Anyone would think this Craftworld was Iyanden...

Well, it certainly has been a while between drinks. To say the f*&ing least. Life, as it turns out, has a way of directing us regardless of our best intentions. Seriously, as the title states... its like a ghost army has been resurrected.

So, this post will go over what has been, where things are at and where they're going over the next four to five years. Yep, still got that long to go... in the immortal words of Idris Elba - Reset the clock.

The "Past"

What the hell happened, Dave? Seriously... What.. The.. F*&k... happened?!

Well, it goes a little something like this;

1. Kids - Had one to add to my "eBay Child". To say they're a handful is an understatement. Any parent knows this though. With them, come expenses... lots of expenses. Add in special needs... its a party.

2. Health dramas - We all have them, this is normal. Ours just came all at once. I won't lie, there was a moment where I probed for interest in selling the Warhost. Thankfully, it did not come to that, but it got very close.

3. House stuff - COVID-19 brought with it some pretty interesting changes, which we have all been affected by. Not least of this is working arrangements. To do this, some office/livability factors were required. It paid off, as I'm lucky enough to work for an organisation who have allowed me to work from home full time due to the life events that have transpired since 2017.

All of the above has added up to the Warhost coming a distant 20 something on the list of priorities.

 ... Yet, here we are, a couple of years on, still going ;) 

NB: I might have also invested in the Battletech Clan Invasion Kickstarter... my second love.

The "Present"

Fast forward to the present! Just what has been sent out? What came back? What's left to go?

1. HQ Models - All HQ models are with, or on their way back from either Vincent or Linford. And they look the ducks nuts.

As with myself, both Vincent and Linford have their lives and dramas to deal with as well, so the last are trickling in (Jetbikes an exception...) - More to come, stuffing about with a light box to get some "blog worthy" photos up.

2. Rogue Trader Models - As previously displayed on the blog, two solid boxes filled with metal were sent off to Arawn.. somewhere around 500+ including a few aspects from the Artel W range long over due for paint work. These have no deadline set, when they're done, they're done. This was batch 1 of 3.

*Note: This was just a small portion... almost 20kg of metal was sent off... I genuinely felt bad.

The "Future"

So what is left to go out?

1. Lots and lots of Wraith units. To the tune of about 150 or so... probably more.

2. A batshit insane amount of Jetbikes, both old and new, plus a few dozen Corsair units (60 or so). From memory, the Jetbikes alone in total came to over 500 in number, ranging from old GW sculpts, to Ghost Miniatures, etc.

3. Artel W Aspect and Ranger sculpts. Again, these match previous unit numbers, so generally that's 30 of each Aspect and 50 of the Ranger variety.

4. Armorcast... lots and lots of Armorcast. Wave Serpents, Tempests, Phantom Titan with all the mods, Revenants, prototype Bright Stallions... name it, minus one or two... its probably in there.

5. Forgeworld Super Heavy Tanks, both the MK1 and MK2 plus Lynx varieties. If memory serves correctly, there are around 30+ Warmachines all said and done across both ranges.

6. Miscellaneous add ins as they're released to market... this shitstorm never seems to end.

What awaits: The next four years...

So the light is finding its way to the end of the tunnel. As most of you know by now, especially commissioned artists and studios, I don't put deadlines on any of the works - this prevents the artists from getting burn out and also gives them flexibility to really shine when putting thought into the pieces.

*I will preface this in saying the below considers a time line of two years for the HQ/Titans, and 3-4 for everything else.

As most who follow this blog would have noticed, Vincent is getting out of the painting business and now well into sculpting miniatures for his business Limbo Miniatures. Seriously, check out his stuff, its jaw dropping.

What does this mean? Well, all the HQ models for the Eldar were his exclusively to manage, until now. The helm is being passed to Linford of Banshiek Miniature Painting (Brisbane, QLD) after seeing his incredible works with other Eldar commissions (seen below).

While a few miniatures are on their way back from Vincent, Linford will be taking up the helm in November on the next batch of 26.

