Paul's Dwarf Army Wrap Up

Where do I start? What a six months this challenge has been. This is my first time at the OWAC and if I’m being honest, I was not prepared for it in the slightest. I first saw this two years ago when I was just getting back into painting. I’ve always worked best when I have a deadline or an event that I need to prepare for, so OWAC seemed the perfect way to get my mojo on and paint on a regular basis. However, I missed the deadline and forgot about it. Then by pure coincidence I was invited into a WhatsApp chat and who happened to be there but the legend that is Tom Young or Frogbug as he is known on forums. Without his help this would never have happened. 

My original post had an army list that is listed below

1 General                           160 pts

1 Hero                                104 pts

10 Thunderers                   130 pts     

10 Thunderers                   130 pts

10 Thunderers                   130 pts 

15 Miners (plus                  204 pts

standard and musician)

12 Slayers                          132 pts                         

10 Warriors                         110 pts

1 Flame cannon                 119 pts

1 Cannons                          110 pts

1 Gyrocopter                      100 pts

1 Bolt Thrower                    54 pts

 

As you can see from the picture this changed as the challenge went on and the final finished models are listed below with a total points value of 1897. 

                                             1 General                            160 pts

                                                  1 Master Runesmith            187 pts

                                         10 Thunderers (with full command) 191 pts                        

                                                 10 Thunderers                     130 pts

12 Crossbowmen                156 pts

                                       15 Miners (with full command)  256 pts

                                               10 Slayers                           132 pts                         

                                         10 Longbeards (with full command) 213 pts

                                  16 warriors (with spears and full command) 252 pts

                                               2 Cannons                           220 pts

             

                   

I also have the flame cannon, gyrocopter and 10 more warriors almost finished which would bring the completed army up to 2226 points without any magical items. If I had managed my time a little better, then I would have had all of them painted up but unfortunately real-life issues tend to take priority. 

 

The challenge has been both cathartic and frustrating in equal measures. I have been competition focused and lots of those projects have been on the back burner because of the monthly requirements army painting requires. However, it has made me realise that not every blend has to be perfect and in that unit of 16 spearmen no one is going to notice the pouch hasn’t been painted with all three layers required. It also gave nm back a sense of painting for fun which competition pieces don’t tend to instil due to the time and effort required for that type of painting. It was a really great feeling to see each unit final materialise and it was even better as the army began to build up. 

 

The other motivating factor was seeing the amazing work that the other participants put into this event, and I am blown away by quality of the other projects. It would be amazing to see some of them in real life. I’ve seen Tom’s stuff and it’s very humbling to behold the sheer number and quality of paintjob he produces. I was fortunate enough to go to Finland last year and by sheer coincidence bumped into Kuqury, who is also a member of this forum. Hopefully, at some point in the future I will go back and be able to see his creations for real. 

 

I’ve also learnt that NMM isn’t the best technique for army painting but I am so pleased that I stuck with it. Regardless of what anyone else thinks I and so proud of this army and really pleased with the way it looks on the table. A big shout out to Mr Sawyer who inspired me with his yellow and black Dwarven colour scheme all those years ago.

 

I’d also like to thank Byron for cajoling and helping me on along the way. Without his reminders and helpful downloads I would have lost the plot. I’d also like to thank everyone who commented on my posts and gave feedback and encouragement as the months went by. It made all the difference when that painting enthusiasm began to fade. 

 

Finally, here are a few more shots of the units on a terrain board. I hope to get my dwarven towers and walls finished so that they can act as a backdrop to the yellow and black stunties when they are in the display case I have finally purchased to show them off. Congratulations to everyone who took part. I’m dying to see the final pics.

 

Thanks for having me and Kind regards 

 

Paul (Hereticus1964)

Paul's Dwarf Army June Leader Month

 The last two months have been pretty hectic and having the time to sit down and do any painting has been a bit of a luxury. As a result I had to skip last months post. However, I have managed to get a little bit more on track and this month can show my leader, a fine sculpt in an action pose with his foot on the severed head of a green skin. The quality of finish on this model is probably the highest I have achieved for this army. I am very pleased with the way that he has turned out. 

As well as the leader of the hold I have managed to get a cannon fully painted and the crew almost painted up. Once again the NMM approach has produced a nice final result but was very time consuming. It probably didn't help that I tried to show all the wood grain on the cannon body and then opted to add a highlight to that as well. To tie the war machine in with the rest of the army I originally painted the wheels yellow and black stripes but I wasn't happy with the final result and ended up stripping and re-painting them as you can see in the photo below. 

This is one of two cannons, the other which is almost finished. The crew are almost complete but still have little bits and pieces that need doing. The second cannon and all six crew will be ready for final overview next month. Below shows the current state of the crew so far. 

Adding to my spearmen (which I showed in a previous post) I have managed another six models including a full command of champion, musician and banner bearer. 

