nerdelemental

Part of the reason we don't use diagonals is for me (well, people like me). In design and dev, there must always come a point where our drive to emulate reality and mirror real world physics and geometry simply have to come to an end and give way to playability and ease of understanding for everyone involved. Don't think that we didn't plan, develop, and test many different models that include everything you're talking about. Here's part of the conundrum, showing a brief glimpse into the debate behind the scenes: Where do you measure on a model? If one is on a hill that's 4" higher than the shooter? From base to base? Logical. However, say there's a 1" wall in the way, or simply some rocky elements. You cannot see the base. But the model is Ht2 shooting a Ht2. So, can you not say there's a volume of mass that's 30mm circumference and 2" high and anything in that volume is targetable? We could. What about using a truly flat 2D playing surface but the terrain elements are representative of 3D terrain. For example, a circle of felt ~ 6" in diameter is symbolizing a 3" tall hill. So, in this particular game, lines are not drawn to an imaginary triangulation, but on a true 2D surface even though we have to pretend to take the 3" pretend elevation into account. There are so many unknowns and variables to account for and there's a point where emulating real world mechanics no longer makes it fun and interesting (to envision how it works in real life) but suddenly bogs it down and makes it too complex.

Some of your best work! Inspiring. Hair and eye shadow are top notch. However, some criticism: I'm not a fan of the sword in gold. Add to that the entire mechanical apparatus is the same gold and it looks unfinished. I think varying the gear-thingy, attaching plate, and/or screw, if not at least the hilt, would have added a lot to the metal area interest.

Heh. Yeah. So, you're bringing Marcus against my Rasputina? Okay. Use your alpha on Rasputina. Hell....do whatever you can against Rasputina. Marcus is the underdog in most matchups and he's not going to find an easy win against Rasputina. Oh, and Smigs, I seem to say this to you often. Someone in your playgroup is a complete A-hole. Wanna stall the game out with some loophole? Good lord. I'd just look across the table at you until *I* got the amusement out of my system. Then we'd never need to play again. I don't play against A-holes like that. You seem to have a good number of players that apparently really game the system. Fortunately, I have fun when I play for fun. It strikes me that a lot of your games are more work than work.

Even without a Tyrant currently romping around in her head, Sonnia is by far the closest. The Governor has all but issued a warrant for her. Samael had to sneak into the Guild enclave to get a book and Lucius was right there which scared the crap out of him. Sonnia didn't even go back into Malifaux. Definately on the edge!

If you're playing a brawl.... ....and you bring Rasputina and Marcus..... ....and this is your killer combo..... ....go right ahead. I'll be on the other side with Pandora and the Dreamer and we'll talk afterward about your killer combos that stalled the game.

....week before last, dippo. And then the three weeks straight before PWars. "I'm building a winter board!" Uh-huh. Yawn....

Finished (mostly) the fur. Onto the claws and other visual items of interest. I built the claws huge. Crazy huge. Not to put them on Hugs that big, but because I thought it'd be easy to shave them down to the appropriate size as I went. So, these are the biggest version but once I dry fit them, as seen here, I kinda like the look. Is it just too over the top or can it work? In sculpting them, I decided to depart from both studio pieces. The claws on Original Ted and Nightmare Ted are both very organic and round and cracked/creased like a living creature's claws. I decided I'd make mine more like razor blades, or Wolverine's claws. Still need some work, but I'm looking for the size and scope before I clean them up any more. Also, I'm liking the idea of a name tag tied to him so I made a simple round one and it's currently sticky-tacked to his ear just to see if it looks right. If so, I'll tie it with more of that thin brass wire to look like thread. Thoughts so far? (edit: Argh! Photobucket's screwed up. These pics are all rotated there but are coming here knocked to the left. Stupid photobucket. I'll work on it!)

I LOVE Mav! I think he should get it and be required the haul the damn thing out every Tuesday night like Josh and I do. Friggin' slacker.

Pshuh. That stuff writes itself! Here's some updated images from another 1.5 hours of poking at some epoxy putty. Unfortunately, the most work was done to his tush (where's CommanderY to make a reference about me and tushes?) and the backside shot didn't turn out. Enough for you to see some progress, though. I'm afraid that his right leg is a bit thicker than his left. Not sure it's either enough to worry about or even relevant. As he's a very soft teddy with loose fabric (I'm trying for the illusion of it anyway with various lumpy rolls around his bod) maybe it'll convey appropriately anyway. I'll be moving ahead and when he's nearly done I'll ask for criticism on the two legs and decide if I want to shave one down. Here's one of backside progress, but the edge of his bum sort of blurs with the image of his right leg making it look like his tush goes all the way to the ground.

