Who’s up for a challenge then?
Well quite a lot of us by the sounds of it as the number of weekly, monthly and several month painting challenges seems to grow week by week. I for one do like to take part in the odd painting/modelling challenge now and again as they help to get me motivated (and by god I need that sometimes!). There are plenty to choose from ….
Mo’vember (paint at least one figure a week sporting some sort of 
facial hair)
Zomtober (paint at least one zombie or survivor each week)
Saga’tember (paint as much of the board game Dungeon Saga as possible in the month of September)
Monster May(hem) (good name that!, paint as many non-human monsters as possible in May)
The Analogue Painting Challenge (not quite sure how this works but paint a LOT!)
Forgotten Heroes (build/convert at least one super/hero figure in June, shameless plug!)*
And so on and so on…..
So do you like/take part in any? Which ones do you like? Are there too many? Any good ones I’ve missed? Do you run any yourself? Are they conducive to increased productivity? Or do they just distract you from painting what you should REALLY be painting?
Lots to get your brainboxes round this week, as usual gentlemen your input is desired…..
Stay safe, and till next time, cheers Roger.
*Here are the rules from last years “Forgotten Heroes” challenge for Jez’s site…
Rantings from under the Wargames table 
I think the painting challenges are great to help get unfinished projects finished, and ideas you’ve had off the drawing board as it were, Have taken part in a lot over the last year, and my shelves are now adorned with more painted than unpainted models. Theu can be a bit of a distraction from other projects which can be good and bad, depending on how you think about it.
Was actually thinking of running one in July/August called Summer Scenery
Ooh, that could be interesting Dave.
Obviously I’m taking the months given and the Summer season quite literally and specifically tied together, which may not have been your intention, but I’ll use it for my example.
July/August as Summer in the Northern Hemisphere.
July/August as Winter in the Southern Hemisphere.
Participants could have fun with such an idea should they want to. Although the event is Summer Scenery and adding a winter scene is outside the theme of the event. Bit of fun, if nothing else.
Was thinking of making it quite open to interpretation, in just making or painting scenery during the summer months, and anything from a small piece up to be honest Roy
Thanks Dave, that sounds like it could be a very useful challenge, and one I would probably be up for (just need to check on the situation with work, when i go back before I can commit time too heavily). But I do know I have some scenics I really ought to do!
Cheers Roger.
Here’s some others: Orc’tober (clashes with Zomtober). Gun’uary (paint artillery or armoured fighting vehicles). Naval November (this one was me – way back when – three of us took part).
I know I started in the monthly paint-along theme events thanks to the old Steve Dean figure painting forum. Which came about after the finishing of the monthly painting competition.
Tried Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge (AHPC), twice, and hated doing it, twice. The competitiveness of the main event – paint as much as possible – isn’t my thing. The fortnightly themed competitions are a nice touch, but suffer from clique and cronyism-style voting in my view. I think its a great idea, overall, but the issue regarding the painting standards is a joke. Fair enough, people have differing levels of painting ability. But in some cases, its plainly obvious that the participant hasn’t even made the effort to correct painting mistakes, attempted to paint more than the barest minimum of detail or colours to qualify, turned in something that surely they cannot say they did the best that they could have done. And then that figure is scored the same amount of painting points as another painters miniature that they’ve spent who-knows-how-many-hours-on painting, and the nature of the paint as much as possible to win the league to claim your prize is shown up as the joke it is. In my opinion.
I did the math a few years back, when they first started allowing painted terrain. Get yourself a sheet of 8’x4′ plywood. Paint it green. Submit it as a terrain piece. Loads of points. Turn the wood over. Paint it a different shade of green. Loads of points. Use a sander and erase the paint off both sides. Choose a different colour – sand, sea, sky, mars. Paint one side of the board. Submit it as a terrain piece. Loads of points. Nothing in the rules (that year) to stop you from doing this, again and again and again, and so on, and you could clean up in the points league to win the money prizes.
Anyway, lots of people love the AHPC but I don’t. So its obviously a good thing for the hobby and who am I to question it – I don’t like it, so I don’t take part. Simple.
Never seen the Mo’vember painting challenge. Though I’ve grown a ‘tache in real life and supported Bob Murch’s charity event (got the figures from Canada – and I hardly ever buy from overseas for fear of something going wrong) for Mo’vember.
Have to say the best event I’ve taken part in is Forgotten Heroes. And that is no exaggeration or lie. I met yourself and Jez and Bryan through this event back in 2017. The passion for the subject and lengths all the participants go to is obvious to everyone and a pleasure to take part in. And its good fun. It also got me looking at comic books (in a small way) and watching films such as the Marvel Universe and TV shows from the Arrow-verse.
Are these painting themed events a distraction? They can be. Am I suffering anxiety over that (Forgotten Hero’s submission) Calista-Secor-as-Retro-Girl’s cloak conversion? Yes. But I’m still going to tackle it and take part. As the sense of achievement when I do get it right will be pleasing. And taking part, meeting new bloggers and socialising through the comments, having a laugh, makes it worth the effort.
In that respect, I get to enjoy the camaraderie that I enjoyed while the old Steve Dean painting forum was active; that led to friendships shared in real life after meeting up with others at the shows or at clubs. This is the real benefit from such monthly themed painting events for me.
