Monday 24 April 2017

Meet the Inmates: Ben Moorhouse, the War Terrier



Hi, I'm Paul, and welcome to The Asylum.

You may have noticed we're mad about the fantasy skirmish game Anyaral: The World of Twilight. That's because there's a lot to be mad about. Not only does the game boast a neat and original system, but the miniatures are gorgeous! Don't believe me? Then prepare to be converted by Ben Moorhouse AKA War Terrier. Ben has been a fan of Anyaral since the beginning, and he's joined us today to tell you why...

...Over to you, Ben.

Hi, I'm Ben and I've been a wargamer for more than twenty years, and my Anyaral: The World of Twilight figures have to be amongst my favourite miniatures to date.

I first spotted these quaint dinosaur-like creatures during their initial Kickstarter campaign, and I bought a starter set to see what the game was like. I liked the miniatures immediately due to their creativeness and how easy they were to paint. I tend to do more painting than playing and these figures have been an ideal way to improve my techniques; I've been really pleased with the results!
Gil Masharl, travelling biologist
It's probably worth starting off with a quick introduction to the setting for the game, although if I'm honest my WoT figures sneak into my other games all the time; they make a really unique Frostgrave Warband! The World of Twilight is an alternate fantasy skirmish game set in the land of Anyaral. The world centres around the fortunes of the Fubarnii Empire, once slaves of the powerful Devanu, now masters to themselves since their craftsmanship enabled them construct weapons and to overthrow their oppressors. The Devanu, a race of vicious predators, are now isolated in an area known as the Argoran Wastelands and frequently raid Fubarnii territory.

The creator of Twilight: The World of Anyaral, Mike Thorp, has been working hard to increase his range of models including the introduction of the most recent faction, the Casanii, via a second Kickstarter campaign (soon to be available on The Asylum, I'm sure!) Some of these models feature in the pictures below.
Loranti Pargal, trader
Jenta Spear Jenta Hunter
On to the figures themselves... Aside from the great sculpting and character of the models my favourite aspect of this range is the absolute freedom it gives you to paint whatever scheme and colours you want. If you're anything like me and get incredibly bored endlessly painting olive drab onto a WWII force, WoT presents you with the opportunity to let your imagination run wild and allows you to go crazy with your paint palette. These aren't humans so you're not limited to particular skin tones or camouflage patterns and, more importantly, they're not your regular high-fantasy line of miniatures which bring with them certain stereotypes of colour scheme.
Nurasem Plutom Nurakira Acolyte
The first things that springs to mind when seeing these miniatures are dinosaurs, and I used this inspiration when it came to painting. After some quick internet research I had a load of starting points for schemes which allowed me to really go to town. I'm not really a painter that uses washes and glazes very much and I generally stick to the layers approach and this works really well on these miniatures. As well as using lighter tones to bring out the shape of the model, there's also an incredible amount of opportunity here to paint texture into the design in the form of mottled skin or rough hide. On most of the models I've used thin lines of highlight to give the skin a rougher appearance, and I think it's worked really well.

I wanted to give a more tribal appearance to the Casanii miniatures, and the obvious answer was an aboriginal war paint design. So, after yet more internet research, I had a small force set out in some nice striking white marking over a darker skin tone for my fledgling force (these are my favourite so far).
Casanii Feral Mutts Young Gil and Critters
Casanii
Casanii Erillai Rider Grishak Beasts
In conclusion, I'd thoroughly recommend picking up one of the starter forces, even if only for how much fun they are to paint! I hope you've enjoyed the images here. If you'd like to see more of my World of Twilight collection feel free to check out my site, War Terrier, which is less of a blog, and more a collection of pictures.

Thanks again to Ben. If you like what you've seen here, then check out Asylum Wargamings' range of Anyaral: The World of Twilight miniatures, starter sets and accessories. Tell him I sent you.

Join us next time, when we'll be meet another special guest from the wonderful world of wargamery weirdness. Until then, Inmates...

...Stay crazy.


Want more Anyaral in your life? Then knock yourself out at our webstore.



