The Fleet Is In
Topic: Battlefleet Gothic
Something has been a bit 'off' for me on the web today, so this is about the third attempt at updating my site--let's see how this one goes.

At long last my Battlefleet Gothic boxed set has arrived. Having had virtually no experience with the game I didn't know what to expect. Happily I am very pleased with the quality and scale of the Chaos Cruisers and Imperial Cruisers that are included. Unfortunately, I have little time to focus on this new game as I have a lot of writing to get done and I want to focus the bulk of my modeling time working on my Mordheim table. Toward that end I ordered a few more figures to fill out my Undead warband. today I sent for a few new hired swords, including: a witch, a warlock and one more Vampire to round things out.

As for Mordheim terrain, I have been planning on building a well for some time, but have just not got to it. The wells in the City of the Damned are described clearly in the rules as being round, made of stone and with small wood shingled roofs. Fortunately, the good folks at Forge World have a perfect Mordheim well. From the looks of things I can remove the roof and build a shattered and burned version from balsa to make things look right.

In other work, I have been plodding along on my version of the Hirst Arts Ruined Tower. I plan to build a diorama of The Lord of the Rings adventure at Weathertop I will have to get the Games Workshop boxed set for the Attack at Weathetop to populate things, but that's not for a while yet.

Pictures to follow.

Back Among The Living
Topic: Mordheim Table
Bronchitis, as I've learned, has a surprisingly wiley nature. Just when you think its moved on, it comes back to visit for a few days. In any event, I'm due for an update, so here goes.

I was out and about today, and to my pleasure, I stumbled upon some discount Mordheim figures. I was going to order these exact ones later this week, so I was happy to find them for slightly less than 30% of the regular Canadian price.

The Ghouls fill a much needed hole in my warband, as does the Ogre Bodyguard. Also, since I want a bit of variety, I picked up the Vampire Assassin which I intend to swap (from time to time) with the boxed set male Vampire for a nice variation in my warband.

Additionally, I was fortunate to locate a CHEAP, yet new, copy of Battlefleet Gothic Armada, a supplemental book for the Battlefleet Gothic game. I also nabbed a BFG Imperial Dauntless Light Cruiser to start off my fleet (when my boxed set eventually arrives). All in all a successful excursion out. Now, I just have to ring up Chad Lascelles and see if he has some painting time available for the Ghouls, Ogre and Vampiress--I want to get them into the City of the Damned as soon as I can.

As for my modeling, it's on hold for a few days, as I have some writing that needs to be done, and it's consuming ALL of my free time--curses! I have a few pieces near completion; however, so there should be a big burst of production in a few days.

The Wolves are in Town
Topic: Mordheim Table
Thanks to the joys of Cold, Flu and Bronchitis season I haven't made an entry in a week. Back on my feet and ready to go, I am posting more of Chad Lascelles' great painting work: The Dire Wolves.

D Wolves are very expensive in Mordheim, but have fantastic movement rates, and with the right spells, the Necromancer can really put them to good use. More importantly, they look great on the table.

This one has bigger, pointier teeth than the Killer Rabbit of Monty Python and the Holy Grail fame.

This one shows the great basing work that Chad did for me. I really wanted a Mordheim where everything was dead--except for the few odd Skaven and pathetic mutants that call the City of the Damned home. All trees, shrubberies, grass and the like are dead, and I think Chad's basing captures that nicely.

My Undead warband is now 11 members strong. The rules permit the Undead to field a warband of up to 15 members, so I will be ordering a few more figures for Chad to grace with his talents. The first will be a few Ghouls, followed by a Witch and a Warlock. I'll also be adding the Ogre Bodyguard to round things out a bit. Also down the road I will add a few more Zombies--they are very cheap in game terms, and also look great on the table.

Again, if you like Chad's work (assuming you can see it through the white hot intensity of a thousand suns--my photo lighting that is) he can be reached here in Vancouver at: clascelles@shaw.ca

My Micro Photography Set-up
Topic: General
A double event today! Following the posting of the pictures of my Mordheim warband, I thought it best to post some pictures of my micro photography set-up (as it currently stands).

So, as you can see, there is nothing to diffuse the light, and it hits the minis pretty harshly. That is my next project.

And, here for the curious was the 'set' I was using today.

This is of course my copy of the King's Hall, made from Hirst Arts plaster bricks. Personally, I think that the dungeon pieces made from this set provide excellent backdrops for photographing minis.

A few More Photos
Topic: Mordheim Table
Well, I have been working on my micro photography skills a lot over the last few days. I am making a bit of progress, now I just have to work on light diffusion. Currently (as you can see) I still have a lot of problems with too much focused light. Still, I have purchased some lamps, and some natural light bulbs (thank you Stu from Tabletop Terrain for that tip)and am setting about figuring this art out. So for now, these are my updated pictures of the warband that Chad Lascelles has been painting for me.

First, the Vampire. . .

Then the Necromancer. . .

Then my spear carrying dreg. . .

Then my club wielding Dreg. . .

and finally (for now) my hungry Dreg!

I particularly like the boil on this cat's face--eew! The light washes out the shading that Chad has done, but the combination of natural light (and lots of it) and the steadiness of the tripod is making the pictures clear and allowing for crisp definition. I'll get it right yet!