Mechrite Red RIP

"The old paints are dead, long live the new paints!" We all saw the '145' new paints [not to be confused with the '456' from Torchwood] and we're all confused but interested in what's possible with these new colours and textures. Personally it doesn't affect me too much, I use mainly Vallejo paints but of course one Foundation paint in particular is essential to my scheme - Mechrite Red.

I had my Mechrite Red epiphany when I first struggled with Red Planet Basing. In fact the very picture I used to illustrate how cool it was [the Rippers below] is pertinent to the situation I now find myself in.

My immediate concern was Mechrite's replacement. I've still all my Dark Angels and my Son's Eldar to base and I need that colour on the base edges or we're stuffed. I checked on the BoLS forum for a conversion chart and I was duly shown the one from this month's White Dwarf [incidentally my mate Liam, he of the scratch built Warhound and Warlord fame has his Dark Eldar featured in the Bolton GW review at the back]. It stated that the 'base' replacement for my Mechrite is Mephiston Red. Well folks here is Mephiston Red:

Having had the opportunity to nip to GW the other weekend I gave Mephiston a shot. I took both kids with me and me and the youngest [6] painted his first ever marine [I'll share pictures eventually] and we used Mephiston on the Bolter and I can tell you Mechrite it isn't. For those out there after a vibrant red your prayers have been answered. This is very reminiscent of my Vermilion Craft Acrylic you can see on the Ripper base above, just a denser colour - more like paint than say margerine. However for my bases it's not going to work.

I read someone comment that trying to buy up the last of your favourite colour was delaying the inevitable but I managed to nip up to my local independent GW stockist* and got one pot before the '145' was released and when I found out the entire old range had gone back to GW central I packed the wife off to get me another pot, the very last in the shop. Now I think I've managed to base all the 'nids with one pot so I don't think I'll have to face my inevitable end to Mechrite Red for a very long time, but there is a glimmer of hope, something I'll have the leisure to find out whether there is in fact a replacement in the '145' [although there may be another manufacturer who has a Mechrite equivalent] - Khorne Red. I look at the pot and I've seen the examples in White Dwarf and by far this looks like a more accurate replication of Mechrite Red. Did GW get confused or were they just so happy they managed to pull off a vibrant red with 'base' properties they'd rather trumpet the 'new' instead of match the 'old'.

Hopefully I'll get chance to pop back to my local GW and they'll have a pot for me to test out so I can be relieved that my Ferron Proxima bases will always match up, fingers crossed.

* I also picked up another Gryphonne Sepia and the last Badab Black. The Badab Black replacement, Nuln Oil, I tested had a very matt finish so I was happy to delay the inevitable just a while longer.

'nids part 30 - Devilgaunts

My neighbour and carsharing gaming buddy Mark was getting rid of some 'nids so I decided to pick up these ten Devourer Termagants. I hope you recall that 'To Do List' indeed these aren't on it, neither's the Broodlord I picked up or the two Blood Bowl teams I'm painting.

I may well be adding to my figures despite not finishing what I've already got but if the new figures I get are completed "tout de suite" then all things are forgiven. It's also particularly useful to have something to re-ignite the painting passion. Call these a catalyst if you will to getting into painting so I can tackle those Dark Angels anew.

And here we are with the base coat of 'Cappucino' art acrylic [bonewhite substitute] and Ultramarine blue. Notice the Toxin sacs on their backs. These will be useful in differentiating squads of ten at least. 20 in a Mycetic Spore would be fun 60 shots! but two separate units could be handy too or even just as another to gants to be spawned, just pretend their Fleshborers, not that I've ever run out of spawned Termagants, yet.

Next up is the liver colouring on the Devourers, muzzles, pipes and Toxin Sacs, then washes.

Fall of Arminius - Game 1, Tyranids Vs Space Wolves pt3

My Sky Slasher Rippers drop in and shoot the scouts, but one remains. Here's where that failureto spawn first turn would have ensured a scoring unit might have claimed my own objective.

Meanwhile the Hormogaunts fail their instinctive behaviour test and set about the squad of marines, once again it does not go well and perhaps by this stage the main objective is now no longer in my posession. I'm not even sure where the Devgaunts are in this now.

Doing what the Stealers failed to do the Prime and warriors mop up the other squad of marines and consolidate onto the objective hidden from the Long Fangs.

The Gargoyles set about the reaining wolf lords [?] whatever, they were in Terminator armour and I think they were about as ineffective as you could imagine. 

The Ymgarl's appeared at some point, but by then the squad of marines were out of charge range and had consolidated onto the main objective. Meanwhile the Razorback and Vindicator rounded on the Prime and Warrior and pulped them to pieces leaving my one captured objective free again. This pretty much left me with nothing except the points for killing his HQ.

Then I had to work out Kill Points, which wasn't fun. He'd killed a lot and I'd done little a comprehensive defeat. I'm not entirely sure what I could have done differently but I think losing the Tervigon and Tyrant was tragic and coming back from that was probably too far. I couldn't take out the Long Fangs and the LandRaider was never going to be an option. The Stealers failing to perform was also unlucky. Anyway the next match was a chance to win one for the Ripper!

Where's my head @?

Wow, I'm seriously enjoying 'the hobby' at the moment. I've talked about my obsessional behaviour before and how I become addicted to a certain thing and right now 40k is in the ascendancy. Sure my Dark Angels are taking a back seat because of my use of my Son's 'nids in my gaming but hopefully all this action will eventually spur me on to finish them. With plenty of rumors suggesting the Fallen will feature in the 6th Edition box I'm quite content to leave them on hiaitus for a while.

