Hive Fleet Ceryx - Paint Formulas

This post will be pretty boring, as I am just outlining the paint ratios/techniques I used for my Tyranids. It's mainly a post for my own reference, so apologies to my legion of rabid fans... 

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First I primed the models using Rustoleum Grey Spray Primer. I painted the bases next because there is a lot of messy drybrushing that I did not want to get on the model itself.

Tyranid Bases:

1:1  -  VGC Charred Brown : Magic Wash

This was applied as the basecoat.

1:1  -  VGC Heavy Ochre : Magic Wash

First Layer, allied everywhere but the sides and the recesses.

1:0  -  GW Agrax Earthshade Wash

A nice coat over the Ochre to get the shading down.

1:3  -  VGC Heavy Ochre : GW Yriel Yellow

This was the first drybrush. Applied more liberally to bring out the brightness. (n.b. I originally used VGC Sun Yellow but this is a shitty shitty paint that separates and flakes like a mofo, so I have substituted it. I am sure it won't make a big difference in the overall look.)

1:0  -  VGC Bonewhite

This was a light drybrush to pick out the raised detail in the bigger rocks & rock slabs.

Tyranid Skin:

1:1  -  VGC Somber Grey : Magic Wash

This was applied quickly over all the regular "skin" areas.

1:0  -  GW Drakenhof Nightshade

A wash over the skin areas. Make sure to get all the nooks and crevasses, the smaller bugs are especially tricky for this.

1:0  -  Somber Grey 

This was a quick drybrush to lighten areas that were washed too dark (and likely unnecessary, but is done so quickly that it does not slow down paint time at all)

1:0  -  VGC Cold Grey

Another drybrush as a highlight, also relatively quick and dirty.

 

1:0  -  Magic Wash 

This just gives the skin a nice sheen.

Chitin:

1:1  -  VGC Cold Grey : Magic Wash

This is relatively straightforward.

1:0  -  GW Nuln Oil

Easy - just wash all chitin areas with a thick layer of wash. Don't be stingy! (Edit: I may have done two coats, or at least one good one and then added a quick second layer in the recesses for more definition.)

1:2  -  VGC Cold Grey : Magic Wash

This first step is mainly to lighten the chitin, using a wet-brush technique, feather all areas of chitin, pulling the brush from the inner part of the plate to the edge. Do this a few times over each plate to get the ridge effect started.

1:1  -  VGC Dead White : Magic Wash

As above, but try and make the lines thinner. Many quick feather coats will be required to give it the proper texture.

Afterwards, use the ratio above to edge highlight the chitin plates to finish them up.

Claws/Teeth:

2:1:1  -  VGC Heavy Red :VGC Black : Magic Wash

Go over the claws and teeth/gums with the above ratio. 2 coats may be necessary. (For teeth/gums, skip to last step)

2:1  -  VGC Heavy Red : Magic Wash

Use one or two coats to start bringing the dark base up to a proper red. Leave the base of each claw the original colour, and apply it to the last 90% (approx) of the claw. With each subsequent coat, apply to a smaller percent of the claw, going from dark to light as you get to the tip.

1:1  -  VGC Gory Red : Magic Wash

Same as above, focus more towards the end half of the claw. For larger class, Consider adding some streaks into the darker bits for texture. 

1:1  -  VGC Bloody Red : Magic Wash

This is the main edge highlight for the claws/Tyranid models, but may need to add more gradients to the bigger Monstrous Creature claws. A few streaks, edge highlighting, focus near the claw tips as above.

1:1  -  VGC Dead White : Magic Wash

Use this to pick out the teeth with a fine detail brush

Maws/Tissue & Joint Ribbing:

This to me is the most tedious step, because you are painting small, often recessed areas while trying not to ruin the  paint job around it. There may be a more efficient way of doing this, but I can't think of it.

2:1  -  VGC Heavy Red : Magic Wash

Apply this to the maw area around the teeth/gums, and to any ribbing/exposed joints. Two coats will be required at a minimum, due to the stupid nature of VGC Heavy Red.

1:0  -  GW Agrax Earthshade

Carefully apply this wash to the areas painted above, making sure it does not bleed to other areas.

