Caedrus

Caedrus, Reporting in! Apologies for the late upload of the photos. Here's what I did in February! I hope you'll excuse the over-bright, washed-out images. I need to get my camera setup worked out one day soon. You've already seen the Monster Hunters: The theme for this month is "high contrast reds" 😉 An Ortega is next, complete with dapper top hat. This actually completes my Family keyword, so I'll try to host a complete photo soon. Ha. A Family Photo. I make me laugh. I finished off my proxy Cojo: ...not as much personality as the Wyrd version, but impressively large! Next, a single Mounted Rider: I was quite pleased with the leather (mostly Scalecolor), and the fact that my leg-pinning worked well. Also, a stripey horse blanket! "But Caedrus", you might ask, "didn't you start two Mounted Guards?" Indeed I did, gentle reader. There was a brief interaction between the model and a three year old, which culminated in me breaking out the green stuff 🙄. Repairs have commenced. At the end of February, I had managed all my main projects, so I grabbed a couple of (*gasp*) new models to paint! With only a few models left in my Performer and Witch Hunter keywords, I painted an Angelica, and some Sanctioned Spellcasters! Angelica was just a good figure. Quite easy to paint, dynamic pose. I'm not sure if the fur stole needs more contrast. What do you think? Finally, my Sanctioned Spellcasters! I tried a dark purple on the cloaks. The gradient from shadows to highlight is MUCH gentler than this photo makes it seem. Obviously, I messed about with some OSL (two lots on the female), and some freehand pants. Which was fun. Woo! That was a lot of painting! I'll have to check the SS count. In the meantime, please do let me know your feedback and critique! I'll take some time to look through your (amazing) works very soon. Keep putting pigment to plastic! Caedrus.

Greetings All! My very modest starting pledge this month is a single Death Marshall. Then I might get ambitious and try to clear my Shelf of Shame! Have a great March, all!

Welcome to the 2020 Wyrd Painting Challenge! This is the thread for the March Painting Challenge. I’m Caedrus, and I have the very great pleasure of being your host for 2020. While I am proud to be your host, this competition belongs to all of us, and if there’s anything that we can better to improve the Challenge, please do let me know. March is here, and in Australia, that means the end of summer (and this has been one to forget!). For our Northern hemisphere folks, spring has sprung! March is named for Mars, the God of War. Its flower is the daffodil, and (one of) the March stone is aquamarine. Let's get out there and paint a yellow and blue warrior! Or you could combine the two and make a nice green, fitting for St. Patrick! The link to the painter spreadsheet is HERE, and I’ll update the February numbers in the next few days. The 2020 Wyrd Monthly Painting Challenge is all about: Having fun painting! Motivating yourself, and encouraging others. Being part of a great, friendly community. Giving and receiving constructive advice. And, finally: Getting some pigment onto plastic! This is not a competition in any way. The pledge categories are the following: Minion: you paint at least 1 Soulstone worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Enforcer: you paint at least 6 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Henchman: you paint at least 11 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Master: you paint at least 16 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Tyrant: you paint at least 31 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month The rules: The challenge started on January 1st, 2020. Models count for the month in which you finish them. You can finish painting a model that you started before the beginning of the month. Everyone may fail to make their monthly goal twice and stay in the challenge. This is using a mulligan. See the Buy-Back rule, below. You can choose to go down a pledge level during the year, but you cannot move up. A model is considered painted if it is (1) based (even glued onto a black base counts); (2) tournament legal. That means that if it's a translucent, based model, it counts automatically. If it is any opaque material, then the standard is: Every part of the miniature painted, and three colours minimum. A new rule for 2020: The Buy-Back Everyone has good months and bad months. To encourage people to continue to paint, we will be trying out a new rule this year: the Buy-Back. In the past, if you have used your two mulligans, you’re out of the Challenge! However, in 2020, you can buy your way back into the challenge. All you have to do is to undertake your normal pledge and paint for the month, AND undertake the pledge and paint from one of the months you mulliganed. E.g.: Sarah is painting at Enforcer level (6SS/month), and she’s needed to mulligan for the third time. She announces that for the upcoming month, she’ll paint 12SS. If she does so, she’s back in the Challenge! At such a time, it might be worthwhile considering dropping down a category, but that’s up to Sarah! Miniature Values: Malifaux Almost all models count as their Soulstone value; but Masters count for 15 soulstones. Zero cost models count for 5 soulstones. Proxies (constructed from Wyrd models) count for their proxy value. The Other Side Titans count for 25 soulstones. Commanders count for 15 soulstones. Adjunct models count for 5 soulstones. Otherwise: A 30mm base model is worth 5 soulstones. A 40mm base model is worth 7 soulstones. A 50mm base model is worth 10 soulstones. Markers count for 2 soulstones if they're flat, or 5 soulstones if they're 3D and fancy Terrain · Scatter Piece (5SS): A modest piece of terrain, or a small number of scattered terrain pieces. These are the spray-can and dry-brush pieces. · Focus Piece (10SS): A terrain piece that represents a focal point of pride in a terrain board. These pieces require a decent amount of construction and painting. · Centre Piece (20SS): A terrain piece that is a significant centrepiece to the terrain. A handmade forest, a mausoleum, or a train engine. · Masterpiece (50SS): A gorgeous, unique terrain piece that makes people wonder if you get out much. · War and Peace (100SS): A complete, themed 3’x3’ terrain board. My very best for March, and 2020! Caedrus.

