Welcome, all, to another issue of the Broken Anvil Reader. Today we have a community spotlight and an update to the Rivenstone Design-a-thon. At the end we’ll top you off with a preview of what’s coming down the pipeline!
Community Spotlight
First up is another community spotlight where we share the works and talents from some of those who take part in our Discord, Facebook, Instagram, etc. In this edition, this time we'll be talking to Sphoto22.
Alex: Tell us a little about yourself and how long you've been into miniatures/miniature gaming.
Sphoto22: I started my miniature journey during the pandemic. I looked for a hobby that I could get lost in during those long weeks in quarantine. I started building Gundam models and learning to use an airbrush. I slowly started to move to miniatures beginning with Warhammer Age of Sigmar. I then purchased a 3D printer and came across BAM. I had no previous experience painting anything but was able to find a great online community on social media and YouTube.
Alex: How long have you been painting?
Sphoto22: I got into miniature painting as a form of relaxation during the pandemic early in 2021 and have been working on my skills ever since.
Alex: Do you have any favorite techniques and/or tools?
Sphoto22: I use several techniques when painting miniatures. One I continue to use starts with under-painting the miniature which I do either by dry brushing over a black primer base building up gray and white colors to a zenithal end result or I airbrush white ink over a black primer base to get a similar end result. With this done, I love using inks or some type of transparent paint to color the model. This allows for the zenithal undercoat to show through, bringing out the shadows and highlights.
Alex: What is your favorite model you've painted so far?
Sphoto22: One of my favorite models was from the BAM Bag of Holding (welcome pack). The name of the model is Duke Thorton Reed. The reason this one stands out to me is that I painted it after following Josh Davis’s painting tutorials and I was able to use some of the techniques I learned in those sessions. His approach to paint consistencies and NMM was well-explained and easy to follow with his instruction. I was happy with the way this one came out, and it’s one of my favorite models so far in my short time painting miniatures, and I continue to use what I learned from his sessions.
Alex: Is there anything you particularly like about the BAM models you did or BAM models in general?
Sphoto22: What attracts me to BAM miniatures is that for me they lend themselves to be very painter friendly. What I mean is that BAM’s miniatures have very interesting themes that are not overly complicated to paint and allow me to practice basic painting techniques instead of focusing on overly detailed miniatures with complicated intricate parts.
Alex: Do you have any advice for newer painters or hobbyists?
Sphoto22: With painting miniatures, my biggest roadblock has been confidence to achieve results at a high level. In looking at amazing artists online, I have found myself trying to hold myself to that standard. That has held me back from doing the one thing that will make me improve—which is just paint as much as you can—and practice, practice, practice not being fearful of failure.
Thanks so much for taking the time to tell us about yourself and your painting journey, Sphoto22! If you’d like to know more about him, you can check him out on Instagram at @sphoto22.
Rivenstone Community Design-a-thon
Round one of the Design-a-thon is now concluded! The community SHOWED UP on this challenge with a huge turnout, but we clearly presented some themes y’all loved, because it was a shockingly close call in the end.
Ultimately, Twisted Orrery won out with 38% of the overall vote! Now that the theme is settled, our concept artists will work to create a spread of sketches for each of the three elements for you to choose from next.
Want to learn more about Rivenstone the game? Download the early release rulebook for free today by clicking here.
Last Call
Forged, our latest project, will be officially launching on BackerKit Crowdfunding October 25th! As a reminder, Forged is a cost-effective way to get your hands on 101+ PVC miniatures for all your TTRPG needs, all in one box! If you’d like to know more about Forged as we prepare for the campaign to go live, visit the BackerKit Launch page and sign up to get direct notifications about project updates.
That’s a wrap for tonight, folks! Thanks for reading and hope to see you next week in the BAR!
