ZEDVEMBER WEEK # 2

What's occurrin' then?

Painting zombies once again has been this weeks task here at the bunker. Hey, it's not called Bob's Zombie Apocalypse for nothing. As  Zedvember draws to it's mid point the zombie count increases steadily, which is exactly the point of this bit of tomfoolery. Well, for me it is! The things we do for a little motivation.

The cultural mission also continues! More art from the extremely talented chap stayinwonderland. This fine piece of work is entitled Infected - Zombie RPG artwork # 1. He's a great artist but his titles need a little work. Enjoy!

INFECTED # 1.

Managed to crank out five of the little motherlovers this week, a small step back to my initial levels of production. A very small step! Someone far wiser than me once said something about every journey starting with but a single step. I'll take this as a win, the very reason this whole Zedvember thing started.

Looking back over Zombtober's posts, it suddenly dawned on me! I had been so focused on getting zombies painted, I'd completely forgotten to name them! D'oh, what a twunt! I'll be rectifing that this post.

So without further ado, (little drumroll)  on with the show. All of these zombies came in the various seasons of Zombicide. The other thing they have in common is that they are all missing at least part of one arm. My first clumsy step into converting these excellent sculpts.

From left to right, as was usual before the break. First up this time is a Season 2 walker, a besuited gent by the name of  Gwydion. He was in local government middle management when things turn bad. Next is another Season 2 walker, you've just gotta respect his hair game. The Mohawked Merfyn! An estate kid and local gang member, probably out on the streets when the first attacks started. Moving along we have a Season3 VIP. Very Infected Person. A doctor, very obviously a front line casualty when the dead started reanimating. She's called Doctor Sioned Jones. Fourth in line we have yet another Season 2 walker. Rhydian was an inmate of the state until quite late into the outbreak. Finally for this time is a Season 1 walker. Iestyn must be a pikey! I've never seen anyone else wear a vest with shoes. Not having a permanent home was not a way to survive, it seems.

DON'T WORRY THEY'RE 'ARMLESS REALLY!

Some of the conversions were more successful than others. Pretty pleased overall, besides they'll get lost in the horde.

Well it seems that even with the incentive of Zedvember, I couldn 't bring this in on time. It's my first Zedvember, what can I say. Slacker! Anyway back to the NFL. Arizona v's Seattle!

AND TAKEN FROM BEHIND!?!

Short and sweet this time! Before I go, I want to extend some best wishes to fellow blogger and honourary Dude, Vampifan. He's had to go offline to visit hospital. Take her easy Bryan! We'll still be here when you get back.

I guess that's it, for this time dudes and dudettes. So until next time, try and follow in the DUDE'S footsteps and "Take it easy".

ZEDVEMBER WEEK #1

What's occurrin' then?

An idea that has been percolating for a couple of weeks and a chance remark in a comment I left on Chris Hird's blog. That's Chris's Miniature Woes. Has kind of become the start of something. There seems to be a few events running this month, such as Movember and Dinovember. Well I had such fun in last months Zombtober and I still have lots of zombies to paint, so the idea of continuing this into the next month really appealled. Chris Hird was saying that he had zombies to finish and wanted to extend Zombtober into Zomvember. I said it was a great idea but Zedvember sounded better. A week later, here's my first Zedvember post. Chris already posted his first Zedvember post last Thursday.

To make things nice and simple let's make the guidelines, I prefer to call them guidelines who needs rules man, the same as Zombtober. So that's one completed zombie or survivor a week, posted by the Sunday. To be honest I'm going to paint these zombies anyway, I just thought it was a nice way to keep the momentum going.

Let us not forget the cultural mission. Another great piece from the very talented stayinwonderland. This one is called Zurvival League - Zombie Survival Game Art #1. Another unwieldly title. Enjoy!

ZURVIVAL LEAGUE.

Managed to paint another four zombies this week. All from Zombicide. The crawler sculpts are the final ones from Rue Morgue, I've shown all the different sculpts from that now. The walker is from season one, I was given another load of season one zombies last week. Along with a whole bunch of Berserker zombies and VIPs plus a couple more seekers. These came to me via Sheldon from Paul Kennedy, one of the stalwarts of Crow Valley Crusaders, my local gaming club. Cheers Paul! You may have noticed that I converted him. The Santa is another VIP in a different colour scheme.

MORE ZOMBIES SHUFFLE AND DRAG THEMSELVES TOWARD THE HORDE.

In the surprise package last week was around about 100 zombies including a whole tray's worth of season one, virtually a whole tray of berserkers plus a few season two regular zombies and another shedload of VIPs from both boxes of Very Infected Persons #1 and #2. Looks like the horde is going to be bigger than I thought it would get!