Yes and Yes! The Heart Tag might be perfect. Will have to ponder. Don't want it to be the full scale, though, or it'll overweight it visually. Need some thinking time on it, but I like it. He'll certainly have wicked long claws on his hand. And that's not a real diaper. It's just the bulking out of his tush. He'll have fur over it. I just called it a diaper because it's white putty and looks like a diaper to me. Thanks for positives so far! It's fun.

Those of you fortunate enough to have gotten your hands on a Nightmare version of Teddy know that there's a ton of luvin in the box. Two heads and multiple extra parts and whatnot. I have more than my share of teddies already, but I hated to let one head go to waste, especially when it's so full of character. As a hobbyist, I've done a bit of dabbling in just about every aspect of miniature gaming. Naturally, greenstuff/putty repair has been a part of it, but recently I've had the bug to try something a bit bigger in scale. When I resculpted the arms of my Hooded Rider so that his sword was off to the side in a bit more dynamic "slashing" pose, I figured I could move on to something bigger and it was during the painting of the Nightmare Ted that I remembered his extra noggin'. Thus, the impetus of Hugs the Bear. Disclaimer: I never thought I'd do a WIP of anything. Certainly not of sculpting. I don't know diddly about it other than the internet research I've done on the topic and the brief experimenting I've done on various projects. I'm just a hobbyist. But, I'm having enough fun that I thought I'd share the trials and tribulations of the work and even get some help from you all regarding different pose and final shape ideas. Here's where I am after ~3 evenings: Here's how I got there: I started with a copper armature. The wire's from a stripped bit of electrical cable, 14 gauge. It's literally just a stick figure to rough out his shape. Pics make it difficult to see, but he's leaning forward a bit and his arms are more or less extending in front of him. I want him to look like he's a toddler wanting to be picked up for a hug. After the wire form, I used some Fimo/Super Sculpy (I have both, cannot remember exactly which I used: both are the higher end modeling clay) to bulk up the core body. You can see that I used light tan underneath the white putty. The epoxy putty I'm using is the highest end Milliput. It's the white super-fine stuff. In the past I've used Greenstuff and Brownstuff and Procreate and they're each good and behave differently. I'm enjoying the fine Milliput most. I like how it behaves with water, doesn't really stick much (which is a detriment when you're putting it onto something but good when you're sculpting), and the working time is ironically longer than Greenstuff, but fully cures faster than Greenstuff. Like, you've got two hours to move it around and then two hours after that it's as hard as a rock. The second and third night I did the fur sculpting. It's tricky. There's clearly some sculpting concepts I'm working out. For example, I began by 'cutting' the putty into fur shape, but it failed. That method tends to drag the putty and tear it rather than look like recesses next to fur clumps. The method I'm going with is more of a 'press' tech with my sculpting tool (like a big needle). You press it and the raised part is the fur. This looks like the core method of the original Teddy. The Nightmare Teddy is sculpted with a method that currently eludes my nooby-ness. It's like real fur. Stupid professionals. Here's one with his pro-sculpted head: And from the back: That diaper he looks to be wearing is me bulking out his bottom a bit more. I want Hugs to look super chunky and fluffy. Like his creator. Also, you can see some thin brass wire. That's where a seam has busted and the wire is the thread. The sculpted blob is the stuffing coming out. I thought about doing more broken seams, but I'm learning that less is actually the more part of the equation, although I'm still tempted to put a sewn patch on him somewhere. Might detract from what's already going on. Could use your thoughts on it! Here's some size comparrison shots. The Nightmare Ted is NOT completed. Don't judge me! And Hide-n-Seek Teddy. Can you spot him? Next up: I plan to complete the fur all around. Once that's done, I'll bulk up his outstretched paws and sculpt some wicked claws. Bigger than original Teddy, but more thin and dagger-like than Nightmare's. His reaching pose is what he's all about so I'll have to get his arms/claws just right. Finally, my decisions: ~Do I claw his feet, too? Both the official pieces have clawed feet but I'm tempted to leave mine as they are. ~Name ribbon thingy? I briefly planned to have a big circle on his belly similar to the original Teddy's heart and I could put "Hugs" on it. What are thoughts about a round medal on a ribbon? Or just let his pose speak for him? ~If not that, what about a ribbon bow tie like the Nightmare version? If not either around his neck, should it be left as it is or is there a different idea to add interest?

That's me. The panda.

All accidents! I just pulled random symbols out of a kanji hat!

Yep. Figured that'd happen. You'll all need to find someone that knows the stuff and can go "Oh, this one means '$$$$$$$$ed off bitch'" and whatnot. (let's see what the language filters do with that!)

