Sunday, August 21, 2011

Helms Deep Project Pic's - FINISHED PRODUCT!!!!

Ok as you guys can tell from the title - I am VERY excited about finishing this. This has been a tremendous undertaking for me and it has been a LOT of fun - as I have heard from quite a few of my friends (and of which I am really starting to believe as well) - That I have quite a talent for this kind of thing. With that said, I hope all of you enjoy this as much as I have enjoyed building it.

Ok, Now on to the pictures.

















These first 2 pictures shows the removable section of the Deeping Wall - I made it so a 5 man Fantasy tray could move through it easily without having to reform or remove any models.
















This section of wall was added so that we could extend the table later on if we wanted to.


















These 3 pictures show the changes we have done to the front of the keep - We have added a decorative strip along the front and have connected the secret door to the ramp (still leaving enough of a gap to warrant a jump test for LOTR games)





We decided to go with a set of stairs instead of a ramp to lead up onto the second story of the keep and we also decided to leave the possibility of an armoury for the possible future expansion.

Roughly the only thing left for us to build is the drop-gate directly above the doorway - I have a general idea for it but I hadnt been able to implement it yet.

Also one of my friends is going to be doing a video of the entire project today (hopefully) so I will post the link when he's able to upload it.

There are a minimum of 2 more projects that I have in mind that will probably start surfacing pretty soon. So,until that time - Peace Out and Happy Gaming!!!!

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Helms Deep project part 5

Man I am worn out from this round - I went to Games Workshop yesterday to maybe work on my project for 5-6 hours and hang out for the rest. I made it there at about 1:15 and started about 1:30 and only took 2 breaks from start to finish - I only stopped when I heard that it was close to 9:00 - So forgive me if I keep the Information short - But apart from that the project is coming along a LOT faster now because we are almost DONE!!!

Well I wont bore you with too much dialog today so please enjoy these pictures
















We are slightly modifying the original design to allow room for expansion later on if we want too - this area would be a possible armory.
















This gives an aerial view of the work that I was able to accomplish yesterday. We have also added an additional ramp to the walkway that will surround the keep
















I apologize that this picture is a little fuzzy. we will be putting the ramp to the top of the keep over here.

I will be trying to finish this on Wednesday so my friends will be able to enjoy it before the weekend. Until that time Peace out!!!

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Helms Deep project part 4

Ok guys - Im actually running out of time tonight so I'm just gonna keep this post short. I'll post the new information as soon as I can
Oh and yes you will see LOTR models in the pictures to help give you an idea of how tall it actually is
Front view















































The Towers to the sides of the ramp will be built so that we can connect the secret door to the ramp it should be pretty nice by the time were done with them
























I have started to map out the walkway inside the keep as you can see from this picture.















































Inside and outside view of the stairway leading into the keep from the Deeping Wall
























this large block is going to be our basing for the Keep - As you know we are slightly modifying the way it looks to make it a bit more functional. We will be adding another ramp to the other end of the keep so defenders can access the keep from either side.

Well thats about it for now - we will be picking up 2 boxes this saturday to help finish it off so after that we should be able to start basing the hardboard. So until next time - Peace Out!!!

Helms Deep project part 4 Coming Soon

I will be posting the pictures later today - This phase has seen a LOT of things happen that I feel have made this project worthwhile for me - When I started this project I had NO CLUE how this was going to turn out. but seeing it come together the way it has has been AWESOME. We haven't even started the basing for it yet and I already feel this is going to be my greatest achievement yet. Its coming out so well I have even started thinking about my next project. So I hope that you guys will keep up the encouragement. It has definitely made a BIG difference!!!

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Helms Deep Project Pics part 3

Hey guys, As you will see from the next set of pictures I have been really busy this last week. I was basically able to do this next set of building on Sunday with some help from some of my friends. I have finally found out how I am going to do the Keep so this next round of pictures will be quite impressive.

Ok, for those of you who have just joined us and you guys who have been following my progress faithfully, I wish to give you guys a big Thank You. If I didn't know that anyone was waiting to see how this was going. I dont think I'd have made it this far. I hope that this project has sparked some ideas in your own heads. If it has, all I can say is - Go for it!!! You are only limited by your own imagination.