ANYONE FOR A LITTLE BLOOD?

I'm still really enjoying this season's The Walking Dead and hope everyone else is too.

Well I guess that's all I got for this time dudes and dudettes. So until next time try and do as the DUDE and "take her easy".

HORDE #5 BREAKING 200!

What's occurrin' then?

Zombtober felt a little short this year, with almost a full week left of the month after the final Sunday deadline. Although I've still been painting zombies and survivors, I thought that this was a prime opportunity to catch up with a horde progress report. I hope other participants also take full advantage of this "bonus" time.

The welcome wagon needs to be dragged out of the storage shed. It's been given a wash, oiling and has balloons and streamers added! Why? Well it's a special occasion, my 50th follower! So, as is usual, let's have a big BZA welcome for my latest follower Bullcher Feb. WELCOME BULLCHER! He runs the Waaagghhh! blog, go check it out, it's really good. Buckle up Bullcher this journey is going to take awhile yet!

Amongst all the excitement and stuff, we can't forget the cultural mission. You know the one by now! So with out further ado, I present another great piece by stayinwonderland. Again more of a landscape or panorama, I must say I'm enjoying the change. This picture is entitled Infected zombie RPG artwork #2. Enjoy!

INFECTED #2

My fifth horde update, yes it has been quite a while since the last one. That's down to me making and painting other things to try and get this game off and running. I think it's going to be a little while yet, I appreciate your patience.

I'd completely lost count of how many zombies I'd painted for this project. Well as the title says, I've broken the two hudred barrier. Two hundred and two to be exact. It's great to say that Zombtober helped immensely getting my over that milestone!

Anyway enough gabble, on with the pictures!

THE HORDE IN ALL IT'S GLORY. LOL.

So after taking the group shot, my official photographer then took a few close ups of different parts of the horde.

SOMEWHERE ON THE RIGHT.

Yes, that's an old Heroquest mummy. He was at a Fancy Dress Party on zed day!

SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE.

Below is a selection of crawlers, don't know how many I'll need but there's loads in Rue Morgue.

SOMEWHERE ALONG THE FRONT.

Although there's a lot of repeat sculpts, I hope for now that my different colour schemes are enough to provide diversity. My conversion skills are not the best so for now they will have to do.

SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE AGAIN.

So that's my close to Zombtober, the end of the month at least. It actually feels like I'm getting somewhere. I've so much more left to paint! Half the TCM Toxic zombies, all the Prison Outbreak zombies, Rue Morgue zombies, loads more VIP zombies and  over half the stuff that came as part of the Infected kickstarter box. That's not including the survivors and zombivors! Let's just say, I'll be painting zombies for a fair bit yet.

Wow man! Is TWD ramping it up or what, best season yet!?!

Well, I guess that's all I got for this time dudes and dudettes. So until next time, try taking a leaf out of the DUDE'S book and "take it easy".

ZOMBTOBER 2015 WEEK #4.

What's occurrin' then?

Still ticking over steadily this week, this years Zombtober has felt quite manageable compared to last year when everything felt rushed and last minute. It's also really helped my get back to painting and keep me on track the last few weeks. Also discovered some new bloggers and their blogs, which I find the bonus side effect of the event. Gotta spread the infection, right? I think what I'm trying to say is that I enjoyed the whole experience much more than last year. Congratulations to everybody who took part and a big thanks to those who dropped by and made this year's event fun to be a part of.

Pressing on with the cultural mission, it is my pleasure to bring a new artist to your attention. He's a digital artist called Andy Walsh but he uses the name stayinwonderland, so that's what I'll be calling him. A different style too, more landscape than portraits of zombies. All beautifully rendered too, as they say, a change is as good as a rest. This fine example is called Zombie Alley. Enjoy!

ZOMBIE ALLEY.

So, we come to the last of this year's Zombtober offerings. More V.I.P.s from the infected box that came with my season 3 Zombicide kickstarter. I'm pretty sure a couple of these were kickstarter exclusives too!

So we have, I assume a cosplayer dressed as Princess Leia in her slave girl outfit. Next, what would the zombie apocalypse be without an undead Santa Claus. Finally an iconic punk rocker to round out this week's selection.

MORE V.I.P.'S

We used the V.I.P.'s for only the second time last Wednesday, I must admit to liking the mechanic. You have to collect five different V.I.P. walkers, just keep them on your survivor's card when you kill them. When you have five, you can trade them in for one of the cards from a deck of special weapons. Your supposed to include all of the "pimp" weapons you have into this deck too.