Meanwhile, Clayton from Can Brush Studios (Toowoomba, QLD) will have his work cut out for him with doing detail/repair work on the Warmachines (some were severely damaged in transit, others will have the pilots and fine details attended to.

Over in Colorado, USA, Steve from Third Fate Creations will be kicking off work on the Armorcast Titans (Phantom, Warlock Class kit and Revenants).

In the background, and I owe this lad an apology for the delays of over two years (yeah, bad Dave), Arawn from Titan Miniatures will be taking care of a stupidly large amount of Wraith constructs, Jetbikes and Harlequins (don't worry... I won't be asking for all those diamonds, I'm not a sadist).

More 3rd Party Goodness - Boneshees & Farseers

As you folks know, my desire to complete this Warhost is not restricted to normal production models... so when I see something mind blowing, I jump on it.

Artel Miniatures is one such company to join the growing list of amazing sculptors. I've just had my Farseer Macha and "Boneshee" arrive - they're both of very high quality resin and detail. Seriously, if all companies could put this kind of quality out I'd have to take out a second mortgage on the house.

Enough with the babble?

Here they are...

On a side note, Artel Miniatures have also released a full squad of Boneshees... I intend on adding 30 of these to the existing Warhost. I'd be an idiot not to. EDIT: 3/2/2018 Post updated, these are no longer available... Sad Dave.

Warp Spider Phoenix Lord - A Story of Clavicle Cleaving

Steve the Man has just sorted out the latest addition to the Dras'Volharr - In the form of a completed Warp Spider Phoenix Lord diorama... Seeing what a Chaos Terminator lord is really made of inside.

This is what you get when a Warp Spider Phoenix Lord decides to open a slice of webway from within and emerges like a Xenomorph chest burster. Hint: It's more spectacular than a stripper from a cake.

I'm a bit limited for time at the moment, however, so I will be brief in this post... enjoy!

HQ Update & Airwing Shenanigans

A little more WIP stuff from the Man Vincent in charge of the HQ critters of Craftworld Dras'Volharr. Up this week are the venerable Asurmen, two Farseers and an Autarch of the winged variety.

On a side note, I've been in the midst of flyer repairs getting the winged variety magnetised and up in the display case. Not an easy task - especially when you realise bits were missing or not put on at all, meaning much scurrying to find suitable parts to paint becomes an addition to a long list of "fixes". Yep, moving interstate and having so many minis all over the globe does that!

... And to think I have another 3 years left to get it all under control. What have I got myself into eh?

Warhost Display Cabinet - Almost complete...

Well, I now feel a little better that the doors are on - and little fingers can't create a hostage situation.

Have to say up front though that the remaining lights inside the cabinet aren't in yet (down and up firing to "fill" the case with light, not just the shelves). Still sourcing some 45 degree angle aluminium profiling to polish it all off yet.

Oh, and no, the ceiling isn't warped, that's just the camera on my phone being a dick... also with the lighting, but it gives you all some idea of what the Warhost will be housed in. Should only be about a month away from completion at this rate, then I'll begin sending out the remaining batches as I can afford to have them painted. With a newborn on the way, its going to get a bit tight for cash (it is already... but the spare room is now direly needed).

Without further ado, here are the piccies...

HQ Eldar - First wave on its way home

As most of you know, the Warhost is completely commission painted by a number of artists globally. One lad, Vincent, has held the reigns over all HQ models (with the exception of Warlocks). The good news? He's on the home stretch! In recent times, Vincent has switched from commission painting to his own personal line of miniatures - Limbo Miniatures - As you might imagine, running your own business takes up a fair chunk of time :)

Luckily, Vincent has been gracious enough to finish off the HQ models, being his last comission - for which I am immensely grateful. One look at the quality and how he has given each model its own uniqueness while keeping the theme, and you will see why I'm pretty thrilled he has stuck with me getting these HQ models done over the years. They've all come out absolutely stunning!

See below for a line up of all the models to date Vincent has completed for the Dras'Volharr...