Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Post-Apocalyptic Tales => Topic started by: cheetor on 21 December 2009, 02:06:13 PM
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I have been putting some more figures together to function as "bosses" or zombie "characters" in games. In addition to painting the usual hordes of regular guys I find that painting a few to look slightly different to the rest is a nice change. It also allows me to tie in other interests, such as computer games and movies to my painting, which I find encourages me to be more productive.
I find that the light where I live makes photography at this time of year a bit difficult, so apologies for the slightly "washed out", dodginess of the shots.
Anyway, below are a four figures that I completed a week or so ago.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/hoohoof2.jpg?w=300&h=271)
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/hoohoob.jpg?w=300&h=241)
This big (thats a GW 40mm base) guy, (known as "Mr Bajingo" in my house) is a Helldorado figure that I spotted on another thread here some time ago. On a recent trip to Paris I decided to track the figure down. I dont own that many miniatures that I genuinely regard as horrific and somewhat disturbing, but this guy and the guy below (Mr Hoo-Hoo) definitely count.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/bajingof2.jpg?w=288&h=300)
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/bajingob2.jpg?w=282&h=300)
You dont need a PHD in Freudian analysis to see whats going on with this guy. In fact, my wife encouraged me to colour the figures "mouth" look a little more like female genitalia , in the interests of making the emotional impact of such a repulsive figure a little more substantial (and before anyone asks no, I did not base any elements of the scheme on any parts of my wife ;) ). I dont know if it worked but I do like the figure (if "like" is the right term). Those Helldorado figures can be quite sinister.
I recently also felt the need to paint up some female zombies like the "Witches" in Left 4 Dead and the "Screamer" in House of the Dead: Overkill. Basically they are zombie versions of the creepy kid from The Ring movie.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/samaraf21.jpg?w=257&h=300)
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/samarab2.jpg?w=235&h=300)
I normally go for a bruised purplish flesh tone for my zombies. In order to help these figures to stand out from the horde I gave them a grey flesh tone. In addition to that he rest of the colour scheme is also roughly based on the colours used for the L4D Witches. As they usually wear nothing but underwear I had to use a little license to extrapolate the scheme but I am pleased enough with it. Speaking of underwear, I just realised that I never painted the underwear on the figure shown above. Oops. I will get back to it over Xmas.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/sadakof2.jpg?w=240&h=300)
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/sadakob2.jpg?w=238&h=300)
I also based the two witches on square GW bases. Again, this is an effort to make the figures distinct from regular vanilla zombies.
I hope to get my Frothers Pro-Am competition figs soon. They will probably be my next foray into zombie "character" painting Id say.
(I didnt reailse that this post was going to involve so many references to underwear and their contents before I wrote it. It wasnt the original intention, but we are all grown ups here, right? I dont think that I crossed any etiquette boundaries did I? Probably just being paranoid)
Comments & criticisms encouraged as usual :)
Edit: I went back over the bloodier areas on the figures above to make them look a little less ketchup-y, based on comments in this thread.
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I like your skincolour, but I prefer round bases. I think GW Bases are to high...
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I like the skin tone, hair and clothing, but the sheer amount of red spoils it for me.
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I like the skin tone, hair and clothing, but the sheer amount of red spoils it for me.
Believe it or not I used to be very sparing with the amount of red on my zombies. Recently however, I have changed my approach. So much so in fact that I have gone back and painted a lot more gore on older zombie figures too.
I originally avoided using that much red because it always reminds me of teenage boys starting out painting figures. They seem to regularly go for very bloody GW Chaos armies, complete with impaled guys on the bonnets of vehicles etc. It can often be a bit too adolescent for my tastes. That put me off painting gore on miniatures for nearly twenty years actually. But I changed my mind recently.
It was from playing more zombie computer games recently that I decided that my zombies were in fact not bloody enough: they tended to look pasty and a little dried out. I appreciate that the very bloody, 28 Days Later/Resident Evil look it isnt to everyones taste however :)
I like your skincolour, but I prefer round bases. I think GW Bases are to high...
I also prefer round bases but I used the square ones to help to distinguish the witches from the regular zombies.
As for the base height, I absolutely agree. Its just that at this stage I have so many figures on slot bases that I choose to keep using them for convenience as much as anything else. If I was starting my figure stuff all over again I would definitely consider another base type.
Thanks to both of you for your comments :)
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Perhaps a dab of Devlan Mud wash over the red? Your blood looks like that gushing from my finger today ( saw slipped at work, fingers in way, it happens, plenty of snow to cool the wounds though) aka very fresh, but the bodies already seem rather drained. A bit more like this perhaps?
(http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j17/wayswatcher/20mm%20Moderns/cow7.jpg)
Mind you, I can't paint 28mm to save my life, so take my comments with a little salt lol But I sure do love (in a disturbing kind of way) those bosses!
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Perhaps a dab of Devlan Mud wash over the red? Your blood looks like that gushing from my finger today ( saw slipped at work, fingers in way, it happens, plenty of snow to cool the wounds though) aka very fresh, but the bodies already seem rather drained.
