From ThomasG: Ironjawz with Fancy Masks - 30pts

Finally the string of birthdays and school holidays is at an end! I can finally get back to some hobby time for me, and I've started with a set of models I received for my birthday. These guys are Orruk Weirdbrute Wrekkaz, and continue in the theme of very large models, even within the range. I've stuck to my army theme of dark reddish skin tones and beaten metal surfaces, however these guys got an orange detail on the trousers, for no other reason than I had a few new orange paints to test out.

     

     The three figures are all armed with wrecking ball/morning star style weapons, looking truly vicious, I was inspired to give them that extra detail, and added a blood effect to the heads of each weapon, as well as the hands and some of the chains. 

     I added a spot colour of blue/grey to add some contrast to all the warm tones across the models, and feel it definitely helped. It is hard as these models have very few materials to work with, and sticking to a limited palette can make them seem lifeless. But the punch of cold blue, and a muted brown base with added slime appears to go a long way. 

     Although it was hard to add much in the way of texture, I tried some simple rust effects to the weapon chains so they were still seperate from the armour panels. The blood effect (seen more clearly below) is something I usually avoid, mostly as it can feel a bit tacky, but being a bit more chaotic with the application gave that savage look I wanted. 

   Yuk!

     And here we are, at the end of a brief run through these guys. Brutal, savage and bringing my growing army up to 6 models. There's 15 more infantry to come, and then one ginormous character and boar to add to his force and it will be done for now. 

     I had a chat with Martijn as to how to score these guys as they're almost twice the size of a 28mm figure, and we agreed to treat them as the equivalent of a cavalry sized figure, to which he very kindly allowed me to score them at 10pts each. 

Points:

3 x "Oversized 28mm" = 30pts

Total = 30pts

     Hopefully I'll be able to get more work done soon as the fundamental painting of these guys is incredibly easy, but in that lies the trouble of not wanting to fight the grind. But, hey, that's why this is a challenge! 

Tom

Wow, Tom, what fantastic figures and what absolutely fabulous brushwork! You have really brought these Ironjawz to life with your painting, and the use of colours, shades and highlights and the attention to detail is astounding. I think your experiment with the orange went very well, and the flesh and the metals are very convincing. An excellent job on these brutes and 30 well-deserved points for you!

From ThomasG: Zoggrok Anvilsmasha [Fantasy](25 points)

Time to ring in the bells on my second leader to this fledgling army for the fantasy game, Age of Sigmar, this one being a hero character, usually going by the name of Zoggrok Anvilsmasha. He uses the collective power of the Orruks around him to imbue magic strength to the weapons of his "ardboyz".

Again, I chose to use the Uruk Hai as influence for both the skin and main armour panels, however as this chap is a magical blacksmith, I once more dipped in to the world of Asterix the Gaul for inspiration.

In Asterix, his village has a blacksmith by the name of Fulliautomatix. He has bright red trousers and a brown leather apron, so naturally they helped bring a bit of colour to this dark palette. 

I found myself really pushing my use of textures on the apron to give the impression of worn leather, and although I feel I could do more, at this point in the learning process I feel proud of what I achieved. This model is particularly large and really sets an imposing presence on the tabletop, soon to be joined by many more. 

A short but sweet week from me this time, as I have spent most of my week preparing and attending my final assessment to become a qualified archery coach, which I'm very proud to say I passed with flying colours! Next week I will have a special squiggly beast and hopefully some green skinned orks from the far future for you all. 

Points

1x28mm = 5pts (+5)

Fantasy Library Entry = 20pts

Total = 25pts 30

Thank you for reading and please hit me up with any comments or critiques on this fine fellow; life is one great big opportunity to learn, and I'm all ears. 

Tom.

Tom, this figure is excellent! I do have a very weak spot for Asterix, so the reference to Fulliautomatix sits very well with me indeed, but even aside from that nod, you have done an absolutely splendid job on him. That apron looks utterly fantastic and your pride is more than justified.

Now you say this a large figure, although you do not say how large, but I somehow feel that 5 points for this magnificent piece would be unnecessarily thrifty. I will score it at 10 points; either consider it equivalent to a 28mm cavalry figure or as 5 well-deserved bonus points. 30 points total.

To make us even happier, next time a  map would be awesome!