Blood Bowl Exhibition

Blood bowl league is starting up! I went to an Exhibition event to meet everyone involved.

Exhibition game was Konquata Monitors against the Thunder Dead! Sadly TWO Saurus went down for the count, and Thunder Dead won 2-1.

League starts in the new year!

Blood Bowl Chameleon Skinks and Team Markers

With the new edition of Blood Bowl, it seems the Chameleon Skinks, previously not fantastic, are now super good! So I had to have two.

Sadly, they’re hard to find by themselves, and the new models don’t fit the self-built aesthetic of the Konquata Monitors.

So I ebayed up some archive Chameleon Skinks (got a good price) and stripped them, then converted them pretty hard.

Behold, the newest members of the Konquata Monitors!

The old pewter Chameleon Skinks had grenades that needed to be snipped off. Then, I shaved down the arms of some plastic Skinks and rebuilt the fingers to have two conjoined grasping fingers like a chameleon. Then I added putty here and there to cover up scars from the grenade clipping.

Sadly, the two sculpts I got were the same (there used to be two) but that only make my creative juices flow for ways to differentiate them. Ehecatl had a hole drilled in his mouth, and pinned with a paperclip length. To the end, I puttied a sticky tongue, and then sculpted a Blue Morpho butterfly.

Each player of course has Genestealer armor plates for shoulder pads, decorated with their number in Mayan numerals. They also have Nahautl names.

I wasn’t done! With the first season box set I had, there were no card tokens to keep track of turn, re-rolls, and score. So I raided my bitz and found suitable pieces for the Monitors as well as the Grimfang Scrappaz.

Now I’ll be playing in style!

Next: more batreps and some Infiltrators!

Blood Bowl – 5th Edition vs. LRB, or cha-cha-cha-CHANGES

Got my main rulebook open, and I have the pdf of the old LRB on my laptop as I type.  It’s time to see what 5th edition has changed, rules wise.  Here’s a running tally as I find them:

• Handoff and Foul are not in the actions in the Basic Rules; they are instead in the Advanced section, later in the book.  This explains why they’re not on the quick start guide cards.  They are mentioned, though. (it wasn’t an oversight)
• Under causes for a turnover, the four minute time limit is GONE!  No more hourglasses or stopwatches!  This assists new players.  I bet it will make a comeback in an advanced book later. EDIT: It is in the Advanced section of the rules.
• Minor change: several of the rules use the genderless “they” or “themselves” to refer to players, when identical wording in the old book is “him” or “himself.”  I think this is for teams with female players, such as Amazons, who will hopefully be included in a later rules set (if only for the die-hard Amazon players!)
• Rules for team building do not include Skill Types for normal and doubles.  This is corrected in the Death Zone supplement.
• Human Catchers reduced from 70,000gp to 60,000gp.
• Assistant Coaches, Cheerleaders, and Apothecaries/Necromancers are no longer listed during team creation.
• Each player gets Special Play cards, randomly decided (1:1 card, 2-5:2 cards, and 6:3 cards).  A Magic Item deck is mentioned, but not present in the box set (expansions ahoy!)
• Because a D16 is added to the box set, you don’t need to draw chits from a mug!  Not that you needed to in the past, but you had to buy your own D16…
• Obviously, Cheerleaders and Assistant Coaches are not mentioned in the Cheering Fans and Brilliant Coaching results on the Kickoff Table.
• The Skills section is MUCH shorter.  Skills for teams that are not out yet have been omitted. (for example, Prehensile Tail is not listed as Lizardmen or other tail-having races have not been re-released) EDIT: most missing skills are in Death Zone.
• League rules are omitted, as they are in Death Zone.  On that note…

The following is a list of things from the League supplement, Death Zone:

• Skaven Gutter Runners now have the Weeping Dagger skill, which lets them hurt people better.
• Nurgle Warriors are renamed Bloaters in the Nurgle Teams, but are identical.
• Beasts of Nurgle are renamed Rotspawn, identical as well.
• “Elf Teams” are renamed Elven Union Teams.
• Wood Elf Treemen now have a new Extraordinary Skill: TIMMM-BER!  Knocked down models with this skill receive a +1 to the roll to stand up, if MA is less than 3.  A roll of 1 always fails.  Assisting models can’t be in enemy tackle zones (just like assisting a Block or Foul).  This extra skill does not alter the Treeman’s cost! EDIT: This rule has been invalidated by errata, see the bottom of the post.
• MVP is now LESS RANDOM!  This is an incredible advance on the old rules.  Now, select 3 players from your team and roll a D3 to decide which is MVP!  No more handing out MVP to dead players, or giving MVP to a useless player who already has too many SPP or can’t benefit from another skill.
• Under Inducements, Petty Cash as a concept is gone (which is good, because it was always confusing!) Instead, the coach with the higher team value can purchase Inducements with their gold, then the opposing coach gets gold = team value difference and can spend it.
  • Without the Petty Cash rule, a lower team could spend any amount in their treasury on inducements without penalty.  In the old Blood Bowl, Petty Cash added to your Team Value, and so lower valued teams could only spend their Inducement money and no more, unless they transferred to Petty Cash an amount GREATER THAN the Inducements, because Petty Cash added to their Team Value, and thus Inducements would be reduced by the amount of Petty Cash, making it useless.
  • In additon, higher value teams can now spend away, not giving their opponent any additional Inducement money!  This can mean that a rich team could go into each match with a bunch of expensive inducements.
• Bloodweiser Babes are now Bloodweiser Kegs.
• Halfling Master Chefs are gone…
• Igor is gone…
• Wizards are reduced to 100,000gp from 150,000gp.
• Special Play cards are changed, so that instead of drawing randomly, you draw X, keep X-1, and X increases as the value of the higher team increases.  You can also purchase Special Play cards, which increase the value of X for you by one (not your opponent!)
• EXPENSIVE MISTAKES are a new addition to the post-game sequence!  Now, if your treasury exceeds 100,000gp, your players tend to do stupid and/or expensive things.  The larger your treasury, the stupider they act, as the money goes to their heads!  You roll on a table and lose no GP if you avert the crisis, but if there is an incident, you lose some GP, sometimes most of it!  Hoarding GP is no longer a good idea!  Too bad for teams that have expensive “big” players that don’t buy them during Team Creation… Saving up for them is risky!
• Skills are all back, but skills listed below are in the LRB but not in this supplement:
  • Animosity
  • Ball & Chain
  • Bloodlust
  • Bombardier
  • Chainsaw
  • Diving Tackle
  • Fan Favourite
  • Multiple Block
  • Piling On (note: this IS in the book, but is listed as optional, as it’s been reported as OP)
  • Stakes
  • Titchy
• In addition, these skills are in Death Zone but not the LRB:
  • Monstrous Mouth (similar to Sure Hands)
  • Timmm-ber! (described above)
  • Weeping Dagger (if this model causes an injury of 11-38: Badly Hurt, roll a D6.  On a 4+, that injured player also suffers a Miss Next Game)
• COACH MODELS HAVE AN IN-GAME EFFECT!  When a player is sent off, roll a D6.  On a 6, the call is reversed!  On a 1, your coach is sent off, and you cannot argue again for the game, plus you get a -1 to Brilliant Coaching rolls!
• Assistant Coaches, Cheerleaders, and Apothecaries are back.

Note: Death Zone is a proper softcover book with a strong cardstock cover; much more sturdy than the main rulebook, which is a double-stapled booklet! (/print nerd)

…and that’s it!  I might try the App next.  Who knows?

EDIT: It seems there are three errata documents already!  You can find them here, at the bottom of the page. Here’s an analysis of these documents.

