Tyranid Harpy/Hive Crone Showcase

Nick speaking,

It seems I have been a very busy boy with my challenge to finish painting my Nids once again. So much so, that my Blog is going to be taken over by several Stinger Hive Fleet showcase posts over the next week or so! Here is the first one, my magnetised Harpy/Hive Crone...

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Hive Guard Conversions Done

Nick speaking,

It's been a long time coming, but I have finally got around to making myself some Hive Guard! These three guys we converted from Warriors with some Carnifex backs and a few other bits I had. I am really happy how they came out, I even magnetised the front of the gun to give me the two gun options. Can't wait to get them painted and finally be able to play Hive Guard without having to proxy Warriors for them!

 

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Old One Eye and Stealers Done

Nick speaking,

Getting there now with my mission to finish building my last batch of Nids to paint. I hope to get these painted after my Toxicrene and Hive Crone along with the Broodlord conversion I recently did. First though, I have three Warriors to convert into Hive Guard, I have been wanting to do this conversion for some time, so I can't wait to get started on them. More to come soon!

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HELP for HEROES 'Ultramarines' WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT!

Nick speaking,

Welcome to the official Announcement of the HELP for HEROES 'Ultramarines' charity raffle winner, where one lucky person has won the amazing Ultramarines army, donated, built and painted by the very talented YouTube Wargaming Community. The project was headed up by myself and Dragonforge Studios and we are very pleased to be able to announce the winner of the army that was randomly chosen...

We are incredibly proud to say that we managed to raise a total of £2091.79, which couldn't of happened if it wasn't for all the very generous people on the project, and to everyone who bought tickets and donated money for the army raffle. All the proceeds from the project have gone towards the fantastic work done by the HELP for HEROES charity, so a massive thank you to everyone.

Now to announce the winner! A big thank you to all who organised the Salute event where we showcased the army. We had an amazing day, and it was great to meet some of you in person. We did the draw a few weeks after the event, and we are very pleased to announce that the winner of the HELP for HEROES 'Ultramarines' army is...

Congratulation to Wayne Bollands, who won the army, we really hope that you enjoy your prize and that it will do you honour on the battlefield. Just click here to see a list of all the contributors who made the who thing possible and pictures of your new army, enjoy!

Here is a video of the draw taking place...

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A new store that does what all stores SHOULD!

Nick speaking,

A new store that does what all stores SHOULD! Stocking all tabletop, CCG and board games online and instore with great prices & service!

Sounds good doesn't it, well this store is going to happen and it is going to be run by one of my good buddies Martin McNeil, he has the premises ready and is in the process of doing the website for the store, but before the store opens he is doing a little Kickstarter for the project where we can benefit from extra discount on the stock, plus a few more incentives. I will let Martin explain a bit more, but please remember, every pound helps as does every share...

Hi folks,

I am opening a HUGE wargaming store in Southport, in the North West of England (just above Liverpool).

There are lots of different hobby stores dotted around the country of all different shapes and sizes. From Games Workshop to the small hobby shop in a corner of a newsagents.

I have been a business consultant for many years in the motor trade and have been responsible for trouble shooting dealers such as Audi, VW, Jaguar and Mercedes. I take the bad practices out and put in good ones. It is not rocket science to do and pretty much involves looking at what works for other dealers. I want to bring that knowledge to the hobby industry and make a store that is EVERYTHING the customer wants and has EVERYTHING they need available whilst providing a relaxed, friendly non-pushy environment.

I am a gamer and hobbyist myself but unlike so many unsuccessful stores in the past I intend to 'put the horse before the cart' and remember that it is a business first.

So what will be different about Wargames?

*A bright clean space with lots of demo and gaming tables available. Plenty of room to move around the tables, plus an area on each table for reserves, dead minis, books etc.

*Full lines of all the main game systems including GW, Bolt Action, X-Wing, Warmachine/Hordes, Malifaux, Mantic etc. All at discounted prices and IN STOCK.

*Clean toilets, hot and cold drinks plus snacks and sweets.

*Good quality tables with proper terrain to play on, a couch and seating 'chill out' area to play board and card games or just have a chat with fellow gamers. There will also be a reference library of books, magazies and novels to read or take away for a short period.

*A fully equipped hobby area to paint, build and airbrush away to your hearts content.

*On the higher floors will be the mass of gaming tables (approx 50) for club events, apocalypse style games and regular tournaments.

Naturally there will be an online store to offer ALL of the store products too, at the same great prices you find in store. There will be a live stocking system linked with the webstore and physical store so if the item is not in stock you will have the option of receiving part of your order in 48 hours and the rest to follow within 10 days or cancel the order. I intend to be as honest as possible with my customers as bad reputation travels fast.

So what do I need a kickstarter for??

Basically I have the building secured, the website is ready to go and the shop fit, money and staff are in place but I need as much stock as I can get to make this work for both me and you guys, and my money just does not stretch that far.