The blood on the figures does look both fresh and possibly a bit too red. I tried a few different ways to tone it down using inks but didnt quite get the rich red that I was looking for when I did that (although the colour reproduction in the photo has exaggerated the redness in the colour a little bit).
In particular the contrast on the paler witch figures may be a bit too stark. I will tweak the approach the next time I paint something similar and see what I come up with.
A bit more like this perhaps?
I love your mutilated cattle. I presume that they are for an alien invasion game or similar. Do you have any more photos?
Thanks for the feedback.
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Certainly: http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=14602.0
But they are not mutilated....well, I do suppose artillery shells and shock waves mutilate too. They are just scenic pieces for WW2 and later games, there should be 3 more somewhere next year in a slightly more gutted version.
Having said that, your idea is pretty interesting. With a lot of modern troops in progress I do suppose adding a few aliens should be no problem.....not that there are many in 20mm, though I still have this one.
(http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j17/wayswatcher/20mm%20WW2/Pulp/monsternew2.jpg)
(I seriously need to update the bases of my older work to blend in more with my current kit)
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I like the skin tone, hair and clothing, but the sheer amount of red spoils it for me.
Yup too fresh to be from their wounds and alittle too bright for a recent kill too. tcr is your friend if you use purples and blacks in th mix.
The Commander
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Yep, black, purple (or brown) mixed in with the TCR, gives more of a clotted, congealed look to your gore.
:)
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Yep, black, purple (or brown) mixed in with the TCR, gives more of a clotted, congealed look to your gore.
:)
Yes AND brown, and even blue and green too. ;)
(Alright Matt long time no whatsit! L4D2....lots of good ideas there for scenery, must tell Ian :D).
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Very nice painting.The Helldorado miniatures are a very good choice for Zombie bosses.
Where is the Alien miniature from?
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Alien > http://www.hlbs.co.uk/product.php?id=594
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I use a dark cherry or black cherry color for my zombie blood. Giving it a old tainted or toxic blood look. Very nice fugures BTW.
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I love the miniatures... I have those Helldorado figures myself and plan to use them as zombie bosses too. Also the bright and fresh blood looks good to me... especially if it is on the hands and face, around the mouth... it makes the zombie look like it has just torn apart and eaten a survivor! I agree that the blood from the zombies itself would look better with TCR mixed with black or brown.
Darkoath
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I love the miniatures... I have those Helldorado figures myself and plan to use them as zombie bosses too. Also the bright and fresh blood looks good to me... especially if it is on the hands and face, around the mouth... it makes the zombie look like it has just torn apart and eaten a survivor! I agree that the blood from the zombies itself would look better with TCR mixed with black or brown.
Although citing any notion of "realism" in the context of zombies is of course fraught with problems, I did go for a fresh blood with a vague notion of it being either from the zed being reasonably fresh or from the zed having recently bitten a survivor.
Additionally, assuming the zombies actually contain any liquid form of blood (Max Brooks amongst others think not, yet in many ways the explosion of blood from a zombie headshot defines the genre IMO) then a lot of it would feasibly be evident from wounds caused during the zombies rather clumsy day to day activities I reckon. Also, assuming that the zombie is fresh, the blood from the injuries that actually infected the zombie could be the source.
Using the same blood tones regardless of varying flesh tones is a short cut: presumably different stages of decay would show different stages of "wetness" and so on.
Of course, rather than basing my painting colour choices on pseudo-science, perhaps I actually just enjoyed ladling large quantities of red paint of over the figures ;)
I painted a whole lot of zombies over the years with a lot more understated bloody areas and I was unhappy with the somewhat dried out appearance that it gave them. I possibly went a little bit too far in making these guys "wetter", even though I enjoyed the process quite a lot. Its a lot more "freeform" than most of the pernickity figure painting processes that I use.
Making the blood look like it comes from a couple of sources might both break up the brightness and be more "realistic". I have seen people use TCR as a matter of course for this but I have never had/used any of my own. In all honesty, I am sceptical of its "magic bullet for zombie blood" reputation as I have seen some examples that didnt look right to me at all. Nonetheless, I bought a pot to try it out due to the feedback on this thread. Hopefully I will get around to trying it soon.
Thanks to everyone who gave their honest opinions, suggestions and compliments. Its why I posted the photos up in the first place :)
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Love the Zombie bosses :-* :-* :-*
I like the contrast of the bright red blood and the more muted tones of the rest of the miniatures.
What the 'kin hell is TCR when its at home?
Keith :?
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Tamiya Clear Red: X27
(http://graphics.hobbypeople.net/gallery/332297.jpg)
http://www.ontracks.co.uk/library_guides/59_guide_tamiya_acrylic.htm
Apparently the only red for blood. Thousands of zombies can't be wrong.... :D
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Aahh it all makes sense now :D :D
Keith
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Although citing any notion of "realism" in the context of zombies is of course fraught with problems, I did go for a fresh blood with a vague notion of it being either from the zed being reasonably fresh or from the zed having recently bitten a survivor.
