Author: Joe B

Completed Deff Dread for Dreadtober 2017

Published by Joe B

Despite this being one of the busiest months I’ve had in a long while, I have managed to finish the Deff Dread for Dreadtober 2017. Adding another stomping wonder of Ork technology to my Death Skulls army. I won’t get too much into the RL issues keeping me from painting and posting. But I have struggled to keep up with Dreadtober this year and appreciate Todd for hosting it. For me, painting is a way to relieve stress so I am happy I have been able to get some of that done this month and finish the Deff Dread for my Death Skulls. Ork Deff Dread My other Deff Dread was pure close combat with four arms of bashing goodness. I gave this one a bit more ranges punch with a pair of missiles launchers. There is a certain irony that Orks are the easiest to convert due to their ramshackle nature. But I also feel the least amount of need to do so and the walkers. They already have so much character and fun …

Good Reads 57 – Tutorials, Conversions, Oddness, and More

Published by Joe B

Looking for some awesome hobby reads to check out? Good Reads 57 is finally here with some of my favorite posts from the last few weeks. There are so many excellent hobby bloggers out there sharing fantastic content, and this is a celebration of some of that work. I owe big thanks to Scott (@brushwizard) for guilting me into finally getting this post written. Apparently, I have built up an expectation among some of you to get this out now and then! So without further ado, here are your Good Reads: A New Plague The creative genius Da RedNekkz does a great job of converting and painting disgusting Nurgle, things. This converted Plague Caster is a perfect example of that. It’s fun to see how artists modify pieces to fit their vision. A Son to Be Proud Of Modian is well known for finishing whole armies in a week before selling them off to start the next. His current focus is this beautiful Sons of Horus, complete with a great looking Contemptor. Build a Zone …

Magnetizing the Big Mek in Mega Armor

Published by Joe B

Quick tutorial post on how I added magnets to the Ork Big Mek in Mega Armor. While I don’t generally add magnets to my minis, this guy seems like a good candidateÂ to work on. This Big Mek is from the Meganobz box where you can build one of the Nobz into a Big Mek. The arm weapons don’t have options, so it is the backpack mount that I magnetized. This way I can either arm him with the Kustom Tellyporta Gun (which sounds fun) or provide a defense with the Kustom Force Field (probably more helpful). Drilling the Holes Once the main body and legs were built up, I left the top armor plate off. This is meant to be the weapon’s platform but works perfectly for adding the magnets. I set the piece in place and used a small drill bit to drill through it and the top of the body. To prevent the magnet from moving, I didn’t use a larger bit as the top plate so it would hold the magnet in …

Dreadtober 2017 Announcement

Published by Joe B

Yeah, finally some Dreadtober news for 2017! TL;DR: it is happening, but Todd is hosting it this year! So get ready for Dreadtober 2017! As this is the third annual Dreadtober event, many of you have either participated or at least witnessed the challenge before. Last year I hosted almost 100 hobbyists around the world to build, paint, and photograph a dreadnought type miniature. Over 50 finished their projectsÂ and tons more cheered them on. Where to Get Involved for 2017 This year Todd (SincaiN40K) is in charge of the event and decided to create a whole new website over on Blogspot to run it. Heading over to dreadtober.blogspot.com is where you can find out how to get involved and check out the latest updates. He has even set up an email address for the project to make it easier to keep track of going forward. So if you are excited to get a dreadnought-ish miniature built in October, sign up! As for me, I am transitioning jobs at the moment and starting a role and …

Work in Progress Wednesday – Update on What’s on My Desk

Published by Joe B

The last few weeks have seen a bunch of sporadic hobby projects for me, but for some reason, little writing here. So, here is a look at my workbench and the randomness therein. While one of the things I have promised myself to work on is to finish a bunch of my half-finished projects before starting anything new, I have failed at that big time this week. I have found with myself that sometimes I just don’t feel like painting. Just the idea of it overwhelms me with ‘meh.’ Odd considering that this is my hobby and one of my biggest stress reliefs. Instead, I find the desired to build models to be where I get pulled. So that is where I have been since I finished the Megaboss. Mentor Legion Terminators It started with moving my workspace inside. My gracious wife recommended we move the boys into the same room and use the smaller bedroom as my new office. And in this new office, I could finally setup the bookcases with glass doors to …

Converting the Orruk Megaboss into a Death Skulls Warboss

Ork Warboss (Orruk Megaboss Conversion) Showcase

Published by Joe B

This week I finished my Ork Warboss for my Death Skulls tribe. He is an Orruk Megaboss conversion with just a few minor conversions to bring him into the 40k universe. Here is the final showcase and some notes on the conversions themselves. Ork Warboss When the Orruk Megaboss was released, I knew I needed to convert one for my Ork Warband. Just over a year back, I posted my unboxing thoughts and ideas for the conversion. The work continued off and on for the last year in bursts. But here he is at last, my Orruk Megaboss conversion into an Ork Warboss. One of the final additions I made was the larger base, thanks to an indirect prompting from NafNaf. I had originally posed him on a 40mm base from Secret Weapon Miniatures. But felt it needed to be bigger and have more height. The Tyranid skull was also a later addition that I had planned on doing once I glued the front bit into place. I had left it off to paint his …

