Here's the Champ

This is a very interesting version of the Tharn cavalry, with a dramatic pose for both wolf and rider.

I'm still seeking the description of what make Privateer Press figures distinctive from other lines.

It doesn't matter which faction you're talking about... they always seem to have a unique appearance.

I know the armor is treated a little differently, but it might have something to do with the more 'heavy' sculpting.

There are not many 'dainty' sculpts in the Privateer Press line, which is probably the one aspect that comes to mind. :-)

The Standing Stone

Continuing with the early stages of some winter theme terrain pieces, we have a quick standing stone.

The stone itself was made using sculpey.

It's sitting on top of some cork to make it easier to attach.

A few broken piece are scattered around the DVD protector...

Upon which a second layer will be added.  Just as I do with the tree bark, I used some Oxide Paste to serve as mortar with the regular glue.

Second layer added, and the Oxide Paste spread into some of the gaps.

The standing stone is also fortified with Oxide Paste, and buttressed a little bit with the second layer of the cork.

All of the broken bits of leftover cork make fantastic smaller stones!!

The various layers of gravel and ballast are added in the same manner as the earlier post of the tree stand.

I can't wait to see how this will look once it's painted, and the snow effects added!!! Stay tuned.

Getting ready for a snowball fight.

Today we have a few sets of group shots.  One of the figures in them would be the figure which needed to be matched as well as possible.

I don't think I have included any of these types of figures in the group shots previously.  The thought had occurred to me, but I always forgot!

The last batch should have a few of the 'matching' shots :-)

I have been noticing several differences in the metal versus the restic versions on these minis.  It is a little easier to paint the restic, since it it much lighter!

The view from above...

Coming right for you!

Stay tuned for much more!!

The real Hell on Wheels!

Check out this amazing bike from Raging Heroes!!!

It's a favorite of mine from the Toughest Girls of the Galaxy kickstarter.

There are more fun details than you can even count.  I'm going to have a LOT of fun painting this.

Also, it's clear that great care was taken in how the pieces were 'cut' and cast, since something as epic as this might have been a nightmare to assemble.

It was surprisingly easy, and it is really solid once built.  That's fantastic!  I know they worked very hard on these kits, and it does show in the final results.

This is set on a larger DragonForge Designs bike base, so that it will fit the wider footprint.  I have some other bikes that are being prepped, and those can fit on more 'standard' format oval bases.

If a tree falls in the forest...

I'm sure that a few of you recall the step by step posts that I made of the original tree stands that I created for our games of Wild West Exodus.  A little while back, as I was working on some other similar projects, I decided to see if I could do some winter effects on larger scale terrain pieces (as opposed to simple bases)

 

That meant spreading out all of the supplies again... various tree branches, gravel, glue oxide paste, knives and so on.

 

The DVD protectors are left over from the thousands of disks that I purchased for the kickstarter videos.

 

Just as I do when placing bark on a regular base, I use a combination of super glue and paste.  The paste acts as mortar, filling in the inevitable gaps.

 

The branch is positioned inside a notch cut in the bark, which offers some additional stability and strength.

 

A few smaller pieces of bark are added, as well as one more fallen log.  This offers a more interesting visual, and more cover!

 

The Oxide Paste is still used as 'mortar' filling in the largest gaps.

 

More texture is spread out onto the rest of the disk with the paste.  This is more efficient than gluing a ton of extra rocks and gravel, and it gives me one more texture as well.

 

Speaking of gravel, I have quite a collection that has been acquired over the years.

 

While the Oxide Paste is still wet, I mixed in some Elmer's glue.  This is what will hold down the gravel which I am going to add.

 

I always place the biggest rocks first, and work progressively lighter.  Otherwise, the fine ballast would cover all of the glue, and I would have to keep adding new glue for each layer.

 

Instead, I have fresh glue available for my second application, typically a medium ballast.  A little more is applied in this second round than the heavy ballast.

 

Finally the sand and ultra fine ballast is added.  This tends to fill in everything very nicely, and looks a little more natural.  Now your rocks will have natural 'clusters' around the tree stand.

 

I work my way around the stand quickly, but I don't try to cover too large of an area at once.  I learned the hard way that as you apply the glue into nooks and crannies, you have a tendency to tip the thing over, and all the glue starts running off.  It becomes a major mess at that point!!

 

Here's what we have so far.  I have some more episodes coming that demonstrate standing stones, cork, pieces of actual slate, and so on.

 

Once all of them reach this stage, I will move on to the painting and applications of snow and flock!!

 

Stay tuned..

A dangerous ride...

 

Another Tharn wolf rider for you today.

 

The Privateer Press cavalry figures definitely have a unique sculpting feel to them.  I have been searching for just the right words to describe what that is...

 

In any event, I hope you enjoy it! :-)

Pick up sticks

 

Here's another one of those guys carrying a bunch of pointy sticks!

 

These were all painted to match previously painted figures by another artist, as has been the case for this entire set.

 

I would have liked to introduce some secondary and tertiary colors into areas like the skin in particular, but I must stay within the boundaries which have been established.