Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Fantasy Adventures => Topic started by: oldskoolrebel on 07 December 2009, 10:17:38 PM
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Ok so I've finally committed to a new project.
Over the last six months we've been playing a heavily modified version of Ashes of Middenheim one of the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay Adventures that is part of the Paths of the Damned Campaign. Now we're nearing the conclusion of AoM I'm wanting to create a BBEG battle that my players will remember.
The BBEG battle takes place in the Temple of Ulric (Don't worry if you're reading this Colin I won't be giving too much way- I think you've guessed you're going to have a show down in the Temple). I'd considered a couple of options for mapping out the temple; Dundjinni or world works games terrain.
I've used Dundjinni for a few of the choice encounters in the adventure so far, I think this has worked quite well add the extra element to the game. But I was looking for something extra special...
My next port of call was WWG, I already own a few of the sets and I really like their stuff. It seemed to fit all the boxes, but I realized that I'd ran low on ink and considered follow C. Vyper and sending the stuff to a professional printer but alas the story does not end here...
On Saturday I'd met up with a few friends during the day and had a couple of pints. Upon returning home some in the early evening I search around on evilbay for a bit, it was then it happened. I discovered, Hirst Arts. Gawd they looked so good, but I'd read just how much of a pain in the arse the moulding was from several posters and decided against it. Or so I though. Dungeon Castings... the name that caused me to sell my soul. Dungeon Castings, a company who sell sets of Hirst Arts items already cast. All you need to do is glue and paint them. The sets seemed fairly cheap for what I needed (around £3-£5 set, and I only needed enough for a room or two) And even better I wouldn't have to mess around with the moulding process :D. So on Sunday I ordered a few sets.
I also knew I'd need to source figures. So I once again turned to evilbay to search for suitable price figures and ended up buying 1 old chaos warrior and 4 Mordheim Chaos Cultists. Wonderful. (Forget you seen that Colin!) But I'm still looking for a suitable demon model (Really forget you've seen this Colin!) Basically I'm trying to find the right demon, in the story the evil cultists are planing on releasing a demon of Khorne by destroying an ancient evil artifact that contains the trapped demon... oh also the BBEG is a Priest of Ulric So basically I'm not wanting to use something as big as a bloodthirster, nor am I wanting to use a Bloodletter. I'm wanting something different, utterly infernal but different... does anyone have any suggestions of a model that won't break the bank or show up my Sh1tty painting skills?
Also I'll start posting pictures of the models/terrain as and when I receive/build it.
Cheers
Andy
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Have you looked at Heresy Miniatures demons?
http://www.heresyminiatures.com/demons_main.htm
A variety of sizes and reasonably priced.
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Wow They're nice, really nice. Although something Diablo-esque about them?
I like this guy, although I'd rather use the sword version.
(http://www.heresyminiatures.com/images/hv001_3.jpg)
Saying that I also like this guy, although I've got another idea for when to use him in the Campaign (If we ever get to that stage) lol
(http://www.heresyminiatures.com/images/hm022_metal_medium.jpg)
Cheers Dewback... also sorry to hear about the Council tax undercharge!
Anyone got any other suggestions? Or hints/advice about using Hirst Arts stuff?
Cheers
Andy
EDIT: Looked at all the heresy stuff, it looks really nice but what size is it? It looks quite big...
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Which Heresy figs did you want the size of? I don't know precisely but I have a rough idea based on bases etc having seen them all in the flesh.
Anything in particular you wanted to know about Hirst Arts? The labyrinth is made from them.
also sorry to hear about the Council tax undercharge!
Thanks, it's a bit of a long shot sale but my wife has banned hobby stuff etc until it's paid. :'(
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Hey I was just looking for a rough idea, are they generally around 28mm or bigger?
No doubt when the Hirst Arts stuff arrives I'll be bombarding people with questions... although I've got the feeling that it's like a huge lego kit :D
Thanks, it's a bit of a long shot sale but my wife has banned hobby stuff etc until it's paid. :'(
Nooo...... Ach I suppose she needs to try and keep you in the real world! I suppose it is a thankless job.
Cheers
Andy
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No doubt when the Hirst Arts stuff arrives I'll be bombarding people with questions... although I've got the feeling that it's like a huge lego kit :D
Pretty much :) The Hirst Arts site itself has some superb tutorials on building dungeons etc from the bricks.
To get an idea, the Succubi and blights are aprox the same size as GW's demons. The guy with the scythe that you showed stands taller than a man but not massively so, he is rather bulky though which adds to the impression of him being big. The winged guy if stood up would be around 3.5" high I think, that's a 50mm base he's above I think. I own that figure but it's packed away currently along with the angel figure that fits into a fighting pose above it. The Netherlord figure dwarfs a Bloodthirster.
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Hey I was just looking for a rough idea, are they generally around 28mm or bigger?
