Fortune Hunters Big Game Hunter / Steampunk Hunter Diver

Continuing the Deepwars Fortune Hunters theme, we have an elite soldier: the big game hunter. Given the number of big nasty creatures in the game, this guy seems like must have, and fills the classic archetype of the obsessed hunter. All very good. From a painting perspective the trophies adorning the dive suit add a lot of visual interest, making the hunter one of the more engaging designs in the line. Nothing fancy though - I stuck to the established palate for my Fortune Hunters and I feel it translated to this piece well.

Happy Holidays!

Edit: I really disliked the series of photos I took around this date, so I retook them and replaced the original pics.

Fortune Hunters Heavy Support Trooper / Steampunk Heavy Diver

Making it a theme following last month, here is another Fortune Hunter from the game DeepWars. Normally I'm not a huge fan of the steampunk genre with my painting, but DeepWars definitely scratches that itch when I have it. 

This is one of the first models I completed for the Fortune Hunters and occupies a rare position: the basic trooper. I tend to be lured by the flashy models for special characters so my collection over-represents characters vs. support models. Because of that, this lucky guy is on the battlefield in nearly every game I play. Sometimes its good to be the grunt, I guess. 

My goal with the paint-jobs for the entire faction was gritty and easy to paint metallics with a few spots of OSL or gem techniques for visual interest. This keeps them easy paint quickly, and that choice has allowed me to grow my collection faster than other genres. More divers to post next time.
 

Fortune Hunters Recon Trooper / Steampunk Scout Diver

 

I have a large collection of painted DeepWars miniatures that have never surfaced. This steampunk diver is a scout for the fortune hunters, a faction that is well represented in my collection. This model supports the mech and scientist I posted last year, and shares their same industrial paint pallet. I occasionally go overboard with undersea themed minis and I am feeling that current now. While workbench is flooded with undersea critters I may as well post some too! Over the next few weeks I'll look to catch up on my undersea life. 

For this faction I always enjoy juxtaposing the gritty industrial feel of the dive-suits with vibrant sea life on the base. 

Not much commentary in the tank today, so I'll finish with another, nearly identical photo - Bonus!

Jabberwock, Ral Partha

 

OK, Ill be the first to admit that this is a less than satisfying re-post. I was feeling the itch to put something up, but it is very rainy and I am limited to outdoor photography for the time being. So, time to recycle; it is a piece I love! This was originally posted in 2010 on CMON - those were heady days. This Jabberwock was an effort at painting for contests. It did decently, managing a silver medal at one of the Denver gaming conventions. I remember the critique from the judges acutely -  The paint was great but the subject is too two-dimensional; it lacked visual interest from all directions. 

This advice has become the cornerstone of my more ambitious projects, especially my own sculpting - it has to be interesting from every direction. That said, models like this photograph beautifully, whereas sculpts best viewed in person are often difficult to get a good angle on them for photography.

 I especially enjoy the eyes on this piece, and it was the start of a limited case study in painting crazy-looking large creature eyes - I still emphasize that to this day. The photographic style on the other hand has changed quite a lot. It is indicative of my presentation at that time: complex collages of images, sometimes inset, and a bold signature ("Funnymouth" being and old handle). This was maybe the best of them, but it still makes me smirk.

I should also note that, like the recently shared Ral Partha wyvern, this model is a repaint from my original childhood collection.

 Reading back, it seems to be a fairly seminal piece in many ways - worthy of a re-post after all? I'll let you decide.

Flumph (2)

 

 

Flumphs! This is my 100th post, which flew buy in the blink of a ....decade (ha!), so I wanted to post something meaningful to commemorate it in a (slightly pathetic) special way. Models that I have sculpted myself, such as these flumphs,  are of personal significance (see the original greens below). 

I had a ton of inspiration sculpting the cute little heroes and it was one of the most relaxed and fun sculpting experiences I can remember. Fitting that the subjects are so benevolent. I feel like taking a model from a ball of putty to a final artwork/game-piece is a complete journey, a realization of my imagination into something tangible - it is a very satisfying process. I don't paint my sculpting as often as I should, probably because I tend to overthink these pieces. The flumphs were not a struggle, though; my concept from start to finish was clear (though it did take many years to even track down a copy of them to paint at all). 

