Blog News - Posting disruption

Hi Folks
Unfortunately with the previous two Bank Holidays and the upcoming Royal Wedding, as well as the subsequent Bank Holidays, posting on the Blog will be sparse if any this next few days.
Due to this and other commitments by the whole TG team there will unfortunately be no week 9 TOTG update either.
Apologies for this but remember:

Imperial Guard Chimera Heavy Bolter - A Modellers Request!

Hi Folks
Apologies for posting this here but I'm not sure where else to try for this part. It's really pretty much as the title says, I'm after a hull heavy bolter from the new chimera sprue, (the one that comes in two parts) as seen here:

I can swap for two heavy flamers for the chimera, one from the new chimera frames and one from the vehicle accessory frame. failing that a have a quid or two I can spare.
I'm also still after chimera/leman russ track guards if anyone can help with those as well.
Please PM me or email me.
Thanks for looking.

Task Force Black - A Book Review

Task Force Black by Mark Urban
'The book the MoD doesn't want you to read' Daily Mail Soon after British and American forces invaded Iraq they faced an insurgency that was almost impossible to understand, let alone reverse. Facing defeat, the Coalition waged a hidden war within a war. Major-General Stan McChrystal devised a campaign fusing special forces, aircraft, and the latest surveillance technology with the aim of taking down the enemy faster than it could regenerate. Guided by intelligence, a small British special forces team met the car bombers' fire with fire and accounted for thousands of insurgents.

In the latest of his books Mark Urban uses his contacts in the defence and intelligence establishment to give the reader of Task Force Black the inside track on the hidden war of the Special Forces in Iraq.

Urban's book as one would expect contains descriptions of various door-kicking assaults, house raids, kidnaps and rescues to pique the interest of those who like to read about modern warfare but they never really get down to the meat and potatoes of the raids and often barely touch the details. A large amount of the book is spent on military political manoeuvring and the concepts behind the strategies. So whilst we get firsthand accounts of the rescue of British hostages, or the killing of the leading fanatical Islamist, we also get to learn about the concept of building networks, or of the Iraqi Awakening movement that feature heavily in many of the goings on in the book.

For those interested in the political aspects of the war the use of the terminology of modern political discourse - the kind that seeks to make what is obvious, unclear and murder seem acceptable shows how inaccurate those terms were and how biased they were towards civilians and the like.

Task Force Black still gets a good review because Mark Urban does deliver on his promise to give us the goods about the "secret war in Iraq." As with many books on modern warfare, Mark Urban is perhaps just too interested in telling the tale to get sufficient perspective on what is happening and instead ignores the men on the grounds low level perspective to instead take a too higher view of what was happening. This instead leads the book away from a SAS perspective to a more USSF and Command view of the war

The use of the references to high technology, military acronyms and the proxy thrill of the 2am raid on a hostile target house ("alpha"), as doors are kicked in and rooms are "cleared." Is good but at no point do you feel your right there at the forefront of the secret war. It’s a good book to read for the military politics involved but for all-round action as promised on the front cover then I’m afraid you will be left lacking.

Unfortunately with that in mind its only a two and half star review from me but then again I am comparing it to his previous excellent work on Rifles and Fusiliers.

Available from:http://www.play.com/ or http://www.amazon.co.uk/
Task Force Black by Mark Urban
Paperback • ISBN 9780349123554 

A Tale of Three Gamers - Week 8 - An update from Everyone!!!

Chris' Week 8 Update

First off, apologies for the lack of updates for a couple of weeks, but I still have little to post. My fiancée hasn’t been well, and I’m swamped with DIY jobs at the moment, so modelling has taken a back seat. On a more positive note, one of those DIY jobs is boarding my loft so at least we will have a dedicated gaming space on completion of the challenge :)

 I have literally had about an hour in the past fortnight for modelling, which I spent green stuffing the large join lines and attaching the branches on the citadel wood. I know nobody is particularly interested scenery, but here’s a picture, to avoid my dead model count increasing further.

I have 11 days off work starting Friday, so with a bit of luck, I will be able to field more than half a crisis suit by the end of the challenge...

Jono's Week 8 Update

Hi All!

Really struggled to get a submission this week as moving out time is getting ever so close so spare time is very scarce.  Equally, I did find my mini tripod AND I bet I have still made more progress than Chris!

Back on track..

It may not look that way, but I spent a few more hours on my Tervigon.  The Mecharite Red layers are all done bar one of the scything talons.  Once thats done, all I need to do is the bone elements of the model, a few touch ups and its done.  Well, that lot and the base..

