Boran Bronzebeard (A): Bones 5 Figure

     This week I finished up the first of the two "Boran Bronzebeard" figures I have. He is one of the Dwarf warrior models from the two The Dwarf King's Crypt Encounter Sets that I got through the Bones 5 Kickstarter.  Between the two sets, I have 12 of the Dwarf warriors (2 each of the 6 that came in each set.  

       I prepped the figures in the usual way, soaking them in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving them a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying them.  

     I decided I would do them up as a unit for use in various wargames, so I wanted to do one of the figures up as a distinct leader, and one up as a distinct assistant leader.  So, I needed to make some conversions to the figures to make them more distinct.  

      For the one that would be the leader, I decided I would swap out his axe for a war-hammer, since all the other warriors are axe-armed, it would make him more unique.  For the second figure, I decided to take the spare axe I now had, and put it in his left hand so he would be dual-wielding. 

They were easy conversions to do. I first sliced the axe off the first figure's hand, then drilled through the raised hand on that figure. Next,I drill a hole in the lowered left hand on the second figure. I then cut the war-hammer handle into two sections, and glued each into one end of the hand.  After that, I glued the spare axe into the left hand of the second figure.  (For the completed second figure, see: Boran Bronzebeard (B).

     I then trimmed down the bases of the figures, and glued them to 1" primed metal washers, using Aleene's Tacky Glue.   I then stuck the first one  on  pill bottle with a bit of blue-tac.

      I began painting by giving all the chainmail armor a coat of Ceramcoat "Black".  When dry, I drybrushed it with Folk Art Metallic "Gunmetal Grey".  I then went over it lightly with a drybrush of Reaper MSP "Polished Silver".  Next I painted his face, arms, and hands with a mix of Reaper MSP "Rosy Shadow", and Reaper MSP "Bronzed Shadow".

     Next, I painted his tunic sleeves with Reaper MSP "Dreidel Blue", and his cape with Reaper MSP "Void Blue".  After that, I painted the fur on his cape with Crafter's Acrylic "Storm Cloud Grey", and his shoes, belt and pouch with Reaper MSP "Noir Black".

     Then I painted his boot tops, and all the parts I planned to eventually paint metallic gold, with Accent "Mustard Seed".  I followed this with painting his beard with Reaper MSP "Auburn Shadow", his hammer handle with Reaper MSP "Chocolate Bar", and the hammer head and handle base with Americana "Zinc". 

          I noticed at that point that I had't painted the soles of his boots, so I quickly did those with Reaper MSP "Blackened Brown".  I then painted the beard holders and bracelets  with Folk Art Brushed Metal "Brushed Bronze", and the hammer head and handle base with the "Gunmetal Grey" that I had used earlier on the chainmail. 

     I let the figure dry for a while, and then gave his face, arms, and hands a coat of Reaper MSP "Flesh Wash". I let that dry, and then gave his beard and the bracelets a wash with Citadel Shade "Agrax Earthshade".  Another drying period, and I gave a coat of Citadel Shade "Nuln Oil" to his clothing, cape, fur, hammer, and boots. 

     Once more I let all the washes dry for a while, and then began on the highlighting.  First I painted his eyes, and then highlighted his skin with the base "Rosy Shadow", mixed with varying amounts of "Reaper MSP "Rosy Skin". I then highlighted his beard with first Crafter's Acrylic "Orange Spice", and then Accent "Golden Oxide". 

   Next, I highlighted his tunic with the base "Dreidel Blue", and some Reaper MSP Bones "Tropical Blue".  I then highlighted his cape with the base "Void Blue", and some Reaper MSP "Ultramarine Blue", with some final highlight touches with a little of the "Dreidel Blue".  After that, I highlighted his boot tops with the base "mustard Seed", and highlighted the boots, belt and pouch with the base "Noir Black" with  little of the "Tropical Blue" mixed in. 

       I then highlighted the fur on the cap with the base "Storm Cloud Grey", and some Americana "Grey Sky", and then did the highlights on the war-hammer handle with some Reaper MSP "Shield Brown".  After that, I highlighted his bracelets and beard rings with some Folk Art Metallic "Pure Gold", and some Ceramcoat "Wedding Gold". I wrapped up the painting by highlighting the war-hammer with the base "Gunmetal Grey", and a little of the "Polished Silver".

