|
Post by grandmasterwang on Dec 26, 2016 12:57:48 GMT
I enjoyed the flaggie model comparison.
Love the Mordheim ones as well as the plastics/6th ones. Those 4th edition ones could be chaos cultists in disguise.... they are clearly trying to cover up some sort of mutation.
|
|
|
Post by Naitsabes on Dec 29, 2016 7:59:56 GMT
The classic infantry in blue and red...brilliant. Thanks. I've posted these pictures all over the internet and you are the first who seems to like them as much as I do. I enjoyed the flaggie model comparison. Love the Mordheim ones as well as the plastics/6th ones. Those 4th edition ones could be chaos cultists in disguise.... they are clearly trying to cover up some sort of mutation. they are not covering up their mutated feet though...and, it's hard to hide your hands when they are bigger than your head!
|
|
|
Post by Naitsabes on Dec 29, 2016 8:05:26 GMT
12Sep15 Here is another cannon for the walls of Volganof. Only three more to go. And, is there maybe an expert on renaissance artillery in the audience who could tell me what the guy on the left has in his hand? Because it sure looks like a beer mug to me (I was tempted to sculpt some foam)? The official Volganof counter: 594/957 Upward and onward (albeit slowly)! p.s. after 1.5 years, a more detailed status report seemed appropriate last update 29Aug2015 BOLD = required GREEN = ready to go RED = anything from still on the store shelf to primed and halfway painted Volganov City Guard (3000pts) Oleg von Raukov Sergov Pfeiffer (Lv1 Fire) Klaus Solmann (Lv4 Heaven) Baron von Blutten Captain Schwarzhelb 60 Stalwart Bulls (Greatswords) 30 Gryphon Guard A 30 Gryphon Guard B 40 Reinforcement Spearmen 40 Reinforcement Halberdiers 40 Reinforcement Swordsmen 2 Steam Tanks 17 Knights of the Golden Griffon Captain of the Golden Griffon 3x 10 Crossbowman 3x 10 Handgunner2 Priests2 Captains2 Battle Wizards (Lv2) 40 City Halberdiers40 City SpearmenHurricanum Helblaster Volley Gun EngineerArtillery of Volganov (1500pts) Kannonmeister Gunther Trundlekopf (Engineer) Ol' Puddings (Cannon)Spinning Bertha (Helblaster) 6 cannons 2 Mortars3 cannons 1 MortarsOstland30 Kludburgh Militia 20 Volgar's Shadomen (Huntsmen) Volgar (Captain) 50 Flagellants of the Forest of Shadow 50 Scarlet Curs (Halberdiers) Vasili von RaukovOther ProvincesVolkman (Captain) 50 "Bechafen" Halberdiers 30 "Blackhats of Talabheim" (Swordsmen)Altlangen Contingent (Captain + 1000pts core + 500pts special)Baron Beckdorf[/color] 2x 10 Handgunner 31 Spearmen 30 Swordsmen 6 Knights (FC) 6 Knights (musician) 24 Altlanger Greatswords+FC+Standard of Disciplin 12 Swordsmen (Detachment) 5 Pistoliers (music+champ+repeater)Relief Column (1500pts mounted)Kurt Helborg Ludvig Schwartzhelm 45 1st Reiksguard 45 2nd Reiksguard Valmir von Raukov Raukov Battle Standard10 Raukov Household Knights6 Knights 3 Demigryph Knights3 Demigryph Knights2 Pegasus CaptainPegasus Captain6 Outriders 5 Pistoliers Luminark
|
|
|
Post by Naitsabes on Dec 29, 2016 8:09:51 GMT
And, one more post. One more after this and we are in 2016. I am quite enjoying this trip down my own memory lane. ------------------------- 2Nov2015 Update time! Today we start by looking at the brave men who are on the actual walls. My list at the moment has 60 shooters. I reserve the right to change that though once I get a better picture of how many guys will fit. These guys will dish out hot lead and bolts until some dragon decides to swoop in for a snack. I had ~30 painted before this mad project got underway. I’ve now added a unit in the proper colors. Beware, dodgy photography skills on display. Now I did experiment with striped pants a little. Turns out it’s hard for me to be consistent. I don’t think I should attempt to do this on a proper-sized unit of state troops. Next up is Oleg von Raukov himself. Valmir’s son and the man at the center of this drama. The target of Lord Mortkin’s unfounded hatred. (I mean, really, the von Raukovs were over in Norsca for a little R&R and things just got a little out of hand, no biggie. It was just ~seven Norscan towns that got razed and their smallfolk put to the sword. I think Mortkin is overreacting.) (and no, I didn’t attempt to do some awesome freehand on the cloak. Sometimes, I do know my limits). Here is a wizard. Looks like the gnarly type from deep in the woods. I really don’t know why he is in this log, he is not in my current list. I guess usually a wizard just shows up at the right time in the right place. So maybe this guy is trying to tell me something. Finally, this is the state of the city of Volganof at the moment. I ‘hirsted’ away for an evening. Since this picture was taken I fixed the sagging wall on the left and finished the ground floor. It was a lot of fun and came together surprisingly well. No unsightly gaps. I did learn that this is about as high as one can go without some kind of internal support (maybe in the form of a cardboard box?). Haven’t quite decided what to do about the windows, maybe some closed shutters? And, I do have big plans for a timberframe second floor…in due time. The official Volganof counter: 615/957 Upward and onward!
