Stealing a Jungle-themed Goblin Conversion: Need Help!

It's Green Week over at the Games Workshop Website! There's a very intriguing article showcasing a very cool Forest Goblin army, which looks savage enough to steal and add some gobbo units to my Savage Orc army. Problem is while I love converting, I have almost no knowledge on Warhammer Fantasy bits and pieces so it is pretty hard for me to find out what Dimitris used to convert his sweet Forest Goblins. Maybe you know?

Here are some pictures: 

I just love the feathers. I think they look sweet as hell. Also, the skull bit on the champion-looking gobbo. His 'uge weapon is pretty impressive too. They would all look amazing when obsidian-ized. The banner pole is obviously from Ghazghkull Thraka's model, but that's not what I'm interested in. I also definitely like the skull-holding gobbos. Now to the next picture.

So this unit is almost the same. It's got the feathers, the Champion guy and... that face mask on the shaman dude. Is that a conversion or does it come in a kit or some shape or form? I must have it.. And the palanquin is definitely a nice touch that I might try to incorporate somehow. I love Night Goblins and their rules (Come on, Fanatics!!!), but their models are so generic, static and boring... and they don't fit the theme of my Savage army. Is he using Arachnarok bitz?

Help me, guys. Can you see what kits, bitz, etc. were used for these gobbos? And if you happen to have any of them, would you be willing to sell or trade?

Who's that Trygon?

Who's that PokéTrygon?

Skarvald, what is best in life?

.. besides being an eye-patch wearing, frost axe-wielding Space Wolf Wolf Lord riding on a Thunderwolf, to crush your enemies, see them driven before you... and to hear the lamentation of their women?

It is the end of Games Workshop's Special Characters Week and I feel the need to mention my favorite Special Character in the 40,000 Universe. While he isn't mentioned in any of the officially released books, codeces, White Dwarves or any fluffopaedias he very well should be, because his glory rivals that of many of the characters that you already know and love. Or hate.

Skarvald the Troll-faced

The Jaws of Death 

The Scarcarver

Harbinger of the Wolftime

To me, Skarvald epitomizes the EPIC part of the Space Wolves codex and Warhammer 40,000 in general. Not only is he the centerpiece of my army but he is always the center of attention in any game that I field him in. There are plenty of "special characters" and HQ's that give nice little boons to people's armies, even combat specialists and many of them could easily be ignored in regular games. Lots are even boring to play against simply because you see them all the time and often it doesn't make any sense that such individuals would be even fighting in such small battles. You know what I'm talking about..

"Oh, you brought Vulkan He'Stan.. nice." 

"Eldrad, huh? Well at least it makes sense, since Eldar cannot fight without him and win."

"Cool, Marneus Calgar is apparently taking a hand-full of Tactical Marines and Scouts on a field trip. Look, he even has his blue Ultramarines School Bus."

"Ghazghkull Thraka leading a WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH with ~180 boyz?"

There's nothing wrong with it, but I know that many of you have the same problem. Maybe some of you will even say that Skarvald, a Wolf Lord, would also never fight in the tiny insignificant skirmishes that most 40k games usually turn out to be. But see, he's an ale-lovin' warrior who rides on top of a cybernetic wolf the size of a Rhino. He can't stay in one place longer than it takes for him to eat, get drunk and sleep. 

And as long as his opponents pick legendary special characters, Skarvald will follow them across the galaxy to accomplish whatever Saga the Rune Priests bestowed upon him just to prove himself to his retinue, Chapter and of course the Emperor. 

Besides, he is EPIC. A character that is a tough, strong AND mobile point-sink? I'll drink to that.

He and his retinue of Thunderwolves have survived and killed some of the greatest and most legendary champions and tyrants of the 40,000 universe. 

He has survived a charge by and KILLED:

- Ghazghkull Thraka with his 10 Power Klaw Nobz

- Gabriel Seth's Assault Marines

- Kitted out Blood Angels Honour Guard Squad with a Sanguinary Novitiate, Blood Champion, Chaplain and a Librarian with The Sanguine Sword

- Astaroth the Grim's and his Death Company

And that's not even counting the many times he has been in other epic encounters. Shot by and charged with more than 50 Ork Boyz, 15 Nobz with Big Choppas, a Warboss with a Power Klaw and Old Zogwort? Check. Survived Apocalypse games while other Named HQ's died in droves? Check. 

