Making Terrain on a Budget: Rubble

Here is another terrain piece finished up. Rubble is a pretty popular terrain type but its often hard to represent on the table while being playable. With my removable visual elements I think I have a good balance of looking good but also not limiting where models can be placed. 

I added some bits to the base template that don't stick up too high which would make it harder to place models on them.

Some notable bits of rubble include Darius's crane which I replaced with an alternative and a Stormblade Captains shield which was my first attempt using the greenstuff moulds. It didn't come out so well the details got messed up a little and the whole thing slipped at the back making it unusable for use on a model.

My favourite of the removable pieces for this terrain is this wrecked Centurion heavy Warjack. I don't like the old metal Warjacks very much, especially when compared to the newer plastic/resin kits.

I had used some of the parts from this model in conversions already so it was already in my bits box partly unassembled. I drilled into the torso and the head to add a wire connecting the two making it look like the head was hanging off but still had some of its connective piping.

I built up the ground around the wreck with polyfiller covered in sand. Pushing in a couple of plastic pipes adds to the wrecks look.

I painted it up in the same colour scheme as my Centurions but dirtied it up.

This lumber pile is made using match sticks from large kitchen matches. It was quick and easy to make and paint.

This dry stone wall was originally from the Warcaster Stryker3's base. I didn't like how it looked and thought that it made the whole model a lot less stable so I built my own custom base for him. I used greenstuff to add stone details to the empty areas where the horses hooves would have attached.

What do you think of my rubble terrain? Do you often use it in your games?

If you don't but would like to you could always use a Colossals cardboard wreck marker that the mk2 colossals used until you make something. That is what I did until this was finished.

If you like my content and would like to support me please consider giving my Patreon a look. 

Blog update

I have some news for you, the readers of my blog.

My blog was recently accepted as an affiliate with The Outpost!

And...
I have also set up a Patreon account. (More about that later)

The Outpost, if you aren't familiar with it, is a gaming store and club in Sheffield.
I believe strongly in transparency so I wanted to let you know a little about it.

I have been blogging now for over five and a half years and have, multiple times, considered sponsorship or affiliating my blog with companies. I never went any further down those paths, as I felt I needed to fully endorse the product or service I worked with. I don't want to mislead any of you or advertise something I can't back 100%.

So, having agreed to affiliate myself with The Outpost, here are some of the reasons I endorse them to you guys and girls:

• Because I actually use their services, it is my 'go to' gaming and hobby web store. 
• I have found their customer service to be top level (for reference I have ordered from all of the main UK gaming web stores over the years that I have been in the hobby, and seen both excellent and poor customer service across that time from other companies. The Outpost is consistently great.)
• Their dispatch time is incredible, getting that important model sent out to me in time for me to paint it up ready for an upcoming tournament, for example.
• They also have been very accommodating to requests, for example when I ordered all the new Trencher releases last year their release dates where split between part way through Oct and the end of Nov. I was keen to get painting and using the models asap, so I emailed their customer services and asked if they could split the order in half and post them at their different release dates. Not only did they do that for me, but I didn't pay any postage at all! (The Outpost don't charge for postage on orders over £80)
• They offer great discounts, including the discount they offer to members of the UK Warmachine and Hordes Facebook group (which they sponsor) - it's the highest discount discount available in the UK.

So here is how it works...

On a basic level I endorse and advertise The Outpost and its web store, and in return I get a small commission based on any sales made using a link from my blog.

So if you place and order with them via one of the links on my Blog, Youtube or Facebook I get rewarded.

If you want to check out The Outpost via my affiliate link you can do that here

It's a great  way, if you want to support my content but don't want to sign up to my Patreon, to support me without it costing you anything other than the purchasing of products you were already going to get!

On that note, as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I have also created a Patreon account. I have had readers ask for a way to contribute and this seems like a good way to enable that while also offering something in return. Patrons can vote on article choices, add options to polls or have input on lists and themes I work on, as well as other rewards dependant on the size of contribution.

I will not be paygating any of my articles of course - this is not just a money making venture for me, and I believe that it wouldn't be fair to charge for access to what I am creating. Patrons may get early access to some things, but I appreciate not everybody can afford to give money in support and I wouldn't want to demand it.

If you head over to my Patreon page here. You can see further details and ask any questions you may have about the whole thing there.

I hope you can understand why I'm taking the step to make something from a hobby I have been paying for and working on for such a long time, and of course - I will be exceptionally grateful for any contributions you make for the blog you're reading and enjoying. If you can't manage to help me financially, don't forget to go through my links to The Outpost site if you're already heading that way anyway - and of course, comments, likes and shares go a long way to helping me develop this blog as always.