@zesty: I quite like how Massive Voodoo do their true metallic metals [LINK]. I tend to stay waaay away from enamels. Too messy for me!

@zesty: Gorgeous colours on Sidir. Red and (cold) white works very nicely. Kudos!

@Nikodemus: Perfect choice of ink, right there. Love the Inktense range. That's what I plan to use!

Caedrus, reporting in with a Work in Progress report! The Monster Hunters are complete! Apologies for the harsh lighting. It isn't showing them at their best. The female Hunter's shotgun is about to be glued in. The bases, also, will have a touch of work done. With this, I only have an Ortega to go in my Family list (or at least that's what I'm telling myself, because I'm afraid to open my Santana, Alt Perdita, and Alt Francisco) With the Family complete, I'll go back and touch up the whole lot, so that their theme is unified and identifiable. Then, to continue on my Shelf of Shame! I hope you're having an awesome February! Caedrus.

Hello All! I've just been updating the Spreadsheet for painting. @bedjy, can you remind me of your pledge level? I can't see totals for: @brianlights, @Cats Laughing, @GlowingFruit, @iCreed, @LordZombie, @monkeyboy30672, @ncwojtyna, @Nikodemus, @Obskeree, @S4lt, and @Shock & Awe. I might have missed your totals (apologies if so!). We'd love to see your January works (or let me know you're taking a mulligan!). So, let us know how you got on, and please throw in an @Caedrus so I see the post! Caedrus.

@Nikodemus: On my desk, the five above, and a Cojo, a Student, a Death Marshal, a Dreamer, and a Coppellius. It's the unboxed stuff that scares me. In the cupboard, I have 5, full, 27L tubs of unopened Malifaux boxes. It's ... shameful.

My February Pledge: To finish off these guys: An Ortega; Two mounted guard (the horses are done); and Monster Hunters After these guys, I might see if I can find my Blessed of December. Have a great February, fellow painters!