Compatible with many popular 28mm games. They're hooved guys from hell, which often means a bit larger than soft human types. Try clicking the product pics and scrolling down. Often there's a scale pic and painted examples below.
The minor fallen one is ~32mm to eyes, 44 to the tips of horns.
Heresy is nice, but you can also try browsing West Wind's Lucifer Wars (http://www.westwindproductions.co.uk/catalog/index.php?cPath=105). There are several interesting demon types, possibly something to your liking as well.
(http://dolmot.net/challenge/doomchallenge1.jpg)
Then there's Hell Dorado (http://www.helldorado.fr/factions/les-demons/index.php), maybe Malifaux (http://www.artemisblacks.com/wyrd.shtml) too with hell-inspired weirdness. Keep browsing...
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Cheers Dewback, that good to know.
Dolmont; I really like the westwind stuff, not so sure of the Malifaux stuff. But boy, the Helldorodo stuff is beautiful :-* Stunning I could never do it justice. Thanks again.
I'm going to have a wee look through the Westwind and Heresy stuff and decide which ones to choose.
Cheers
Andy
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Well my first lot of Hirst Arts stuff arrived this morning, and it turns out it was the bargain bag of unused castings. The sets will hopefully arrive on Monday.
I put the package out of my minds until about 20 minutes ago, when armed with a beer I emptied the contents to see just exactly what I'd gotten in the goodie bag. Talk about feeling like a kid again! I spread the pieces out on my desk and sifted through them. The results; well there seems to be enough items to make a wee section I was looking for... but sadly no doors :'(.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/4/2367_12_12_09_8_04_05_4.JPG)
Not able to control myself any longer I immediately started to build a spiral stair case... the results can be seen in the pictures below. Note non of the pieces have been glued together this is just a simple mock up to allow me to get a feel for the Hirst Arts pieces and feel like a kid playing with lego again. lol
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/4/2367_12_12_09_8_04_05_1.JPG)
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/4/2367_12_12_09_8_04_05_0.JPG)
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/4/2367_12_12_09_8_04_05_3.JPG)
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/4/2367_12_12_09_8_04_05_2.JPG)
OK so quick nasty photographs, of a quick mock up.
I'm planning on basing the tiles in sections on cork board and busing felt to stop them from sliding. I plan on using wood glue/pva. Do you think this will be fine? No that I've seen some of the stuff up close I can carry on planning the items.
Cheers
Andy
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We've used a bit of Hirst Arts stuff in the past and used either wood glue or PVA to fix the pieces with no particular problems.
On our homecasts the only snag we hit was that some pieces were slightly damp and didn't glue too well, but following hints and tips we solved it by either putting all casts into the airing cupboard for 48 hours before glueing or putting them on a clean baking tray (bought one just for the job from a local pound shop) and putting them in the oven (after we had cooked something with it turned off - the residual heat worked fine).
For figures it might be worth looking for some of the D&D ready painted ones - you can often get the common ones quite cheaply (sometimes on evilbay) - and they work well as proxies for all sorts of things. Also the Star Wars ones.
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Ok so my Hirst Arts cast pieces arrived yesterday. I recieved pieces from two companies which I'll provide a quick review of below.
Dungeon Casting: This was the supplier that I ordered the vast majority of my sets from... hmm. The pieces needed a lot of cleaning- actually there wasn't a single item that didn't require some sort of cleaning! Even worse there where large pieces of flash on individual blocks!
The Terrain Store: Very quick delivery, and the pieces where free of flash. In fact the pieces where in such good condition that I could use them straight from the packet. I've placed a second order with them. I'll let you know if the quality continues. Sadly they don't have the same selection as Dungeon Casting
What came in the order: (Links)
1x Short Stair Section (http://www.hirstarts.com/dungeon/detail6.html#short) (Dungeon Castings)
1x Alter of Sacrifice (http://www.hirstarts.com/dungeon/detail6.html#altar) (Dungeon Castings)
1x Observatory (http://www.hirstarts.com/dungeon/detail6.html#observatory) (Dungeon Castings)
2x 2inch Corridors (Dungeon Castings)
2x 1inch Dead Ends (Dungeon Castings)
1x Bag of Fieldstone Pieces (The Terrain Store)
Ok so just to review why I choose to buy kits rather than molds. For the small project that I'm doing kits are way more cost effect (IIRC each mold sells for £20+). A lot less hassle i.e. no casting (Although I've now done tons of sanding >:(). Lack of Storage.
Below are pictures of my first build and I'll be the first to admit that it is nowhere near perfect. I'm not solely going to blame this on the poor casting and required sanding, some of it was me too! lol.
Mistake Number 1- Basing material. Cork is not a good basing material, I picked up the piece and it split neatly in two :o All my hard work! Luckily this was fairly easy to fix with some PVA. I'll be looking to get some 'proper' basing material from work tomorrow. Either board or ply.