      I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave him a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish.  Then when the varnish was dry, I used some white glue to glue some sand onto the bases.  When this was dry I  painted it with Citadel Contrast "Wyldwood".  When that was dry,  I drybrushed the sand with Americana "Neutral Grey", and then a bit of Folk Art "Barn Wood".  Due to the weather, I was not able to give the figure a final spray varnish.

      In other news, way back in August of last year, I got in my head the idea to keep a couple of the figures from the Bones V Townsfolk Add-On at hand while painting, and made such and announcement when I posted about the Anchor of Damnation when I painted it: Here

   My thought was that as I had extra color dispensed from various dropper bottle paints I could use some of it to gradually apply colors to the Townsfolk.  This was a good idea, as I got base colors applied to both the figures; but the problem was I never had a time set aside to do the final finishing washes and highlights.

    Well this past week I set some time aside and finally finished those first two Townsfolk that had been languishing on my paint table in a half-completed state for a few months now.

Reeve Irremborg Planomap: Bones 4 Dreadmere Figure (Completed)

     I'm going to try something different this week.  Once again, over the past week my painting time was cut short, and I was not able to complete this week's figure.  But instead of posting nothing, and just putting it all off until next week, I thought I'd post as far as I've gotten today, and then add the rest when I complete it, which I hope will be Thursday.  Let's see how this works out.

     So, this past week I painted "Reeve Irremborg Planomap"  from the Bones 4  Dreadmere Expansion. While it's a relatively simple figure, it has a lot of fiddly details in all the buttons and embroidery sculpted into his clothing, and that was one thing that slowed me down.

    I prepped the figure in the usual way, soaking it in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving it a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying it.  I then trimmed the figure's integral base a little, and glued the figure to a 1" metal washer with some Aleene's Tacky glue.  I then placed the figure in my painting grip.   

     I began by painting his face and hands with Americana "Shading Flesh".  I then painted his coat, vest, and pants with Folk Art "Burgundy"; and his coat cuffs, collar, and the scalloping under the vest, with Americana "Antique White".  After that, I painted his cape, and shirt cuffs with Americana "Dove Gray".

     Next, I painted his hat, the strap across his chest, and his shoe with Ceramcoat "Black", and then painted his cane and wooden leg with Accent "Real Umber".   I then painted his hair and beard with Americana "Light Cinnamon", and the feather in his hat with the "Burgundy". 

     I then painted all the buttons, embroidered trim, and the fittings on his cane and wooden leg, with Accent "Mustard Seed".  I let this dry, and then painted over it with Folk Art Metallic "Pure Gold".  After everything had a while to dry,  I went back and gave everything, except the shirt cuffs and cape, a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash.   When this was dry, I gave the shirt cuffs and cape a coat of Citadel "Nuln Oil" wash. 

ADDED THURSDAY:    

 When the washes were all dry, I painted his eyes, and highlighted his face with Reaper MSP "Rosy Skin", and then Reaper MSP "Rosy Highlight".  Next, I highlighted his coat, vest, and pants with a mix of the base "Burgundy" and some Americana "Burgundy Wine".  I then did some lighter highlights with the "Burgundy Wine" mixed with some Crafter's Acrylic "Tutti Frutti".  I then moved to highlighting the fringe under his vest, his coat cuffs,  and coat lining using the base "Antique White", and then some Americana "Bleached Sand".

     Next, I highlighted his cape and shirt cuffs with the base "Dove Gray", and then some Americana "White".  I then went back and added ermine spots with the "Black".  After that, I highlighted the hat, shoe, and strap with Ceramcoat "Denim Blue".  I then moved on to his cane and wooden leg, highlighting them with Folk Art "Teddy Bear Brown".  Finishing up, I highlighted his beard with Accent "Golden Oxide", and ll th gold bits with Ceramcoat "Wedding Gold".   Lastly, I painted the figure's base with Americana "Mississippi Mud".

      I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish. I then used some white glue to glue some fine sand to the base.  When the sand was dry, I painted it with a coat of Americana "Charcoal Grey". When this was dry, I drybrushed the sand with the "Mississippi Mud", and then with some Apple Barrel "Rock Grey"; lastly I drybrushed it with a little Americana "Dove Grey".  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote". 

     And here he is complete!  I'm generally happy with how he turned out.  As with so many of Reaper's figures, this little guy just has a ton of character! 

