[Commission] Will's Grey Knight Army

Finally, I thought should share pics of the whole army together, for the group photo. This is one nice-looking army!

Here is the army in details:

Characters | Dreadnaught | Halberdiers | Swordsmen |

[Commission] Will's Grey Knight Swordsmen

More about these swords... These guys are BRIMMING with swords. Whatever pattern I had to come up for the weapons had to look good on these guys. And the first work I did, well it did not look good. The white and pink just popped too bright and it just did not look right. I will admit that I left the miniatures in that state a week or two, unsure of what to do.

Will called me out on it, asking me how long it would take to get the minis done... I sat at the painting table and spent a good hour just looking at the models.

In the end, I resolved to start over. I would go back to the foundation color and redo them. All of them. What choice did I have? I did not like what I did.

REDO!

So to avoid putting big glops of paint, I put diluted blue paint (the original base color I used). After I applied the first layer, the bright colors of the weapon muted and gave it the effect I wanted . They looked good! Sometimes genius happens by accident and this is one of those times! I put a second layer on some of the weapons to play with the effect. The result is what I was envisioning from the start. The muted blue looks good.

[Commission] Will's Grey Knight Characters

Continuing Will's GK.

These guys are his characters, the Techmarine/librarian, a commander, and the standard bearer.

The techmarine was given a red-based scheme to differentiate him from the rest. The red stands out quite a lot and is a highlight of the army.

The Commander has a thunder hammer. This one I added an explosion effect at the end, to make it stand out. It came out good, but the problem is that the model does not see to be hitting anything with it. I also hand to fix the hammer because the handle broke during transport. The result is a skinnier but sturdier weapon shaft.

Finally, the standard bearer... The design on it is nice because it is embossed, with a knight fighting a demon. For my own banners, I much prefer to do them by hand, but this one came out pretty good.

What about the weapons I promised? That will have to wait for another post...

[Commission] Will's Grey Knight Halberdiers

Having painted the minis, I had to decide how to do the basing. I was initially thinking of using the same "lunar" landscape I did for Will's Tau, but that I felt it would fall flat. The basing needed something different. Something that would prompt someone looking at the army to go, "What is the story about this?"

Frankly, I became obsessed with finding a way to make the bases unique to the army by bringing all the models together. Where to start? What would look cool AND unique AND generate the question above?

Why would the Grey Knights go on a bland lunar planet? Why not deploy regular space marines? Grey Knights are demon hunters and psykers. The idea came from the base of the dreadnaught! Why not "hide" sometype of crystal or magical-looking things under all that lunar dust? Yes!

What color? Again, the theme of purple came to mind but I did not want to use the same dark purple. So I used a number of based color to create a crystal/ marble effect with some bubblegum and light blue. To fade the color and merge them, I did a wet wash to must the accent colors, making them appear as if trapped in the crystal/ rock. Now I had my story... For sure, the Grey Knights came because of those strange formations!

The weapons? Oh yeah, I'll get to those in the future...

[Commission] Will's Grey Knight Venerable Dreadnaught

Late last year, I get an instant message going something like "Would you like to paint my grey knights?"

I immediately thought "Pfff, yah!" Of course I want to paint some grey knights. They are IMO, the nicest sculpts ever done by Games Workshop. Painting them is always a delight.

To further entice me, he had a classic venerable GK dreadnought. I mean "Would I like to paint his GK?"... That become of the most academic question in history. Yes. Yes, I would. I got the minis just before Christmas and I immediately began to paint them.

Will had a few major requests: he wanted a "purple theme" and the weapons to have a lightning pattern painted on them. Immediately, I thought of a number of things. I thought of going with a "basic" silver theme for most of the armor, but apply a series of heavily diluted purple washes, instead of black. Highlights in purple.

Those came together really quickly. As an interesting bonus, the models came out silver/grey but depending on the light, they appear deep purple. That effect caught me by surprise a few times as I was working on them and I really liked it. I was going for a wash but this was a welcome bonus.

The weapon with the lightning... I'll keep for the next post...

