Wednesday 30 April 2014

Vampifan's Views 49 - Monthly Musings 29

Vampirella by Paul Gulacy, wearing longer boots. Sexy!
This past month has been a bit of a  mixed bag for me. The bad news is that my mum had a fall on Good Friday and fractured the ankle of her left leg. She is on the road to recovery and is no longer in pain, but looking after her has meant far less hobby time for me. Real life sucks!
On the plus side, I did get to play my first game of ATZ-FFO this year and my batrep of it will appear next Sunday. It is called Mayhem City Massacre and it begins with a gang fight between the African/American Crips gang and the Hispanic Kill Krazy Kommandos gang. Team Vampifan does not appear in this scenario. Like a few other bloggers, I want to tell more than one story in my campaign and so, every now and then, I'll feature groups and characters who don't belong to Team Vampifan. Don't worry, Team Vampifan will appear next time, I promise.
In other hobby news I received eight Atomico Press 28mm scale figures that I had backed in their Kickstarter project. These only cost me $30.00, which isn't too expensive. They feature 6 zombies and 1 SWAT trooper human. I got sent an extra zombie as a thank you for supporting the project, which really pleased me. I have just started painting them, so look out for a review coming soon.
I finished painting my three Wargames Factory plastic converted St. Trinian's schoolgirls and I'll probably review them after my ATZ-FFO batrep. I am still painting my twelve Gripping Beast 28mm scale civilians but they are almost finished.
I have decided to add interior detail to my MDF Vampivan, so I have yet to start painting it. I'm thinking of getting a pot of matt black paint from Wilkinson's to undercoat it. That should save me from wasting a pot of my Foundry paints on it. I once got a small tin of blackboard paint from Wilkinson's and it dried a lovely matt. Sadly, the tin had dried up and was unusable. Ah well, it looks like a trip into town is on the cards.
One thing I have noticed about my blog is that vampires are nowhere near as popular as zombies. That doesn't bother me at all. This is a blog about the undead, and I like vampires more than I like zombies, so I won't be ignoring them just because they aren't a ratings winner. I really did enjoy reading Rhiannon Frater's two Vampire Bride  novels and I'm eagerly awaiting volume 3. I am currently re-reading Feed by Mira Grant. I want to read the trilogy back to back because when I first read the series I had a big wait between each volume being published. Besides which, a series as good as this deserves to be read more than once.
Just a short post this time but I assure you, the upcoming batrep will be VERY long.

28 comments:

  1. Looking forward for the report!
    As for undercoat paint, there's no sense using expensive miniatures paints on terrain and scenery. That van is a huge wooden box, after all :P.

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    1. That's exactly what I thought, Mathyoo. I have been told that MDF soaks up paint like a sponge.

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    2. Oh - about that. I've heard a coat of PVA helps ;)

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  2. Looking after mum is #1 priority :-)

    I also like Vampires (but only in films). I have just finished reading "Alice in deadland", it got quite a few negative ratings on the Interwebz, but I liked it :-)

    Bryan, do you think my 50mm figs would fit in that MDF Van? (they have 40mm bases).

    Stay safe and survive
    Toni

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    1. Toni, her progress is slow but steady. That is a good thing.

      The height inside the van is about 53mm and is wide enough to accommodate 40mm diameter bases, so in theory, the answer to your question is yes.

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  3. Glad your Mum is okay and on the mend, looking forward to a batrep!

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    1. Thanks, Fran, and yes that is the number one priority.

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  4. Sorry to hear about your mum's accident, but hoping that she gets better soon. I know that can be slower than we'd like when people are older :-( .

    I'm looking forward to hearing about all the things you've mentioned. Whether or not they align with my primary interests is completely irrelevant; it's still interesting to hear about this stuff :-) !

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    1. Thanks, Hugh, I do appreciate your support (and everyone else's). Hopefully, you'll find something of interest in my upcoming posts.

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  5. You're absolutely right about MDf soaking up paint, but I would suggest you get some tester paints from B & Q (or similar).

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    1. That sounds like good advice, Joe. Thanks, mate.

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  6. So sorry to hear about your Mum Bryan. I hope she makes a full and speedy recovery.

