Lord of Blights

Crazy times we live in and it's hard to keep high spirits when there are even more depressing news daily than usual and when shelves at your local store look like that...

I highly recommend watching this TED talk as it's the most comprehensive take on the whole situation I've seen so far:

 Painting is one of the ways to keep your mind focused on more pleasant things. I've recently finished my first WFB miniature in a long time - Lord of Blights. I painted it following Darren Latham's excellent youtube tutorials. Speaking o which, make sure to check it out as all the videos will be pulled down in May.

I've also started working on Euripides' set for my own Malifaux collection. So far only a start with some skin tone experimentation 

Instagram

You may have noticed that my posts on the blog are less frequent.  Mostly it's a simple matter of life getting in the way but I've also been experimenting with micro blogging. To that end I set up an Instagram account and try to put various pictures there. If you want to follow me there, my username is what.the.faux  https://www.instagram.com/what.the.faux/

The Hype Train is here

Malifaux video battle report

Check out this video battle report prepared by WarGamerGirl. It's not only very well done but also informative (especially for those who are new to the game).

In other Wyrd- related news, a May release schedule has been released:

Available in store May 15th

• WYR20520 Herald of Obliteration: Tara Crew - $45
• WYR20221 Ashigaru (3 Pack) - $21
• WYR20420 Nekima - $25
• WYR20603 Whiskey Golem - $35
• WYR20617 Merris Lacroix - $16
• WYR20709 Katanaka Sniper (2 Pack) - $18

Available in store May 29th

• WYR20207 Take Back the Night: Molly Crew - $45
• WYR20615 Closing Time: Brewmaster Crew - $45
• WYR20523 Void Wretches (3 Pack) - $21

Best Painted Crew award

Picked up this one from the post office after work today. It's an award for best painted crew I won during this year's Malifaux tournament run by UMS Agram in Croatia. Technically, I wasn't there but a buddy of mine was playing using a Dreamer crew I painted a while ago and sold to him. He was kind enough (cheers Marko!) to put it up for Best Painted Crew award (players' choice).

The plaque is absolutely amazing, I love the professional look. At the moment it's proudly standing on my desk but I may end up hanging it on the wall in the future.

Once again, many thanks to UMS Agram, and to Marko, its president,  in particular. This means a lot to me. You guys are awesome!

Black Queen 2014

Black Queen is an international miniature painting competition organized by a Croatian gaming club called UMS "Agram". It takes place every year in July and it always accompanies other big hobby tournaments. I've followed the event for the past two years and each time I admired amazing works of artists taking part. I have taken part in a few online painting competitions but never in a "real" one.
I had originally planned to take part in the Malifaux tournament but various factors made me postpone it (again!) until the next year. Fortunately for me, the club's president (and a friend of mine), Marko Paunovic, suggested that I send the miniatures I want to enter by post. I did that, choosing some of my best Malifaux minis, sent them and... kept my fingers crossed.
The miniatures I sent weren't new work but the competition rules stated that the only restriction making it impossible to enter is if they'd been in another Agram painting competition before.

My results were much better than I had expected.
1st in Single miniature (Abuela Ortega)
2nd in Large/Mounted miniature (Hooded Rider)
1st in Unit/Squad (McCabe)
2nd in Masterclass (mounted McCabe)

I often write that "pics don't really do minis justice/are a bit off/are the result of bad weather/poor lighting, etc.). I guess I can now say that I haven't been just making excuses now that my work was appreciated in an actual painting contest. Online competitions are fine as I have enjoyed taking part in them and improved my skills but the possibility to look at the finished model in person gives the judges much more objectivity. I couldn't be happier with my results, especially that my works were put there against entries prepared by some of my favorite painters.
My only regret is that I couldn't be there. Having seen a couple of pictures and read some comments, I am sure it was a great event. I will do my best to come to Croatia next year!
Many thanks to the organizers, and congrats to all the winners and all the prize-winners along with the rest of participants.



p.s. Did I mention the rewards? Today I received a parcel that contained the minis I'd sent along with other goodies. Vouchers that I can use in online stores, a fantastic Winsor & Newton brush, Hangar 18 photo background, Infamy Miniatures bust, and... diplomas and medals! All the rewards are great but having something nice to put up on your wall is a real treat. The medals are large, very nicely designed, and pretty heavy. What's more, there's even a small pic with a printed photo of the entry on the reverse! They do feel special.

Wild Hunt

The Leftovers

Looks like HBO is going to create yet another fantastic TV series. Trailer of "The Leftovers" looks very interesting.

Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls

The long awaited expansion to Diablo 3 has finally been released. While the plot seems a bit sloppy (unsuccessfully hiding the black stone... again), the opening cinematics is impressive and the gameplay looks neat too.

Crusader is the new Paladin:

The environment looks a bit darker than in the original game, which is nice. I haven't played D3 for a long time but might just came back to it when RoS is released., though as with any Blizzard game, that will take some time...

What are you doing?

Killing monsters...

Brawl

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Figure Painter Magazine

Just a quick note with solid recommendation. "Figure Painter Magazine" is a new hobby magazine that has recently been released by a group of dedicated hobbyists. The layout is very professionally done and the contents present some fantastic works. It gets double thumbs up from me. You can get it for a price of £1.00 here.
In the first issue you'll read about:
- interview with the Slayer Sword winner who sold his Sword, Karol Rudyk
 - start of a series of articles on building the Malifaux board (one of the reasons I'm going to continue buying it),
- reviews from Ax Faction and Clockwork Paladin and much more

Cyberpunk 2077

If you haven seen it already, check it out, a teaser of a game that the creators of Witcher and Witcher 2 are working on:

I strongly suggest watching it in HD

28mm "Super J" Superhero FARA Charity Miniature

This is just a proof that this hobby can bring more than just a way od passing your free time. Sometimes it gives you a chance to actually do something good while having fun. Check out the description of this charity auction and... go ahead and order the mini! It's only $10 and the shipping's free.

This gaming mini was made in the image of our son Jason and his best pal, Snakie. Jason was born with a rare genetic disease called Friedreich's Ataxia. This is a degenerative disease that attacks many areas of the body, including the brain, spinal cord and heart. There is currently no treatment for Friedreich's Ataxia and it is a life-shortening illness, so we're trying to raise money for the Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance (FARA). This organization is our only hope for a cure.

Jason has a quickly advancing case and is losing his ability to walk, see and speak clearly. He also suffers from heart disease and skeletal problems. Since there is currently no treatment for Friedreich's Ataxia, raising money for FARA is really our only recourse. Jason is a happy boy enjoying a great childhood and we want him in our lives as long as possible! As many of you know that I use to run What The?! Miniatures and it was with my son's diagnosis that led me to sell it off so that I could better make him more comfortable. Since he loves minis we though his own mini would be awesome! We are selling Super J minis on eBay, where all proceeds will be automatically donated to FARA through MissionFish.

Aaron Brown of Black Crab Sculpting Studio was kind enough to donate his time and skills to sculpt it and Forrest Harris of Knuckleduster Miniatures generously cast Super J for us, free of charge. We are very grateful for their help!

The Super J mini comes unpainted and is in the 28mm range (actually 18mm in height since his just a little kid after all) on a round 20mm slot base. The one pictured here was painted by Simon of Stone Cold Lead.

For $10, with free shipping, you can get a great miniature for a great cause!

The Auctionhttp://www.ebay.com/itm/28mm-Super-J-Superhero-FARA-Charity-Miniature-/221129969232?pt=Games_US&hash=item337c5f8e50

Thank you,
The Cottrells

PS
Feel free to use the pics to plug the mini on your own blogs or other forums that you might think would be interested. Every bit of exposure will help my little boy.

The guys who made it all possible!
The Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance: http://www.curefa.org/Black Crab Sculpting Studio: http://www.blackcrabsculpting.com/
Knuckleduster Miniatures: http://www.knuckleduster.com/
Stone Cold Lead: http://stonecoldlead.webs.com/

The real Super Jason

Needless to say, I've already ordered mine and look forward to receiving it.

The Backwater Gospel

My younger brother has sent me a link to this great animation. All Malifaux fans should like it, itt has a very peculiar atmosphere ;)

Pick of the Week

I came across this video from PP and thought I'd share it here.

It's an excellent introduction to the hobby. Even though it focuses on P3 paints and washes, the techniques are universal and can be used with any other hobby products.

I've been also working on some Gondor miniatures and here's a quick WIP pic. I have more free time now so they should be finished by the end of the week.

New Citadel paint range review

A very good review of the new range. It certainly saved me some cash as I had originally planned to buy some of the dry and texture paints just to check them out.

Pick of the Week

Difficult times call for creativity. Now that a number of hobbyists are struggling with preparing finecast miniatures for painting, a brilliant young man from Sweden offers words of wisdom and presents a way to deal with this problem. Without further ado, enjoy (and thanks to Haldir for the link).

Blast from the Past

Time for another one. This time I'll show some pics of LotR dwarves that I painted a while ago.







Once again, if you want to contact the author of these photographs, go here.