Here is a photo next to a wizard I recently featured here on the blog, to give a sense of the size of the Reeve Irremborg Planomap figure next to a human miniature.

Dreadmere Fishmonger: Bones 4 Dreadmere Figure

    Over the past two weeks I've work on the "Fishmonger" figure from the Bones 4 Dreadmere Expansion.  This figure gave me a lot of trouble and while I thought it was going to be quick and easy, it ended up taking me two weeks to complete. 

       There's a few problems with this figure that really slowed me down.  First, this is a figure that should not come pre-glued.  The cart, its handles, as well as the hands, arms, and front of the bent-over woman are all just too close and cramped, and it is really difficult to get in there to paint any of it.  Second, the cart is designed so there is a lot of areas that should be open that are sculpted solid; for example, the area between the woman and cart is solid plastic, and the area under the cart between the wheels is solid plastic.  Likewise, the cubby hole where the tentacles are is solid.  This means a lot of weird optical issues to try and hide.  And thirdly,  the sculpting of the cart is problematic.  The net areas are sculpted with the net cut as slits into the model, not as raised lines.  This means simply dry brushing, or carefully painting, the lines of the net is not an option.  You have to somehow paint the cuts, either before or after painting what one would assume is the dark shadowed interior of whatever is behind the nets.  Also, the relief of everything sculpted on the cart, the knives, wheels, etc. is very thin, so painting these thin or narrow pieces and staying in the lines is hard, and there was lots of having to go back and paint over mistakes.  

       I prepped the figure in the usual way, soaking it in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving it a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying it.  I then trimmed the figure's integral base a little, and glued the figure to a 1" metal washer with Aleene's Tacky glue.  I then placed the figure in my painting grip.   

     I began by painting her face, arms and hands with Reaper MSP "Tanned Shadow".  I then painted her skirts with Reaper MSP "Fresh Blood", her blouse and apron with Folk Art "Dove Grey", and her wrap, hat, and hair with Ceramcoat "Charcoal".

     Next, I painted the area of netting with a thinned wash of Folk Art "Barn Wood".  When it was dry, I tried drybrushing it with the "Charcoal"  I wasn't entirely happy with this as the drybrushing covered over some of the slits cot to represent the net, obscuring the wash.  I then used the "Charcoal" to paint the solid area that were representing open spaces; the area between the cart and the lady, the area between the wheels, and the area at the bottom where the tentacles are emerging.  After that, I painted the cart and her bracelets with Americana "Antique Gold", the tentacles with Reaper MSP "Bronzed Shadow", and the knife holders and pouches with Americana "Asphaltum"

         Not being happy with the netting, I went back and hand-lined the worst covered portions back in using the "Barn Wood". I then painted the knife and cleaver handles with Accent "Real Umber", and the cleaver blade and wheel rims with Americana "Zinc".   When dry, I repainted the cleaver blade and wheel rims with Folk Art Metallics "Gunmetal Grey".  After that, I painted the fish with Ceramcoat "Metallic Silver", and while still wet, blended in some Folk Art Color Shift "Emerald Flash" on the head, fins, and tail.  I then painted the cart handrails and handles, as well as the woman's bracelets, with Folk Art Brushed Metal "Brushed Bronze".

     I let everything dry for a while, and then gave her face, arms, and skirts a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash.  When that was dry, I gave her blouse, hat, shawl, apron, and the fish a coat of Citadel "Nuln Oil" wash. Another drying period, and I gave the cart a coat of Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash, being careful to avoid the net areas.  Then, when everything was dry, I  painted her eyes, and then highlighted her face, arms, and hands with the base Tanned Shadow, and Reaper MSP " Tanned Skin".

      Next, I highlighted the skirts with Reaper MSP "Holly Berry", and then mixed in some Crafter's Acrylic "Pure Pumpkin" for lighter highlights.  I then  highlighted the blouse and apron with Folk Art "Dove Gray", and some Americana "Snow White". After that, I highlighted the hat and shawl with Americana "Zinc" followed by Americana "Neutral Grey"; and then highlighted her hair with Folk Art "Cloudy Day".         

