Giant Mushrooms (3) #2

 

A bonus Thanksgiving post! What else could it be, but more giant mushrooms. It is just so fitting for the season. 

The models belong to the Shadowsea Fungal Pack set, along with my other giant mushrooms. These ones got a little more attention than the first two I posted, and even feature some quick highlighting on the cap to make them "pop."  I have included a group shot of the whole completed set below. I think they make a great, and colorful, core to my growing mushroom forest.  

It occurred to me that LMoP has a small "fungi cavern" so this set is perfect for that project, too. Check out the "Lost Mine of Phandelver" label tag to see other models in that module. At some point I'll get around to making a dedicated page for that collection. 

Feast well and with good company. 

The complete set:

 

Orc Skeletons (5)

These orc skeletons are half of the "old guardroom" skeleton encounter in LMoP's Wave Echo Cave. The brief encounter description mentions the bones of both dwarves and orcs, and I thought a good mix would make for a more memorable encounter than if I had just subbed them with vanilla skeletons. Making species appropriate undead adds a good deal of work to my various adventure module goals, but I enjoy the depth it adds to my collection.


The models are 3D prints, sculpted by Avatars of War. Bases were hand sculpted and are ~32mm. I'm still having issues with bloggers image display - it always scales images up and makes them look fuzzy relative to how they look in an image viewer app. Ah well, Ill replace these images if I ever figure it out. 

 

Giant Mushrooms (2)

 

Mushrooms are one of my favorite Fall features. They are also a staple of fantasy exploration tropes, even appearing on the cover of the first B series module "In Search of the Unknown." the concept has been revisited in many iconic scenes since, and I am always a fan. In Antimatter games' Shadowsea, vast fungal forests are a staple feature of the underdark ecosystem. These giant mushrooms, the size of small trees, were made for that game system, and are now sold by Darksword Minitaures. They are formally titled " Thin Stalk Mushroom," and "Death’s Crown Mushroom," and are part of a larger Fungal Pack set, all of which I painted many years ago. Despite being such a specific and fantastical environmental feature they are one of the best represented types of terrain in my entire collection.  The idea of swords and sorcery amongst the stalks of huge fungal trees tickles the right part of my brain. 

Ghouls (3)

 

 

These are the first of my sizeable ghoul pack. They are sculpted by the ghoul master himself, Paul Muller. This pack was originally produced by Otherworld miniatures, but now appears to be sold by Crooked Dice games. The nice sinewy texture Paul puts on these makes them a snap to paint with a few light washes and highlights. The primary painting goal with these guys was to keep them simple. I have a large number of them, which is often called for with ghoul encounters, and I wanted to be able to reproduce the paint scheme easily as I added more members. I kept them gritty, somewhat mirroring a painter I knew from many years ago that did everything in this palate.

Because ghouls are so common in published adventures, these guys are an important addition to my collection. Ill follow with more of the pack in coming months.

Crazed Owlbear

 

This is a really wild model from Reaper Miniatures. It definitely doesn't look like a classical owlbear, instead it is a slim, wild-eyed and berserk mutant. while this isn't what I had in mind for my run-of-the-mill owlbear encounter, I think it works perfectly for the crazed owlbear found in Cragmaw Castle of LMoP, so it found a home in my collection. The end effect with the tiny pupils isn't perfect but it is definitely unsettling. It was nice working with the different shades of brown on this model, but it wasn't an overworked piece so the work is otherwise unremarkable. I tried to play up the crazed angle in the paint by adding details such as a frothy mouth and bloodshot eyes for a "that owlbear isn't right" effect.

Because this model is so specific, I still want to complete a regular one for the random encounter table of LMoP. I'll do another with a very different aesthetic now that I am nearing a complete LMOP set.

 

Old Owl Well / Old Shitty Well

 

I don't often post terrain, but I am hoping to include more pieces in my collection, particularly if they fill a thematic role in one of the modules I am working to complete. With that in mind, you can't have an encounter at Old Owl Well without an old well! This free sculpt from EC3D fills that need perfectly - it doesn't get better than that.Yes, it is called "Old Shitty Well", but it's great. This is also a support free model which ended up ended up being a really pleasant hobby experience. It went from file to done in no time, which went a long way to reinvigorate my painting mojo this fall. I'll have to start using more support free models to make prep a more relaxing experience. 

I'll close with a rough shot of the whole encounter. I apologize for the  photo edit - I didn't have a backdrop big enough to capture the whole group. I'd like to do more encounter shots like this as my collection grows, so ill need to work out a better system for photography.

Actually, this photo makes me wish that I had also done the tent for this encounter - more terrain to come, it seems!