Good Reads 56 with Orks, Maps, Mutants, and Marines. Get Inspired

Published by Joe B

Another awesome week of hobby posts is upon us. So come check out my selection of hobby posts you should not miss in Good Reads 56. Heros of the Empire These beautiful conversions and the alternative paint scheme is what caught my eye with Bruno’s Dark Angel successors. Particularly the bone-white for his Captain, converted from the Space Hulk set. And the Mutant Wilhelm has made some incredible conversions, but this may now be one of my favorites. Using a real snail shell, Crypt Horror, and Plague Drone, the Abalone Mutant was born. The paint job is also brilliant with the mix of blue, white, and purple. Drawing Fantasy Maps I’m always impressed by the tutorials at Dagger and Brush, not only because of their quality, but also they aren’t your typical topics. Like this one on how to draw fantasy maps! From DnD adventures to story based campaigns, drawing a custom map can really tell the story. Men in Black Jeff has done some incredible conversions, but for this squad of Deathwatch Primaris, he …

Cool Tools: Greyed Out Dice Bags

Published by Joe B

I’ve seen @greylikestorms dice bags now and then on Twitter, but never really paid too much attention to them. I thought dice bags were one of those things ‘hardcore’ players did. The same ones who came dressed up in costume or carried a banner to events. But after having the fortunate chance to get to know Mike as part of the Rainbow Warriors Project, I have changed my mind and even bought my own bag. Why Dice Bags? For many tabletop games, dice are used to test skills and perform heroism. Bigger games require more dice. Sometimes whole piles of dice. Looking at you orks and all your dakka Forever I have been using resealable plastic bags to hold my dice between games. Functional, cheap and easy. But they rip or disappear in the fog of war (more likely blown away and picked up as trash). Greyed Out Dice Bags Thanks to the power and reach of Twitter, I have seen Mike’s dice bags pop up now and again. But it wasn’t until we started …

WIP Updates 8-9-17: Ork Megaboss and Stompa are back!

Published by Joe B

Trying to get in the habit of writing more WIP posts, especially as I bounce from project to project. In my typical hobby butterfly fashion, I set the Dark Imperium box aside in favor of finishing off some Orks! Rainbow Warrior Deathwatch But first off, I did finish the Deathwatch marine I painted using the Rainbow Warriors scheme. I took a bunch of pictures along the way and plan to do a full tutorial on painting him shortly. Though I am still 50/50 on the leopard print. I may go back and fix that first. Also, for the Rainbow Warrior Project, I am helping to set up the site. So in all my glorious free time (hehe) I am setting up another WordPress site for the project and allow all the contributors to showcase their miniatures. I’ll post more updates on that as I make some progress. Stompa!! In Ork news, I broke out the Stompa project box (yeah it’s taken that long I have it in a file box!). Where I last left …

Brush Stroke #5

Published by Joe B

With another archive post of my weekly newsletter, Brush Stroke #5 Â bring you some great tutorials and showcase pieces from Broken Paintbrush and other hobby bloggers around the web. If you haven’t subscribed yet, Brush Stroke is my weekly (currently bi-weekly) email where I highlight the posts from this site so you can stay up to date. But I also add some awesome articles that I have found in the archives of other hobby bloggers. So while Good Reads highlights recent posts, Brush Stroke dives into the archives. Painting: Hounds of Tindalos For the Mansions of Madness (1st Edition), I created thisÂ tutorial for the creepy Hounds of Tindalos. It was my first attempt at a lava scheme, so I share my thoughts on how I did it. Painting: Rusty Gold Came across this fantastic article onÂ painting rusty gold – a beaten, dirty gold lookÂ from MG which is fantastic on his marine vehicles. Building:Â The Original Interceptor When I got my Stormtalon, I had looked around for other people’s conversions as I didn’t like the base model.Â Danny’s …

Good Reads 55 – Bog Daemons, Tzeentch Titan, Sculpting, and More

Published by Joe B

Catching back up myself, I present to you Good Reads 55 with some of my favorite hobby blog articles from the week. With some incredible conversions, tutorials, and inspirational pieces, these are well worth your time to read. More Demon Trees I don’t think I will get tired of seeing the incredible conversions by NafNaf. He has been adding to his Bog Sylvaneth, with some corrupted Dryads and Bog Wraith Bitch. The seamless transformation between Nurgle demon and Treeman is incredible. Tzeentch Imperial Knight Another incredible hobbyist, D Power’s latest project involved converting a Tzeentch themed Chaos Knight. There are so many cool little details, from the chess themed base (everyone is a pawn of Tzeentch) to the tentacle fist, to the portal to hell on the tilt shield. Making Bandanas Not only has the Hobbyistgirl joined the ranks of hobby bloggers, but she started out with this great tutorial on sculpting bandanas for her Ork Freebootas. It adds a lot to their look and really brings in the theme. Sculpting Videos Mr. Pink is …

Rainbow Warriors Tactical Squad Showcase and Paint List

Published by Joe B

This weekend I completed the Rainbow Warriors Tactical Squad for the charity raffle and am happy with how they turned out. And really happy I’m not painting aÂ whole army of them. For those who haven’t heard anything about the #RainbowWarriorsProject yet, it is a new charity raffle a group of us started up on Twitter. The idea and funds are directed to supporting diversity and inclusion within the gaming community. Out of a discussion on this topic, the idea to paint the Rainbow Warriors, a Chapter based on the Mayan and Aztec cultures, was born. I jumped in and volunteered a tactical squad; others donated kits, others time to paint. The finished models are then being sent to Dan (@TheLonelyHavocs) who is painting the bases donated by Dragon Forge and applying decals fromÂ Fallout Hobbies. Details are still in the works for purchasing tickets and all that, but check out the signup page at RainbowWarriorsProject.com. Building on a Theme To build upon the Aztec theme, where better to grab bits than from the LizardmenÂ Seraphon. While most …