|
|
|
Post by Naitsabes on Jan 1, 2017 23:33:08 GMT
wow, here it is. a time-space fold upon itself and I am showing you an actual update, fresh of the press before the other 2016 updates. well, you'll manage. and, I might be able to fix it later. ------------------------- 1Jan2017 Well, 2016 was not the year of Volganof (I looked at my older posts and apparently I had high hopes ~a year ago). This time my best guess is that neither will 2017 be the year we play the actual game. But, there will be progress. And it shall start right now! Just to wrap the exciting election we had, I want to leave you with this family picture, now that the von Raukovs are complete. From RIGHT to LEFT: Valmir von Raukov, Elector Count of Ostland His oldest son Oleg, valiant defender of Volganof His younger son Vassili, valiant administrator of Volganof And Cousin Marek, faithful battle standard bearer for Valmir Next, an update on the Scarlet Curs. I am about 3/4 of my way through the unit. I can’t help myself, every last halberdier needs to be converted somehow and so the hobby sessions tick by. I’ve also made another halberdier ogre and tried to make a nice shirt. It turns out with these models you really need to do a double mastectomy to have a good basis. Yes, it feels awkward; no you shouldn’t do it while the kids are around. I am quite happy with the back. The front still could be better. Next time! I’ve also chipped away at the last big stumbling block for this army: The second unit of Reiksguard. I landed some more of the metal models which saved me from quite a bit of sash sculpting. I am running low now on the swords and I was all but out of pennants. But, a Dark Knight came to the rescue and sent me a nice little baggie of bits. A most generous donation indeed. Now, this doesn’t mean I am in the clear, so if you have these swords and/or pennants collecting dust in your bits box, please get in touch. The Reiksguard here include this ‘Heroic Knight with Lance’. The sculpt wasn’t too great in places, state-of-the-art 25 years ago. But, he certainly will make a fine unit champion. Does anyone know where the horse head is from? Well, only thirty more to go for this unit. Next time I will most certainly present to you the Scarlet Curs…unless I get distracted by that box of Demigryphs Santa brought me last week. The official Volganof counter: 767/969
|
|
|
Post by frozenfood on Jan 2, 2017 8:25:29 GMT
Santa and demis, they seem to go hand in hand
|
|
|
Post by dannytee on Jan 2, 2017 15:19:22 GMT
So much content in such a short period of time, it is great. What an ambitious and cool project.