I am especially pleased with the banner bearer and the banner pole which was mainly due to the influence of Frogbug who insisted that I do a stripey maypole effect on it. I was reticent to do this but I have to admit it does look pretty good and was a motif I carried on to the next unit finished for this month. Below is a close up of the banner bearer.

At the start of the challenge I had lots of models which I had acquired from a friend many years ago after we exchanged armies. I had some 40K imperial guard which I passed over for the dwarves. Amongst these were what I had thought to be dwarf clansmen but after starting the challenge and purchasing the 4th edition codex I realised that they were longbeards. These were too good not to get a coat of Deep Sea Blue and Volcanic Yellow so they joined the production line.  Below you can see the unit without shields. 

The biggest pain with these guys were the shields which took an age to paint. I'm still not happy with them and will need to revisit them and neaten up the final result. I initially painted up the shields with a Yellow Field as you can see from the photo below. However, when you put them against the minis I'm not sure that it works so I then painted up a shield with a black field. I'm still trying to make my mind up before I commit to gluing them to the models.

As I like gun line armies I added another 10 Thunderers to join the first unit. I believe that some of these sculpts may predate the thunderers shown in the army book. I have to admit that I like the variety in sculpt as I wasn't going for. mono-pose army with these guys. 

Finally, what Dwarves Hold would be complete without a unit of Quarrellers. I have a unit of twelve, all individual sculpts. I would like to get the final two sculpts which are illustrated in the army book but despite scouring the obvious sites I haven't been able to locate them. That's a job for the future. You can see the dirty dozen below.

Looking back at what I have just typed I have realised that there are a fair few models that are completed. The challenge has led to me developing techniques in order to get the army finished. Looking at the models as a collective I feel that the quality of finish on these later models isn't as refined as the earlier ones but in order to cater for volume of models something has to give. However, I believe that I have got better at adding details which cause the models to 'Pop' on the table and so when seen all together the sum of the parts is much greater than the individual models or units. 

A few units that I started painting and are in progress are a Runesmith and a Gyrocopter. I was desperately hoping to have them completed for this month but it wasn't to be. However, below is a photo of the current state and they will be completed before the end of July. 

Part of the reason that these aren't complete is the fact that I am not the most focused when working and I tend to jump around a lot as I have the attention span of a gnat. One of the things that I have loved about this forum is the creativity of the people involved. There are some amazing painters in this group but there are also some brilliant writers and scenery builders. Whilst I do not have the imagination or the literary skills of many in this blog I have been inspired by the scenery and display aids that are frequently on show. This has been both a blessing and a curse as it has led to me losing painting time as I have endeavoured to create a display board for the army. I'm trying to go for a more vertical look with models on lots of levels rather than the traditional 2' X 2' board that I would normally go for. Therefore I have made a start on some scenery. I have built a couple of dwarves towers and battlements together with a gate which needs the top completed. I'm hoping that these raw builds will be completed for the final round up next month but in case they aren't then here is the current state. I've included a couple of figures to give an idea of scale. 

Well that's it for now. It's 23.59 on the 30th June so this ic cutting it fine. Hope you like what you've seen.

Paul's Dwarf Army April #Rank and File 4

 Well a lot of painting has gone on this month with the highlight being a trip to Wales to spend a few days with the legend that is Tom Young aka Frogbug. It was an amazing couple of days and was an absolute privilege to see his collection and witness the way he paints his models. I took a mixture of models to paint which included a unit of thunderers, 2 cannons, an organ gun, a Runesmith, my army General some spearmen and a unit of Slayers. At the end of last months post I confidently said that I would be showing off 5 more spearmen with a command group but the best laid plans oft go astray. I made excellent progress but I do have a habit of jumping around. Therefore, the vast majority of the models mentioned are 90% finished but not quite there. This takes the pressure off for May but I was hoping to exhibit more this month. 

Despite this I have managed to complete a unit of slayers and these old models are absolutely beautiful. This unit was a nice change as there is not a lot of armour or cloth but a considerable amount of "Dad-bod" flesh to paint. This was a welcome change and renewed my enthusiasm. Unfortunately, I only have a limited amount of sculpts for this unit which means that there is a lack of variety in the poses. In addition to that I made the rookie mistake of just adding them to there bases as individual models and not ranking them up before sticking them down. This means that as a block they don't really work but they do make a really good line of crazy axe wielding maniacs stretched across the battlefield. 

Below you can see the unit as a whole and as sets of 5. I think that they've come out nicely and fit in with the Army as a whole. 

These add another 120 points to the army as I'm counting them as all being armed with 2 hand axes bringing the total to 635 points. With only 2 months left I still have a lot of models to paint but there are a lot that are almost complete. I would love to do a themed display board for these little dudes as I think they deserve something better than an old GW carrying case. I have visions of a dwarf gate with a tower and a mine entrance but I'll be a bit more low key with my prediction of just what will be finished for next month. I need to get the minis painted before I lose myself in delusions of grandeur. I'm really looking forward to seeing what the rest of the guys have produced this month as it is always inspiring. 