I am asking for people to buy into both ME and the STORE and give what you can. There are obvious rewards for those close enough to visit but the online benefits are there for others. I am part of a GREAT community on YouTube and my channel will grow alongside the store offering tutorials, battle reports, and an opportunity to 'Challenge Martin' (think of MiniWargaming and that's my sort of aim)

You do not have to be a member to visit the store and for a small daily fee of just £3.50 you can have full access to all the tables and game systems, this can be taken to a £20 monthly membership or £60 half yearly and £100 annual. With membership you will get priority booking and advance notice on events such as masterclass painting tutorials and tournaments and also a membership discount.

It seems a lot of money but from the community out there and seeing the interest in the hobby it could be achieved and even surpassed. If the project is successful then I will look to be open for September and any funds over the target will simply improve the store.

Here is my YouTube channel, feel free to subscribe and watch for more in depth talk and vision of the store

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWKBUoCYm7AJySZUYIojfCQ

Thanks for taking the time to look and please take my gratitude for your pledge.

Martin

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Broodlord Conversion!

Nick speaking,

Although the new Broodlord mini is awesome, I already have one in the set pose the model comes with. No ball and socket joints and a fixed head is a slight downside to the mini, but I am really happy with what I came up with. Rotating the mini so that he stands on the spine in the opposite direction was a good starting point and allowed for me to go for this leaping pose. Lots of green stuff in all the joints and a shorter tongue also helped change him up. Let me know if you like him!
 

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Tyranid Time Again, first batch progress

Nick speaking,

Just a quick update on the first batch of Nids in my challenge to finish my Tyranid army again! Things are going well and I have put down the first two coats ready for the pop layers, which has to be the most fun part of my paint scheme, more to come soon...

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Unwelcome Visitors Battle Report

Nick speaking,

This is a 1750pts battle report (old Codex) with the 'Unwelcome Visitors' mission that was in White Dwarf during the Harlequin release a while back. I have not seen anyone else play this mission, but it was great fun and I would recommend giving it a go if you want to mix things up on the table...

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Tyranid Time Again!

Nick speaking,

Well yes, I did fully finish my Tyranid army at the end of last year, but as expected, I seem to have accumulated a few more Nids over the last couple of months! The year of the Wolf is still on, and painting them is my number one priority, but I want to keep on top of the Nids and not let the unpainted minis get out of hand!

I plan on doing them in two batches, the first will be my magnetised Harpy/Hive Crone and Toxicrene/Maleceptor, of which I have linked up the magnetising tutorials I did if your interested. Along with them will be my first new Broodlord and two more bases for my next Tyrannocyte conversions. More to come on batch two, as I still need to build them, but for now, lets get the first batch painted!

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Super Phalanx Decurion Battle Report

Nick speaking,

Now I know what Arnie meant when he said 'I'll be back'! Here is the Super Phalanx Decurion battle report that I promised, enjoy...

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Super Phalanx Decurion List

Nick speaking,

Time to bring my 'Super Phalanx' list concept into the Decurion, and for those of you that are not aware of the concept behind the list, it is pretty simple. The core is based around one big blob of Warriors and an Overlord, backed up by a couple of Ghost Arks. This use to be pretty hard to take down with RP rolls and then repair barge, but now with the Decurion Special rules, they just got a whole lot better!

So what makes them better? OK, so the unit isn't as good in the assault without the faithful Stormtek and Mind Shackle Scarabs from the Overlord, but the unit got a lot more resilient. 4+ RP rolls, re-rolling the ones plus repair barge from two Ghost Arks. these guys are going to be hard to take down, especially now the RP roll is done after you take a wound!

I have to do a bit of a change around with the rest of the army to fit it in with the Decurion restrictions, but adding in the Canoptek Harvest to get me more RP rolls within the army should bode well. I am really happy how the list is looking, but please feel free to let me know your thoughts. Battle reports to follow soon...

Super Phalanx Decurion (2k)

Reclamation Legion
1 x Overlord/Warscythe/Phase Shifter/Shroud (160)
18 x Necron Warriors (234)
10 x Warriors/Ghost Ark (235)
10 x Warriors/Ghost Ark (235)
6 x Immortals/Gauss/Night Scythe (232)
5 x Tomb Blades/Gauss/Looms/Vanes/Scopes (115)
1 x Necron Monolith (200)

Auxilery
6x Deathmarks (108)

Canoptek Harvest
1 x Canoptek Spyder/Prism (60)
8 x Canoptek Scarabs (160) 
6 x Canoptek Wraiths/Coils (258)

1997 points 

                   

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HELP for HEROES 'Ultramarines' Salute Footage

Nick speaking,

We had a fantastic day at Salute and we were pretty much selling tickets non stop all day. Here are a few pictures of the stand we had with the army on display, and a video of the footage I managed to take on the day. The winner of this awesome army will be announced here on the Blog soon, but there is still time to get some tickets to have your chance of winning this army and to donate to the HELP for HEROES charity at the same time...

Featured Channels...

Dragonforge Studios: https://www.youtube.com/user/bloodofthefallen1

Aceface: https://www.youtube.com/user/Acefacehickers

Spud Tate: https://www.youtube.com/user/SpudTheBear

Purdius Prime: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3sCvjVJ1bVEC23OC97OP0Q

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