When Projects 'Drag On'

I previously mentioned that I wanted to add a little something to my D&D Villains cast for 7TV...I may have lied about the 'little'.

This is Marduk the Tyrant from Archon Studios, a model I picked up from the UK Games Expo in 2024 as it clearly bears a significant resemblance to Tiamat from the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon (fun fact: Tiamat and Marduk are both figure from Babylonian mythology).

Obviously, there are a few differences, including the Archon model not having the same body shape as Snarf from Thundercats.

She was a third-party antagonist in the show who was equally an enemy to Venger as to the children. She also had a multi-tonal voice which suggest that she smoked too much.

I built the model almost as soon as I got it back home and the model went together really well, and encouraged me to potentially pick up some more of the Archon models in the future.

I then set about painting, using mainly contrast paints, with a little dry brushing and highlighting for good measure. However, I ran out of steam after getting base coats on as I think I became a bit daunted by the heads.

With hindsight, I should have left all but the central head off the model and painted them separately, as I had a bit of a nightmare getting contrast paint into all the books and crannies around the necks.

If you are picking up this model for yourself, sub-assembly is you friend.

However, having painted up the other Villains, I felt I really out to get back to Tiamat.

I sorted out the red bits of the main body I'd missed before giving the whole model a Mephiston Red dry brush. I then approached each head one at I time, breaking the project into doable chunks until she was done.

Here she is with Venger for scale.

I pleased to have go her done and I'm pretty sure I can put together a decent sized cast to attack Matt's D&D kids with. I'll just have to come up with a very thin excuse for all these Villains who hate each other to have teamed up.

Acquired: 76

Painted: 132

Lead Mountain: 692

Forgotten Foes

In 1983, as Dungeons & Dragons was entering mainstream consciousness (in both positive and bizarrely negative ways), both a cartoon series and a toyline were commissioned to capitalise on the growing success of the game.

Unfortunately, these two franchises didn't really communicate with each other, leading to the confusing (for 7 year old me) situation where what I was watching on TV bore no relation to the toys I was playing with.

The collection of villainous miniatures I've painted this week reflects this somewhat uncoordinated merchandising strategy.

You can tell their villains. They're all dressed in black and red.

The miniatures were kindly printed for me by Matt when he was printing his 7TV cast, the kids from the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon. He'd picked up the STLs somewhere along the line and he did a whole batch and passed on the villains to me.

I think he'd admit that these sculpts were somewhat problematic to print and there was more than a bit of tidying up to do, particularly with regard to missing fingers, and I believe that Shadow Demon didn't survive at all.

The most recognisable of the bunch is obviously Venger, both foot and mounted. The primary antagonist of the cartoon series, a terrifyingly powerful dark sorcerer with jefions of minions  and perpetually in pursuit of the magic weapons held by...checks notes...six children.

These sculpts frighten me. Not just because it's Venger, but because the wings are incredibly thin and fragile. In fact one of the mounted model's wings broke whilst the supports were being removed and has been fixed with liquid greenstuff and blind hope.

The model on foot just needed a new index finger.

Kelek the Sorcerer has the unique honour of fitting in three separate categories in this group. He was part of the original toyline, he featured in a grand total of one episode of the cartoon series, and he's the only one of the bunch that I owned a toy of (if you're interested, I also had Warduke, Strongheart, Ringlerun, Elkhorn and Melf/Peralay - a pair of Gamorrean Guards served as Kelek's pig-faced Orc minions.

Zarak is an assassin. He's also technically a Half-Orc whose about the size of a Goblin. Apparently, back in the early editions of D&D Half-Orcs were quite short, although given that their average size is 5'6", Zarak is still short.

That's probably what turned him into a villain.

Like Kelek, he was part of the original toyline, but he didn't make it onto TV outside of commercials.

I had to replace his left hand due to the aforementioned finger issues.

Skyllar the Witch is an even more obscure character than Zarak, as she didn't even make it into the action figure range, but did get featured in a smaller scale monopose range of toys from the same time.

She's technically the apprentice of the hood wizard Ringlerun, but was corrupted by a magic item called the Heartstone.

Anyway, I needed to give her a hand swap as well.

Here's the group stood with Warduke, who I painted several years ago. Although Venger is arguably the most famous D&D villain of all time after Hugh Grant, the others did get their time in the sun. They were featured as special characters in The Shady Dragon Inn supplement for D&D and have continued to feature in adventure supplements down the years since.

