Brush Wielders Union

We're very proud to release episode 50 of the Brush Wielders Union podcast! It's hard to believe, but we've been doing our monthly interview podcast for over four years now, but for episode fifty I've shaken up the format. This month features our first ever "roundtable" format in which I invited four of my favorite hobby professionals to take part in an open discussion on some broad questions about miniatures painting and hobbying. The guests are:

Shoshie Bauer, professional painter and owner/operator of Shoshie's Minis

Matt DiPietro, professional painter and instructor of Contrast Miniatures

Byron Orde, professional painter of Artis Opus

Dave Taylor, professional painter, terrain maker, & publisher at Dave Taylor Miniatures 

This almost two hour episode featured some freewheeling and spirited discussion between these experts, spurred on by answers to the same hobby questions I posed to Brush Wielders Union members. 

Follow Shoshie Bauer on Instagram and Patreon 

Matt DiPietro can be found on Instagram and as part of the Miniature Monthly Patreon 

Byron Orde's work can be found on the Artis Opus YouTube and Instagram 

Find Dave Taylor on Instagram and as part of Build! Paint! Play! on Youtube.

Thanks to everyone listening to the BWU for 50 episodes. Here's to 50 more!

As usual, this episode was exclusive to Brush Wielders Union members for a few days before being released to the general public.

brushwieldersunion.com

If you've been anywhere near the indie minis gaming scene this spring you've probably heard about Demon Ship, the micro minis game by Malev. Well, Malev was kind enough to talk with me this month and we got into the nitty gritty of developing Demon Ship, painting for Metal King Studios, and some philosophical chat about the future of minis gaming beyond the traditional player-vs-player world. 

As an aside, Demon Ship is one of the most exciting and innovating games I've seen in a long time, and is well worth taking a look at. You can preorder Demon Ship now. 

Support Malev on his own Patreon, and follow him on Twitter and Instagram.

You can also listen to his music on Bandcamp!

As usual, this episode was exclusive to Brush Wielders Union members for a few days before being released to the general public.

Union Strong!

—Simon Berman

General President, Brush Wielders Union

brushwieldersunion.com

This month I was lucky enough to pick the brain of Graham Davey, owner of Grey For Now Games, co-creator of one of my favorite skirmish games, Test of Honour, and a former editor at Games Workshop. Graham was kind enough to share his time and tell me about his journey as a hobbyist and professional, from his first encounters with wargames, to his time working on White Dwarf magazine, and his current days as the publisher of Test of Honour and his most recent game, 0200 Hours. I haven't played 0200' yet myself, but I've heard some great things about this game dedicated to WWII night fighting raids and covert missions. 

Be sure to follow Grey For Now Games on Facebook. 

As usual, this episode was exclusive to Brush Wielders Union members for a few days before being released to the general public.

Union Strong!

—Simon Berman

General President, Brush Wielders Union

brushwieldersunion.com

My guest this month was the owner and founder of Huge Miniatures, one of my favorite basing material manufacturers. Huge Minis makes an awesome and ever-growing range of texture paints, flocks, tufts, paints, and more. BWU members already get a discount through their webstore but I was excited to finally speak with Brinton about the history of his company and what the future might hold. We talked about what goes into actually manufacturing materials like flock and foliage, how they choose paint hues, and what it's been like expanding into their first dedicated workspace. 

BWU members can find their discount code here.

Be sure to follow Huge Miniatures on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

Union Strong!

—Simon Berman

General President, Brush Wielders Union

brushwieldersunion.com

For the first podcast of 2023 I was joined by Kit Peteranecz, founder of Game Envy Creations (and new Union Member). 

Kit shared the story of his journey from painting a D&D character to having multiple hugely successful Kickstarters for a whole line of hobby products! We talked about paint holders, paint brushes, manufacturing, and he even shared some exclusive news about their next Kickstarter coming next month for a hugely expanded line of paint brushes!

Follow Game Envy Creations on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to stay up to date on their upcoming Kickstarter.

