Last year I decided to paint a goblin miniature every day in August, as part of my first ever Armies on Parade entry. I also found it quite motivational to have to paint a miniature every day.
There’s plenty of painting related challenges going on all the time, all a little different but all with a similar aim – inspire, motivate and encourage more hobby!
#hobbystreak
Do some hobby for 30 minutes each day, for as many days in a row as possible. Here’s the rules from its creator, @MrTumnus1987:
I’ve not tried it myself, as I generally have a couple of days off hobby in the week, but it somewhat inspired my daily challenge. There’s some seriously dedicated people on here with massively long streaks!
#painthammer
This one from @JewelKnightJess chronicles the total number of minis you’ve painted in a year. There’s some cool stuff on there, and a nice printable record sheet to keep track of your progress.
Wargame Hobby Bingo
A bingo card with hobby related challenges in each square. Go for a line or a full house! Check out the post by @RobHawkinsHobby here:
https://robhawkinshobby.blogspot.com/2020/01/wargame-hobby-bingo-for-2020.html
Another one I’ve not tried, though Warhammer Community’s Middle-earth variant caught my eye! There’s also an Underworlds one. With hexes.
My challenge
I have a bit of a chequered past with daily challenges, I’ve tried a couple and failed. The first one I remember was uploading a photo to Flickr every day, which I managed up until about 265 – I don’t even think this would be a challenge now, but seemed difficult 10 years ago!
I do work well with a bit of pressure and a looming deadline though, so thought the daily aspect would work well. I needed Grots for my Armies on Parade board and I’d already been painting some up when I started painting some Age of Sigmar minis in around May 2019.
So…what did I do to prepare for this challenge? Absolutely nothing.
I solidified to the idea on the 1st of August whilst at work, having no miniatures to paint. Went to the local Warhammer store after work, frantically assembled a grot and chucked some primer on it.
Whilst that was drying, I applied a load of Astrogranite to around 20 25mm bases.
I kept my scheme pretty much the same as I’d been painting my Squig Hoppers which is a nice straightforward recipe with minimal washes; this allowed me to paint him up fairly quickly. Around an hour or so.
Once I’d finished the first grot, I assembled the rest of the pack and primed them ready for a long month ahead!
Over the 31 days of August, I painted:
- 20 Gloomspite Gitz grots
- 1 Squig rider
- 5 of Zarbag’s Gitz
- Battle for Skull Pass Big Boss & Banner Bearers
Finally, on the final day of my challenge I painted one of my favourites – an old metal Goblin Shaman – I think he turned out great.
So, was it worth it?
Absolutely, I enjoyed painting them and they made a massive dint in my preparations for Armies on Parade. I ended up winning Best Painted, Best Themed Army and a silver medal overall for my entry. I’ll do another retrospective post on that I think!
Definitely try different challenges for yourself, I’d love to see someone else doing a #dailygrot!