-Blood Bowl Main Rulebook FAQ

Most of these FAQs are straight from the LRB, some of which are even identically worded.  One notable exception is the first one: a player who is sent off for a foul, who then has their coach roll a 6 and reverse that call, still causes a turnover.

-Teams of Legend Supplemental Document

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

HOLY CRAP!  ALMOST ALL PREVIOUS TEAMS, PLUS A COUPLE NEW ONES ARE CONTAINED HEREIN!  The Konquata Monitors are now legal and ready to play!  Here’s a list of new stuff, including teams:

• New Chaos Renegades team: A team of up to 12 human linemen who can get the Mutation skills on a NORMAL ADVANCE ROLL.  IN addition, the team can have 0-1 of EACH the following: Goblin, Skaven, Dark Elf, Troll, Ogre, Minotaur.  Bring a Troll, Minotaur, and Ogre for three big guys on the front line, throw in a Goblin for Right Stuff plays.
  • QUICK THOUGHT: If a Chaos Renegades team has an Ogre (Throw Team-mate), a Troll (Throw Team-mate) and a Goblin (Right Stuff), can the Ogre move up in one turn, and then on the next turn, the Troll throw the Goblin, have the Goblin land next to the Ogre, and have the Ogre throw the Goblin for a double throw?  Such a play would be risky, but could potentially see a goblin go all the way across the field in one turn!
• New Underworld Denizens team: Skaven with Goblins instead of Gutter Runners, and a Troll instead of a Rat Ogre.
• Amazons have some name changes for their positions, but are otherwise the same.
• Chaos Dwarfs also name changes but nothing else.
• Skills, such as Animosity, Bombardier, etc. that apply to these teams are listed here, if they are not in the main rulebook.
• Chaos Teams are now called Chaos Chosen teams, and have a few name changes.
• Halflings are back, and underneath them the Halfling Master Chef is back!  Oddly, the Halfling’s Treemen have the Timmm-ber! skill, while it is purged from Wood Elf Treemen in the Death Zone FAQ (see below).  An oversight?  Perhaps the FAQ needs an FAQ?
• Khemri are now Khemri Tomb Kings, and have name changes.
  • In addition, Igor is back as an inducement, and can work for teams with undead players!
• Lizardmen have very minor name changes.
• Norse Werewolves are now called Ulfwerenar.
• Necromantic teams are now Necromantic Horror teams, and have minor name changes.
  • Both Necromantic Horror and Shambling Undead (see below) gain a Necromancer instead of a coach, that can give your team free zombies!  This is not new though.
• Undead teams are now Shambling Undead teams, minor name changes.
• Ogre Teams now have “runts” instead of Snotlings, so you can use Snotlings, Knoblars, or anything else thematic.  This makes the Ogre team canon with Ogre Kingdoms from Fantasy.
• Vampire teams have minor name changes.

-Death Zone Season 1 FAQ

Minor changes to skills, including the purging of any use of the Timmm-ber! skill from Wood Elves’ Treemen.

…and that’s all folks!

Blood Bowl 5th Edition Unboxing

It’s Black Friday, and I went to local games store AFK Games in Holt, MI, to pick up a copy of the new Blood Bowl box set, and Death Zone: Season 1, the supplemental book!  I’ve never opened a new box set on fourstrands, so it’s time for my first unboxing!

In a future post, I plan to read the new rulebook, line by line, and compare it to the old Blood Bowl Living Rulebook.  I’ll outline the biggest changes I see.  But first, let’s take a look at that box!

I really like the art.  You get that it’s a football game, but also much more violent than ordinary football.  The goblin looks a bit goofy though.

Let’s flip the box!

A basic explanation of the game.  One thing that I looked for in the store and found conspicuously missing was a listing of the models contained in the box set.  I’ll list those when I look at the models themselves.

Now, to open this precious oyster to find the pearls of… something related to football… ok bad metaphor…

Jam packed full!  Already I can see Human miniatures in blue, Ork in green, and templates in gray.  There’s also some dice.  First, let’s get those miniatures out and get up close and personal!

