About Me

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My name is Gavin McClements. I am a wargamer and family man, living in Los Gatos, which is a suburb of San Jose, CA. Building terrain is one of my favorite aspects of the wargaming hobby - in fact, lately I've become more interested in making my battlefields "pop" than in actually playing.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

15mm Khurasan forces are COMPLETE!

How long ago did I begin this project? Too long ago, for sure.

BUT...after some mishaps with experimentation, let me present to you:


First, let me tell you about my experience with the Secret Weapon weathering pigments. I must say, after watching Robin of Gruntz make it look so easy on his videos, I bought a few and eagerly awaited the chance to use them. This meant that I purposefully left out my customary drybrushing, and after the paint and wash had dried, I coated them and moved on to the pigments.

Problem: Details matter. Did you know?  Like, GLOSS COAT is not MATTE VARNISH. Using Gloss, like I normally do for protection, does NOT give the pigments any traction!  I was quite dismayed as I began dusting on the pigments and see no noticeable effects, except for where they gathered simply by resting on a flat surface. After a quick reconsulting of the Secret Weapon tutorials and a post to their Facebook page, I realized my idiocy...and rushed out and purchased Krylon Matte Finish varnish from my local Ace Hardware. It was a whopping $5...and not too late.

The snippet from our FB discussion:

Me: SO, the steps should have been: 1. Paint 2. Matte coat 3. Weathering pigments 4. Matte coat?
SW: Yes, you've got it now. Although I'll add that it also depends on what else you're doing. For instance it might be:

Paint
Gloss
Decals
Gloss
Washes
Matte
Oils
Matte
Pigments


So...after I coated the minis in the Matte Varnish, I COULD have gone back again and reapplied the pigments, and then recoated in Matte to finish them off again, but I was just DONE with them. They are good enough for tabletop gaming, and while I will be annoyed at myself till the end of time for doing this incorrectly, I'll know for the future.

Without further ado:

Blue Squad deploys in front of the town, enjoying the warm early morning sun:


Blue Squad revels in their Walker escort:

Green Squad checks the end of an alley for insurgents:

The Squad of Power Armor spots suspicious activity at the outskirts of town, and investigate...taking the short route:

Two Heavy Machine Gun crews cover the town from across the way:

The Main Battle Tank cruises along slowly, escorted by its canine team and handler:

Yellow Squad jumps out of their APC, eager for action:

A mass of Company Support Assets, ready for assignment, cluster in the staging area:

Company Commanders huddle in conference, comparing notes and weighing options (note the US Nickel base, setting them apart):

Representatives of the different squads gather for discussion (L to R: Purple squad, Senior Company leader, Company leader, Yellow Squad leader, Green Squad junior leader/Medic, Orange Squad medic, Company asset (unassigned) Light Support, Company asset Medium Support, Blue Squad Medium Support, Company asset HMG Heavy Support team):

Details of the Support Weapon markings:

Leadership markings (note, the Junior Squad Leader on the left is also a Medic, and only the Squad level leaders have squad colorings. The others are "Unassigned" grey, meaning they can fit where ever they need to be):

Lastly, just a quick shot of two "guys". Purple squad is a regular trooper, and the Orange Squad is a Medic (see his right shoulder):

The overall group shot again, as they patrol the quiet border town in the early winter sun:

Our playtest of Tomorrow's War is on this coming Tuesday. I cannot wait!

And now, for a quick gratuitous mention of Battlefield 3:

I play a TON of Call of Duty on my Playstation, but recently got REALLY into flying helicopters on BF3. I want to show you my favorite video on Youtube, AND the free download of that AMAZING song by Emancipator that I cant get enough of:



And to get Maps for free:
http://emancipator.bandcamp.com/album/free-downloads 

Have fun, and thanks for reading! 

4 comments:

  1. All looking really nice and a great table layout. Glad to see a fellow BF3 fan! I built the scenarios in Gruntz to simulate the various BF2 scenarios like rush and conquest. Getting the right mix of vehicle and squad action in Gruntz was totally inspired by the Battlefield series. Are you on PS3? Perhaps we could link up for a BF3 game?

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  2. My PS3 handle is...wait for it...Kealios :) Im on a fair bit in the evenings (West Coast, USA). Im sure we'll bump into each other a few times!

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    Replies
    1. (Got my first Scout Helicopter Service Star AND my Air Combat dog tags tonight...finally!)

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  3. Very cool paintups. I need to order some of those PF power armors.

    Best,
    JBR

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