Doctor Who Wednesday #20

If you've already read about the Companions elsewhere, still with me, there's more news below.

On the Painting Table

Last weekend saw the final bonus round of the Analogue Painting Challenge - 'Characters/Scene from a Scene from a Movie, TV Program, Book or Piece of Music'*.  Sadly the vignette I bought with this round in mind is still languishing in the plastic bag it arrived in before Christmas.  So, in order to have something to submit, I've had to fall back on my old favorite for the Challenge - Doctor Who.

*You've still got time to go and vote for your favorites.

I therefore present you with six 28mm Not-Doctor-Who Companions (they're even more Not Not-Doctor-Who now as most are OOP since Warlord Games got the official licence to produce Dr Who figures).

River gets the 'Alien Sand Pit' treatment.  As the other characters are mostly seen on Earth, they are on the lawn of whichever English country house UNIT is currently occupying.

The Amy Pond on the right is the only one of these figures not by Crooked Dice.  It's by Heresy Miniatures and still in production (they changed the name to 'Girl' and the colour of her hair in their pictures).

I'm not sure why I see the Paternoster Gang as Guinness drinkers, but I do.  Possibly it's easier to paint than a whiskey and soda...

Spotted On the Web

Cybermen are in the news and trending on Facebook.  Apparently, some time ago Peter Capaldi was asked in an interview which classic villain he'd like to see reintroduced into the series: being of a certain age, he chose Mondasian Cybermen.  Stephen Moffat is supposed to have said it wasn't going to happen* - but they will be back for Capaldi's last bow.  The Word on the Street is that we'll also get Ice Warriors in Season 10, which can only be good news.  Yetis next please!

*Quite possibly because they resemble the Black and White Minstrels. 

We'll have to see whether this works.  But Black Tree Designs will presumably be happy, given that they keep 'finding' old stock of them*.  I may even get around to painting up my laser team...

*Other Cybermen are available.  Warlord Games have a box-set of Cybermen-through-the-ages.

In other news, Warlord is now accepting orders for the Tetrap miniatures I mentioned in Doctor Who Wednesday #19, and they've also announced the release of a Professor Yana and Chantho set.

Derek Jacobi is a fine actor, and many of us were disappointed not to see more of his version of The Master.  Here's our chance to remedy that!

Gratuitous Sarah Jane Photo

Dr Who Wednesday #9

When I painted the Ice Warriors and submitted them the the Analogue Painting Challenge, I couldn't face doing the Ice Lords (their officer caste)* and left them for another week.  

*How do all you World War types mange with all those shades of greens and grays?

Well here they are.

To be fair to Black Tree Design their monotonous green and lack of features isn't their fault - that's how Martin Baugh designed them for the BBC back in 1967 - fiberglass helmets and green wellies and all.  The towel is down to me - and much comment it has generated on the Challenge website!

I bought these figures second-hand, and it wasn't until I got them unpacked that I realised that the previous owner had done some conversion work to them - the figure above on the right has had new arms and some embellishment to his helmet, whereas the figure on the left has had his belt removed.   Righty has been designated the Grand Marshal.  For such small mercies, I am grateful. 

Warriors Reunited

Dr Who Wednesday #8

Carrying on with my series of classic Doctor Who aliens in the Analogue Painting Challenge, I came to these chaps the other week. 

Ice Warriors

For the uninitiated, they are ice Warriors - an ancient race of  reptilian humanoids who ruled Mars until it became uninhabitable.  At various times they've been shown trying to transform Earth or other planets to their own requirements, as 'obvious baddies' who turn out to be much maligned or, in a double-bluff as goodies turning out to be baddies.

As their name suggests, they are a militaristic race, with their own complex hierarchies and a sense of bushido (useful in the trope - "Wait the green, scaly aliens are more honorable than the humans!"

So, these are seven 28mm figures from Black Tree Design.  The beauty of the old Dr Who aliens is they are never terribly complex paint-jobs.  If the BBC can spray-paint bubble-wrap green, who am I to aspire to much more?