Additionally, assuming the zombies actually contain any liquid form of blood (Max Brooks amongst others think not, yet in many ways the explosion of blood from a zombie headshot defines the genre IMO) then a lot of it would feasibly be evident from wounds caused during the zombies rather clumsy day to day activities I reckon. Also, assuming that the zombie is fresh, the blood from the injuries that actually infected the zombie could be the source.
Using the same blood tones regardless of varying flesh tones is a short cut: presumably different stages of decay would show different stages of "wetness" and so on.
Of course, rather than basing my painting colour choices on pseudo-science, perhaps I actually just enjoyed ladling large quantities of red paint of over the figures ;)
I painted a whole lot of zombies over the years with a lot more understated bloody areas and I was unhappy with the somewhat dried out appearance that it gave them. I possibly went a little bit too far in making these guys "wetter", even though I enjoyed the process quite a lot. Its a lot more "freeform" than most of the pernickity figure painting processes that I use.
Making the blood look like it comes from a couple of sources might both break up the brightness and be more "realistic". I have seen people use TCR as a matter of course for this but I have never had/used any of my own. In all honesty, I am sceptical of its "magic bullet for zombie blood" reputation as I have seen some examples that didnt look right to me at all. Nonetheless, I bought a pot to try it out due to the feedback on this thread. Hopefully I will get around to trying it soon.
Thanks to everyone who gave their honest opinions, suggestions and compliments. Its why I posted the photos up in the first place :)
Just one thing, never said TCR was a magic bullet, I've seen it applied appallingly on countless figures, I've only been using it for around six months or so but if you actually use and build on it, it creates some very nice effects. Using it neat looks crap.
Good luck
The Commander
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Just one thing, never said TCR was a magic bullet
Sure, no sweat :)
It was mentioned a couple of times on the thread but mainly, I mentioned the magic bullet thing because so many people swear by it, yet many of the examples that I have seen dont quite live up to the hype. I am looking forward to giving it a go myself. I am interested to see what makes it different from old GW red ink for example.
I've only been using it for around six months or so but if you actually use and build on it, it creates some very nice effects. Using it neat looks crap.
Good to know, thanks :) If I can get it to work out I will post up some more bloody stuff some time.
Love the Zombie bosses Love Love Love
Thanks!
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I have had mixed results, sometimes the varnish can make it look matt. I have been putting it on after varnishing lately as a result
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Hate to go against the crowd, but I LIKE the amount of Red you've used. I love the way in contrasts to the 'dead' look.
I'm using Wyrd's killjoy as a zombie 'boss'.
(http://www.coolminiornot.com/pics/pics12/img46b6259da6f8f.jpg)
I should probably use a bit of TCR on that guy...his guts look a smidge dry.
Anyhow, keep it up! I love the witches especially.
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Sure, no sweat :)
It was mentioned a couple of times on the thread but mainly, I mentioned the magic bullet thing because so many people swear by it, yet many of the examples that I have seen dont quite live up to the hype. I am looking forward to giving it a go myself. I am interested to see what makes it different from old GW red ink for example.
Good to know, thanks :) If I can get it to work out I will post up some more bloody stuff some time.
Thanks!
It's not an ink and don't use a good brush, though water based it will kill it!
Ta
The Commander
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Hate to go against the crowd, but I LIKE the amount of Red you've used. I love the way in contrasts to the 'dead' look.
I like it too, even if the execution could be a bit better in places. It has made my zombie horde more pleasing to the eye I think, it... coagulates... all of the disparate miniatures and colours together a bit better. While I dont want the zombies to look like a cohesive force, I do enjoy having a theme running through them. Even if it is as simple as bright red blood.
I'm using Wyrd's killjoy as a zombie 'boss'.
Thats a lovely paintjob and a great figure. I must pick one of those guys up too. I particularly like the veins, its tempting to add some to my fat guys.
Anyhow, keep it up! I love the witches especially.
Thanks! Jockeys and Chargers are in the pipeline.
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Hate to go against the crowd, but I LIKE the amount of Red you've used. I love the way in contrasts to the 'dead' look.
I agree! Love the look!
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jockeys and chargers and witches OH MY!!!
LOL.
I'm also trying to sculpt some of my own 'zombie bosses' straight from L4D. Working on the boomer. I'll share if it turns out any good, but so far it's pretty hideous....
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Apparently the only red for blood. Thousands of zombies can't be wrong.... :D
Nahh, I prefer my old crusty blood mix better.
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After managing to schedule a little painting time for the never ending zombie project I decided to update this thread a little :)
I have had mixed results, sometimes the varnish can make it look matt. I have been putting it on after varnishing lately as a result
and
It's not an ink and don't use a good brush, though water based it will kill it!
After comments like the above earlier on in this thread I picked up some Tamiya Clear Red and modified the red areas on some of the figures pictured earlier. The links in the earlier photos in this thread have been updated.
Despite my scepticism regarding TCR, I have found it be very pleasing to work with. It have been using it to remove the ketchup-y element to the bloodier areas on my figures. I have updated the earlier photos on the thread for those interseted. Thanks to allthose who recommended it, I have found it to be a solid addition to my paint "arsenal". Thanks for the useful feedback to everyone who suggested it
In addition I have used TCR on the following figures, most of which are more zombie "personalities" for my games. The occasional regular zombie crept in however, just because I was enthusiastic about the Frothers Competition figures that I got in early January.
