282 Days

 Last November, in the Before Times, I posted about starting up an Instagram account and getting a #hobbystreak thing going.

This past Saturday, for the first time in 282 days, I did not do anything miniatures related. I broke my streak.

Two hundred and eighty-two days. That's pretty impressive, I have to say. I've never done anything approaching that in my miniatures gaming hobby, and I've been at it for nearly 30 years!

Unsurprisingly, I got a lot done. I still have unpainted minis on my shelves, but their numbers are massively reduced. Once I finish my current project of WWII Eritrean Colonial Infantry for my East Africa 1940 project, I still have:

• Sisters of Battle
• Genestealer Cult
• Death Guard
• 28mm Gempei Samurai
• Some Warlords of Erehwon warbands

And that's about it! Each of the 40K projects are small, about 30-40 models a piece, and the Warlords warbands are even smaller (with the possible exception of the Goblins).

This is a massive shift from when I started back in November. In that time I've painted up three forces for Sharp Practice (two AWI, one Napoleonic), two 6mm Sengoku samurai armies, a WWII German platoon plus support, jump-off points for  Chain of Command, several classic Grenadier fantasy models for Warlords of Erehwon, and an assorted miscellany of other figures, plus taken on a handful of painting commissions.

Honestly, without those commissions I'd probably be done with the above list, or very close to it. My original intention was to break my streak in late July anyway, since I thought I'd be going to Gen Con, and my initial schedule had me getting everything except the Erehwon figures completed by then. But it's all good; I'm always happy to help other folks get painted figures on the table, and the cash helps pay for more minis (not that I'm buying too many of those these days), paint, and other supplies.

I'm optimistic I can get the rest of the above-named projects done by the end of the year. After that, I want to get back into experimenting with 2mm Napoleonics, as well as a special "black & white" WWII project and working on lots of terrain. I'll probably continue with my painting commissions as well.

But on the main, I'm anticipating 2021 will be my year for terrain projects the same way this has been my year for figure painting. Hopefully by then I can start hosting games in my house again...

Anyway, I'm really proud of the streak I hit and the progress I made, and after taking a few days off I'm itching to start up another streak. Let's see how long I can keep this one going, eh?

I'll leave off with photos of some of the projects I completed during my 282-day streak:

A Miscellaneous Wrap-Up to the Painting Challenge

[This was my twelfth entry for the Fifth Annual Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge, reposted here for folks not following that blog.]

For this, my final entry in the Challenge, I present a miscellany of figures that, quite coincidentally, touch on some of my very first entries...

First up, we have what will be my third (and hopefully final) version of Malifaux's Taelor. Way back when I posted my "Hired Guns" crew, I talked about how dissatisfied I was with the "official" versions of this character - neither the plastic nor metal sculpts did much for me. I found a suitable substitute in MicroArt's "Alice Tinkerly" but...I still wasn't completely satisfied. Her laid-back pose didn't match Taelor's fearsome combat abilities.

Then I spotted this excellent figure, part of a special edition boxed set from Bombshell Miniatures. The animation of the pose combined with the ludicrously huge industrial wrench told me at once that I'd found my version of Taelor:

The crazy eyes were a bit of a happy accident...

One of Taelor's signature moves is "Weclome to Malifaux!" Indeed.

This next piece is one that I don't plan on seeing featured in many games, but it was too cool not to pick up when I placed an order for my Ikko-Ikki from Kingsford: a giant taiko drum and a horagai player blowing on his conch shell.

This painted up in an evening and will make a fine centerpiece on display with my Ronin factions.

Lastly, we have the final figures for my 35-point Skorne army for Hordes. More Titans! First, the fearsome Bronzeback Titan. (And since the Challenge ended last Thursday, I've  completed the units required for my 50-point list; they'll be making their debut shortly.)

In keeping with his name, I gave his central ridge of spiky hair a greenish cast, evoking a verdigris patina on bronze.

I believe this is the largest model for this base size in the whole WarmaHordes line. I could be wrong, but all I know is: you wouldn't want to see this guy bearing down on you in the middle of a battle!

"I heard they shaved a gorilla."

And here's another Titan, a Defender, to act as bodyguard for my caster.

Although not as large as the Bronzeback, he is at least as equally impressive, with his ornate armor and shield.

As before, I've left his back banner blank pending a decision on what sort of custom sigil to put on it.

Finally, we have the reason why everybody loves to hate the Skorne: the Agonizer. Not only are these guys a pain for any Skorne opponent mechanically, they're the living embodiment of the true depths of Skorne evil. It's a baby Titan (read: baby elephant!) kept in a state of perpetual pain and agony, which in turn is used to fuel the magic of nearby warcasters.

This is my second Agonizer in the list, and painting them never gets any easier. It's kind of funny to feel so ambivalent about one's own army. Everyone has to play the bad guy from time to time, I suppose...

All those hooks! Poor baby...

Inspired by a co-worker who was out sick last week with conjunctivitis, I gave this Agonizer infected eyes oozing with pus. Ewww!

The trio together.

With this entry, I hit my target "points goal" for the Challenge. My display cabinet, which before the Challenge featured mostly unpainted figures, is now top-to-bottom featuring painted miniatures, and it's a thing of beauty.

The Challenge really was surprisingly effective in motivating me to get painting and to maintain that pace over time (something I've always struggled with in the past). I heartily recommend it for anyone with a "lead mountain" of unpainted figures.

The one caveat is that, in following the Challenge, you see a metric tonne of other really cool projects being churned out by other participants, and you start to get that itch to jump on the bandwagon... 

Thanks to the Challenge, I'm now getting back into 28mm WWII skirmish, I'm dipping my toe once more into the grimdark world of 40K, and I'm even considering starting up a 15mm American Civil War collection. I intend to keep working away at the new projects over the course of the year, but I'd be surprised if I'm done with all of them by the time the next Challenge rolls around. It's been a wild ride and I can't wait to do it again. I'll just have to see about buying a new display cabinet between now and then...