BLOG

This is our blog section. Here you’ll find all our posts in chronological order, like on our old website.

You can access and bookmark this “classic” view directly by www.taleofpainters.com/blog.

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Reviews, Starcraft

Starcraft TMG Starter Set Founder’s Edition review: better value than Armageddon?

Starcraft Tabletop Miniatures game Founders Edition starter set, arranged on a grey background lit with purple and blue light
9.0

Terrans versus Zerg: one of gaming’s most iconic rivalries finally comes to the tabletop, and it arrives in style. The Starcraft Tabletop Miniatures Game Founders Edition is a massive two-player starter set packed with coloured multipart plastic miniatures, a fabric gaming mat, terrain, and everything you need to wage war across the Koprulu Sector straight out of the box. We’ve gone through every sprue in detail, have high-res sprue images for both factions below, and put the models side by side with Warhammer 40k miniatures for a scale comparison. Read on for our full unboxing and review.

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Editorial

In memory of John Blanche

Aeldari Farseer black and white artwork by John Blanche

It is with great sadness that we share the news of John Blanche’s passing in early June 2026 at the age of 77. The hobby world has lost one of its true visionaries, and the Warhammer universe will forever bear the imprint of his extraordinary vision. This is our homage to John’s extraordinary talent and career.

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Best of

The best of Tale of Painters: May 2026

Multipicture collage of the four best posts from Tale of Painters in May 2026

May was another busy month on Tale of Painters: Vostroyans, GUNPLA, Nighthaunt, Dunk’s visit to the MPO 2026 in Bristol, and of course plenty of reviews: all the new Cities of Sigmar models incl. a deep dive into the Cogfort kit, the new Legiones Astartes Falchion, Kill Team: Terror on Devlan, and a stack of paint reviews. Stahly took a close look at the new Pro Acryl 1-Step paints and the Ionic inks, among others. Catch up on everything you missed this month.

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Paints & tools, Reviews

Can Mindworks artist acrylic paints really win you a Golden Demon? All sets reviewed

Five Mindworks heavy body acrylics tubes in front of a pink lit background, five colours from the core set

I’ve tested all the Mindworks Heavy Body Acrylic paint sets. Marco Frisoni claims he won a Golden Demon thanks to these paints… but can that really be true? Are they genuinely that good, or is it just clickbait? Heavy body artist acrylics are a completely different animal from your usual hobby paints, and knowing when to use them makes all the difference. So in this review, I’ll walk you through their strengths and shortcomings.

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Paints & tools, Reviews

Ionic “Ioninks” are a joy to use – but perhaps not for everything (review)

Ionic Ioninks Smart Inks paint set arranged in front of a pink lit concrete background, with four bottles of ink in front of it
8.0

Ammo MIG has expanded the Ionic Smart Colors family with a dedicated set of 12 inks. And on paper, the Ioninks look like the perfect companion to one of the hobby’s most exciting newer paint ranges. High chromatic intensity, high opacity, and a highly fluid formula all sound promising. In practice, though, the Ioninks carve out a more specific niche than you might expect. Here’s everything you need to know before you buy.

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Event Reports

Cult of Paint MPO 2026 report: the hobby event done right

Snapshots of the entries from the MPO 2026 Painting Masters category

Hi folks, I wanted to share my experience of attending the Cult of Paint Miniature Painting Open 2026 as a non-entrant. Right from the off, the standard of painting and sheer creativity on display was astonishing. You’ll find fantastic photos on the artists’ accounts and on Cult of Paint’s socials showcasing the entrants’ work, and I’ve included a few of the shots I took on the day as well.

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