Thanks Roy, like Jez I didn’t realise there were prizes involved in the AHPC, All my knowledge of it really comes from the fact that Simon (Blaxkleric) takes part each year. I have always been put off by the “paint loads” aspect of it, as I know i would never keep up and would end up disappointed with myself. I know Simon sometimes struggles and would never “cheat”, but I do see him painting simpler figures in order to score more points (well within the rules, and I in no way blame him), but I do think it is a shame that someone with the obvious talent of Mr Moore has to do this rather than paint what he would like to in order to compete. But having said if that is what it takes to make you get stuff done more power to you.
I am glad you enjoyed “Forgotten Heroes”, I think the advantage of this type of event (like the one Dave is proposing above or Monster May(hem) is you can take you time make whatever you want (within reason) and do as many entries (or as few) as you want, and is in many ways a community event and not a competition.
Cheers Roger.
Yes, the AHPC prizes were (probably still are) in the form of credit vouchers donated by sponsors, to be redeemed via the sponsor’s online webstore. I know a few of the sponsors and winners, and know both parties benefit from the arrangement. And the AHPC works to boost company’s brand promotion, thanks to the blogs and forum exposure.
First time I entered, you had to paint a “Curtgeld” miniature for Curt, who organises and ran the events. Posting it to Canada was the killer: £20+ postage from the UK. Second time I participated, Curt had organised helpers to share the workload so, a charitable donation was asked to be made by the participants to a charity of their choice. In my case, St. Theresa’s Hospice at Darlington, which I provided the details to Curt via email.
Hhmmmm! I like the sound of the charitable donation a lot more than the older system!
Cheers Roger.
Anyone who knows me knows I need a challenge. I’ve participated in the Army Painting Challenge (at Heresy-Online), once in Forgotten Heroes (I was deployed last year and couldn’t) and 2 years worth of monthly “painting something” at Warhammer-Empire or LAF. And, of course, now Monster May(hem).
Never had Orcs or Zombies for either of those two challenges, and a couple others are either too high strung for my tastes, or I don’t have the right models stashed.
Having made good progress with challenges, I want to use the motivation of them and keep joining in when I can. Which means I’ll need to pay attention more, and definately have models on hand to complete said challenges!
Thanks Harry, I think you have a really good attitude to these events myself, to use them and not stress to much about them. I think part of the good running of this type of event (or indeed taking part) is mutual encouragement and support, but to remember at the end of the day “it’s just painting figures”, if it doesn’t get finished so what, go over the time, or finish it next year. It is after all a hobby not a job.
Cheers Roger.
Absolutely, Roger. If painting minis or participating in an event stresses you out, ditch the stress!! Have fun!
Damn straight!
Happy to join any challenge. Not a GW guy so that cuts down what I could share in, but always fun even to just look.
Thanks Mark, any event you were to take part in (or even just observe) would be the richer for your involvement. Actually that goes for all the people above and below this comment.
Cheers Roger..
As the co-instigator of Forgotten Heroes, I do obviously take part in that every year and have dabbled in some of the other challenges.
However, I only tend to take part in challenges if it happens to coincide with my current project. For example, I was looking to build a Star Wars-inspured bunker, so took part in Keith’s scenery challenge and as I had some suitable “monsters” also put myself forward for Monster May(hem), although they are staring at me, silently questioning why they’ve not been touched yet…
The AHPC seems quite intense and I wasn’t even aware there were prizes, so this shows my lack of interest in that event.
There have been a few themed events I have participated in; He-Month with Roger, a Frostgrave themed challenge, etc. but as hobby time is usually limited, I tend to only take part in things that I know I WILL have time to do.
And the rules for Forgotten Heroes 2020 are in my last post (More Awesome on the Inside), as we are returning to a more open challenge this year, rather than patriotic superheroes.
Thanks Jez, still remember that conversation we had in the seats outside of Salute, that evolved into “Forgotten Heroes”, and wondering if anyone would be interested in taking part.
I think the over riding aspect (and I hope you agree here) of any good challenge is to have fun and not to get to bogged down in the rules. Most of the best ones I’ve taken part in personally have been pretty “spur of the moment” things organised a week or two before the start by conversations started by someones comment, like the Mo’vember Frostgrave warband event you mentioned, or Saga’tember.
Sorry if i got wrong link in for this years rules by the way, here’s the one to “”More awesome on the inside”…
Cheers Roger.
I always take part in Alex’s (leadballoony) Fembruary and occasionally I get involved in others. I like the Zomtober one because I have a whooooole bunch of zombies and survivors to paint
Thanks Luke, I’m not aware of “Fembruary” ? what does that one entail, painting female figures I’m guessing? I have a load of Zom’s I bought a couple of years back for Zomtober, so might have to dig into them this year.
Cheers Roger. Oh and I’m still keeping up with your podcasts, did like the Ork one .
Cheers Roger.
Thanks mate. Yeah Fembruary is all about painting female minis in February
Aside from many of the ones mentined that I’ve taken part in, I ran a painting challenge every month for the better part of two years over 2018-9 as well as a few previous to that. I’m taking part in Ann’s current challenge(s) and will be running Jewel of July for the third year shortly…
Yep seen you mention Ann’s challenge a few time over on your blog, what is the “Jewel of July challenge” ? I think I’m already committed to Dave’s scenery month in July, but best of luck mate.
Cheers Roger.
You can read about it here:
Thanks Azazal, I,ll have a look.
Cheers Roger.