Welcome to the 2020 Wyrd Painting Challenge! This is the thread for the February Painting Challenge. I’m Caedrus, and I have the very great pleasure of being your host for 2020. While I am proud to be your host, this competition belongs to all of us, and if there’s anything that we can better to improve the Challenge, please do let me know. February's stone is the amethyst, and the flower is the violet. Time to break out those purple paints, people! February is also the shortest month, so why not paint something super quickly this month? Mind you, it's also the leap year, so why not paint your rarest miniature? The link to the painter spreadsheet is HERE, and I’ll update the January numbers in the next few days. The 2020 Wyrd Monthly Painting Challenge is all about: Having fun painting! Motivating yourself, and encouraging others. Being part of a great, friendly community. Giving and receiving constructive advice. And, finally: Getting some pigment onto plastic! This is not a competition in any way. The pledge categories are the following: Minion: you paint at least 1 Soulstone worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Enforcer: you paint at least 6 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Henchman: you paint at least 11 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Master: you paint at least 16 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Tyrant: you paint at least 31 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month The rules: The challenge started on January 1st, 2020. Models count for the month in which you finish them. You can finish painting a model that you started before the beginning of the month. Everyone may fail to make their monthly goal twice and stay in the challenge. This is using a mulligan. See the Buy-Back rule, below. You can choose to go down a pledge level during the year, but you cannot move up. A model is considered painted if it is (1) based (even glued onto a black base counts); (2) tournament legal. That means that if it's a translucent, based model, it counts automatically. If it is any opaque material, then the standard is: Every part of the miniature painted, and three colours minimum. A new rule for 2020: The Buy-Back Everyone has good months and bad months. To encourage people to continue to paint, we will be trying out a new rule this year: the Buy-Back. In the past, if you have used your two mulligans, you’re out of the Challenge! However, in 2020, you can buy your way back into the challenge. All you have to do is to undertake your normal pledge and paint for the month, AND undertake the pledge and paint from one of the months you mulliganed. E.g.: Sarah is painting at Enforcer level (6SS/month), and she’s needed to mulligan for the third time. She announces that for the upcoming month, she’ll paint 12SS. If she does so, she’s back in the Challenge! At such a time, it might be worthwhile considering dropping down a category, but that’s up to Sarah! Miniature Values: Malifaux Almost all models count as their Soulstone value; but Masters count for 15 soulstones. Zero cost models count for 5 soulstones. Proxies (constructed from Wyrd models) count for their proxy value. The Other Side Titans count for 25 soulstones. Commanders count for 15 soulstones. Adjunct models count for 5 soulstones. Otherwise: A 30mm base model is worth 5 soulstones. A 40mm base model is worth 7 soulstones. A 50mm base model is worth 10 soulstones. Markers count for 2 soulstones if they're flat, or 5 soulstones if they're 3D and fancy Terrain · Scatter Piece (5SS): A modest piece of terrain, or a small number of scattered terrain pieces. These are the spray-can and dry-brush pieces. · Focus Piece (10SS): A terrain piece that represents a focal point of pride in a terrain board. These pieces require a decent amount of construction and painting. · Centre Piece (20SS): A terrain piece that is a significant centrepiece to the terrain. A handmade forest, a mausoleum, or a train engine. · Masterpiece (50SS): A gorgeous, unique terrain piece that makes people wonder if you get out much. · War and Peace (100SS): A complete, themed 3’x3’ terrain board. My very best for February, and 2020! Caedrus.