 

1:1:1:1:?  -  VGC Dead White : VGC Fiery Orange : VGC Bloody Red  :  VGC Heavy Red : Magic Wash

(Not exactly sure about the ratio of wash, 1-2 is probably fine) This makes a lot of paint for a very small area. However, there is no easy way around it. Basically you are using this with a wet-brush technique to edge highlight the ridges on the skin and the maws

1:0 Magic wash

As with the skin, this just makes it a bit more glossy and organic.

Eyes:

1:1  -  VGC Dark Green : Magic Wash

Easy, just go over the entire eye, may need two coats to get a good green base.

1:1  -  VGC Escorpena Green : Magic Wash

Again, go over most of the eye with this. Leave a bit of dark green in the deeper part of the eye.

1:1  -  Dead White : Magic Wash

This would be used to add a little reflective "dot" on the eye of bigger Tyranids. Don't bother on the smaller models.

Tongue:

1:1  -  VGC Royal Purple : Magic Wash

Use this to basecoat the tongues of your models.

2:1:2  -  VGC Dead White : VGC Royal Purple : Magic Wash

This is the edge highlight for the tongue.

(n.b. For the larger bugs, you can consider washing the purple basecoat with either a GW purple wash or possibly just Nuln Oil. Then use a mid purple as a mid-tone before adding the highlights above.)

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And that's it! Will add more to this as I get to it (i.e. Leathery wings, various Tyranid guns, Zoanthrope brain tissue, etc.)

It's never too late for an update?

Well, life has kind of gotten away from me since my last update. A lot has happened since then, some family issues, a new job and issues with that, some more family issues, and here we are in October.

That said, I had a fair amount of hobby time, which I tried to use pretty wisely, I have not had any motivation to post. However, now I am on vacation and my wife is watching last year's Nigella's Christmas Special with her friend, so I have some time to kill.

(I am posting this via the Blogger app on my phone, so I have no access to fancy editing).

Surprise Picture Attack!

Whaaaaaaat?!?!?!

Forgot some edge highlights and cleaning up the base, but my first test model for Hive Fleet Ceryx is otherwise complete!!

For comparison, this was my reference:

And a shout out to iPaint on Warseer for his impressive scheme which I borrowed the Maw colouring and Bone technique:

http://www.warseer.com/forums/showthread.php?235088-Hive-Fleet-Ichor-iPaint-s-Tyranid-Log

I will eventually post my ratios for future reference, but as this is a surprise ambush post, I must be in and out like a ninja!

Out!

The Battle for Angel Square (Post-Battle Fluff)

As promised a few posts back, here is the fluff-piece I co-wrote with the Ork player. It is a bit long-winded in the beginning, but I wanted to set the stage for the first real battle of our Campaign.

For those who dig this kind of stuff, enjoy!

O Alladin, Where Art Thou?

Hey all! I am here!

It's been a bit tough trying to carve out some time write up a few. Lots of stuff going on, both hobby related (good!) and unrelated (still generally good, but boring!). The plus side of this is that my free time has generally been spent painting, modeling and gaming. The downside is that this newfound hobby motivation is keeping me away from the blogosphere, and I am missing lots of cool stuff.

On the modeling side of things, I am still working on finishing up odds and ends of my Tyranids. Mainly magnetizing weapon loadouts, with the largest part being the 5 Brainleech Devourer arms still waiting to be built.

One game I played looked like this, except the exact opposite. Read more to find out how!

Alladin's Morning Coffee Musings #8 - Oops, I did it again...

Well, it's sure been a while!

Things have been busy over on my end, with lots of Hobby-related (and unrelated) things keeping me on my toes and away from posting. To get the boring stuff out of the way, the last few weeks have seen me do a bunch of painting in my house, as well as installing new closets to maximize space. The only advantage is that my Office/Hobby room now has better organization, allowing me to store more of my gear!

From the hobby side of things, there is LOTS to share!

First, I tried my hand at painting my Vindicare & Jokaero, but quickly realized I needed a few extra colours so that derailed progress. In the meantime I worked toward wrapping up the remaining hits on my list. The bad news is that I caved in and went out and bought a Hive Tyrant kit plus a box of Gargoyles...

