Wood Elves: Provisional List for Duelling Gamers

The urge to paint figures can stem from several different motivations, sometimes I paint my figs because the sculpt inspire's me(my eldar firedragons for example) or when I need to get an army ready for a tournament, such as my vampire counts and chaos dwarfs. In the first instance an army list is not required and neither is a completion date, but in the second it was for both the vamps and the Dawi Zharr, and so it is with duelling gamers the wood elves need to be completed by 30th September and it is required to be a legal army.

My Wood Elves army is not designed to be a super competitive list, in it you will find some sub par choices such as the inclusion of glade riders and a larger than normal unit of dryads, but when you like the figures it is good to include them, it is after all your army that you are painting and so if you like it do it.The wood elves army is fast, and I am looking to exploit that to the extreme giant eagles, noble on eagle and fast cavalry all help with an already fast armies speed. The wood elves play a very good msu approach with only one large unit of wild riders as the real combat unit, and to be honest I would love to make a unit of 15 but that would  eat three months of the challenge as 5 wildriders comes in at $96 GW retail.

Anyway onto the list for the duel which is currently just under 2000 points, this may not be the final list they never really do stay the same, but this list gives a rough outline of what i need to paint, we will all just have to wait and see in September what I have completed.

Lord  265 points
Spellweaver
lv4 beasts
channeling staff

Hero's 261 points
Branch wraith
-A cluster of radients

Noble on giant eagle
-longbow, shield, light, spear
-hail of doom arrow, dragonhelm, potion of foolhardiness
(hail of doom dilutes the purpose of this noble, but it is a staple of the wood elves and the best place I could see to put it with my current list, it would be better on an asb.)

Core 526 points
1 unit of 5 glade riders

1 unit of 10 glade guard

1 unit of 10 glade guard standard bearer of eternal flame

1 unit of 12 dryads

Special  506 points
1 unit of 10 wild riders full command
-banner of swiftness  

1 unit of 3 treekin

Rare 425 points
2 giant eagle

Treeman



From a deployment standpoint 10 drops is reasonable I think, not a lot of chaff, but enough that the treeman, treekin and wildriders can be deployed with assurance of viable targets.


If time and GW money allows I can potentially add the following to the list to expand it to 2500 points.

Noble on elven steed to join wild riders( I plan to kit bash this guy or girl as I don't really like the existing one)
ASB Noble on foot ( Again I plan on kit bashing this fella)
16 more glade guard ( 20 archers are good, but 36 is better)
5 more wild riders
5 more glade riders

Anyway that is my over all goal of Duelling Gamers, so it is brush o'clock.

Cheers,
Lupus.

Superglued fingers, Spotty undercoating and Dried Paintpots: The joys of the hobby

The joys of the hobby.

I have to admit that I have missed the feel of my fingers super glued together of my undercoat spot can sending out spots of paint instead of a spray and finally of opening pots of paint and finding them dried up, and then cursing my what if thoughts that could maybe have saved them from their fate.It is sometimes the highs and lows of the hobby that defines it, all hobbies have them I suppose that is what makes the hobby enjoyable and that is the reason most people if not all people have a hobby of some description.

Anyway  enough rambling onto the duel update, so far in a flurry of some activity the following has occurred.

Duelling Update
Assembled. 100%

Drycha- assembled undercoated black

12 Dryads- assembled undercoated black

3 Treekin- assembled undercoated black

Group picture of the first contingent of the Wood elves, wait where are the elves

Spotty undercoat at its best and worst.

Painted. 0%
Completed 0%

So as it stands I am on track with my goals so far for the first week, I am looking forward to the painting that is about to commence next week,I did have plans of starting this weekend, but the spotty undercoat and dried paint pots have left me paint shy, better to finish the day on a win, and start fresh on Monday.

That is all from me for now,
Cheers Lupus

Expanding an Army: What you can buy and where to get good deals.

What you can buy and where.

I touched on this in an earlier post, living in Australia limits where , how and how much you spend on your hobby/passion/addiction.

This simple breakdown is usually true regardless of where you live in our sun burnt country, and mostly applies to the GW range of products.

