I was asked about Spugs.....Cheers
Mark
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Showing posts with label Spugs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spugs. Show all posts
Sunday, 31 January 2010
Sunday, 1 March 2009
Spug Week: Variations on a Theme
I'm annoyed with myself that I haven't finished my Spugs. One batch are complete and have even been in action, but as a potential FWC 'army' they're just not inspiring me. Mind you, they've had plenty of competition this week from both Jon's new NAC Marines and some new equally excellent Sci Fi figures due to be released by another miniatures company.Meanwhile, I thought you'd like to see some photos of Spug test pieces I began painting. First up is Mr Green. White undercoat and two coats of Citadel Thakka Green wash. Not bad. Quite vibrant - great for temperate or jungle battelfields. I'm sure a yellow undercoat under the green wash would have been better still.
I may drybrush the weapon in Tau Sept Yellow or a light green so it has more of an organic look to it. Then again maybe not and go for something a bit more garish to highlight the alieness of Spugs.
Next are 'Martian Spugs'. An undercoat of Citadel Tau Sept Yellow basecoat which dries less yellow than in the pot to a darker ochre/dark sand, straight onto the bare metal. This was followed by two coats of Citadel Baal Red wash. I hated the finish at this point.
So I popped a quick brush of Citadel 'chestnut' ink into the crannies, around the eyes etc, then took a brush laden with heavily watered Miniature Paints' Red and dragged it across areas including the shin guards and top of the head. Left for 48 hours (only 'cause I was out on the merry), I came back to miniatures I really like the look of and am looking forward to finishing off.
I've decided to buy some small 2 and 3 figure FOW style urban bases from The Scene to try with the Spugs. Whilst my initial thinking revolved around Mars, I now think that the urban look of these bases will give the Spugs a more dramatic and edgy 'fall of man' feel to them. I also deliberately want the small bases to emphasise expendable hordes of Spugs. The fact that I could then readily use them as proxies for games with a Gears of War background hasn't escaped me.
Small 2 figure FOW style bases from The SceneI'll post pics of all the finished Spug variants next week and again once I have the bases and they're based.
Cheers
Mark
Tuesday, 24 February 2009
SPUG Week Continues.......
SPUG Week continues at Dropship Horizon with a tutorial on creating Bug 'huts' by the totally inspired and talented Jeff Racel. Jeff originally posted this tutorial on TMP and was kind enough to send it to me for inclusion in Dropship Horizon.
Jeff Racel's 'Spug Huts'
If you want to see Jeff's latest excellent tutorial on painting SPUGs Click Here!
I decided to play with the other odds and ends I bought to make some new Sci-Fi terrain for my 15mm forces in anticipation of the pending release of Force on Force by Ambush Alley Games. This time the concept was some alien buildings to go with my 15mm Spug forces from Spriggan Miniatures (available through Rattlehead Games in the US). I am doing a combined force of Spugs, Khurasan Arachnians to be made into Bio Tanks and the new GZG Ixx (not yet assembled). For this force I decided to work on some "Bug Huts" for the smaller Spug forces. Not sure if these are for the adult Spugs (have to crawl in) or for larva baby Spugs, but they still work for the start of a new terrain set. The basic concept is very easy and uses the following items.
1. Plastic Easter eggs of various sizes that match the figures you are using.
2. Plastic wrap and a flat surface
3. Some appropriate sized metal washers to form a base.
4. Some plastic straws or metal pipe for the entrance tunnel.
5. Silicone caulking and a caulk gun to make the base and hold the hut together.
6. Various spray paints, including a good primer that will stick to the silicone
7. Some sort of textured spray paint or textured paint. I used Krylon Textured Elegance that I bought on clearance a few years back and was keeping for a rainy day.
8. Some Future Floor Wax (Pledge in the new package)
9. Green or brown craft paint.
1. Take the plastic wrap or similar plastic material (grocery bag, garbage bag etc.) and spread it on the flat surface. I wrapped a piece of MDF in plastic wrap. This allows you to peel off the silicone later.
2. Take a washer and place it on the plastic. Add some caulk to the middle hole of the washer to keep it from moving and them work around the outside edge of the washer to hide it. Make a few circles around and add the piece of straw. Continue to make a little mound of the silicone in the middle of the washer.
3. Place an egg into the silicone mound and twist it a little to get it seated.
4. Do as many eggs as you need and let them dry for 24 hours.
5. Peel all the huts from the plastic and take them to your spray paint area. Prime the huts with a good primer that sticks to the silicone (if you use Silicone II from GE it accepts paint better than most).
6. Now you need to texture the eggs. I use layers of Textured spray paint, making sure it had lots of runs and drips to look more organic. You can also use textured paint and add a pattern with the brush bristles or possibly a sponge to dab on texture. Experiment on a test egg to figure out what works best for you.
7. Let the texture dry and then use various colors of spray paint to do the under color of your huts. Speckled paint in an uneven pattern was my choice for this using green and browns over the cream colored texture paint. Let this fully dry. The green really does not show as much in the pictures as it does in person.