I present the dreadnaught. This guy was put together with legs facing backwards. I tried to separate it, but Will's glue is really good and I opted against it. The picture with flash does not render it justice because it has many layers of gold/brass with shining grey/ silver with purple sections.

[Kinda Book Review] The Troisieme Testament Julius V

I took a long time to savor reading this book, the final chapter in the Prequel to "Le Troisieme Testament." It sat on the shelf, looking at me. Tempting me. Testing my willpower to resist, until alas.

I mean, like the First Series (click here for review) completed with a big reveal and a massive confrontation, this one does the same. Even if you knew how it would end it closes the biggest plot holes well enough and I was genuinely sad to get to the end.

This story has everything: battles, tie-ins with historical events, giving them an interesting and supernatural twist that makes this into a massive apocalyptic battle. The characters are so good and exciting. Whereas characters faded into one another in the earlier part of the story, at this point, they are well established.

Many of them passed through so many difficult times and ordeals. The internal torment of the characters are beautifully rendered with concise and evocative dialogue, mixed with the art gives a very clear sense of what is happening. Every one of the characters has a path all its own that comes to a roaring crash here.

The art is just on point. Here the supernatural against permeates the story to make you wince in terror for the implications, more than what you actually see. The scene I added here is one of those. It's not gory or disgusting but the beauty of the art and the dispair in the man's eyes tells you more than any dialogue could.

The battle scenes are filled with action and are so evocative, you get the feeling there are indeed thousands of troops converging on each other. The battle for Jerusalem, with the Zealots, the Sicarii, and the Romans is the kind of conflicts that you can only do in a book like this. In a movie, it would not capture the feel. The sequel of confrontations in the burning Temple bring to the fore all the angst and desires of everyone. The dialogue is short but its impact on the protagonists is profound. My breath shortened as I forced myself to slow down to savor and enjoy the panels.

We are blessed with two epilogues. The first one closes the story of "Julius," bringing the two main characters together one last time. In a scene that is just brilliantly poignant, they face each other one last time. Again, the religious aspect is played here so brilliantly, in the simplest of words. Gut wrenching as you want the antagonist to do what's right but he refuses. And its final frame showing the uncaring bust of the Emperor Vespasian looking on with uncaring eyes.

The second is less emotional, but leads into the prequel. It was a nice wink and good transition.

So even though this is a prequel, it stands on its own 100%. If you did not read the original, the story would be complete and satisfying. But that there are two parts, makes it just awesome. Just a great read all-around.

Oh what about the spoilers for the First Part? The end wrapping leads into it that should you read is in chronological order (Julius, then the Original) the reveal at the end is still applicable. The Testament here serves as a McGuffin to drive the action. The original tells us about its content. Masterful storytelling by Alex Alice. And the art.

Rating? 5/5 of course. No hesitation. None. I re-read it again before writing this review and I was just as enamored with it as I was before. That ending... awesome. I tried to find a flaw or issue with this and as I look for nitpicks, I keep noticing tiny gems I missed previously. I find no fault in that. There is a clear beginning/ middle/ end. And nothing more NEEDS to be said. Though we could expand on some things. We could expand on the crusade era, but that is not needed. The two parts hold everything together.

[Doctor Who Review] Eve of the Daleks

With the rather bland Flux storyline coming to an end, I was not expecting much. The drop in quality scripts under Chibnall made me very wary about this one and I was really worried this one would be a cringe fest. But let's get into it...

So the plot begins with two people stuck in a storage facility on New Year's Eve, a few moments before midnight. Then, the Doctor, Dan and Deadfish Yaz arrive.

This is a time loop episode. My eyes rolled.

After two loops, I was invested and found myself really into it, wondering "how the heck will they get out of this?" This was the most interested Doctor Who plot I watched in YEARS, easily the best of the Chibnall era.

Now, again we have Yaz who has no personality and really brings nothing to the show other than "Token Indian Woman." She gives some generic sass to Dan but it would've been much more fun if the Doctor had those interaction. So again, she's useless and brings nothing to the show.