Caedrus, checking in! We're getting towards the end of the month, and I have four miniatures on the 'maybe if I try really hard, I could get them done' pile. However, for the moment, rather than doing any real work, I've been looking at everyone's work. In my opinion, the best thing about this forum is the support given. There's so much to like. So many different styles. Anyway, here's a very quick series of thoughts. @Monkeyfist: Nice colour contrast. Purple and turquoise is right up there on my favourite combination list (alongside black and tan!). You gotta put some blood on the ground, though! @thatlatinspeakingguy: I do love that Benny. I have just acquired a cat version for when I do my Curiosity set. I’m just one miniature away from finishing my December keyword! @Hellomurse: That’s probably the highest SS count I’ve seen for a long, long time. Kudos on churning through the miniatures! Nice continuity with the turquoise glow effects. @Stranglelove: I do love the muted tones of your painting. Is that Abuela the 1st edition metal? You’ve capture the granny face so well! @Harlekin: Welcome on board. I really, really like the shadowing you’ve achieved on your fabric. Those crooligans are tiny, so I know it’s not easy. The shadowy fabric on the female crooligan is particularly nice. @Wintergloom: As I mentioned to @Monkeyfist, I do love this colour combination. That’s the first finished ‘grown up’ Dreamer I’ve seen. Really nice. I reckon 2SS/marker is pretty fair. I’ll put that into the costings page for February onwards. @muraki: Was the Avatar mostly airbrushed? I’m an absolute novice at the airbrushing arts. The green continuity is nice. Will he be your Emissary? The photo looks a bit washed out, so I don't know about contrast on it. @Purple Mist: I absolutely love that pale blue/green for scenery. It's atmospheric without detracting from the game. @Viruk: Love that Raspy crew. For me, the highlight is the Wendigo. The opaque to translucent is very nice. Have you ever tried using Tamiya X22 on translucents? @TeaCrusader: I’ve had my Arcane Emissary on the shelf for ages. I just can’t seem to start it. Yours is inspirational. I reckon the blue / metal contrast is spot on. If you're feeling brave, have a bash at doing the flame effects (the blue version of this). @lusciousmccabe: You forgot the bicarb soda! Seriously though, this miniature is so stark and really lonely. I love it. @Pastori: If that’s your first blacklining, you’ve started brilliantly. Those bases are lovely – sculpted? I like the subtle effects of shadowing for the white fabric. Very smooth, very subtle. @Boomstick: I bought this boxed set purely on the miniatures. You’ve really brought that character out. They look fun. @Polar43: I know they’re WIPs, but I do like the highlighting you’ve done over your purple tots. It looks like a tan / purple mix. Whatever it is, I like it. @Magnus: Wow! They are super-saturated in colour. I thought I went big with saturation. I love those Mah minis. I’d love to see them on table! @Antinea: Far from botched. I hope to start my Viks soon. I was thinking browns or blacks, but the rich blue on your Student might sway me in another direction. Great colour choice. @Obskeree: I love that yellow on the Charm Warder! What colour is that? @zesty: This is just an opinion, but I’d put your starter set miniatures at, at least, high tabletop. For a six hour effort, they’re awesome. Very neat. The cool whites are my favourite (and the tan smock on the orderly), but they’re all very, very nice. @PetitDalek: I bought this same roller! You’ve probably thought of this, but: I’ve been wetting a finger and smoothing out the green stuff about 30 minutes after rolling, to get rid of the 3D printing marks. Beautiful bases though. I am such a fan of a pretty base. @Yore Huckleberry: I’d love to see more of your Charles. What metallics are you using? @Nikodemus: That Yasunori face and mane is absolutely superb. @GlowingFruit: As others have said yellow is the weakest pigment, so a brown>tan>mustard buildup is often a good way to go. Nice work on Burt – the red leg vs green flesh ads to the chaos around this mini! Anyway, those are my thoughts. Please do give people feedback and critique - positive or instructive! Caedrus.

@Diddick: I think that's the nicest Benny I've seen. Kudos!

@khilin: absolutely, and welcome!

Caedrus, reporting in with a WIP Update! I've been chipping away at my Shelf of Shame for some time, and these miniatures are all under the categories of "If I can just get these done, that keyword is completely painted", OR "Just finish the damn miniature, will you?" First up, a proxy miniature, The Dispatcher! For those who haven't seen my painting before, my Malifaux tends to be less Old-West, more Victorian-Steampunk-Lovecraftian. Expect lots of brass and brown! My NMM Brass isn't the best, but I'm slowly learning. I also tend to plan just as much as I paint, so the keywords (and often the faction), will often have a unifying colour and/or base. My Guild all tend to have a lot of red. I also tend to go for fairly highly saturated painting styles. Anyway, I liked this Wild West Exodus Dispatcher-Proxy. He seemed to fit the bill perfectly, at least until the proper one is more readily available! Next up, some Silent Ones! With only the Blessed of December to go, these had been sitting there for ages. I wasn't originally a fan of the sculpt (nor the appearance of her left leg, which appears to have a tibial plateau fracture). However, the more I painted, the more I enjoyed these figures. Finally, a miniature that I'm quite proud of: Envy! This was an eBay rescue, stripped and rebased, and (once again) given the Caedrus-NMM-Brass treatment! This miniature was a big time investment. So many layers of yellows and browns. I'm slowly getting there with the NMM. I was pleased with the trompe-l'oiel wood, and moderately pleased with the heat bloom on the gatling guns. I'm thinking of adding some flying pieces of sheet music, and perhaps some shell casings. What do you think? As always, folks, your critique and feedback is so very welcome! I hope your 2020 is starting fantastically, and I look forward to seeing all your works! Caedrus.