Buying

• GW direct or stores - You will pay the full retail price here, and whilst they can be good to have a look at the new pretties, I generally stay away from these unless i have a crazy impulse buy.
• Independant stores - Your local games stores. Most offer a discount on GW up to 20% off retail prices, these can be as good as GW for the tactile experience and these stores will stock more than just GW product which is a bonus if you are into multiple games systems. Some even stock a variety of second hand figures as well.
• Online stores - These are good as some have crazy specials and also offer up to 20% off.
• Ebay -   New or secondhand miniatures ebay is good if you remember to include postage costs before you bid, it is also buyer beware as you have to be careful , always check the feedback of your sellers, there can be rogues out there.
• Community websites- Such as http://www.wargamerau.com/ and http://www.westgamer.com/ as well as race specific sites such as http://www.asrai.org/ or http://www.vampirecounts.net/ , I tend to do most of my trades/selling /buying on wargamerau, again it is buyer beware as the onus is on the person buying to ask the right questions. I always ask for pictures if the goods are not as new as this lends clarity and is likely to reduce confusion. 

Trading

Your miniatures still have value once out of the shop/packaging, an impulse buy can be used to get something that you want/ need more.

Remember however you do it, online or in person trade like for like, what I use as a rule of thumb is GW retail prices as a base guide and modify that depending upon condition of the goods from both parties.

Non GW  Figures
I have not had much experience with this, but companies like Mantic and Crocodile games to name just two produce quality and inexpensive figures that can be substituted depending on playing location.

These options can make it a more affordable hobby and paying less than full retail is a win, which makes in my case my limited gaming dollars work harder for me.

Postage/Delivery charges
Always check the postage charge,I cannot stress this enough this should be factored into online purchase decisions, at least that is my opinion on it, if the postage is excessive you could end up paying more than GW retail if not careful.

Anyway I have rambled enough catch you all next time.
Cheers Lupus.

Duelling gamers: Pre-duelling purchases overview

Duelling Gamers is finally here, woot.

As part of my preparation for this challenge I made some purchases prior to the start so that I would have models to work on and not waste time waiting on delivery. Six months sounds a lot of time to put an army together it isn't really, when you consider I have at most five hours a week for actual painting, so an average 20 hours a month of painting time.

Disclaimer: Some perhaps most of these figures may or may not be used in the challenge, we will have to see how the next six months pan out.

To give an overview of the bargains you can pick up I have included them all here, even though any pre-painted figures will not count towards the final duel results I will be using them in my overall army, until I can repaint them of course, I have included the cost of postage , as if you are not careful you could find yourself actually paying more for something then it is for sale in the shop, and therefore cost yourself money.
Just so I am clear - Postage should be a factor in online purchase decisions, at least that is my opinion on it.

Ebay
Treeman bare metal un-assembled- allowed for the challenge
3 treekin bare metal un-assembled- allowed for the challenge
1 drycha bare metal un-assembled- allowed for the challenge
12 dryads painted- not allowed for the challenge
8 Glade riders on sprue - allowed for the challenge
16 Gladeguard painted - not allowed for the challenge

I picked up all this from one seller for $102.45 including postage. GW RRP is $366.00 so I paid 28% of retail, not bad at all, this is probably going to be the best deal of the duel.

Wargamerau
Purchases
22 Glade Guard on sprue- allowed for the challenge, I got this from one seller for $50.00 including postage. GW RRP is $75.63 so i paid 66% of retail.

11 Glade Riders on sprue- allowed for the challenge, I got this from one seller for $37.00 including postage. GW RRP is $75.63 so i paid 66% of retail.

Trades
2 Gamezone giant eagles bare metal un-assembled- allowed for the challenge
1 Gamezone giant eagle with rider bare metal un-assembled- allowed for the challenge
1 spellsinger bare metal un-assembled- allowed for the challenge
10 wildriders bare metal un-assembled- allowed for the challenge

All of these come from trading some existing Lizardmen and High Elves that were just collect dust, so whilst I did not save any money, I also didn't spend any money either trading is a great way of getting value from an impulse purchase.

I may not use all of the figures that are currently available for the challenge in the challenge itself, but as part of the it is to show other gamer's how to make your gaming dollars stretch i felt it important to share this in a post by itself.

Anyway I have rambled enough already, catch you all next time.
Lupus

April 1st Happy Birthday Mum, and it begins the gauntlet is down

Well first off a big happy birthday to my mum.

Now that April is here it is onto Duelling Gamers, and the start of my new wood elves army for Warhammer Fantasy.

The rules are simple spend $200 worth of GW retail the first month and another $100 worth of GW retail for the next five months for a total of $700GW retail, of course being that part of the challenge is to actually spend less than the GW retail per month to show how to collect an army on the cheap with out it being cheap.