Even that is not enough to describe his gretness. I suppose I'll have to finally finish building him, paint him and write some fluff... After all, Skarvald the Troll-faced has become something of a legend where I go to paint and play with my little plastic dude men. I've been asked to show people his entry in the Space Wolves codex. One day I'll have to do that and add a page in my codex with his stats. Hehe..

And you? Do you have your own Legendary generic HQ that you are proud of?

I have always depended on the kindness of str-WAAAAAAAAAAAGH! Punting a Stompa!

It has begun.
Ohhhhhh yeaaaah..

If you remember my excitement when the new Orcs and Goblin were announced, then you probably already know what this post is going to be about allll about. Greenskins, baby. Why? Cuz green iz best. But don't let the Thunderwolves hear ya.. But before I continue with my posting, I need to thank someone, even though his evil and sinister person would rather stay modest and humble:

This Savage WAAAAAAAAAGH wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for the very kind, sudden and unsuspected support from and old, distant but not forgotten friend from the Land Down Under, someone who I met in my childhood days way back then in the good ole Bulgaria. His donation is what finally sealed the deal with the Orcs and Goblins. Thank you, Lord Zdrachnik for the generosity. One day I will repay my debt to you, hopefully before I decide to fly down there and persuade you to go koala hunting with me.

Da Poop Stompa

You're probably curious about the "Punting a Stompa!" bit from today's article, eh? See this shitty looking abomination of scrap? A long time ago I had it soaking in a bucket of Simple Green, because its previous owner decided to spray it random colors without even priming it. Yep. And he used super glue to build it. I felt sorry for it and at the time it felt like a good investment, so I traded 40 Sakven Clanrats that I had gotten as a gift for it with hopes of fixing it up and makin' it proppa. Yeah... that never happened. Besides, I already have a Stompa that needs to be primed and painted.. So now this ugly pile of badly painted plastic is in the hands of a capable young man who wants to make it the centerpiece for his Armies on Parade.


Currently it is supposed to become da Outhouse Stompa of a very prominent and creative big Mek. Sounds good to me.. I got the new Orcs and Goblins Army Book in exchange for it and that makes me happy! Plus we dared the Stompa's new owner to kick it outside of the store since it was going to be used for pretty much scrap.. And he did it. There's something about seeing a $100 superglued model fall on the ground after being kicked and then exploding into dozens of plastic shrapnel.. It's so.. Orky!

Today I pre-ordered some of the "army essentials" and Throne I cannot way to open them...... after Adepticon 2011 is over. What did I get? x3 boxes of Savage Orc Boyz, x1 box of Savage Orc Boar Boyz and the new and shiny hardcover Orcs and Goblins Army Book. I know I will need a lot of Savage Orc Boyz if I want to make this work, and surprisingly enough they scale with points very, very well. A unit of 25 Savage Orc Boyz with 2 hand weapons, full command, a Big 'Un and a Big Stabba will run you ~280 points. Very killy indeed. Two such units in 1,000 pts? I fink so, Boss!

- Adding a Savage Orc Big Boss on a Boar at some point. I want to make the model really scary looking and will use the obsidian blades that come inside the Savage Orc Boyz box to either add to the tusks of the Boar or completely replace them.
- I NEED a Battle Standard for the army to make da Boyz listen more and froth from the mouths less. 
- A Savage Orc Shaman for sure. Later will give him the Lucky Shrunken Head which improves the Ward save from Warpaint to 5+ in a unit of Savage Orcs. Not bad, not bad at all.
- A Giant with a Warpaint upgrade. If you have at least one Savage Orc Shaman you can pay 20 pts. to give one Giant in your army a 6+ ward save.

An -iality at its Best : The VERY expensive Dark Eldar Beastmasters!

My oh my, Games Workshop. You keep on teasing me, you ol' bean.
First it was the release of the new Orcs and Goblins Army Book, then you announced the new Tomb Kings Army Book and now you actually release the models from the Dark Eldar book that people pretty much never, ever expected to see. Unleash the beasts! You know, given the fact that for some unknown reason you're still slacking on the release of my Fenrisian Wolves and Thunderwolf Cavalry models. But, I'll cut you some slack, I see what you're trying to accomplish here.