Finally, apologies for the dodgy exposure on the photos: I blame both the Irish climate and my unwillingness to devote a "proper" area to photograph figures... so far at least.
Comments and criticisms are always welcome :)
First a pair of L4D Hunters:
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/huntersf.jpg?w=450&h=237)
Although I didnt go to the trouble of sculpting duct tape to the legs and arms of the figures, they are still close enough to the image of the Hunter from L4D for me. I used a little licence re the clothes, adding a little more blue and brown than in the essentially monochrome video game characters.
As noted earlier, I am trying an experiment with these guys by basing them on square Warhammer bases in an effort to make them very distinct from the rest of the (mostly) round slot-based zombie horde. While I far prefer round bases, the square ones make them immediately identifiable in game terms, which is handy in terms of games with a lot of individual figures in play.
Which leads me to Patient Zero...
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/patientzerof.jpg?w=336&h=450)(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/patientzerob.jpg?w=297&h=450)
Patient Zero is a figure from the Frothers set released last year. The figure is supplied with a nice scenic tiled base (barely visible above). This combined with my current "square base = zombie character" approach meant that I elevated the figure to the status of Patient Zero (because it was easiest to give him a square base = zombie character). In game terms he will be a mobile spawn point or an essential assasination for the survivors or something similar.
The highlighting on his gown is a little more apparent in person (stupid photo exposure...). The figure has a couple of outbreaks of boils/pustules throughout. Inspired by Planet Terror I decided to paint them like the similar skin conditions present in the "Sickos" from that movie: purple-ish, so as to distinguish them a little from the bloody areas. Again, they are a little more prominent in the flesh that they are in the over-exposed photo (in contrast with the previously unseen mould line on his right arse cheek :( ).
I also painted a couple of the other Frothers figures. Although they dont really come under the umbrella of "Zombie Characters/Bosses", I am including them here anyway. Note that they are small figures and that the bases are 20mm slots, rather than the regular 25mm ones. I enjoyed painting these two :)
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/faithf.jpg?w=184&h=300)(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/faithb.jpg?w=194&h=300)
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/sherryf.jpg?w=262&h=300)(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/sherryb.jpg?w=249&h=300)
jockeys and chargers and witches OH MY!!!
Although I got the Witches done at an early stage the components for the Chargers and Jockeys are still sitting on my cutting mat. They should materialise soon, assuming that I dont get distracted by the post-apoc vibe that is turning me on recently :)
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Excellent work.Got my frothers undead in the pile....will have to dig them out look so good painted up.Great stuff!
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Very very very nice indeed! Very impressed good call mate!
Lets have your skin recipe to add to the mix then, really like the little girl, patient zero and the hunters so spill the beans!
The Commander
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Excellent work.Got my frothers undead in the pile....will have to dig them out look so good painted up.Great stuff!
Thanks! The Frothers survivors are probably the pick of the bunch I reckon, but the zombies are fun too.
Lets have your skin recipe to add to the mix then, really like the little girl, patient zero and the hunters so spill the beans!
Glad that you like them :)
Hunters & Patient Zero
Base coat GW Astronomican Grey/Codex Grey mix
A drybrush of pure Astronomican grey (mostly this is to give a guide as to where to highlight in the stage after next)
A lighter drybrush of pure white (very light here, for the same reason as above).
Highlight with thinned Astronomican to pull the grey into the white.
Further layered highlight with thinned down pure white.
Wash with thinned Ogryn Flesh if it looks too chalky.
Figures regularly (but not always) get a wash of Devlan Mud in the process of washing other parts of the figure. I think that Patient Zero and the Hunters got that, but I couldnt swear to it.
Girls (and pretty much all the basic zombies that I paint at the moment)
Basecoat GW Hormagaunt purple
Wash with GW Leviathan purple
Drybrush with Leviathan/Dheneb Stone mix
Drybrush with GW Dheneb Stone (this will look chalky. It will be reined in in the next stage.)
Highlight with thinned Dheneb stone to blend the purple to the stone, using the drybrush as a guide
Highlight with Bleached Bone.
I think thats it. Not very complicated and it doesnt require a high skill level or anything.
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Nice stuff,
Great jobb
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Good job Cheetor - nice to see someone else's take on the Frother's minis.
:)
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Jockeys this time:
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/jockey1f.jpg)
I am unaware of any existing miniatures available which are designed to represent a Jockey. I thought that it would be fun to put a couple together from parts of other figures to go with my Hunters and Witches. I based the figures that I put together on what I have seen of Jockeys in the video game (which isnt much, I just played it for an hour or two once) and mainly from the picture below.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/left4dead2jockey.png)
The Jockey as it appears in Left 4 Dead 2
I noticed recently that the plastic GW Crypt Ghouls have similarly hunched backs to Jockeys. The ghoul heads, while nice are a bit too recognisable and not human enough for my tastes. The also have pointed ears which I really wanted to avoid. They are bald too and I wanted the Jockeys to have hair so that they looked just a little bit different to the ghouls as they are supplied in the box.