So it seems I now have a good chunk of a D&D themed 7TV cast. If only there was someone I knew who has an era appropriate cast of magic item hoarding small children I could harass.

There's just one 'small' addition I'll need to make first...

Acquired: 76

Painted: 131*

Lead Mountain: 693*

* Stats watchers might be wondering, but I've also painted three more street tiles for my Carnevale board. They're in the pictures if you look carefully.

Back in the Game

I've not been posting a lot of painting for the past few months. I've had a dearth of motivation brought about by several factors that I won't go into.

However, at the tail end of May I went to the UK Games Expo and whilst there I pick up a handful of individual boardgame pieces that I figured I might be able to use in Carnevale.

I've no idea what games these miniatures come from and they were all single piece sculpts. I picked up 5 models but I didn't notice that one of the models had rather anachronistic trousers and shoes, and so I'm hoping to convert that one.

Although I'm a fan of the official Carnevale miniature range, I'm not massively keen on the city guard models. Therefore, this will serve as the first member of my own take on the subfaction of the Patricians, reflecting their control of the levers of power.

I'm not sure which exact profile I'll use for him, but I suspect, due to his armament, he'll end up being a Guard Captain.

I was unsure of which faction to look in to find a use for this miniature. The ornate robe made me consider some kind of spuellcaster for the Strigoi, but I figured that some of his clothing had an Ottoman feel to it, with a European look to his face.

In Carnevale, the Ottomans are in the pay of the Patricians, and so I thought that a noble envoy affecting Ottoman style suited the character of an Adventuring Noble, which can also cast spells.

The easiest model to assign to a faction was this cultist which will be joining the Rashaar as a Cult Officiant of the Church of Dagon.

My Rashaar forces continue to grow ever more numerous.

The final miniature was this unassuming woman, who could easily have been a Citizen working for the Guild or Household Staff for the Patricians. 

However, I ultimately decided that I wanted to add to my entirely proxied Strigoi force, and the cut of her clothing suggested the idea of her being a Romani.

I'm genuinely quite pleased with the skin tone I've achieved here, and I'm going to look to add a few more Romani style miniatures to the faction over time now that I know how.

I've often found small wins the best way to fight painting slumps, and so you can expect a few more smaller projects to help get me back into gear.

Acquired: 76

Painted: 123

Lead Mountain: 701

For Frodo?

It's amazing how motivation works for me.

I've had a little bit of a block on sitting down to get things painted over the past week, and then suddenly I'm struck by inspiration and get Merry and Pippin knocked out in about three hours.

The spur e of this inspiration was not actually anything Lord of the Rings related, instead I'm prepping for a 7TV scenario as part of the Night Terrors campaign in which a D&D session becomes all too real.

The youngest of the kids in this scenario plays a paladin, and so I needed a model that was both short and knightly.

Merry and Pippin were the best option.

This is the plastic version of Merry, Esquire of Rohan, that comes with the Dernhelm/Eowyn model released a couple of years ago. There is also a mounted version that slots on the horse in front of Eowyn.

I do have to admit that printing the newer plastic model is so much better than grappling with the 20 year old plastics I have for the rest of the Rohirrim.

Similarly, Pippin, Knight of Gondor, comes with the plastic Gandalf the White, again with a mounted version for the specific scenario from the movie in which Gandalf rides out against the Nazgul and for some reason takes Pippin with him.

Both models were very straightforward to paint, but Pippin was incredibly easy. Bring mainly grey black and silver. It's made me consider starting a Minas Tirith force.

Anyway, they're done, and that probably meant I need to turn my attention to mounted versions, along with Gandalf and Eowyn.

Acquired: 52

Painted: 119

Lead Mountain: 677

Cover Models

After enjoying painting the last bunch of aged miscreants I've continued with my Oldhammer vibes and painted a couple of legendary characters inspired by the ancient texts.

I present Aldred Fellblade and Garg Gorgul.

What do you mean, "who?"

Aldred Fellblade is a Templar of the Sigmarite Order of the Fiery Heart who battled Garg Gorgul, the Ogre pit fighter bodyguard of an Orc warchief whilst on a quest to retrieve a the sword Karagul from the ruins of Karak Eight Peaks. His travelling companions included one Gotrek Gurnisson, Trollslayer at large, and Felix Jaeger, who both went on to bigger and badder things.