I'M STILL PAINTING THE BACK OF THEM.

There's some really cool weaponry in this deck, a golden AK-47, a Thompson sub machine gun and a pink M4 to name just a few. Plus you get to use all your "pimp" weapons even if there's no pimpmobile on the game board.

To finish off Zombtober I wanted to paint something a bit special, so this is the second Skinner Abomination that came as part of the kickstarter deal. Like one's not enough, right!

ALTERNATE SKINNER SCULPT! HE'S A BADASS.

This guy is a nightmare to play against! Not only have the rules for him changed, (he has no toughness stat anymore), meaning only Molotov's, the flamethrower and Will's Comet Launcher will kill him. He's also able to drag survivors into his square from all adjacent squares at the end of the zombie phase. Like I said nightmare! I guess that's why he's got really long arms, all the better to drag you in with!

AGAIN, I'VE PAINTED THE BACK OF HIM!

A group shot of everything I've painted this Zombtober, not amazing numbers but I'm happy enough, plus it's done the job and got me back painting regularly. Now that's a result in my book!

CLEETUS LOOKS LIKE HE'S IN TROUBLE!

I must ask how is everybody enjoying the new season of TWD? I'm loving it!

Well, I guess that's all I got for this time dudes and dudettes. So until next time, be more like the DUDE and "take it easy".

ZOMBTOBER 2015 WEEK #3

What's occurrin' then?

Zombtober seems to be progressing smoothly here at the bunker, which is news in itself. After a rocky start, I seem to have settled into a steady rythm, not back to the production levels of last year but it's certainly a step in the right direction.

Our cultural mission, whilst continuing, has come to a turning point. This is the final piece of the magnificent Bryan Baugh's work I'm going to show you. Yes, it's sad but this leaves us room to discover other amazing artists working in the zombie genre. As a farewell, this example has not one but two of Bryan's damsels in distress. Although the girl with the axe doesn't look too distressed. This is another tribute to Dead at 17. Enjoy!

Knockout rugby started this weekend. Wales into the quarter finals against South Africa. After an epic encounter we unfortunately came up short. Yet another defeat to a southern hemisphere team. Arse! At least we weren't alone.

Wasn't sure what to paint this week, so I had a good rummage through my Zombicide season 3 kickstarter. I didn't want to paint another survivor but there was plenty of zombies to choose from. I finally selected some of the seeker zombies from the Angry Neighbours expansion.

Haven't used these guys in anger yet, their rules seem rather interesting, basically when a seeker card is drawn all the seeker zombies on the board get an extra move. Thankfully it's only one action, but several cards in a row could potentially see these guys motor around the board. Another interesting tactical wrinkle!

SEEKERS ARRIVE!

The seeker zombies look a little more animated and ragged than some of the zombies we've seen in the Zombicide range. I think it has something to do with their special role and the amount of time after the initial outbreak.

SEEKERS LEAVE!

I also picked out Elvis, or at least an Elvis impersonator. He's another V.I.P zombie, in this case though I think he was a kickstarter exclusive. As is usual he's a chubby "Vegas" Elvis, in a spangly jumpsuit.

I'M ALL SHOOK UP!

Every year in sunny Porthcawl, they hold an Elvis competition to determine the best Elvis impersonator. Competitors come from all over the world to take part.

My town has it's own enterant. He's been rather successful, having won the best Welsh Elvis three years running and has now qualified to enter the European competition.

So all that means I guess, is that this is my representation of Darren "Graceland" Jones. He did a promotional video for our local council back last winter called "In the depot", set to the tune of "In the ghetto". It's priceless and can be found here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6UerjFCLdI

ELVIS IS LEAVING THE BUILDING!

Now it's time to drag the old welcome wagon back out of storage. It needs dusting and oiling. I urge you all to put your hands together and offer up a big BZA welcome to my latest follower Dai Dead. WELCOME DAI! Can't find a blog for you Dai, let me know if you have one. Buckle up the journey's taking a while.

Well, I guess that's all I got for this time dudes and dudettes. So until next time, try and do as the DUDE does and "take it easy".

ZOMBTOBER 2015 WEEK # 2.

What's occurrin' then?

After last week's drama, this week was pretty calm. I even managed to pick my pace up a little. Painting a survivor last time, just didn't sit right with me. This is called Zombtober after all, so back into my comfort zone, zombies it is!

I've finally re-watched the final two episodes of The Walking Dead. Season #5, in preparation for tomorrow's airing of Season #6. Episode 1. Anyone else as excited as I am? They are even showing the companion show, where they talk about the episode. I'm pretty sure it's called Talking Dead. We'll see how that goes too I guess.

