wash over the entire model after painting all the base colours. One wash to rule them all.... 

So as far as the bulk of the models goes the yellow base was perfect. I then blocked in the flesh, weapons, helmet and straps. I then highlighted the flesh but at this point decided to leave the helmet the base colour and not highlight. It looked better darker.

If you plan on doing this or any other wash technique be sure to make the painted areas lighter than you want as the was will darken the areas as well as add definition to the piece. In terms of washes I made my own magic blend...

Gone are the days of making your own washes (thank goodness) and I like the GW range of washes but the following would work with any wash based product. I did not use inks. These radically alter the colours and would not suit what I wanted to achieve.

I started with 1 part Nuln Oil (GW), 1 part Baal Red (GW old name), 2 parts Flesh Wash (GW old name) and 4 parts Earth Shade (GW old name). I used an emply pot and made a full pot to use for the army. I even used it on the stone bases to break up the grey.

The final effect is great and I am happy with it. I plan to grubby up the units except the inexperianced squad to show they are new to the field.

I did plan on an all over light drybrush of Khaki but the models just do not need it. If it aint broke why fix it.

With the above techniques I can knock out a squad in two hours. To the standard achieved I am happy with that!

I have put some photos below including a paint list. I did use a metallic on the metal areas before washing as am after thought.

Any how 60 more dudes to paint so I will do another blog in a few weeks when more progress it made.

Enjoy.

Bolt Action: MDF Terrain

Hi guys,

Long time no posts. Sorry about that!

A quick update for you guys. The Soviet army is starting to take shape with nearly all the squads made except four infantry squads. More on them in the next post.

I have also been expanding my Bolt Action terrain after picking up some mdf 28mm building kits on ebay. They came together easy with some wood glue and painted up really nice. I converted one to a shop which looks cool using some online photos ad referance.

Any how. This is just a quick one as I said so check out the photos!

Capt Tycho.

Bolt Action: A brave new world for a 40k player PART 4

After a few hours every weekend and a few weekday evenings I have finished my American Army for Bolt Action.

I have the bases to paint but thats a minor thing that will take me a few minutes one night.

Enjoy.

Capt Tycho

Bolt Action: A brave new world for a 40k player PART 3

Hi guys,

A quick update from my American Bolt Action force...

I have finished my 1/48 scale M8 Greyhound and painted it up. I base coated in black then hit the top with white to give the next base coat some fading. Avoiding olive drab as I much prefer the dark green look, which is pretty close anyway once olive drab weathers, so I used gw spray paint dark angels green then dry brushed a few times with a touch of olive drab and military green. Added some rust, weathering and mud and I am a happy camper.

I have also done a test model for my infantry and to keep me from spending too long on each model I basically primed white then gave myself for 5 minutes to paint all the base colours on. I am relying on the two washes to bring in the details. The first a heavy red-brown then a black. I will go back and highlight the flesh and paint weapons to finish it off but I am pleased with the result.

I am hoping to batch paint these in large batches to get them done. I will do a more detailed post and list my colours etc when I do.

I also have an M4 Sherman to put together. Again, it is 1/48 scale and I will do a review of the kit when I assemble it and post it up.

Photos below!

Happy Gaming.

Capt Tycho.

14000 points of Blood Angels

A quick post this time.

My Blood Angels have existed, in one form or another, since my first few games during 2nd Edition way back in 1993. I was only 10! I remember eagerly awaiting my birthday and openning that huge box... Truely, a life changing event for me.

The marines in that box where subject to some of the worst painting ever. Think monkey painting with it's tail. These lucky guys have been painted no less than three times since then. Thanks to the advent of better paint, washes and skill these guys still form the rank and file of my army.

Its hard to imagine my life without wargaming in it. 40k has been in my life for well over 20 years thanks to Space Crusade and the much beloved 2nd edition box set. Some heretics would nay say the hobby but its not all gaming. Its a social event. It encourages co-operation, hand eye skills, art (or butchery), using your brain, maths, sportmanship, reading, winning and losing. Its also rather good fun! It should be on every schools curriculum!

Anyhow, below is a few snaps of my BA army now as it stands. There is a full battle company present with transports. Every special character and tons of vehicles. Over 14000 points worth and counting. Enjoy

@capttycho