Relocation

Hi folks. After a good while using this blog for my updates I've decided to move it all back to my website, http://gtazz.com/kataan/

Blogger has some great features, namely how easy it is to update, but I find it ultimately too limiting on what I want to do. So I've redeveloped my site, and archived all the updates here into the appropriate projects on the site.

I've also merged my two blogs together, this one and KataanIV, my 40k blog. Should make my life easier maintaining one site rather than two blogs and an archive site.

I'll leave this blog online for a while until people relocate. If there are any features here that aren't available on my site let me know and I'll write them in (only thing I can think of is an RSS feed which I can look at).

Cheers,
Si

Observatory

The observatory has moved along a little. I'm really bad at posting photos as I go, preferring to wait until I've worked out all the kinks. Going to try and document this one better.

Here's where we are right now, along with random blackpowder marksman for scale.

 

 

I've tried to design it in such a way I can get easy access to the interior, something I didn't do so well on the other buildings.  Still need to sort out the small roof, currently there's a large gap over the annex portion of the building.

Observatory dome

I got impatient waiting for my dome to arrive from China, so I went ahead and ordered a dome from the Skullvane Manse kit (ah eBay, replacing the GW bits service since 2008).

I'm still going to see how the other dome looks, but this one should work fine.

I've started the main roof, as well as the support for the dome.

Still deciding whether to add a small sloped roof under the dome or not. Hard to describe but if I do it you'll see! Easy that huh?

Oh and I've been messing about with the layout of the blog. Using one of the newer dynamic layouts. Means a couple of things are missing from the side, I might have the template to add them back. Though I'm also considering merging both my project blogs (this and KataanIV) into a single hobby blog, then I'll have a platform for random editorial type articles too. We'll see.

Observatory

Hey, I'm back! As usual my hobby interest has come full circle and now I'm back with building up Stadtheim.

And I've started a new building to go in a new section. The layout has been juggled slightly to fit the available space, but I wanted to add this board to the end. I'm making an observatory to sit on a large hill.

It's based on a model by Dave Andrews (isn't all terrain? lol). I found it over on Felix's website a while back:

Tell me that's not an amazing model! Mine will of course be an approximation like all my stuff, I take someone's idea and wander off on my own.

It's being built using hirst arts blocks as with the rest of the town. Here's a few in progress photos:

 The tower is currently separate, I think I'll leave it that way and have recesses in the base so it will slot into place or be detachable for storage.

The dome I'm currently pondering. I've ordered a housing for a home cctv camera from china that I think might do the job, though it might be a bit large. I actually think the dome on Dave's model is a touch small, so mine will more or less fill the top of the tower. I did look at the top from Skullvane Manse, but without getting my hands on one I'm not sure if I like it.

More to come as I make progress. Ta for stopping by!

The Wharf

I've started work on the water in front of the wharf.  I saw Mason's thread on the Lead Adventure Forum showing his awesome town of Krappefortt. The way he did his water effects was to use water down pva and tissue paper. Ingeniously simple but the finished effect on his is amazing.

So I wanted to try and use the same technique. Yesterday I built the frame for the jetty, and today I put in the water. It's currently drying, we'll see how well it looks once it's done and I can start painting. So far so good though!

Fingers crossed mine will look half as good as Mason's when it's done.

Next step them is to decide on the buildings. You can see the gaps in the cobble in the first picture. The one of the left is for a small shack/stall thing, the right one will be adjusted to take my Warhammer Chapel. But I want to put something in the middle, I'm thinking perhaps a clock tower..

The Church of Verena is getting an interior. I've started with the floor and a detail wall at the back. Hard to tell (should have taken un painted shots), but the wall is three dimensional made from scored depron.

The two doors lead into the vestry out the back, the centre is supposed to be a mosaic dedicated to the goddess Verena. Rather than an alter it's going to have a pool in the centre of the floor (much like the temples in Skyrim/Oblivion). This is already done, just needs painting and detailing.

The final step then will be to add the staircase and balcony at the tower end, providing access to the bell tower and sniping platform, erm, roof top.

Ok I thought I'd start the new year with a look at where Stadtheim stands at the moment. Still plenty to do on the 'complete' boards, but it's looking much busier now, which is how I want it.

View from between the church and watchhouse to the warehouse.

Between the church and brewery house to the docks.

The front of the watchhouse yard and tower.

A birds eye view of the main bulk of the town.

Looking from the warehouse to the church.

Down the canal from the docks.