With that in mind I replaced the ghoul heads with West Wind metal zombie heads. It was a simple thing to do, but I am quite pleased with how they turned out. I kept the ghoul heads for use in my upcoming modern vampire project.
Jockeys tend to squat a bit, and so the poses of the ghouls are just a little more upright than that of Jockeys. I didnt think that it would be worth the effort involved in reposing the Jockey legs however, so I left them as is.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/jockey1l.jpg)
In addition to odd clumps of body hair, Crypt Ghouls are also adorned with a lot of sharpened bones. Some are strapped to the model and others have been stuck through the models flesh like a piercing.
Ghouls that mutilate themselves is something that I hadnt ever really heard of before recently, but the last two sets of plastic ghoul miniatures that I have seen (the GW and the Mantic ones) both feature this self-mutilation motif. It must be "the new black" for ghouls.
Anyway, it was an easy enough job to remove the bones and make any of the remaining bits along with the hair look like scraps of clothing.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/jockey2f.jpg)
I am ok with the idea of Jockeys (and a couple of the other L4D "special" zeds, notably Hunters) having enough wherewithall to sort of dress themselves: they seem to be smarter than the average zombie. Therefore I didnt get too worked up about the idea of the strapping and rags that they are wearing. Who knows, maybe after the zompocalypse is over maybe the dominant society will be a Jockey one?
Finally, the Crypt Ghoul figures are quite heavily scarred. In the case of Jockeys, again I am not too stressed at the concept of them retaining some ability to heal themselves (probably at an accelerated, Resident Evil Tyrant-like rate).
I didnt do a terribly good job of painting the scars. The second Jockey has a whole lot more of them. As the second figure was the prototype Jockey that I made, I also like his pose less than the first guy shown. The first Jockey shown is my favourite by a long shot as a result: I actually kinda hate the second blonde Jockey because of his goofy, "classic undead" pose, but I have no intention of putting together another regardless. Two Jockeys is probably one more than I will ever use in games anyway.
The next L4D zombies that I get together will probably either be Smokers or, more likely, Chargers. I had parts to make my own Chargers but as Hasslefree have decided to release a figure that will put my efforts to shame, I may postpone the Chargers and go for another "special" zed type instead.
Comments, criticisms all happily accepted :)
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THey are spot on I looked at a box of these in GW today but never thought of this use great job mate :-*
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THey are spot on I looked at a box of these in GW today but never thought of this use great job mate :-*
Thanks! Your suggestion in another thread to use "Gollum" figures was a good idea too. I dont *think* that Jockeys are that titchy though.
That being said, if I had had a couple of Gollum figures knocking around then I am certain that they would have ended up being drafted :)
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Very nice idea and execution.
Not looking to buy a whole box so as an aside if anyone's got a couple of these knocking about send me a PM.
The Commander
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Very nice idea and execution.
Thanks :)
I am going to try and complete my L4D/L4D2 "special" zombie set as a medium term goal, although I have some more mundane "fast" zombies to finish off next (assuming that I can stop painting my post-apoc/sci-fi western stuff).
Not looking to buy a whole box so as an aside if anyone's got a couple of these knocking about send me a PM.
PM'ed.
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Ok, Cheetor, you are officially my new hero!!
:-* :-*
I've been wanting to get those Black Cat minis for some time....but I like things to 'scale up'...
Can you take a shot of your hunter with any of the Frothers zombies? (if you get the time or inclination, that is)
The Jockeys are absolutley perfect! (scale pic of those would be nice as well)
Between you, Akula, and the Commander....I'm finding ALL kinds of zombie inspiration....
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Ok, Cheetor, you are officially my new hero!!
Aw, shucks ;)
I've been wanting to get those Black Cat minis for some time....but I like things to 'scale up'...
I am not *very* preoccupied with scale stuff, although certain things do bug me. Regardless I have no problems with mixing the Black Cat "Hoodies" (my "Hunters") with any of my other zombie figures.
Can you take a shot of your hunter with any of the Frothers zombies? (if you get the time or inclination, that is)
It turns out that I have both time and inclination today :) The light at home was a bit crap however, so the colour repro is a bit off. For scale purposes the photos should be more than adequate nonetheless.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2050/03/p3290126.jpg)
L to R: Frothers, Hasslefree, Black Cat Bases, Foundry (she is on rollerblades, thats why she is quite tall. Probably not the best choice for scale comparison then I suppose...)
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2050/03/p3290127.jpg)
L to R: Frothers, GW, Black Cat Bases, Hasslefree, Frothers.
The Jockeys are absolutley perfect! (scale pic of those would be nice as well)
I am glad that you like them. I had the idea to use the ghouls about six months ago, but by the time they were finished I had been staring at them in various states for so long that I couldnt "see" them anymore. As a result I am happy that the feedback for them is positive.
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They scale up perfectly!!
Enough to convince me to buy them.
I'm so stealing all your ideas.....er I mean paying homage to your creations!
Thanks again Cheetor!!
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I'm so stealing all your ideas.....er I mean paying homage to your creations!
Feel free. Getting inspiration is what I go to this forum for.
