Jackals, Chimera Crane and WIPs

Welcome back for another wee update, I've been building more than painting this week, and first up I've got some bases almost built ready for some Atalan Jackals. I'm making them neutral to use with my Hive Guard force either as rough riders or just using the Atalan Jackal rules. It doesn't help that I now want loads and to recreate the Rohan cresting the hill scene from Return of the King and have them crashing into Ork lines.... We shall see!

I picked up the Galvanic Servohauler a couple months ago wondering how I can adapt it to some Necromunda terrain but then saw a few people attach it to a Leman Russ chassis. 'Thats cool' I thought, but debated whether there was a better chassis. After wondering if the lower bases Chimera chassis would be better I got hold of one and made this. Still bits to finish off but I'm quite happy with how that looks!I've flattened the top of the chimera off and then mounted the crane section onto some plasticard. Its not glued to the circular railing and I'm unsure whether to. It'll be sturdier but might be nice to be able to turn it... we shall see!

 I have paitned a little, firstly this guy I based from a leftover Genestealer Cultist from the Goliath kit mixed with some Orlock parts. Its what I'll be using predominently for the Atalan Bikers so had a little mess around with a colour scheme for them. I've retained the Thunderhawk blue main colour but used white on some of the armour and red casing for the gun. I'm unsure whether to stick with this for the bikers though, and may reverse it so the armour is thunderhawk blue.

 Little more done to the Exorcist too, having done some work to the Organists/rocket launcher firer. Theres a weird surface inside the Exorcist and I'm unsure how to paing this when I get to it, I can't make out if its stone or like a sheet covering something and the photo on the GW website isn't that clear either.

I also picked some other bits up with the Chimera, more Armoured Containers to go along with the three I already have, plus some Genestealer Cult characters to convert for the Hive Guard and Necromunda.

I grabbed these from The Outpost and they were quickly at my door to quench my hobby needs! The Alpus is such a cool model, and I love how theres very little to mark her as a Genestealer cult model. Easier for me to convert! She'll be getting an Escher head, as will the femala Atalan model in the main kit. The Nexos I'll probably use as a Master of Ordnance and the Clamavus either as a Voxcaster or even a standard bearer, I'm unsure yet but just liked the model enough to get! Also, both can be used for Necromunda too which is even better! 

So thats what I've been upto this week, what about you lot? Share any pictures below or maybe I've  sparked some ideas off for your own conversions? Either way keep safe and keep hobbying!

Work in Progress!

Today I thought I'd show off what I'm currently doing, what I've done, and what I may be doing very soon!

 Currently working my way through this beauty, an Exorcists for the Adepta Sororitas aka the Sisters of Battle. I've not got a name for the order yet but I am happy with the scheme I've gone for, I think it works pretty well and getting a small force together will look pretty darn good!

Managed to get these Van Saar finished enough to where I'm happy with them too, few bits I can tidy up but this gives me now 40 indantry for my Imperial Guard brigade and I'll be working on 20 Escher next. I'll also be doing some world building for a 40k campaign I'll be doing with the notorious Bam pitting my Guard vs his Orks which he's be painting up. He's done some fantastic conversions and kitbashes so I'll also be showing these off too.

Also coming up I saw a most excellent conversion using the Severina Raine miniature as a proxy for Commissar Yarrick where she had a storm bolter in her sword hand and instead of the pistol she had a Mechanicus claw. I'm unsure if I'll do the same weapons but it was good enough to inspire me to get one from The Outpost as well as a second box of Atalan Jackals, the first box of which Bam got me for my birthday last year. Now I'm debating whether to keep the bodies as the same or to get another box of orlocks and try to use those... We shall see!

So what are you lot working on? What projects have you got coming up? Let me know and perhaps I'll showcase them in this very blog!   

Guide to Roleplaying

Tabletop roleplaying has become one of my great passions in this hobby. Meeting up with friends to act out adventures that a dice (and sometimes a Dungeon Master) will determine is great fun and fantastic escapism. But what can you do to make yourself a better roleplayer?

First off, speak to the dungeon master and fellow players about what you want from the game. A bloodletting dungeon crawl can mean a lower amount of roleplaying and more fighting, whereas a grand campaign with a huge narrative arc allows a huge amount of scope for really delving into a character and backstory. This will help set the mood with your group at an early stage and put everyone one the same level.

When it comes to creating a character, think about how much you want to be involved with the roleplaying aspect. To keep it simple, choose a race and class that appeal to you and put a little of your own personality there. Humans are always a good start as we know how they act already, but Elves and Dwarves aren't too dissimilar to play either. If you're looking to push your skills then races like Tieflings, Dragonborn and Goliaths can really open up your perspective. A good DM will have the world react differently to differing races and this can be really interesting to play.

