Progress updates

Over the last few weeks, I've been working steadily away on a couple of ongoing projects.

The first, as I've mentioned previously, is my Armies on Parade project. This is developing! I have been painting up unpainted models and retouching and rebasing old models. Here's my tally so far:

28 Plague Marines: 18 painted, 8 unpainted, 2 to be retouched.
Sorcerer: waiting to be retouched.
Palanquin bearers: 3 painted, 1 unpainted
Palanquin platform: unpainted
Palanquin rider: partly painted
Great Unclean One: painted
Dreadnought: painted
Predator: to be retouched
7 Poxwalkers: painted
7 cultists: painted
7 Plaguebearers: to be retouched

Totals: 59 models. 37 painted, 12 to be retouched, 10 unpainted.

Days remaining: 33

I've also been adding new episodes to my AD&D 1st ed. Monster Manual podcast, MONSTER MAN. You should check it out if you want to hear my voice talking about stuff.

I've also been adding images showing some of the monsters I talk about on the show using models and toys from my collection!

Anhkheg!

Ant, Giant!

Ape, Carnivorous!

Basilisk!

Baluchitherium!

New podcast!

For the last month or so, I have been recording content for my new podcast, MONSTER MAN. It's a show where I read my way through the AD&D 1st edition Monster Manual from 1977 and talk about the history, mythology, and game uses of different monsters. Sometimes I have guests.

Anyway, you can visit the podcast site here or find the show in your favourite podcast app. The RSS feed is http://monsterman.libsyn.com/rss

Have a listen. If you enjoy it, please share, and if you don't enjoy it, keep your mouth shut.

A possibly impractical plan

So, Armies on Parade is this thing where you put together an army of Games Workshop models and take it down to your local GW shop and people vote on their favourite. I have decided to enter this year, largely as a way to motivate myself to paint some damn models. This may not be smart.

I will be entering my Warhammer 40,000 Nurgle force. Because it's a patchwork of models from so many different eras, I've decided to make that sort of the theme of the entry.

The goal is to include:

Commander on palanquin. This is a custom model made from an old Citadel Sauron supported by four converted plastic plague marines. This model isn't quite finished yet, but most of its component models are almost ready. 2 are still to be painted.

Sorcerer. This is just a regular old sorcerer from the late 2nd / maybe early 3rd edition era. Maybe needs a new base but otherwise pretty much ready to go.

Great Unclean One. The classic. Ready to go.

Dreadnought. Likewise. Ready to go.

Predator. The old plastic rhino with the second edition metal parts and a bunch of kitbashing. Needs a little touching up but otherwise ready to go.

7 80s Chaos renegades. 5 are completely finished, while 2 need new bases and some touching up.

7 pointy-helmet Death Guards of the late 1st / early 2nd era. This combines a few waves of models. 4 are done, 1 needs to be touched up and rebased, and 2 are not done at all.

7 of the not-so-great 2000s metal Death Guard. 2 are completely done, 1 needs touched up and rebased, 1 is partly done, 3 are not done at all.

7 of the new Dark Imperium plastic Death Guard. 1 is done, 1 is in progress and 5 need to be done.

7 Poxwalkers. Completely done.

7 cultists. Completely done.

7 Plaguebearers. Need to be rebased.

In total, then:

Models to be assembled, painted, etc: 13

Models to be touched up and rebased: 12

By the end of October? That's not too crazy.

Also I should make a 2 x 2 foot scenic board for them. That might be a little more challenging, but I have some rough ideas.

More progress reports as I, er, progress.

More frugal monsters -- with bonus Rogue Trader content!

I've been to the zoo again, which means it's time for more cheap monsters from the zoo gift shop!

These plastic jellyfish are 40p each or 10 for £3.50 in the gift shop. Mount 'em on a length of floral wire, base them on a coin, cover the wire up with some foliage, and Bob's your uncle.

In the jungle ruins of the equatorial region, an Imperial officer and his Schweintruppen bodyguards
have a chance encounter with a stingpod.

I think they'll look great as juveniles of the larger floating space jellyfish critter I made from an ornament I found in a charity shop nearly a year ago.

Anyway, here's a writeup of these monsters for Rogue Trader, the first edition of Warhammer 40,000.

Stingpod

This lighter-than-air species is indigenous to Peterson's World. Typically found in schools of 1-2 adults and 2-6 juveniles, they drift across the landscape, paralysing prey with their stinging tentacles and consuming them. The gas that fills their lift sacs is highly combustible; ranchers and mine companies have encountered difficulties when stingpods collide with electrified fences or other energy barriers.

	M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Int	Cl	WP
Adult	5	4	-	4	4	3	4	d3	8	2	8	8
Juvenile	5	3	-	3	3	1	4	1	8	2	8	8

On its first round of hand-to-hand combat, the stingpod attacks with its tentacles, attempting to incapacitate its prey. If successful, it will bite in subsequent rounds unless attacked by another opponent and driven off.

The lashing impact of a stingpod's tentacles inflicts no lasting harm, but causes overwhelming agony that can temporarily paralyse the victim. Each creature hit by a stingpod's tendrils must make a Cl test or be paralysed. It may test at the beginning of each of its turns to recover. 

When a stingpod is killed, there is a chance that its lift sac ruptures and combustible gas is released. Roll a d6: on a 6, the creature explodes like a grenade with S4, D1, -1 save, 1.5" radius. If the stingpod was killed with a las, auto, shuriken, bolt, power, or other similar weapon, it explodes on a 4+ . If it was killed with a flame, plasma, or melta weapon, it explodes automatically.