For many a year, White Dwarf magazine has showcased amazing armies from all over the world.
If you're Beardy like me you might remember the first time we saw the European entries to Golden Demon with their pastel colours and delicate shading instead of the heavy washes and dry brushing that had been the norm for so long!
Not only was there amazing painting on show, but also some great conversions. Conversions that couldn't help but to inspire.
Well Games Workshop have released their Armies of Renown, a collection of their Army Showcase articles from late 2012 - 2013.
We got our hands on one - and this is what we thought...
If you're Beardy like me you might remember the first time we saw the European entries to Golden Demon with their pastel colours and delicate shading instead of the heavy washes and dry brushing that had been the norm for so long!
Not only was there amazing painting on show, but also some great conversions. Conversions that couldn't help but to inspire.
Well Games Workshop have released their Armies of Renown, a collection of their Army Showcase articles from late 2012 - 2013.
We got our hands on one - and this is what we thought...
 | The book is a nicely presented hardcover, with 80 full-colour pages in all with 12 modellers and their collections showcased. It's a very nice balance between Warhammer and Warhammer 40k, but essentially straight from the magazine. I was hoping to have the Sons of Horus army in there, but must have just missed out by the printing date. The layout is exactly the same as the White Dwarf articles, though the font looks slightly different. As in the White Dwarf, each army showcase gets a large double spread introducing the modeller, their bio and a short piece on their inspiration. (Below) |
As you can see, the army is well spaced out and very easy to see as far as details go.
After the splash page we get a close up on various units in the army, with a short explanation of their background and the modeller's ideas and conversion break down in very small type.
I must admit, I would have liked mush more detail on their army and how they went about deciding on parts - maybe even some WIP shots!
I must admit, I would have liked mush more detail on their army and how they went about deciding on parts - maybe even some WIP shots!
Highlights
The armies that really stood out for me were Paul Gayner's Crimson Heralds - just some brilliant conversions and interesting ideas - all the way to the Epic Knight as the Chapter mascot.
This is a nice looking army!
This is a nice looking army!
Just have a look at some of the units in his army...
Crimson Herald's Chapter Master bodyguard - heavily converted over the top elite!
Another great elite Crimson Heralds unit - this time using lots of bits, including Chaos Warrior cloaks!
The other army that stood out to me was Richard Sherlock's Beastmen. Maybe it's my attachment to Beastmen or the great paint jobs, but this army is a winner!
Richard's story is interesting too - he starts out his year with a new project army in mind and sets about building it. How cool!
Richard's story is interesting too - he starts out his year with a new project army in mind and sets about building it. How cool!
Overall
This is a nice book to have.
It reminds me of the Golden Demon Awards books Games Workshop brought out in the late 80s showcasing all the finalists for that year's Golden Demon Awards. They provided inspiration for years and I'm sure this will do the same for modellers and gamers of all ages!
In the ad they do promise:
It reminds me of the Golden Demon Awards books Games Workshop brought out in the late 80s showcasing all the finalists for that year's Golden Demon Awards. They provided inspiration for years and I'm sure this will do the same for modellers and gamers of all ages!
In the ad they do promise:
Included are examples of different painting techniques, personalised conversions, colour schemes and much more...
To an extent that is true but as I said earlier, a better look at the actual painting techniques and also some WIP would have capped this off beautifully!
For the Beardys who remember Games Workshop's old miniatures books or, if like me, you gave up on White Dwarf years ago because there really isn't much in there anymore - this book may just be for you.
At $48 Australian it's not cheap, but you will look at this for a long time!
For the Beardys who remember Games Workshop's old miniatures books or, if like me, you gave up on White Dwarf years ago because there really isn't much in there anymore - this book may just be for you.
At $48 Australian it's not cheap, but you will look at this for a long time!
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