I might as well get the big personal news out of the way. The condo buying process has taken several big leaps forward. After my fiancée and I offered and haggled a bit, our offer was accepted. We had a home inspection this week that went fairly well all things considered and now we just have to negotiate some repairs with the seller and we have a new condo! It is almost double the size of the current apartment we are leasing and I should have a substantially bigger hobby room. I would say that a display case will eventually make its way there which will be really cool to have and fill up. Best of all, the condo is so quiet compared to this one. I imagine we’ll be moving sooner than later considering the neighbor situation but I’ll certainly keep you all updated, particularly as moving will pause my hobbying at some point.
To my surprise, I’ve been able to paint a pretty good amount this week and so I made solid progress on the mini I need to paint up for my next game of Fallout. I wouldn’t say that I’ve had a lot of joy working on this one but I think it is coming around and parts of it look nice. The underbelly and arms of the Deathclaw really look nice and break up the monotony of painting the gray on the rest of him.
My greatest frustration has been that I just can’t get enough contrast going on this sculpt. There are so many little bumps and the crevices in its scales/skin are shaded with the dirt color so this means that you don’t have the space to go from a near black to a shiny spot on its scales like in the game. Hopefully this still ends up looking good in the end. I’ve certainly tried to match the game art as much as I can on this one. Here is a look at the side that is pretty much done (barring the head) and maybe some touch ups as well. I’ll keep pressing on with this and see if I can’t get it done by next week and move onto something more fun to paint.
Last week I teased that I had been thinking about other game systems and its true, I have been. I’m still on the hunt for a kind of back-up game to go along with Fallout. I actually gave some real thought to picking up Palaeo Diet again as the rules are simple and the model count is low. I did some thinking about it and I know why I haven’t bought any minis for it, in spite of owning the rulebook, it is hard for me to maintain enthusiasm for the setting. There are no caveman movies (well except for the amazing Encino Man of course!) or TV shows that I can think of that I enjoy and there aren’t a ton of books that I can find on the subject matter either. I think that is why I lost interest in the idea before I bought any miniatures. I also have some doubts about how replayable Palaeo Diet would be for me. I kind of think it would be play each scenario once and move on as the rules system is easy to pick up but doesn’t have tons of depth to it. That ultimately means I’d buy a bunch of miniatures and end up having to sell them later on. And what is the market like for painted Caveman minis? Probably not too hot compared to Warhammer or WWII for that matter. So that is why I think I’m unlikely to get serious about that setting in the near future.
Another idea that I wasn’t expecting to hit me and I’m still mulling it over is a game some of you probably have heard of called Pulp Alley. For one thing, I’ve been reading Lobster Johnson which is a character from the Hellboy universe that is a pulp superhero and a blast to read. Gaming in a similar setting could certainly be fun.
Pulp Alley is very solo-friendly and a low-model count skirmish game but it also overlaps with a couple of my interests. You can play 1920’s gangsters (big plus for me), you can play Lovecraftian horror (also a big plus), pulpy superheroes (like Lobster Johnson above), and you can use settings from all over the world (another huge plus). Terrain for that flexible of a setting could be a challenge but I think some Fallout terrain could carry over to Pulp Alley potentially.
A scarab must have bit me because I’ve had a hankering to paint some Egyptian themed minis and terrain lately. I don’t know a lot about that period of history but the visual style is so cool, especially if you have a chance to see some Egyptian relics firsthand at a science or history museum. I also really miss the Tomb Kings Warhammer army. I don’t believe I ever bought the minis GW made but I sure wish I had. They’re really overpriced and hard to find now that GW discontinued the army a while back. I always thought they had a great look and while Pulp Alley is something different than that, I still think it could be a way to take some of that motivation and harness it into a fun project. I even spotted some terrain designed to help you dungeon crawl in the corridors of a pyramid which would be tons of fun.
So anyway, this is just another possible idea. Ideas are cheap and having the time and energy to follow through are not so easy. I think I’d need to buy in to either the rulebook or see some of the scenarios (like the Egyptian themed ones) to see if this game could really work for me so its something I’m thinking about. Of course, peer pressure and positive encouragement may well lead me to make an impulsive purchase so by all means, do your worst in the comments below and we’ll see where I end up!