Marking Terrain on a Budget: Burning Earth

Continuing my quest to make every type of terrain for Warmachine and Hordes I have finished up my Burning Earth piece.

Like my other terrain I wanted the base to be representative of the terrain without impacting game play. This one wasn't very easy to do if I'm honest.I used some red flock and placed it next to the grass flock then dry brushed the whole thing with some black to show the burnt ashes.

The removable elements for this terrain I am much happier with. These blasted tree stumps from World War Gaming are just what I needed to show that the area is on fire, but also be able to move them to one side should they get in the way during a game.

You can find them here

I painted them to look like the fire was burning deep within the wood, as if they caught fire from being shelled with explosive ammunition or perhaps lightning? (From my stormsmiths maybe)

Below is the picture I used for reference while painting them. I wanted to get the charred ash look on the external parts while looking as if the fire still burns within.

I'm really happy with how the trees turned out but less happy with the base they are on. Sometimes though I think its alright for a project to not be 100% as I would like it and just finish it and move on. I could have spent a lot more time to try and get it exactly how I wanted, but with a baby and lifes other many things I have found its better to move on and work on other things.

What do you think of my Burning Earth terrain? What terrain from Warmachine and Hordes would you like to see me make next? Let me know in a comment below!

Reaper Bones Rats Painted

For a bit of a change I decided to paint some RPG critters, these are Rats from Reaper's Bones line of minis. I went for a nice quick paint job on these, I didn't want to dwell on them too long. As early Bones minis they are slightly lacking in detail which added to me not wanting to spend a long time on them.

Here they are with Professor Pendrake from the Department of Extraordinary Zoology for scale. 

I plan on using them as Skiggs for the RPG Iron Kingdoms, the red around their mouths and on their paws is meant to represent the blasting powder they love to eat. I think they make a very amusing early mob, as the powder they eat makes them have a chance to explode upon death!

What do you think of these rats?

I look forward to setting them on the party the next time I start up the RPG!

Caine0 Painted

Caine0 is done! Big thanks to David and Luke who helped me get this mini all the way from Lock & Load in the US over to the UK.

He painted up really quickly as I didn't have to pick any colours for him. I had Caine1-3 on my paint table for reference and copied the various colours used for them.

These are the Warjacks I will be testing him with initially. Minuteman is up first as I really like the idea of using it as a Spirit door target to yo-yo it back and forth up the board.

And as always with any character model I paint, here is Caine0 with the other versions on him and his character Warjack Ace.

So what do you think of my Caine0? Do you have any lists you are looking forward to using him in? Let me know in the comments below!

Making Terrain on a Budget: Acid Bath

I have been continuing making terrain for my home table, I really wanted to get some of the lesser used terrain types made so I can include them in my games. Like all my other terrain I want to make them look good but be as playable as possible. Removable decorative pieces are a great way to have the balance between terrain being visually appealing and playable.

Like all my other terrain pieces the base part is made using thin mdf, I used cling film (saran wrap for those overseas) to make the acid pools. These acid pools on the terrains base are not as good looking as the removable pieces but it does enough that players will always know what type of terrain that area is.

One of my gaming buddies gave me these resin terrain pieces and they seemed perfect for this project. I love how they look but if they were glued down they would make it very hard to play as models would have a very hard time balancing on them.

It was fun to paint the acid looking pools, I do want to give them a coat of gloss varnish but currently I don't own any. I will likely go back and do it one day if I get some.

What do you think of my Acid Bath terrain? Do you use this terrain type in your games? If you do please share with me what your terrain looks like I would love to see it.

I did a review for the resin acid pool pieces you can find it here

You can find them for sale here should you want them

(I you can, let them know you found them here it could help me out who knows??)

Jack Marshal Explained

This article was picked by Greylord Dave as his prize for my 5 years of blogging celebration.

Jack Marshals are available to most Warmachine factions and two Hordes factions, they are a different way to add a Warjack to a list without it using your Warcasters rescources.

The choice to put a Warjack with a Jack Marshal is made during list creation, so you can't swap a Warjack from your Warcaster onto a Jack Marshal before a game starts. You also can't spend a Warcasters Warjack points on a Jack Marshalled Warjack.

Jack Marshal Benefits 

During the Warjack's activation it can gain one of the following benefits if it activates in its controllers command range. If its controller is knocked down or stationary, or the Warjacks cortex is crippled then it can't gain any of these benefits.

Crush

The Warjack can make an additional melee attack during its activation and gains +2 to all its melee damage rolls this activation

Hurry

The Warjack can run, charge, or make a power attack without spending focus during its activation. It also gains +2 to charge and slam attack rolls during its activation.

Strike True

The Warjack gains +2 to all its attack rolls this activation.

Take Aim

If the Warjack forfeits its movement to aim this turn it additionally gains +2 to all its ranged attack damage rolls.

