Ordinary Bat

A tiny "ordinary bat" miniature on a 15mm base. This unassuming creature marks a return to one of my favorite subjects - non-fictional animals! Despite their bad reputation, I love bats. While most people associate them with the fall, I look forward to our small friends first arriving at the end of long summer nights. Watching them flutter over the fire pit in the back yard is a favorite pastime with the fam. 

 

The "ordinary bat" title is a joking homage to how they are named in the AD&D MMII. Evidently the fantastical creatures are so abundant in some fantasy worlds that natural ones need to be specifically called out as "ordinary." This convention applies to other ordinary critters which are sure to wander onto my painting table in the coming year. 

 

This itty bitty miniature is from the reaper Bones familiar pack. Thankfully, it is a light enough material that I was able to attach it by the wingtip to a branch with a small pin, and it has proven sturdy enough to survive several falls and even a rampaging house cat over years of play. I think the added height is needed to capture the character of this little flying fellow. 

Dretch Demon Horde! (20)

 Demons! The perfect seasonal post.

Even dretch can be a threat in numbers, and any demon invasion needs its front-line minions. Unfortunately, it can be hard to find enough unique models to really fill out a big horde of weaker creatures. To compensate for that, I have gotten in the habit of rigging models and reposing them. This set of models was my test case for that approach. I started with Schlossbauer's excellent dretch model (center above, top left below), which had a nice neutral pose and rigged it up in Blender to practice all sorts of poses. I ended up having to do some sculpting opening the mouth so I could get a better variety of facial positions; It was a hack job, but at scale it works. I gave several of the dretch dog like poses, as I thought that would fit their personality well. Once I had made that many, well, it'd be a shame not to print and paint them all!

With so many models, I broke these paint jobs up over ...years, lol. They went through many iterations, and the current paint is nothing like the quick dip I had been planning on originally. I am not much of an army painter, so this was a big batch for me to take on all at once. They were fairly simple, so that helped, but painting the spots on the back ended up being a a much harder exercise in persistence than I had expected.  Still, I really like the end result.

These are an awesome addition to my AD&D MMII collection. Lots more demons to come. Maybe even more dretch, of a different sort. 

Mud Elementals / Mudmen (2)

 

These are a pair of classic Ral Partha mud elementals. They are simple to paint, and really fun on the game table. Mud elementals are among my favorite adversaries because of the interesting tactical challenges they present by merging with terrain. These were painted roughly 15 years ago (at the time of writing), when I was first experimenting with gloss effects, but I have never shared them before. 

Hordling Demon #2 / Sebelex, Devourer of the Dead

This is another old but still great model from the depths of my collection / the pit. Like the previous hordling, it is from the Grenadier Fantasy Lords box set (1984). These sculpts hold up so well I can see myself hunting down the whole lot of 'em. 

The color scheme is the same otherworldly blues and purples with green eyes that I use for most of my other demon models, but he is definitely unique. I like the palate a lot - I'll have to revisit it.

Hordling Demon / Mxomycetes, Duke of the Mire

 

From one Grenadier line to another. I'm feeling that old school charm, I guess. This is another model I dug out of my childhood toybox, stripped, and repainted. That was sometime prior to 2013 when I started keeping records. Once upon a time (ahem 1984), this model was fearsome and imposing enough to be a named demon - a duke no less! These days he is much less threatening and I use him as a lowly (but unique) hordling.  

Despite the age of the model (and the paintjob), I still like it. Being the creature of habit that I am, this piece laid the groundwork for most of the demons I have painted since (at least those who serve a certain lord).

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.

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).

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.

Demilich

 

I had prepped this guy some months ago and and it earned a spot on the shelf of shame. Having recently completed a brutal short-term project on the biggest piece I have done to date (the adult black dragon that was posted recently), and I was in dire need of a palate cleanser, and this tiny fellow fit the bill - ready to go, simple, and a planned PJ. On Ssturday I knocked it out in a single-sitting two hour session, and touched it up the following morning. For me, that's great! As I've mentioned before, I really struggle with completing projects quickly - compulsive analysis paralysis and endless touch-ups are my curse as a painter.  By that standard, this represents real progress because the paint needs more work. I called it done, and I like where it is at!

Boggle

 

 

 Another recently completed model, I'm on a roll! This is a classic 1e monster that reminds me of my first introduction to D&D, RPGs, and the fantasy genre itself. When I was around 10 my older cousin gave me a number of RPG books that he was no longer interested in. Most of these books were, at the time, unpopular, but they became the baseline for what I expected fantasy to be to this day. Among them was the 1e MMII, and a tattered copy of A2, Secret of the Slavers Stockade. The Boggle was featured in both, and even made the cover of A2:

 

I am happy to add a version to my collection, so that I might be able to run that module someday or otherwise use it to relive my childhood adventures. This model was sculpted by Schlossbauer, who is definitely one of my favorites these days. I particularly appreciate that  it holds true to the original design, which I prefer over the newly re-imagined creature (though, I am happy to see it having renewed popularity, whatever the form!).

Spectator

 

My fourth mini of 2022! I have been a painting machine lately, but I have been worse than ever at sharing my work. I completed 52 minis in 2021, making the first year since 2013 (gasp!) that I have actually achieved my annual painting goal of averaging one mini per week. I think part of my success came from giving myself a non-arbitrary goal.

 I have been steadily painting every miniature needed to run The Lost mines of Phandelver. At first it seemed pretty easy to do, but there are a surprising number of different pieces needed, especially when I consider descriptions that are unique (such as demihuman undead and villagers). The spectator is, of course, one of the apex encounters in that module, and easily the most monstrous creature to be found. 

This sculpt was a 3D print from MZ4250's collection, painted quickly with his monthly contest in mind. It is my second beholder kin from him, and each has been super fun. There will be more beholders in my future.

I wanted to try something unique with the basing here - I really wanted it to be flying but I have been overusing the conveniently close pillar for flying creatures quite a bit. Ultimately I opted for something I hadn't done before, smoke! I thought it would be action movie-esq to have him swooping through the smoke from a prior destructive eye ray blast. The smoke effect actually lends a ton of flexibility for attachment points, and though you cant really see it in these pictures, I think it pulled off the floating effect well. For those interested in the craft, the smoke was made bake clay and wire for strength.

 Death from above!

Gravewailer / Gibbering Mouther

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a fantastic sculpt by Julie Guthrie, a favorite sculptor of mine. I was really satisfied with how this one turned out, and it was all the more satisfying because it was an early release at the time. 

Painted waaay back in may of 2014. Holds up pretty well!

Oni no Jimen, greater and lesser (lava elementals)

I really enjoy the setting of Rokugan, and here are the first minis from that fantastic setting that I am sharing - the massive Oni no Jimen, the "Elemental Terror of Earth." these guys are portrayed as massive lava elementals  rather than the traditional earth elemental, which suits me just fine as I have a place in my collection for both ( I really enjoy painting elementals).
 The smaller "magma" elementals (some of which were reposed) are from the crucible line and were painted in 2014, while the large Elemental Terror is from AEGs clan war line and was the last mini I completed in 2015.

The painting and modeling itself is very simple, with bases created from polymer clay and GS, then painted quickly with a limited palate. while the work is noticeably rough in places it is the cohesive  feel that really sells these guys.

Giant Scorpion

From the vault! I completed this piece in 2011 as a 2 hour speed paint (not counting mini prep).  It came out pretty solid, and represents a turning point in my thinking about highlighting. It is still the fastest I have ever completed a piece.
The sculpt itself is almost as old as I am! despite its age it is still a great mini, and it has seen as much play time as any piece in my collection.