A long time coming

Sorting out unfinished business

A few years ago I made a couple of passing references—one, writing about my Penumbra’s Talons; the other, writing about GW’s mighty Space Hulk 3rd edition—to a project which involved a nameless friend and a Space Hulk set. I am pleased, at long last, to be able to tell you that this friend- Matt Forbeck, who I met at Bill King’s wedding back in 2005, will soon be getting his hands on that set of Space Hulk 3 he’d almost, but not quite, forgotten about (who could forget Space Hulk 3?).

I can’t take much of the credit for this- it’ll be a long time before I revive and renew my miniatures’ craft skills to the point where I can paint my own Space Hulk 3 let alone one for someone else. No; credit—for the fact that Matt and his kids will soon be enjoying playing Space Hulk with their own fully-painted set—starts with Andy, who gave me the recommendation which finally broke this years-old logjam. And who did Andy recommend when I spoke to him about contracting-out this paint-job? None other than Brian, who regular readers will remember as Siegfried- murderous lowlife with a heart, from my Ashes of Middenheim campaign back in the glory days of Green Ronin’s stewardship over WFRP2.

A new career for the old young Protagonist

It turns out that Brian has set himself up as a professional miniatures painter, working under the banner of Lead Legion Painting Service. His web page shows an impressive portfolio of commissions, which were more than enough quickly to convince me that Andy’s personal recommendation- “I’d use him myself if I wanted a professional painter,” was in no way exaggerated. I contacted Brian. And so the deal was done and Brian is on the job even as I type.

Brian put up his first WiP shots- some Stealers and the stands for the doors, last Friday, and mighty fine they look. A niggling summer cold has knocked Brian a bit out of his stride and he’s evidently frustrated that he might not deliver the finished product according to his usual timetable. My instinctive reaction was to tell him not to worry, to just take his time, but I realised that time is money for the self-employed and that margins are especially tight for pro minis painters working in Brian’s niche. So I’ve decided just to trust to Brian’s experience; he is the pro after all. In the meantime, I’m very much looking forward to seeing more pictures from Brian, not to mention having the finished product in my hands.

More soon no doubt, dear readers. ;)

Addendum

1/8/12

Brian has posted an update with new- and much better, pictures of all the Stealers. Check them out to see the colours really pop, so much so in fact that you might think it's a completely different paint-job! :D