Kuribo's Painting 
Congrats on the new diggs. We’re at the other end of the housing spectrum, we just accepted an offer on our house, home inspection is next week, and should close in early June. It was good to be the seller with today’s market, but then comes the purchase of a new house.
What contrast you do have in the Deathclaw is all on the belly and that is hidden due to the miniature pose. I do like what you have completed, but I feel your pain as well.
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Thanks, Eric! I was worried that other buyers would come in and try to outbid us as the market in Chicago is really hot but that thankfully did not occur. I’d much rather be selling than buying too which how many people are out looking. I hope you’re able to navigate the rest of the selling and then buying process smoothly!
You described my pain with the Deathclaw really well. I’m going to have to see if I can’t do something to improve it so I feel a bit better about the final results. I feel more motivated now that I know someone else feels similarly so thank you for that!
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Congratulations on the Condo Jeff, hope it all progresses well and that you can soon be in your new place, enjoying the space and peace and quiet.
What you’ve done so far on the Death Claw so far looks great, and look forward to seeing the finished piece.
I think your approach to finding another system works, it needs to be something you will sustain interest in and covers subject material you’re interested in. The Pulp system seems to be a winner for you so far
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Thank you for the kind words all the way around, Dave! I’ve looked at a lot of games and have nearly bought I don’t know how many. Its almost like a once a month segment on my site. I’m lucky that all of you regular readers still humor me at this point! 🙂 To be a bit more serious, Pulp Alley does cover a lot more interests than I thought before writing this so that is pushing me more and more towards getting it! Thanks for sharing your take on the issue 🙂
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Congratulations mate! I had to look up what a condo is as it’s slightly different here but it sounds excellent with more space and not having the nutjob neighbours either.
The Deathclaw is looking really nice so far, and I’ve got no doubt that you’ll knock this one out of the park as well!
You could always go back into TWD for it’s solo rules and cross-compatability with a lot of the Fallout stuff, and hell – grab Pulp Alley as well since it’s a pretty broad game and only requires a book – and again, you’d be able to re-use almost any of your terrain depending on what scenario and characters you’re using.
You may also want to look into some miniatures boardgames – Zombicide and Hellboy are both good choices for solo play, the PVC minis are better than they’ve ever been, and you can always buy metal or resin substututes for the characters and opponents (and then use THOSE in TDW/Pulp Alley…)
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I just looked up the name for a condo in your part of the world and my jaw dropped. The differences between Australia and the US never fail to amaze! 🙂
Thanks for the kind words on the Deathclaw! I’m trying to get it done well and quick so we’ll see how it goes 🙂
In terms of your gaming suggestions, they’re all excellent and the cross-compatibility is spot-on too. I’ve definitely given Hellboy and Zombicide a look recently as both have appealing themes. I should have room for a couple of board games in the new place so those could be future purchases. It is a shame that Mantic did the Hellboy minis in a weird scale that nobody else uses. Its almost like they tried to keep everyone from using them in other systems beyond the board game 😦 Regardless, I love Hellboy and B.P.R.D. so the game is worth getting for that alone, I would imagine. Thanks for sharing your thoughts as always, mate! 🙂
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Huh. I didn’t realise the Hellboyt models were larger. I wonder if they’d be compatable with Marvel’s Crisis Protocol? 😀
And yeah, the differences surprised me as well, as I’d always thought that yours were the same as ours.
I guess it’s essentially another “truck” situation! (look that one up!) ;D
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Now that would be cool and appropriate! Who wouldn’t want to see Hellboy face off against Red Skull for example?
Google has failed me because I can’t find anything about truck beyond that it means like a semi-truck in your country (which is not too surprising). I guess you’re going to have to clue me in 😉
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Glad to see that you have made great progress on the home move, hope it all works out soon for you both. Can’t offer much advice on the game front other than to say go with whatever motivates you the most. As for the Death Claw it looks like you are nailing it so looking forward to seeing it finished. 🙂
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Thanks for the kind words mate and I do think your advice is very useful! If your gut is telling you that you want to do something (like build a huge diorama without having room to store it), you should definitely follow it so that is what I will do 😉
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Congrats with the condo!
Art aesthetics are very much down to personal taste. Mrs. GG and like more subtle contrasts than many folks so I love your Death Claw. It is magnificently contrasted with a subtle depth of contrast in the skin that is better than the in game graphics. I eagerly await the completion.