These jellies even have an imaginary personality to go along with their physical embodiment. Despite the grief and/or sensationalism surrounding flumphs because of their perceived ridiculousness, they are really a great classic "monster" I use frequently in games. When playing with my sons, the two flumphs are clerics seeking help and they act as a perfect support NPC. This role is spelled out in 2e as the "monastic flumph." Their exposition and healing battery game-play is engaging for new players and makes them immediately lovable sidekicks. Who wouldn't help them?

These are some of the only photos I have of the original greens, so I apologize for their quality.

Kumo Nest (2 kumo)

 I adore the L5R setting, and I have an extensive collection of the Clan War line. At this point I would consider these fellows a rather rare find. They are part of the Shadowlands army for that old game, which I always thought was odd. While they are definitely predators, they are more like spirit-animal-people rather than forces of evil. Some are definitely evil, though, and these sculpts are definitely on the creepy side with humanoid faces in their abdomens. The sculptor did a good job - I'll have to look 'em up and credit the work here.

These paint-jobs are on the older side now, but I think the effect really works. I wanted to emphasize their unnatural / spirit nature with the bright green (which I tend to use to convey "soul energy" in my paintings) and very sharply highlighted blue-black carapace. While the paint is old, the base is much younger; they have been re-based. Re-basing miniatures is a hassle, but I felt like the original base was way off theme. A few years back I ended up completely reworking the base and I am now pretty happy with how it turned out. I even like the little toppled shrine I sculpted to tie it in with my other L5R minis. So, while I have shared these elsewhere, they have never been photographed in their current form. 

From a presentation perspective spider shaped critters can be tough, so I went with multiple angles. It is a little busy, but provides a better sense of the actual miniatures.

Wyvern, Ral Partha

This wyvern is a special piece - it is possibly the longest serving miniature in my entire collection! This miniature came from the resale cabinet at my local FLGS when I was a kid, sometime in the late 80s. I remember the display of metal figures with great nostalgia; ogling all the little metal sculptures made my imagination come alive. I even managed to give it a paintjob with the Testors model paints I had at the time. Little did I know this early experience would plant a seed that would take hold many years later. I  dug this little gem out of a box of old junk after two decades in storage as my interest in the hobby rekindled. Eventually, I got around to stripping the original damaged paintjob and giving her a fresh coat. It is now one of the older paint-jobs on display in my cabinet. Who knows, maybe Ill paint it again some day.

Props to the legendary Julie Guthrie - this classic sculpt still holds up well!

Vrock / Type I demon

 

 

A mini painted many years ago. Demons lend themselves to unusual and varied colors and styles, making them interesting subjects. I really enjoyed working with the blues and purples so extensively on this piece. Vroc demons are my favorite of the classics; I hope  to paint more.

Moai Golem

 

 

I knocked out this huge size Moai  Golem from Wundervale Games from in just a few days; a speed print and paint, if you will. The hardest part was getting a nice photo in the winter sun. I kept it really simple and close to the Moai inspiration. The size and stony nature of this sentinel would make it a fierce opponent indeed for a wayward party on a remote island.

Corpse Mound

 

Oof! I may have bitten off more than I could chew with this one! I decided to all-in on Halloween painting and participate in MZ4250's monthly competition - there is a printer up as a prize, and it was worth a shot. Unlikely to nab it, but I am more than happy for the extra motivation to work on spooky topics befitting the season. MZ has been making a bunch of creepy monsters on his end, so I wanted to work on something new to the catalog. This piece immediately struck me as being ambitions and audacious - perfect! I tried a few other prints as well, but my print game was weak and this fairly complex and delicate piece was the only one I was satisfied with. Ambitious was right!  