If you check red on the hind legs, compared to the talons in the pic above, you will see that the shading is completely different and much less flat!  After a Mecharite Red layer or two, I have been adding a Baal Red wash followed by shadows with Badab Black wash.  Personally I think it makes the whole model look less flat!

Also, a quick shot from the other side.

You will also see the barrell above, which was on the base of my Terv.  Being a massive MC base, I want to make it stand out a bit.  On the barrell, I tried to replicate rust so used a hairspray technique, as detailed here.  I cannot stress how easy this is, and it looks quite good too!

Lastly, I havent actually bought any scenery for this 'challenge' as of yet because I have had no idea what to buy! -I just can't decide.  On the flip side of this, I have had plenty of ideas for stuff to build.  This was the first thing that I managed to get a solid enough idea, as well as enough bits together to make..

Since moving house involves actually going through all of the junk that is stashed in the loft, I found a load of my old 40k from about 8 years ago.  Amidst the terrible Ultramarines, I found an old cardboard Imperial firebase.  Now the scenery itself is terrible, but the plastic pieces holding it all together were perfect for some storage crates, or indeed a command post.  Other pieces in the mix are plenty of plasticard and 2 right-angled plastic fittings from B&Q.  I have made two of these, both being about 3" tall, and 5" long.  I have enough bits to make a third, much longer one, for a mini storage yard!

So, this is it for me for a few weeks!  I am off to Ireland for a week (bad timing or what) and then it looks like the house will have sold.  I will hopefully get back on track and get some real progress soon!

Millest's Week 8 Update

Well folks as mines the smallest update this week I thought I should go last, give the others some limelight and all that. Basically I'm still sans camera however to prove I've actually done something I've included another Iphone picture. This time it shows the Chimera and Sentinal I've been working on the past week. The Chimera has a few little conversions I'm happy with that really make the model different enough to notice but are still subtle. The Sentinal has had the Autocannon magnatised so I can swap it out with the Missile launcher I have. Other then that this week is BH weekends and my other halfs birthday so there may not be much progress this next week or so but where there is chance I will be working on the bases for the models, the very nice Secret Weapons Miniatures bases previously mentioned, and where possible I will be working on my Medusa stand in for the Griffon in the army list. So heres the pic, enjoy what you can make out:

Challenge No Submission Casualty List

Listed are the number of casualty models each player must have completed by the end of the challenge as a fine for their none submission of weekly updates!

• Chris - 2 models
• Jono - 0 Model
• Dave - 0 Model

As always comments and thoughts are appreciated. Apologies again for the shocking pics normal service will be resumed soon I hope!
Enjoy and see you all next week!

Imperial Guard Track Guards - A Modellers Request!

Hi Folks,
apologies for posting this here but I'm not sure where else to try. Recently to help me finish off my tanks I have been in search of the track guards from the old Imperial Guard accessory sprue and the new Leman Russ kit, unfortunately not with much luck, I've only managed to get two sets. So the reason for this post is simple can any one help me out? I'm looking for as many sets as I can get and should worse come to worse if you only have parts I'm looking for the long central part from the set.
For those unfamiliar or just confused by my ramblings here are the bits I mean:

If anyone can help me out please drop me a line at the MMM email address in the contact me link to the side.
Thanks in advance

A Tale of Three Gamers - Week 7 - A stressful update!

Jono's Week 7 Update

Hi All,

Somehow, last week I won the competition from the poll. Heck, there may have only been one vote, and that may have been for a model that I am not even using in this challenge (which was technically therefore a null vote), but as he voted for my paint scheme.. I still make that 0.5 - 0 - 0 to me!
In the past week I have been getting to grips with GS a bit more.. As you saw last week, I made a start on my prime, and I had a bit of feedback (thanks!) saying that I should try to beef up my prime a bit. At first I agreed, but then I started putting the rest of the bits on him..

I personally think that he looks rather good as is. He isn't too 'gangly', yet he isn't top heavy due to the lengthening of the warrior legs. Please let me know what you think either way!

I decided to go with the Ravener deathspitter chest piece in the end. I know that some people will laugh at this saying it resembles a certain part of the female anatomy, but I personally really like it so will be leaving it as is! All of the limbs are magnetised and as it stands I have 1 set of scything talons, 1 set of boneswords and a lashwhip. I plan on making a second set of scything talons using Hormagaunt arms, so that I can use these to represent lesser arms too when using the deathspitter. Lastly, I just waiting on a Ravener head before I can finish this guy off and paint him. In the pics I have just balanced on a Warrior head that I have spare.

This is him next to a warrior and a gaunt for size comparison. You can see that he doesn't tower over the other Warrior, yet he isn't exactly small either!

