Newest Project: Infinity PanOceania Armored Cavalry

Here is my newest Infinity project: the PanOceania Armored Cavalry TAG.



I'm sure many of you will notice that this model isn't the same one listed by that name. The original Armored Cav, the Squalo, is... not to my taste. But careful reading of the Human Sphere sourcebook tells me that the Jotums and Dragões TAGs are based on the Squalo chassis, and that the Jotums is basically just an up-armored Squalo. So, my Armored Cav will be a Jotums without the spaced armor.

These photos are obviously just past assembly. I've balanced the shoulder armor on the model for these shots; I've left them unglued because much of the shoulder detail (myomar bundles?) may be visible after assembly, but unreachable for painting. I'll affix them later.

Invisible in these shots are the many pins I used. Two through the pelvis (reaching all the way from one leg to the other), one in the tail, one through each shoulder joint, one in the forearm joint supporting the HMG, two into the chest armor, and one in the neck. I do not intend to have to re-glue any components of this model in the future.

I've got a new can of primer coming in the mail; I'll post more shots as I get paint on the model.

Questions and comments are always welcome.

Combat Heels = Facepalm

First up, the inspiration for this article was this thread from the Infinity forums: Sexual objectification in Infinity?

I worry that when I say am a feminist, people will imagine I mean one of the characters from Kate Beaton's fantastic comic. When I say feminist, I mean it in the Rebecca West sense of "the radical notion that women are people." My culture will certainly on average agree with that statement, but its actions don't always line up with the ideal. This is especially obvious when feminist issues crop up in traditionally male-dominated pastimes, like miniature gaming.

I'd very much appreciate it if the world would just "get better" in regards to the manifold ways it disappoints me regularly, but I don't often have the energy to fight the good fight. I'm especially reluctant to think that arguing with forum denizens with which I disagree is likely to result in any significant ameliorating of their attitudes. Unsurprisingly to those who know me, I also cannot keep my mouth shut. What I try to do most often is address the issue with humor, and try to add something that has the possibility of educational value.

The original poster in the referenced thread seems to feel that some of the depictions of females in Corvus Belli's miniature range for Infinity are problematic. To quote:

I do not really mind if there's some clevage here or there but when more than half of the female minituares are dressed down and/or with a hand on her hip it gets a little bit tedious. Especially when comparing them to their male counterparts who are armoured, with helmets and in the middle of the action. -bladerunner_35

I'm solidly in agreement with bladerunner_35 here. Yes, humans have sexual attributes. It is perfectly reasonable to depict those attributes if your aim is to depict humans. However, it is preferable to depict any human, male or female, real or imaginary, with respect. It is very difficult to argue with any sincerity that models like the Ariadna Caledonian Volunteers or the Nomad Reverend Moiras depict women respectfully. I do not mean to imply that all female characters depicted by Corvus Belli's miniatures are disrespectful to women; there are some great figures there. I also do not dispute that Corvus Belli has the right to make whatever artistic decisions they want - of course they do! But it would be better if more women could look at the Infinity models and see depictions of characters they would like to identify with, rather than the objectifying examples to which they are so commonly subjected.

Because I didn't have the strength at the time to attack some of the pathetic straw-feminist arguments I saw, I instead posted in that thread a link to the Anti-Comics-Feminist Bingo Sheet. Here is a selection of posts from that thread, and following each my justification for scoring that post on my bingo card. Please note: I will not score any post that seems to claim that sexism isn't a problem; only those posts that claim that Corvus Belli's depiction of women is not sexist. There can be no meaningful discussion with people who know what sexism is and think that it is ok.

Cervantes3773 posts "If it bugs you that much, vote with your dollar and don't buy those models." From the bingo sheet: "... sexism is wrong, whether you think it is a waste of time or not."