Evil Mage / Red Wizard of Thay

 

All those zombies need an evil necromancer to lead them! This is my stand-in for Hamun Kost from LMoP. Sure, Sure, he doesn't fit the description, and he doesn't even have that classic Red Wizard of Thay robe look, but in my mind the mini was a perfect fit. This piece is an old Reaper Miniatures Bones model - back from when they were all bendy. Despite the cast looking a bit soft upon selection, the painted model came out really crisp. The model itself was sculpted by Werner Klocke, who never disappoints, and has a nice compliment of embroidery details and belts with buckles. I was pleasantly surprised with my results - definitely exceeding my expectations for this project. In particular, I was really happy with the rich reds I achieved (always a challenge).

Zombies (4) #3

 The final installment of human zombies in my current series; whew! Not the best picture, but I'll stick with it for now. They are rotting, after all. These are metal models from Reaper Miniatures and are a nice collection of zombies in different poses. The color palate in this batch is a little too narrow - in retrospect I should've mixed the sets up more for presentation purposes. I still have more zombies to show (and make) - the low level adventures are undead heavy - but I look forward to some different varieties moving forward.

Zombies (4) #2

 

The second installment in my series of human zombies. This time, the models come from a Heresy Miniatures; they have some excellent lines and I particularly enjoy their undead. The sculpting and poses of these zombies have a little more sinister in feel to me relative to others I have done. The weapons are an interesting touch - sometimes zombies are shown as completely thoughtless, and others they retain some spark of their former knowledge - enough to wield tools. Weapons definitely make zombies a more threatening prospect to face!

Of the various batches of zombies I have painted, I think these are near the best - the shading and colors have more contrast and saturation, giving them more un-life.

Zombies (4) #1

 

 Every adventure needs undead, and zombies are endlessly useful.

 Zombies are pretty sloppy monsters, so it was more important that I linked their color palates while giving each some unique elements rather than making each one a masterpiece - The herd is where they make their impact. They were painted at different times over a relatively long interval, so they aren't perfectly consistent, but I think that actually benefits them.  It is much easier to photograph them a few at a time, so I've decided to post small groups over a few weeks. Despite the simple paint jobs, I really appreciate that each is totally unique stylistically.

This first pack of zombies were made by Reaper Miniatures (two of them are plastic bones material, and two are metal). 

As can always be expected with zombies, more to come!

Wraith, Mage / Mormesk

 

 This was a nice on-theme simple speed paint to keep my momentum going. Not my best work (I prefer my earlier wraith to this one), but it was an effort to improve upon my quick ghostly green subjects (e.g. the banshee). Most notably, this is another model that fills a spot in the lost Mine of Phandelver roster - I'm (slowly) making progress!

This model is from Monolith Arts - they make some of my favorite sculpts for incorporeal undead and a "Ghost Mage" is perfect for Mormesk.

Animated Skeleton Guards (4)

 

These skeletons from One Gold Piece are a great intermediate build for RPGs - no armor or shields, but armed. They are formally titled "Undead General Guards" because they are intended to be fantasy shifted Magna Guard droids for their awesome (and sadly no longer available) Sky Wars line. I couldn't figure out how to stick to the original SW color palate for them, so I went in a different direction stylistically. I love the design, but my support game was weak, and it took a few attempts to successfully print and no break 'em. A few bits here and there were repaired by myself. Not my best work, but they compliment nicely with my other skeletons and will be great on the game table.

I haven't posted many undead here, which is odd because they are heavily represented in my collection. A lot of my early batch painting were of mobs of skeletons; every novice necromancer knows the fastest way to pad your ranks is with the dead. And here I am again, years later, working the same strategy! I noticed my painting goal numbers for the year are low, so I've decided I need to focus on groups of models for a bit to bump my productivity. My major project right now is grinding through The Lost Mine of Phandelver, and this low level module is stacked with the undead. Since most of my skeleton models are older, it is a nice opportunity to have a fresh take.

Night's Cult Leader / Spyron “Moonface”

 

 

This is my evil cult middle-management leader, to go along with the previously posted Night's Cult models. This guy is simple, anonymous, and effective as a cult leader stand-in for most of my needs. Like my other Nights cult models, he was a speed-paint for the table a few years ago.

Night's Cult Swordsman (3)

 

 These cultists are the muscle for the captain I posted previously. These guys really shine as groups of mobs -  it makes them much more impressive and formidable on the table. Only some minor stylistic differences, and a slightly better picture, but this post is much more satisfying than the captain.

Night's Cult Captain / Cultist Duelist

 

 A quick speed-paint that fills a critical role: an elite cultist. Legend Builds cultists are perfect models to fill the shoes of most of my cultist needs -  they come in tons of flavors and they are properly anonymous without any overly specific iconography. This guy acts as a champion type for a small squad of these guys I have already completed. My thinking was that they could be stand-ins for the dragon cultists in LMoP, as well as play part of the Cult of the Reptile God for module N1, among other things.