Mistake Number 2- buying a sanding sponge. Keeping things even when sanding can be hard at the best of times... so imagine trying to sand pieces on a sanding sponge. Next time I'll get some nice flat sandpaper and not suffer for the crazily malleable sponge of squintiness.
Tip Number 1- Filler fills in all mistakes! and doesn't look too out of place. Just don't go crazy or you'll cover details. (Still to use some filler around the stairs)
Tip Number 2 (may be obvious)- Don't just glue the base of blocks down, also glue the sides to the adjacent blocks, it's amazing how much strength this adds.
Now without further ado... The Entrance stairs of the temple of Ulric. (Excuse the poor quality)
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/4/2367_16_12_09_11_34_04_0.JPG)
This picture give a good general idea of the shape of the piece. Split level; 3 levels and two stairs. Eventually a modular door will be placed on the 2nd Floor.
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/4/2367_16_12_09_11_34_04_1.JPG)
Ok so the first picture that really shows some of the faults i.e. the large gap between the wall and the vault, and the gaps on the stairs. Where will be fixed with some filler, once the model is dry. You can also see the un-level floor on the 2nd Floor. That was cause by over zealous sanding of the Dungeon Casting Pieces. And finally you can see the bevel on the flag stones caused by the sanding sponge... or possibly me ???
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/4/2367_16_12_09_11_34_04_2.JPG)
A few things to fix then! I was alo considering putting a wooden handrail around te 2nd level platform... what are people's thoughts on this? The vault is going to become a small shrine for fallen warrior who fell in battle.
Colours... does anyone have any suggestions on painting/painting technique and colour choice?
Ultimately I'm wanting the pieces to be fairly modular... the 3 rooms will 'join together' although I will require a couple of sections of flag stones to place inbetween them to act as the hall in the temple of Ulric. Also Does anyone think the walls are too high or too low?
Please if you have any other suggestions, critiques or ideas don't hesitate to post them.
Cheers
Andy
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An uneven floor is quite realistic - there is a pub in Beverley where the floor used to be so worn that you swayed alarmingly just going in. (Plus a table in one of the side rooms where if the table top was wet and you put anything on it it slid to the far end.)
Apart from filler, you might also consider giving your piece a thin coat of PVA as a seal. You could cover some of the gaps with a sprinkle of sand or grit to look like rubbish (or moss).
I probably wouldn't use a handrail.
For paint - possibly best to take inspiration from nature : have a look in local parks (or even better a stone quarry) and find a colour scheme to match your local geology.
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Apart from filler, you might also consider giving your piece a thin coat of PVA as a seal. You could cover some of the gaps with a sprinkle of sand or grit to look like rubbish (or moss).
I probably wouldn't use a handrail.
Cheers fastolfrus... this may seem a stupid question bust should i add the watered down pva before or after painting?
Also would anyone recommend using spray varnish after painting? It's going to get transported and subjected to use by clumsy players... myself included!
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Managed to finish the Hirst Arts set for last Wednesday (Albeit minus the alter and pews that I'd planned on building) sadly I didn't completely finish the cultists but I did manage to give them a shade and mid coat (still to highlight and some general tidying up).
...Just in time as the party entered the temple of Ulric to confront Bernd Pfandstück and his demon summoning Khronite Cultists. I replaced a certain Ulrican NPC with Bernd Pfandstück as I didn't particularly want the party to be responsible for uncovering the heretical actions of a certain high priest. Instead the High Priest has 'nothing to do' with the plot and the Templar in charge of the Teutonic Guard i the instigator (I hope that German readers will notice a slight clue that all may not be as it seems with Bernd's second name... I hope!)
As Wednesday's session was drawing to a close a strange shape could be noticed from withing the fire pit.
Here are a few pictures
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/5/2367_18_01_10_9_49_56_0.JPG)
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/5/2367_18_01_10_9_49_57_1.JPG)
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/5/2367_18_01_10_9_49_57_2.JPG)
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/5/2367_18_01_10_9_49_57_3.JPG)
and the final picture of the night with handy labels added...
(http://leadadventureforum.com/gallery/5/2367_18_01_10_10_07_48.JPG)
Well I'm sorry for the very short and probably rambling post, but I've some Physics to study before the night gets too old!
I'm looking forward to playing the final scene this Wednesday
Cheers
Andy
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Cheers fastolfrus... this may seem a stupid question bust should i add the watered down pva before or after painting?
Sorry about the delay in replying.
We tend to PVA before painting and varnish afterwards.
Although the last varnish wasn't aerosol but household (furniture varnish ? can't remember precisely) put on with a large brush and left to dry for a couple of days.
Your chapel looks good. Well done !
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Looking good, the Stone could be a tat darker, but nontheless: looking really good!