Contrast with the quips Dan keeps making - the Manchester vs Liverpool early on was just funny. He comes off as genuine and funny. He is definitely a highlight of the season. Too bad he has been constantly sharing screen time with Deadfish.

The two throwaways are also interesting. Both have relatable problems and issues, and in the end came off as genuine people, something I found was missing in a lot of episode. Although their eventual fate is quite predictable, they go through the first cycles making a lot of sense. I enjoyed them.

The Doctor's plan felt "Doctor-y". It was fine.

Now the biggest let down I have with the episode comes towards the end when Dan makes Yaz realize she has a thing for the Doctor, then tells the Doctor about it. The scene, which could be a character-defining moment, falls flat, and has no heart, no warmth to it, I rolled my eyes in cringe at how bad the scene played out. Another failed attempt at something the should've been a personal highlight. By now, I don't care about Yaz and just want her gone as I will not miss her. Boring. Bland. Without personality.

I really expected to downvote this like crazy, but I was really seriously into it and liked it. So I will give it a 4/5.

Yearly Retrospective 2021

Personal and Family Life

- I still work and enjoy working at 247 Sports/ CBS Sports working as a back-end software engineer.

- Jojo is now a full-time driver

- Kitty is now in high school and a member of the JRTOC

- ActionMan played football and soccer for his school.

- Julie's sewing is growing.

- We all survived Coronavirus (I assume we had the delta variant).

World Events

- 2021 NHL Hockey To say that this year was interesting in the hockey world is a massive understatement. After 28 years, my Montreal Canadiens FINALLY made it to the Stanley Cup final once more. Even though the boys lost in 5 games (out of 7), it was a great and wild ride that reminded me how much I love this sport. I can only dream of the cup coming back home after so many years but it will have to wait a little longer. Still... I have a C-H tattooed on my heart forever. Go Habs Go.

- The internal divisions in the US, are tearing the country apart. The more we focus on our divisions, the more divided we become. Focusing on what brings use together is the key. I am riveted to see what happened and how it plays out.

- Storming of the Capitol On January 6th, rioters took over the Capitol. This is a VERY divisive issue that led to both sides being able to advance their narrative. I think both side have points, and both sides are in the wrong. We will eventually learn the truth but I just cannot simply take a position where one side is 100% right and one 100% wrong.

- Coronavirus still ravages the world. The information we get from the news is worringly one-sided with only one side that is 100% right and the other 100% wrong. Anytime this happens, I get very worried as I do not believe the world is black and white. Blind belief in anyone but god is worrisome and scary to me. Blind trust in any human being never leads to good results.

Trips

2021 was a pretty tame year when it came to traveling. We spent most of our year at home.

- Chicago, IL We took the family to go see our friend Florent, Florence, & Frederic in April

Publishing/ FOE

This year, I took on bigger but fewer projects to work on. Marked by two big releasesd and a few smaller ones. The smaller ones were often created as break-out projects for the bigger ones.

The work I produced this year was of much greater quality. Many of the changes in my style and process are difficult to show to others but I notice them.

Really with the release of Olympia, I have been lucky enough to increase my sales to the point where I managed to publish my products completed with brand new art created by great artists, some who I worked with longer and others new ones. Big thanks to all the artists who worked to make FOE come to life. I am looking forward to more work next year.

I think in 2022, I think I will focus on more balanced approach with a few short products and some bigger ones.

DM's Guild Releases
- Demonic Forces I: The Blighted a monster book
- Demonic Forces II: Graz'zt's Entourage a monster book
- Early Firearms a rules supplement

DriveThruRPG Releases
- Olympia Campaign Setting a book inspired by Greek Mythology

This year, many FOE products reached Best-Seller tiers on DriveThruRPG or DM's Guild. This is an opportunity to see how the quality of FOE product and their reach expands.