Ok enough of my rambling........
















Ok once I completed the main wall in the front we added in the large walkway on the top and the supports for the walkway and the balcony. I like the way these came out.
















Opposite view of last picture.
















This view of the large walkway shows the cutout section for the wall that the defenders can open to drop rocks onto the attackers trying to beat the door open. This section should be quite interesting to build. If you guys have any idea on how this can be done please let me know.
















Rear view of the wall surrounding the keep. This section will be built up to be the same height as the walkway and the keep will go directly into the middle while still leaving enough room to allow fantasy movement trays to reach the keep. This should be done in the next set of pictures.

Well, thats it for now - Im going to be picking up at least 2 more boxes of the bricks tomorrow so I'll probably have a huge chunk of this thing finished by next week. Until Then, Peace Out!!!

Friday, July 29, 2011

Helms Deep Project Pics part 2 - The Battle Continues

Hey Guys,
Ok for this set I have mapped out what Im going to be doing with the rest of the project except the for main keep - so far I have used 2 boxes of the bricks and 1-1/2 bags of glue sticks and I dont see using less than 4 boxes of the bricks but we'll see what happens....
















This first picture shows the entire project from a side view to get the best of it

















This next one is a view of the ramp going up into the keep and the first tower off to the left

















Side view of the ramp

















This view is going to be the interior ramps going into the castle

Ok, this is all i have so far - I hope to pick up a new box of the bricks after work today so I'll be able to work on it more soon-until then - Peace Out!!!

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Helms Deep Project Pics

Ok here is the first set of pictures that I have of the Deeping Wall. Before I show the pictures I will give a short description of the products that I'm using and also give links for them as well

Project Bricks  - click on the name for the link
The Project Bricks are REALLY easy to work with, these are what they look like just out of the box















The bricks are 11/16" x 11/16" x 1-7/16" so we stacked them about 7 high for the wall - 6 high for the wall height and 1 brick to provide cover.


Low Temp Hot Gun
The item I used to build them is a Super Low Temp hot gun that I also found at Hobby Lobby that works pretty good - the only thing that you have to watch out for is it dries faster than a regular Low Temp gun. But if you dont mind that it should be really easy to use.
















Now on the pictures - This took me about 6 hours of overall working time to build. The hardest part was making the balcony because you have to crush the pieces to make the inside. But overall it's coming out really nice so far. The size we're going for it a little under 2' x 4' so you can see I'm probably going to be working on it for a pretty good length of time.
















This first view is what it will look like from the attackers point-of-view

















These are the rear views - once we build the keep and place it on it's base we will remove the section of the wall above the drain so when the objective is destroyed we will be able to actually remove it to show it has been destroyed.

Ok, that about wraps up this session. I dont have very many bricks left so I wont be able to build any more on it until I get some more so Ill be post more pics when I have to chance to build so more. Until that time, Peace Out!!!

Friday, July 15, 2011

New Project in the works

Hello everyone - sorry it been a while since ive posted but ive been kinda busy with other stuff. For the last bit of who-knows-how-long I have been thinking about doing a LOTR board of Helms Deep - the only interesting part was HOW to do it. Just about a week ago I was in Hobby Lobby and I found a GREAT product called Project Bricks that is made by Floracraft. Theses bricks are made out of hardened Styrofoam and they are going to be the way that we are going to use to make the building. I have already started building the section of the wall that contains the drain that the orcs use to blow a hole in the wall in the movie. I will be posting pictures of the progress as I go along - The project is going to be done at the Games Workshop that I go to so I'll be able to keep you guys posted on its progress pretty easily. Well, Until next time. Peace out!!!

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Skillet is back in town!!!!!!!!!!!

Tonight should be one of the most awesome concerts that I have seen in a long time - Skillet is back in  H-town with StoneSour, Theory of a Deadman, Halestorm, and Art of Dying. Me and 3 of my friends are going to converge on Reliant Arena and Rock the house!!! I will let you guys know how it was soon. Till then, Peace Out!!!