I do have a couple of the officer-class, but they will have to wait for another time.

Dr Who Wednesday #7

Shiny!

As contrary to my intentions my Painting Challenge submissions have had a distinct Dr Who theme* I needed to restock the lead pile.  Accordingly, I bought these BTD figures when they came up on eBay.

*The Wife:  "Are we ever going to get to play that Frostgrave game?  Where are my wizards?"

Yetis

Ice Warriors

I didn't realise until I started priming them, but one of the Ice Lords has been converted, giving a variant.  I may nominate him as a Grand Marshall or Supreme Lord.

Painting

The fillip that the Painting Challenge throws up worked its magic and the Yetis were soon painted,

I didn't want to go for the proper colours (which make me think of honey bears), but instead did a simple  job, with dry-brushing in various shades of brown.  They'll also do as generic furries in other games.

The 'proper' colour scheme

Patrick T gets in touch with his Inner Yeti

With the bases, I wanted to represent their origins in the wild Snowdonian Tibetan valleys.  Not being able to find any rhododendron leaves to scale, I instead went for bleak tufts and heather.

It seems that Yetis have a nemisis...

"OK boyos!  Back to the hills!"

Secondly, a stray Cyberman who escaped the bunch I submitted for the Nostalgia Round.  He too is from BTD.

And finally, I submitted one of the ever-popular Weeping Angels*.  This was one of a bag of mixed figures I picked up in a charity shop.  I think they were freebies with Doctor Who Monthly.  The Angels were an odd soft plastic which didn't take paint particularly well.  It left them quite sticky (which in hindsight made static grass a rather poor basing choice!)

* Only one of these three was started and completed during the challenge.

Coming Soon! (I Hope...)

Dr Who Wednesday #6

At last some miniatures painted!

For the Nostalgia bonus round of the Analogue Painting Challenge I went Dr Who and submitted these boys...

Loyal readers of this blog are rewarded with a better photo than
that submitted to the APC

Cybermen of course.  These are from BTD - their 'Earthshock'* version, with the exception of the one I've painted up as the Cyberleader, who is an earlier model.  They were something of a rush job and I'm quite unhappy with the basing - indeed there is a seventh where the basing all fell off as I tried to paint it before the glue dried (I told you it was a rush job, didn't I?).  He'll appear later in the Challenge with other odd Who figures.

*Poor old Adric - he never did get his end away...

The good news is that I found the Jon Pertwee figure that I'd lost!

And finally, just because,..

"Silver chap over there - five rounds rapid!"

Can't Wait 'Til Wednesday

Well, Dr Who Wednesday has come early this week with the news that Warlord Games have secured the licence to produce a Dr Who Miniatures Game.

To me the most significant part of the announcement is that

The licence covers not just the latest series of Doctor Who but encompasses all of the Doctors, their companions and their foes. So, expect to see Sea Devils as much as Weeping Angels, Leela as much as Martha Jones, and a long, brightly coloured scarf as much as a fez (fezzes are cool, by the way...).

There have been grumblings from those who ask what impact it will have on BTD or the others that produce NOT-Who stuff.  Well, BTD will presumably continue to have the licence to produce figures from their worn-out moulds and continue to be tardy in sending them out.  I won't weep to see them have reasonably-priced competition (especially as Warlord's figures will probably actually resemble the Doctors and Companions -  witness how good their Dad's Army figures are).

More interesting will be what happens to Crooked Dice and Hasslefree, who have been making decent Dr Who figures.  Will Warlord protect their investment and will those lines be curtailed?

Interesting developments indeed...

Dr Who Wednesday #2

No news to post on the reduction of the Who Mountain this week.  Quite the contrary in fact.

The weekly e-mail came from Black Tree Design telling me that the current 'specials' are 20% off all Doctors and Companions and off the Second Doctor range.  There was no danger of me buying any of the former, but I was tempted to get some Yetis and Ice Warriors.  Fortunately, the next day I spotted a much cheaper way of getting my fix.