It's not just the painting and converting though, it's the actual games that are fun, the great bunch of guys at my friendly neighbourhood gaming club, my continued fun of my Dawn of War 2 campaign and an avalanche of content and thoughts about fluff for the blog. The only thing I'm actually lacking is enough time to fit it all in, hence my new bedtime of around 1:00am. Midnight used to be the norm, then it started creeping up and now I don't think twice about 12:30 or 12:45. On a 'school night' my alarm goes off at 6:00am so I'm really going to screw myself over if I carry on like this, especially with me stopping my train naps too.

Anyway, just a little update on stuff. My minds full of all this and like a Pensieve I need to offload.

Fall of Arminius - Game 1, Tyranids Vs Space Wolves pt2

The scouts continue to advance.

Heading for this objective.

The gribblies 'occupy' the middle gorund.

The warriors shoot the wolves and then slaughter the wolves.

The gribblies hang out, chilling and that.

The stealers barrel in but apparently wolves get certain bonuses, in this case I think they got counter attack.

So despite the combat specialism of the stealers, they get beat and then run off, the Broodlord too - epic fail!

The best pic of the day thanks to my son. He loves getting down to eye level for the shots.

And when I say 'eye level' I really mean 'eye level'.

More of the gribblies packed in taking wounds from the combined fire.

The Doom of Malantai arrives in his spore pod. Thanks to Njall I think his ability to fire was nulled, he may have sucked some wounds or we may have ruled the terminators were safe as they were out of line of sight, I dunno but it didn't do much, the spore didn't do much either.

Flap, flap, flap. The Gargoyles deepstrike and pull off the coup of the game shooting Njall dead with their fleshborers. Secondary objective points for me killing the highest ranked HQ, meanwhile these had been won by the Space Wolves already for the loss of my Hive Tyrant.

Fall of Arminius - Game 1, Tyranids Vs Space Wolves pt1

It's been a few weeks since I played in my first tournament so my memories are sketchy but here's some pics, plenty from my first match, quite a few from my second and then a couple from the third - I was a bit tired by then. Tehy may be a bit mixed up but I'll do my best to explain what went down.

So here's my 2000pts versus some red Space Wolves. Spearhead deployment, objectives on that wall in my deployment, in the centre area terrain and behind that large rock formation in the Space Wolves deployment.

Everything moves up, I forget to spawn any Termagants to just hold my deployment objective, something that will come back to bite me in the end.

Hormagaunts and devgaunts scramble up the walls of the area terrain.

Noticing my opponent visually drawing a line through the Tervigon and Hive Tyrant directly to Njall Stormcaller I recall some psychic attack that rips open the ground in a straight line so I run the Tyrant so both aren't in danger.

So much for getting out of danger. The Hive Tyrant is no more, it may have been the Long Fangs and the Assault Cannon Razorback but alas the Tyrant was no more - so much for my Hive Commander Reserve Roll buff!

Little do those marines in the top left realise that the rock formation beside them hides a nasty surprise. Meanwhile some scouts come on to my left.

Oops, Njall opens up the ground beneathe the Tervigon's feet and it falls through to it's doom. It had suffered a couple of las-cannon wounds already I think.

I was a bit concerned about these Fenrisian Wolves.

So when my warriors and stealer reserved onto the board.

It made sense to send the adrenal stealers and Broodlord into the squad of marines...

and send the Warriors to take out the wolves.

Here go the stealers.

and here go the warriors.

Up popped the Trygon Prime and I think his Containment Spines may have shook or stunned the Vindicator.

The view across the board.

Here come the scouts, heading for my deployment objective.

My little gribblies head for the main objective.

Darn Long Fangs will be the bane of my life.

Ebay goodness

Got a parcel in the post the other day, my latest ebay purchase. I'd been on the hunt for some more Tyranid Infestation Markers. I've got the big Hive Node and two or three of the triple nodes but none of the twins. I had a look on ebay and they had a Buy It Now of a twin and triple for £4ish including postage...

... but then I saw this 'bitz' auction that's got two twins and a triple, what looked like one or two warriors at least five Termagants and some Genestealers including the heads, which can sell for silly money on their own sometimes. So I bid and it came to £4.70 in the end.

Anyway, I was right in my estimation. There's also three halves of the basic Termagants, just missing their leg bits which isn't too bad as I may be able to use them as spawning termagants if I ever get a full size Tervigon(!). There are a couple of the spinefist rippers and there were enough bits to make 4 Ymgarl Genestealers, not the tentacle mouth heads but scything talons and armour plates. If I were to source another couple of bodies and only a few pairs of plates I should enough for a half a dozen Ymgarl's.

BUT, the big thing was the rest of the bits. The two Warriors were complete and there are two Monstrous Creature crushing claws, a Venom Cannon and some rending claws. I have enough, enough bits to finally attempt my Tyranid Warrior to Hive Guard conversion.I don't guarantee that the conversion will be cheaper than buying the proper model, BUT it is certainly going to be interesting if you have spare Venom Cannons [and who doesn't], Crushing Claws, Rending Claws and some Tyranid Warriors and their Flesh Hooks... so any bitz bag could be just the gold mine you're looking for. I think with another few quids worth of investment I could have around £50 worth of figures out of this one bag and the bitz I've already got which were currently doing nothing. So buckle up folks this is going to get really interesting.