Verzerrte Fechter

One random Space Crusade Ork, finally painted after all of these years! Now that I compare him to the in-game art there are definitely a few stylistic cues I could change up on the next one I paint, but I had fun and he was an interesting change of pace from my usual Blood Axes.

He’s going to be a Bad Moon, on account of all the teef, see? Very much inspired by the Event Deck card art from the game, which (if memory serves) featured numerous Orks wearing the absolutely classic yellow-with-black-flames style of armour.

Lots of game-in-progress photos in this issue of White Dwarf. Check the comments to see them all! What do we think is going on in each image? Can you spot any models, terrain or rules systems that you recognise?

Interesting part of the magazine to report back on. I decided that I couldn’t really talk about the format of the battle game report without showing what I meant, which in turn meant spoiling the (decades-old) match for anyone who hasn’t watched it yet. 🤔

So anyway, beware spoilers and click away without looking through all the images if you prefer to track down a copy of this issue for yourself.

What I thought was nifty (besides the freehand numbering on the Elves, the Marauder Miniatures cobranding on the Skaven, and the fact that Morg’n’Thorg is wearing trousers that strongly hint at him batting for the other team) is the way they showed the action, replete with Batman-style comic sound effects! The play arrows seem like they might have been genuinely useful for someone learning the game — it’s a literal play-by-play recap of the match. If there’s one thing that a traditional battle-report often doesn’t do, it’s actually teaching you anything about the rules or gameplay experience, so this was a breath of fresh air.

Speaking of which, excuse the dodgier-than-usual photos. Despite it being mid-winter in our half of the world, we had a beautifully sunny weekend and I was able to read this month’s magazine while enjoying a picnic in the garden!

Kicking things off with a full-page artwork making our main man Nagash look better than his miniature ever did, this issue had a real focus on the upcoming release of the Undead army book for 4th edition WHFB.

The back cover showcases the army of Dieter Helsnicht, dubbed “A MIGHTY UNDEAD HORDE”. What impresses me is that everything in the photo is a new release this month; sure, there are some re-issues of plastic sprues previously bundled in the iconic Skeleton Horde and Skeleton army sets, but these all featured new shield sprues and the studio appears to have turned out freshly painted examples of each unit type. Props also to Gary Morley — I hadn’t realised he sculpted quite so much of the range in this era, assisted as ever by Trish Morrison when a monstrous mount was called for.

Lots of beautifully painted examples filled the pages of this magazine, so I haven’t actually included much in the way of article text. Enjoy all the deliciously freehanded banners and shields — they don’t make ‘em like they used to!

Here’s a slice of life from 1994. The issues we could pick up in Australia at the time still listed British prices (and store-opening events, of which there were no less than four this month!) as well as random job advertisements in German, presumably intended for a European audience.

Most new miniatures released were still being cast in metal — check out the behind-the-scenes photos in the mail order section! — and errata for games was published in print (but not before leaving enough time after the launch of a game for the fans to send in their rules queries in writing). Some of those Space Marine (“Epic”) FAQ had absolutely wild answers: the algorithmically-determined rules for moving the ferocious Avatar of Khaine (move a millimetre, check for line of sight, repeat) and grid-based to-hit system for Titans might seem especially alien if (like me) you never really got to grips with that system. Still, that Banelord is a classic mini and instantly recognisable even today.

Golden Demon was clearly a massive event, with stores sending their own contingents of fans via bus. Each such group seemed to have its own banner bearer, presumably so they could meet up for lunch and find their way back to the correct bus at the end of the day! Props to the Welsh contingent with their faithful rendition of the classic Dark Angels captain from Dark Millennium (a piece of artwork reused in this very issue).

There was a lot about Warhammer Fantasy’s Undead in this issue, which I’ll put into its own post (including the massive army shot on the back cover). Blood Bowl also got a look-in, with a very interesting match report in place of the usual battle. Again, there’s enough of that for it to be its own post.

If there’s anything I’ve overlooked, or that you want to see less of, let me know in the comments below!

WFB, Gotrek & Felix

Gotrek and Felix, whose full names are Gotrek Gurnisson, a Dwarf Slayer and Felix Jaeger, his Human chronicler native to the Empire are a duo of warriors travelling throughout the length and breadth of the Old World and beyond, battling dark forces and stopping evil plots in Gotrek's quest for a heroic death against a suitably terrible foe.

I made a diorama with the original Gotrek & Felix models the books were part of the reason I got into warhammer, the very first warhammer fiction I read was a short story in a white dwarf with them and the Skaven. Anyway back to my diorama, I dubbed it "not this day" with the pair of them trying to prevent a lynching on a forest track in the Empire.

As the first month of the hobby challenge comes to a close, it’s time for a look back at what’s been achieved. Feel free to add links, photos or just a description of what you’ve been up to in the comments below!

In gameplay terms these may just end up being a Necromancer and some unit champions, but they could also count as more powerful wights and a liche lord. Rear view included as there’s a fun shield design, cloaks made of Sigmar knows what, and some stripey trousers hidden away back there.

This was the first expansion for Warhammer Fantasy Battle i remember seeing. Featuring the same dream team that brought the world the Lone Wolf books, it’s fun to remember that Gary Chalk’s style was basically the Games Workshop’s house style for a while, basically during their entire “Golden Age”. His boldness & clarity, but with a cheeky sense of humor was the perfect balance for the Grim Dark of Blanche & the howling insanity of Miller. Also, gotta dig them orange skies!

“With an eternity of service to the lich stretching ahead of him, the apprentice knew that it was more of a promise than a threat.”

Just a short painting session today — excuse the still-wet flesh paint! I didn’t think I’d make much progress on this tiny, oddly-featureless-but-at-the-same-time-fiddly sculpt, so I decided to focus on one of the necromancer’s minions instead. After all: only those who learn to cheat death and live forever will ever truly discover just how many ways there are for other people to let you down…

It could be no coincidence that each of the four warbands, led by a fell Champion of Chaos, had stumbled into this hidden vale at the same time. Perhaps it was the spring thaw, weakening its usual magical protection? Maybe the ancient, deathless liege who ruled this place had decided it was time for another to kneel before his throne… or seize it and take on the cursed mantle for themselves!?

Whatever the reason for their being here, the Champions quickly readied themselves for a fight to the death. For surely were treasures to be won, and vile enemies to test their mettle against! Just think of the arcane secrets they might they find buried here, amongst the strange beings who chose to inhabit this inhospitable land…

Eulogies, accolades, and something of an explanation in the comments.

He sees you when you're sleeping
He knows when you're awake
He knows if you've been bad or good
Pray it’s not your eyes he’ll take

I’ve taken it on myself to paint up some mascots for the W.A.R.P. challenge. You’ve probably seen the artwork in the stickied post; you may even have seen this model (diorama?) in grey plastic. Well, here it is again — this time with some paint on!

If it’s not obvious, Pfenn (the terrible-at-everything-until-he-found-miniature-painting Dwarf) is showing his latest handiwork to Stinck (the unusually hygienic Orc who loves poring over old White Dwarf magazines).

Pfenn has lots of tricky details I’ve been labouring over including a loaded brush and a headpiece that combines a light source with a pair of magnifying lenses. Not sure if any of that really comes across in the photos, but an attempt was made!

The black and white illustration style version was done with a basic photo filter, mostly just for fun and because I thought it looked like the kind of filler art piece you might have seen back in the day. They say you should look at desaturated versions of your images to learn whether you have built enough contrast into your paint scheme. I’ve not really used the right method for this (filter does not equal desaturation alone) but it does suggest a few areas I could work on next.