Welcome to this community spotlight section once again, this month I have had the privilege to interview cult_of_the_rossted_claw
This is someone I have found through the wonders of social media on Instagram and here is a link www.instagram.com/cult_of_the_rossted_claw/
I have asked them to be interviewed to find out their hobby styles and life, and see if others can gain from their experiences.
First off thank you Ross
Lets begin with some basic questions so people can get to know you,
Can you tell the folks a little about yourself?
How did you get into the hobby of tabletop wargaming?
Waaaaaaay back in the days of 2nd Edition I had a new teacher arrive at school who launched a school club, I missed my school bus home one day, hung around waiting for the next and a classmate mentioned it was going on. I left the hobby towards the end of my secondary school time and got back involved towards the end of 7th edition.
What type of hobbyist are you? A painter/collector/gamer or a mix?
I love to build models and get great enjoyment out of painting them too. I think these days I am more of a painter than a player as adult life can make game time tricky ( who wants to go to work when they could roll dice?? ) The painting element of the hobby has given me time to clear my head from the trials and tribulations of everyday life and helps recharge my mental health battery. I recently became a Mental Health First Aider at work and have seen some great work here in the wargames community to help raise awareness.
What game systems do you play? Are you simply a one game person or do you play many different games?
When I was young, carefree and had more disposable income I played quite a few systems - Blood Bowl, Necromunda and Gorka Morka, but 40K has been my go to game. Im a GW purist, haven't branched out into anything else, but I do see some awesome stuff out there.
What was the thing that caught your eye the most them you were first starting out?
Metal Bawkes!! It was definitely the Space Marine tanks that got me! I had an old school Landraider and a few rhino kits that were my favourites.
2nd Edition paint jobs were also quite eye catching :)
What advice would you give someone just getting into the hobby/or your younger self, now you have been involved in this for a while?
I’d have told my younger self to keep his 2nd edition space marines, I would have had a great HH army now hahah
I guess I would say listen to, but don't be swayed by, others. Ask questions, and push yourself. I was very hesitant to go outside my comfort zone for builds, armies and painting and wish I had been braver.
Have you ever had an extended period out of the hobby?
I was out of the hobby for quite some time, roughly 18 years! Can't keep a good geek down though. Life as they say, finds a way!!
How did you get back in?
I was looking for a holiday read and found myself wandering into the Horus heresy books by pure luck. It sparked my love for the lore and the games and that was it.
What’s the best part of the hobby for you?
The painting element of the hobby has given me time to clear my head from the trials and tribulations of everyday life and helps recharge my mental health battery. I recently became a Mental Health First Aider at work and have seen some great work here in the wargames community to help raise awareness. Apart from that, its you guys - The community providing inspiration, coaching, criticism and friendship. I joined the #hohohobbyvices project last year and loved it, and recently have taken part in a model swap with a hobbyist in Germany!
What is the worst part of the hobby for you?
Trolls. Its the worst part about anything online these days. No need for it.
What keeps you in the hobby?
Its become a more social hobby, there are more events and opportunities these days then when I was a nipper. The creative outlet, the time to unwind and the lore. I love me a good story.
How do you deal with burn out/lack of hobby mojo?
I tend to only buy 1 unit at a time, I dont have a pile of unpainted miniatures ( Heresy I hear you say! ) but I try to have something on my table for the month. I try to plan ahead around personal life so I can ringfence some time, and if I get blessed with an extra hobby hour or 2 its great. Im also a Faction Butterfly, I have switched armies almost every year since I got back into 40k so Im not building or painting the same things for years.
Has anyone inspired your hobby style/life?
There are so many really good Hobby folk out there to name them all but I have some favs.
@dadnlad40k give me hope for what I can do with my little one as he gets older
@hobbyvices earnt himself the Hobbyhero title with good cause
@kreiger40k was the first person I actually got to meet at Warhammer World on a random visit, he was nice enough to say he was there and to come say hi, he has also provided some guidance on things like army storage so figures that dont seem to like foam carry cases.
What projects are you working on at the moment?
I have expanded my GSC to now have some Tyranids in it so have been adding in some big gribblies for something different to paint but also something different for my friends to shoot at :) Ive also started with some terrain pieces so I can avoid any minor burn out that may occur.
Do you plan out projects/armies or just get sucked into the trap of collecting everything?
I never used too, I was a sucker for having mixed paint schemes, and army lists but on the flipside of that I had a blast with it being so random. However with my GSC I have tried really hard to level up my hobby and used @hobbyvices Hobby Resolutions concept to help plan my 2019 Hobby.
If your budget was unlimited but you could only buy one army what would it be?
This is tough as id probably cheat and look for a keyword to branch out lol Soup anyone? But if I am sticking to the rules, I would look to lean towards a Chaos Space Marine army. That gives me vehicles, daemons, cultists and marines to keep me happy.
What do you hope to improve with regard to your hobbying in the future?
I would like to attempt some freehand, I love using decals on my larger models but have recently been seeing some amazing work that a decal just doesnt seem to match. I want to improve my weathering techniques too. I've just been fortunate to upgrade my hobby set up at home so I now have a dedicated space to work from ( thanks wifey!! )
How do you maintain a to maintain safe hobby area from you son as this hobby contains sharp cutters and small pieces?
My little boy is just about 3, so he is getting very curious about whats in boxes and drawers but I spent some time with the wife planning out my new hobby space so I keep all the sharps, glues and paints in a sealed box out of reach for now. before that, I used to keep a lot of my models in the boot of my car in their carry cases. It wasnt the best, but it stopped him from hurting himself through being curious.
Your account has recently featured a lot of terrain that is scratch built from random bits, is this something you enjoy?
I love the visuals you can get from playing a game on a good looking board, and whilst Table hammer is a great way to get a quick game in, I can immerse myself in the story that is taking place on a board with proper terrain. A few of my friends and I are lucky enough to have a space at our local community centre to play at and we decided to update our terrain. This is an expensive hobby so trash terrain not only gets the creative buzz going but doesnt kill the wallet.
Where do you get inspiration from?
Its a mixture of other hobby accounts, stores and visits to Warhammer World. I dont yet have the skill to create some of the finer details that others do, but the content on youtube really helps with ideas,
IS it mainly themed around your cult army?
As a group we have all decided on an industrial / city type set up for our games so its just bits to flex around that.
Any recommendations for black library curious people?
For any Heresy fans, I really enjoyed Betrayer, OutCast Dead and have just finished The Buried Dagger. My wife bought me the Eisenhorn trilogy and that was a great set of books, but my favourite book is Gaunts Ghost omnibus The Saint.
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