100 small/far away people. Not entirely dissimilar to the 100 miniature people (and miniature not-people) that I have painted so far this year
As in previous years, I wrote a post on my hobby plans for 2014 back in December or January. This year I never got around to posting it for some reason. Anyway, the essence of the painting plan was to paint more 28mm sci-fi of various varieties and so far this year, the plan has been adhered to. Below is a visual record of everything that I have made game table ready since January: a very satisfactory and very surprisingly rounded figure of one hundred miniatures.
Some of the items in the tally are small, quickly painted affairs and others are far more significant in terms of their size and the corresponding resources that they demanded. I figure that those differing subjects balance out in general, so each counts as “one thing” in my total, whether its a tiny cat miniature or a big shuttlecraft.
Although the work that went into preparing the Deathworld jungle was very significant, and a number of items from that project feature, I didnt count anything that essentially amounts to being an unpainted (by me) item that was glued to a base which was subsequently textured. The jungle was a lot of work and required all my free time for roughly a couple of weeks, but most of the elements do not really constitute painted miniatures. It is a fine line though.
Anyway, click on any of the images below to be taken to the relevant blog post for more info and images.
#1 – #3: Ork Deffkoptas
#4 – #6: Goffik Rokkerz
#7: Blood Axe Human Advisor, Kim Jong Bono.
#8 – #9: Deathworld Jungle Pods
#10: Deathworld Jungle Spiker
#11: Venus Man-Trap
#12 – #13: Venus Man-Traps
#14: Deathworld Jungle Pod
#15: Deathworld Jungle Pod
#16 – #30: Deathworld Mutant Plants
#31: Venusian Mantrap
#32 – #41 – Deathworld stuff (Sedition Wars technorganic virus things)
#?: nine refurbished Horrorclix miniatures. These could arguably be counted as part of the tally, but I am not going to.
#?: Very, very many jungle terrain bases. Im not going to count these in the tally, but they took ages.
#42: Emerald Isle Judge MacO’Conihoonihan
#43-44: Ork Drummer and Drum Kit
#45-51: Renegade Runtmaster Zodgrod Wortsnagga and Super Runtz
#52: Gretchin Zero (left)
#53: Loor Scout
#54-55: Notorious G.I.T. (centre) and crony (far right).
#?: Carnivorous Sand Clams. Again, I could arguably include these in the total I think, but Im not going to.
#56: shuttle/lander/lighter “Helga”
#57-#68: Campsite
#68-#74: Spine Crystals/Perilium/Kryptonite/Warpstone
#75-#76: Portaloos
#77: Ordo Hereticus Inquisitor Jodorowsky
#78: Tenebrainian Cerebalite
#79: Deadzone Chovar
#80: Yellow Gyrinx
#81: Sensei Ramirez
#82: L’Oreal Wangst – Eldar Outcast
#83: Friskers the Gyrinx
#84: Milo the Space Eunuch
#85: Honoured Imperium Marble Aquila
#86: Ursa Miner Cyber-Slayer
#87: Honoured Imperium Marble Space Marine Statue
#88 – #91: Bouncers
#92 – #97: Skabsquigs Skallywags, featuring Mr Killgore
#98 – #100: Deadzone Marauders
Filed under: Editorial, Miniatures | Tagged: 2014 |
sho3box 
Impressive! I’ve painted about a tenth of that. =) Was nice to see pics of all the items repeated in one post.
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I think that one hundred miniatures in six months might be a record for me, but I still dont see it as likely to reach two hundred in total this year. I have a few larger single models that I want to work on over the rest of the year that I expect to be time sinks.
Regarding the post itself, rather than collate the information in one sitting, I have just been updating a draft of this post as I went for the last six months. It makes keeping a running tally easier and like you say, I think that its fun to see images of each of the miniatures in a single place.
Its funny, but I can tell you what was on TV and what the weather was like around the time that each of those models was photographed.
Thanks for the feedback Mattias.