Bestseller Milestones: Gold
- Real Housewives of Ravenloft

Bestseller Milestones: Silver
- Akhamet Campaign Setting
- Apple of a Mother's Eye
- Curse of Strahd II: Griffon Hill Manor
- Ravenloft: Dreams of Dust
- Rahadin Dread Knight of Raveloft

Bestseller Milestones: Copper
- Olympia Campaign Setting
- Akhamet Player's Guide
- The Vanishing Ziggurat
- Lost Pyramid of Neferheket

Conventions

As the world returns to normal, I attended a few conventions this year: some on-line and some in-person.
- Festival Draconis Online
- Weekend in Rokugan 2021 Online
- Gencon 2021 Indianapolis, IN
- Memories of Rokugan 2021 Online (I did not write an AAR for it)

Blog

- This year, I posted mostly reviews and FOE announcements on the blog.

- I published a total of 104 posts here in 2021.

Books

This year, I read a variety of books with wildly different ratings. Some great, some terrible. A lot of Comics... a lot.

Non-Fiction
- The Histories by Herodotus
- Fall of the Ottomans by Eugene Rogan

Fiction
- Le Troisieme Testament: Julius Vol 3
- Le Troisieme Testament: Julius Vol 4
- The Man With Two Names by Vincent B Davis II
- A Hero of France by Alan Furst
- Water Sleeps by Glen Cook

Comics
- 52 Vol 1 by DC Comics
- 52 Vol 2 by DC Comics
- Batman: Knightfall Vol 1 by DC Comics
- Peter Parker the Spectacular Spiderman Vol 1 by Marvel Comics
- 52 Vol 2 (or 3/4) by DC Comics
- Daredevil: Dark Nights by Marvel Comics
- Justice League Vol 5: Legacy by DC Comics
- Deathstroke 1-3 by DC Comics
- Action Comics Vol 1 by DC Comics
- Superman Vol 1 by DC Comics
- Action Comics Vol 2 by DC Comics
- Action Comics Vol 3 by DC Comics
- Thor: The God Butcher by Marvel Comics
- Captain America: America First by Marvel Comics
- Justice League: Volume 6 by DC Comics
- Justice League: Volume 7 by DC Comics
- Superman Volume 2 by DC Comics
- X-men and the Micronauts by Marvel Comics
- Avengers West Coast: Sins of the Past by Marvel Comics
- X-Men vs Avengers/Fantastic Four by Marvel Comics
- Fantastic Four Essential Vol 4 by Marvel Comics
- Batman City of Crime by DC Comics

TV and Film Reviews

This year, I reviewed the latest season of Doctor Who for this blog.

- Doctor Who - Revolution Of the Dalek

- Doctor Who - Flux (Consolidated)

So with all this, I wish you all a very happy new year.

JP

Adventure Design Fail: Writing for myself

So as a special holiday treat, I decided to run a D&D game and offer the game to locals. I had an idea, a plot, a villain, and an something I wanted to accomplish. It was set in Olympia, which can just tell any story.

So I wrote all that down.

Created a stat block, a map, and embellished the story with a few interesting setting insights.

Then this morning, I woke up thinking. "There is not one unique, fantastical element in this. It's the most historical adventure I ever written." Now, there were fantasy elements: magic and unique races, but really, nothing stood out to me. As a one-shot, there wasn't much to do. It was really something for me, the writer/ GM/ setting man, but not for the PCs.

So what does a dumbass author do? He decides to re-write everything because he had another idea! Now this is not lost work... I believe the re-write puts the star and main decision in the hands of the PCs. So I will run with that...

So getting ready for the game right now... I think this will be much more interesting for THEM.

Will I succeed? That's still to be determined.

Doctor Who Flux - Consolidated Review

I am creating this post to provide a single link to the reviews of the Season.

- Halloween Apocalypse

- War of the Sontarans

- Once, Upon Time

- Village of the Angels

- Survivors of the Flux

- The Vanquishers

[Review] Batman City of Crime

I bought this book in the bargain bin at my local comic shop. A modern Batman story...

I must say that I did not enjoy this one. It's a mess. There is no action, and when there is, it is very slow . Most of the story is told by a disembodied narrator. And he talks. A LOT. The characters just talk and talk and talk. Full of one pages cover shots but the action doesn't flow.

