Slightly before joining the 6-Month Mountain Reduction and Painting Challenge – and deciding that from now on the 6MMRPC acronym will suffice – I took a good look at my Good Intentions Queue and determined to knock out a big chunk of it by 12/31/2014. How big a chunk? 221 pieces, projects or minis. What, what?!? 221 items by 12/31…sorry, that's 31/12/14 for those who drive on the 'wrong' side of the road … may not be a truly huge number or a short time span for the heavy-hitter army painters here on WAMP and elsewhere, but it is a scary large number for a slow painter like me, limited to a few hours a week. Then there's family, holidays, eBay...oh, no, I am talking myself out of this, again.

I don't get it. How did I get so far in over my head? I mean, that's not a realistic goal at all for me, is it? I mean, since "restarting" myself in the hobby in 2006, I have never completed more than 40 models in a calendar year. That was 2010, and for 2011 the output plummeted to 3.

So, what on Earth or under it possessed me to think I can rip through 5.5 times a good year's worth of work in less than 5 months? What possible explanation of such extreme optimism or laughable overconfidence could there be? I must have gone completely 'round the bend, right?

Well, maybe. Then again, maybe not. Let me back up a moment to explain.

About two weeks ago, at Gen Con, Angel Giraldez (Corvus Belli and more) demonstrated the joys of airbrush for priming and basecoating minis. About a week ago, a friend from Italy was nearby on business and spent most of the weekend at my place. He brought his traveling airbrush kit (don't knock it, that's HIS hobby) and he got me started putting into practice what I learned from Angel Giraldez.

Since then, I have been almost obsessively prepping minis, intending to airbrush primer and the main color, then finish with a standard brush and possibly 'dip' some. In the last two weeks, I have prepped and gotten primer on 104 minis and almost as many bases. My main targets have been Sedition Wars and Malifaux.

Go ahead, laugh about SW if you will. I am painfully aware of the quality issues. Flash, mold lines, mismatched scales, muddy details, below-average plastic, rules issues...and yet I like the models enough to spend some time on them. I like the feel and fluff of the game and I am willing to give it a try, hope for future updates. Besides, I have no other sci-fi game to play, and very few sci-fi models other than SW. VERY few, as in maybe five or six. Why not make a run at it and see what happens? Apparently, as if blogging about all this isn't enough, I had to pick an unpopular game with so-so minis. A glutton for punishment, I am.

Also, if the worst case scenario happens and I find the game absolutely unplayable, I will have some sci-fi / horror models to proxy in other games. That's not a bad thing, right?

So, three questions remain - where did the number 221 come from? What is the purpose of the deadline? Is this realistic, or even remotely possible? And why BLOG about it? Okay, you caught me, that's four questions. Sue me.

The answers: They are not ALL miniatures and some are in various WIP stages, so 221 is the grand total of everything anywhere near my workbench that I would like to have completed, painted, repainted, repaired or otherwise out of the Queue. The year-end deadline is arbitrary and may not be realistic, but it is undeniably a goal, a target to shoot at. Like all such aggressive goals, it is intended to motivate me and force me to really focus on the tasks at hand. Why do we climb the mountain? Because it is there. I am challenging myself to push the limits and see how far I can get.

Given the airbrush jumpstart to the vast majority of models, and some speed-paint & 'dip' techniques, there is a chance I can get it all done, or at least get close. Blogging about it is my way of making a public (nuisance) declaration, which is also a motivator for me; I don't want to be embarrassed or make excuses for failing to meet the goal.

Here's the breakdown:
1 Reaper WIP 90% - Carinth, Dark Elf - entered at Gen Con's paint comp, needs updates based on critiques rec'd
1 Reaper WIP 50% - Griffon (Bones) - finish for tabletop skirmish game
36 Sedition Wars WIP - Vanguard
51 Sedition Wars - Strain
70 Sedition Wars - terrain elements
21 Sedition Wars - 'personalities' - the Calamity Crew, character/infected pairs, etc.
1 Sedition Wars - Kara, limited edition resin model from Kickstarter
3 Bombshell Babes - Delzira, Sally and Victoriana

2 Counterblast Sidekicks
16 Wyrd WIP - Malifaux - mostly Arcanists, generally expanding a Colette crew
1 Dark Sword WIP 25% - female wizard with OSL
4 Reaper mouselings - Thanksgiving decorations and gift for my daughter
3 Thunderbolt Mountain - 54mm Holy Family (in a bell jar, Christmas decorations)
1 Grenadier WIP 10% - Treasure Guardian, a dragon for daughter's Christmas
1 large ceramic dragon - just because
9 misc Holiday decorations to repair, paint, sculpt a replacement part & paint it, etc.

So, right. There you are, then. ("No, Pinky, there YOU are. I am nowhere near that vicinity.") 221 things to do before midnight on December 31. Or, 31 December, if you prefer.

Call me crazy, I'm okay with that. I think I can do this. More blogging and WIP thread to follow...