Time Flies

It's really been over a year. I've got to get better about this.



My tyranids have stalled out and I'm currently working on my Genestealer Cult.  I've had a few games with these guys in 7th edition and I'm impressed with Games Workshop's ability to make interesting and new rules.  Cult Ambush is a blast, and the backbone of the army (Acolytes) absolutely shred in close combat.

So far I've got to assemble/paint:

70 Neophytes
65ish Acolytes
20ish Metamorphs
8 Aberrants
4 Magus
6 Familiars
1 Patriarch
1 Primus
2 Iconwards
1 Goliath (for now)
20+ Genestealers/Purestrains

Blood Rage

My copy of Blood Rage just arrived!  I'll do an unboxing with photos later.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/coolminiornot/blood-rage

It's a bug hunt: Tyranids Update

I've started back to working on the Tyranid Hierophant Biotitan in hopes of fielding it on the 24th...10 days to at least assemble it and maybe some paint on it.

Mounting the legs are a pain.  I plan on mounting them with glue, then running a drill through them and into the body.  I'll then pin them and sand down the pin to match the surface (probably drop a short pin in and then refill the hole with putty).  I can double pin each back leg like this and single pin each front and not lose much of any detail.

Really gotta get going on this if i'm going to make it work.

I also plan on dremeling out a slot for a flying base and supporting most of the weight on that.  That'll take the strain off the spindly legs and hip joints.

Phone was on the fritz so no WIP pictures.  Hopefully have some of those later.

Not my picture, but you get the idea.

Bugpocalypse: Tyranid progress inbound!

It feels like it's been forever since I've worked on my Tyranids.  It really kind of has...and that's about to change.  I have an Apocalypse game coming up on the 24th of this month.  5000 pts per side, dropping most of the extra Apoc rules (like the master of disaster stuff...who wants to lose half their army before they get a chance to play?)

I have a somewhat assembled and painted Barbed Hierodule.  I'm going to push to get my Hierophant assembled and maybe painted by then.  If I have enough points to play with both, awesome.  If not, I'll likely play with the Hierophant (if it's finished).

I'll likely run the Hierophant with the transport upgrade and squirrel either a venomthrope or malanthrope inside.  Something the size of the Hierophant should really have a better invulnerable save, but shrouded will have to do.

If I dont run the Hierophant, I'll run the Hierodule with some nasty surprises coming down in drop pods.  Dakkafexes and Exocrines.  The last game I ran Dakkafex pods, Flyrants, and the Hierodule.  The imperial forces on the receiving end of that didn't have the best time...so I'll likely drop the flyrants since they're still not likely to bring much in the way of Anti-air.

Riotous Progress

Got the T5s lighting the 125, but I still need to pull the casing apart and install mounting hardware.  Until such a time, I'll make due with the little legs provided.  I went with all ATI bulbs, 3x Blue Plus, 1x Purple Plus, 1x Aquablue, and 1x True Actinic.  Getting some nice color off of those, definitely a lot more red.  The super vibrant greens from the LEDs are markedly duller.  I'm hoping these will turn around with some acclimation.

Found a new fish store less than 10 minutes away from my apartment, they focus on sustainability and preservation.  Gorgeous interior (still a work in progress) and friendly owner.  One of the only fish stores in the city proper.   Picked up some Carribsea Life Rock here to finish out the bulk of my rock structure.  It's pretty nice stuff, but expensive for dry rock, definitely glad I used Marco Rock for the majority at half the price.

I've scrapped the shelf rock frag rack and opted for another arch structure.  Going to pull my branch rock from the 65 and some other reef rocks and sell the rest from that tank.

Most of my coral has been transferred (a few waves of that).  Starting it off on the sand bed and moving it up the rocks to let it acclimate to the 6 bulb T5 fixture.   The Acans are really happy.  Currently waiting on the anemones to find a spot they like before I start gluing in corals.  most of the stuff growing on big discs will get broken off and mounted directly to rock.  Chalices will likely live on the sand bed with some open brains when I find stuff I like.  Also looking into some nice neon octospawn.  gotta chip off a few more corals from the 65 and then I can start piecing this jigsaw puzzle together.

The 125, ignore those large discs and tiles on the rocks.

The 65 after I busted some rock...such disarray.

T5s Inbound

Got a 6 bulb T5 fixture inbound for my 125 gallon aquarium.  Also 7 ATI brand bulbs.

4x Blue Plus
1x Purple Plus
1x Aqua Blue
1x True Actinic

Going to tinker around with configurations until I find something I like.

Additionally I'm thinking about scrapping the rock frag rack and planting a nice size staghorn on the center pillar rock and making the one on the end into an acan rock.  Zoas would also be put on the staghorn rock.  Gorgonians might also make an appearance in the 125, I havent decided yet.

Filefish is almost halfway through the aiptasia, so in the next couple of weeks I'll start busting corals off the existing rock and placing them in the 125.  Some of the existing rock will live in the sump, and the leftovers will be sold off.



The office tank is in shambles.  Current plans are to change up the rock into something  more interesting and grab a blue tux urchin.  Massive water change tonight/tomorrow.  Soon I'll add another clown to replace the one we lost (back up to a pair of ocellaris clowns).  Maybe a black/white one.


Pics later maybe.

Dragoncon 2015: A Recap

This was perhaps one of the best Dragoncons I've attended, in large part to a fantastic room dynamic and a distinct reduction in responsibility and lack of drama.

We only had 9 people in the room this year and they got along swimmingly.  Don't worry, we tip housekeeping pretty well for the over occupancy.

I managed to make it to some nice panels for the Maker track.  The Molding Hacks panel was pretty educational with some nice tips and tricks.  RC Everything track was cool because it dealt with some hardware do's and donts.

Are You a Deatheater had a massive crowd this year.  I counted 9 games running concurrently, staggered to allow people removed from play to start playing in a new group.  We ended up having around 4 decks go missing after the session...we'll have to keep better track of them next year.  I'm still a little disappointed in people for stealing those.

The other disappointment of the convention was the CoolMiniorNot booth.  They didn't bring any miniatures to the convention for their vendors booth.  It was all board games...high quality board games, but board games none the less.  I'd have bought quite a bit of the Goritsi faction for Wrath of Kigns at the convention had it been available.  After talking with the guy at the register, CMoN evidently tried selling minis one year and didn't sell a single one.  I think it was poor marketing on their part not to try to push Wrath of Kings a little better.  They need to really be pushing it and making it more visible if they want it to continue to grow.  It feels like they're trying to just throw it out there and let it grow based on it's own merit, which is a mistake in a market so crowded with competition.

The vendors hall being in Americas Mart Building 2 this year was interesting.  It was a lot further away from the con than anything else but was much better organized.  Having the lightsaber booth and chessex right next to each other was problematic, but otherwise a solid transition.

I'm sure I'll have more thoughts on this year's Dcon.  So maybe a part 2 to this later.