And finally, Kit was kind enough to offer a 10% discount on all their products for Full Union Members! Keep an eye out later this afternoon for another members-only post with that code.

Union Strong!

—Simon Berman

General President, Brush Wielders Union

brushwieldersunion.com

My guest this month was the one and only Hank Edley, a member of Adepticon's board of directors! It is without exaggeration or hyperbole when I say that Adepticon is the best miniatures gaming convention in the entire world, bar none, and I was thrilled to get to pick Hank's brain about what goes into the show. Hank and I chatted about the show's history, the incredible community of hobbyists that make it so great, why Adepticon's fully painted policy has been such a success, and what it was like to get the event through the interruptions of the pandemic. We also talked a little about the future of Adepticon and Hank had some hints about what that might entail!

I hope to see you all at Adepticon 2023, just a few short months away!

Union Strong!

—Simon Berman

General President, Brush Wielders Union.

brushwieldersunion.com

This month I was joined by Mark Henry, owner and founder of Goblin's Hut, the exclusive North American distributor of the Dirty Down liquid effects paints! Dirty Down's set of rust, moss, and verdigris effects paints have been taking the hobby by storm this year and I was excited to talk with Mark about how they work and what the future holds for this line of unique effects. Mark shared all about the paints origins as special effects paints for TV and movies including Game of Thrones and many other famous productions, as well as some exclusive news about their upcoming expanded line of colors and sprays! Mark was also kind enough to share a 15% discount on most products avaialble only to full Brush Wielders Union members. Check out the upcoming member's only post for details!

You can buy Dirty Down products right now at goblinshut.com and be sure to follow them on Instagram.

As usual, this episode was exclusive to Brush Wielders Union members for a few days before being released to general audience.

Union Strong!

—Simon Berman

General President, Brush Wielders Union.

brushwieldersunion.com

This month I was joined by Byron Ord, founder of Artis Opus, a company making some of the best miniatures painting brushes on the market! They've just launched a Kicsktarter for a new kind of product:  hand-crafted, wall-mounted, self-lighted miniatures display cases! They funded in just 5 minutes as of our interview and are skyrocketing past 10x their goal! Byron took the time to speak with me about what makes these displays unique, the years of R&D that went into their creation, and also a little about their Series D (not so) drybrushes. 

Check out the Artis Opus display cabinets now on Kickstarter. 

Follow Artis Opus on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

As usual, this episode was exclusive to Brush Wielders Union members for a few days before being released to the general public.

Union Strong!

—Simon Berman

General President, Brush Wielders Union

My guest this month was Jon Cleaves, CEO of DGS Games, and Lead Designer of the exciting fantasy skirmish game, Freeblades! Jon was kind enough to tell me all about the history of Freeblades, it's related RPG, Brightsword, and their upcoming mass combat game, all three of which share core mechanics and can be played separately or woven together to tell the most epic stories in the world of Faelon. Jon's enthusiasm was contagious, and we talked a little about not just the games but what DGS Games is doing to help make tabletop gaming a more inclusive and diverse world.

Learn about the world of Faelon on World Anvil

Support DGS Games and unlock exclusive content on their Patreon 

As usual, this episode was exclusive to Brush Wielders Union members for a few days before being released to the general public.

Union Strong!

—Simon Berman

General President, Brush Wielders Union

This month I was lucky enough to once again speak with my friend, Sean Sutter, founder of Metal King Studio, creator of Relicblade, Sludge, and regular contributor to Blaster Magazine! Sean and I had last spoken on the podcast a few years back but he's been up to a ton since then. We talked about the trials and travails of being a creator in the post-2020 world, what led him to create such a different and darker game in Sludge than his previous work in Relicblade, starting his own podcast, and the challenges and complications facing a creator whose creations are growing and succeeding beyond his initial plans and hopes. Listen now!

As usual, this episode was exclusive to Brush Wielders Union members for a few days before being released to the general public.

Union Strong!

—Simon Berman

General President, Brush Wielders Union