"Hey, you guys. Let's give Beastmasters different options but make sure to release every monster as a separate metal blister. People will HAVE to pay up if they want to use them to their full potential. Like you would EVER run a single Beastmater, right?"

Valentine's Day? Bah. It's Trifon Zarezan here and we celebrate like Space Wolves!

Horus better get me a Valentine.

Woot, it's Valentine's Day apparently. Lots of pink, red, unnecessary golden decorations, hearts, kisses, hugs and Blood Angels laughing like little girls while taking baths together and combing their golden blond hairs with golden combs that say "I <3 Sanguinius". Cuz that's totally my thing.

Here we celebrate like the Sons of Russ! 

Bulgarian wine and cheese!

Triphon Zarezan (bg. Трифон Зарезан) is St. Tryphon's Feast and an Orthodox Bulgarian National holiday officially celebrated on the 1st of February according to the newer Julian Calendar, but everyone celebrates it today, February 14th, which is the old way. Of course that just gives people a reason to celebrate this religious holiday twice!

Trifon "The Bulgarian Wolf" Ivanov, 1994

Trifon Zarezan is a day dedicated to viticulture (study of grapes) and viniculture (winemaking) and he is the Patron Saint of winemakers, falconers, gardeners and bartenders. Celebrations involve the consummation of lots and lots of wine! So, there you go: finally a manly thing to celebrate on the 14th of February. Get obscenely drunk, start a brawl and go hunting with a falcon, while drunk.
In Bulgarian folklore, the two days that follow Trifon Zarezan are called "trifuntsi"  and are honored for protection from wolves. Women are not allowed to cut with scissors not to open the jaws of the wolf and refrain from knitting and sewing. So fellas, if you've been losing a lot to Space Wolves make sure to prevent your mothers, sisters, girlfriends or wives from doing these things and who knows, Leman Russ' Sons might even spare your life for once.

But probably not.

Unwrapping: New Tomb Kings Army Book and Models in May!

Couldn't fall asleep and decided to check the Games Workshop website just now and what do I see... Incoming: Tomb Kings. Wow! We all knew it was going to happen soon and finally we have the official word of GW that the Tomb Kings will awaken once more to rule whatever the Warhammer Fantasy universe/continent/planet-thing is called. So THAT's what the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 was for! Time for the Tomb Kings to restore the peace in the ancient country of Egypt. None of this Democracy jibba-jabba, it's time for some Undead-governed Monarchy..

Also... Gee, thanks, Gee Dub! There were TWO armies from the Warhammer Fantasy range that I was considering playing. TWO. Orcs and Goblins.. and Tomb Kings. First, you get me all excited with the new Savage Orc Boyz enough to finally decide to start an army and now you tease me with some Undead Egyptian goodies. Darn it! Now I'm not sure what to do.. Start Orcs or Goblins or waaaait a few months for the Tomb Kings? Arrrrrrrrgh! And that's a day after I put up an auction for the Tomb Kings Tomb Guards. Actually, that's not too bad, considering that they will probably get plastic models.

Mmmm... Mystery Monster.. *drool*

As seen above, we also get a sneak peak! Alright. You're thinking it, I'm thinking it.. so I'm just going to say it. This is going to be a Sphinx Monstrous Creature that shoots lasers from its eyes and counts as a Wizard that knows Tomb King magic, some unique buffing/destructing spells, possibly another Lore. Yep... that's what it is.

Bah! Don't know what to do now.. Orcs and Goblins OR Tomb Kings?

And Now For Something Weird..

The "<--- Warp Energy!" note was needed to clarify that it was indeed warp energy and not warp puke. Not that there is anything wrong with a psychologically unstable Weird Boy shooting warp-infused vomit projectiles at people.. It needs more mushroom chunks, me thinks? There is some coming out from his left ear too!

This is a photo taken of a picture I drew on our store's whiteboard a long time ago. It doesn't exist anymore and I'm too lazy to try and mask the glare on Photoshop.. But I think it's pretty cool.. 

Help me fund my Orcs and Goblins Army!