     I then highlighted her pouch and purse with Folk Art "Teddy Bear Brown", and after that I highlighted the cart with the base "Antique Gold", and some Americana "Primary Yellow".  Next, I painted the front signboard with Ceramcoat "White", and when dry, painted a fish on it with Americana "Forest Green" (So even the illiterate peasants will know what she's selling).  I also used the "Forest Green" to paint some simple decorations on the cart's sides.  After that, I highlighted the tentacles with Americana "Terra Cotta", and then a little Apple Barrel "Flesh".

    Next, I highlighted the knife holders with Americana "Sable Brown", and then handles of the knves and cleaver with the "Teddy Bear Brown".  I then highlighted the fish with the base "Emerald Flash", and Metallic Silver.  After that, I highlighted the handrails, handles, and bracelets with DecoArt Dazzling Metallics "Bright Brass".   Lastly, I painted the figure's base with Americana "Mississippi Mud".

      I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish. I then used some white glue to glue some fine sand to the base.  When the sand was dry, I painted it with a coat of Americana "Charcoal Grey". When this was dry, I drybrushed the sand with the "Mississippi Mud", and then with some Apple Barrel "Rock Grey"; lastly I drybrushed it with a little Americana "Dove Grey".  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote". 

     Well, even though this figure was a bugger to paint, I'm quite pleased with it in the end.  I feel she came out very well, the cart came out good but not quite as good as she did, and the nets are still a mess.  But I did with them what I could, and am not a painter who beats my head on a project indefinitely.  

Dreadmere Townsfolk Fisherman: Bones 4 Figure

   This past week I painted the "Fisherman" townsfolk figure from the Bones 4 Dreadmere Expansion.

   All I could see when I looked at this figure, was the Gorton's Fisherman, so I decided jut to embrace that image, and Googled some photos of him to get a clearer idea of how exactly he was dressed.

     I prepped the figure in the usual way, soaking it in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving it a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying it.  I then trimmed the figure's integral base a little, and glued the figure to a 1" plastic base with some superglue.  I then placed the figure in my painting grip.   

     I began by painting his face and arms with Reaper MSP "Suntan Flesh".  I then painted his outfit with Americana "Antique Gold", and his shoes with Reaper MSP "Turkey Brown".

     Next, I painted his belt and sheath with Reaper MSP "Shield Brown", and his fishing kreel with Ceramcoat "Territorial Beige".  I then painted his side pouch with Americana "Terra Cotta", and the front pouch with Ceramcoat "Charcoal".  After that, I painted his gloves with Americana "Charcoal Grey", and the bottle with Americana "Leaf Green". I finished up his accessories by painting the rod with Americana "Sable Brown", and the reel and fish with Americana "Zinc".

     I then painted the fish with Folk Art Pearl "Aqua Moiré", and the reel with Folk Art Metallic "Gunmetal Grey". After that, I painted the fittings on the rod and the knife with Folk Art Metallic "Pure Gold".   

    I let everything dry for a while, and then I gave his skin and clothing a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash.  When that was dry, I gave his accessories a coat of Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash. Another drying period, and then I gave the front pouch and the fish a coat of "Nuln Oil" wash. 

     When all the washes were dry, I painted his eyes, and then highlighted his skin with Reaper MSP "Tanned Shadow and Reaper MSP "Tanned Skin".  Next, I painted his hair with the "Zinc", and then highlighted hit with Folk Art "Dove Grey".    After that, I highlighted his clothing with first Americana "Primary Yellow", and then Crafter's Acrylic "Bright Yellow".

     Next, I worked on highlighting all of the accessories.  First I highlighted his belt and sheath with Folk Art "Teddy Bear Brown", and then I did his fishing kreel with a mix of the base "Territorial Beige" and some Folk Art "Butter Pecan".  I then highlighted his side pouch with Reaper MSP "Hallowed Orange", and the front pouch with some of the "Zinc".  After that, I highlighted his gloves with a mix of the base  "Charcoal Grey" and some Apple Barrel "Rock Grey", and highlighted the bottle with some of the base "Leaf Green" and some Americana "Margarita" along with a little Americana "Snow White". I finished up by highlighting the rod with Reaper MSP "Olive Skin Highlight", and his shoes with the "Sable Brown". 

     I then highlighted the metal parts, using Deco Art Dazzling Metallics "Bright Brass" for the pole and knife fittings.   Lastly, I painted the figure's base with Americana "Mississippi Mud".