The Last Foxtrot posts "With an anime style theme....this is bound to happen. Theres no way around it." But "... Sexism is not necessary. It’s just habit."

werkrobotwerk posts "Riotgirl is also a faster lower armor heavy. Hence built up legs and minimal torso protection contrast to the mobile brigada, who is also female, but with a higher armor, and lower speed. She has her armored bulk more evenly distributed." Another example of "... the parade of comic book women who ... just happen to have personalities that require costumes emphasising their primary sexual traits." To be fair to werkrobotwerk, I don't think the Riotgrrl is the most egregious example - she just could be better.

drizz73 posts "I think if most guys are really honest it is what they want." "If you genuinely believe men just have to objectify women ... then you have a really, really low opinion of men." See also post #70.

savonarola posts, with implied sarcasm "Miniatures should be fat and ugly because many real people are and so they will not feel humiliated" and "There are places in the world and situations everywhere where women need real help. Lift your butt, pseudo-philosopher, and help a real person." Double score! "... your critic want[s  figures] of women treated as realistically as men are, in the same manner, with as much variety in face and body type. Apparently, you find that threatening and have jumped to an exaggeration of their argument that also demonises fat and those who don’t fit the cultural beauty standards." and "The More Important Things Fallacy! ... it combines an utter cluelessness of the impact of cultural artefacts on our, y’know, culture, with the arrogant assumption that complaining about comics is as far as your critic goes when it comes to women’s rights ... don’t you dare assume that ... the portrayal of women in [miniature form] doesn’t feed from and into deeply disgusting misogynistic tropes. Sexism is everywhere. Your critic is choosing to fight it in at least one place they see it. That’s admirable, not risible." He does this again in post #153. I sense a pattern.

Harlekin posts "... if everything looked just 'realistic' we wouldn't be around to trash talk about this 'problem', because nobody would have bought any of those miniatures." But "... we all want a certain amount of realism."

evilleMonkeigh posts "my wife ... went with the nomads BECAUSE of the Moiras ... I would say 99% of the thread respondents here are men, and 99% of women wouldn't care. So why should we?" "It is never appropriate to use your sample of female friends, or yourself, as a trump card that triumphantly deflects all feminist criticism with which they/you disagree."

Also, special mention goes out to micf2303: "objectification of women is bad in a sense" Good job! You win!

Yeah - I've run out of steam. I can't be bothered to keep going and see if I've won anything. I do feel some hope when I see that Corvus Belli has released a new Daktari model, in place of their old one. I think it is a sign that they are at least aware of the issue.

*Credit to Corbeau on the Infinity Forum for the title of the post.

PanOceania Fusilier

My lastest project is a small PanOceania force for Infinity. I'm getting more and more excited about Infinity lately. I think the small force sizes will allow me to pour some attention into each figure of my army. I've started with the Fusiliers, as I'll have at least a few in any list I write, and they will help me to refine my color choices and techniques before I tackle something more complex.

Here is the first of my Fusiliers, Emmet Wilson.

I used Wilson for two major painting experiments: his armor, and his skin tone.

The armor plates were painted with zenith highlights using my Badger Renegade Velocity airbrush. The procedure was simple: a dark gray base-coat and a black wash prepared the surface. Then, holding the model so that its head faced towards me, I lightly sprayed a medium gray so that only the surfaces facing me would be highlighted. Next, a light gray even more lightly applied completed the highlights.

A word of warning for those attempting this technique: at this scale, any significant spatter from the airbrush is very noticeable. On Wilson's left shoulder, you can see some very small white spots from the last highlight layer. They are almost invisible upon close examination, let alone table distance, so I'm not unhappy. But try to make very sure that your airbrush is clean, and that you are using the right pressure for the consistency of your paint.

His skin tone is the other experiment I mentioned. I haven't painted any African skin tones before, so the color choices were a bit outside of my comfort zone. I used Reaper Master Series Dark Shadow, Dark Skin, Dark Highlights, and Tanned Shadow in order from darkest to lightest tone. The technique itself was tried and true: progressively highlight anything that sticks out.

Wilson is only the first of my PanOceania forces - I have three more Fusiliers, including a hacker, a Croc Man, and and Orc Troop on the painting table right now. Stay tuned!

Exercise and painting

I've been worrying about the gradual expansion of my waistline for some time, but other than some low-grade dissatisfaction, it hasn't had a major impact on my life - until recently. The other day, my kindergarten-aged son discovered the joys of placing his hands against my belly and pushing until I barked at him to quit. He was amazed (and I, disconcerted) to discover just how far he could press in.

So, now I'm going to the gym. My strategy is as follows: first, I will focus on increasing muscle mass. That will help to increase my caloric needs, with the fringe benefit of helping my self image (I currently resemble a lump of uncooked bread dough). Second, I will "fill in the corners" with cardio to improve tone and overall fitness. Tactically, that means I will lift weights until I think I can't anymore, and then use an elliptical trainer until I want to puke. At my current level of capability, I'll certainly be able to handle more strength training than cardio, but over time I think the ratios will balance out.