There I said. Don't worry, I'm not expecting donations from you. I was just hoping to sell a few of my miniatures to help me with paying for the Orcs and Goblins army I am so itching to paint and play. Soo.. I just posted a couple of things on the good ole eBay! Obviously I would rather have a reader of this blog win them, so if you are interested in buying my auctions I will make sure to add something small as a token of appreciation. It's not gonna be anything super special.. just something. Yeah.. Plus if you have your own blog I'll feature you in a blog post, maybe get you some extra clicks?

10 Sealed New in Box: Metal Tomb Kings Tomb Guard! 

OOP Rare Games Day 2010 Chaos Sorcerer still in blister!

Thanks in advance to any of you kind souls that decide to help me out with my very own Warhammer Fantasy army!

- Skarvald the Troll-faced

The Dreadknight - Giant Weaboo Fighting Robot Paladin in Shining Armor...of Doom... from Outer Space!

So you thought Tau were the only ones that can use gigantic fighting robots?
So you thought Tyranids had the biggest Monstrous Creatures?
So you thought Space Wolves and their Thunderwolves were able to fight off your opponent's army by themselves?
So you thought the Stormraven is the coolest vehicle on the block?
So you thought the Hellpit Abomination was big and scary.
So you thought the Arachnarok was bigger and scarrier.

But this... You are not prepared. You are not prepared for the GREY KNIGHT DREADKNIGHT!
The two pictures below and a ton of other SCARY rumors that I just don't have to discuss right now were brought to you by Heresy Online!

Just like in my Japanese animes!!!! DESU!!
Comes with Double Nemesis DOOMFISTS.. of DOOM.. of Malan'tai!
 

Now, you're probably thinking. "Oi, Skarvald. This doesn't seem proppa. Da pikcha is blurry and obviously photoshopped. I can see it in the pixels. This fing is obviously fake. And how tall would it have to be anyway?" My answer?

Stack two Rhinos on top of each other.
Taller than a Land Raider.
Half the height of a Stormraven mounted on a flying base.
How do I know? Well..

This will be hard, Wolf Brothers. The enemy is one we cannot and should NEVER underestimate. The Emperor has given them His blessing and in battle they fight with blinding speed and deadly finesse. In the last calm moments before our bloody clash with the Knights in Shining Armor, remember that Leman Russ has given us the ability to use our acute sense when blinded by their speed and an even deadlier brutality, and know no fear for victory will, without a doubt, be ours! 
FOR RUSS AND THE ALLFATHER!!!!


- Skarvald the Troll-faced

Things Your LGS Needs: #1 Proppa Haigene

And who better to enforce purity after leaving the Porcelain Throne but the one and only..

INQUISITION!!!

The manager of our beloved Games Workshop made this brilliant sign. Actually, he made two of them. They are now decorating the insides of the store's bathroom and I just can't resist to laugh every single time I see it.
But it doesn't end there. No, no, no. In our store we refer to the condition of the bathroom shortly after it was used for a longer duration by someone as "Nurgle'd". This is why there is also a simple sign above the bathroom that states:

If you Nurgle it, you clean it. 

If you Slaanesh it, use bleach.

I love my store.

New Savage Orc Boyz? *jaw drops* + [Adepticon 2011 Team Progress Update]

Today our store got the Black Box containing the new Orcs and Goblins Army Book, the new Savage Orc Boyz and the Arachnarok Spider. I'll be honest - I've been trying to stay away from Fantasy. For the longest time I was always busy with 40k and on the few occasions I got to play against people with friends armies I was pretty satisfied, yet not inspired enough to start an army of my own. People have been bugging me to start an army for the longest time too.. For my previous birthday I got a bunch of Skaven and was about to start my own clan Moulder with tons of Rat Ogre's aaand Hell Pit Abominations. But that never happened and I just sold/traded them on eBay. I got a nice trade for my last remaining 40 clan rats = got a badly painted Stompa!

Enter the Savage Orc Boyz!

 I... I was.. so happy when I saw the new Savage Boys. They are perfect. Orc skins is so much fun to paint and the lack of tons of straps, shirts and jackets to paint make them even more attractive. I always thought that the Ork Boyz were a pain in the neck to paint, especially because I never bother with painting heads and arms separate and everything eventually ended up being in the way of the paintbrush. But the Savage Orc Boyz! So bright! So much bones, so many possibilities! Look at them.. Definitely the best Orc/Ork models Games Workshop have ever sold.. I saw the kits today and there are so many weapons and other gubbinz to choose from. The Big Stabba? Why would you ever opt out of it? It is death on a stick..

