Vlka Fenryka: Lone Wolf Completed

The second of my Lone Wolves was completed pretty quickly. I'm really glad I put him on a nice base to make him stand out a bit - I think these solemn warriors need a bit of special attention.

The wolf pelts really helped make this generic Terminator a Space Wolf.

The Scibors Shoulder pad is perfect for this model; its helped make it pop a bit. The Wolf Claw was airbrushed to created the graduated tones.

This army is near enough done now. When I pick up the Fenrisian Wolves this weekend it'll be complete! Looking forward to giving them a run out on Sunday at club.

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka: Long Fangs Complete; Lone Wolf WIP

A random change of direction this week! I've had a squad of Long Fangs built and ready to go on my painting desk for about 2 years now, no joke! Last week I looked at them and thought, its about time I got you painted!

Its a bit of a rush job to be honest - I just wanted them done and out of the way so I didn't have to look at them guiltily anymore!

With the Vlka Fenryka on my mind I looked that the rest of the assembled force in my display cabinet. I realised that the army was only now 1 Lone Wolf and 4 Fenrisian Wolves away from completion! A buddy of mine had 4 Wolves for me which I'll collect at the weekend, so I set about making the last Lone Wolf.

I really didn't want to trawl eBay looking for parts, so I hopped I would find what I needed in my vast 'bits' collection. Fortunately I did. The main torso and body are generic Terminator parts, the arms are spare Wolf Guard parts as was the fur pelt. The left shoulder guard is from Scibors Miniatures as is the scenic base. I stuck on a couple of wolf skulls, tails and daggers to 'Space Wolf' it up a bit as well! For a mini that was 'Frankensteined' from spare parts, it turned out quite well.

An extra wolf pelt arm was glued to the left and side of the pelt to make it a bit more complete.

As this pelt didn't really fit properly onto the top of the generic Terminator torso, and the addition (and omission) of the pelt arm, some green stuff work was required. Certainly not complicated, but it really did the trick.

The base from Scibors is a beauty, and I totally forgot that I had these!

This is the Vlka Fenryka so far - when they're complete i'll take them to club, as surprisingly, they've never seen a game in the years that I've had them!

For the All-Father!

The GunGrave

Necron Doomsday Ark

Its been a slow week on the modelling front, for two reasons; firstly I’ve got s prolapsed spinal disc which makes it very painful to do anything but lay flat on the sofa!  Secondly, the excessive sofa laying has lead to an obsession with ‘Elder Scrolls IV: Skyrim’ that Mrs GunGrave kindly picked up for me to play over my 3 weeks sick leave!!

That being said, I did manage to get the finishing touches done on my first Doomsday Ark, as it was mostly complete before I was injured. 



Some more sinister engine-glowy-goodness!

The front of the Doomsday Cannon. I couldn't make the barrel glow with the same colour as the Gauss Blasters, because the paint is to thick and would kill my airbrush. A tiny glow of Scorpion Green was used instead.

Here's how the armies shaping up so far! Theres another Ghost Ark and Warrior squad in the post and should be here tomorrow (ordered before i hurt myself!) so the force is expanding rapidly. I hope for get some work done on them over the next 3 weeks.

I also received my Long fangs from eBay - eventually! Fortunately i only had to make a squad leader and the rest can stay as they are; albeit with a Space Wolf colour scheme. Gonna try and fit them in at some point soon.

That's where i am at the moment. With all this time off on my hands, I'm really hoping to hit the hobby hard next week, and even do some more work on the Apocalypse Terrain: Promethium Refinery project. Finishing the Aqueduct and Sewage Works Pump Station will be on the top of that list.

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka: Logan Grimnar Complete

No WIP shots for this guy - he unfortunately suffered the same treatment as Arjac, and stayed half finished for ages! So without further ado, here he is!

Pelt detail. Logans pelt is grey/white as opposed to the brown/white pelts found in the rest of the army. Firstly to differentiate him from the rest of the army, secondly, i wanted the Old Wolf to have the pelt of an old wolf as well!

The Axe of Morkai. I used an airbrush to apply the fuzzy red patches of Red Gore and then applied a Blood Red highlight down the length of the blade. I didn't want to use the frosty effect that I've used on the rest of the armies Power Weapons, as this is meant to be a Warp forged blade (which i find highly unusual considering the Wolves' aversion to the Warp - to the point where they won't use Telaporters!!) You'll also notice that I've left the right shoulder pad plain black. I wanted to apply the Great Wolf transfer onto the pad and paint over it in Skull White. This was bloody hard, so i scrapped the idea. So, when in doubt - do nothing! Until i think of  an easy way to get a white Great Wolf transfer onto his shoulder pad, it'll remain blank!

