Some miniatures for Song of Blades and Heroes (Rust Monster face reveal)

[Hobgoblin]

Thanks, both!

Nice!  What's your recipe for speed painting his armour plates?  There's a good amount of shine which I like the look of.

It's very simple: undercoat in black gesso, painted in Vallejo Natural Steel, washed in GW Drakenhof Nightshade and then roughly highlighted in Vallejo Silver.

[Dark choda]

Thanks!  May I also ask how you apply your silver as a highlight?  I have vallejo silver (dropper bottle) and it's pretty gunky but also does not thin well with water.  As a result I usually glob on too thick.  Your highlights look nice and subtle and thin.

[Hobgoblin]

I just thin it with a very little water - maybe just a wet brush mixed in with what's on the wet palette. If you don't use a wet palette, you could give that a go; I think it helps with this sort of paint. I just folded a sponge into a plastic tub, soaked the sponge and used some baking paper over that. You have to refresh paper and water every so often, but it keeps the paints nice and damp.

[Hobgoblin]

Here's a Prince August orc I acquired from Mason (many thanks again!). I've always liked the simplicity of the Prince August miniatures - especially the orcs, hobgoblins and goblins (perfect for Alan Garner's svarts, I think). As a kid, I had the mould for the orc archer; the products were fielded as goblin archers in Warhammer, in very large numbers. I'm going to have a delve in the lead mountain to see if there are any sufficiently intact to repaint.

I seem to recall that Prince August used to sell cast miniatures as well as moulds - and that the shop-bought ones were always a good bit sharper than the ones you cast yourself. I suspect this guy is in the pre-cast category. Anyway, he's inspired me to dig out the dozen or so Mithril orcs I have (by the same designer, I think), to get a little warband painted up.

These guys are good for D&D, etc., because they have a suitably one-hit-die look next to human adventurers.

[Cubs]

We all know the feeling, when you've got a wicked itch right between the shoulder blades and you've only got a morning star to scratch it with. Ah, that takes me back. There was a joy to Prince August mins, that thrill of finding the 1-in-4 that was perfect! 

I really like the aesthetic of this Orc, it's just the pose that looks a little unusual. Great as an individual amongst others, but if I'd cast up a few dozen as a unit I'd be worrying they looked like a yoga class. Another fine addition to your collection of lovelies.

[Severian]

He's rather well done, isn't he. Very effective colours.

I think it's exactly right to say that they work well as odd figures but are weird in units. This was probably also true in 1985, but then I didn't care. It was enough of a triumph to have got a dozen wood elf archers with complete bows to worry about their strange hats and elbows... Still have all the moulds, mind you; a couple of years ago I even cast up a pair of French Napoleonic guns & crews to go with a brigade of old minifigs I was repainting. The smell of superheated talc from the drop moulds brought it all back...

[Dark choda]

Thanks for the tips with silver.

Very nice orc.  It is an inspiration seeing your work with older models and sad because it seems a lot of them are out of reach unless they are in an old lead pile.

I find myself looking for simpler sculpts with characterful faces because you've shown here how much life the face can bring to a model. Too many straps, chains, and knick knacks on a model just freeze my brain

[Bloggard]

ladle flashback -   

figure looks fine.

[Hobgoblin]

Thanks, all!

I really like the aesthetic of this Orc, it's just the pose that looks a little unusual. Great as an individual amongst others, but if I'd cast up a few dozen as a unit I'd be worrying they looked like a yoga class.

Yes, it's a shame that the right arm isn't a separate piece. It would work well angled forward - and with the mace swapped out for a spear.

It is an inspiration seeing your work with older models and sad because it seems a lot of them are out of reach unless they are in an old lead pile.

It's amazing, though, how much of the old stuff is still 'in print' - whether it's Grenadier through Mirliton, Ral Partha through RPE or Iron Wind, or Rieder through Alternative Armies. The Prince August moulds are still going strong - something that amazed me! I'd buy up the orc moulds in an instant were it not for the domestic disharmony that I fear would result!

Here are the quickest miniatures I've ever painted (and it shows!). Lots of excitement with ghouls in Saturday's D&D game led to me basing up these GW "goblins" at 10 last night. I slapped on the base colours late last night then tided them up (a bit) this morning in time for an early-afternoon debut in today's session. I'm going to tidy them up properly, but they caused a few squeals when they appeared behind the party. We're using a flexible phone tripod to stream the tabletop, and it took a moment or two until the party (both in the room and remote) noticed that the ghouls were behind them!

[beefcake]

Those are absolutely awesome. I want those goblins for ghouls too and I think you may have just tipped me over the edge into purchasing them finally (although I doubt I'll be able to source any at the moment). They look a lot better than a quick PJ. Great to see you are still managing to game via distance too!

[Swordisdrawn]

The ghouls look brilliant!

[Dark choda]

Thanks for tipping me to a few websites!  I'll have to place some orders.  Maybe more for creatures, goblinoids and such as they look fine with size variances.  I dont have a firm grasp of how the older stuff scales to what I already own but I suspect its smaller.

Also great ghouls! Makes me regret not pulling the trigger on the Escape from Goblin Town set a while back. 

[Severian]

Top work on the ghouls!

What colour did you use for the flesh? I've a couple of ghouls lined up for painting and am mulling over colours.

[Hobgoblin]

Thanks, all!

What colour did you use for the flesh? I've a couple of ghouls lined up for painting and am mulling over colours.

I undercoated them in black gesso, swabbed them with Vallejo silver-grey and then washed them with a mix of Athonian Camoshade and Drakenhof Nightshade. Then I roughly highlighted them with thinned silver-grey. The snouts/mouthparts and hands got a wash in heavily thinned red contrast paint (the deeper red of the two, whatever it's called).

Maybe more for creatures, goblinoids and such as they look fine with size variances.  I dont have a firm grasp of how the older stuff scales to what I already own but I suspect its smaller.

It's odd - even some of the very early stuff (I've been painting goblins from the 1970s!) scales well with modern stuff. But yes, creatures are definitely safer than humans - although a lot of older fantasy humans scale fine with modern historicals.

[Severian]

I undercoated them in black gesso, swabbed them with Vallejo silver-grey and then washed them with a mix of Athonian Camoshade and Drakenhof Nightshade. Then I roughly highlighted them with thinned silver-grey. The snouts/mouthparts and hands got a wash in heavily thinned red contrast paint (the deeper red of the two, whatever it's called).

Excellent, thanks.