Here are the humans.  Poses for these guys are a bit odd.  The linemen on the left side sort of have their arms out.  It’s half “COME AT ME, BRO!” and half “I believe I can flyyyyyyy…”  I’m also not a fan of the dancing catcher, who is doing a saucy pirouette with the ball.  The Blitzers are also oddly posed.  I’m digging the thrower though.  Good pose for making a long pass.  What I’m a bit disappointed in is the lack of variety in the minis.  The above sprues are identical so you get 2 of each pose.

Speaking of which, here’s the list of Human minis:

• 2 Throwers (identical)
• 2 Catchers (identical)
• 2 Blitzers (identical)
• 6 Linemen (3 different poses)

Now, for the Orcs!

The Orcs are in more pieces, so it’s harder to see their poses, but they are much more violently posed.  Many are winding up for a good punch, while others are actively charging.  The Thrower is a bit awkward and has a weird look on his face.  One of the linemen has that silly pose that the Human linemen have, but he’s squatting a bit more so he looks WAY sturdier, as if preparing for a charge.  All in all, these are the superior minis, with the same identical sprue problem.  Another problem that arises from this: how do you differentiate your players BEFORE you paint them?  If you go back and look at the back of the box, you’ll see that the game can be played unpainted.  If both your throwers look identical, things could get confusing…

Here’s the model count:

• 2 Black Orc Blockers (identical)
• 2 Blitzers (identical)
• 6 Linemen (3 poses)
• 2 Throwers (identical)

Next: we replace the old clear acetate templates for some plastic ones that kick ass!

Better in every way than the old acetate ones.  The pass template even breaks down into two parts for storage!  Fantastic!

Woo.  Bases.  Glamorous.  Moving on.

Here’s the box with the above items taken out.  To protect the board and cards, a dividing paper was placed between them.

On the other side was an ad.  I suppose we’d better get used to this.  Instead of the last page of the rulebook or assembly instructions, full sheet ads like this are being placed in all new GW boxes.  Oh well, at least you can toss it.

…wait, what’s that?

There’s an app?  I have not gotten it (look for a future post) but hopefully it can level up your roster, even sharing it with a tournament coordinator so there’s no cheating!

Next, the item I have been waiting for: THE MAIN RULEBOOK!

Cover art isn’t the most awe-inspiring.  Someone must have rolled a 12 on the weather table, and this shot was taken just before the Blizzard rolled in, as it’s very foggy.  Also, the Orc looks surprised to see the Human running at him.  “Hey, man, take it easy!”

Inside, we start with some classic art.

Bob and Jim!  It wouldn’t be a Blood Bowl rulebook without these knuckleheads.  To further the wackiness of the Blood Bowl setting, the book is festooned with comical asides, such as this one:

As for the rules themselves, once again, that’s a later post.  As for now, I have a powerful need for some dice!

Both players get a full set of dice including three new block dice that look fantastic!  You also get two D6s with the 6 replaced with the Blood Bowl logo, a D8 for scattering, and… could it be?  YES!

A D16!

*one change of pants later*

Ah, much better.  Good, now I don’t have to roll a D20 and re-roll all 17+ when rolling for MVP.

Enough of the small objects, let’s get onto the pitch!

The pitch is big!  Bigger than the old Blood Bowl pitches!  Now large based minis won’t have so much trouble fitting on those tiny squares.  You’ll need a bit more table space though…

The pitch has a few details that make it more than just a field.  Here’s a hatch to the dungeons below!

…and a poor Goblin who didn’t make his landing roll when thrown…

Even better, unlike the old pitch, the flip side is a completely different pitch!

Orcs tend to play on a rougher field, with bare bedrock in some places.

Next: some cards!  They’re bigger than I’d expect.  The bonus of such big cards is the text is easily readable.

Among these cards are reference cards for the Human and Orc teams, and the Star Players both teams can employ.

