Merry Xmas 2016

I wish you all a very merry Xmas and a fantastic new year 2017!

Black Gate Miniatures: 10mm Ogre Kickstarter

A while ago I got to work on some concepts for a project that is now up on Kickstarter: 10mm Fantasy Ogre Miniatures from Black Gate Miniatures. 

Needless to say, this was awesome fun and, depending on how successful the Kickstarter turns out, there might be plenty more to come. In the meantime, here's some of the work I've done on the project so far...

The mighty Ogre Chieftain/Champion (one of the stretch goals).

Some preliminary concepts (for ideas, scale, etc.).

And finally some actual concepts (different unit types and poses).

Feel free to spread the word and/or pledge for lots of minis yourselves. The more money the KS makes, the more work there will be for yours truly. ;)

And here you can read an interview with the man behind this project: http://fanplasticlittlemen.blogspot.de/2016/10/black-gate-miniatures-ogres-kickstarter.html

Necromunda: Goliath Gothique - Parts III & IV

As I've mentioned in my previous post, I'm quite keen to convert the free White Dwarf Slaughterpriest into the leader of my gang. So I did a bit more sketching and below you can see where my thoughts are going with this.

But wait there's more... as I was reading through the campaign special rules, I discovered that we'll be using Dog Rules as well as House Specialities. And in the case of Goliath the latter means access to OGRYNS!!!

If that wasn't enough, I also started thinking about various in-game counters, such as sewer entrance markers and loot counters.

Eventually, I also want to build an HQ for my gang, which is what the furniture and weight training equipment will be for. But more on that in a future post...

Necromunda: Goliath Gothique - Parts I & II

Since coming back to Germany I've been looking around the local-ish gaming communities for some new buddies.
I've already found a fantastic group of individuals to play Blood Bowl with, in the shape of the Munich RumBBL. In addition to those lovely folks, I've also come across a number of clubs in the greater Munich region, who play a more varied range of tabletop games.
Although I've only made contact online so far, I've received a right warm welcome from the Weiss Blauen Strategen, also in Munich.

It just so happens that one very enthusiastic individual from that club is organising a campaign for Necromunda, a game that I've been wanting to play for yonks now.
Not only that, but the organiser is also putting a lot of thought and effort into the creation of a suitable background for the event. The theme is Faith, Treachery, and Heresy... which is, of course, right up my alley. :D
I've had quite a few of the old Goliath models lying around for the longest time, so I decided to give these guys a go for the campaign.

Now, since most of the models I have are the plastic ones that only come in two poses with different weapons options, I'm wanting to personalise those models a little more.
During my recent holiday in Bella Italia I had some time to think up some ideas on how to pimp my gang... with minimal effort. I did a bit of doodling and you can see the results below. Let's see if I can translate some of those ideas into miniature form.

When I came back from my holiday I immediately picked up a copy of the new and (very much) improved White Dwarf magazine, which came with a free Slaughterpriest miniature. Well, this guy is just begging to become the oversized leader of my gang. I've already started chopping and glueing, and hopefully I can work up a sketch for him soon as well. Watch this space...

PS: I would love to do a female ganger like in the sketch, but I just can't think of a good (suitably muscular) base model to use. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm keen to hear them.

Microworld Games: MicroWasteland

As some of you may already know, I've recently(-ish) started designing a range of 6mm miniatures based on a Mad Max / Necromunda / Dark Future inspired post-apocalyptic Wasteland setting... aptly named MicroWasteland.

Naturally I've created a great many preliminary and concept sketches for the range, as well as a logo (see above). I'll be posting more of the artwork related to this endeavour over the coming months. For starters, here's the sketch for a piece of promotional artwork I'm working on.

The range is being produced and sold by Mircoworld Games. Distribution of the models for the UK and EU is being handled by Vanguard Miniatures.
The first wave of generic wasteland vehicles, bikes, infantry, as well as the ever popular "Muties" are available now.
Steve from Microword Games and I are already working to expand the range, so be sure to check them out, let us know what you think and, most importantly, buy some! :D

PS: You can also check out (and join the discussion) some of the finished models of wave 1 and some previews of wave 2 on the most excellent Tactical Wargames Forum.

Home again!

Well then, it's been a while... and a lot has happened since my last update.

For starters, I have returned to my lower-bavarian home of Lower Bavaria... after 17 years in New Zealand. Needless to say, it's taking my a while to re-adjust. The amount of paper-work and bureaucracy one has to deal with here in Germany is just staggering!

This move had been quite a while in the making, at least in my head. In the end, though, it all happened quite fast and in a totally different manner than I had planned or expected.
There was a lot of down-sizing and getting rid of stuff required. I (almost) managed to reduce my collection of books, miniatures, art, and other bits and bobs to a single cubic metre of stuff. Some of the things I found quite difficult to part with, but overall I rather enjoyed the cleansing process. It made me figure out which of my many things are really important to me, and what was really just weighing me down. And believe me, it's still a lot of stuff.

It also meant giving up my life as I knew it and leaving behind a whole lot of wonderful people. I want to take this opportunity to thank all those amazing people I've had the pleasure of meeting during my time abroad... for all their love and support and the good times we had. Believe me, it's been quite an emotional ride and there are times when I'm still reeling from it.

But anyway... I'm back now and busy working on getting myself set up again. My next challenges will be finding a suitable flat/work space and the money to pay for it.
I'm working on a few new and ongoing commissions already, but there's always room for more. Besides, I'm also trying to diversify myself a little. As such, I'm trying to break into some new markets and industries such as storytelling and book illustration, album covers, promotions, that kind of thing. So, in case any of you know of opportunities in those areas for a man with my talents, feel free to let me know about them. Of course, I will continue to design miniatures and illustrate wargaming and roleplaying books as well.

I also plan to post much more regular updates on this here blog again. I know, I know, most of you have heard that before. Feel free to poke me if you think it's taking too long.
I've already managed to do a little update on my online portfolio, which you can check out here: www.solitudo.com

For now, I will leave you with a little something that I've drawn for a very special person in my new life, who goes by the beautiful name of Bibiane... love ya, babe. ♥︎

Dark Heresy 2nd Edition: Enemies Within

Happy New Year everyone!
Time for a small update. I created these pieces for the second Dark Heresy RPG supplement, titled Enemies Within.