Anyway, not all of them were my ideas. I borrowed the idea for the Hunters straight from THIS THREAD (http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=9517.msg109256#msg109256).
There is a really great Tank on that thread too.
Credit where credit is due and all that.
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Now, how'd I miss that?
Thanks again!
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Noice! I've not even started on painting my own zeds yet. There's certainly inspiration to be had in these waters.
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Thanks :)
I am going to try and complete my L4D/L4D2 "special" zombie set as a medium term goal, although I have some more mundane "fast" zombies to finish off next (assuming that I can stop painting my post-apoc/sci-fi western stuff).
PM'ed.
Received cheers.
Putting a little survival box together for you, will go out in the post tomorrow am, (Sorry bud, work and twins have meant that tomorrow is the first opportunity to get to the post office).
The Commander
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Possible Boomers, with a little greenstuff work?
http://www.trollandtoad.com/products/search.php?searchmode=basic&search_category=1177&search_words=blob&Image1.x=0&Image1.y=0 (http://www.trollandtoad.com/products/search.php?searchmode=basic&search_category=1177&search_words=blob&Image1.x=0&Image1.y=0)
And
http://www.trollandtoad.com/products/search.php?searchmode=basic&search_category=2131&search_words=bertha&Image1.x=0&Image1.y=0 (http://www.trollandtoad.com/products/search.php?searchmode=basic&search_category=2131&search_words=bertha&Image1.x=0&Image1.y=0)
(http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/4840/bertha01.jpg)
(http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/4687/bertha02.jpg)
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Possible Boomers, with a little greenstuff work?
Normally I am very wary of sculpting work: my "skills" in that department are rudimentary to say the least.
That said, I decided to make an effort to get a little better at sculpting recently, starting with my L4D Chargers. I am pleased with the result. As I have a Blob figure at home I might see if I can make his attire look a bit more day to day looking than a gigantic leotard :)
I have always had a fascination with that repulsive Bertha Horrorclix. She does seem like the ideal candidate for Boomer-isation.
I finished painting my Chargers last night. I will hopefully get to varnish them and maybe base them this evening. With some luck I will be able to post up some photos before next week.
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More Left 4 Dead "special" infected, this time Chargers from L4D2.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/chargersf.jpg)
Chargers as they appear in L4D2 are strangely mutated infected, even amongst the odd special infected that appear in the franchise. Their dominant feature is one hideously overgrown arm with a correspondingly massive diametrically opposed leg. The remaining limbs have atrophied almost entirely: it looks to me from the reference pictures almost as if they have been chemically burnt away.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/charger1.jpg)(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/charger2.jpg)
I was tempted to paint the wasted limbs in a similar way, but i was afraid that they might just end up looking a bit unfinished or confusing in the context of the other huge scaly arms, so I left the smaller limbs painted as the rest of the "normal" flesh is.
Like the other L4D special infected that I have put together/painted I wanted to go for an immediately recognisable look, but I didnt want to feel that I had to copy the concept exactly. Like the hoodies on the Hunters I thought that the hillbilly dungarees would help to suggest "Charger" so when I spotted the Cold Wars zombie in dungarees I figured that that sculpt would be good for use as the "chassis" for the figures.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/chargersother.jpg)
The right arms are made from a GW Chaos Mutation sprue arm and an Ork arm respectively. Both of those have had a lot of green stuff work done to them to blend them in, to bulk up the shoulders and add the scales. I had never used Green Stuff to do anything other than fill holes before these two figures and so I am pleased that they came out as well as they did.
The Charger on the right also had a head swap with a West Wind zombie.
The Hasslefree "Mutant Grant" figure is the obvious not-Charger figure available (but it isnt out until Salute in a few weeks I think).
I am a very big fan of Hasslefree figures but I must admit that Mutant Grant isnt really as Charger-y as I would like. Grant obviously has a huge deformed arm but for whatever reason Mr. Hasslefresian decided to sculpt Grant with two normal legs. That is of course up to him but it surprised me really.
The diagonal contrast of deformed big versus deformed small is one of the things that I like about the L4D Charger design. As a result I chopped off one of each of my Chargers feet and replaced them with feet from Heroclix figures (Wendigo and M&M Beast to be exact). Not that I am favourably comparing my very amateur sculpting and converting to anything from Hasslefree you understand, its just that I thought that it was a pity that Mutant Grant didnt have the one-big-foot look that I like.
Probably some Resident Evil "special" zeds next time.
Comments and critcisms all very desirable :)
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How does anything charge if its legs are mismatched? Wouldn't it hop, stumble, shamble or fall over instead? ???
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Wouldn't it hop, stumble, shamble or fall over instead? ???
Definitely :D
"Hopper" may have been a better name for the zombie type, but they probably couldnt sell it to the marketing department ;)
Its ridiculous and no doubt about it, but I like the way that it looks. In the video game it doesnt seem to cause them any serious ambulatory impairment anyway. I suspect that Chargers probably gallop a little like a large ape, except that they use one leg and one arm to propel themselves, rather than two big arms.
The bionic man also only had one bionic leg if memory serves. He seemed to do alright ;)
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Captured the essence well my friend.