In addition there are two Special Play decks, much simplified from the optional Special Plays in the LRB.

Next there’s… another ad?  Oh, well at least this one is super worth it if you want to play the Blood Bowl videogame on Steam.  It includes a code for 50% off Blood Bowl II, and another code for unique DLC for that game.  My codes are edited out (sorry!).

Next… OOOOOOOOOH!

BAGGIES!  They perfectly fit the dice and oversized cards.  Excellent addition!  They are thicker and stronger than your bog-standard sandwich bags.  Great idea!

There’s a double sided easy-reference guide.  It’s great but… WHERE ARE HANDOFF AND FOUL?  (check rules) OH, they’re there!  This guide is only for beginners…

Up next, a sheet of the oft-unused waterslide transfers, but these are very high quality!  Both Orcs and Humans get Black and White versions of the transfers, so it works with any color scheme you choose, except perhaps camouflage.

Next, another must-have, the dugouts!  Each dugout has a Human side and an Orc side.  I really like that the K.O.d box has an 8-9 and the Injury box has a 10-12, to remind you of where you go when injured!  The art is also very fun.  There’s a scoreboard up top, rooms, and then the familiar turn counters and re-roll markers.

…and that’s it for the box set!  It looks like they had a lot of spectacular ideas, such as the baggies, reversible boards, dice for BOTH players, and fantastic templates.  It’s a bit lacking in the variety of minis, and the quality of poses, as well as some of the art being bland.

…but wait, we’re not done!  I also purchased Death Zone: Season 1!  The main rulebook only has rules for making an Orc or Human team.  DZ:S1 has Dwarfs, Skaven, Nurgle, Elf Unions, High Elves, Wood Elves, and Dark Elves, bringing the total of teams to 9!  They’re missing my precious Lizardmen though…

There are also rules for leagues, conspicuously absent from the main rulebook!

Minor nitpick, if this book was released at the same time as the box set, are they “new” rules?   Wouldn’t they be concurrent?  I guess all of them are NEW, but most of them are like old rules… *grumble grumble*

Next: a definitive breakdown of the rules, as compared to the old LRB!  We’ll see what’s new, what’s old, what’s great, and what’s questionable!  After that, I’ll try to see how the App is!

Blood Bowl time at Highland!

Highland Gaming Club got a good taste of Blood Bowl today!  To demo Blood Bowl I follow three rules:

1. The first person to say “yes” gets to pick their team.

2. Only one half is played, and the team that kicks off gets 1/2 of a point, so that they win ties.

3. Both players have me tell them what to do for the first turn, and from then on, have me only make general suggestions.

Let’s take a look at the highlights!

Here, Paul (left, Monitors) contemplates how to set up to receive a kick from Ian (right, Scrappaz).  Paul brought a strong first drive, scoring quickly, but Ian pushed hard and got a lucky Throw Team-Mate touchdown, despite three turns of turnovers stopping him.  In the end, Ian was victorious.

Justin, playing the Scrappaz here, got a turn 1 touchdown thanks to some good rolls!  Sadly, his luck did not hold as Bill, a newcomer to Highland, smashed his early lead and scored two touchdowns to Justin’s one!

It’s interesting to note that both players that lost these demo games are veteran players of the Blood Bowl video game, which (barring a couple botched skills that don’t work right) is the same game!

Time for a slightly off topic rant!  The current Blood Bowl video game does not capture the whole feeling of the original.  Here’s what you miss out on with the PC version:

1. No face-to-face interaction with an actual human being.

2. Cannot build a team from scratch using 1,000,000 gold pieces.

3. No option for special play cards (even though no one uses them)

4. Cannot customize players to the extent you can with real minis.  Want purple skeletons?  Too bad!

5. Some skills don’t work right.

6. To really get a handle on the rules, you have to read the pdf anyway, so you might as well read the regular board game rules.