One of the good thing was the use of classic Batman villains like the Penguin, Mr Freeze, and the Ventriloquist.

In the end, EVERYTHING about this is futile. That's the takeaway from this. I must say by the end, I was depressed by it. Just futile.

I would've given this a 1/5 but the art is the best part, earning this book a weak 2/5. I want my superhero stories to advance and to give me some hope or something to change. This didn't. I didn't like it.

[Review] Essential Fantastic Four Vol. 4

This volume is one I received last year as a gift. I have been reading and enjoying a lot of these Essentials. Reading these classic stories and their modern reimagining is always interesting.

I dig the Fantastic Four, but most of this volume is forgettable. The stories are fine. The biggest development is the birth of the son of Mr Fantastic and the Invisible Woman.

The other development is the replacement of the Invisible Girl with Crystal as a member. Crystal plays the damsel in distress and to be honest, she is not overly interesting.

As I try to remember any interesting plots, I frankly cannot. There are some interesting guest-stars, such as Daredevil, the Inhumans, Black Panther, and the Silver Surfer.

Everything is there, but nothing stands out. It's just bland.

So I thought of giving this one a 3/5 when I was done reading it, but after a month or so (yeah, I've been slacking in doing these). But due to the blandness, I must settle on a 2/5. There's nothing wrong, but there is nothing great about it.

[Review] Doctor Who Flux: The Vanquishers

So we are finally at the last part of Doctor Who Flux. Six episodes later and we come to the end. This episode was, to be honest, much better than the previous episodes. I originally thought it was just because it was the end of this but no. I found myself drawn into the story.

The problems plaguing the Chibnall era are still present: too many characters sharing the screen. We have Dan, Dead-fish Yaz, Kate Stewart, Cute Asian and Kinda Black Guy, Dog-Chewbacca, Dan's girlfriend, Prof Jericho, the old man from Liverpool, and three Doctors. So. Many. People.

However, in all fairness here, they all do something to advance the plot, even if sometimes having one of the Doctors with one NPC would create relations and connections. Dan barely speak to the Doctor, and I don't remember any scene where they shared anything that would make them become friends. They adventure together pretty much the same was as a GM saying "so you guys are in a tavern and something happens."

I really find myself wanting more Dan. Yaz sucks the life out of every time she is there.

How they resolve the Flux is just bad. Predictable and boring. So the blue and purple villains as just poofed by another creature we never met - though there are hints of the Master. This was a positive. Just too many things happening at once and resolution are just thrown together so fast. These should've been contained in their own episode.

One scene that proves to me that Chibnall simply can't write heartwarming scenes. In the epilogue again the Doctor tries to have a heartfelt conversation with Yaz who still can't emote. The scene is interrupted by Dan. I expected the scene to show us how the Doctor grew and learned from her previous experience with Graham. But no. Chibnall can't write emotional scenes.

At the end of the episode, I was left with a few questions and wanting to see more. I also wanted for Yaz to leave as she added nothing to the story and her arc over. The confrontation with the final enemy who was just revealed but not really detailed holds promise. There are elements that must be explored and issues still to be resolved. Not a bad point to end a series.

So, despite the many issues I have, when the episode ended, I was looking forward to seeing more and wanting for more resolution. This was the second time I had that feeling, after the Sontaran episode earlier this year.

My final rating? Of the Flux series, it is 3.25 perhaps one of the highest-rated ones. Rounding the score, I give it a 3/5. I may rewatch the episode to see if I missed anything. Despite its many flaws, the episode ended on a somewhat positive note.

Olympia Reaches Copper Bestseller

It is with great pride and profound humility that I can now report that the Olympia Campaign Setting has recently reached its first milestone: Copper on it way up. Olympia is filled with Greek myths, races and other goodies for your D&D 5th edition campaign.

The first lines of this products were written close to the same time as Akhamet, and over time, took shape by churning a number of ideas until it was something that was different and unique yet fully compatible with Akhamet, as the two could be either added to an existing campaign or joined together in a growing fantasy world. More products are forthcoming: adventures and a extraace book that will expand on the current choices.