Alladin's Bat-Rep #3 - 1500pts Tyranids vs Eldar

This past Tuesday I had a chance to get my third game in, with the same Eldar player as before. We both changed our lists dramatically. My motivation was finding a combination that gave me more tactical flexibility. I believe his motivation was to give me a fighting chance.

We decided to play a Dawn of War style deployment, since that is the only type of deployment I haven't played yet.

It was a well-fought game. Teaser: This is the first game that actually went to completion.

Alladin's Bat-Rep #2 - 1500pts Tyranids vs Eldar

Last weekend I had a rematch with the Eldar. I felt that I learned a lot from my spanking last time, and was determined to prevent a repeat...

...Let's just start by saying I was schooled once again.

This time we played at his place, he had a decent table with an Imperial Sector kit and some hills.

Alladin's (Pseudo) Bat-Rep #1 - 1500 pts Tyranids vs Eldar

So here it is, my first battle report! I am calling this a "pseudo" bat-rep because:

1. I am missing lots of information, as my main focus during the game was to get comfortable with the rules, and
2. The game itself was called at the top of Turn 3, due to timing (and the fact that it didn't look like the outcome would change all that much).

 

ZoaMG!!!

Well, once again I have been delinquent in maintaining this dusty space in the corner of the attic of the internet.

I will blame the recent deluge of Tyranid releases, which had rendered me unable to speak, type or otherwise function as a normal human being. I always suspected a Zoan/Venom kit was in the works, but I didn't dare to dream that it would come out so soon after the Codex wave of new kits. Sadly, now my stand-in Zoan Warriors can be ripped off their tiny styrofoam pedestals and used as actual Warriors, otherwise known as "never."

Hello ladies, how YOU doin?

Hive Fleet Ceryx - In the dark of Space, a Shadow stirs...

The last few weeks have seen me furiously scrambling to put the final touches of my 1500pt Tyranid force together. Of course, I chose to magnetize most of the options all for my big bugs, which has significantly added to the total time required..

That said, the end is in sight, and I now have a fully field-able force at my disposal!

The last two kits on my workbench were both from the new crop of releases - Harpy/Crone and the new Warriors box. I found both kits to be nice to work with, having minimal flash to clean up, and was very surprised to see that the Crone wings sit really tight with a just 4.75mm and 3mm pair of magnets holding them up to the body sockets. Although it was a pain to drill them out, I discovered a new method that allowed a much more accurate fit, but I feel that the square "peg" design instead of the ball-and-socket also helped. I thought I would need at least one brass rod as additional support, but it turns out I do not. The Harpy/Crone weapon arm sockets, however, gave me a bit of hassle, so I did have to drill some discrete support holes into the torso and use brass rods to keep them firmly in place.

As for my Warriors, they are meant to be counts-as Zoanthropes, so you can imagine my surprise when I realized just how small they were in comparison! To compensate, I cut out some styrofoam rocks and covered them in wood filler to make up the height. I guess I could have just bought Zoans and saved some time and effort, but a stubborn part of me still hopes for a plastic kit as part of a second wave, and I want to make sure I have the newest hotness (even though I do like the current sculpt. Besides, it seems that I will likely move to Malanthropes as my go-to synapse node unit at some point, so I can eventually un-convert the Warriors back into Warriors. All I need to do is buy some more 2mm magnets, which I am inserting into the 12 "optional" spikes from the Trygon kit (as if it needs MORE spikes to rip into my fingers...) to complete the feeble Zoan-esque arms.

Of course there is still a lot left to do, namely all the basing, my remaining Ripper bases, and some finishing touches with green-stuff (bolstering magnet arm sockets for better fit, etc). However, I have been quite delinquent on my Grey Knight painting goals, so it's time to get back to that!

As the rest of this week is shot due to work and other obligations, it won't be until next week that I will be able to crack open the paint bottles again, so I will hopefully have more to contribute on that front soon!

Mini-Tutorial: DIY Twin-Linked Brainleech Devourers (part 2)

Well that was fast!

After playing around with some Green Stuff, I have completed the first arm!