Back up and running

Hello there. After too long in hiatus I've returned to my little town. I'm rejigging the plans slightly for Stadtheim. The finished board will be smaller but I'm also replanning a few of them to cram more in. I've also played more games now and have a better idea of how to layout the terrain to make things a little more interesting and a little less canyon of death.

I'll get some photos of the warbands up, the orcs and the Reiklanders are complete now. I'm also doing an interior for the church, and am about to cut the brewery board to pieces and rebuild it.

Looking into the Sartosa setting by StyrofoamKing, which is looking likely to lead to a human pirate warband too. Will work nicely with the orcs I reckon.

Various things on the go, will post pictures as they come to fruition, starting with a nice overview of how the board looks as it stands. Be back soon.

More Averlanders

The Averlanders are now up to strength (and even had their first game, though they lost miserably to Da Kabin Krew.. hardly surprising).

So introducing Faust's Footpads, Averlander Mercenary Warband.
First up the heroes:

First shot, left to right, is Curt (youngblood, sword & buckler), Herrick Faust himself (captain, sword, brace of pistols) and Mallory (sergeant, sword, axe).
Second shot shows Werner and Clovis, the two bergjaegers, both armed with longbows and an unerring ability to miss easy targets. bah.

And the henchmen:

First is Cohen's Clashers (a pair of greatsword armed mountain guard) and Dolph's Dividers (a single halberder).
Second shot is Mungo's Munchers (three bow armed halfling scouts).

You can see from the greatsword armed mountainguard I'm going for the tradtional yellow and black colourscheme. 'proper' painting like this really shows up my lack of brush skill, but never mind. The other two mountainguard and the captain and sgt will get similarly spangly outfits. The youngblood less so but along the same lines.

The bergjaegers and halflings will be in browns and muted tones.

Really like the halfling models, they're from Black Hat Miniatures, who incidentally were very quick, with decent communication letting me know exactly what's going on. Unlike Maelstrom and Wayland who both seem to prefer leaving me in the dark. Bah.

Anyway, that's Faust's Footpads. Need to get them all painted now.

Averlander Mercenaries

Hot on the heels of finishing my Reiklanders I couldn't resist starting a new human mercenary warband. Obviously my Reiklanders will evolve and grow over time, but I wanted a second human warband to work on.

Spent ages trying to decide which one to go with, and ended up with the Averlanders. Why? Simple, they get halflings!

Here's where we are so far:

That's a youngblood with sword and buckler, and the captain with sword and brace of pistols. The second one show my mountain guard, two great swords and a halberd (obviously wip).

I love the greatswords, think it's such an awesome looking weapon. And so long as they attack en masse they should do some real damage. WS4, so decent chance of hitting most things, then S5 if they connect will give even dwarfs and orcs something to think about. Just got to survive the enemy's preemptive retaliation!

I'm also having a sergeant with a sword and an axe, then two bergjaegers with long bows. Then of course three halflings all with bows.

Ironically that's 5 BS4 bow/longbows. There's a good chance they'll outshoot the Reiklanders. Which seems a little odd since they're supposed to be all shooty n stuff. If they get that far I really want one of those old empire ogres, with the big floppy caps. That'd fit in perfectly here I think.

Reiklanders ready for battle!

The Reiklander Mercenaries are now all based up and painted. I need to go back and do a few highlights and details (sure they'd appreciate getting eye-ed for instance), but they're table ready.

Working left to right the whole warband is:

Abel (youngblood). Weilding a hammer and sword Abel is an expert swordsman with a tendancy to injure his victims. Surprisingly strong for one so young. Unfortunately over zealous youthfullness means he tends to fluff a lot of his attacks. He'll learn. Or die trying.

Brother Yardstick (champion). A new arrivee from the Mysterious Measuring Monks. Alas Brother Furlong passed away cleaved in twain by a rather irate dwarf clansman.

Pistol Marksman). One of Falke's Fliers, he weilds a brace of pistols and boasts unerring accuracy both at range and in close.

Swordsman (Tibalt's Tankers). Weilding hammer and sword, this furious swordsman delivers a flurry of attacks.

Longbow Marksman. Falke himself, reknowned for his accuracy, though his success rate has diminished of late.

Albertus Brandt (captain). Albertus weilds a duelling pistol and gromril hammer. Stronger, more aggressive and more ruthless in close combat since first entering Stadtheim. His light armour has more than proved it's worth against Orc arrows.

Longbow Marksman, the latest addition to Falke's Fliers already one kill to his name.

Hans (champion). Another new comer, the replacement for Dieter. Who was in turn a replacement for Reinhard. Something of a cursed seat at the table.

