Mnemoidian

@Vodun: Who do you voodoo, ... err.

Anyway, personally, I'm not sure, Monk and Wizard both seem interesting. Liked the Diablo 1 Mage, but did not quite like the Diablo 2 Sorceress, but a bit worried about how well the Monk is at survival.

@CptBedlam: Actually, you can attach a Diablo 2 key to your Battle.net account - not sure if that's enough to make you eligible, though.

@emem: You login to your Battle.net account and opt in for the beta by submitting a profile of your computer.

As for how selection then works... probably random, with keys being sent out to specific people? :)

@ervonymous: @LibraryDues: Agreed, very nice :)

Personally, I've started limiting my use of Dry brushing (though it's definately a very important technique to learn!), and mostly instead wash "iron/steel metallics" with Badab Black (black wash), and then highlight with the same color you painted with to begin with - I feel that gives as much depth, usually...

Anyway, keep experimenting - that's the true road to glory. :)

@FateOfNever: Normally, I research a "new technique" or something to the level where I feel confident enough that I can pull it off before I start employing it on actual miniatures I care about, but I normally try to experiment a little bit on every miniature I paint - small things normally ("What if I put Magenta Ink over my normal 'red recipe'?") that are fairly easily corrected simply by adding another thin layer of paint (without necessarily taking a lot of time) if it turns out terrible.

If I don't feel that confident, I have a bunch of miniatures that came with the game in earlier editions (snap-to-fit models, they don't look geat) which I use more to try out colorschemes and different varnishes on.

If I'm not even that confident (or just feel like I don't want to put in the time for an entire model), I normally use the plastic sprue (the plastic frame) the models come in to experiment on.

@Zelyre: I've been using mostly GW supplies (laziness), but you are right, the lack of dropper-bottles is greatly annoying.

@ervonymous: Thanks! :)

The first layer is usually called "priming" - you can certainly do it by hand, but you are unlikely to get the same smooth result. Not only will a primer set the grounds for what kind of colors you'll be able to get: white makes it easier to get bright vibrant colors (like candy red), black gives a darker effect and can aid in "lining" models (basically, if you have areas between armor plates that you want to be black - if you start with a black basis, that effect is easier to accomplish) and other colors have other benefits and drawbacks (brown is great for gold...).

The other effect of the primer is that it gives you a surface that is more susceptible to accepting paint (being slightly porose). Plastic (and metal) tends to be a bit slippery and can impact final results... but it's been ages since I've tried to paint a model without applying the primer with spraypaint - I don't exactly remember the results, other than ultimately settling on preferring to spray paint (and then spending ages deciding if I wanted black or white primer).

(I have heard that there are art shops that sell brush-on primer, but it's not something I've tried myself - but I have heard people who swear by it).

But again, certainly, for your first models - if you are just itching to get started, I'd say just painting is a lot more important than getting everything perfect. You'll probably need a while to get really comfortable with everything anyway - I know I did :)

@ervonymous: No worries - I know it's a difficult hobby to get into, just trying to share what little I've picked up :)

But, of course - I'm not that great at this either, and I'm sure there's someone out there facepalming at me thinking washing is a good way to shade models. But... from what I've seen so far, a large part of the hobby is to take advice from people who have gotten further than you are, and then to apply it in a way that works for you. :)

Another example:

Turns out it's difficult to get good photos of dudes with shields ;)

@ervonymous: I'd say there's a definate difference between "inking/washing" and the practice known as "dipping". One is selective in area (ie: dab it on in a smaller area) - the other is just dumping the model in quick-shade. Sure, actual manual shading will give a better result, but it'll take much longer and require more skill. I might get to that level at some time - but I'm not quite there yet, and right now, I'm more focused on painting up the stuff I have on my current skill-level rather than experiment - for a while, at least :)

Personally, I love washing, it's fast (by my standards) and gives good results once you put some work into it. I use quite a lot of Badab Black (followed by Gryphonne Sepia, Devlan Mud and Ogre Flesh), and I largely use it as a method of shading and highlighting - I describe my technique a few pages back, and you can see an example of the results I get on page 2 and 3.

@Djratchet said:

Like Ahma said, the original Alice comes with all new copies of madness returns.

No, it doesn't. On PC, the original Alice is only included in sales from Origin.

I don't think you need to go back, unless you want to. It was a good game (in my opinion) back in 2000, but I don't think it's aged terribly well. Though it's been a few years since I last revisited the original.