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Stuck on Bones with Nightwretches

Posted on January 29th, 2008 in games, hobbies, tabletop games by darthvid
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With all my fascination with Warmachine, I told myself “Hey, stop readin’ n’ start paintin’!” So, last Saturday, I finally kicked myself into getting something to start with.

I went to Fortress in VMall, Greenhills with plans on getting Iron Lich Asphyxious and a Skarlock. Both were out of stock (hopefully they’ll restock in the next shipment). I didn’t want to get more than I could chew, so I decided to just get a pair of Nightwretches. I also got the Cryx P3 paint set, some black spray-paint for primer, and decided to experiment with a Tamiya Silver (for metal effects) and Tamiya Clear Metal Primer. I remembered still having my GW Starter Set from years ago, thinking that should be enough for a while.

Getting the ‘wrenches for starters was a good thing since it would allow me to be the noob that I am and screw things up on relatively ordinary models. My decision was immediately vindicated when I almost broke a leg trying to fit the model in the base. I learned (almost in the hard way) that, in spite of being made of metal, those Cryx turkey legs can be quite sensitive. I was also very dismayed to find that my old Citadel paints have dried up, including the Citadel Black Ink. So much for alternatives.
I tried the “black primer” and the Tamiya Clear Metal Primer on each model to see which I’d prefer. I did a little quick painting to get a feel for what I have and what I might need, and so far, I noticed the following noobish things:

  • P3 Necrotite Green is good for it’s purpose.
  • P3 Blighted Gold is very good. The effect is amazing and exactly what I wanted. I can see it being used for lot of other metals in the same shade.
  • P3 Bane Highlight is not enough for a metal feel. It could pass for dull/flat metal, but it’s not enough for me. A silver highlight helped, but I think I can find something better. I remember using Citadel Gunbolt Metal years ago and being very very satisfied (like I was with P3 Blighted Gold).
  • P3 Jack Bone is not enough to look like bone. It’s a darker shade of bone, I was expecting something “whiter”. It might look alright with a little wash or mixing, but I think it would work best if the P3 Jack Bone was used for enhancing a lighter bone color.

I got some suggestions from the good people in Tabletop Wars on how I can make the bone effect work with the colors I have, but for the effect I want, I think I really do have to get another color. GW Bleached Bone seemes to be the general recommendation around the net, though I’ve been told that P3 Menoth White Base is a good enough equivalent. Regardless, I do need a lighter shade. I can keep the Jack Bone color for the base, but I really need a lighter highlight/main color. I’m also not satisfied with just using P3 Bane Highlight as a metal color.

So, I’m planning on getting at least the following:

  • Citadel Bleached Bone / P3 Menoth White Base (to get the bones right)
  • some brown and black ink (general purpose)
  • Citadel Boltgun Metal or a near enough equivalent (for gray metals, I’ve been told P3 Pig Iron would work)
  • Any solid white/black color just so I have something to lighten/darken things up when needed

I’ll post pics of the finished ‘wretches when they’re not as bad as the trash job I’ve currently done. Hopefully, by then, it’ll move up from “trash” to “litter” (maybe even “toy!” <shudder>).

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Little Multi-Threaded Snag

Posted on January 6th, 2008 in projects by darthvid
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My recent interest in Python helped push me a bit into going back to an old task I set aside, namely game programming. To make things more interesting, I’m giving myself the additional challenge in trying to utilize the capabilities of Stackless Python. It’s a multi-threaded world out there, and this little activity should keep my wheels turning.

In my case, the annoying thing about learning to program games is that there’s a lot of infrastructure involved. Many tutorials will teach you how to draw something, manipulate an image, or get user input like mouse clicks or key presses. It gets you started, but very quickly you’ll realize that those items are trivial compared to preparing a proper framework. Controller loops, MVC, object abstraction… this is where it gets interesting. Unfortunately, this is where you tend to find less and less info.

I thought I had a pretty decent (albeit very rudimentary) thread-friendly framework going, until I hit a part which apparently required me to setup some locks. Of course I expected this to happen eventually (I am working with threads), but I just can’t seem to shake the feeling that there’s a better way, something that makes use of the design patterns/models I’ve been applying so far. I can always just move along and get it over with, progressing to designing higher level items, but then again, I am trying to come-up with something different from what I used to do with regular code.

Regardless, I have accomplished quite a bit this day (or rather yesterday), perhaps it’s time to rest (and continue reading Fall of Hyperion). Hopefully, I can come-up with something. If not, well, I’ll resign myself to an old solution. I guess it will depend on what I’m more interested in at the moment: do I want to get to something usable soon or do I want something to puzzle over?

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#import year2008

Posted on January 1st, 2008 in Uncategorized by darthvid
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import year2008

year2008.run()

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New programming languages, tabletop games, innovative mechanics

And those are just carry overs from last year! Imagine all the new goodies in store for us this year!

Happy New Year everyone! 2008 is gonna be a blast! :D

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