@Monkeyfist, @Nikodemus: No worries. Stupid Australian Internet 🤷‍♂️

Caedrus, reporting in! Hi All, I've been juggling lots of things this month, and trying to sneak in some painting as well. I'll get a WIP up very soon, but in the meantime, I have started the Sheets for the 2020 Challenge. The document is HERE. I encourage you to have a quick look, and let me know if there's any issues or problems. @lusciousmccabe, @PetitDalek, @Polar43, and @TeaCrusader, I'm not sure if I have your actual pledge level. You've been defaulted to Minion, but happy to change it. Let me know. @Monkeyfist: Your update is only showing text to me, rather than a link. It might be just me. @Franchute: While I'm saddened that you won't be taking part, please do drop in, critique, and show us what you've been up to! For those newer to the Challenge, Franchute ran the Challenge for a few years, and is an excellent painter. Caedrus.

Caedrus, checking in for December! So, in December, I had these grand plans for doing an oil-paint based Beastman. I got things started, and then promptly lost my paints in the December Christmas rush. So, I have extended the Beastman Challenge by a couple of months. In January, you can expect the oil paint Beastman, but in the meantime, here's a Beastman painted with an emphasis on glazing and high-highlighting. Of course, this miniature doesn't show much of the subtler glazing well (such as blue glazing in less-lit areas, and some of the blade colour glazes. It also represents a time commitment that is far beyond what would normally be put into a standard warrior in a large force. Nonetheless, he was fun to paint, and glazing practice never hurts (I'm super-impatient in glazing!) Have a great 2020, and I'll wrap up this challenge in the next couple of months! Caedrus.

Greetings fellow painters! I hope you have a fantastic New Year, and that 2020 brings you an amazing year. For January, my pledge will be something from my Shelf of Shame TM, which includes: Envy; A Latigo; 2 Silent Ones; Cojo Proxy; 2 Mounted Riders; and/or The Dispatcher (proxy). My Shelf of Shame!

Welcome to the 2020 Wyrd Painting Challenge! This is the thread for the January Painting Challenge. I’m Caedrus, and I have the very great pleasure of being your host for 2020. While I am proud to be your host, this competition belongs to all of us, and if there’s anything that we can better to improve the Challenge, please do let me know. If you have friends interested in taking part in the challenge, please let them know! The link to the painter spreadsheet is HERE, and I’ll provide a link as soon as it is (semi-)finalised. The 2020 Wyrd Monthly Painting Challenge is all about: Having fun painting! Motivating yourself, and encouraging others. Being part of a great, friendly community. Giving and receiving constructive advice. And, finally: Getting some pigment onto plastic! This is not a competition in any way. The pledge categories are the following: Minion: you paint at least 1 Soulstone worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Enforcer: you paint at least 6 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Henchman: you paint at least 11 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Master: you paint at least 16 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month Tyrant: you paint at least 31 Soulstones worth of Wyrd miniatures each month The rules: The challenge starts on January 1st, 2020. Models count for the month in which you finish them. You can finish painting a model that you started before the beginning of the month. Everyone may fail to make their monthly goal twice and stay in the challenge. This is using a mulligan. See the Buy-Back rule, below. You can choose to go down a pledge level during the year, but you cannot move up. A model is considered painted if it is (1) based (even glued onto a black base counts); (2) tournament legal. That means that if it's a translucent, based model, it counts automatically. If it is any opaque material, then the standard is: Every part of the miniature painted, and three colours minimum. A new rule for 2020: The Buy-Back Everyone has good months and bad months. To encourage people to continue to paint, we will be trying out a new rule this year: the Buy-Back. In the past, if you have used your two mulligans, you’re out of the Challenge! However, in 2020, you can buy your way back into the challenge. All you have to do is to undertake your normal pledge and paint for the month, AND undertake the pledge and paint from one of the months you mulliganed. E.g.: Sarah is painting at Enforcer level (6SS/month), and she’s needed to mulligan for the third time. She announces that for the upcoming month, she’ll paint 12SS. If she does so, she’s back in the Challenge! At such a time, it might be worthwhile considering dropping down a category, but that’s up to Sarah! Miniature Values: Malifaux Almost all models count as their Soulstone value; but Masters count for 15 soulstones. Zero cost models count for 5 soulstones. Proxies (constructed from Wyrd models) count for their proxy value. The Other Side Titans count for 25 soulstones. Commanders count for 15 soulstones. Adjunct models count for 5 soulstones. Otherwise: A 30mm base model is worth 5 soulstones. A 40mm base model is worth 7 soulstones. A 50mm base model is worth 10 soulstones. Terrain · Scatter Piece (5SS): A modest piece of terrain, or a small number of scattered terrain pieces. These are the spray-can and dry-brush pieces. · Focus Piece (10SS): A terrain piece that represents a focal point of pride in a terrain board. These pieces require a decent amount of construction and painting. · Centre Piece (20SS): A terrain piece that is a significant centrepiece to the terrain. A handmade forest, a mausoleum, or a train engine. · Masterpiece (50SS): A gorgeous, unique terrain piece that makes people wonder if you get out much. · War and Peace (100SS): A complete, themed 3’x3’ terrain board. How to upload images? Go to imgur.com, and create an account. Click on your account, click on 'images', and then 'add images'. Click on your uploaded image. You'll see a whole bunch of link options. Click on the 'copy' button next to 'direct link'. Go to your Wyrd Forum thread. Paste (CTRL-V) at the appropriate spot. The image should appear, resized appropriately to the page. My very best for January, and 2020! Caedrus.

