Thursday 27 August 2015


Hello! After a week hiatus and a short break in New York I'm back to hammer at the gates of a Terra once again. In this article I will share my thoughts on basing and how I went about creating the million, million fallen monuments that littered the ground at the siege of Terra.   


One of the appealing aspects of collecting a Heresy army is thinking about where it is placed in the timeline. The basing can contextualise a force. It can tell you where the warriors are fighting and tell you a little about the character of the force itself. An Imperial Fist force taking arms and armament from the Red Sands of Mars would look different from VII defending an outpost on an ice world. 

The mythos of the Blood Angels defending the Imperial Palace has been an enduring image since childhood. What is more evocative that the epic final battle of mankind on the homeward of the species?  But what does Terra look like? Well thankfully there have been many pieces of art published over the years. Below are some of my favourites. 




I imagine the imperial palace to be a place of palatial gardens, administration buildings, villas and monuments from all the ages of mankind. A phrase came to mind: “We wage the final war of mankind choking amid the pummelled ruins of a million, million cultures.' I want to convey that the ruins of the Imperial Palace was positively choked with monuments and the rarest works of art a galaxy spanning empire has produced. The artillery smashing down on these grounds would create a a fog of pulverised masonry. But again we have to ask ourselves, how do we go about creating this? 

In comes power putty and the 1:33 scale busts. The busts were bought from eBay. They are Chinese reproductions (there's a joke in here somewhere about Chinese knock offs and Forgeworld but jet lag dulls the senses wonderfully) and are made from plaster. The idea is to create impressions of the states with the putty, then use more putty to create negatives. 






Step one: mix up the putty and coat the statue with vaseline. This putty has a setting time of about five minutes so you don't have to wait long. 




Step two: mix up more putty and press into the recess of the mould you have made. Wait another five minutes and voila. Although these casts won't be as sharp as the originals, they don't need to be. You can drill into them, add jutting spars of supporting metal, or add bullet holes. With weathering powders and other basing materials you can create some handsome bases for your own army. 





For three dimensional bases you can break up the originals. I did this by drilling through them with a Dremel then super glueing them to the base. 

The next stage was the painting. I’ve been experimenting with marble effects and I thought I’d be adventurous and extend it across an entire army. The marble technique I use is quite simple but involves lots of layers and brush technique that I can’t really explain in a step by step tutorial. But I will try and put a very basic outline in another article. 






Saturday 15 August 2015



Have I mentioned this painting course already?
Animosity presents - Batman Miniature Game Worldwide Tournament 2015 (UK), on the 26th of September at Wollaton Hall. The 26th is officially DC Comics Batman Day.
Some of you will be aware that Animosity has close ties with Lil Legend http://loserstudio.blogspot.co.uk/ and on the 26th the Studio will be joining us at Wollaton Hall, Nottingham, to provide a day long airbrush tutorial, focusing on the Arkham City Batman by Knight Models.
The Lil Legend Studio Airbrush Tutorial
Animosity and Lil Legend Studios are proud to offer the opportunity for hobbyists to participate in a one day Airbrush Tutorial under the stewardship of Lil Legend Studios.
Attendees will be able to develop and learn new painting skills as they are tutored throughout the day by the talented Myles David.
The tutorial takes place at Wollaton Hall on the 26th of September parallel to the Batman Miniatures Game Worldwide Tournament.
With the support of Knight Models, each participant will receive their own Batman Miniatures Game, Arkham City Batman Miniature. The Lil Legend will guide students through the painting of the Batman.
Prior to attending the course please email
animositywargaming@outlook.com to confirm availability as Level ONE and Level TWO tickets are limited.
Participation has two levels.
Level ONE
Course Participant – One to one tuition from the Lil Legend. To participate in the course you will require a Participant’s ticket. Tickets for participating are £55, made payable via PayPal to animositywargaming@outlook.com
When purchasing the ticket please leave a note with your contacts details, including full name, phone number, and valid email address (this is where we will send your e-ticket).
Participants will receive one to one tuition from Myles, as he guides you through the painting of Arkham City Batman.
To attend you will require…
• One e-ticket (which will be emailed to the address provided by you upon Paypal purchase)
• Your Airbrush
• Your Airbrush Cleaning Kit
• A lamp with a day light bulb
• Kitchen Roll
• Paints (A good varied selection is best, concentrating on moody colours)
• Palette (wet or dry)
• Brushes
• Oil and Enamel washes (optional)
• Notepad
• Pen or Pencil
Level TWO
Course Observer – The chance to see the Lil Legend in action. To Observe the course you will require an Observer Ticket. Tickets for observing are £10, made payable via Paypal to animositywargaming@outlook.com
When purchasing the ticket please leave a note with your contacts details, including full name, phone number, and valid email address (this is where we will send your e-ticket).
Observers will be able to view the course in its entirety and will be given the opportunity to ask questions at scheduled intervals.
To attend you will require…
• One e-ticket (which will be emailed to the address provided by you upon Paypal purchase)
• Notepad
• Pen or Pencil
In order to provide all Level ONE participants with thorough one to one tuition it is necessary that tickets are limited. Observers must please be aware that the course will require the full attention of the tutor unless it is a scheduled Q+A period.