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Very impressive output! And to think I’m happy with 25% of your output over the same time period! What I like most is the diversity of what you’re doing, combined with the way that it all neatly fits together – everything can be used in the same setting without any issues. Oh, and the painting is superb too 🙂
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Thank you axiom 🙂
Blogging and recording my output has taught me to concentrate on some sorts of projects over others as that improves productivity. I was painting less than a hundred miniatures a year back in 2008 or so I would say. I know that our conversations about this start to sound like work, with measurable objectives, timetables and deadlines, but I have found that being a little better organised has improved both the quality and quantity of my output.
I am particularly glad that you think that the diverse models seem coherent with each other to you, that they inhabit the same environment actually. In an effort to preserve sanity I only collect 28mm sci-fi now (almost) exclusively. The goal is to be able to insert any of the miniatures into almost any of my games, with Imperial Guard slotting in alongside Rogue Trooper Norts, alongside Necromunda characters etc.
Wanting to have all these things available in personally hand painted form is a weird compulsion, but I do enjoy the process an awful lot. Thanks for the feedback 🙂
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Congrats on such a productive 2014 so far. How much of that stuff will we see at Brocon?
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Thanks John.
As I am driving to Brocon I can supply as many of the items shown as required really I guess. Definite travellers are the jungle elements, some Deathworld fauna (from last year), Shuttlecraft Helga, Ramirez, L’Oreal and the Cyber Slayer.
I still havent decided which faction I will use in the Pulp Alley game, but I am tempted to use the big floating brains, just because they are a laugh. Its always tempting to bring an Inquisitor and his retinue though, particularly with the gult and Seáns inevitably weird protagonists 🙂
I think that combining your Nissen huts with the jungle will be pretty cool looking, so any more time you want to add to that terrain to make it look “lived in” will be time well spent. Somewhere for the Helga to land perhaps?
Thanks for the feedback 🙂
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I had to compromise on both quality AND quantity to reach only a third of this number… I must be doing something wrong or you’re making something right, I suppose it’s both…
We’ll be able to talk about this with Colin during one of our games hopefully.
Slow claps for your work, and my glass is raised for the coming 100.
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Arguably my output is the way it is because I dont diversify my personal pursuits in ways that might do me some good. Im not a shut in or anything and I do have a social life, its just that I tend to get more satisfaction out of making progress through the toy soldiers than I do from going to the pub or pretending that I like my buddys new girlfriend/kids or whatever.
Im getting a little (pseudo) philosophical here, but in the last few years I have become fully aware that even with normal life expectancy I wont get all my toy soldier projects done before the grave. In order to counter that I had to change how I painted and how I organised my hobby time. It led to some mistakes and dodgy figures on the way, but I also learned a lot. Over the last three or so years it has been coming together a lot better.
So basically (and slightly tragically) I am more motivated more by fear than by hope. My twitchy productive energy comes straight from Papa Nurgle 😉
If we cant make time to chat about painting for a while at BOYL JB, then we are doing something wrong. Im looking forward to it. Thanks for the feedback.
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Nothing sickens me like someone who can produce both quantity and quality when it comes to miniatures. It settles down in my gut and festers into bitter resentment. That aside, congratulations! A good year so far, and you’re not even counting everything. I reckon I’m on less than 20 models so far this year. Must try harder.
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😀
The precise emotion that you describe is what pushed me to change techniques and organise myself a little better. I cant compete with the hardcore display painters and even if I could, I want turnover that those methods preclude anyway. So I needed to find the best niche for me.
I wrote more about this sub-topic, but I sounded like a smug Buddhist or sanctimonious ex-smoker, so I deleted it. I can regale you with my riveting opinions on these matters in person in a couple of weeks instead 😉
As for what counts as a painted item for tally purposes I see it as similar to determining line of sight in toy soldier games: we all know if its valid or not really 🙂
Thanks for the feedback.
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Indeed, there will be much chat regarding the little men.
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Good stuff Paul, that’s a lot of quality paint jobs on a big number. Your post has prompted me to count up my own numbers for the year, I am not doing too bad @ 59 so far. 🙂
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Thanks Seán, its a fair body of work Im happy to say.