:D
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Those chargers are looking awesome! During the game I like to get them to charge... then move out of their way. They smash into something and stun themselves! lol
"The bionic man also only had one bionic leg if memory serves." - He had both legs bionic... just one bionic arm though.
http://www.soundboard.com/sb/Bionic_Man_Sounds.aspx (http://www.soundboard.com/sb/Bionic_Man_Sounds.aspx) :D
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This is one from my 15mm collection. More of a character than a boss, but you tell the undead elephant he's not in charge.
(http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb225/emu2020/Gaming/Zombies/DSCF0710.jpg)
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Captured the essence well my friend.
Thanks. I think that it will be quite obvious to anyone who has played the video game exactly what the figures represent.
Those chargers are looking awesome!
Thanks. They were a bit of a gamble really, I didnt know if I could get them to look anything other than daft. Although there are a few things that I would change (I would make the poses more aggressive and dynamic for one thing), I am happy with the end result overall.
He had both legs bionic... just one bionic arm though.
I must have been getting his limbs mixed up then :)
I read an English comic in the late 70s or early 80s about a kid who had an accident and had bionics inserted, I think without him knowing. Naturally, he used them mainly to play football.
He only had one bionic leg and the writers used to go on about him having to ensure that when he jumped that he lifted off on the correct leg. Does anyone know what that story was called?
Meanwhile, back on the topic of zombie bosses...
This is one from my 15mm collection. More of a character than a boss, but you tell the undead elephant he's not in charge.
He looks like fun. No question that he is dead either with that huge chunk missing from his flank.
I am on the fence about zombie animals in general. I am ok with the idea of one or two species being succeptable to infection (like dogs in Resident Evil and the movie version of I am Legend) but if any species can become a zombie then it gets a little too silly for my tastes.
Still, if a species has to be chosen as vulnerable to zombie-itis, it might as well be a big scary elephant :)
Wasnt there an elephant who had mutated due to exposure in Resident Evil 2 or 3 (the games that is, not the movies)?
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My Hero strikes again!! :-* :-* :-* :-*
(in case you didn't know, that is ringing endorsement of your Charger!)
You continually impress me with your fantastic work. I love L4D, but have to admit, I love minis more....
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You continually impress me with your fantastic work.
Very kind. Thanks.
I love L4D, but have to admit, I love minis more....
Me too. The next zombie character stuff that I work on will probably be Resident Evil but I have more L4D stuff in the pipeline, in various stages of completion.
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"but if any species can become a zombie then it gets a little too silly for my tastes" - OMG!!! Isn't that the truth!!! Zombie fleas to spread the love, anyone?
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Just found these. New to me, but I"m sure you all already know about them. D@mn!! It always seems that I'm 2 or 3 steps behind you guys! lol
Hasslefree Charger?
http://www.hasslefreeminiatures.co.uk/pack.php?pack=2268 (http://www.hasslefreeminiatures.co.uk/pack.php?pack=2268)
Hasslefree Tank?
http://www.hasslefreeminiatures.co.uk/pack.php?pack=2267 (http://www.hasslefreeminiatures.co.uk/pack.php?pack=2267)
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Just found these. New to me, but I"m sure you all already know about them. D@mn!! It always seems that I'm 2 or 3 steps behind you guys! lol
Hasslefree Charger?
http://www.hasslefreeminiatures.co.uk/pack.php?pack=2268 (http://www.hasslefreeminiatures.co.uk/pack.php?pack=2268)
Hasslefree Tank?
http://www.hasslefreeminiatures.co.uk/pack.php?pack=2267 (http://www.hasslefreeminiatures.co.uk/pack.php?pack=2267)
Yup still are, these are for the Hasslefree participation game at salute 10.
Oh do keep up 007! ;)
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This installment has a couple of "special" zombies from Resident Evil, the iconic Licker and the less well known but eerie Regenerators from RE4. Both will be going up on my blog (http://sho3box.wordpress.com/) over the next while.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/plickerf2.jpg?w=255&h=300)
I am a big fan of the Resident Evil video games and Lickers have been one of the my favorite "special" zombie types in the franchise since the release of RE2 on PS1 back at the end of the last century, in 1998.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/licker1.jpg)
I am not much of a sculptor (I prefer to stick various components together rather than to sculpt bits) and so I was wary of getting the signature exposed brain look on my Licker. This has put me off trying to put together a suitable Licker miniature for years. I finally decided to bite the bullet and give it a go. I am happy with how the scuplted areas came out. I wont win any prizes for it, but it is adequate and the figure looks recognisable, so thats a score as far as I am concerned :)
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/plickerr.jpg?w=263&h=300)
The original miniature (a Horrorclix "Tickler", pictured below) had a row of spines on its back. Although they dont strictly correspond with the Licker "canon" I left them on for a bit of visual interest. Mutant variation like that is very in keeping with the whole RE thing anyway.
Next a pair of Regenerators from RE4.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/regeneratorsf1.jpg?w=299&h=203)
Regenerators are one of the more memorable bad guys from Resident Evil 4. They are the zombies that are animated by a number of Las Plagas parasites throughout their bodies (well they are called parasites, but I dont think that parasites inhabit dead things, do they?).