Friday 14 August 2015











"Lo, a shadow of horror is risen 
In Eternity! Unknown, unprolific,
Self-clos'd, all-repelling: what demon
Hath form'd this abominable void,
This soul-shudd'ring vacuum? Some said
"It is Urizen." But unknown, abstracted,
Brooding, secret, the dark power hid. "

Chapter 1, Urizen.



Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush
Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes

I believe this is my fourth Lorgar, painting him felt like revising an old friend. I went over my original notes and drafted a new set for the Word Bearers before this project. It allowed me to re-read First Heretic and Betrayer which is never a hard ship. The major difference between this and the older versions is the freehand on the cloak. Instead of a literal image taken from Blake I recreated the strange Colchisian cruciform found on his armour. 

The hardest part of any Lorgar commission will be depicting his golden skin. Metallics are notoriously hard to photograph and do not have a great range when it comes to defining the features of a face. Shadows and highlights change in different light conditions so keeping control of these things is difficult. 

Expect to see plenty of more Primarch Commissions rolling in over the next couple of months. 

Myles







Tuesday 11 August 2015


This post will be light on the philosophy and is more of a catch up of where we are. Painting is in full swing. 18 marines have had the airbrush layers put on and will be pushed into the brush stage. 
I've completed the squad Sgt. as a tester for the rest and I'm very pleased with the result. 





I've added a decal of the Legion symbol but I won't be adding any more as I'm not sure if Forge World will change it to a more nostalgic version. I won't be adding much in the way of detail to the models either - again waiting for Forge World to release a few colour plates so I have a feel of the secondary colours used and the patterns.






Dynameis - Literally translates as Powers but has connotations of Strength, miracles, but more strongly expressed as exceptional miracles (Renweal Theology: Systematic Theology from a Charismatic Perspective pg 156). Strange that miracles have a hierarchy - what would a mundane miracle be? 

The Dynameis are my terminator unit. The first creation was a terminator with parts from the Sanguinary Guard, Phoenix Terminators and the Cataphractii kit. In battle I imagine these guys are dropped like an anchor from which the Blood Angel support elements can build or face from. These guys are the back bone of a dynamic assault. Like all Blood Angels their armour is individually decorated and crafted with an eye to aesthetic beauty - an echo from Baalite culture.  

The second unit had to be 20 Tactical Legionnaires. Unlike their 40K descendants, Tactical marines could be taken in swathes. The silhouette of a 40K marine army is different to a 30K one, the Sicarans, Contemptors, Primarchs and Superheavies all make a distinct impression on the field. 




Sunday 9 August 2015









Once a devout believer in all that the Imperium stood for, at the Battle of Calth it was clear to those who witnessed the atrocities he masterminded that Zardu Layak, the Crimson Apostle, had fallen completely into darkness along with the rest of the Word Bearers Legion. 

Suffused in dark powers which he used freely to destroy minds and bodies, Zardu Layak walked his bloody path accompanied by a pair of bodyguards, each unnaturally warped and contorted and possessed of great strength. Wielding the Anakatis blades, gifts bestowed upon them by Layak and weapons of unholy xenos influence and malevolent power, they cut a swathe through their master’s foes in a barely controlled hunger for slaughter. 


Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush
Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes




Wednesday 5 August 2015






The First Captain of the Death Guard Legion once pursued the role of Epistolary in the Legion's Librarius, but with the Primarch Mortarion harbouring a deep-rooted distrust of those who wield the powers of the psyker, Typhon suppressed his gift and strove instead to serve as a war leader. His strength, skill and demeanour led him to high rank indeed, culminating in his command of the potent and unique war ship Terminus Est and the deadly alchemical payload held within its arsenal.


Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush
Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes



Sunday 2 August 2015







"And of them, Manus was the key. Implacable. Unshakeable. If he was at your side, he would never break."


Paints used: Vallejo, Reaper Master Series, Games Workshop Washes, Com Art Medea Airbrush
Paint Brushes: Rosemary & Co. Raphael 8040, Broken Toad Brushes