The Sleestax

Necros · Posted: Thu Nov 20, 2008 10:40 pm Post subject: The Sleestax

So since I clearly don't have enough projects to work on, it's time to start a new army! Skinks!!

The goal of this army is to build a fun to play force of around 1000 pts tops, but primarily it's a modeling and painting project. Since the army is getting a new book & models in February, I'm going to building the general troops first to get the bulk of the army out of the way while I wait for the new stuff to get released. The army list will basically be something like ... 1 skink chief (general), 1 skink priest (scroll caddy), 1 stegadon, 1 unit of salamanders, 1 unit of razordons (if they get to be units?), and with whatever points are left over I expect to have about 2 units of skinks with blowpipes and 3 with javelins, around 13-15 models each. Will depend on pts in the new book of course. But in the meantime, I'll be starting 2 boxes worth of skinks, 1 box will be all javelins & shields, the other will be all blowpipes. They will probably take the next month or 2 to finish anyway, so by the time they're done the new stuff will be coming out and I can continue.

As far as modeling goes, I plan to use the Gale Force 9 skirmish movement trays for each unit and try to build each unit kind of as a mini-diorama. Since it's a small army, I don't mind spending a little extra for stuff like that. And in games, pretty much everything will be skirmishers and the trays will make it a whole lot easier to move around especially in the first few turns.

For painting, I plan to have all of the skinks resemble those teeny red poisonous frogs, the "Strawberry Poison Dart Frog". here is my first test model Smile

I think I'm happy with the skin, not totally sold on the weapons.. but I didn't want to make them too dark and have them blend into the arms. Maybe they would look better as silvery instead of goldy?

The pics suck, but the colors are actually much brighter. I'll have to mess with my camera settings and lighting I guess. The recipe I used was red gore, badab black wash, blood red drybrush. The blue on the legs was vallejo stormy blue drybrushed heavy at the bottom and light at the top, badab black wash all at once when I did the red part, and then ultramarines blue drybrush for some not-so-bright highlights. The skin on the head fin was orange before I washed it, but it kind of blended in after the wash and now you can't really tell.

Sounds like a lot of steps but he was actually pretty easy to paint. shouldn't be a big deal to get them all done assembly line style.

Anyway, wadaya think so far?
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N810 · Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 1:10 am Post subject:

Well I like it Cool

I think they came out pretty well. Very Happy

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sasjhwa · Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 2:24 am Post subject:

It is a good color mix. The GF9 movement trays will be really helpful in creating your Land of the Lost diorama. Very Happy

I can't believe I'm old enough to remember enjoying that show when it was in its original run in the early 1970s. Sigh.

Mr Youp · Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 2:41 am Post subject:

Cheesy army in my opnion!

But don't mind about it, I like your painting work, looks good and that what's counts!
But what about the black spots on the back?
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Necros · Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2008 7:00 am Post subject:

thanks

as far as the spots go I was going to keep the troops done more basic like this just because I will need to paint so many even at just 1000 pts. so I want to get them done quicker. For the chief and priest I will add more detail, like those spots and other stuff Smile

And yeah I used to love Land of the Lost Smile

I started playing fantasy a good 8 years ago and even back then I planned to have a lizard army one day and call em the sleestax Smile

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Necros · Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 8:56 pm Post subject:

Got my first 15 skinks painted, the blowpipe unit. I'm about to get started on the bases and the skirmish movement tray. I got some aquarium plants that I'll be mixing bits of in with some grass and a couple of little lizards from the jungle swarms on the skirmish tray just for spice. And a couple of greenstuff mushrooms and other doodads like that. So, here's where I'm at so far Smile

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N810 · Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2008 10:07 pm Post subject:

Woah those look really great.
I can't wait to see these based. Very Happy

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Mr Youp · Posted: Wed Dec 03, 2008 5:59 am Post subject:

I like your paintingworks! Really good.

Is that a skirmish movement tray? In my opnion that isn't really handy? My skinks sneek in bushes, woods, rivers, buildings and reform every move, can you use them with this un full extent?
Although you can make great diorama's offcourse.

Nonetheless, I'm very curious for the result, must be great.
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Necros · Posted: Sun Dec 07, 2008 11:05 pm Post subject:

First unit is all finished now Smile

15 skinks with blowpipes!

Next on the list will be 16 skinks with javelins Smile

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Asrodrig · Posted: Sun Dec 07, 2008 11:15 pm Post subject:

Wow, those look great!
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N810 · Posted: Mon Dec 08, 2008 6:59 am Post subject:

Awesome I live the paint jobs and the giant well done movement tray. Cool

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Mr Youp · Posted: Wed Dec 10, 2008 7:23 am Post subject:

For diorama's, those skirmish bases looks very good! Maybe I gonna build one someday.