In practice last night, it worked pretty well. The gym at the hospital for which I work is open twenty-four hours, so I had the place to myself at three in the morning. I did some squats and some calf work (at an embarrassingly-low weight, but there is after all a reason that I'm working out), and then pounded on my upper body for a while. I didn't feel comfortable using the free-weights. First, even though they have safety bars, I've had it pounded into me that you have to have a spotter. Second, and more immediately pressing, was my phone. I loaded up my iPhone with books-on-tape, to provide me with some mental activity. I don't have a bluetooth headset yet, so around the free weights I constantly worried about where to put my phone. Close enough to reach my head? Far enough to avoid constant drops? Too much to worry about.

So I used the weight machines, and sat my phone on the weight stack instead, and did what I could, and went home. I then sat down to paint some PanOceania Fusiliers, and boy did that not work out. It seems that heavy physical exertion in the upper-body promotes involuntary muscle tremors. I've got some good technique, but there's only so much that bracing your arms can do.

Moral of the Story: Paint before you lift weights, not after. I'll have some photos of my Fusiliers to share soon.

More than 40K

I've been glancing through my posts, and I've noticed that the only photos I've posted so far have been Warhammer 40,0000 figures. It might be easy to assume that those are my only miniatures-related interests.

The High Elves from Warhammer Fantasy Battles were my first miniatures, and while I've essentially only played the game five times in twelve years, my elves will always hold a special place in my heart.

This Prince is a conversion using a metal Lord model (the one with the boring axe), and a greatsword bit from the plastic High Elf Prince and Noble boxed set. I had to file down the vambrace on the plastic bit to make sure that the components matched, but I think it worked out rather well.

I'm also very happy with the fine detail on this piece. The gems on my models are a particular point of pride for me, and I've painted thousands of them. I think these are some of the best I've done. I also painted a free-hand border on the cape. The pattern I chose was simple, but it adds interest in what would otherwise be a boring part of the composition without overwhelming other features.

I spent at least twenty hours on this model, but I think the results are worth it. When I am teaching new painters, my most common advice (after "take care of your brushes") is "slow down." Many new painters are hoping to get their armies painted in an afternoon. Realistic or not, that hurry is understandable, but it doesn't lend itself to the precise painting style depicted in these photos. If your goal is to have the prettiest models around, paint half as fast. You'll do twice as well.

Questions or comments are always welcome.

Project Completion: Phoenix Bomber

As promised, here are some photos of the completed Phoenix Bomber. Sadly, I don't have my light box set up at this time, so we'll have to do with my painting light (direct fluorescent illumination).

Earlier, I had mentioned my worries about a lilac bloom on the white accents. At this point, I think the problem was poor cleaning of my airbrush. I've switched from a siphon-fed to a gravity-fed double action brush since that time, and I 'm very happy with the results. More on that tool in another post.

There were three different models I could have selected at the time I purchased the Phoenix; the other two are the Nightwing and the Vampire. The Vampire was quickly eliminated on a cost basis. Choosing between the Phoenix and the Nightwing was more difficult. Both were similar in price, and very dramatic models. In the end, I chose the Phoenix because of perceived utility (the Nightwing is an interceptor, and at the time no one I knew had any flyers), and because with two pilots, there would be more opportunity for the fine detail that is so compelling to me.

I'm fairly happy with the way it all turned out. I've noticed that on the rank-and-file infantry figures in my army, the main red color is considerably darker than it appears on my larger-scale miniatures. This is because the final stage of the red sections is a drybrush of Citadel Blood Red. On the infantry figures, the drybrushing only results in accents, particularly on the highlights on the armor. On vehicles, the lack of texture requires more time and pressure for a drybrush technique, so more paint gets applied. I've considered going back with a glaze to darken the tone and add detail, but that will wait for a later project.

Comments or questions are always welcome!

À la recherche du temps perdu

Well, it seems that time has once again slipped through my fingers.

For those of you who are interested, the Phoenix Bomber has been complete for some time now - in fact, it and my Revenant Titan have been on display at the Game Preserve in Lafayette Indiana for some months now. I will be posting photos of the two in the near future.

Current Projects:

Eldar Dire Avengers (95% complete)
Eldar Support Weapon (95% complete)

High Elf Lord on Griffon (25% complete)
Basically an entire High Elf Army (2% complete)

PanOceania Fusiliers force (25% complete)

D&D tabletop/online campaign (98% - now scheduling!)