     I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish. I then used some white glue to glue some fine sand to the base.  When the sand was dry, I painted it with a coat of the "Charcoal Grey". When this was dry, I drybrushed the sand with Americana "Mississippi Mud", and then with some of the "Rock Grey"; lastly I drybrushed it with a little Americana "Dove Grey".  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote".  When the "Dullcote" was dry, I went back and repainted the fish and bottle with a little Americana "DuraClear Gloss" varnish.   

 

     Well, I like how this guy turned out.  He doesn't quite look the part of a medieval fantasy character in the bright safety yellow, but it's such an iconic look for a fisherman maybe the anachronism doesn't matter. :)  

Sheriff Drumfasser: Bones 4 Dreadmere Figure

     This past week I painted the "Sheriff Drumfasser" figure from the Bones 4 Dreadmere Expansion set.  

     I prepped the figure in the usual way, soaking it in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving it a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying it.  I then glued the figure to a brown-primed 1" fender washer with Aleene's Tacky glue.  I then placed the figure in my painting grip.    

I forgot to take a "before" picture prior to applying paint, so this is the shot from the Reaper webstore.

     I began by painting his face and hands with Reaper MSP "Bronzed Skin".  I then painted his vest with Apple Barrel "Apple Maple Syrup", and his coat with Accent "Forest Green". 

     Next, I painted his lapels, jacket lining, and cuffs with Americana "Antique Gold", and his boots, hat, scabbard pouch, and strap with Ceramcoat "Black".  After that, I painted his boot tops with Americana "Terra Cotta", and the scroll he's reading with Americana "Antique White". 

       While painting the cuffs, I had debated with myself whether they were in fact gauntlets that covered his hands, but had gone ahead and done them as cuffs.  I reversed my decision at this point, and went back and repainted them with the "Black" to be gauntlets.  I then painted all the buttons, fittings, etc., that I thought should be metal, with Folk Art Brushed Metal "Brushed Bronze".

     I let the figure dry for a while, and then I applied a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash to his face. After that, I applied some Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash to his vest, collar, coat lining, and scroll. And, finally, I applied some Citadel "Nuln Oil" wash to the outer coat, boots, hat, gauntlets and scabbard. 

     When the washes were dry, I painted his eyes, and then highlighted his face with the base "Bronzed Skin", and a bit of Reaper MSP "Bronzed Highlight".  I then painted his beard and hair with Reaper MSP "Coal Black", and then highlighted it with a little Crafter's Acrylic "Cool Blue". After that, I highlighted is vest with the base "Apple Maple Syrup", and a little Americana "Buttermilk".  I then applied a stippled pattern of Apple Barrel "Lemon Chiffon" in an attempt to give it the appearance of a little texture. 

     Next, I highlighted the boot tops with some of the base "Terra Cotta", and some Reaper MSP Hallowed Orange".   I then highlighted his coat with the base "Forrest Green" mixed with some Crafter's Acrylic "Holiday Green".   After that, I highlighted the lapels, and lining of the coat with the base Antique Gold", along with some Crafter's Acrylic "Bright Yellow", and some Crafter's Acrylic "Daffodil Yellow".

       I then highlighted the scroll with the base "Antique White", and then used Americana "Bleached Sand", and Crafter's Acrylic "Light Antique White" for further highlights.  Next, I highlighted the boots, scabbard, pouch, strap, and gauntlets with Americana "Zinc", and a little Americana "Grey Sky".  I went back and did some writing on the scroll with the "Black", and then highlighted the metal parts on the figure with some Folk Art Metallics "Pure Gold".   Lastly, I painted the figure's base with the "Mississippi Mud".

     I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish. I then used some white glue to glue some fine sand to the base.  When the sand was dry, I painted it with a coat of Americana "Charcoal Grey". When this was dry, I drybrushed the sand with the "Mississippi Mud", and then with some Apple Barrel "Rock Grey"; lastly I drybrushed it with a little Americana "Dove Grey".  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote".       

     I'm pleased with how he came out.  I noticed in the final photo that there is a black splotch under his right eye...and I'm not sure how it got there unless I smudged the black paint there accidentally while doing  the script on the scroll.  His right eye, located as it is under the hat, and wedged between his raised arm and the scroll, was not fun to work on from the start. And even now I can see it's a little lopsided.  But good enough; as trying to work further on it in that tight space will most likely not help.  I may however go back and try to fix that cheek splotch.