Paul's Dwarf Army Month 3 Rank and file Spearmen.

 Three months in and things have been a bit hectic with family stuff including the arrival of a new granddaughter which was pretty amazing. Despite this I have managed to crack on with putting brush to metal and have finished a unit of 10 spearmen. The intention was to complete another unit of 15 models but time constraints have taken their toll and I won't be able to do any hobbying for the last week of March. So I've had to bite the bullet and give in for the time being. I have partially finished the command group but I can submit them next month so that cuts future me a bit of slack. 

These guys were an absolute delight to paint as each is characterful but they don't have the frustratingly high degree of detail that many new minis exhibit. The faces on these are amazing as well with some absolutely astounding expessions. At present they cost 121 points but with 3 ranks and a full command that will increase to 178 points. Once complete the spearmen, thunderers and miners will give me a total of 515 points for the army so far. Below are some close ups of the individual ranks.

As a preview for the next post I will be completing another 5 minis for this unit which will include the command group. I have made a start on these and below is a WIP shot of where I've got to with them. 

I want to do a flag for the standard bearer so I will be trawling through old copies of White Dwarf and Army books for some inspiration. As well as these guys next month I will be looking at the command models for my army. The original list had a General and a Hero but I found an old metal Runesmith which I thought would be a nice addition. There may also be some Orange haired axe wielding psychopaths on the horizon. That concludes this months post. Looking forward to the next instalment. 

Paul’s Dwarf Army Rank and file #2

 Well this has proved to be a tough month and I will be happy if I avoid the trip to the field of bones. Below you can see the completed unit. These guys include a full command group and add up to a respectable 221 points taking the army total to 337 points when taking the thunderers I painted last month into consideration. 

I have just finished the unit of miners but if I'm being honest I am not completely happy with certain aspects of the painting, notably the lanterns and the small pouches on many of the models. However, this month I painted a unit of 15 infantry and last month I only painted 10. 

The command group are character models all on their own and here are some images of the trio, as a collective and as individuals. 

I was expecting the miners to be an easier ride than the thunderers due to the fact that I didn't have to paint any of the yellow. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. The NMM of the chainmail and the helmets makes up the vast majority to these sculpts and my main concern was that they were going to lack definition due to large amounts having to be painted the same colour. However, with a bit consideration and a lot of 'to-ing and fro-ing" I think that there is a fair degree of separation which is created by the contrast of the highlights. Painting the candles was an absolute joy and I was hoping to do a bit of OSL from these but that was being far too optimistic. It may be something that I look at adding at a later stage. 

Hopefully these shots show off the individual rows of the unit.

Next month I have even less time to paint so I think I will have to look at painting a couple of character models or a war machine just to be able to hit the deadline. After viewing some of the other blogs I feel that I should also attempt a themed display board for this army. I would also like to thank everybody who commented on my post last month. Thank you for the kind words and support. I will endeavour to respond to everyone. See you all next month.

Paul's Dwarf Army January Rank and File First Unit 156 points completed

 I've been back in the hobby for a few years now after a long hiatus. Prior to this I was into army painting and have four completed 8th Edition armies. My painting techniques were batch painting with a limited colour palette and basic layering techniques. The individual models would not win any prizes but en masse on the tabletop they looked ok. On returning to the hobby I wasn't playing the game any more and I started to paint in a different way. Through online forums I met some amazing people and started painting for competitions. When I did the test model for this army I was just enjoying the process of painting the individual model. So I employed a lot of the techniques that I'd improved at and learnt such as glazing and NMM. These are great when you have plenty of time to spend on a model but I have come to realise that doing a whole army like this is going to be more difficult than I first realised. However, I've started so I'll finish and I have to admit I'm pleased with the way they are looking.

Below is the first unit for the army. 10 Thunderers with a full command unit of leader, musician and standard bearer. This comes to a total of 156 points.

Going forward I will need to adjust the way I approach the painting process. The yellow is built up on a black undercoat with four different colours being glazed over each other to build up colour and contrast. Whilst I think it looks great it is time consuming and I will need to think about the process going forward so that I am not struggling to hit the deadlines for future instalments. The other mistake I made was painting the armour and gold in NMM. I don't have any alternative now that I've painted the first unit and I think that it contrasts nicely with the yellow and black. I realised that as the painting process was dragging on that smooth blends weren't going to be an option if I want 1500 plus points painted in a reasonable time. So I'm hoping that layering so that contrast creates the illusion will cover up the lack of smooth transitions. Below are some more images of the regiment showing each of the models form three different angles. 

 

The next unit I'm attempting are 15 miners. These are mainly clad in mail coats so I'm going to get lots of practise with NMM chainmail. Wish me luck and see you next month.