Welcome back to this abode most accursed. It is I, you maestro of Chaos! Your epitome of evil! I'm back with another edition of Corners of Chaos. As I posted previously, I have been working on several projects- it keeps me engaged in my modeling, but it also means that I finish stuff slower, since my attention continuously shifts around. However, I have finished my latest project... the Ur-Ghuls!
Now, this post is another in a series of articles in the "Maximizing Your Gaming Dollar The Chaos Way". As longtime lurkers know, I love Warhammer 40K- the game, the mythology, and the painting/modeling aspect. However, I can readily admit that GW, as a company, sometimes goes too far. Now, I don't begrudge them a profit, as many posters do. They seem to think that GW owes all players something- no. They are a company. They want to make money. When a video game company charges $60 a game- well, some are worth it and others aren't. No one seriously suggests that XBox games should be only $39.99- and if they don't drop we'll boycott. Ridiculous. GW wants profit, just like any other business.
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Yes, GW wants to make money... that's why they are a business |
With that in mind, I "understand" why the new rulebook will be $75. I'm not thrilled with the price tag, but, I know I'll buy it, as I love the game and am fairly certain that it will be good to shake up the rules and keep the game fresh. It is the "cost of doing business", and I understand that I'm in a hobby that does cost money. I'm willing to pay for the quality of the product.
On the other hand, there are things that I simply believe are way too overpriced. When that happens, I find a cost effective way to make my own whatever-it-is. As a Chaos player, I do conversions already; thus, I am always looking for more effective ways to make models that are otherwise too costly/not worth it. Case in point is the Ur-Ghuls. Now, these critters are part of the Court of the Archon. They are monsters or hunters if you will. They simply chase down their prey at the behest of the Archon. A Dark Eldar lord can bring up to five of these horrors with him. The model itself is nice- matching the description quite well. However.... the price! Wow! $16!! That's as much dough as the Archon model itself. Now, I don't mind paying that for a leader/ single model, but when you can have 5 of these creatures- that adds up to an astonishing $80!! That's way too much money for something that is essentially a small bodyguard. Like I said, I'd buy 1 or 2... but 5? No freakin' way!
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It's a nice model, but... not worth $16.00, so let's try the Chaos Way! |
So, I did what all good Chaos players know how to do. I looked for inspiration elsewhere. I had, a while ago, bought Vampire Counts Crypt Ghouls. I had initially planned to use them for my Nurgle forces. However, that project got lost in the myriad of other things I was working on, and I had left the box in my basement, forgotten. Then, of course, I found it again... I had already seen some guys on BoLS working on a similar conversion. So, why not?
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The Court of the Archon |
The truth is, I did nothing to them with putty or anything. They're my Ur-Ghuls, so if I want them to have two eyes, so what? They are the Crypt Ghouls right out of the box, except for the round bases. Presto. Painting-wise, I started with a coat of Incubi Darkness (one of my favorite new colors). Then, I used a wash of Drakenhof Nightshade (love the new paints, but the names will take me some time to adjust to). Once dried, I layered various blues and greys, with the results you can see. I used Etherium Blue Dry to highlight, and Praxeti White for the bones. The fingernails/teeth were Tallarn Sand. Finally, to tie them into the Court of the Archon, I painted their small loincloths with the old Scab Red and then Nuln Oil (just as I had on the Court). I also applied Nuln Oil to the joints/crevasses of the Ur-Ghuls, which quickly game them more depth.
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I did the cloth the same as the other servants of the Court |
So, to recap: if I bought the finecast Ur-Ghuls, I'd spend $80 on 5. The Chaos way, using the Crypt Ghouls, I spent $24.75 for 10... $2.48. Now, I only used 5, with bits left over for future projects. If you want to say only 5, then that translates into $4.95. Still, a third of the price of one finecast model!! You can't go wrong...
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Notice the Nuln Oil shading |
The result is just fine, in my opinion. They look close enough to the "real" Ur-Ghul, and cost far less. Plus, they are hardly "centerpiece" models to begin with- try the Incubi or something if you want to have that effect. Why spend $16 on one Ur-Ghul when you can get 10 for just a few bucks more.
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I will find out if the Court of the Archon is an effective option soon enough... |
Anyways, that's all for now. I'll be back later on when I finish more stuff. I am also hoping to review both of Nolan's Batman films (to get ready for The Dark Knight Rises) and continue my Star Trek movie reviews. Until next time...
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