Necros, the final result looks very good, you could be proud of yourself!
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Necros · Posted: Mon Dec 15, 2008 8:23 pm Post subject:

16 skinks with javelins just hatched Smile

I'm planning to form them into a 6x4 block w/ 2 kroxigors in the middle since they're rumored to be like that in the new army book, so there's some pics with some of my Kroototaurs as placeholders for now. I'll use the new kroxigors once they're released...

Wadaya think?
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N810 · Posted: Mon Dec 15, 2008 9:26 pm Post subject:

Woah, I would have to say that that is pretty Awesome. Cool

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Asrodrig · Posted: Tue Dec 16, 2008 4:24 pm Post subject:

Haha, Krootosaurs. I like that.
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Mr Youp · Posted: Wed Dec 17, 2008 5:42 am Post subject:

The movement tray... you could finish that one too?

But altogether, it is going to become a great visual army! Keep up.
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Necros · Posted: Wed Dec 17, 2008 10:06 pm Post subject:

I'll be doing a custom movement tray for the javelin guys too, but not at first... I want to wait for the new book and new rules so I can figure out how many will really be in the units. I probably won't have many updates for a while now though Sad

I'll be just building more and more skinks till the new models start coming out so by then I will just need a few more things to finish the army. My goal is to have 1000 pts.. you can fit a lot of the lil buggers in 1000 pts.. got my work cut out for me...
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Necros · Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 7:15 pm Post subject:

Been a while, I'm taking a little break from my leviathan and getting some lizards out of the way. I picked up the new stegadon and I'm real impressed with the kit. Everything fit together so perfectly and there's tons of detail. I also love how it comes with a lot of skinks! After you build yours depending on what you do you will have to spare. Here's all the bitz ready to get painted. I'll assemble it all when it's all painted..

I'm gonna build this as an engine of the gods. The skinks will be the same red & blue, the steg will have dark green scales and light green skin, and I think I wanna paint the engine in grays to be like it's made of stone with gold bitz on it, instead of solid gold. here it is assembled..

And with some of the spare bitz and 2 extra skink bodies I was able to make a skink chief with a spear, and also I made a standard bearer for my ranked unit that will eventually get 2 kroxigors too. Dunno how I'm gonna make a skink musician Sad

Maybe I can use one of the giant blowpipes from the stegadon and trim it down to be a horn? here's a blurry pic

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N810 · Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 9:57 pm Post subject:

those skink hands holding darts for the giant blowpipes
look a lot like they are holding horns.... Idea

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Necros · Posted: Fri Feb 20, 2009 8:38 am Post subject:

yeah I noticed that too Smile

I was thinking I might use one of those hands and stick an extra stegadon horn on the end and hollow out the fat end, or I might have a couple of leftover beastman horn bitz that would work too. Need to get more skinks first though Smile

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To-neh of LaTigra · Saurus Cold One Rider Joined: 01 Jan 2009 Posts: 184

Yeah for poison dart Skinks!! My skinks look almost identical: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_b1VmD9xlLxI/SM_9Cchjj6I/AAAAAAAAAJ0/jZlfq5ls5bw/s1600-h/Skinks.JPG

My whole army us based on real reptiles and amphibians: http://glennsgwmodels.blogspot.com/search/label/Lizardmen

Check 'em out, maybe you'll get some ideas.

Looking forward to seeing what you come up with next.
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Fallecs · Posted: Fri Feb 20, 2009 3:24 pm Post subject:

Yeah,

I'm going with the poison dart frog theme too.

Love it.

Did you ever get those kroxigors done?

To-neh, your Terradons are amazing. Love that idea. I was thinking about using Pegasus wings for mine, but the Saurus bodies never occurred to me.

Necros · Posted: Fri Feb 20, 2009 5:17 pm Post subject:

No kroxes yet but actually I'm gonna be picking some up tonight along with some razordons and that carnosaur guy
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Necros · Posted: Mon Feb 23, 2009 10:23 pm Post subject:

Got the stegadon crew finished, plus 2 extra models Smile

I love this kit.

Here's the crew with javelins

And here's the priest that will be standing on the engine of the gods

And out of the extra stuff, I was able to make a chief, and a standard bearer Smile

Gonna paint the stegadon next and the platforms & engine last
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Krox_v.2 · Posted: Tue Feb 24, 2009 12:21 am Post subject:

Excellent color scheme on the skinks. Makes me want to strip mine and shamelessly steal your idea. Very Happy

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