8. Mix craft paint (I used brown) into a cup with some Future floor wax and do a wash over all the eggs. You can use multiple washes and different colors for a more varied effect. Let this dry completely, normally over night.
9. Seal coat the eggs if you wish (I matte coated mine to reduce the shine).
10. Paint the inside of the tubes black or similar dark color (I have not done this yet).
11. Done. Time to play.
Below are some pictures of my creations........
You can also see the size difference and I plan to add some bigger ones when time permits. Any of the painted minis (HOF Crusaders and Laserburn Mercenaries) are painted by Jason Mastros (AKA Hrothgar the Smelly on TMP).
Jeff Racel's 'Spug Huts'If you want to see Jeff's latest excellent tutorial on painting SPUGs Click Here!
Making Bug Huts, in Jeff's own words.....
I decided to play with the other odds and ends I bought to make some new Sci-Fi terrain for my 15mm forces in anticipation of the pending release of Force on Force by Ambush Alley Games. This time the concept was some alien buildings to go with my 15mm Spug forces from Spriggan Miniatures (available through Rattlehead Games in the US). I am doing a combined force of Spugs, Khurasan Arachnians to be made into Bio Tanks and the new GZG Ixx (not yet assembled). For this force I decided to work on some "Bug Huts" for the smaller Spug forces. Not sure if these are for the adult Spugs (have to crawl in) or for larva baby Spugs, but they still work for the start of a new terrain set. The basic concept is very easy and uses the following items.
1. Plastic Easter eggs of various sizes that match the figures you are using.
2. Plastic wrap and a flat surface
3. Some appropriate sized metal washers to form a base.
4. Some plastic straws or metal pipe for the entrance tunnel.
5. Silicone caulking and a caulk gun to make the base and hold the hut together.
6. Various spray paints, including a good primer that will stick to the silicone
7. Some sort of textured spray paint or textured paint. I used Krylon Textured Elegance that I bought on clearance a few years back and was keeping for a rainy day.
8. Some Future Floor Wax (Pledge in the new package)
9. Green or brown craft paint.
Assembly and Painting:
1. Take the plastic wrap or similar plastic material (grocery bag, garbage bag etc.) and spread it on the flat surface. I wrapped a piece of MDF in plastic wrap. This allows you to peel off the silicone later.
2. Take a washer and place it on the plastic. Add some caulk to the middle hole of the washer to keep it from moving and them work around the outside edge of the washer to hide it. Make a few circles around and add the piece of straw. Continue to make a little mound of the silicone in the middle of the washer.
3. Place an egg into the silicone mound and twist it a little to get it seated.
4. Do as many eggs as you need and let them dry for 24 hours.
5. Peel all the huts from the plastic and take them to your spray paint area. Prime the huts with a good primer that sticks to the silicone (if you use Silicone II from GE it accepts paint better than most).
6. Now you need to texture the eggs. I use layers of Textured spray paint, making sure it had lots of runs and drips to look more organic. You can also use textured paint and add a pattern with the brush bristles or possibly a sponge to dab on texture. Experiment on a test egg to figure out what works best for you.
7. Let the texture dry and then use various colors of spray paint to do the under color of your huts. Speckled paint in an uneven pattern was my choice for this using green and browns over the cream colored texture paint. Let this fully dry. The green really does not show as much in the pictures as it does in person.
8. Mix craft paint (I used brown) into a cup with some Future floor wax and do a wash over all the eggs. You can use multiple washes and different colors for a more varied effect. Let this dry completely, normally over night.
9. Seal coat the eggs if you wish (I matte coated mine to reduce the shine).
10. Paint the inside of the tubes black or similar dark color (I have not done this yet).
11. Done. Time to play.
Below are some pictures of my creations........
You can also see the size difference and I plan to add some bigger ones when time permits. Any of the painted minis (HOF Crusaders and Laserburn Mercenaries) are painted by Jason Mastros (AKA Hrothgar the Smelly on TMP).
......Hope you enjoyed the tutorial!
Jeff
Thanks Jeff!
Cheers
Mark
Cheers
Mark
Monday, 23 February 2009
SPUG Week
It's Spug Week at Dropship Horizon. Follow me all week as I paint 6 packs of 15mm Spugs from Spriggan Miniaures and build some 'Spug Hills'. I also have a great Spug tutorial and some fantastic pictures from Jeff Racel to share with you.
Here are the first batch of Spugs lined up half way through the painting process. As you can see I went for a 'Martian' desert fire Spug look, after a little trial and error I have to admit. Here they are after 2 coats of Citadel Ball Red Wash and a further vibrant wash of Miniature Paints' Red over selective areas.
Here are the first batch of Spugs lined up half way through the painting process. As you can see I went for a 'Martian' desert fire Spug look, after a little trial and error I have to admit. Here they are after 2 coats of Citadel Ball Red Wash and a further vibrant wash of Miniature Paints' Red over selective areas.
The camera flash has washed out the colour on the Spug minis at the front of the photo. Those at the back are the most accurate match for the actual figures on my painting board.Cheers
Mark
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