This month's (fortnight's?) copy of Dr Who Adventures has a five Dalek patrol as one of the free gifts (thus working out at 75p per Dalek).  They're basically the same as previous give-aways, but the casting is better and they're not in lurid colours.

So I've now got 15 more Daleks waiting to be painted.  And several posters of Jenna Coleman...

I'm not sure how I'll paint these yet, but I won't be repeating my attempt to slavishly follow the New Paradigm colour scheme.  At the moment I'm considering red and having a closer look at the colours in the 1960s movies.

Davros' Ninja Division

Loose Ends...

Ave Salute!

I hope everyone who is going to Salute has fun and managed not to spend too much money.

Me, I'm saving myself for Diceni and hoping I have some spare cash when it comes around.

Sid the Beast

After writing about snap dragons and 'obby 'osses yesterday, I remember that you can buy such a beastie of your own.  He's Sid from Fenris Games, and fits in with their Faceless Cultists range.  It's a range that's often tempted me.  He might also do well with the armed Morris Dancers if you put flowers in his hair.

Hey Goomba!

This morning in writing about BigT from Pigeon Guard Games I suggested that what we needed was a Paulie Walnuts.  Well, word on the streets is that a 'Wally Peanuts' might be joining the gang.

Order Received, Processed and Completed

Does anyone understand Black Tree Designs methodology?  

I placed an order with them on 29 Mar and received an acknowledgement that day; on 1 Apr I had an e-mail saying that the order had now been 'Processed' and on 23 Apr one saying it had been 'Completed' and dispatched.  Does anyone know what BTD means by all this?  I know the money was taken off me at point of sale and that as 'found stock' the figures didn't need to be cast or (a favorite one of there's) shipped from the US?  Personally, when I receive an order at Diplomatist Books I try to 'process' and 'complete' it that day...

Oathsworn

It wasn't my cup of tea, but here's a cry-out to Michael and Jo at Oathsworn for their successful Burrows and Badgers Kickstarter (£15,520 pledged on a £4,000 target).  Oathsworn are old hands at Kickstarters and mange them in an exemplary manner - there will be some happy customers once the figures are sent out.

Free Stuff!

We all love free stuff. don't we?

Sally 4th had produced a couple of pdf's to dress their Terra-Block system.  Those lucky enough to go to one of their workshops at Salute will get the whole room (blocks and all) free.  The rest of us can download the pdfs here.

Nice as the system seems to be, I'm afraid it doesn't fit in within my budget limitations.  However, I thought to myself, why not download the pdf and use it anyway?  (olde-time readers will remember I had a some success with a cardstock Egyptian tomb).  I'll keep you apprised.

Paint Table Saturday

Apologies for the lack of blog updates, which is down to business, some family health concerns and general lack of mojo.  But not only am I back but, as the subject of the post indicates, I've got some hobby stuff done.

As some of you may be able to make out (I know that some like to pour over the details of these thing!) I'm on a bit of a Dr Who vibe again.  I hope to be able to submit some to the Painting Challenge on Tuesday.

The Dr Who theme means I'm again experiencing the delay gratification that comes from ordering from Black Tree Design - the order went in on 18 Feb and I'm still waiting.  Fortunately, there are other suppliers of lead satisfaction - an order that went in on the same day with NorthStar arrived two days later.  Equally, an order placed with Gripping Beast on Thursday arrived yesterday - my first order with GB, and I'm very pleased with the figures and speed of service.

With the latter, the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge FaceBook page deserves a shout-out.  Not wanting to to order BTD's UNIT figures I asked for a suggestion of British soldiers from the 60s and 70s.  Among the several helpful suggestions RoyW pointed me to GB's Falklands troops.  Although not perfect (I'd like something without Bergens if anyone knows of anything), they are very nice sculpts.  Also while on GB's site I found the TCWD Specials from Woodbine Designs - these include the NOT-cast from the Dr Who episode 'Family of Blood'.  So I've a few of those too!  They're so nice I might order the rest next.

Edit

I'm getting in a tangle describing what I'd like for UNIT.  These would have been perfect, but they're 1/72 scale.