Old World Army Challenge: VI: Necromunda: Failure Redeemed

 How many subtitles can I fit into a blog post?

ladies doing it for themselves

2023 was the last time I attempted the Old World Army Challenge. I was excited - the first year we were doing Specialist Games, I had all this old Necromunda and Gorkamorka metal to paint up; it was going to be good. Alas, I succumbed to the way of all flesh and only managed to get two gangs painted up - my Skavvies, Smilin' Jack and the Bitter Dregs, and my beloved Pit Slaves, Helreach United Miners, Fabricators, Haulers Local Θ-26/20.

All I managed to get done of the third gang, the March gang, was the four juves. Alas, alack, and other a-words that mean: dangit.

Still, this year is seeing me finishing a couple projects up, and then I was out of undercoated things for those projects, just as winter bit in and it got too cold and wet for spraypainting. I scavenged for some undercoated things to paint - with some success so far - and remembered the Escher gang. Let's fucking go.

The Gleaming Falls Ghasts  

 

Leader: bolter, laspistol, twin knives (xxx creds)

Heavy: heavy stubber, stub gun,* sword (xxx creds)

Juve: autopistol (xxx creds)

Juve: stub gun, sword (xxx creds)

Juve: autopistol, club (xx creds)

Juve: stub gun, pick (xx creds)

Ganger: autogun, stub gun (xx creds)

Ganger: shotgun, autopistol (xx creds)

Ganger: bolt pistol, sword, frag grenades (xx creds)

Ganger: plasma pistol, pick (xx creds)

Ganger: twin swords, stub gun* (xx creds)

Ganger: autopistol, sword (xx creds)

Ganger: autogun, stub gun* (xx creds)

Ganger: autogun, stub gun* (xx creds)

Ganger: lasgun, laspistol* (xx creds)

Ganger: laspistol, flail (xx creds)

Ganger: shotgun, sword (xx creds)

Ganger: autogun, sword (xx creds)

 

TOTAL: x,xxx credits 

*or some other kind of pistol; it's in a holster. 

[Editor's note: It's 2300 on a Thursday night. I'll edit in the cred count later. I'm also not completely sold on the name yet...]

This is definitely enough for a starting gang with plenty of expansion - I'm only missing three of the original sculpts (the other leader, heavy with a plasma cannon, and the chainsword and autopistol ganger). If I see the other three on eBay or something, I'll have to pick them up.

I went with a relatively classic look, because the original style of the Escher --- well, first of all it, it can't be beat anyway, but it's also one of reasons I got into Necromunda in the first place. Punk glamour in all the right ways, black leathers and bright yellows, with a variety of hair colour that never goes away.

To give myself some guidelines, I decided to follow the original colour scheme a little - if a sculpt was painted with blue hair originally, she got blue hair - but all the hair had to be different. I also tried to keep roughly on theme with the loincloths, but wanted everyone to be unique, so those got played with more.

Also: pink gun casing. Because hell yeah, but also because I want to use pink more often. Shoutout to Stahly at Tale of Painters for doing it first and better.

escher juves

Juves, though, don't get bright hair or hard-plastic armour, not until they've earned their stripes. They all got grey under-leggings, plain brass knee-guards, plain yellow loincloths, and stained off-white crop-tops. It makes them very uniform, I know, but really emphasises their junior status.

She might only have a stub gun, but she does have a sword. hell yeah

One of my favourite original sculpts. So much character. She made it really hard to keep her downgraded! She begs for bright colours.

Also an old favourite. Also look what heroic scale does to these kids - that pistol is the size of her whole body.

Speaking of the oversize guns, I love its use here to have this girl holding the little pistol like an assault rifle. She's so junior. Also, note that the juves don't have the pink casing on their guns, just raw steel.

escher gangers

These two sat half-painted for two years. Not bad on the scale of oldhammer, but still a grim fate. Even so, it took me several days to find my rhythm on them, but they came up lovely in the end. Can't beat Jes Goodwin - although I suspect the lasgun girl is either a recast or has been through hell because she was pretty rough.

This poisonous green really came to life with that one final highlight, I think. Glad I pushed myself.

Same with this blue. Following the old colours meant a lot of blue, in the end.

more escher gangers

It turns out that Jes built these sculpts on a handful of base models, which gave me a great way to split up the painting so that I could batch them. Conveniently, they were in groups of three, too, and I have three painting handles. It's fate, innit.

I love this sculpt so much. Who doesn't love a flail? The leopard print was done using Duncan's old tutorial (Facebook link for some reason).

Pink hair is quite a common motif as well (which is fine, because it looks sick as hell), but making sure it's distinct from the weapon casings and each other is hard. I tried to make this one fading up as it leaves the scalp, but mixed success I think.

This gal is trans. I was painting her and just... yeah. This one's trans. Good for her. 

some more escher gangers

The melee fighters! Fuck yes. Every one here is a classic. I really need to get that chainsword-wielding badass...

Two of these women have yellow hair goddamit it. Anyway, tried to go for a 'dark yellow' here? ugh

Bringing knives to a gun fight and fuck you.

I cannot imagine this ganger lives a long, healthy life. Melee weapon and plasma, not healthy. I went with a sea green for the plasma coils because I'd just bought some sea green paints and they're quite nice.

yet more escher gangers what do you want from me this is an escher gang

These sculpts are a little the worse for wear as well, with the bolter lady having a messed-up face, and the autogun a little, uh -- limp.

Such a killer pose, though. The white leopard-print loincloth is the second time I've attempted TheChirurgeon's method for this, and I'm still not quite there. That's why we practice, though. Still happy with it, and she's a street ganger in the underhive, so it's okay if it isn't a great example.

Another green-haired gal; this time, I went for a muddier camo-ish kind of green and I think it came out okay. Clearly distinguished from the other, that's for sure.

Similiarly, this lady has some teal-er hair, with the base colour being Citadel's Thousand Sons Blue. The gun thing is only noticeable if you look at it, so don't.

escher heavy with heavy stubber

The braids make this model read as Black to me, but I wasn't comfortable painting a single Black girl in a gang of otherwise pale folks (and at that, the 'big strong one'? yikes), and once her hair was painted purple-and-pink, she didn't really read that way any longer. Feel welcome to yell at me if you like.

Really lovely sculpt, though.

big muscles

I painted her backpack grey, vaguely intending to give it the stripes of the famous Necromunda Spiders, a way of visually indicating that she'd either served (and earned that bionic) or otherwise the ex-military hardware had sauntered downhive. But in the end, it would have been way too busy, so instead it's a nice way to add some new distinguishing colour to the model without overcomplicating the scheme.

escher leader with bolgun, laspistol and knives

Finally, the boss. Not much to say here, except that her blue hair is a bit darker than the others, and that she was easy and lovely to paint up. I personally prefer the other leader sculpt (she has a sick coat and a power sword), but this one is very very good.

I kept her weapons weathered and battered, same as her sisters. She's got the biggest hair and the commanding presence, but she's still an underhive fighter, all teeth and rage. Her weapons are used.

Alright, that's it for these guys - at least unless I get a hold of those other sculpts. Thank you, winter, for giving a chance to put this demon to bed. That's one off the list. Maybe I should prep the others...