Overall I am incredibly pleased with this guy! Despite the rather steep learning curve with GS, I feel that this guy will look good on the table, and will definitely be of a table top standard once finished!

As always, please, PLEASE leave feedback, be it positive or negative, as it is all greatly appreciated!

Millest's Week 7 Update

Well folks back to the grindstone and back to a painful week this week! First the loss of my PC and everything on it is swiftly followed by a second kick in the balls with my camera going the way of the dinosaurs. So after one expensive repair job it looks like another or a new camera is on the way. So with all that in mind i apologies now but just to show you what I've been up to and to get some thoughts I've taken some pics using my phone camera - if i ever get a working camera these will be replaced.

so onwards and blurred-wards, first up are some of my squad leaders, now i know you have already seen them but i wanted to get some opinions of the bases for them. As previously mentioned all my leaders, from army lead down to squad level will be on 40mm bases with a servo skull (two for leaders and characters) so looking at the pics below does this larger base work or is it a tad excessive, please let me know your thoughts.

Next up some pictures of my two heavy weapons teams on their customer bases, both bases are actually the same "base" base I've just converted bits and pieces on them to make them different. So far the loaders as only stuck in place with blu tac but I'm toying with the idea of magnetising them so i can stick them on spare bases should the gunner be killed, just not sure if the idea would work.

Finally some pics of my finished Veterans to give you an idea on how I've made this squad stand out so far from the basic troops in my force, once i get a camera/repair ill be able to get some better pics of these guys for you.

As you can no doubt tell i really went to town on these guys and hopefully even at this level of crap picture it really shows.

For those of you interested the models are all on bases from Secret Weapon Miniatures and can be purchased at the Secret Weapon Miniatures webstore here! More specifically I have used the Urban Streets Beveled Edge bases that can be found here. I have taken photos and details for a review later on and who knows this might bag me some freebies ;)

As always thoughts and feedback welcome and if anyone knows a camera repair shop in Suffolk please let me know!

Chris' Week 7 Update

Guess what!...... No seriously guess...... oh go on please!
Yep your right no update from  Chris this week, a rather busy week for him, though in keeping with the rules another dead model from Chris!

Challenge No Submission Casualty List

Listed are the number of casualty models each player must have completed by the end of the challenge as a fine for their none submission of weekly updates!

• Chris - 2 models
• Jono - 0 Model
• Dave - 0 Model

As always comments and thoughts are appreciated. Apologies again for the shocking pics normal service will be resumed soon i hope!
Enjoy and see you all next week!

A Tale of Three Gamers - Week 6 - The production line update!

apologies on the delays in getting this weeks update computer issues caused a delay, still on with the show:

Millest's Week 6 Update

With out much preamble or excuses here are the pics of this weeks progress, though this week has been good with lots of BL books, audio books and most importantly my Forgeworld Medusa (yay!)
So here we go, starting off with the completed command squad, all completed just waiting on mounting them on resin bases prior to painting

Next up less their heavy weapons team here is Squad 1 of the infantry platoon, I finally managed to get the Eagle plate moulded on to the resin torso of the Sergeant (still need to do it for the platoon commander) hopefully the models look dynamic enough, again awaiting resin bases prior to painting.

 

Here is Squad 2, again less their resin bases and heavy weapons teams. The models are detailed and ready to paint though prior to undercoating they will be given a once over again to ensure no lines etc.

 

So folks that's my progress for the past week, there has been some additional ongoing work on my Veteran Squad and my chimera however I will post them once their complete!

Jono's Week 6 Update

Good evening readers,

Once again, not a very productive week, but then again I am now moving house in a few weeks, so managing to find time to do anything is a miracle!
Since Mr Postman has been so generous of late, I now have TWO things to concentrate on other than Termagants (ugh). My Tervigon (as shown last week) and now, my WIP Prime!

Above are all of the bits that I currently have for my prime, including some magnets!  As I am sure you can work out, I currently have bits for boneswords, and a lashwhip (not finished), but I am unsure how to do my carapace!  I want him to have the ability to use a deathspitter, but am not sure whether to use the cool plated Ravener chest piece and magnetise a deathspitter, or use the deathspitter chest piece and just use either genestealer rending claws or gaunt scything talons.  As I want this guy to be able to do anything useful from the Codex, abiding by WYSIWYG, I will be painting up some standard Warrior Scything talons, but I thought that Gaunt ST would be good for a lower, less useful set of limbs if using the Ravener deathspitter chest piece.  Suggestions below? 