|
|
|
Post by Naitsabes on Jan 3, 2017 5:19:43 GMT
Santa and demis, they seem to go hand in hand ...just stay off his naughty list. So much content in such a short period of time, it is great. What an ambitious and cool project. well, it probably isn't as short a period as you think. Upon request by the power that be I am regurgitating my long running project log from elsewhere. that being said, I appreciate each and every comment. It is really motivating for me to read of people taking an interest in my little tin soldiers. okay, let's move back in time again to: -------------------------------------------- 21November2015 Hello, hello. Update time yet again. Today is all about the elite ‘Gryphon Guard’ of Volganof. Founded more than two hundred years ago as the ‘Honorable Kompagnie in Defense of the Gryphon Gates’ the Gryphon Guard stands watch, escorts westward cargo and keeps order in the city quarter adjacent to the gates. The defenses of Volganof were reorganized after the catastrophic events during Brak Vorns ‘Spoiling of the East’ (a story for another time). Each city quarter was put in charge of forming a guard for their gate. The rich merchants and traders of the Gryphon Quarter quickly figured out that time spent serving in the guard was time not spent making money while at the same time recruiting men from other parts of the city lead to conflicts with their local councils. The obvious solution was hiring outsiders. Decent pay and good equipment allows the Gryphon Guard to be quite selective as there is always a good number of applicants to choose from and service in the Guard is seen as a good gig in certain circles as far away as Talabheim. The Gryphon Guard has a reputation for snobbery among the city garrison, after all their better pay is spent on plumes and personal hygiene. But, nobody should doubt their dedication to the city. This is their gate and they will not yield. The Gryphon Guard is organized in two columns, the Inner and the Outer Guard each nominally charged with duty at one of the two gates (in practice men are rotated quite regularly). On the left the Inner Guard, on the right the Outer Guard command rank (or was it the other way around?) Some troopers. I painted these units in unreasonably sized batches and did not vary the pant/shirt/equipment colors. While this procedure was quite a bit faster than my usual ‘five guys, white right leg here, black right leg there, etc.’ it also was a whole lot less fun. So, back to my leisurely painting from this point forward. Here is the Captain of the Gryphon Guard, the honorable Wolfram Bertrano. In his youth he had to leave Nuln shortly before graduating from a famous fencing school due to an inappropriate interest in the daughter of a baron. Originally, he joined the Gryphon Guard on a two year contract but took a liking to the simpler life in the North. After rising through the ranks he became the first Gryphon Guard Captain not native to Ostland. This lead to some grumbling among the other city garrison captains, until the now legendary ‘Dreitorlauf’ of 2512. The ‘Dreitorlauf’ is an annual event in Volganof consisting of a long distance run around the city where the captains and select members of their units compete. The track weaves in and out of the city through the gates and traditionally the each gate’s garrison will spice things up by placing obstacles in the darkest part of the gatehouse and throwing items foul or furry (sometimes both) at the runners. Wolfram was leading the pack for most of the race but slipped on some cunningly placed foul matter inside the Wolf Gate and hit the ground hard. The other runners passed him but Wolfram made his way to the finish line all bruised and limping earning the grudging respect of his peers. The fencer with the finest technique in all of Volganof, Wolfram has trained his men well. While he is breathing the Gryphon Gates will not fall…I am sure Lord Mortkin can figure this one out. Finally, here are two work in progress shots. This is the first house of Volganof as it currently stands. I had to abandon my overly ambitious plans for a second story (of course I built half of the darn thing before realizing it was too big). But, I quite like the house now. It’s almost ready for paint. And here is my current project, the first of Valmir von Raukov’s bodyguard, the Raukov Household knights. Obviously based on a chaos knight but I spent some time grinding off the tainted chaos symbols. Any suggestions for improvements before I do nine more? The official Volganof counter: 677/957 That’s it. It might be a while before the next update with the jolly season almost upon us. Upward and onward. Cheers.
|
|
|
Post by Naitsabes on Jan 3, 2017 5:26:41 GMT
and just because it is from exactly one year ago, here is one more update. spoiler alert: despite of what I say below, 2016 wasn't the year of Volganof! ----------------------- 2Jan2016 Everyone’s sobered up yet? This update is a bit of a weak sauce but, read (or skim) on for some army shoots. Today, I present to you the Mighty Spinning Bertha, protecting Volganof for 123 years and counting. The screeching sounds she makes when getting ready to fire is enough to make the vilest of the local beastmen flee (a smart move indeed for she unleashes twice the shots of a regular helblaster). Let’s see what she can do to 75 Chosen Warriors when the time comes. This is the Volganof Helblaster contingent ..and also an overview of helblaster evolution. I did carve out some time over the holidays to array my troops and take some pictures (and fix up some battle damage). So here we go, the Defenders of Volganof as they currently stand, all 676 of them Now for slightly more useful pictures: The Altlangen contingent and the artillery The city garrison and friends The relief force (still 40 Reiksguard to add, ugh) Looking at the ranks and ranks, it really feels like this is coming together. The official Volganof counter: 676/966 Some minor list adjustment and realizing that I counted one unit of handgunners twice made the numbers wobble, still I am at ~70%. Will 2016 be the year of Volganof? Stay tuned. Upward and onward!
|
|
|
Post by KevinC on Jan 3, 2017 22:19:52 GMT
Wow! As always, amazing stuff!
I really like the honorable Capt. Wolfram Bertrano. Is he based on the blind Eltharion model? He looks great.
|
|
|
Post by Naitsabes on Jan 4, 2017 1:56:07 GMT
thanks, man. Nope, Bertrano is just an out-of-the-box Empire Captain. GW made some nice Empire models once upon a time.
|
|
|
Post by grandmasterwang on Jan 4, 2017 16:25:51 GMT
With feathers like that no wonder the Gryphon guard are snobby! They could actually be my favorite of all your epic infantry.
