Mr Azog is done

Done and done. Also, the revampation of my Isengard army is done. The models are not well painted but I couldn't motivate myself with repainting them, especially when it is impossible to find Simple Green or anything like it (or whatever it is called, the product that you can use to remove colour from plastic models). This is indeed the last DDR-state.

Despite him being one-armed, I equipped him with a two-handed, super-heavy iron warhammer to emphasize his awesome upright-orc-strength. The hook was a necessity, but I think it doesn't hold up very well so I might try to sculpt the tri-hook instead. When this heat wave dissipates I shall do it.

Finished the bases and trays. Now I only have Mordor, Gondor and the Edheldu (Wood Elf) army left to renovate. Perhaps I will get a game in after that.

Frankenstein's Azog, part 03

Frankenstein's Azog is made out of bread, corrugated iron, a dripping and a bit of white paint. Et voila:

There are some stuff left to sculpt... I normally basecoat the things I sculpt or convert in order to better see what I have missed and what needs be doing.
       I did this conversion/sculpting without any pictures of Azog, so he turned out quite different than the official one. The hook was necessary because in this heat I would probably have crushed the last knuckle on my hand in anger whilst trying to sculpt the tri-hook he is equipped with in the movies...

Before I basecoated him, he was placed with a company of Hunter Orcs. He looks static in comparison with these guys, which is what I was aiming for. This due to two reasons: Firstly, I wanted him to look like he was leading and making the smaller guys go before him (after all, he is an orc leader, so what's the point in getting your hands dirty for nothing) . And secondly, it is a simpler task, sculpting a pair of basic, upright legs.

As usual, a little link follows. This blog has an interesting analysis of The Hobbit-Azog.

DIY Hunter Orcs, phase 02

Azog is turning out okay. When it comes to rules in War of the Ring, I haven't decided on anything... surely someone has come up with something. However, as of now, I am more interested in finishing this little piece and paint him white so everything falls into place, design-wise.

 Torso from the Sisters of Thorn-box (Warhammer), head from a Hordes/Warmachine model and arms from Sister of Thorn. The oversized head of the hammer is a piece of sprue. Legs sculpted. Hook is DIY.

The first layer of paint has gently been placed on top of trays and bases of the Isengard army. Shown here are roughly half of the army.

Of the leftover High Elves, I was able to squeeze out an additional company of Rivendell Cohort. The captain will free up a model in another formation, which can then be converted into a spear-elf.
    There's really no need for a banner in a Rivendell Cohort, IMO, but if I am wrong, then I would appreciate if someone could enlighten me.

Azog (half-done) with his band of merry queeros - the Hunter Orcs still have rather effeminate jawlines - with their naked bases and over-average height (which is due to the Perry Miniatures integrated bases).

Abrupt end, good day and have a nice weekend.

DIY Hunter Orcs, phase 01

These guys are what I have been tinkering with these latest hobby nights.

Last time I did something similar was when I used Perry Miniatures' Medieval Men at Arms/Mercenaries/Bows and Bills to make a crew for the Great Beast of Gorgoroth. Most of the different types of bodies from those boxes worked fine to make some sort of upright orcy-looking creatures. This time, though, I used Perry Miniatures Mahood Ansar/Somali Holy Jihad Warriors.
     They fit better than other models for a project of this kind and you can get a tonne of them for a nice price, which coincidentally also is the biggest drawback: I have used the bodies from the Ansaar-box when making TC:s for Abrakhan Guard, Mahûd Warriors, Orcs, Istari, GBoG-crew and now Hunter Orcs. The poses and bodies are very easy to recognize, at least for me, and I start to wonder if I haven't overused them. Which, of course, speaks in favour to the versatility of these models...

In the pictures above, the TC:s (Total Conversions, a term learnt from the art of modding PC-games) are still at beta-level. You can spy a "nice try" to make Azog in these images, but he is armed with a hook and a big hammer and has a weird face. His spindly little legs are in the process of getting muscles, so no need to worry about my mental health: The end result will hopefully look better.


Also, I have finished the Rivendell Cavalry, but have failed to get the latest work photographed. And adding insult to injury, the quality of these old pictures are somewhat lacking...

Also, I should add that this new and slower posting-habit is here to stay. I mainly do my hobby during weekends and my pace is much, much more slower than earlier years.

EDIT: Forgot two news, Pablo el Marques got his Arce Worlde-stuff. They might be closer to 40 mm... can't remember.

Also, mr Tommy Wiseau has made a "sit-com". Here's a litte sneak peak. Notice the very overt room number "420". Utter garbage, as you'd expect. And want from this man.

Rivendell revampation, part three

I have been having some minor computer errors (me, to be exact) but now I think this post actually contains something. The old models are much too bright, and especially the High Elf spearmen (or the two company strong Rivendell Cohort, in War of the Ring) are looking bad becase they are shameless urethane copies that I made earlier in my career as LotR: SBG-fan. Not all of them, of course, but seven or eight or so...

I very much prefer the more muted look of the newly painted Rivendell Knights than the earlier works on the infantry. Mr FoB has actually also dabbled with some of these models.

A lot of nice heroes, but I must say that looking at Glorfindel today, riding his Asfaloth, I do not find him especially nice a model... 

... but rules-wise he's awesome, so I rationalize it like an 18-year old girl why she's dating an 80-year old millionaire: I like him for his personality (see below for illustrative and explanatory image).

I will try to squeeze out a new company from this band of misfits. One really old counterfeit high elf spearman with a smashed in face has also found its way onto the likewisely produced tray, hehe... The command looks nice, though, but the models are a posed a bit weird, almost like they were trying to save metal and space when producing them.

Here's the reason why my waist measurements are increasing. I do my hobby at a place that is not my home, and the fridge is in a separate room two stories below. So I "have to" buy kebab (as this miscarriage of a meal is called).
     Fun fact: I was actually locked inside the company area yesterday. I stayed late and when I was going home through main gate 1 it had been locked 20 minutes early and I had neither passcode nor card with me. Strange times, locked in a huge company area with barbed wire around me kilometer after kilometer. I finally made a successfull exfiltration by merrily destroying parts of the southern gate and then climbing the outer fence. Security is tight, but apparently not that tight.
     Good times was had by everyone. Though I got a telephone call just now which I didn't answer, and I hope that the cameras didn't catch me whilst I was doing my not-so-agile ninja-stuff... I shall have to avoid my phone for the next week or so...

Ninja EDIT: Before commiting to my exfiltration plans I must confess that I stayed in the hobby-room/office for four hours. Destroying things is not in my nature, but when I finally got to know when the gates were to be opened (not so early morning) and that the nearest watchman responsible for the office-area I was locked in was in a town 80 km from where I was, I decided to execute my plans.