After printing I had only a precious few weeks left, and my initial look at basing was unimpressive. I spend some solid time building up a base worthy of the title "corpse mound". It is partially clay with some woodfiller and a good dose of chopped up chunks of bad prints. I even made a few skeletons from MZs catalog to bulk it up. I followed that up with a few rounds of late-night speed-painting. I pretty quickly realized I was in over my head - so many bits and bobs here and there. I mostly just went sloppy with it with the hopes that the decayed nature of the undead would mask my mistakes. The photography leaves a lot to be desired - I was forced to use my old phone in a pinch and it struggled with focus on all the protruding bits. Next time ill do better with my painting contest goals.

The end result is decent, but suffers from some balance and detail issues. I think it gets the point across though. Maybe. My kids have differing opinions on what it is - green magical fire, ooze blob or ectoplasm. Not sure what I had in mind, actually - necromantic magic? 

Not sure how I will use it - it is almost more of a terrain piece. Maybe is is a mobile portal to the realm of the dead?  Or perhaps just mundane rotting zombie stench? Time will tell.

Happy Halloween!

Giant Centipede (3)

These giant centipedes were a nice quick speedpaint of some slightly modified miniatures from Reaper Miniatures. while these tiny little sculpts aren't particularly impressive they fill an important role in my collection - they were painted to round out the baddies I need to run "A Most Potent Brew" (see "inferno spider" posted previously). I love running that module as a starter adventure for nearly any campaign, so I expect they will be among my most used models. I might still add an NPC for that module in the future, before I put a fork in it.

 I was pretty happy I was able to manage three pretty distinct poses from the base model, which would've bothered me otherwise. The ruddy brown color with a hint of orange that I achieved on these guys was great, and I definitely plan on using it for their (bigger?) cousins. 

Speaking of which, I always thought the use of "giant" in monster descriptions was unsatisfactory. These creepy crawlies are on 20mm bases and are probably the size of the biggest living real-world centipedes, whereas a "giant spider" is the size of a horse!

Violet fungus (2)

These fungal monsters pair nicely with the shriekers in my previous post, and were part of the same set from Reaper Miniatures. They were cast in transparent purple, and initially I tried painting them with some transparent painting techniques I had seen elsewhere. somewhere along the line I decided my attempt had failed, so I went with a more contemporary approach (though, they are still slightly transparent). My failed initial approach left these somewhere in between and as a result I wasn't entirely happy with the end result. Ah well, Ill try again! There is always room to grow as an artist, and transparents are definitely a technique / subject I need to research more before my next attempt. 
 

Shrieker (3)

 A set of shriekers by Reaper Miniatures. These were really fun to paint and I enjoy the variety of color combinations I was able to play with on this set, where each model is clearly unique. This is both practical from a game-play perspective and a pleasure to paint. These fungi are smaller than the photos suggest - each is mounted on a 20mm base. while I painted these a few years ago, I have been itching to revisit a mushroom theme so I can really play with fun colors and shapes.

Mandragora (2)

 

 

 

Some cute little guys from Schlossbauer I finished as a speed paint. Despite their vegetable cuteness they are definitely a perfect post for spooky season. The little screeching fellows are also a little known entry in AD&D Monster Manual II, probably because they lacked art, so they check a box on my journey to complete miniatures for every entry in that tome.

Brown Jenkin

 This is a fun one! Brown Jenkin is one of my favorite HPL antagonists. Sure, lesser known than the big squid head guy, but so disturbing, sadistic, and no less enigmatic. He is something of a household boogeyman, so naturally I had to paint him up! This piece was sculpted by Schlossbauer, and I printed it at a very small size. For reference, the base is 15mm, making it one of the smaller works in my collection; roughly in-scale with a rat. 

As the years go by, I find myself increasingly interested in smaller and smaller miniatures. I even have a few projects that are at 10mm or less, and I thoroughly enjoy printing itty-bitty models. They are fast, I guess, and as a parent , I really need that to keep a glimmer of my hobby alive.

Lich

 

This is one of the older models in my collection (so old it is dusty!), and was my test piece for gem technique. I considered it to be a success at the time and it quickly became a regular part of my painting repertoire.