In terms of a backstory always converse with the DM. The first thing is to understand the setting, which will then spark some ideas as to where your character fits in. Talk to the DM about your idea and they may be able to link you into the story even more which will immerse you even more. The more immersion, the better the roleplaying.

When you begin playing theres some things to remember. Every player will, or at least should, get time to shine. This can be from triumph in a battle getting the last hit on a renowned enemy to being the focus of a story arc in which you'll do a lot of talking and roleplaying. These moments are great for your character so really try to lose yourself in these moments. Likewise, if its a fellow players time the best thing you can do is to give them the time to shine. If they are nervous about roleplaying then you can help them get immersed. If its in the heat of a battle, you can try to set them up for a finishing blow, either by an ability or spell that can buff them or by flanking or aiding them to give them advantage. If its more character based with conversations with NPCs then just help them with little questions the player may be unsure of to ask, ask them questions that will then inspire them to talk more with the NPC's. Being a great roleplayer isn't just about playing a good character but about helping the players around you be better roleplayers too.

There will also be many times when you know things as a player but your character may not. I usually mention to the DM 'I know how to do something but I'm unsure my character will, can I roll a check to see if he does?' to see if the character will know, or quite often not even mention it. Your character will have a different variety of knowledge compared to you and this works in the opposite way too. The DM mentions something you know nothing about but think your character will? Ask your DM and hopefully they'll ask you to make an ability check. You might learn something new!

 My final piece of advice is also to accept that you will make mistakes or bad decisions and have some truly terrible sessions where the dice rolls are incredibly bad. Yes its annoying, but don't get angry at such things as they will affect the rest of the players at your table. Remember TTRPG'ing is a game and a shared experience with a number of other players and a Dungeon Master. Player etiquette should always be a priority in a group, the happier each player is the more enjoyable the session will be for everyone. Someone roll a nat20? Give em a clap or a cheer! Someone roll a nat1? Have a collective groand but laugh too!

So there we have it! I'm learning all the time when I'm roleplaying so expect more thoughts on this tremendous aspect of gaming in the future, perhaps I'll be able to get other peoples thoughts too from fellow players and dungeon masters. If there are topics you'd like me to cover then please get in touch and I'll see what I can do, Don't forget my affiliate link with The Outpost above if you want to get some nice discounts from your tabletop gaming needs and I'll be back again soon with another blog post.

The Return

If I've stated it once, I've stated it several times, but I'm back. I've not posted since November, 2018 and I'll be honest it feels like a lifetime ago. What happened during this time is deeply personal, so I won't spare the details but over the last few months my hobby mojo has started to return. It has taken a little knock during this Corona Virus debacle but I'm still soldiering away on painting and crafting ideas for gaming and generally trying to make the most of this isolation. 

Necromunda, has been at the forefront. 

I picked up a couple sets of the floor tiles, and decided to paint them purple, using silver, rust and chevrons to break them up. The PLLX stands for Pollux, thinking my hive will be named after the Imperial Fists hero. I think they came out well!

My Necromunda gangs will all see use in my Hive Guard army for 40k, so twenty orlocks means two units of infantry for the force. I've got sizty in total, 20 orlocks, 10 van saar, 20 escher and 10 goliaths. Plus various tanks and vehicles. 

The Dark Uprising set really captured my imagination, and I'll get some better pictures soon as thats all purple too and goes well with the floor tiles. 

So whats in store in the future for Death By Die? 

D&D has been a staple of my gaming time, so I've been jotting down campaign ideas for when the group can get back together. In the campaign I play I'll be showing off some things I've done with my character, Tovus the Visceral. More on him later though! I may also post about a previous character named Elias Azure, and talk about how I create characters for roleplaying games. 

40k will also feature as I may get involved in a gaming club campaign and also running a very narrative based campaign with an Ork warlord. Look for world building ideas, force ideas to keep things narrative and painting and conversion ideas coming soon... I also picked some Sisters up....

I'll also be running a Necromunda campaign in the future at my local club so expect some news on that when social gatherings are once more allowed. I've been slowly building up some ideas for the hive and will begin crafting those into a solid background within the next month or two.

I may showcase some Kickstarters, other hobbyists work, maybe even some Q&A's with myself and others here too. One other thing I may do is some archived White Dwarf look backs, as my collection goes back to about 180... which is over 20 years ago! 

If you have any ideas or things you'd like me to share then feel free to get in touch. I'm still affiliate for The Outpost who continue to serve as the most excellent online shop of all things tabletop. Click the link above and take a look, you'll also be helping me too!