This was in the 1990 short story 'The Dark Beneath The World' by Bill King, which was later the basis of a mini campaign for Advanced Heroquest featured in White Dwarf #125, which is where I first encountered the characters.

However, the short story was actually inspired by the cover image from the first edition of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (published in 1986), a seminal text in fleshing out the Warhammer world, which I still own.

This piece of art, by John Sibbick, featured characters which were in turn inspired by several miniatures in the Citadel range at the time and the story made use some of those same miniatures' names, including Aldred Fellblade.

Part of the C01 Fighters range of 1986, Aldred Fellblade has actually gone by several names in the Citadel Catalogues: Aldred Fellblade, Arion, Knight of Harkness (from 'The Tragedy of McDeath'), and Sword 1. He even featured as Captain Grullman Grosz, Mercenary Warrior in the Citadel Combat Cards.

Sadly, my copy is a little miscast, something I've never noticed over the past 35 years, and has missing detail and a flat area on his forearm. I suspect this might be because I bought one of the later casts of this venerable mini.

I'm pretty sure the window of opportunity to ask for a replacement has closed.

My version of the Garg Gorgul the Ogre is not the model that inspired the artwork, but is a model inspired by a model based on the one that inspired the art that inspired character of Gorgul.

Let me explain. The ogre in the artwork is based on the C23 Ogre Gladiator from 1985, and I think also inspired the design of the first Blood Bowl Ogre (mohican, cestus, single shoulder pad, etc.). Ogre 1, designed by Bob Olley for Blood Bowl second edition in the nineties was clearly an homage to the first edition model, and so, in essence, a distant relative of Garg Gorgul.

I have no specific plans for either of these models, although Five Leagues from the Borderlands and 7TV are always an option, but it was an enjoyable nostalgia trip to take.

Acquired: 15

Painted: 117

Lead Mountain: 642

Game Hunters

After painting the Oathmark Light Infantry as somewhat generic rangers/outlaws, I was drawn to painting something in a similar vein but with a little more character.

I dug out five metal miniatures from the mid-80s which could easily be drafted into a Robin Hood themed scenario or two.

All five of these were released between 1985 and 1987, which means they were probably amongst some of the earliest models I owned, and they also indicate my focus on picking up miniatures related to the games I was playing rather than building armies for larger battles.

These three characters, a gamekeeper and two poachers, were released as part of the C07 Rangers...erm...range (released in 1985), which were clearly designed for use with Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay as several of the models in the range (including the Gamekeeper) are clearly modelled on illustrations in the WFRP rulebook.

Interestingly, the Gamekeeper career in WFRP contained the option to choose to be a poacher instead leadung to slightly different skills and career exits.

So these three models are actually two sides of the same coin in game terms.

I really like how both of the poachers gave evidence of the illicit acquisitions poking our if their sacks.

I also like how one of them is barefoot - perhaps a little bit of social commentary on the idea that poverty can be a catalyst for crime.

The Spy is from the game Talisman, specifically the Talisman: Dungeon expansion, released in 1987.

I've painted the Spy to match the artwork from the game because I couldn't think of a reason to do it differently.

Games Workshop released metal versions of all of the player characters in the game, of which I only had eight: the Orc, the Soldier, the Warrior of Chaos, the Saracen, the Ninja, the Spy, the Highlander and the Inquisitor.

I still have all but the Orc, who went went I sold my unpainted army to a friend. All of the others, except the Ninja, have found homes in different armies and projects over the years.

The final, rather gaudily dressed chap is Rildo the Crafty from the Heroes for Dungeonquest expansion for the game Dungeonquest, also from 1987.

Yes. His name is Rildo. It's poorly stamped on his slotta tab, in a game partially aimed at children.

It was a different time.

The gaudy outfit is based on the official art from. The expansion which provided 12 new metal characters for your games of Dungeonquest.

I still have all but two of them, and most of them have fallen to chaos and joined my Nurgle army. One of the two still unpainted models is, like with Talisman, also a ninja.

If Nippon ever follow Cathay into Warhammer: The Old World, I'll have the start of an army.

I'm not sure how these five will get used, but I'm leaning towards just having a collection of generic fantasy types around for various uses such as Five Leagues from the Borderlands or 7TV.

Mind you, they were fun to paint, so I don't really need a reason.

Acquired: 15

Painted: 115

Lead Mountain: 644

Ranger Danger

The other part of my 7TV Secret Santa gift was a sprue of Oathmark Human Light Infantry, clearly intended to go with the Norman Chest Bearers as outlaws intent on liberating the contents of the chest.