This took a lot longer as I am still very much a novice when it comes to sculpting. However, all things considered, I am happy with the result.

As for the second arm, I decided to re-pose the claw as it was drooping down quite significantly. I clipped the claw as best as I could to avoid collateral tissue/chitin damage, then after a bit of clean-up with the hobby knife I drilled and pinned the claw back on at better angle. This was followed by a fairly successful Green Stuff fill-in.

I still have a bit of cleanup (mold lines, etc.) to do on both arms, but will wait until the Green Stuff has dried.

Pictures below. Hope this tutorial was actually useful!

(As a side-note, since I had to do sculpting anyway, I managed to finish magnetizing my Tervigon arm sockets, as well as all 3 sets of Trygon/Mawloc talon sockets, as well as the Trygon/Mawloc head carapace, jaw area and pincer sockets! I still need to drill and magnetize the talons, pincers, and remaining head carapace, but all-in-all a productive day!)

Finally, a pic of the Devourer on my Carnifex... and yes, I do realize that the radical angle I decided to place the arm magnet is a bit odd. Live and learn.

Mini-Tutorial: DIY Twin-Linked Brainleech Devourers (part 1)

In a first for this blog, I attempt to post something actually useful!

This morning I decided to jump in and get started on my brainleech devourers. Previously, I had scoured the net for inspiration, and found a lot of great resources. Of course, now that Forgeworld makes their own, there is always the option to buy them. However I still find them to look a bit flimsy, and besides they are super expensive and hard to come by.

With my research complete I decided I wanted to use Crushing Claws as the base for my conversion. I first saw this idea used on a showcase that GW had featured on their online blog (now gone). However, a bit of Google Image searching paid off, and here is a link to the owner's Hive Fleet Titan flickr feed. There are a lot of great conversion ideas on there, and I don't assume to come anywhere close to his skill level.

The Great Devourer...

...of my precious time.

When facing a seemingly insurmountable horde of grey sprues, my motivation to keep up on this blog is drastically diminished. That said, I am officially done assembly with my gribblies* and can ramp up work finishing my bigger bugs.

I really want to get my force assembled, so I can actually start learning to play. If I muster up the courage I may sign up for a 40K escalation league  at my FLGS that starts this week. I don't have all of my army built-up but it may give me the motivation to power through the remainder!

Either way, completing my Tyranid assembly frees me up to go back to painting my GK's (who are now pseudo-obsolete thanks to the Codex drop next week).

Once we get the Codex in our hands I will hopefully have more to add!

It he light at the end of the tunnel is at least visible now, if not more than a speck...

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*This does not include the basing, which I will worry about closer to when I am ready to paint. Unlike the big bugs, the gribblies won't have complex bases.

Hive Fleet Ceryx mini-update

Progress on my new army is going, but as always, not going fast enough. I forgot how time-consuming it is to assemble, and with 111 miniatures to assemble and base (my Grey Knight army had 33?) it's starting to feel like an uphill battle.

Hive Fleet Ceryx - 1500pt list

The last few days that I've had off have been predominantly spent putting together the massive pile of sprues I now own for my new Hive Fleet.

So far I have put together 12 devilgants, and have clipped and cleaned my Tyrant & Carnifex. I will be magnetizing some of the options for my Monstrous Creatures, so progress beyond this point will be slow. In any case, I hope to have my army assembled and ready for prime spray-painting season (aka spring).

 

I thought a lot about my initial 1500pt list for Hive Fleet Ceryx, after reading the 6th Ed codex and lots of reviews and first impressions online. I came up with the list below, which should be a good starting point and hopefully a well-rounded list.

Warning: Dramatization, may not be as fearsome as depicted.

The Tyranid Codex pt. 2 - Alladin's Morning Coffee Musings #2

Is the main issue with Codex: Tyranids that it is under-powered, or is it that too many other codexes are OVER-powered?

Hello again! Having the Friday off as well I thought I'd finish my musings on this topic today rather than wait for next week. I ended the first part with the question above, and while the first part went into some glaring (albeit fixable) errors in the codex design, I feel that the answer lies more in the latter part of the question than the former.

