Hobby Down Under

 It's time for a confession: my Tyranid swarm had been lurking in the shadows of the hobby desk for too long. Earlier this year my goal of completing my Tyranid army in 2024 was looking dicey. The problem was entirely of my own creation - the colour scheme. I simply wasn't happy with my blue lobster scheme (after painting a squad of 10 Termagants). Finally inspiration struck, and a brand new colour scheme was unleashed upon the galaxy. I've now repainted my army, and while I'm still not quite 100% happy, I'm certainly happy enough to have committed to painting the entire swarm. So, here is how I paint v2 of my Tyranid army... Undercoat white (I'd normally use a GW contrast undercoat, but I'm trying to save money so went for a cheaper white brand, which has worked well). Paint the fleshy dark blue bits with Leviadon Blue. Dry brush that up with a mix of Kantor Blue and Ivory. Clean up any bits of the rest of the model that needs it with a good white paint. Pa...

 With the New Year freshly dawned, it's time to assess the battlefield of my hobby projects. This year, the focus is on progress and exploration, with some key objectives in mind: 1. Tyranid Completion: My current Tyranid army sits in a state of promising limbo, partially assembled and primed for greatness. 2024 is the year to finish what I've started, bringing brush to chitin and transforming plastic potential into painted, tabletop-ready glory. 2. Hobby Space Revamp: My current hobby area resembles a dimly lit Lictor ambush, ripe for tripping over stray tentacles. This year, I'm carving out a dedicated and organized lair. Proper lighting, efficient storage, and a potential painting station – watch this space for progress! 3. Imperial Fists Evaluation: Time for some strategic redeployment. My once-beloved Imperial Fists find themselves overshadowed by my Tyranids, Necrons, Emperor's Children and Tau. I'm exploring options, and if any Dorn loyalists out th...

 The release of the new Tyranid models in the Leviathan boxed set for Warhammer 40k's 10th edition inspired me to fulfill a long-held dream: creating a Tyranid army. But it was a video from Midwinter Minis that guided me to the blue lobster theme, giving birth to Hive Fleet Carapax. The unique cerulean hue of blue lobsters, coupled with a captivating design by Midwinter Minis, became the foundation for my hive fleet. I adapted the original scheme, making a few minor changes and I figured it would be worth documenting the process, both for my own benefit (I hate it when you come back to a project after a break and can't figure out exactly which colours you used) and to spell things out a bit easier. With the Tyranid models from the Leviathan boxed set, I selected and modified them to fit the lobster-like theme. The rich palette inspired by blue lobsters presented an exciting challenge, as I sought to capture the essence of Hive Fleet Carapax. Now, I'm thrilled to sha...

 The team at Games Workshop have announced the 10th edition of Warhammer 40k is coming out soon. This edition will bring a lot of changes to the game, including new rules, new models, and new starter sets. But what about the table size? How big do you need your gaming surface to be to play Warhammer 40k 10th edition? I've updated my gaming size table to include the stats for the newly announced sizes for Warhammer 40k 10th edition. It includes conversions between inches, feet and centimetres, so you can see what size table you need for a game in imperial or metric measurements. I've you've got any gaming table measurements you'd like included on the table, please send them through.

 If you're a fan of Necromunda and the House Cawdor gang, you're in for a treat! In this post, I'll be sharing my personal approach to painting these gritty miniatures. The House Cawdor gang is known for their grimy, industrial aesthetic and their devotion to the Cult of the Redemption. I've had a lot of fun painting these miniatures, and I hope this post will give you some inspiration for your own Necromunda gang. Painting Steps: Prime with a black paint. I use Rust-Oleum Flat Black primer spray, it's not quite as good as Chaos Black from Citadel, but it's significantly cheaper. Zenithal spray the model with Citadel Grey Seer . Use the following Citadel contrast paints for the parts indicated... Boots: Basilicanum Grey Hoods, cawls: Flesh Tearers Red Rags on arms and legs: Ratling Grime (this is one of the new range of contrast paints, and I love it!) Flesh: Guilliman Flesh slightly diluted with Contrast Medium . Guns: Black Templar ....

 I've recently been working with some beautiful 3D printed resin models supplied by a friend. While 3D printing allows for lots of amazing new creations, it tends to limit you to using resin, which is no where near as easy to work with as plastic models. In my mind the three big downsides of working with resin models are... You have to use super glue, you can't use plastic cement. The resin is mostly quite brittle and can snap. You need to give the parts a wash to remove all the nasties from the surface of the model to ensure your primer will sick. The first point is really my main sticking point. Literally. When working with resin models my hands often get covered in super glue and more than once I've accidentally stuck a part to either myself or the surface I'm working on. However, this time I faced a bigger problem. The resin backpack I was trying to attach to the model somehow got displaced, and ended up poking out at a 45 degree angle. How was I go...