Now, I know that I have plenty of things to paint. Those Space Wolves I have won't pant themselves, you know? I am planning to purchase a box of Savage Orcs and not open it until Adepticon is over. Or I'll try not to open it. How's that? I will be very careful about this project. I will only buy things that I'm ready to paint and will spend plenty of time on each model. I don't plan on having a horde army.. Maybe something in between. Like.. a smallish horde of elite guys and then some little guys. Here are some things that I'll have to change/think about/figure out:

Obsidian arrowhead!

- Figure out whether I want to run them with Spears, extra Hand weapons or Shields? Bows are out of the question.
- Will have the Big Stabba in every unit.
- Figure out a paint scheme. I definitely love the bright colors so I'll wait for some GW and blog articles.
- The stone weapons I plan on painting like obsidian. Probably Chaos Black with a light drybrush, white highlights and then gloss varnish. Or might use the Black Undercoat paint from the Paint Set. Then I'll sprinkle dried and fresh blood using Scab Red and Blood Red.
- They will start without tattoos but I will add tattoos to each squad when they prove themselves in battle. The more distinguished and successful a squad is, the more tattoos it will get.
- Will learn to be patient and paint the heads and other detail-obscuring pieces separate.

Other units to take will be Savage Boar Boyz, Goblin Wolf Riders including the new Goblin special character that makes them better at shooting (BS4 and other dakka!), definitely love new Savage Orc Shaman on Boar model so I'll have to pick it up at one point on another. Not sure what else as I was only able to peruse the army book and I am not that familiar with Warhammer Fantasy in general. The new Squig herd thing is pretty interesting too, and a pretty big unit of Goblins with Fanatics (with BIG skulls instead of chained metal balls) sounds pretty darn good to me.

Definitely a unit of Black Orcs that I'll need to convert somehow to make them look like Savage Orcs. I'm thinking that there should be a way to make their armor seems as if it was made from obsidian? Will have to research that. Maybe some very carefully placed Citadel Water Effects, Undercoat Black?

Team Razorback Spam Adepticon 2011 Progress:

- The pink foam part of the display board is not being glued to the wooden board with some PVA glue with.. hm... 8 Warhammer Fantasy Rulebooks and a Yellow Pages book sitting on top for some support.
- Met today with the guys to make sure progress was being made. We are doing different steps, but finishing on time definitely still seems possible.
- Started painting the faces of all the Space Wolves I own. Thinned layer of Tallarn Flesh, followed by a wash of Devlan Mud and then a 1:1 Tallarn Flesh and Elf Flesh mix was applied leaving some of the darker areas. About 50% have the 1:1 mix applied to them, the rest were washed before we had to call it a night.


- Still need to do some touch ups on the 4 Rhinos, Vindicator before I prime them Chaos Black and airbrush them with 2:1 Shadow Grey and Space Wolves Grey.
- Still need to prime and work on my 5 Thunderwolves.
- Still need to finish Skarvald's backpack and prime him.

Why Space Wolves?

Sometimes people ask me "Hey, Vlad, how come you like Space Wolves so much?". I often give them different answers, simply because there are so many. The Space Wolves codex, miniature range and fluff are really good and their rules are competitive to say the least, but for me the warriors of Russ are something far more special and dear than plastic dude men wearing wolf pelts.

But first, as Deckard Cain would say.. "Stay a while and listen..." 

It's offishul, boyz! Special Free Fan Screenings of Ultramarines in the US!

This ALWAYS cracks me up! Haha!

Remember that one time I was talking about about going to the "Ultramarines" screening with Dan Abnett and producer Bob Thompson? And then I also mentioned my doubts about the date of the screening that was published on the cinema's website and the total lack of any and all media hype about the event? Well, turned out I was right all along and that the actual screening will be on the 26th of February.




