What’s that? Squats are back and going to be popular? I’d better get to painting some, then! Actually, that’s not in any way how this happened. This poor little fellow has been bouncing around between various storage locations, part-painted since the early 1990’s, and I did eye him off the other week and decide that he’d be a nice model to just finally get painted. I had pried him off the old flocked base I glued him to and given him a new one with texture paint a few months ago, but I hadn’t touched the model’s paint. As such, I simply continued the original colour scheme I’d planned for him so many years ago, though originally the red was just a bit brighter and I doubt I’d have used teal in those days.
This model is one I’ve had for a very long time, and is one of the remaining vestiges of the Squat detatchment that was part of my first Imperial Army/Guard force, that I sold as a teen to get the cash to buy my first Amiga Computer.
It’s not something I regret as such, as I got a lot of use and enjoyment out of that computer, as well as it having probably been an important part of what has gotten me to my current professional position, but you fucking bet I wish I could get hold of those models again today.
Azazel's Bitz Box. 
Nice work on this figure – especially the axe.
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Thanks Dave!
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So much to like here!
The effect on the power axe blade is smart. I have tried to do similar to exclusively the bladed area of weapons, with mediocre results in the past. Inverting where the “effect” goes looks like a better approach. I will be trying that out.
I’m not a huge squat fan, but I do have a few – plus space dwarfs from other manufacturers – and this model is one of, if not my absolute favourite. Something about the design all comes together to make an iconic whole.
Of course, that range of Ad Mech shown was advertised in one of the first White Dwarf mags I ever read, so as well as being definitive early 40k designs, they are also 100% *my* nostalgia driven, definitive 40k designs.
I sold a box of miniatures in 2000 to pay for a night out clubbing. I don’t regret it, but it did have a lot of Mordheim and Ork items in it, plus a Marauder Dark Elf plus Mengil Manhide unit in it. I think that I would be more upset if the box had an Ad Mech squat in it…
I learned computer basics from my Amiga 500 that gave me a core understanding of certain principles that still stand to me I reckon. Plus games like Starglider II, New Zealand Story, Blood Money, Speedball 1 & 2 etc etc.
I assembled about 20 minis for a Laser Squad themed project recently in fact…
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Thank you!
I think it can work on the bladed area, and it’s not like you have much choice on swords, but it’s probably in how much and where it’s applied, as well as the luck of the sculpt. Having said that, I’m sure if I saw your models I wouldn’t even think there was an issue, as we’re always our own harshest critics – especially when the model’s size is blown up such as they are online to really show off our paint imperfections!
I do have a nice little baggie of Squats that I saved that I’ll need to paint up – a few more than I expected actually – though I do still wish I had the lot, I’m sure largely due to the nostalgie they bring when I look at them – memories of how I felt looking at those WDs around 100 and the painted models in Chapter Approved, so I absolitely know how you feel. I think I have one of those human Admech models still …somewhere? Something else I need to dg out and see if I can find!
I can’t deny the value of that Amiga in my life, but damn I wish I could get those Squats back! (The IA/IG don’t bother me nearly as much, but then I was lucky enogh to pick up most of those IA sculpts again later!)
And Laser Squad! Brilliant! I’m keen to see what you came up with!
I remember my introduction to the game being a friend explaining that “It’s like Space Hulk”. It wasn’t until relatively recently that I found out about it’s connnection to Laserburn – so we have a common anscestor for both modern XCom and Primaris! 😀
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I love it, there’s just something about this sculpt that has endured when almost all others from the same vintage have an oddly 2d look to them. The red suits the mini well, and I am very impressed with the effect on the visor.
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Thanks mate! Having a nice big visor like that makes that effect that much easier to pull oiff! 🙂
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Superb job mate, he’s a classic for sure 👍👍👍
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Cheers, Alex! He certainly is that!
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Fantastic work. A classic old figure.
Cheers,
Pete.
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Thanks Pete! Very happy to have finally completed it after all this time!
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Very nice and I like the backstory! 🙂 At least you still have this mini from those early days!
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Thanks John. Once I finish my current set of sci-fi “characters” I’m working on, I feel like it might be time to finally get out the rest of those old Squats and give them the painting!
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Excellent painting mate, I like all the colours you’ve chosen, and the blue sheen on the axe is sublime
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Thanks Dave! Red and Gold and Blue are a pretty tried-and-tested triad, after all! 🙂
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Top stuff, although I can’t help but notice he’s wearing red and brass armour and he’s carrying an axe. How long before he starts making a heap of skulls I wonder? (Hmmm… a Khornate squat daemonsmith – I kind of want to make that now…). Anyway, you’ve done a great job on him – I’d love to see something more like this from the new range. So far I’ve liked everything we’ve seen well enough but whilst the Necromunda models look like Squats the Legues are a bit too much of a reinvention and I can’t decide if I’m happy about that or not.
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Yeah, they’re really leaning pretty solidly into being “descendants” and as you said, a reinvention of Squats rather than a return of them as we got with GSC and Admech. I do want to see your Khornate Squat Daemonsmith now, though! 😀
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Nice work on the figure and I think we have all sold stuff that we later regret.
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Thank you – and absolutely!
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Oh, I hadn’t seen this mini for a while, it’s so good having it back! Prety good job 🙂
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Thank you! Glad you like the model!
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Cute miniature, and the red armour makes it stand out (not a very common colour for squats, right?).
Did you use decals for the insignia on the shoulder straps?
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Thank you! I went with the red as it’s the main colour for Adeptus Mechanicus. I did use decals for the shoulder icons – I usually do so for military markings that would be more uniform while saving freehand for more individual markings.
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The mini came out great and I appreciated the backstory on this little guy too. I can only imagine how hard these minis are to find on eBay and that sort of thing now. I’d guess they go for crazy high prices as well. Having said that, trading minis for a PC isn’t a bad tradeoff in my opinion 🙂
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Funny how much those minis would be worth now compared to the Amiga, but that’s just how these things have gone, especially with the spike in interest due to “Oldhammer” becoming so popular online.
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Another nice mini this time around, but an even more interesting story… trading out some minis for an Amiga?! That sounds like quite the score! I didn’t have the Amiga (just a poor Vic20 and not even a cassette drive to back things up!), but I know people were crazy about them.
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Yeah, the Amiga was pretty great for the time, though it was also a LOT of minis that I sold back then.
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Brilliant work- and such an interesting sculpt 🙌
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Thanks Steve! Much appreciated!
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