This brings me within spitting distance of army completion! Good job to with the new Necron Codex sitting on my desk and a pile of cool models! Just one more Lone Wolf and a squad of Long Fangs (which are on their was from eBay) and we're good!

Then I'll be turning my attentions to chrome-clad immortality.....

Until next winter.....

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka - Arjac Rockfist Complete

The poor guys finally been completed, after weeks of neglect!

Cloak and pelt details. The Anvil from a fantasy Dwarf banner top is just perfect!



 I made Arjac a Blonde-Bombshell to make him stand out a little more! The usual grey i use for beards gets a bit boring!

Here is Arjac with the rest of his squad. They'll be deployed via Drop Pod in games! They should pack quite a punch!

This army is rapidly approaching completion, and i'm eager to try it out on the table top! Next up is Logan Grimnar, followed by a Long Fang Squad and a Lone Wolf. More on them next week.

Until Next Winter.....

The GunGrave



Sewage Processors WT-1B and WT-1C Completed!

Here they are in all their disgusting glory!

Same paint scheme to match the larger processor. The stencils came out really well again!

I added some rust detailing on these smaller processors using MIG weathering powders.

More of Army Painters Quickshade 'Strong Tone' for the water effects.

Here's a shot of all the processors together, and some more helpful volunteers from the Vostroyan Firstborn!



Because these terrain pieces are so large, it wouldn't take much more terrain to fill a 6x4 board. With this in mind, I'm considering making a few more 'sewage/water treatment' themed pieces to go with this lot. I may make some more processors if the right materials come my way, but i think I'll try doing some of the more common processors that are submerged into the ground. A control station/building may also be on the cards!

But before all that, i need to finish off poor Arjac! With a day off on Friday, I'll get him squared away before i start anything else!

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka - Arjac Rockfist

The man-mountain himself! Out of the handful of conversions i had to do for this army, this one excited me the most! It would also be the most difficult to get right.

That being said, this conversion was done with the minimum of fuss, mainly using existing parts from various sources. I'm very very pleased with the outcome!

Have a peek for yourselves:

I've tried to recreate this picture of Arjac from the codex:

It seems to capture him perfectly, so i wanted to reflect this in the mini itself.

Most of the parts you'll recognise from the Space Wolf Terminator sets. The shield is from Scibors miniatures with the iconography of a SW Storm Shield stuck to the front. I loved the cloak, but I didn't fancy the hanging arm of the wolf pelt on his back, so i left that off and filled the gap with Green Stuff. Some Green Stuff work was also required on the shoulder joint of the left arm to get the Storm Shield raised enough. Aside from that, no other serious conversion work was needed! Then finally, the Anvil on his back! This was a bit of a pain to decide on, but a buddy from Club suggested that i use a fantasy Dwarf banner top! Lady eBay was kind enough to oblige, and i got one for about £2. Perfect!

Just a paint job now. I really want to do this model justice, so I'll take my time with him.

Until next winter.....

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka - Lone Wolf Completed

This guy took me longer than i thought! But i did want to spend a little bit  more time on the 'Heros' of this army:

I'm very pleased with him, but he's not quite as striking as i would have liked him to be. I am rather pleased with his right shoulder pad though! These are the names of his lost Pack Mates who he strives to avenge in battle! A nice touch i thought!

I tried something different with the armour this time. I used an airbrush to apply the Space Wolf Grey base coat and watered down Badab Black wash (as usual). Then i used the airbrush to create areas of shade by applying 2 further layers of lightened Space Wolf Grey to the raised areas. It worked OK, but i need to practice a bit more on the close up airbrush work. I over did it on a few areas. essentially though i like the look, and will try it again on the other Heroes.

As for weathering - well i stared at this model for ages trying to decide on paint chips, etc!! As i couldn't make decision, i left  it.....for now anyways! It night come later.

Next up its Arjac Rockfist! The last part i needed for  the conversion came through the post yesterday, so they'll be more on him of Monday!

Until next winter.....

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka - Lone Wolf WIP

Well, most of the work is actually done! All it needs now is a cracking paint job!

This, the first of two Lone Wolves, was based/inspired by this piece of artwork:

I love the raw aggression in this piece and I really wanted to capture a bit of that in this model; the anger, the violence, and the pain of loosing your pack mates!

I acknowledge that the mini doesn't really resemble the artwork much! The swinging axe is as far as the similarities go, but you  get the gist!