And I don't recall seeing anyone translate the various Kanji symbols I sprinkled around in Book 2. If I remember they spell out the code to unlock DaVinci's final vault where he kept his best secret stuff.

Yes. You keep rolling the spell on the target until several possible stops: 1 - you fail to cast it. 2 - the target beats the TN to resist it 3 - the target is reduced to 1 Wd. The spell can't kill anything. Just freeze the hell out of it. It's strong, but the balance is in the difficulty to cast. In a Rasputina mirror match, you get to cast your Ice Pillars once and your opponent can cast Ice Pillars once making the board quickly thick with ice. Sounds like an awesome time.

You just made my head explode.

Well, it's not quite as much in a volume sense. Book 2 is nearly double Book 1. More or less.

Yeah. Rasputina is pretty bad ass, huh? Certainly not the most fun to be around when she's cramping, and you better take the trash out if she tells you to...

Yipes! I'd better get to work, then. :exhaustedpuppet

fluff /= rules

Wish you were up here, too. We've had some fun with PW and I think it's out of my system for the time being. Back to Mali proper next week. Zoraida to knock around Kruger, I think.

Actually, PandaD, I think you're right on the money. Although it annoys you, I think it's more purposeful than you like. Sorry. Those characters will, of course, see deeper development, no doubt. However, part of my plan is to show them as base and simple in human terms and expectations. They're not human so I portray them as very flat adn their motivations seem simple becasue of the glimpse we have toward them. I guess this is my spoiler alert (and I'm usually so careful to keep my cards close): up until now, the only possession you've seen is with Hamelin. He is simple and you don't see much. Notice, though, that whenever he showed up in Book 2 I didn't discuss anything from his POV, but from those around him reacting to him. Book 3 is going to push things. Sonnia and Seamus are the ones to watch now. Rasputina, although not possessed, is sure to change, right? Seamus has already spoken after he has two tyrants kicking around over him. We can see he's not quite like Hamelin although his whole body's changed, regardless of his mind. We'll see where it goes. Criticism's all good. Nothing to worry about. Just me briefly pointing out some observations from my end. And this: I think you're right, Panda (and others), but I'm doing it on purpose and sorry it's not working for you, but you haven't really seen too much to go on yet. edit: Oh! I almost forgot! Drought: seems you're fixated on the speed of drought as some kind of natural weather drought that happens in late summer when it doesn't rain. That's not what's going on. It's still winter and there's drought. It's not because of no water, entirely; it's because something's gone wrong with the water. More than that: there's something wrong with the food, too. The cattle are getting bloodthirsty and attacking one another and no one can eat them. But it's before the tyrant stuff even goes down. Chapter 4. (right? IIRC).

Von Schill has quite a bit of animosity toward undead, too, don't forget. More than for the Governor, I'd wager.

I've thought a lot about this discussion and have studied the chapters of Book 2 and 3 quite a bit, too. What strikes me as my disconnect is the importance everyone has about the Tyrants. Certainly they're in there as the climactic stuff of a big story arc that spanned 3 books (and more, no doubt), but even in Book 3, the notion that it's all about this monumental Tyrant opposition and possession didn't sit correctly in my head. My guess is that because of Tyrant inclusion, it seems so big - that everything's about them. Yet, in writing, I didn't really think that way. So many of the conflicts I described along the way are what many of you have just said you wanted. So, although some levied a bit of criticism about "too much tyranty stuff, need more small conflict" I read that as praise. The Tyranty stuff should stand out, although I think there was considerable little of it. Rasputina, for example, has three full chapters devoted to her, but one focused on the raging storm mounting (by December, I admit, but it was just a storm) and Joss struggling to get up the mountain. Then Joss confronts her and realizes the depth of her psychosis and the pressure she's under. She's killed a whole ton of people and then nearly kills him. Or, another Tyrant-dominant story: Sonnia. She's all over the place and only has the one interaction with Cherufe. Seamus? His chapter focuses more on Samael Hopkins trying to figure his stuff out more than the conflict between Seamus and the Grave Spirit. These were three climax chapters and they clearly stand out as dominating images. That's probably awesome for me. They were supposed to. However, I still think most of the story focuses quite a lot on the interaction of smaller players. The figures you all know so well. Most don't have much of a clue about Tyrants. Their interaction is significantly different. Unless, of course, you're reading "Nicodem is creating some kind of undead army to confront Tyrants" then, no wonder you think it's all Tyrant dominating. They're in there, fer sure.Tyrants are a real pain in the ass, fer sure.