 This shot is comparing the size of a warrior with the legs that I have made for my Prime. As the Codex states that a Prime is just an Alpha Warrior, I didn't want to add too much detail to make him that different. As such, the GS came out and I have made him about 15mm taller using plastic warrior legs and tail! He will definitely stand taller than his comrades when marching across the battlefield for lunch! In order to finish the torso and tail off, I will be adding a Ravener torso and extending the tail by 10mm or so!

Lastly, as I have actually done some painting this week, I thought I would show off my finished Tervigon head.

I picked the war torn head, as I really like it.  I am not sure if I will use this head on the finished Tervigon, but I really like it either way!  If carnifex become usable in the next Tyranid codex, this will definitely be used then.  Again, if you have any suggestions, please do comment below!
 

Chris' Week 6 Update

Unfortunately no update from  Chris this week, a rather busy week for him, though in keeping with the rules time for our first dead model! yay! have told Chris a nice dead gun drone would be OK so lets see what we get!

Challenge No Submission Casualty List

Listed are the number of casualty models each player must have completed by the end of the challenge as a fine for their none submission of weekly updates!

• Chris - 1 model
• Jono - 0 Model
• Dave - 0 Model

Finally as a teaser from one of your colleagues who may be joining us later in the year here is a little taste of the Grey Knights he has just picked up, these are only his second set of models so I am interested to see how they turn out.

As always comments and thoughts are appreciated.
Enjoy and see you all next week!

A Tale of Three Gamers - Miniature of the Month Results! - Weeks 1-5

well folks the votes, or should i say vote, are in and we have a winner of the inaugral Miniature of the month for the first month!
With a grand total of 1 vote out or 1 vote this months winner is:

JONO!

So well done to jono and thanks for the one vote, hopefully next month we will have more. Personally I suspect a ringer (who votes for nids on a Guard forum??) but still cant be a sore looser he did win after all so bragging rights are his!
Thanks folks and keep your eye out for the week 6 update
Cheers

A Tale of Three Gamers - Miniature of the Month Vote! - Weeks 1-5

Hi folks, well its the end of the first month and time to cast your eye back over this months offerings (sparse as they maybe) and to pick your favourite model from the last month. The only rule is that they must be a model made or painted specifically for the 500pt challenge, example models don't count.

If your not sure on which ones appeal to you or what has been done you can catch up on all the past updates from the archive here:

A Tale of Three Gamers 2011 Archive

To cast your vote please post a comment stating which model or models you like best before next weeks update (most likely Wednesday). I will then tally them all up from here and the various forums on Tuesday night and announce the winner before next weeks update.

Thanks and we look forward to you vote.

Forge World Newsletter #269 - New Terrain expansion + Eldar goodies!

As always important bits are shown below:

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Hi there, With only a few days left before we throw wide our doors for the 2011 Forge World Open Day, we can now confirm four more fantastic pre-release items that will be on sale at the event, including the first Forge World Realm of Battle Gameboard expansion tile!

Pre-Release Kits on sale at the Forge World Open Day


Realm of Battle Gameboard Imperial Strongpoint Expansion
An exciting new addition to Forge World’s finely detailed resin scenery range is the Imperial Strongpoint Expansion. Designed for use with the Citadel Realm of Battle Gameboard, this 2' by 2' tile is a superbly detailed fortified stronghold that will make a great feature for armies to fight over in your Warhammer 40,000 battles.

Comprising a power generator, two reinforced defensive positions, dragons-teeth tank traps and huge, armoured blast doors dug into a central hill, the Imperial Strongpoint Expansion is cast from a hollow resin as durable and sturdy as the plastic Realm of Battle Gameboard tiles available from the main Games Workshop range.
Perfect for representing critical objectives such as a command and control facility, or a fortified artillery pit, the Imperial Strongpoint can be used in games of Planetstrike as a unique Bastion or to represent a huge variety of stratagems, strategic assets and other rules in Battle Missions, games of Apocalypse and other Warhammer 40,000 battles, not to mention the Games Day Armies on Parade competition.
Exclusively available at the Forge World Open Day on Sunday 3rd April, prior to its main release date later this year, the Realm of Battle Imperial Strongpoint, designed by Stuart Williamson, costs £60.


Eldar Wraithseer
Rare and precious beyond compare, their souls protected from the predations of Slaanesh within spirit stones, long-dead Warlocks of great power can still be summoned to aid their Craftworld in the form of a Wraithseer. Armed with a lethal D-Cannon and a Wraithblade wreathed in the eldritch energy of their psychic arts, a Wraithseer is a terrible and implacable foe.

The Eldar Wraithseer, designed by Will Hayes, is a complete resin and plastic kit that will be available in limited numbers at the Forge World Open Day prior to its release later in April. The kit costs £34.