Sand Paraelemental / sandman (2)

 Following up on my elementals theme I seem to have going recently, here are a pair of "sand elementals" from Ral Partha's crucible line. These are great little sculpts that really capture the feel of beings made from sand very effectively - simple grainy details with exaggerated humanoid proportions. The styling works *perfectly* as D&Ds "sandman" monsters, which havn't seen much action, but are definitely very cool. These were painted ages ago - just simple drybrush and wash and the sculpt did the rest.

Water Elemental Daemon

 

The third in the cycle of Ral Partha elemental Daemons. These were the first elementals I ever worked on (many years ago), and they remain a passion of mine. Its nice to see a proper evil elemental. This was an early attempt at sculpting a base with greenstuff to integrate it, and I think the sense of motion is decent enough, even now. 

This may be my favorite of the four.

Bodak (2)

 Bodaks! I wasn't really intending to do these bodaks but I enjoyed painting the Printed Obsession Darkweavers enough that I was inspired to knock these out as a "palate cleanser" (Or at least that is how I justified the distraction). These are very simple, understated paint-jobs; nothing flashy here. I guess that is the idea though - understated evil. They seem to be just another run-of-the-mill undead-in-a-robe but are actually wicked dangerous. 

The models are slightly smaller than the default file size (I didn't want them to be so imposing), and they are based on a larger 30mm base to help protect the more delicate parts of the model. PO stuff prints very well, and paints very smoothly, so I think I'll continue to paint some of the Shadowfell/Fey creatures I have from them.

I should note that these fellows are from the AD&D Monster Manual II. Without realizing it I seem to be steadily working my way through that venerable tome, one monster at a time. I think I was inspired by Finch's efforts on the Fiend Folio, so perhaps this is my tip-of-the-hat to his notable miniature collection. I'll tag MM2 monsters in the future and go back to retroactively add notes to things I have already completed (bat, I'm looking at you).

Earth Elemental Daemon

The second in the series of Ral Partha Elemental Daemons I gave in my collection. This is my least favorite of the bunch, but I still think he is nice after all these years. each of these elemental daemons certainly bring something different from your standard elemental stuff. The fire elemental had a skeleton, this fellow has some plant elements, and they all have a definite sense of malice.

 

Smoke Paraelemental, Medium

 This is a great little model from Ral Parth's crucible line that really hits the spot for me. I like the coals effect and cinders on the base, and it strikes me a "moody" for an elemental creature. He its in perfectly with my other paraelementals.  

Edit: I just realized this is another MM2 monster! added the label.

Fire Elemental Daemon

 This toasty fellow is one of the oldest pieces in my collection, both in terms of the paint job is a very early one and because the model itself is a classic Ral Partha piece. I think it holds up pretty well after all these years.

Heavy Combat Biomech

 

I finished this piece last year (2022) after it languished on my shelf-o'-shame for a few. It is an excellent, and formidable, addition to my Dark Mariners warband. This fellow is big, so a group shot may be in order to convey the threat. I had quite a bit of difficulty with focus in the photos because of the size. These pics aren't great, but they were the best I could manage.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, Olley is a boss. I'm happy to add any sculpt by him to my painted collection.

Darkweaver

 

After a long absence, I'm back. Today I am posting a miniature I just completed this afternoon, an anomaly for me. I painted this Printed Obsession piece for their painting contest, but it was a tight timeline and I missed the deadline (I sorta' expected to). I went very colorful, but appropriately dark and oozy. There were certainly some missed opportunities for blending, because of the rush, but I really enjoyed the intense color palate, and I think they look suitably surreal (for an aberration). I really thought the PO style works well on this old school critter, and though I can't imagine what I will use such on obscure monster for, it was fun. The original STL size was pretty big (I believe I am using a ~70mm base for the larger model), but the typical specimen is size medium, so I ended up doing both at the same time. 

This piece has me really looking forward to more otherworldly models, where I can really let loose with experimental color combinations and effects. 

Happy 4th!