The bulk of the model is made from Space Wolf parts, cut, repositioned and modified in one way or another! The legs are from a SM Assault marine, and the base is from those awesome dudes over at Scibors Monstrous miniatures! I'm using large 40mm bases for all the 'Heros' in the army to help make them suitably heroic!

I'm currently in the process of making the legendary Arjac Rockfist! More on that soon!

Until next winter.....

The GunGrave

My First Finecast - Logan Grimnar

I've finally bitten the bullet and taken on my first Finecast model. After all the bad reviews I've seen and heard, i was not looking forward to it!

I've mounted Logan on a Scibor Snow Base; suitably dramatic for a charicter of his stature! The smooth 'melted' bits on the base will be covered in snow-flock once done, so it'll fit in nicely with the rest of the army. As he's only got one foot firmly on the base, i've pinned him on.

Having inspected the model, i feel that i got off quite lightly. There was a defect on the Axe of Morkai handle, where it meets the hand. It was barley attached to the model, and fell away soon after i removed it from the packaging. I pinned it back in place and filled in the gaps with Green Stuff.

On the left leg there was a hell of a mould line, which revealed a 'trench' like defect beneath it. This was filled and filed quite easily.

Finally there was a small hole in the right ear of the pelt on Logan's back. It was to small to take a picture of, and was no problem to sort.

Overall, my opinion of Finecast is unchanged - its still a pile of shite! Although i got away with getting a model with minimal major defects. the overall quality is TERRIBLE! A lot of the 'smooth' armour surfaces had to be filed flat for one reason or another, and a fair bit of the details were filled with flash which had to be scooped out with the tip of a scalpel.

On the plus side, i heard a rumor that Finecast has its days numbered, and GW may be scrapping the whole thing. How true this is i don't know, as it seems unlikely to me that they would do this. On the other hand, given the quality of the product, they may be making a massive loss and discontinuation of the product may be the only viable option. I live in hope!!

Thankfully this is the only Finecast i need for this army. We'll see how it paints up over the next few days!

Until next winter.....

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka - Second Drop Pod Complete

The second and final Drop Pod for this army is done.

Much like the first. The only difference here is that i was a bit  more confident with the weathering powers while doing the scorch marks. I was wary of overdoing the scorching, especially as it was on such a light base! I do like the look of  this Pod though over the first, and will probably go back and add a bit more scorching onto the first later!

Until next winter.....

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka - Rhino Rush!

The Rhinos are done! Now the Grey Hunters won't have to walk to battle anymore! Take a look:

Rhino 1

Rhino 2

Front Armour Detail

Side Armour Detail

As far as paint schemes go, they're quite plain and bland. I'm really glad i added the Forgeworld doors now!! I threw around some embellishment ideas for a bit, but none of them really did it for me. So i went with my gut and these were the results. I am really pleased with them, but i won't be surprised if i look at them in a few months time and start accessorising! Im happy with the usual weathering that i've applied as well - clean vehicles just don't do it for me!

So the Space Wolf army project is blasting along at full steam, and the painting desk is now occupied by a half painted Drop Pod, the second for the army. I was planing to have a crack at Logan, but i decided to knock out the Pod quickly so it was out of the way!

Move Wolves soon!

Until next winter.....

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka - Second Wolf Guard Terminator Squad Complete

Well, they're sorta' complete! This squad is of course missing the legendary Arjac Rockfist, who'll be converted and painted separately. So for the time being, its a four-man show!

Here's all the Wolf Guard Terminators to date! Looking bad-ass!

On the table now is the pair of Rhinos that i pictured a few posts ago. Got a day off on Friday, so they'll get some attention. Then it'll be time for me to sample the notorious Finecast and tackle Logan Grimnar!

Until next winter.....

The GunGrave

Vlka Fenryka - Wolf Guard Terminator Squad Complete

Yesterday i woke up early, determined to get a squad of Wolf Guard done! Work started at around 0900, and by 2000 they were finished!

I'm very pleased with them and the way that the colour scheme translated so well onto the Terminator armour. I wasn't able to get the yellow and black scheme of the Wolf Guard on the left shoulder pad, as the Great Wolf transfer is black! To get aroound this, i split the colours between the shoulder pads. I also decided to make a feature our of the power weapons, and went with a nice frosty look! I love it!

With the release of Gears of War 3 yesterday, i can't see me getting much done over the next few days as i wile away the hours chopping Locust in half with a chainsaw while wearing my most satisfied smile!! Happy days!
Until next winter.....

The GunGrave