Swordsman (Harald's Hitters), a newly recruited henchman ready to join the search for riches and glory.

Crossbow Marksman, lending some much needed power to Falke's Fliers. A high kill rate for this one.

Wilber (youngblood), recently graduated to expert swordsman status. We shall see how this aids him, Wilber already having missed two battles through injuries.


And there you have it. Fame and glory awaits. Or at the very least enough coffers to hire a bloody big Ogre!


Hans is

Town Overview

Here's the town as it currently stands, the layout I've been playing on to learn the rules. Each board is 16" square, so it needs another row of three down the left hand side to bulk up to 4'x4'.

The boards at the front are the newest. Now I've sorted out the fluff and location for this place, I can say with some certainty that that's the river Aver. Right there, at the front. Looking a little black and brown. Hrm.

Left front board, the canal mouth, doesn't need a huge amount more work. The plank of balsa wood is obviously going to be replaced with a proper foot bridge.

The right front board is being worked on at the moment. It's getting a small stall in the first gap in the tiles, the other side will be a small merchants house. Then between the two will be a tower with a small courtyard. Then steps down in the gap and at the front a quay. It's all planned. Just not, you know, happening all that fast.

I've also decided I need to do an interior for the church, otherwise it's just a big obstacle. Fortunately the roof is removable anyway so it just needs a floor, a few pews and a paintjob. Then I'll finally get all the stained glass windows in!

Amazing how just playing a game changes your perception of the build, which bits are useful and what needs work. The brewery yard definitely needs a second entrance for instance, otherwise unless you start in there or the scenario requires building searches why would you ever use it?

Orc Pirates!

Waagh. Indeedy. Ok the orcs are moving along nicely. I got all the sculpting done a few days ago, and now I've finished painting the Reiklanders I'm working my way through these guys. Today I got Kaptin Kabin done.

Very simple colour scheme and paintwork as always (base coat, wash, occasional highlights). Quite happy with the kaptin, not sure if it shows in the pic too well but his beard is orange with flecks of red then drybrushed yellow. Looks quite vivid.

And here he is with the other four painted crewmen:

LR: a Kabin Runt, a Spika Krew member, Kaptin Kabin, Nuggit the shaman, an Arra Krew member.

Still got 7 to go. Oh and Boz 'Un had to be renamed Boz Het, because somehow he ended up looking like James Hetfield.

Brandt's Return

It was with great reticence and a tangible sense of unease that Albertus Brandt returned to the town of Stadtheim. His last visit, some two years ago, had ended in the death of his good friend and trusted sword Richter at the hands of the the vile skaven filth.

Stadtheim, a small port on the River Aver, was a fairly innocuous little town until a few years back. After the well documented events in Mordheim, many miles to the north, illicit wyrdstone trade routes sprang up right across the eastern Empire. Many tried their luck travelling down the River Stir, which passed through Mordheim itself. However the 'Stir Run' proved fateful for all who attempted it. Local militia and like-minded competition watched eagle-eyed day and night, slaughtering and dispossessing any who came to their grasp.

And so by strange misfortune it was to the gates of Stadtheim that the major southern route fell. Crossing Stirland on foot was no mean task, but from here the wyrdrunners could ride the river to Nuln and beyond in relative safety.

The flowing trade had changed Stadtheim from an unassuming burg to a bustling merchant haven. The Mayor expanded the city watch three fold to deal with the rising robbery crime, but otherwise did little to stop the flow of wyrdstone through his town's limits. The local nobility benefited greatly from the growth, increasing their power and status through canny trade and careful employ of less tasteful methods.

It was in the purse of one such noble that Albertus had last served in Stadtheim. He'd been hired to track down a band of giant rats that had followed a trade convoy to the town. His mission had been a success, destroying the skaven to the last and acquiring a large haul of wyrdstone in the process. The loss of Richter had stung Brandt deeply though, and he left the town vowing never to return.

Yet two years later he was once again stood at the town gates, his new warband in tow ready to tackle another mission. The missive from Baron Ritter had been too tempting to ignore. An enormous cache of wyrdstone was discovered to be within the town, and warriors and mercenaries from all across the Empire were flocking to Stadtheim to contend for riches and glory. The Baron had made Brandt a hefty proposition if he would champion Ritter's stake in the treasure hunt. The chance to re-equip his warband and maybe make one last run at Mordheim itself couldn't be passed over.

"Lost in reverie, Captain?" said Brother Furlong, the man who had so adequately filled Richter's shoes.

"Hardly, padre. This town holds nothing for me now but the big pile of coin that's headed our way," replied Brandt.