I look forward to reading this in depth. A huge effort @Vangerdahast!

@Yore Huckleberry: There will be a monthly thread, which I set up just before the start of each month. Many painters photograph their pledge, and/or a Work-In-Progress (WIP), and/or any completed minis, for fame and feedback! I start a Google Sheets public spreadsheet for the year to track painters. Have a look at the previous threads, and they will give you a better idea of what I mean!

Hi All, I've been deliberately quiet on this thread, as I wanted to let people consider and discuss the proposals, but also to give people a chance to put forward their own ideas. I'll respond now (just because I am planning the January Challenge thread). Rmember, this is just Caedrus' opinion! Buy-Back My opinion is that @Shock & Awe and @Rathnard have come up with a good solution. To that end, I propose the following for the 2020 Challenge intro text: "Everyone has good months and bad months. To encourage people to continue to paint, we will be trying out a new rule this year: the Buy-Back. In the past, if you have used your two mulligans, you’re out of the Challenge! However, in 2020, you can buy your way back into the challenge. All you have to do is to undertake your normal pledge and paint for the month, AND undertake the pledge and paint from one of the months you mulliganed. E.g.: Sarah is painting at Enforcer level (6SS/month), and she’s needed to mulligan for the third time. When the next month comes around, Sarah announces that for the month, she’ll paint 12SS. If she does so, she’s back in the Challenge! At such a time, it might be worthwhile considering dropping down a category, but that’s up to Sarah!" What do people think of this? Terrain Disclaimer: I am biased on this topic. On one hand, I absolutely love good terrain, and I am personally guilty of not getting into it as much as I would like! As @Wintergloom very rightly states, there are varying qualities of terrain painting. On the other hand, I think that people should feel encouraged to have terrain, and not feel under pressure to meet a standard, as @lusciousmccabe said. Would something like this work (citing visual examples such as the ones Wintergloom found (thank you! 😊) Scatter Piece (5SS): A modest piece of terrain, or a small number of scattered terrain pieces. These are the spray-can and dry-brush pieces. Focus Piece (10SS): A terrain piece that represents a focal point of pride in a terrain board. These pieces require a decent amount of construction and painting. Centre Piece (20SS): A terrain piece that is a significant centrepiece to the terrain. A handmade forest, a mausoleum, or a train engine. Masterpiece (50SS): A gorgeous, unique terrain piece that makes people wonder if you get out much. War and Peace (100SS): A complete, themed terrain board. Opinions are very welcome here, folks! Does anyone else have any thoughts about how the Challenge can be improved? All views are welcome! Caedrus.

Caedrus, checking in! Well, as Christmas approaches, and I am unsure just how much painting I am going to get done, I finished off at least one mini! Behold, Lord Chompy Bits! I shall check back in soon with an end-of-month wrap-up, but until then, have a great festive period! Caedrus.

Or even after that!