So being the first month I have money to spend and this is how I have decided to spend it.With my $200 GW retail I purchased the following figures as listed.

1.  Drycha for $6.20 from Ebay saving $15.80 of real money but counting as $22 towards the challenge.
2. 1 box of dryads for $30 from wargamerau saving $25 of real money but counting as $55 towards the challenge.
3. 3 Treekin for $26.90 from Ebay saving $56.10 of real money but counting as $83.00 towards the challenge.

For a total actual spend of $63.10 but counting as $160.00 GW retail.

This leaves $40.00 towards next month with a real dollar saving of  $96.90 or 60.05% off retail prices

Now for this month that means I will need to assemble and paint the following tree spirit figures

Drycha which will act as a Branchwraith in most battles, as I am not big on special characters.
12 Dryads
3 Treekin all the same pose, but that will not matter as they should be painted slightly different colors.
The pictures below are the condition I received these figures in.

So a total of 16 figures, not a lot when you consider how much $GW retail I have spent, but my army will bulk up over the coming months, and to be honest I am trying to limit my painting each month to less than 18 models, due in no small fact that I have not painted anything in a while, and would still like to spend time with my family. It is just as well I decided not to make a forest goblin army(maybe next challenge).

So my plan for each month is to spend the first week of every month assembling and undercoating my forces, with the rest of each month used to paint them, so on average 6 figures a week for the last three weeks of the month. The best intentions of mice and men huh.

I do have some house keeping issues to address first so that everyone knows what I am about.

1. I base my figures once the army is painted, not as I do each unit, everyone will have to wait until September to see the final product, as I have had mixed results in the past with basing as I go. Another lesson learned from my Chaos dwarfs.
2. I intend to post updates the first day, last day and every Saturday of each month, there may be more, but there will not be less.
3. With Easter being in the middle of the first challenge month I could reasonably be expected to be finished earlier and perhaps could have spent more and so painted more , except for the fact that I am already painting my kitchen over Easter. Does it count towards the challenge,not sure?

Anyway I have rambled enough catch you all next time.
Cheers Lupus.

The Challenge: thoughts and aspirations to dueling gamer's the planning has begun.

Whilst the Dueling gamer's challenge does not start until April, I have started to think about the approach that I want to take with it.

The goal to have a legal army, collected and painted in 6 months is a great one, but to ensure that I can do that I will pre-plan the first four months of my purchases, with the final two open to whimsey.
Purchases in no particular order that i currently hope to get.

• Treeman
• Treekin
• Dryads
• Drycha
• Gladeguard
• Gladeriders
• Eagles
• Spellweaver
• Wildriders
• Scouts/Waywatchers

But what to buy and where is as important as how to paint them.

The Wood elves usually are of a seasonal theme. Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.

My army will be an Autumn theme, as the reds and yellows blend in nicely with the traditional greens of the wood elves, at least I think so.

Test models are one of the hardest things to get right, and the most important, I once painted half my chaos dwarfs in a scheme that was okay, but because I rushed the test model and wasn't really satisfied with it , when I found the better colors I lost a lot more time repainting my dwarfs than if i had of spent more time on the test model. until i found the superior look.

Well I will leave it there, except to say looking forward to the start in two weeks.

Anyway I have rambled enough catch you all next time.
Cheers Lupus.

Wood elves the Asrai of Athel Loren

The Wood Elves were my first warhammer army, I remember collecting and playing them when i was sixteen, which I am surprised to write was over 20 years ago.

Back then everything GW did was almost always made in lead and my Skarlocs raiders were no different, back then I never painted anything, or even undercoated them, it was all about the battles with my mates.

If I am truthful, I have collected many armies, but i have only ever painted two, the Chaos Dwarfs of  Clan Sarbranakh and Necrarch Vampire counts of W'Sorchai the enslaver, and both of those were so i could attend tournaments.

Recently my wife and I have had a little addition to our family and my boy has taken up a lot of my free time, what with being so adorable.

But I feel the need to get back into my hobby, and the call of Athel Loren is strongest, so my wood elves are going to be making a come back. Sadly I do not have all but a few of my original wood elves as I sold them years ago.

Currently none of my gaming buddies are into warhammer , they are playing World In Flames, so it was with interest that I read about dueling paintbrushes over on the Hoodlingshole and Terrain for Hippos. When I read about the Dueling gamer's and the goals of it i was super happy to put my hand up and use that as an incentive to collect and paint my new wood elves.

Well I believe that is enough rambling.