Eldar Corsair Conversion Kit
There are many bands of so-called ‘Corsair’ Eldar scattered across the galaxy, and all are savage and deadly raiders. Outcasts from the strict confines of the Craftworlds, the Corsairs live in self-imposed exile, seeking to explore the galaxy and experience the full gamut of emotion and sensation accessible to the Eldar’s sensitive psyche.

Most are young and adventurous Eldar who will eventually return to their homes older, wiser and tempered by warfare. Some, however, embrace the raider’s life completely and fall further still, becoming ever more bloodthirsty and psychotic, indulging their darkest impulses and eventually seeking out the infamous Dark City.
The Eldar Corsair Conversion Kit is designed for use with the plastic Eldar range. Designed by Will Hayes, this resin upgrade kit contains detailed weapons, jump packs and heads that enable Eldar players to convert ten plastic Eldar Guardians into Corsairs. The Corsair kit will be available in limited numbers at the Forge World Open Day, priced at £18.


Red Scorpions Decal Sheet
The latest addition to Forge World’s Transfer Sheet range is this lavish Red Scorpions Decal Sheet, designed by Paul Rudge.

Packed with over 1,800 individual Chapter icons, vehicle insignia, blazons and squad designations, this A4 decal sheet allows collectors of the pre-eminent Chapter of the Badab War to add even more detail to their Space Marine models and vehicles.
The decal sheet will be available in limited numbers, hot off the press, at the Forge World Open Day for £9.20 This is well in advance of its main release later in April.

Open Day Painting Competition Update
As always, at the Forge World Open Day you will have the chance to win the prestigious Forge World Best of Show Trophy in our annual Painting Competition.
Entries should comprise a single Forge World model and can be anything from a single Krieg infantryman to a fully-laden Tau Manta. Entries must be registered by 12 noon at the event.
Judging by the Forge World Studio team will take place over the course of the afternoon, and the winner’s trophy will be awarded at 3:30pm.


Open Day Participation Gaming
If the Studio displays and Sales stand weren’t enough, the Forge World Open Day also includes our ‘Super Heavy Metal’ participation game. Players in this mega-battle can take command of mighty Reaver and Warhound Titans of the Legio Gryphonicus or lead a huge mob of savage Ork Stompas to victory.
Overseen by the Warhammer World Events team, this game will run throughout the Open Day. Watching the might of a full-strength Titan Maniple facing off against a dozen Stompas will be an impressive sight to behold!


Charity Titan Raffle Reminder
Attending the Forge World Open Day always gives one lucky person the chance to win a mighty Titan for a mere one pound, and this year’s event is no different. The Open Day 2011 Titan Raffle prize will be the imposing, immense and lavishly detailed Eldar Phantom Titan!
Tickets for the raffle can be only purchased at the Open Day from the Painting Competition Registration area, and the draw will be made at 3:30pm. Tickets are £1 each and you can enter as many times as you like, although you must still be at the Open Day when the draw is made to win!
In light of the recent and on-going natural disasters in Japan, all proceeds from this year’s raffle will be donated to the WorldVision UK Tsunami Relief Fund, a children’s charity currently assisting with relief efforts in some of the worst-affected areas of Japan. You can find more details about the charity at www.worldvision.org.uk/server.php?show=nav.3001&giftId=47.

Forge World 2011 Catalogue – Now Available to Download
The new 2011 Forge World catalogue is now complete and will soon be sent to the printers. If you’ve requested a free copy over the last few months, be assured that we’ll be sending these out as soon as possible.
Until then you can download the complete 2011 Forge World catalogue for free from the online store. This will soon be joined by a Warhammer Forge supplement sheet so keep an eye out for future newsletters for further information.


Forge World Events News

Salute 2011 Reservations Now Being Taken
London’s ExCel Centre hosts Salute 2011 on Saturday 16th April, and Forge World will be in attendance with a Sales stand bursting with resin kits, modelling supplies and books from both the Forge World and Warhammer Forge ranges. You’ll also be able to purchase our MkIII Armoured Boarding Marine and Chaos Dwarf Hellsmith Event Only models as well as the recently released Eldar Lynx with Pulsar and Eldar Lynx with Sonic Lance, and Warhammer Forge models such as the Marienburg Land Ship.
The best way of making sure that we have exactly the models you’re after is to place a reservation for Salute 2011. To do this just telephone the Forge World Customer Service team on 0115 916 8177. You’ll need your payment card details to hand as we are taking payment in advance of the event, and we will also need an e-mail address for you. In the week before the event, we’ll send you a confirmation e-mail containing your order number and the total cost of your order which you must bring with you to collect your purchases.

Thanks,
Ead Brown

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