For the poor...obviously...definitely for the poor.

Anyway, I opted to take the lead that was offered and set about turning them into some soon to be merry men.

This was the first time I've had a close look at one of the Oathmark sprues, and they are really nice.

The cloaked figures can be armed with bows or a range of hand weapons and shields and there are a good range of characterful heads. Including three with hoods.

These models could easily be used as peasant rabble, loyal retainers or, as I have done, furtive woodsmen.

I've never been the biggest fan of multiparty plastic models due to the soft details that done suit my painting style. However, I did like how simple these models were, meaning that I could at least get them done without too much fuss.

I've opted for a uniform range of greens and browns - the main tunics are dark brown, rather than black, as they appear in the pictures - as I intend for these outlaws to pull double duty as Dunedain Rangers or even Rangers of Ithilien in games of Lord of the Rings.

As such, I armed one of them with a spear, as both types of Rangers are allowed to use them, and there was only one in the box. I did need to cut it down though as it was clearly intended for use with a banner.

I gave the last of the group a sword simply to allow him to serve as a captain if necessary. The sprue dies include a small amount of pouches, daggers and scabbards to be hung at the belts, but I opted to ignore these for simplicity's sake.

There's clearly a bit more work to do if I'm going to try to play any Robin Hood themed games, so I might look into pick up the 7TV feature pack to give me some guidance about where to go next.

I'll also have a rummage in the lead pile to see what I can turn up that could be used for either side.

Acquired: 15

Painted: 110

Lead Mountain: 649

D'Isigny Villains

A small group of armed tax collectors walking between villages on the edge of Sherwood Forrest.

What could possibly go wrong?

Why on earth am I painting some vaguely Robin Hood themed miniatures?

Basically...I have them.

I was sent a pair of Norman Chest Bearers, along with some plastic outlaw-types as a 7TV Secret Santa gift and if you've been reading this blog for any amount of time, you'll know I'm nothing if not easily distracted.

The Norman Chest Bearers are really nice models from Crooked Dice which I would never otherwise have bought. They were remarkably easy to paint with only half a dozen base colours washed and highlighted.

I opted to go for a colour scheme inspired by the Lego Black Falcons (the baddies in the castle range) I had as a child. The idea for this came from this video from the Peachy Tips YouTube Channel - although I chickened out of trying to paint the heraldic falcon.

My only criticism of these miniatures was that the rods that support the box are far too chunky to go into the hand holes, even without the even wider metal caps on the end.

Using thinner metal rod was an easy fix, but I still don't know how they were supposed to work.

Currently leading this group of nefarious tax collectors is a model I got for free from one of the Partizan shows.

It is apparently Sir Walter D'Isigny, one of the Norman followers of William the Conqueror, who not only founded the village of Norton Disney, but also is apparently the ancestor of one What Disney.

I'm not going to grumble about the quality of a free model, but there is a nasty mold line in his helmet and the proportions are quite different to the Crooked Dice models.

I wasn't keen on the positioning and shape of his left hand and so opted to cover it with a spare kite shield I had knocking around.

I've opted to base these in the same manner as my Lord of the Rings miniatures as I plan to have the outlaws pull double duty when I get round to them, and I might even start basing all of my generic fantasy/medieval miniatures in this way to keep things consistent.

Acquired: 15

Painted: 101

Lead Mountain: 671

Path of Damnation: Damned, but not Lost

Regular readers of the blog will know that just over a year ago I sold my soul to Nurgle and set out to create a Warriors of Chaos army for Warhammer: The Old World using only models that were collected in the dim and distant past by a teenage me.

I have now put the finishing touches to that army by adding a handful of models and a command group to the Chaos Marauders, the unit I began with.

My own personal rule for this army was that it needed to fit the Oldhammer brief and only feature miniatures which were produced in the early 90s or before, and there were to be no duplicate models.

The aim was to get an army which evoked the cover image of Realms of Chaos: The Lost and the Damned).

I've drafted in every metal Chaos Warrior, Chaos Thug, Beastmen, Chaos Dwarf, Barbarian, Minotaur and monster that I could lay my hands on, supplemented with a handful of plastic miniatures from Heroquest and Warhammer Quest.

Perhaps the most recognisable model in this batch is the dynamically posed, and taller than I remembered, Warhammer Quest Barbarian.

He will take the role of unit champion, but I may need to lighten his skin at some point as I think he lacks a little definition.