 I printed them slightly enlarged to scale with the rest of my collection. The paint palate was kept very simple so that I could easily reproduce it (or something similar) quickly as I add to the ranks - I expect I'll need quite a few! I used muted grey-purple and green-purple to play off the inherent contrast of that palate (as well as with a touch of green on the base,) to add some visual interest to an otherwise very dark and monotone approach. Simple can be good!

Goblin Reinforcements / Bloodbite Goblins (2)

 I've decided to do some Paint Club stuff, so while I work on a new project I thought I'd play some catch up on existing factions I have going. These two handsome fellows are additions to my Ogres and Goblins warband from years gone by. They are slightly bigger than the originals, but also sculpted by the great Bobby Jackson in the same style. They bring a bit of muscle and chaff to my goblins, giving me nearly enough to run some of the encounters in published RPG modules, but still not quite the numbers needed to make a goblins-only battle group. I have some additional "command" models and I recently acquired a large number of new goblin recruits from the same range, so I  expect I'll be adding more to their number in the near future. 

Young Green Dragon / Venomfang

 

 

This fellow is an important encounter in LMoP - he may not be the BBEG, but has the potential to be super deadly. What's more, he is almost certain to survive and become a recurring threat. 

Paint wise this piece is pretty simple and was completed quickly. In retrospect I could've upped the contrast - under the bright lights it looks a little washed out. That said, I recall consciously going for a brighter look. <shrug> Just an excuse to revisit the green dragons again in the future; I definitely enjoy green color palates.

A bright spot here for me is the base. I typically sculpt my bases the old-school way with mixed media: polymer clay and green stuff. These days it isn't really necessary, but pushing clay is very calming and lets me really tell the story I want. In this case I was inspired by some unusual terrain I have seen from time to time - elevated grass mounds in flood plains and marshes. Nothing too fancy, but I do like the effect and I'll continue to toy with the execution of the concept. 

This model was completed in 2020, but I have yet to share it anywhere, so it feels like a new accomplishment. I feel like I'm finally making some meaningful progress towards completing LMoP, and That is some nice motivation to push through.

Redbrand Ruffian #2 / Human Bandit

 

The second in my series of ruffians is not nearly as unique, but that is the point! I like to make my groups of baddies to have some unique recognizable elements that can step in as NPCs, and some more generic models I can use in multiple encounters.

You might notice that I went with a model that isn't strictly identical to LMoP stats. I like a variety of weapons on my baddies that make them more interesting to paint and also to play with. A spear will force some tactical decisions that can make game-play more interesting. I think varied equipment is also more fitting of a ragtag group of criminals. More generally, these projects are my interpretation of my favorite modules, so I make changes as I see fit. 

This model was made by Vae Victis, and was really nice to paint. It has an excellent balance of clean detail and feature depth that made it take paint smoothly without being too busy. I resized it a bit, as I do with nearly everything; it is on a 25mm base.

 

 

 

 use repeatedly in encounters 

Redbrand Ruffian #1 / Nadia the tax collector

This is the first in my series of bandits for LMoP. I initially prepped and batch painted a collection of 12 models that were existing parts of my collection, freebee models, or the occasional purchase. The only real unifying theme was a bandana type element (rather than a cloak) I could use to visually link them. At a point I switched over to completing each model one-by-one to give each one a unique element for individual interest. Batch painting for me tends to be a little sloppy to keep things moving quickly, so the models in this collection aren't perfect, but they'll more than do the job as generic low level antagonists. I think this one will make a nice leader type for ruffian encounters in town.

This nice piece was sculpted by Galaad Miniatures. I took some liberties with her outfit design, and altered her scale a bit (I tend to scale things to be in line with "30mm" so that they work well with "28-32mm" scale physical models I own), but I think she it pretty faithful to the concept. 

 1 done, 11 to go!

 

 

Giant Spider, Forest (3)

 

 

These were fun! Every collection needs giant spiders, and I wanted to mix it up a little.  The  LMoP encounter in "Ruins of Thundertree" calls for a pair in a woodland setting and I thought that the classic black or brown spider wasn't the best fit. Instead, I elected to base them on the white-banded crab spider, known for its diverse and interesting coloration. Check them out; crab spiders are really cool. This splash of color was a refreshing change of pace from the color palates I usually work with -  beautiful and deadly! 

The awesome models used here are from Otherworld miniatures. I am a huge fan of their old school take on monsters. In this case, the sculpting style definitely contributed to the impression of a crab spider - they were a perfect fit. I have a few more things from Otherworld in the pipeline.

My giant crab spiders sit on 40mm bases.

If classic dark creepy crawlies are more your style, don't worry, I plan to do some underdark themed spiders for their next appearance.