Fifty nine is far higher than I would have guessed for your tally actually Seán, mainly considering the sculpting hours that you have been putting in. Thats great output. Those slann/lizardmen units must be racking up the numbers nicely, as do pygmy sheep Im guessing 🙂
Thats more than you painted in the previous ten years added together I would suspect too, so its cool to see you back with a head of steam. Now, wheres Clancy Brown through the (space) ages then?
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The sculpting hours have indeed taken their toll but have been rewarding in terms of skill gains. I was surprised to see I had finished so many models in the year, as you mention the Slann/Lizardmen/Sheep are predominantly responsible for that number. Clancy Brown is on his waaaaaay!
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Your like a one man production line, now I`m going to have to count all mine. Do two 15mm figures count as one 28mm lol
Well done 🙂
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Thanks 40kterminatus 🙂
I refuse to be drawn on classification… much 😉
Sub-dividing totals into things like 28mm, 15mm, vehicles, terrain etc is acceptable in the sho3box 2014 scoring system. Note that adherence to said scoring system is not a requirement 😉
Thanks for the feedback.
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Crazy output, crazy quality. I might need to focus more on my different projects, too. There is too much unfinished buisness and it seems if you keep at it, projects and miniatures get finished. You are the living example.
Looking forward to see the next 100.
How many miniatures worth is my Dungeon module in your scoring system :P? In miniatures alone I don’t think I reach a high number.
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Thanks daggerandbrush.
While I have goals for individual projects in terms of finished squads of certain types, I dont try to get all of a specific project done back to back. My orks and space dwarfs have been worked on for a couple of months here and there for a few years now and they are both getting satisfying large without causing burnout.
It wouldnt be a good approach if I was trying to get an army for a battle game finished – which I am not – but its fine for the sort of heroic skirmish sort of games that interest me most.
Thanks for the kind feedback.
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Quite a tally! It’s galling to see that absolutely no corners have been cut in order to achieve this. Congratulations.
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Thanks Gareth, but a lot of corners have been cut. Does that make it more or less galling 😉
I just try to ensure that corners cut are hard to see. Pruning the methods used down resulted in sub par miniatures for a while a few years ago, which was a drag and those miniatures still bug me, but what I learned from the process has increased my output approximately threefold, so it was worth it.
The basing is probably the most obvious corner cut, but I quite like it. Nobody agrees on basing anyway 🙂
Thanks for the feedback.
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Amazing! Great job. I don’t think I’ve passed 25.
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Thanks Maj Guiscard.
Are you aiming for fifty newly painted guys by Xmas in that case? About one a week is a sensible, achievable goal 🙂
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Well, there are a couple of “army” projects that might push my count way higher. One of them is the new Pig Iron “System Scavengers”
http://www.pigironblog.blogspot.com/2014/05/new-greens.html
When they are released, I am looking for a full 70-120 of them.
We’ll see.
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I have been tempted by Pig Irons ranges many times, but I have resisted to date. They do look like lovely, chunky sculpts to work on though.
120 would be quite a shot on the arm to any tally 🙂
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I stumbled upon your blog today. You have done what I am currently doing: painting up all my old/new minis and trying to do batches (currrntly working on Man O’War). I have found that I have lapsed in some skills and have gained in other, and have tried new techniques. It actually is a beast.
I have to admit, your painting level is way above mine, as well as your sculpting. I am definitely going to try to make those man-traps(venus fly traps).
Where did you get the mini, the female, in the picture 12-13?
I hope your still active, and who knows perhaps we can compare work someday.
Thank you for your blog. -Duringar
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Hi Duringar, thank you for the kind words.
I don’t blog as often now as I once did, but I still blog. I never stop working on hobby projects though, and after 30+ years without ever stopping, I doubt I ever will. It is a fundamental part of who I am now really.
The female figure is a Privateer Press model for War Machine or Hordes I think. There is more info about the model HERE if you want to know more.
I hope that you continue enjoying your hobby renaissance for years to come!
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