Shake
The Warjack can shake the following effects: Knockdown, Stationary, Shadowbind and Blind. This will remove all these effects, you don't need to just pick one effect.

Drives

Many Jack Marshals have a special rule called a Drive, this is an extra bonus that they grant to a warjack that they control.

These can vary a lot and they often influence what type of Warjack you would give to the Jack Marshal.

For example the Cygnar Gunmage CA gives a Warjack it controls the Drive: Rune Shot, which allows it to use the Gunmage's shot types and makes its ranged attacks magical. This makes it a given that you would put a Warjack with a decent ranged weapon for the Jack Marshal to control.

The death of its controller...

Should the Jack Marshal be destroyed or removed from play the Warjack becomes autonomous. Which means it can still activate normally but is unable to gain any of the benefits listed above.

A friendly faction Warcaster, Journeyman warcaster or another Jack Marshal can take control of an autonomous Warjack by moving into base to base contact and spending a focus (for Warcasters and Journeyman Warcasters) or forfeiting their combat action (for Jack Marshals) the Warjack must forfeit its combat action the turn it is reactivated.

It is worth checking what other models in your army have the Jack Marshal special rule so that you can bring the Warjack under their control should its original controller die.

If a Jack Marshal is a member of a unit only the model with the Jack Marshal special rule actually controls the Warjack. This means you measure from that model for the Jack marshal benefits, and if the model with the Jack Marshal rule dies the jack has no controller. (Unlike in mk2 which made the unit take control of the Warjack. I have seen a few people still play it this way unaware that it has changed)

Spells

Jack Marshalled Warjacks can still benefit from a lot of spells, but spells that mention "battlegroup" will not work for them. A battlegroup is the term given to a Warcaster or Journeyman Warcaster's and their Warjacks

Focus

The most common question I see asked about them in forums and Facebook group is "do their Warjacks gain power up Focus?"

The answer to that is no, as they are not part of a battlegroup they don't gain power up Focus.

Because they don't gain any Focus during the Control phase they can not shake effects like Knockdown, Stationary, Blind and Shadow bind. This makes them more vulnerable to being taken out of use for a turn or two if the other players army has easy access to these effects.

A Jack Marshalled Warjack can still gain Focus from alternative ways such as the Empower special action some models have, or from Accumulator special rule.

Ranking officer

Ranking officers attach to Mercenary units to make them count as the faction of the army they are being used with. Currently at the time I'm writing this there is only one Mercenary unit which has the Jack Marshal rule which is Captain Sam MacHorne & The Devil Dogs. They can be taken in Cygnar and Protectorate of Menoth.

The question which often gets asked about them is can they still bring a Mercenary Warjack or can they bring a Warjack from their adopted factions. They can bring a Mercenary Warjack and can control it, even though technically they count as being from different factions while the Ranking Officer is attached.

This means that Sam MacHorne can't benefit from her Iron Sentinel while base to base with her own marshalled Warjack, but will gain the benefit from her adopted factions Warjacks.

If the Ranking Officer dies during the game she reverts back to being a Mercenary model and would be able to gain the Iron Sentinel benefit from her own Mercenary Warjack.

In summary Jack Marshals are an alternative way to run a Warjack in your lists, with their own pros and cons. I personally recommend writing out a "cheat sheet" of the 4 different Jack Marshal benefits to remind you during your games when using them, until you are familiar with them all.

 I hope you found this article helpful, if you did please let me know. If there was anything you thought I missed I'm sure you are already typing it! I appreciate all feedback as it all goes towards improving future articles!

If you want to support my content consider taking a look at my Patreon which you can find here. I don't put any content behind a paywall but I do offer rewards to people who support me in ways like getting to vote on what content I work on in the future or outright just picking the next subject of an article.

See you all next time!

Blackhide Wrastler for Widowers Wood Painted

The Blackhide Wrastler for the Widowers Wood board game has a bunch of extra details that make it look really awesome in my opinion.  

Again with the rope... minions love rope for some reason!?!? I don't see what purpose all the rope on its hands serves but its there...

The net on its back holds a bunch of bones, bits of some person and a small amount of crab. Like a budget lunch box

The shell on his shoulder is the same as one half of an Ironback Spitters, I painted it in the same style as my Ironback spitter I hope I managed to match them well enough. You can see my Ironback spitter here and see how I did matching the shell

His necklace isn't as fancy as the Blind Walkers...

Better close up of the food he brings with him. I like the leg of pork especially, I imagine it was from a Farrow

His mask is made from the skin of defeated foes, you can see arms hanging down the front edges and patches with eye and mouth holes. Nice gristly details

What do you think of my Wrastler? This model is huge! Much bigger than I imagined it would be before I got it.