7. Not all Star Players are present.

Blood Bowl II will be coming out soon, so hopefully some of these issues are addressed.  However, from the promotional material, it seems that some races are in-game purchases.  Want to play Lizardmen?  That’ll be an extra fee, get out your credit card.

The point is: the board game is fun and gives you a lot more freedom!  Give it a try!

Next: more Gothic?  Perhaps Space Marines?

Grimfang Scrappaz Support Staff

Two posts in one day?  Of course!  I need to get ready to show Blood Bowl to the Highland Gaming Club!  The Yella Runts (Cheerleaders) yell at the crowd to get them pumped!  The Coach Runts (Assistant Coaches) communicate with the players via a system of glyphs on banners or metal signs.

Next: Blood Bowl at Highland!

Blood Bowl Custom End Zones by Lexington

A long time ago I met a wonderful man.  He’s not important; what’s important is I met Lexington a little less than 15 years ago.  He’s been my constant companion through model wargaming, and occasional rival.  Friendval?  (Editors note: think of something more clever later)  Regardless, Lexington just gave me my Xmas present and if you think that it’s four months early, you’d be wrong.  Marvel in their awesomeness:

BLOOD BOWL CUSTOM END ZONES!  These end zones are designed for the 2nd edition Astrogranite board.  I designed the basic concepts for the logos for the Konquata Monitors and the Grimfang Scrappaz, but Lexington brought them to life, and formatted them for the correct size of the end zone. (Blood Bowl fans take note: these end zones are two squares deep, unlike the ones on a modern Blood Bowl board)

These custom end zones were then printed in full color on a laser printer and laminated with 10 mil laminate.  They were then cut to size.  This breaks the seal and eventually they will need to be replaced, but it looks better without a margin.  Incidentally, you can find the files here:

Konquata Monitors Custom End Zone by Lexington

Grimfang Scrappaz Custom End Zone by Lexington

Of course, these are useless to anyone but me.  However, if you want to make your own, use these as templates.  The final size of the Astrogranite 2nd edition end zone is 14.5″ wide by 1.75″ deep.  These files are larger than that in order to give you bleed to cut off.  Print them, laminate them, and trim carefully to size.  Make your own!

Next: Grimfang Scrappaz support staff!

Blood Bowl Coach – Warboss Grimfang da Lotz

Warboss Grimfang da Lotz slouched in his scrap iron throne, in the bowels of Mount Grimfang’s deepest cavern.  Bio-luminescent fungus barely gave off enough light to outline the silhouette of Nugget, Grimfang’s lucky snotling.  None of the other ladz were around, so Grimfang didn’t feel the need to hold in his disappointment.

“Nugget, wot we gonna do today?” he sighed.  Nugget, hearing his name, perked up.

“Dat’s right, we’s gonna fight Stunties.  Jus’ like yeserday an’ da day before an’ da day before dat.”  Grimfang sighed.  “Ceptin’ da Stunties barely ever fight anymore.  We ain’t seen a proppa battle fer a long time.”

Nugget pounced on an errant squig, ignoring Grimfang.

“Ever since dat Stunty tol’ us dat dere’s no more war cuz of dat new fing, wot wuz it again, Nugget?”

“Ang ang ang ang ang.” Nugget replied as he chewed the squig.

“Yer, Blood Bowl, dat’s wot it was.  Somefing about runnin’ up an’ down a field, muckin’ about.  Don’t sound like a proppa WAAAAGH, do it?”

Nugget toddled over and offered Grimfang the remains of the squig.  Grimfang rubbed Nugget’s head because it was lucky, everyone knew that.

“On da uvver ‘and, it sounds like the only way to get a proppa scrap anymore.” Grimfangs voice rose, with renewed optimism.  “Yer, plus since everybody’s playin’, ya get to fight lots of fings, not just Stunties.  You’s right, Nugget!  Dat sounds like da best idea!”

Nugget collapsed under the noogie barrage he was receiving.