Friday, April 8, 2011

Vampire Counts Display Table

Ok guys here it is, Apart from having some of the parts at least partway assembled this display table took me less than 10 hours to build, paint, and do the basing. I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it




For these first few pictures I have decided to show you the majority of the front units and the graveyard with the banner wall - Pictures include - 1st - Cairn Wraiths, 2nd - Dire Wolves, 3rd - Crypt Ghouls and Vargulf in background




The last 3 pictures consisted of the close-ups of the same models



Now for the pictures of the second and third ranks - the first picture is of my Grave Guard, 2nd is of my Vargulf and Konrad Von Carstein, and the 3rd is of my Corpse Cart

I hope you enjoyed the table - please let me know if you want any tips on how to build any type of terrain or display tables - Until next time guys - Peace Out!!!

Matthew "Caveman" Curry

Vampire Counts display board

A little while back the manager of the Games Workshop that I go to allowed me to put some of my Vampire Counts models into our display case so others could see them. So 2 days ago I started thinking of ways to be able to make it. While I do not have pictures of the finished product yet - I wanted to show you its humble beginning's at least - I am hoping to take the finished pictures tonight after work.

I thought I would start off with an overview shot showing each of the models that I would want to have on it. The Skeletons in the lower left and the details scattered around the board are the only ones that are unpainted.

Im sorry this shot came out a little blurry



Each of the details will be painted before I attach them - I just like the idea of seeing  Zombies being raised from the cemetery and the pieces of the Vargulf's last victim scattered around outside of his cave.

As I should be working all day today it will probably be tomorrow before I post the finished pictures. Until then, Peace Out!!!

Sunday, April 3, 2011

The Rise of the Megarachnid

While I typically do not post twice in the same day I thought that starting to post info on my current conversion project would be fun. While this is not a "typical" army that most gamers would think of as being one that they would want to try to build, paint, and play against other people, I am not your "typical" gamer. Ask any one of my friends at the Games Workshop that I go to, A few examples of armies that I am currently building are..... Chaos Dwarves, Skaven Clan Moulder army, and the Dwarf Slayer army. While each of these are or have been sanctioned by GW. There is another army that I have NEVER heard of anyone even attempting to convert or even make an army book for them, The Megarachnid!!! For the people that have NOT read Horus Rising (Book 1 of the Horus Heresy novels) The Megarachnid are an alien race very similar to the Tyranids except in one small detail - to put it in simple terms - their cyborgs. The way they are described in the novel is.....

(Horus Rising - page 207) Even after he'd slain a fair number of them, Saul  Tarvitz was still unable to say with any certainty where the biology of the megarachnid stopped and their technology began. They were the most seamless things, a perfect fusion of artifice and organism. They did not wear their armour or carry their weapons. Their armour was an integument bonded to their arthropod shells, and they possessed weapons as naturally as a man might own fingers or a mouth.

With that said, here are the pictures of the Megarachnid as seen in my minds eye. But first I will show you what they look like before the conversion




Megarachnid conversion models - For those of you that are Warhammer Fantasy fans, you will recognize these as the spiders from the Goblin Spider Riders box shown from different angles to show you how the conversion takes place. From the picture directly above, Locate and cut off both the 2nd and the 3rd leg from the front on both sides, with that complete, slightly angle the stump where the leg molds into the body and reattach the leg so it splay's to the side as seen in the next picture

As you can see from the picture, there are a few different ways that you can position the legs to form different poses. Or you can be really brave and try this next one

To achieve the jumping spider on the left was not as hard as I thought it would be at first. You only have to cut off the first 3 legs and reattach them in such a way as to make it look like its jumping - then put it on a flying base using the hole that was originally used to mount it to its cavalry base.

I will post more pictures of completed models as they come available. The more fun task is coming up with rules for them (strictly for fun of course as I would not be able to use the rules in a legal tournament but something so that me and my friends can recreate the battle for Murder.)

Well, as I am only starting to convert the models it will probably be a little while before you hear from me again. so until that time, Peace Out!!!