Also from the boardgame department is this Zombie from Heroquest. I've come to really like this sculpt and have started to look for ways to use more of them in other projects.

Although he's joining a unit of, very much alive, Chaos Marauders, he's also a nod to the fact that the first Nurgle army list did allow units of Plague Zombies and Plague Skeletons.

I've also been drafting in a handful of Blood Bowl star players, who are very much Chaotic in nature and add a flamboyant amount of mutation to the army.

This is Dieter Hammerlash, one of a very early batch of star players, whose star card I first got from a copy of White Dwarf.

Although he could quite easily have been given a Tzeentchian flavour (he has a touch of the Pink Horror about him), I've gone for a more fleshy look and just added a weapon.

The most obvious Blood Bowl player of the bunch is also the most fitting for a Nurgle army: Bilerot Vomitflesh.

I was presented with a conundrum of how to get his very 'football' look to fit in, and so I opted to turn him into a musician, by giving him a bell ( which I think is from the Grenadier Undead Mammoth I wish I still owned) to dangle.

I also added a shield on his other arm to make him a little less sporty looking.

The final miniature and standard bearer for the unit is Slarga Fourstrike (which I've discovered the internet often, wrongly, refers to as Slarga Fourstrike - check his card).

I commited Oldhammer sacrilege and pinned the banner, which was cobbled together from my bits box, in place and left him at that.

I'm really pleased with this one.

And there we have it.

A 2000 point Warriors of Nurgle army for Warhammer: The Old World. Admittedly it's probably not very good and needs a hefty chunk of magic items to get across the points threshold, but that's pretty normal for Chaos armies.

This army has been at least 37 years in the making and I'm actually a little bit choked up to finally have the Chaos army (or at least a variation of it) that I planned so long ago.

In other news, I've printed and painted some rock formations.

They're not really exciting enough for their own post, so they're here.

Acquired: 15

Painted: 79

Lead Mountain: 698

The After-Party After-Party

Whilst I've been occupied by all things Fallout for the last month, work was suspended on my Venice gaming table project for Carnevale, despite having already printed several buildings and a significant number of street tiles.

However, the February installment of the Carnevale MyMiniFactory tribes rewards hit my inbox and included a way to get get back on track prompted me to finish off the remaining contents of the World's Faire After-Party starter set: the Patrician's.

I think.i mentioned when I painted the Doctors that I really appreciated the fact that the forces in the box fit very well with the particular flavours of both factions that I have already collected.

The Patricians in the starter set are partying nobles and their servants, much like what I already own, rather than the more military or naval options available to the faction.

The premise of the story in the starter set is that Viviana, a Barnabotti, has decided that she wants to steal a unicorn rumoured to be on display at the World's Faire. The rumours are actually a trap laid by the Doctors.

The Barnabotti model representing Viviana appears more daunting to paint than it actually is, and the miniature responded well to contrast paints, with the hardest part of painting her was all of the gold trim, even though the details are all very crisply detailed.

To help with the theft, Viviana hires an experienced Cat Burglar (nobles who steal from their peers for kicks) to lead the expedition. 

The Car Burglar is actually a Hero model, rather than a Henchman like the Barnabotti, and so is the actually leader in the scenarios in the box.

To aid her venture, Viviana has forced one of her servants to accompany her, probably to deal with the messy business of handling a unicorn.

Armed with only a poker, he will attend to his mistress' needs, no matter how bizarre.

Viviana may be deluded and irrational, but she's not stupid. The mean streets of Venicame are dangerous, and so she has acquired the services of some Hired Muscle to deal with anyone attempting to prevent the noble teaching her goal or take advantage of her being out on the streets at night.

I decided to print the Ponti di Called Medicanti partly because many of the buildings Ive received from the tribe subscription have been a little large for my Bambu A1 Mini.

Admittedly, the Ponti di Called Medicanti is also large, but it was printable in sections, although I did have to add an extra cut in the base piece.

I painted it with contrast paints and sponges for the most part, with a bit more detail on the bricks without going overboard (it is, after all, meant to be a backdrop).

I added a statue into the alcove on the steps section made from a WizKids miniature I had no plans for.

Finally I printed another two street tiles, on of which is a newer style with steps.

I'm pretty sure I now have enough to fill a 2'x2' table and so I might play out the World's Faire After-Party scenarios on it soon.

Acquired: 14

Painted: 66

Lead Mountain: 710