“GURSHAK!” Grimfang bellowed.  “GET YER WURFLESS ‘IDE IN ‘ERE!”  Moments later, Gurshak Ripgrot, one of Grimfang’s biggest Nobs arrived.

“Yer… wot is it, boss?” Gurshak stammered, making sure not to make direct eye contact.

“Get all da ladz workin!  Ain’t no time fer a nap!  Get all da loot, an’ all da stuff wot da Stunties lef’ fer minin’ silver.”

Gurshak smiled. “We gettin’ ready fer a fight?”

“BETTER!” Grimfang yelled.  “WE GETTIN’ READY FER A SCRAP!”

———————————————————————————

Warboss Grimfang da Lotz is the latest Warboss in a long line of Orcs to hold the title.  The original Warboss Grimfang conquered the Mount Silverspire silver mine from Dwarfs, long ago.  The Orcs renamed the mountain after Warboss Grimfang.  However, constant fighting with Dwarfs (and among themselves) led to a high turnover rate on Warbosses.  Each new Warboss renames themselves Grimfang, so that they are seen as the rightful ruler of Mount Grimfang.  Orks can only count to five, so each Warboss after the fifth is Grimfang da Lotz.

However, with the introduction of Blood Bowl, there’s just no fighting anymore.  At least, not enough to satisfy the current Grimfang da Lotz.  So, he has led his ladz out of the mountains, and onto the Blood Bowl pitch.  Calling themselves the Grimfang Scrappaz, they are ready to smash any team in their way!

————————————————————————————-

Warboss Grimfang da Lotz is a Games Day exclusive Warboss, in pewter.  I added a putty baseball cap, just like my other coach, Lord Kroak.  Grimfang’s colors are blue and silver, like the Scrappaz.  All jewelry is painted Mithril Silver to represent the wealth of the Grimfang silver mine.

Next: Cheerleaders and Assistant Coaches!

Blood Bowl Weather Flip Display

Tired of trying to remember what the weather is during your Blood Bowl games?  Well, worry no more!

With this handy flip display, both players can see what the weather is, and the effects that weather has on the game.  The display shows on both sides so both players can see it easily.  The base is made to be slim, so that the display stands up and takes up little space on the tabletop.  It’s easy to change and stands up well.

Find the file and instructions for printing in the Blood Bowl Compendium page!

Next: Ork Blood Bowl coach, and support staff!

Sculpting Tuorial: Goblin Cheerleader Pom-Pom

Sat down to do some work on some models that have been neglected for a while, and I thought I’d do a short modelling tutorial on how to create Cheerleader Pom-Poms.  To a lesser extent, this same technique works on straight hair.

You need:

• A model with a closed fist for the pom-pom (or a bald headed mini if you’re doing hair)
• 2 part epoxy putty (green stuff, kneadatite, brown stuff, etc.)
• Sculpting needle tool

Step 1

Mix enough putty to cover the hand/head generously.  Use your fingers to smooth it down to cover the fist. (don’t worry about fingerprints, you will remove them in a bit)

Step 2

Wet the surface of your putty (lick it if you’re lazy) and use your needle tool to make a small circular dent at the top center.

Step 3

Place the tip of the needle tool in the hole at the top and carefully drag it down the side all the way to create a trench.  Push the needle into the bottom of the trench to make it so that the trench has no rounded end.  (Refrain from making penis jokes if you can.  I couldn’t.)

Step 4

Repeat step 3 about 30 to 45 degrees away from your first trench.

Step 5

Starting from just below where the two trenches meet, make another small trench that does not go all the way to the bottom.  Make more trenches that are staggered in between these all the way to the bottom to fill the area with small trenches.

Step 6

Repeat steps 4-5 to fill the entire area.

Now you can sculpt Pom-Poms, and to a lesser extent hair!  Be sure to keep your putty workable area wet to prevent your sculpting tool from sticking.  Happy Sculpting!