I have not played Pulp Alley but I hear a lot of good things about it. It should allow you to do some great Egyptian tomb crawling!
Expect the Tomb Kings to make a return when GW relaunches Warhammer Fantasy.
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Thank you, mate! I think the Deathclaw isn’t completely to my painting taste but it does look pretty close to the game art so I can certainly hang myself on that.
I hear similar good things about Pulp Alley and it honestly, seems about as up my alley as any game since it is solo friendly and narrative-driven so I might as well give it a go. The tombs are calling me after all! 🙂
I hope you’re right that Tomb Kings return in The Old World but I fear at the rate we’re going, you and I will be in a retirement home (practically Tomb Kings ourselves!) before it gets released!
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Congratulations on the condo! We just recently bought our own home after renting an apartment for years and are loving it, despite having to get used to things like “stairs” and “a kitchen you can actually move around in” 🙂
The Deathclaw looks great so far, you’ve got the lizardy skin down a treat!
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Thank you and congrats to you as well then, Matt! Maybe somebody out there rents and loves it but I’ve found owning your own place to be far more preferable here in the States anyway.
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‘What a scary looking monster! ‘ is what I initially thought but then I noticed what looked like a ring on the base and I thought ‘if that’s a ring then this is a rather small fellow. I’ve had hangnails that were more worthy of being called deathclaw’. But then I realized that the ring is supposed to be a car tire so he became scary again with the sense of size returned. I’m sure I’m not the only one to have that thought process. 😀
Congratulations on finding a condo. My advice; claim your hobby space first and bigger than you think you actually need. It will shrink as time goes on. 😀
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Little do you know, its actually the One Ring on the base there 😉 I do think I would watch a Youtube Series called Stew Reacts to Miniatures. Basically you would just share your thoughts about unpainted minis you’re not familiar with and try to describe what you think is there. Could be comedy gold! 😀
Thank you for the very helpful advice too 😉 Sadly, I played that card in this apartment when I took the second and only unused bedroom and resentment has been brewing for nearly three years. Now in the new place, I get the small bedroom to use as my own space. I think that strategy might have backfired on me a bit! 🙂
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Good news on the moving front and nice progress on Deathclaw! 🙂 I have absolutely no advice to offer on games stuff, which is maybe both a good and a bad thing!
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Cheers, John! You can always put in a good word for Bolt Action or your preferred WWII game of choice 😉
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I can’t even do that Jeff, since I use my own rules for WW2, but it’s always an interesting period to game!
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Ha, I thought to myself when I was writing my previous comment, what WWII game does John play exactly? I decided to guess Bolt Action but I was skeptical that is what rules you actually use! I imagine it is a little too Warhammer for your taste so I’m not the slightest bit surprised to hear you don’t play it! 🙂
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Congratulations and best wishes on the condo purchase continuing to move forward to a happy conclusion. The death claw is coming along; once you work your way through the contrast problems I hope it comes out to where you are happy with it.
Yes, back when I was running a D&D game, I would have had great fun putting together an adventure using that scenery.
You have a lot of ideas and such in the pipeline. I’ll look forward to seeing what you end up doing over the next couple of months. 🙂
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Thank you for the kind words! I never played D&D or any RPG so I just assumed that terrain was for wargaming but I think that my assumption is incorrect and it is mostly RPG players who use that kind of thing (go figure!). In all honesty, I probably have too many ideas but I’ll do my best to get them done anyway! 🙂
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Congrats on buying the condo! Having recently moved house myself, the extra space is just so nice to have!
The Deathclaw looks awesome! He looks very much like what you see in-game which is a great feat. Can’t wait to see him in action. 🙂
I’ve always been very fond of old Egypt, the aesthetic and history is just so beautiful and fascinating! Whatever game you decide upon, something that is themed or has potential to be themed in that way is a winner in my book.
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Thank you! I can’t wait to see what all I can do with the extra space I’ll be afforded 🙂
I keep telling myself that even if I don’t enjoy painting the Deathclaw, it will look like it does in the game and that is what really counts for this particular mini. We’ll see how I feel when I get it finished up later this week though.
I’m glad to hear that there will be at least one person excited about this project. It helps motivate you when you know other people have some interest in what you’re doing. I haven’t quite figured out what I’m going to buy first to get that project going but I’ll certainly report back when I do decide or making a purchase.
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