Don't believe me? Check the official "Ultramarines" website for information on how to get your FREE admission to any of the screenings throughout the country. Oh, yes. That's right. It's not only going to be in the Chicagoland area, my friends. Here's the current schedule:

Saturday February 26

Dallas, TX - 11 AM, at the Lewisville Cinemark Movies 8, 1600 S Stemmons Freeway @ Corp Drive , Lewisville, Texas 75067

Seattle, WA - 11 AM, at the Metro Cinemas, 4500 9th Avenue, N.E., Seattle, Washington 98105

Chicago, IL -11 AM, at the Classic Cinemas Charlestowne 18, 3740 East Main Street, St Charles, Illinois 60174 Followed by Q&A with producer Bob Thompson

Sunday February 27

Los Angeles, CA - 11 AM, at the Mann 10 Glendale Exchange, 128 North Maryland Avenue, Glendale, California 91206

Baltimore, MD - 11 AM, at the Landmark's Harbor East Cinema, 645 S President St., Baltimore, Maryland 21202

New York, NY - 11 AM, at the Village East Cinema, 181-189 Second Avenue, New York 10012 Followed by Q&A with producer Bob Thompson

As you can see, some of the screening will also feature a Q&A with producer Bob Thompson. While a similar message was posted on Dan Abnett's blog, it doesn't seem like the famous Black Library writer will attend the screenings for Q&A. This, while disheartening, is still not enough to stop me from seeing this with my friends. I think it will be a blast and I will see if we can bring a camera of some sort to record the Q&A with Mr. Thompson.

Again, if you have any questions that you'd like me to ask, feel free to comment and I will see what I can do!

Paincake is Deliciousness Leaving the Body!

Hurr hurr hurr..
Just became a brand spanking new member of the International House of Paincakes Blog Network and I was actually surprised that the person who read my application actually had taken the time to read some of my "articles". That was nice. Thanks, Dethtron. ;P Not sure why I didn't apply earlier.
So, if you have your own tiny, dandy place on the Internets where you like to share your little toy soldier stories with the rest of the world do not hesitate to drop Int'l House of Paincakes an e-mail if you think you are awesome enough.

I threatened them with my Thunderwolf and got accepted in no time.

Funny story about IHOP, though. And this time I'm talking about the place that serves delicious breakfasts 24/7. You might even say it's Warhammer 40,000 related. It was quote a long time ago:
Me and some buddies were driving to IHOP after a party, listening to some 100.3 FM and just commenting on how dark and scary the woods surrounding us were. You know, the usual blabber. Then all of a sudden a raccoon appeared. Man, was the little bugger fast! Our dedicated driver tried to avoid hitting him, but the raccoon apparently really wanted to give Death or Glory a shot and my friend's change of direction actually hit the poor little thing dead on. You could even say it got pancaked.
 
And then it that awkward, semi-sad moment I said the first thing that came to mind.. BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD! My apologies, PETA.

Other related news..

IS THIS NESSIE?!?

 It might look like a random blob or like left-over material from the construction of a Barby Doll House or something My Little Pony-related.. but this is the beginning of our Adepticon Display Board. It's a 3x3 ft. pink foam square that we are mounting on a wooden board. The stacked smaller pieces of pink foam will be hills and other raised areas and the hole in the middle is going to be broken ice from where one gigantic kraken tentacles and a bunch of other smaller ones (our Objective Markers) will be fighting our Space Wolves. We want the one big tentacle to be the radius of a monstrous creature base and tall enough to be seen from afar.
We'll be doing more work on this table on Wednesday..

And it just so happens that this Wednesday, February 09, 2011 the SIN of ALACRITY Space Hulk table over at A Gentleman's Ones is going to be announced for a raffle of some sort. No one really knows what the catch is going to be, but trust me when I tell you that this table is phenomenal and none of the awesome pictures do it justice. Its big, boxy, death trapy and grimdark. What else should it be? So mark your calendars and make sure you pay Brian's blog a visit.

Where's Waldo?: Fenris Edition

... all right. You can give up now. Waldo, an obvious Chaos Space Marine Chosen and a heretic, was killed on sight the very moment his curious arse set foot on Fenris. His corpse (or what's left of it) is now kraken bait. What can I say, Skarvald needs some more kraken teeth for his frost blade collection.

This is just a quick camera shot of some of our Space Wolves that was taken a few weeks ago during our Adepticon hobby night. They are all missing the golden and bone details that are currently adorning their power armors. Progress is slow but fulfilling and every minute spent on these bad boys is paying off.