Rogue Trader and Retinue Project - Underway

 I wouldn't call it a lost mojo exactly, more the case of trying out a few ideas and them not working. Over the last few weeks I haven't quite managed to get going with anything.

 The I decided to tackle something that has been sat on my desk in a resealable bag for about six months.

 For some time now I'd been keen on creating my own rogue trader and then his retinue. So here he is.

 I always found it odd that there was never an actual specific model made to represent one (stop me if I'm totally wrong here). There were one or two that could be used as ones of course but I wanted my own take on one.

 After a degree of trial and error I decided on using Erekose from the Eternal Champion range as a base model. The legs are from an Elf warrior. The right hand is from an Adeptus Arbites fig. His pet is of course one from the Chaos familiars range.

 As you can see from the WIP pics below I took quite a lot of lead off Erekose then it was a case of using my moderate modelling skills to sculpt the hair, greatcoat etc. The skulls on the boots are a mold press from the cap badge of a commissar.

The original Erekose figure

 Then with all the hard work done he was chucked in a bag and forgotten about, until now. I haven't decided on name or background yet but I'll get on with that as I work on his followers.

Mordheim Marienburg Captain

  With work full on at the moment and taking up seven days a week I've been struggling to find time to get any painting done. And here we have the start of yet another warband, this time from Marienburg.

 The plan is to have several on the go at one time. I've been planning a Marienburg warband for some time now and apart from trying to carefully select the figures to represent the group I've been obsessing over who to choose as its captain.

 Of course there are plenty to choose from in the citadel fighters, Dogs of War and Empire ranges but none of them seemed to stand out. It felt as if I was searching for something that didn't actually exist.

 I decided to delve into some of the more obscure ranges and there I spotted the merchant/gentleman figure from the vast selection of townsfolk. After missing out on him on ebay, I eventually managed to secure the next one that came along.

 Of course he needed a weapon to replace the scroll and to make matters trickier, he's left handed. Then began the long search for a left sword arm which proved to be a right pain in the arse; there aren't as many as you'd expect - plus it would need to cohere with his empire costume.
                   
                         
 Eventually I found a suitable donor in Adolf from the dogs of war range and trimmed his sleeve down a bit. I also had to re sculpt some of his left trouser where the scroll had been.

 I also had to try and overcome my hang up for painting yellow; many's the time I've abandoned a figure after being disappointed with my yellow efforts but this time I was happy with the outcome.

 So with the captain out of the way, I can relax a bit knowing that ghost has been laid to rest and get on with the rest of the group. I'll probably knock out another two or three before resuming with one of the other warband projects.

Chaos Warrior riding (Wingless) Toad Dragon

 This has been one of those pieces that has been cluttering up the desk for a few months now and I'd decided that nothing else will get my attention until it's sorted.
 The Citadel toad dragon has sat in my Chaos box for about 20 years since grabbing him in the GW trolley dash and had always foreseen it to carry some kind of rider.

 I think my main problem was finding a suitable rider as the dragon itself has been the best part of painted for a few weeks. I'd shortlisted a number of the Jes Goodwin Khorne champions to play the role and had even got half way through painting one I'd converted up but I ended up abandoning it.

 I decided to search elsewhere for the right candidate and as so often before, the AD&D range came to the rescue!

 It's probably because the bulk of the AD&D figs never made it to the later catalogues that I've often overlooked them as ideas for projects. So with a little careful bending and twisting this AD&D stage 2 Evil Fighter was just the job.

 There's no specific purpose to this fella really but he is versatile enough to fit into a future chaos warband or part of the ever growing horde of chaos. Plus he makes the desk just ever so slightly clearer.

Possessed Warband Update - The Possessed themselves!

 Okay, so possessed aren't renowned to have wings but hey, who gives a shit? This pair fit the aesthetics of my growing possessed warband.

 Both are Nick Bibby sculpts and from the C34 Elementals and Demons range; a Deamon (sic) and Pit Fiend respectively. I don't recall ever seeing either of these models painted before.

The warband grows

 The Deamon has a bit of a grim mould line across the wings but I can't really be arsed to do anything with it now.

 The Pit Fiend's skin was looking at little chalky (Rakarth Flesh/Pallid Wych Flesh) so I had to calm it down a bit with a very thin layer of Druchi Violet.

 So here I take a break from the possessed; roughly half way through. There are a few half finished projects beginning to clutter up the desk so it's time to sort that out.

Possessed Warband Update - Dark Soul & Beastman

 I've struggled over the last couple of weeks to knock these two out due to suffering with proper flu and I've probably not felt this shit in 20 years. But soldiering on, I have added the first of the Magister's followers; a Dark Soul and beastman.

 I've always been a big fan of the Chaos warrior I opted for to represent the Dark Soul but I never really felt he fitted in with the rest of the guys from the same range; having the look of a chaos thug more than a warrior due the the lack of plate armour.

 The plan was to paint his tattoos in blue ink (which I actually did) but having already shaded his flesh with chestnut ink, it didn't really show that well. Never mind, he'll do.

 I really enjoyed painting several Bob Olley beastmen last year for a warband and this chap was no exception. The armour is such an innovative design and I'm planning on adding another to the group before the end.

I'm going to stick with this lot for a while and the plan is to add something large and brutish into the mix for next time.

Mordheim Possessed Magister

 Despite the Frostgrave boys coming along nicely, my urge to take time out and get this lad done to kick off a Mordheim Possessed Warband has been far too great.

 As expected, despite a personal liking towards the Mordheim Possessed figures, I'm going old school with the entire warband. I don't think there was any hesitation on choice for the magister in the Shreve the Inquisitor figure from the old Chaos Sorcerers range.

 I replaced the, call it, talisman hanging from his waist with a green stuff mould press of a chaos champion's hammer head to serve as an amulet. And then there's the sword; a bit OTT maybe but it fits like a glove.

  I'm torn right now between resuming the Frostgrave warband and getting one or two painted up to accompany the magister and there are some belters lined up in the queue for this too.

Frostgrave Warband Update - The first two recruits

 Continuing with the Frostgrave warband, I've added the first two followers of Ivan and his apprentice Waldo - a templar and a man at arms.

 The initial plan here is to paint eight members of the warband and then one of each of the remaining characters at a later date.

The templar is a lovely sculpt by Jes Goodwin from the F2 Paladin range and the man at arms, by Aly Morrison, is part of the F2 Dogs of War series.

 I decided to try a bit of freehand of the templar's shield; this is about as technical as I get when it comes to freehand but it'll do.

 I love this fighter with all his little details. Until I bought him I had no idea there was a helmet and axe tied to his belt around the back. This is also the first plastic shield I've painted since the late 90's.

 So at the half way stage, I'm taking a short break to paint the leader of another warband (that's all I'm saying for now) as the urge is just too great. Then it'll be back to finish this lot off. There's some interesting figure selections to come yet.