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Between the spookiness of October and the Christmasiness (totally a word) of December, lies November. A time of transition, from speaking to souls to dancing with elves, from carving pumpkins to decorating trees. Somehow between it all our eager bloggers have found time to paint some more excellent models. Let’s see what they have for us, and who knows, maybe it will give you some ideas for Christmas presents.
Gorger Mawpack (Warcry) by Emma Grave
I was really excited about the latest Warcry release from Games Workshop, as the box set contained two warbands that looked like they’d be great fun to paint up. Warcry: Hunter and Hunted features the Wildercorps Hunters (humans with crossbows and their very good canine companions) and the Gorger Mawpack (feral ogors who can’t find any way to satisfy their hunger).
I decided to paint the five members of the Mawpack (three Gorgers, a Cave Howler, and their leader, the Clawback) first. After choosing a slightly different colour scheme to the box art, I broke out my new set of Speedpaints 2.0 from The Army Painter. I wanted the ogors’ flesh to be a sickly green, so I experimented with paint mixes until I got just the shade I was looking for. This ended up being a 5:2 mix of Holy White and Desolate Brown, which I applied to all the main areas of flesh. Then I used some of my favourite paint from The Army Painter’s Most Wanted set (Murder Scene) on the hands and feet, and blended them together with a wet brush. For the pieces of cloth, I used Purple Swarm, which is a lovely rich mid-purple tone. I then picked out the many bony bits and bobs worn by (and sticking out of) the ogors with Pallid Bone.
For the bases of the Gorger Mawpack, I wanted them to look like they were lumbering through the depths of the Gnarlwood. I used The Army Painter’s Brown Battleground, with a few Battlefield Rocks scattered around, then glued down small pieces of Summer Undergrowth and added some tufts to complete the bases.
Ghazghkull Thraka (40K) by Paul Blyth
War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing! But a WAAAGH! on the other hand is fantastic for many reasons, just ask any Ork. And there’s no Ork that knows more about a good WAAAGH! than the mighty warlord and Prophet of Gork & Mork himself - Ghazghkull Thraka.
Much like Kelis’ milkshakes, Ghazghkull’s WAAAGHs bring all the boyz to the yard. They’re the best - bloody, massive in scale and the crumpiest, plus there’s nothing an Ork loves more than a good fight. For an Ork as legendary as Ghazghkull he must have an epic miniature, and Games Workshop have not disappointed - this, the third iteration of Ghaz, is beautiful and perfectly captures the big man himself. His battle-damaged power suit, the stitches keeping him in one piece, his deadly power claw - the level of detail is insane.
Being an Ork model, it’s incredibly fun to paint. Did you miss a bit with your paintbrush? Nope, battle damage. Got the wrong colour paint on a section? Nope, patchwork paint job. Straight lines looking a bit wonky? Nope, it was painted by a Gretchin. You literally can’t go wrong painting an Ork army, which is why they’re my favourite army to paint. I’m not worried about chunky, edge & fine highlights and my black & white check doesn’t have to be perfect. I just relax and paint however I feel in the moment. Not to mention Ork lore is hilarious, did you know that Ghazghkull Thraka once headbutted a Warp Tear until it closed? Yeah, a literal rip between dimensions was sealed with his big green, metal-plated head. How about that Orks paint their vehicles red because they believe it makes them go faster? The strangest part being that they actually do and the Imperium have no idea how! Orks are pure fun and the Ghaz model, although it looks intimidating, is just that!
Abhorrent Archregent (Age of Sigmar) by Stu West
With the reboot of flesh-eater courts (FEC) on the way now is an ideal time to grab some key models from the range. I had a tournament earlier this month and wanted to take something very different from the slow dwarfs I have been playing in recent times. The Abhorrent Archregent is an excellent choice for a FEC army, but can also be an amazing ally for a Soulblight Gravelords force.
At the tournament I attended, I took the Gravelords but included the Archregent too. The great thing about the model is that his ability to summon additional units is on his warscroll and is not tied to the FEC allegiance. This means you can tailor your army mid game, depending upon what you are facing and what the scenario is.
Over the years, I have used the same method of painting for all of my death forces. In effect, all I do is prime the models white, then give them a wash with nuln oil before applying a white dry brush to them. I then use inks from the Army Painter range (Soft Tone, Strong Tone, Dark Tone, and Flesh Wash) to add my colours*. This technique is a bit like painting by watercolour rather than with oils on canvas. Just add a little Blood for the Blood God technical paint and you’re done - simple. For the ruins I just used Apothecary White over Grey Seer.
If you use a fairly neutral basing style, you can then mix and match all of your forces throughout the same Grand Alliance when you need to.
Snowy Owlbear (D&D) by Melissa King
I love owlbears. I don’t know why I am so fascinated with them, but they are my favourite D&D creature. What better way to drop the temperature and get into the spirit of winter than to paint up a snowy owlbear.
After putting the model together, filing away the the sharp edges and mold lines, filling in any gaps and hitting it with primer, I set out to pick colours for my palette. I didn’t want to overcomplicate this paint, so the colours I used were as follows:
- Vallejo Game Colour Black
- Vallejo Game Colour Dead White
- Citadel Eshin Grey
- Citadel Dawnstone
- Citadel Baharroth Blue
- Citadel Averland Sunset
I started by base coating my model in a 1:1 mix of Eshin Grey and black. My second coat built upon this with a thin layer of Eshin Grey, followed by a third coat which was a mix of Eshin Grey and Baharroth Blue. I chose this as I wanted the undertones of my snowy owlbear to be a grey-blue (similar to how polar bears have a dark skin under their light, yellow-white fur).
Moving on to the fur and feathers, I used a 1:1 mix of Baharroth Blue and Dawnstone. Over a number of thin layers, I brought the colour up to almost white by decreasing the amount of Dawnstone in the mix and including more Dead White. I then hit the tips of the feathers and the highest parts of the fur with Dead White.
The claw nails and beak were painted black, with the skin of the paws painted in Eshin Grey with highlights of Dawnstone mixed with Baharroth Blue. The eyes were painted solidly with Averland Sunset, with a black pupil.
This model was really fun to base. To bring my snowy owlbear into the world of Icewind Dale, I used AK Terrains Snow and Snow Sprinkles textures. I also added Green Stuff World flock in Winterfall Grass, to give the base a barren, desolate feel.
I really enjoyed bringing this model to life, not only because I got to add another owlbear to my collection, but because the wintery feel of this model has really got me into the festive spirit!
Bartender & Dancing Girl (Pathfinder) by Neil Parker
Sometimes with face-to-face roleplaying games, as a DM, I want to set a scene. I want to convey an atmosphere and turn a tactical map into something more. One of things I love about the Deep Cuts range of miniatures is the variation and flavour of the figure packs and that includes the one for the bartender and dancing girl.
These two miniatures are great for setting a tavern scene or alternatively they could represent key non-player characters. Either way, they can help bring to life a tactical encounter.
The paints I used were a mix including Citadels Nuln Oil Shade and two flesh colours. Beyond that I wanted an austere look for the bartender with whites and browns in contrast to the vibrant look of the dancing girl. In this case, I went for a Spanish look with reds and yellows.
These figures are pre-primed with helps and I started with my usual style of applying darker shades first then lighter shades to show highlights. I also added slightly different shades for different parts of the dancing girl’s dress and then for both I added a darker flesh colour, again to areas of flesh to bring a little life back. I avoided trying to be too elaborate, but I also wanted to highlight the dancing girl’s jewellery, so using Vallejo’s silver I added a little to her waist ornaments without adding any further colour. The final touch I wanted was to add frothy beer!