More Gripping Beast livestock

Unleash the dogs of war!

Not that way, you cowards!

 

Saga (Gripping Beast) livestock

 The Gripping Beast livestock have turned out OK, not brilliant but OK.

I'm wondering about putting fence posts around the same sized boards,

weaving wire in and out as wicker, and loosing them in there.

Otherwise they'll eat all the damn grass I've put round the houses.

The two little lambs would look ridiculous on the provided bases

so I'm on the lookout for a couple of tiddly winks.

The ring is a stab at building a well.

Unfortunately, I let the filler go too hard before inscribing stonework.

...and MY axe! Hobbit Hole touch-ups

 A pile of kindling chopped at the front door after Gimli finally made a visit to drop off an axe. I had to clean it. Encrusted with Orc blood it was! Even then, he made sure that it was accepted as a loan. You'd think that with the number of axes secreted about his person that he could spare just one. There were two hidden in his beard!

The axe is part spear shaft from a Warhammer Elf and part a scrap of frame. The kindling, simply split and splintered lolli stick and the chopping block a cut down twig. Cheating, I know - it's not painted.

2nd Rohan House done

The addition of grass, using the new applicator, plus a few logs and damp patches in the pig yard, just about finishes it. 

Now to give thought to number three.

Clever balls ups this time include spilling the new WWS Basing Glue

and failing to clip on to the area between shed and house

meaning that the grass there is rather flat.

Rohan pigs in straw

 

As happy as 4 pigs in clover, without the clover.

The pigs have some straw and the gate is up and secure.

The small gaps in the fence are plugged to stop piglets from escaping,

not that we have any.

Hobbit gate and wood shed

 Well, at last Sandyman turned up to put a rope latch on the gate.

 He's also removed the Dwarf trap and replaced it with wooden angled supports for the woodshed.

Simply cotton in an eight loop, painted grey and then with a dark wash.

It's glued on the gatepost and can slip over the gate to release it to open.

I am realising that the gate is made from some massive timbers.

Rohan (Gripping Beast) pigs

 

So, the animals have all arrived and look great.

They take a fair amount of work before you can start painting

as there are quite a lot of mould lines and escaped material.

A couple of pits too, which I failed to notice on these pigs.

Painting them was nearly a disaster. As they are metal I spray first with a primer.

(This I forgot with the first two and had to scrape the paint off. Planning!)

Then I used Cobra dark brown spray which is either too thick

or I sprayed too close and eradicated much of the excellent detail.

It was worst on the pigs but 'I think I got away with it'*.

The base paint is Rhinox with added black on legs and belly

with black for eyes and trotters.

 Then I dry brushed with mixes of

Scrag Brown, Vermin Brown and Tausept Ochre.

They come with thin bases supplied by Renedra.

I'm not sure if I should use them or not on these 'static' animals.

I'm still thinking about the gate but I do have some straw for them.

Next post should show them both.

*I remember Fawlty saying the same in 'The Germans'.

Traders

 

As (my) precious-s-s little progress is being made lately,

I thought I'd put up a shot of the excellent little bundle

that arrived this morning from Gripping Beast.

Two horses drawing a cart full of sacks, barrels etc, a hand cart

and four stalwart civvies to delivery it to (or from) market.

I'm looking forward to seeing them around the Rohan village.

2nd Rohan House - Piggery

 

I had some thoughts about the second Rohan House.

What is the point of having a pigsty and letting your pigs wander off.

So with zero planning, I used the fencing provided for two houses

and set them round a corner of the board.

I've mixed brown and grey earth for that area,

figuring it might well be brown and churned up.

Also, I realised that the fence should have been glued together,

before installing it and that there's no gate!

Hobbit Hole gate and more

 I'm sure Ted Sandyman does it deliberately!

All he had to do with the woodpile roof was to give it two diagonal supports.

What does he do? Two damn great poles almost perfectly designed

to trip up dwarves visiting after dark!

Hi second job was to lay turf over the little hummock at the rear of the hole.

He even messed that up!

(Despite using my static grass applicator, the grass failed to stand up. Obviously using a poor conducting glue - a £4.00 bottle from The Works)

He did a much better job on the gate, however, giving it two more struts,

lifting it clear of the path and even giving it another coat of paint.

He says he'll be back this afternoon with a rope tether but,

as The Green Dragon is now open, I doubt it.