    Using house paint on larger models was a game-changer for me. I started off with a litle textured paint, added black as an undercoat and then some shades of grey for base-coating terrain, no looking back now! Try getting hold of some wood primer if you want the paint to go further on MDF. It is more expensive by pays dividends on larger projects

    Just keep doing what you love Bryan. I'm not a big Vampire fan personally, but your enthusiasm for the subject is always appreciated.

    Looking forward to the Batreps!

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    1. Well she is recovering, Adam, but it certainly isn't speedy. She needs to keep her special "moon boot" on for at least four weeks whilst the fracture heals.

      Once again, I appreciate your advice on how to paint MDF. It's good to know that there are people more savvy than me about this subject, and that they're willing to pass on good advice.

      I'm sure you'll enjoy the batrep. It's a complete change to my normal batreps.

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  7. I know how you feel on a couple of points. Family comes first and Mummy Vampifan needs looking after the most. She's very important!

    Additionally It's your blog and while Zombies may be more popular than Vampires (in certain circles). You are the only person you are hear to please. I tend to get twice as many hits with terrain making than figure painting. But if I don't feel like terrain making I am not gonna blog about it. So do your own thing and be happy!

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    1. Where would we be without our mums, Clint? Of course, they are important and I hope I didn't come across as whining about my lot. Family must come first before hobby pursuits.

      Good point about this being my blog and what I say goes. In a blog about all kinds of undead, I don''t see why vampires and zombies can't appear together just because one lot are more popular than the other. There has to be room here for ALL types of undead creatures.

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    2. No not at all mate, I had just come back from the solicitor where we were sorting out my mothers"living will" "probate" and "power of attorney" so I was probably over reacting.

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  8. I'm with Clint, write about what makes you happy! I really just enjoy reading about the adventures of Bryan and how his life is going (batreps, cardstock, and minis are just a bonus).

    Persevere with taking care of your mother, such is the price of love (and I miss mine a little more this morning). Take care, Vampi!

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    1. Many thanks, Russ, for such a kind and heartfelt comment. It meant a lot to me!

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  9. Sorry to hear about your mum Bryan, I hope she makes a full recovery.
    Interesting to hear about your plans, batrep will be much appreciated. Will you be adding any exterior detailing to the Vampivan before you paint it? I was thinking panelling in card or armour plating details etc would look really good. Just that it could become a star character like Vampifan himself and would need to look it's best.
    While not as big a fan of vampires as I am of zombies, the genre is still interesting to read about especially when written by someone with an obvious passion for the subject. Besides your blog your rules.

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    1. My mum has told me to thank everyone for their well wishes.

      I will be adding exterior detail to the Vampivan, Bob. It is well armoured enough as is, but I will be adding supplies in the shape of jerry cans, back backs, ammo boxes, etc. I have already added a roof hatch to the rear compartment.

      Also, fair comment - my blog, my rules. Vampires stay!

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  10. I prefer zombies personally, always have done but I do like vampires when they are truly frightening and done right, as opposed to this new teenie 'twilight' rubbish! That's just my opinion. Really looking forward to the batrep and seeing how the vampivan turns out, and most importantly, news of your mums speedy recovery in your next monthly musings. I wish her all the best.

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    1. Dave, I think "Twilight" did more harm to the cause of vampires in fiction than good. Give me Selene (Kate Beckinsale) from the "Underworld" films any day!
      Once again, I appreciate your comments. Cheers, mate.

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  11. Hopefully your mom makes a full and speedy recovery!

    Like many others I eagerly await your next batrep, sounds like a great way to kick off a campaign! A gang war will make for an interesting backdrop for some action.

    Vampires have been more scary for me, when they are portrayed as intelligent, malevolent, evil fiends. I can't stand the emo, self hating, depressing types that seem to have come about... More Dracula and less Twilight.

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    1. Many thanks, Nobody667. I'm no fan of the emo, self-hating and depressing vampires either.

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  12. Sorry to hear about your Mum Bryan, I hope she recovers soon. I cant wait for the batrep it sounds epic, the way I see it "the longer the better"

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    1. Thanks, Shinto. I'm sure you won't be disappointed with my upcoming batrep.

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    2. Bonus, I just found your robbery batrep, I missed it cos I was sick over Crimbo

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    3. Cool! (That is cool in finding the batrep not cool in being ill).

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