Love the ogre conversion... Gives me a very Kislev vibe hehe.
|
|
|
Post by Naitsabes on Jan 7, 2017 4:35:05 GMT
Thanks Master Wang. There is more infantry to come so maybe wait before you pick a favorite...although the Gryphon Guard are the most flamboyant. Let's hop in the time machine again and go back to 27Feb2016 for it was a good day in Volganof ------- 27Feb2016 Greetings everyone, time for an update on my slow march to Volganof. But, before we go there [..] why not more off-topic material. We’ve played a little bit of Mordheim around here and I will say, it is not a bad game. Longer term I would miss the grandeur of titanic battles but it was a nice change of pace. I played a Norse warband, lead by Olaf, the thoughtful. Here he is, contemplating his next move. And this is the rest of the gang. Their outing in Mordheim wasn’t wildly successful (seems to me the single most important thing is how lucky one is on the injury recovery rolls) but, they certainly will bring back to their hearths in Norsca tall tales of gore and glory. Right, now let’s get this project log back on track. Most on my effort lately was on building and painting the Raukov Household Knights. As you may remember Elector Count Valmir von Raukov (together with a ‘few’ Reiksguard) will turn up at the eleventh hour attempting to save his sons and his city. I imagined he should be escorted by his personal retinue and so I cooked up these guys. Obviously based on the old chaos knights with some Empire lances and heads. I quite like how they turned out. My favorite part is how the horse heads can be de-chaosified and then break up the typical monotony of these tired old plastic horse sculpts. If I could do it again, I would do the banner a little differently. It’s too small and if you look too closely at the way its set up you will realize that it is rather impractical. But, eventually there will be a BSB in the unit as well so then it might be nice if the unit standard is more modest. Also, I wanted to give you an update on the first hovel of Volganof. This is the other side, it’s complete now, awaiting paint. It’s been a while since I painted a building. Any pointers? That’s all for today. The official Volganof counter: 687/966
|
|
|
Post by Naitsabes on Jan 7, 2017 4:51:51 GMT
And, with this one we are starting to go full circle as it is the first mention of a certain 'Vassili' ---------------- 26Mar2016 Greetings, everyone. I am spending most of my painting time these days on a rather substantial unit of Greatswords. About halfway through at this point but on the side I have finished up the BSB to go with the Raukov Knights so that’s what is on the menu today. I present to you Marek von Raukov, Banner Bearer of Ostland. And a last one with the motto of House Raukov: Marek is from a cadet branch of House Raukov. While his appointment was originally an old favor his father called in from the Elector Count, Marek has proven himself a worthy Battle Standard Bearer. At Valmir’s side he has hunted down beastmen and chaos cultist all across Ostland and beyond. He took part in the punitive expedition to Norsca the year prior and distinguished himself there in the Battle of Cragmuire where he kept the banner flying despite a serious injury until victory was achieved. Marek had recovered his strength just in time to follow Valmir von Raukov south into the Empire and now he is back with the Household knights arriving just in time to tip the scales of Volganof’s fate. Here is the complete unit of knights with Valmir and Marek as they will ride to the defense of Volganof…one day. Now the last member of the Raukov family I need for this scenario is Vassily von Raukov. The younger son of Valmir is a capable administrator whose organizational efforts greatly increased Volganof’s defenses or a cowardly pencil pusher who doesn’t know the point from the hilt on his sword. This depends on who you ask and really, the two aren’t mutually exclusive. I am a bit stuck on the model to use for Vassily. It should be a rather portly fellow in fine clothing. GW used some guy that I don’t recognize (if you do please enlighten me, page 476 of the BRB). Ideally I would use the merchant: But, getting that model doesn’t agree with also sending my kids to college one day. I do have the Leonardo guy (well, not exactly, the picture is from a talented guy called 023, mine is currently soaking in simple green): I was thinking I could hide his bald head under a nice floppy hat, add a sheathed sword and greenstuff the cannon balls into a rock. But, it seems hard to convert that hand with the little tool and the beard will make him look old even if I don’t paint it grey. Anyone have a better suggestion for Vassily? Some kitbash I am not thinking of maybe? I just don’t know how I could pull off the portliness. That’s all for today. The official Volganof counter: 688/966 (surprise, one more done than last time)
|
|
|
Post by dannytee on Jan 8, 2017 17:07:52 GMT
I really like your Raukov Household Knights. All the conversion/sculpting work really makes them an awesome unit.
|
|