 

Wednesday 12 April 2017

Meet the Inmates: Painted by G

Hi, I'm Paul, and welcome to The Asylum.

I have a special treat for you. Today's edition of Meet the Inmates beings you hobby superstar Graham Shirley of Painted by G fame. Graham has kindly taken time out of his busy schedule to not only tell us about his background, interests and achievements, but to also show us some of his beautifully painted miniatures...

...So let's hear it for Graham.

Hi, I'm Graham (G) and I run the Painted By G commission painting service. Whilst I love all aspects of the wargaming hobby, for me it’s always been about the painting!
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I think what really hooked me on painting when I first started was the progression; every model I painted was better than that one before, if only slightly. It was so easy to see. and ever since I started it’s been a huge motivator!

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After the obligatory time away from the hobby in my 20’s I found a ton of old miniatures in my parents' attic. A quick search on eBay showed that they might be worth a quid or two.  A few sales later a couple of the guys who'd bought my old minis got in touch asking if I’d paint something on commission. I agreed, so I bought some new paints and brushes... Seven years later and now I’m painting minis for people all over the world!

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We've had an addition to the family since then, so I’m just doing singles figures for people these days. That said, I don’t have any plans stop anytime soon.

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Since picking up the brushes again, I’ve been sucked back into collecting armies and playing at tournaments. I play Warhammer Fantasy Battles and now Age of Sigmar almost exclusively. I’ve got plenty of interest in other game systems (and painted stuff for most of them) but time being so precious these days, it’s better for me to focus my attention on what I like most.

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I won my first Golden Demon in 2014, which was a lifelong dream come true! It was for a commission piece which I entered before sending to my client (it’s now in Australia). Since then I’ve picked up a few Best Painted trophies for my Orcs and Goblins (sorry Orruks and Grots) at various tournaments and Armies on Parade. I’ve just had the last run out with them for a while at a local tournament last weekend, so I’m now working on my Death army. Also the new Khorne book is going to get me digging out a half-finished army too...

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If you want to see more of his beautiful work, visit www.paintedbyg.co.uk. You can also find Graham on  Facebook (Graham Shirlie) and Twitter (@PaintedByG).

That's it for today, Inmates. Don't forget to follow us, don't forget to share, and please take a moment to let us know how much you enjoyed Graham's post. Most importantly, come back soon for more hobby awesome. Until then, Inmates...

...Stay crazy.

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Monday 10 April 2017

Anyaral: The World of Twilight; Spud Tate Unboxes The Dhogo Raiders!



Hi, I'm Paul, and welcome to The Asylum.


As you may have noticed, we at Asylum Wargaming are just mad about Anyaral: The World of Twilight. We like it so much our very own Wargaming Viking, Spud Tate, has recorded the first in a series of Anyaral unboxing videos. So sit back and relax as Spud unveils the hidden treaures of Anyaral's Dhogo Raiders Starter Set.




That's all for now, Inmates. But fear not, for we'll be unboxing more wargaming goodness in the very near future, including more Anyaral: The World of Twilight.

Until then...

...Stay crazy.



What are you waiting for? Anyaral: The World of Twilight is available from our webstore.

Thursday 6 April 2017

The Asylum wants YOU!

Hi, I'm Paul...

...And I'm here to invite you into The Asylum.

Those of you familiar with The Asylum will no doubt know of our Meet the Inmates series. Designed to showcase the painting heroics of our readers, Meet the Inmates offers you the chance to demonstrate your prowess to your fellow readers and hobbyists.  Examples of previous editions can be found here and here.

Interested? Excellent, because I'm looking for miniature painters who can provide photos of their work to be featured here on The Asylum. Whilst any good quality work is welcome, I'm particularly keen to see photographs which include miniatures and/or dioramas from the following games or manufacturers:




If you think you've got what it takes to shake your tail feathers on The Asylum, then don't be shy; leave a comment below, or contact me via Asylum Wargaming's Facebook page. I'm looking forward to hearing from you. Until then...?

...Stay crazy.