They were as creepy as all get out and required judicious use of the infra red sniper scope to surgically dispatch the various parasites that controlled it. Regular damage to a Regenerator was ineveitably... wait for it... regenerated. They were great bad guys and according to the Resident Evil Wiki, they are the only true zombies in the entire game. The rest of the bad guys generally being living humans inhabited by a parasitic bug of one sort or another dontcha know.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/iron-maiden-re4.jpg)
(The Iron Maiden above is a boss version of the Regenerator. As it is hard to find a decent picture of a Regenerator online you will have to settle for the boss version. The only real visual difference is the spikes that protrude from the Iron Maiden.)
The miniatures are Tortured Shamblers from Pardulon. The figures are resin and the pair that I got had a lot of flashing and a few bubbles. As a result I had difficulty painting them, particularly on the legs which had I had scraped almost featureless.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/regeneratorsb.jpg?w=300&h=236)
They worked out ok in the end although I would approach the painting differently if I were to paint them again.
The figures are a reasonable approximation of the game villains. Particularly, they figures have that somewhat palsied look that is very suggestive of the RE Regenerators, plus they are quite tall: very zombie boss like.
Finally, below is a comparative shot for scale purposes.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/p4250242.jpg?w=468&h=135)
L to R: Horrorclix Tickler (the basis for the Licker model), Pardulon Tortured Shambler, Lead Bones not-Leon S. Kennedy, Licker (converted Horrorclix), Hasslefree Ray, Pardulon Tortured Shambler.
Comments and critcisms all very welcome :)
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Great stuff. The chargers are excellent and the lickers even better. Your sculpting on the lickers' brains looks top notch btw! :)
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Great stuff. The chargers are excellent and the lickers even better. Your sculpting on the lickers' brains looks top notch btw! :)
Thanks for the feedback Blackstone. I have been wary of sculpted elements for years but I got a real kick out of sculpting bits on the Licker and Chargers. I am glad that you reckon that the sculpted bits worked out ok :)
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Excellent sculpting work there, Cheetor, and a fantastic project. It's great to see how things go from inspiration to painted models, and this thread shows that process really well. Looking forward to more, needless to say!
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I've been wanting those Pardulon Shamblers for some time...
Wonderful additions to your increasingly cool collection.
I envy your productivity.
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It's great to see how things go from inspiration to painted models, and this thread shows that process really well.
Im glad that you like it Hawkeye. I like seeing parts of the process in other peoples projects and so I like to include a little part of that here too :)
Looking forward to more, needless to say!
It looks like it will be Boomers next, following the pattern suggested by Warrenss2 earlier in the thread by using Heroclix Blob and Horrorclix Bertha.
I dont know when I will get around to them though, as I want to buy some sculpting tools and Procreate and the like before I work on them, but my dork budget is finite. So the Boomers are on hold for a little while.
I also keep getting distracted by other projects (like space monkeys, post-apocalyptic things and bug-hunts for example).
But probably Boomers or a Tank or a Boss from House of the Dead:Overkill next.
I've been wanting those Pardulon Shamblers for some time...
I like the creepy look that they have, but I did have issues with flash and mould lines as I mentioned. They are a good price and like I said, I really do like the twisted, painful and eerie poses. I recommend the Twisted Shamblers, but with a couple of reservations. I should have painted mine a little better too, but I ran out of patience.
Thanks for the encouragement guys :D
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Great work Cheetor your sculpting looks just fine. You should try some more sculpting.
Rob
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Rather than start another new thread about my own same stuff I am adding a couple more of my zombie characters here. Let me know if I am in breach of forum rules/etiquette please
I painted up some Tengu figures recently, all with a Left 4 Dead theme. I had mixed levels of success with them, but I will let you guys be the judge. The figures were fun to paint though (Tengu figures are great), even if I screwed up some elements a bit more than usual.
First a Witch...
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/luluf2.jpg)(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/lulub.jpg)
...then a Spitter...
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/lurlenef.jpg)(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/lurleneb.jpg)
...and finally a Boomer.
(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/p3050153b.jpg)(http://sho3box.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/p3050157b.jpg)
I know that I botched up some of the painting on these to a regrettable degree. I am not going to strip and repaint them though, I couldnt face it. I would rather paint something else. They are painted to a decent enough level to game with but I do wish that I could rewind just a couple of steps on the Spitter and Boomer.
Explanations as to why I made the choices that I did regarding paint schemes etc can be found on my blog in these posts if anyone is interested. I wont repeat my ramblings here.
Witch (http://sho3box.wordpress.com/2011/03/06/zombie-of-the-week-65-lulu/)
Spitter (http://sho3box.wordpress.com/2011/03/20/zombie-of-the-week-67-lurlene/)
Boomer (http://sho3box.wordpress.com/2011/03/13/zombie-of-the-week-66-huey/)
Comments and criticisms all very welcome :)
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The effect on that boomer is especially vile. :)
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Holy crap! Just seeing those immediately conjurred up the L4D sound effects for each character.
Nicely done. I'm green with envy! (and boomer bile)