This is a great book where Hellenophiles will be able to apply all their knowledge, from Homeric tales to the 300 Spartans, to the Successors, all coexist within this setting. Medusas, cyclops, harpies, and wildmen can be found within.

Get it now on DriveThru RPG.

[Kinda Book Report] X-Men vs Avengers/Fantastic Four

Another book I drew from the bargain bin. This trade book includes the X-Men vs Avengers and X-Men vs Fantastic Four (FF) along with the issue where the two groups first meet. The oddest thing is that the more modern series is FOLLOWED by the first meeting, when it seems the other way around would be more natural.

The Fantastic Four vs the X-Men series comes first. Here we have Reed Richards having a personal battle with his demons, doubting himself and his capacities are he is challenged by the X-Men to find a way to save Kitty Pride who is phasing away following the mutant massacre (a cross-over event I really loved at the time when I began secondary school). After Richards refuses to help, the X-Men turn to the next brightest mind: Doctor Doom.

This is Chris Claremont at his best. Everyone of the characters gets to shine here. Reed Richards' crisis is not trivial and understandable. His relation with Sue and Franklin are strained. On the X-Men side, they have to deal with internal conflicts, their alliance with Magneto and working dealing with the coma of both Colossus and Nightcrawler, and Kitty Pryde's condition. They come of as very stressed and some of their decisions are rash but not foolish. The two teams clash multiple times but the pace and story keep moving on.

Easy 4/5 with re-readability.

Next we have Fantastic Four #28 where the X-Men are sent to kill the FF because the Puppet Master took control of Professor Xavier. This is a classic early hero vs hero issue serving as a way to expose FF fans to the X-Men. It's serviceable yet it's greatest value is its nostalgia of seeing these early X-Men before they became the accomplished characters Claremont later gave us.

4/5 (rounded up from 3.5) with good re-readability.

The third series are X-Men vs. the Avengers. The line-up of both teams is one I'm familiar with and timewise happened before the FFvXM series. Here, we have Magneto recently turned good guy with the Avengers trying to arrest him, the X-men protecting him, and the Soviet Super-Soldiers (SSS) trying to kill him for his crimes.

After fighting on and off for three issues, the two teams eventually join forces while SSS exit because the Crimson Dynamo manipulated them to go after Magneto. It's a little wonky, but works. I must say that I really like how Captain America, Captain Marvel, and Doctor Druid (who they are really trying to push) are pivotal to the plot.

The final issue has Magneto put on trial for his crimes. In the end, he is found innocent which only seems to fuel more anti-mutant sentiment. In a way, it's a very bittersweet ending, yes he is released but things are not going better.

The biggest downside I have with this is that there is a LOT going on, as does not feel as refined as the FFvXM. Still the final issue is absolutely reveting as Magneto tries to find if one of the judge is crooked and whether he should influence the judges. It really add gravitas and keeps his character intact: he may have decided to reform but he's not suddenly a goodie-two-shoes. He is still willing to do some underhanded actions. Claremont knows Magneto and this series advances him and the X-Men.

4/5 with high re-readability (5/5 on issue #4).

The final issue is X-Men #9 when the X-Men first meet the Avengers. Again the hero vs hero formula, though this time the X-men are going to deal with a problem when the Avengers show up and effectively tell these kids to stay out of the way. After beating up the X-Men, the Avengers decide to leave when Professor Xavier tells them he needs the X-men.

The villain is creative if his name (Lucifer) is not. He has a nuclear device that will destroy America if he is damaged. The Professor and Cyclops finally disable the device.

This is the weakest of the stories in this book, and my rating may be biased from nostalgia but I'll go with a 3/5 with some re-readability.

Overall, this book rates a solid 4/5 with the biggest issue I have with it is the odd order the issues are in the book. I would've preferrred a chronological presentation with FF 28, X-Men 9, X-Men v Avengers, and finally FFvXM.