Apart from TV, we are learning a little more about zombie art again We must remember the cultural mission we are currently on. So to that end I present you with another piece by the insanely talented Bryan Baugh. More monochromatic madness! Also featuring one his trademark damsel's in distress, almost sensibly dressed too. This lovely piece is entitled Cobweb Cave. Enjoy!

Well the rugby didn't go the way we wanted it to against the Aussies, at least they didn't score a try against us. I can take some comfort from that. Although we now have a ridiculously hard route to the final. We just have to beat the Springboks then the All Blacks to make it. A hard road indeed.

As I said, I picked my pace up a little this week. From a scrambled and last minute lone survivor, I managed to paint a relatively stress free three zombies. These zombies struck me as members of the late seventies, disco group Village People. These guys must have eaten the others, the cowboy and indian included. It made me smile, so I couldn't resist the reference.

DISCO FEVER IS OBVIOUSLY CONTAGIOUS.

Glorious sunshine, so we ventured up top to the outside world to take advantage of some natural lighting. A nice change from my usual dim yellow glow set up. If you squint a bit, they are even making the shapes M, C and A. The dance moves from their most famous hit Y.M.C.A. Hilarious!

SHAKE YOUR DISCO BOOTY!

All these guys come from the VIP #2 box, which isn't out for sale yet but I got these as part of the Zombicide season 3 kickstarter. Result!

There has been a really good response to Zombtober this year. It's been great to see everyone's work. And it's nice to see the infection growing with a few new participants.

Well, I guess that's all I got for this time dudes and dudettes. So until next time try and be more like the DUDE and "take it easy".

ZOMBTOBER 2015 WEEK #1. LATE AS USUAL!

What's occurrin' then?

These last few months I've really been struggling for motivation. To try and remedy this I've spent the last week watching all five series of The Walking Dead in preparation for the upcoming sixth season. It seems to have worked, I've actually picked up a paintbrush and started to flick paint onto mini's again. Look, I know they're late, but I got a really good excuse. Honest!

Even with all the excitement of Zombtober, we must not forget our usual cultural enrichment.  I hope your all enjoying the experience as much as I am. Another amazing piece of Bryan Baugh's work again this time. This fine work is called Blasted Zombie. Enjoy!

The Rugby World Cup is simmering nicely, we beat Fiji on Thursday, leaving us three wins from three games. Can't fault the boys at the moment. I must offer my commiserations to any England fans reading. I'll leave it at that!

Right then, about this good excuse. Well, my dog ate it! No honest! I've got a picture and everything. I'm sure your all thinking this is just a bad joke, where's the punchline. Sorry, but it's the truth. I'll direct your attention to the picture below, see evidence.

In the above photograph you'll notice that it wasn't the only casualty of my delinquent puppies mad rampage. Firstly we have my first week's entry, studiously and very carefully painted on Saturday. It was not in this condition when I went to bed Saturday night to dream of a Zombtober entry on time for once. Look back, you'll see what I mean! Even more disturbing is the pile of pieces next to it. This was formerly Mitch, a Zombicide survivor, came in a box of four figures, him, Uncle Honk and their zombivor's. My son bought me that!
Ffs! That's not including the bases and fences.

I remained surprisingly calm, given the situation that I awoke to Sunday morning. I swore for the rest of the morning, but only loudly for about two minutes, trust me, that's a result. She is only eight months old after all.

What was I to do? Luckily, I had been painting three figures, well I say painting, I'd basecoated three figures. You've already seen two of them.So instead of a nice relaxing Sunday just putting the final touches to the figure I'd painted the day before, posting it, then reading everybody's blog, who had entered this years event with a nice cup of coffee. It was spent madly painting the fellow below.

CLEETUS! I REALLY MUST START PAINTING EYES.

CLEETUS'S ASS!

He was painted yesterday but it was late and my official photographer was getting her beauty sleep. Nothing is worth rousing her mid-slumber, so I had to wait until  today.

I said he, how rude of me! His name is Cleetus, he's got that slack jawed mouth breather thing going on, he could be a survivor or a gang member. For now he's on his own, so he's a survivor!

Let's hope there's less drama next week.

Before I forget, it's time to drag the welcome wagon back out of storage to welcome my latest follower. So give a a big BZA welcome to da Grobbo Groto. WELCOME DA GROBBO GROTO. Strap yourself in this is becoming quite a long journey.

Well, I guess that's all I got for this time dudes and dudettes. So until next time, I urge you to be more like the DUDE and "take it easy".