This is what happens when we lose Synapse... Attack!

Balancing a game as complex as Warhammer 40k is an extremely hard process, compounded by the rate of codex releases and other additions/supplements such as Escalation and Stronghold Assault. Not to say it is impossible, but I think the community as a whole can agree that, regardless of your opinion on Games Workshop, they could be doing much more to provide more balance.

It's not to say that they don't make any effort, as FAQs are released from time to time to address wording and ambiguity issues, however I think (and in light of the less-than-stellar financials, which you can read about at Faeit 212 and many other blogs) that a bit more focus in this area would be hugely beneficial to their end-game, i.e. building a healthy, growing, profitable community.

The 6th Ed. Tyranid Codex - Alladin's Morning Coffee Musings #1

Hey all,

Today I've decided to try a new, hopefully "weekly" feature on my blog: A short(ish) opinion piece on  one thing or another in the hobby world. We'll see how it goes, normally I spend way too much time editing and proofing my articles, which is why I get so little done! Not to mention that I spend way too much time over-explaining things - see previous sentence... :|  Anyway, this week I will throw my 2 cents into the ring on the 6th Ed Codex: Tyranids debate that seems to be taking the internet blogosphere by storm.

<old Simpsons quote>"Shake harder, boy!"</old Simpsons quote>

As usual I will preface my comments with the fact that I am new to the hobby and have no gaming experience. I am mainly a fluff enjoyer/collector at this point, although I do eventually plan on playing.

After spending a lot of time reading about the new codex on the internet (and a little time reading the codex itself, although the pre-release leaks gave me a big head start), I get the general consensus that most people are, to put it lightly, displeased with the effort by GW. And that's putting it extremely lightly. Although I am a non-tournament player, and back my words up with no actual experience, I do see where a lot of people are coming from - it is impossible to rate this codex in a vacuum, since it not only has to compete against all other army codexes, but has to "compete" with its predecessor as well.

With this in mind, it is abundantly clear why people would harbour the opinions that they do. To put it succinctly, the 6th Ed Codex: Tyranids cannot be put on the same level as some of the other 6th Ed codexes released to date (namely Eldar and Tau, but Space Marines and Chaos Daemons fall into the mix as well). The debate as to whether it is stronger or weaker than its 5th Ed counterpart remains to be seen. There have been a lot of nerfs over last edition, but synergy is a glorious thing once discovered and I don't think the community is quite yet able to make this call. A quick look around some of the forums and blogs and you will already see new combos that show promise.

There are definitely a lot of questions surrounding this codex release, but I sometimes wonder if we, as a community, are asking the right questions to begin with.

Hive Fleet Colour-Scheme-a-thon!

Well, instead of painting as I said I would in my previous post, I ended up going to the really awesome Online Tyranid Painter (link included) website and playing around with some of my scheme ideas.

Over the last few weeks and months I have scoured the net for inspiration and found a lot of amazing colour schemes. I would love to link to all the cool stuff I saw, but there was just too much. Simply Google "Tyranid Colour Scheme" and use Google Images to scroll through lots of inspiring work.

I chose the following schemes based on a) my general preferences, and b) what I felt would go well with my 3 proposed Hive Fleet names.

Without further ado, the candidates after the break.

Hive Fleet Name-a-thon!

With the new Tyranid Codex coming out in a few short days, I have decided to take the plunge and put together a proper Hive Fleet. I will get my hands on the new Swarm box, as well as a Harpy/Hive Crone kit. This, coupled with the Hive Tyrant kit and box of 12 Termigants I already own, will should give me roughly 1000pts of "naked" units to work with, and likely pushing around 1250-1300 after upgrades.

To make it an even 1500 points, I will add another Monstrous Creature, likely a Tervigon but will depend on how the rules look post-Codex release.

When envisioning my future Hive Fleet, I wasn't really planning on using hormagaunts at all, but with the price of the Swarm box being so good I figure I can't go wrong... Plus, my other main army (Grey Knights) is an elite, low model-count force, and after thinking about it I feel that a swarm army may be a good contrast.

Now, on to the important (and fun) parts: naming the Hive Fleet, and picking a colour scheme!