The rest of the warband, dubbed "Brandt's Brigands" by one of the youngbloods, filed past up the street toward the nearest tavern. The journey from Altdorf had been a long one, but once rested up they'd be hot on the trail of the apparent fortune.

And they weren't the only ones. Already in the town were many bands of mercenaries from Marienburg, Middenheim, Ostland and of course Averland itself. Dwarf treasure hunters had come out of the World's Edge Mountains. Even bands of Halflings had travelled from the nearby Mootland. Rumours of pirates of every creed and colour (including green) were spreading like wildfire around the town. Who knows what other vile creatures were also a party to the hunt in the dark of night?

Stadtheim, for the time being at least, was about to pay host to the Empires largest brawl. To the victor, untold spoils and riches. To the losers, ignominy and desperation. If they were very lucky.

So it begins.

Yarrrrr, Pirates!

Started painting the orc pirates. Slowly slowly as usual, but the first guy has been base coated and washed. He'll get some detailing and some highlights, though not much as is my usual style.

Really happy with the feel of these guys though. And the sculpting, whilst not gobsmacking, seems to be ok in the final thing. The bandanas across the crew are alright, and this guys mutton chops make me chuckle which is what it's all about.

Hope to get the rest painted up this weekend. Also, now I have a rule book to read (hate reading long articles on screen) I've started to learn to play. Might try a couple of solo games this weekend to figure out how things work. Woo.

Warbands Update

Quick update on the three warbands then.

The Reiklanders I'm still waiting for my empire militia to arrive. Have been decidedly let down by the Internet in the last two weeks, orders are taking forever. Perhaps there's a postal strike I don't know about?

However I've got a parcel to collect tomorrow, I think that's my Mordheim boxed set. Just the rules and the minis, no scenery (which obviously I'm providing my own!). So those guys should fill up my Reiklanders and the new militia will go to my second human warband.

The Orc Pirates are greenstuffed, or pro-created anyway, and have been primed. They're currently on the kitchen floor drying. I'll try and get the first one painted tomorrow and pics online.

The Possessed I'm waiting on all my orders except for the Magister, who put everyone else to shame arriving two days after purchase. Very cool character, was concerned it might not be tall enough but he's as large as my biggest Reiklander so it'll work fine. I've just chopped off the horrid premoulded base and severed his hand ready for the sword.

They're coming along well all in all. Printed out Empire in Flames yesterday and am reading through that slowly. Hence getting inspired about the Carnival of Chaos too!

Also tonight I put together my five WIP terrain boards to see how they looked. Very exciting! Hope to get another one started at the weekend and give me enough scenery to have a dabble at learning the rules. Feel like a big kid again ;)

Yar, avast, etc

So following on from my comments about not being able to stay focussed, in the two days since I've ordered my possessed warband I've had to find something else to occupy my time. And these are the results.

Da Kabin Krew!

First up is Kaptin Kabin and his faithful (ish) shaman, Nuggit.

Kap'n Kabin is just a black reach nob with an ogre's sword (reshaped to be more scimitar like), and a big club for a counts-as morning star. The head as the black reach warboss's, so I've removed the bionics ready for an eye patch and bit hat. I'm also quite happy with the balsa peg leg :D
Nuggit is a normal orc boy with a cut down spear and slightly modified axe. His head is a cross between a boy and a night goblin.

Next up the Big 'Uns, Boz Un and Boz Wan.

They are one piece plastic boyz (not sure where from, another bits purchase), with slight arm changes and a couple of plasticard scimitars. They need tricorn hats obviously.

Then we have the henchmen. Firstly, Da Arra Krew.

Again one piece plastics with slight tweaks. Very happy with the guy on the right considering the source. Oh and lefty has a hook hand made from a bretonnian horn/flask/thing. They'll get bandanas.

Then Da Spika Krew:

These are normal boys with converted spears, one with a peg leg and one with a hook. These guys are also getting bandanas.

Finally Da Kab'n Runtz.

These are normal goblins, again will get bandanas. I love the guy on the left, blatantly saying "once I figure out how this works, you're gonna get it!", and the guy on the right looking up at one of the orcs getting his orders.

Hoping to start the sculpts today, shouldn't take too long. Kaptin's hat is the main point of concern as it'll make or break that piece. Everyone else is just tweaks and it's their paint work that'll sell them as pirates. Fingers crossed.

Reiklander's based

Very quick post about my Reiklanders, they now have their bases. Very cool little resin cobbled bases from Fenris on eBay. Great casts and I'm really happy with the results.

Just need my militia to arrive now and they can have some henchmen!