GW Tomb Banshee "Washed"

Like the Moria Troll this little begger got my attention (see below, tip don't hang around the graveyards at night): 

The Vallejo Brown Wash is but the first step in the painting process

Tomb Banshee - Impulse Buy

Passing through Tesco last week I noticed an Age of Sigmar magazine, kind of overpriced at (£8) but in these times of "closed shops" and "no unnecessary travelling and mingling" it seemed an incredibly prudent buy on reflection. So I decided to treat myself seeing because it looked like a generic "cool undead" sculpt (see below, a D&D monster if there were ever a GW monster that could be used for other RPG games - I also got a bottle of red Khorne Bloodletter Red, which could be useful):

Welcome to the Painting Tray "Ms Tomb Banshee"!

The "Joy of Nurgle"

Following the recent posts about GW Fantasy figures that "took my eye" it may come as no surprise to you that yet another set has come my way .. this time that of Nurgle - yes the mark of chaos is truly on me now. The appeal of a set of figures that could be as easily used for 40K or Age of Sigmar was completely of secondary interest as I play neither - but I could do in the future if my kids want to. No the primary appeal was that of "The Dark of Nurgle"; the fact that I just "took to" the look and feel of the Nurgle Plaguebearers with their sprawling guts and infestations (see below, "plastic hell" comes your way):

I suspect this is how the Horus Heresy started (see below, as they come closer you just have to know that little bit more about them):

Each one seems just a bloated sack of bile and hatred for the "clean living" beings of the multiverses, but the closer you look you notice how each one has their own mark of uniqueness about them (see below, isn't there something to love about them?):

From a horned creature with abominations erupting from its stomach to another horned being of decay being tormented by a "Nurdling" hanging from its intestines (see below, what's more I can see no complicated army painting schemes being needed here):

In fact each Nurgle is unique, but that uniqueness is lost in the squabbling hoard intent on its mission of death (see below, who needs smart uniforms to look nasty?): 

Why try and be nice when you can be simply mean! This Nurgle in a former life was probably a "Tax Inspector" or "secondary School Teacher" - there must be sufficient pent up anger and hatred to freeze the blood of a Terminator or Pilgrim Priestess (see below, my guess is that this fellow does not care what you excuse is, you're guilty in his eyes and the sentence is death

As if the larger terrors were not cause in themselves to like Nurgel, these tiny terrors that "hang along" are reminiscent of the hoards of seemingly harmless small Snotlings that cavorted around Green Skins armies - harmless that is until they got in close with numbers and evil pointy things (se below, it is that insane mad grin that means you know you are in trouble - a bit of artistic license is taken with a few Nurgle Plaguebearer spare parts and a disembodied hand chasing a tiny Nurgle after it has obviously been "naughty" and needs punishing!): 

My initial use for these beasties will be to scare the pants off some unwary adventures in the bowels of the castle of a (very) Mad Mage! They will initially kill them easily enough, but then the when dying bodies explode, the splattered guts will cause mayhem in themselves and the adventurers woes will truly start.

More 28mm but it's not WWII rather it's Fantasy instead - Khorne Bloodletters

Following the perverted logic that if you leave me alone long enough in a shop (particularly one where there is models of any kind in) I will find something I like and invent a reason sufficiently plausible to my vulnerable mind to persuade me to buy. I have so acquired a pack of Bloodletters of Khorne - why? Well they fit into both Fantasy and Sci-Fi genres (well, at least to Games Workshops taxonomy of things - 40K and Age of Sigmar compatible) looked easy to build and fun to paint. They also came in a back of ten which meant they were a standard army box and not one of the exotic expensive specials. If I get as far as painting one up then it can prowl the dungeons of the D&D universe (or should that be multi-verses) scary the whits out of the shorter (20mm) adventurers! (see below, a horde of assembled monsters waiting to be processed):

I am thinking they will get the dunk and dip treatment and be painted to individual colour schemes, as opposed to an army formula. After all there are Fire (Red), Cold (Blue), Bile (Green) and Sun worshipping (Yellow) demons! I feel the need to go "Nurgle" in the not so near future ;)

Skeletons ... Just Because ...

No self-respecting fantasy Evil Lord of Darkness, Necromancer or Demi-Lich can ever have enough of them .. a bucket of skeletons (see below, they looked too cute not to get - honest, even a Paladin with a few spare gold coins couldn't pass them up):

They are really nice (see below, they are somewhat understated models from what I have come to expect from Game Workshop - uber swords and horns etc):

Something to scare the pants off your classic "First Level Adventurer" party as they turn the dungeon corridor corner .. "Turn foul beasts!" says the Cleric, but "Oh, I forgot I have to wait until I reach Second Level to do that now! [5th Ed!]" (see below, "You are passing the graveyard and notice the full moon is out .. you are surprised to find a hoard of angry skeletons coming at you!" said the DM in a sort of plausible but non-explanatory way .. "roll for initiative!" [Evil laughter]):

A close up of the nice sculpting (see below, this half skeleton was made out of some of the left over bits, lots to be fair - mostly weapons as you had the choice of a lot of swords or spears, I just mixed them up for an ad-hoc battle group):

All now put away in "cleaned up" butter plastic container waiting for their "painting day"!

GW ChainRasps but useful as Generic Fantasy Undead (Part 1):

Every now and then you come across a set of miniatures you have no particular need for (perhaps in the Order of Battle for the original Game System) but you can see how it can be used in another game system superbly well. I have to take my hat off to the sculptor who came up with the "Chainrasps" as they are as near a perfect set of undead ghosts you could want for. Simple in construction (very simple) and assembly (easy peasy) yet giving a voluminous floating feel, a haunting presence and a successful 'floating above the ground' look to them - how many figures of flying creatures have you seen that look like they are about to plummet to the ground? (see below, one sprue for £25 was not cheap, £2.50 a figure - but one set is probably all you need for any dungeon [yes I intend to use them for classic D&D, or rather 5th Edition] - I have been told they might feature in a bargain magazine feature, if so my advice is to snap them up, multiple times):

A close-up of some "Chainrasps" assembled but not yet painted and they look "good" (see below, two pieces of plastic glued together and that's it; their simple beauty has already pushed some of my other painting projects to one side - and there is the distinct danger of me buying some more undead from the same army range as they look equally generic to my eyes):

Next stage .. painting!