Dreadfire Portal - Painting Guide

Some weeks back, Games Workshop was having a sale on some of their fantasy-based scenary.  For anyone that knows Games Workshop products, this is very much a rarity and I decided to take advantage of it.  While I like miniatures and some props for the tabletop, I wasn't ever really big into scenary and, in part, the expense usually tied to it is the biggest deal breaker given how often one may end up using it.  In this case, I think the price was low enough to at least give it a shot.  One of the models from the lot is called the Dreadfire Portal.

It seemed pretty cool and not too difficult of a paint job to do what I wanted to do with it.  It's essentially a set of stairs that go up to a dias and the stairs themselves are held up by carved rock.  The carved rock are reapers and, while I have seen the model with these painted, I decided to just stick to a rock-like paint job and stairs which form up the majority of the model.

But before even starting to paint the model, I had to put it together.  I haven't had much luck with Games Workshop models and out of 5 kits I've opened to assemble and paint, 4 of them needed some work.  The plastic on this one was warped and had to be modified.  The model was cut from the sprues and cleaned up and, after it was glued together, a fair bit of greenstuff was used to fill the very obvious gabs.  Priming was a simple matter of stepping out on the balcony and spraying Chaos Black.

I still had a bit of misfortune though.  At one point I accidentally knocked it down from my worktable when reaching for something else on my desk.  A couple pieces broke off and it had to be re-glued before painting could begin.  Between the assembling and correcting of the model, priming, and then repairing the model, all this lasted twice as long than the actual painting did.

The key paint used for the base coast was 'Mechanicus Standard Grey' from the Citadel paint line.  The majority of the model needed this shade of grey and, aside from the dias, skulls, and flames, little else was needed.  The skulls circling the dias, the arches in the base, and on top of the pillars were done in 'Ushabti Bone' and the spikes, metal rings, and skull symbols in the dias was done in 'Gehenna's Gold'.  'Mournfang Brown' was used on the rest of the surface of the dias.  The blades on the scythes were done in 'Lead Belcher' with the blade edges down in 'Runefang Steel'.

With the exception of the flames and scythe blades, the entirety of the model was shaded using 'Nuln Oil' with a more generous amount applied to the skull ring and skull arches.  Afterwards, all stone received a drybrushing of 'Terminatus Stone', one of the dry compounds from Citadel.  The effect was turned out to be even better than I could have hoped for and looks amazing for something that was simple to do.  I also did some drybrushing on all the gold using the 'Golden Griffon' dry compound.

The flames were a concern initially but it ended up being a lot simpler than I thought.  Flames can be difficult to do well and I think it worked out well enough.  The flames received a coat of 'Averland Sunset' and I used a touch of 'Lugganath Orange' at the very base of the flames.  The flames got a wash of 'Fuegan Orange' while the model was upsiade down to allow the flow to come 'up' on the flames.  I touched up and brightened up the model and drybrushed with a bit of 'Kindelflame' followed by a wash of 'Casandora Yellow'.

With the model dry, I used a glossy varnish for the flames, dias surface, and scythe blades.  The rest of the model received a coat of matte varnish.

M

Sand Spider - Painting Guide

Since I did the Snow Spider quickly enough, I thought I would do up another in a different paint scheme.  Details on the Snow Spider can be found HERE.

Hence the Sand Spider was born.

The initial base coat once the model was primed was done in Citadel's 'Steel Legion Drab'. I used 'Nuln Oil' to shade the miniature and, like my Snow Spider followed up with two paints for some drybrushing in order to accentuate a few more of the details. I started with with 'Doombull Brown' which is one of Citadels's layer paints and then a bit of the dry compound called 'Undergive Ash'.

I finished the model by using Evil Sunz Scarlet' for the eyes and 'White Scar' with some 'Praxeti White' drybrushed for the fangs.

The work on this one from start to finish was just over a couple of hours (including all stages and drying times).

M

Weekend R&R: Fantasy Races Unlocked - Kobolds

For a few gamers, the name Christina Stiles will be a bit familiar.  The first time I encountered the name was with a pair of Dungeon Crawl Classics modules published by Goodman Games.  These were 'Assault on Stormbringer Castle' and 'The Stormbringer Juggernaught' -- both great modules written for D&D 3.x.  Christina has been involved in many different gaming projects over the years and also been a friend to Castles & Crusades.  Recently and under the label of 'Christina Stiles Presents', she has joined the tiny and select membership of third party publishers to produce material for C&C and has released a PDF entitled 'Fantasy Races Unlocked: Kobolds'.

I was initially excited to hear about the release.  Some my enthusiasm had to do with seeing others publishing for one of my favorite games.  The biggest reason for my excitement was because of what this release reminded me of -- 'The Complete Book of Humanoids'.

The Complete Book of Humanoids was part of the Player Reference series of brown books published by TSR for AD&D 2nd Edition.  There were many books in that series (15 if I remember correctly) but many were ones I could do without.  Not this one.  It became a favorite in my gaming group as it gave us a chance to play something a bit different.  I distinctly remember creating and playing a goblin which the party named Stoop.  He was a great underdog and fun to play.  The only humanoid which could be considered even more of an underdog though would be the lowly kobold.  Fodder for first level adventurers, kobolds get little respect but that doesn't mean that playing one couldn't be a lot of fun.  Who needs 'dragonborn' when you can play a kobold!  And yes, I realize they are a lot more reptilian than they are dog-like now if you compare the classic version of the kobold to the more modern rendition.  It is what it is folks. 

With the publication of this new gaming aid, you can for C&C.  What hopefully will end up being the first of many, Fantasy Races: Unlocked gives you all that you need to create and play a kobold for the C&C system and, by extension, other d20 based rules-light games.  For C&C 'purists', those gamers will be happy to know that the article follows the format of races as is found in the Players Handbook.  There sections covering description, society, personality, racial affinities, and their environment.  This is followed by an array of racial abilities and skills which will flesh out a kobold player character for the game with an array of bonuses and penalties distinct to the kobold.  The one thing I have noticed which helps this gaming aid stand out (since I already mentioned my fondness for a certain 2nd edition accessory) were the Alternate (and Optional) Racial Traits.  This represent a chance to play a Kobold slightly differently than what one may expect.  Think of it as a Kobold with a twist, if just having one as a PC wasn't enough.    Each are meant to replace one of the 'standard' kobold varieties and I really enjoyed seeing this included.

It's  a solid gaming aid even if it is very specific in purpose.  This, and the price may cause some fans to question its necessity.  I can't argue with the singular purpose with the game aid but, as indicated earlier, it is with hope we will see more and that helps justify this first step.  As for pricing... that's a tough call and very subjective.  As a developer and publisher, pricing is not something I take lightly.  People deserve to get paid for their work and a hefty investment (besides time) goes into something like this.  The PDF is a four page document but unfortunately, 2 of those pages are the cover and the credits/OGL page.  The document is professionally laid aid, editing top notch, and the art piece used is a bit whimsical and well done.  Fans of his art will recognize Peter Bradley's signature flair and this piece is simple and well done.  Artwork and layout costs money and, if you factor in RPGNows! cut, not much is gained if you consider the $2 price tag.  Some people will try to over think and justify not spending the couple of bucks but, given that I pay a lot more for a good cup of coffee, the amount of money spend on this gaming aid is a drop in the bucket.  I have always enjoyed Christina's work and this is a fine addition to the gaming library albeit short... just like a kobold should be.

You can find it HERE.

M

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Snow Spider - Painting Guide

With the highly successful Bones II Kickstarter ending yesterday, it only made sense (in my mind) to paint up and post a guide along with it. Having participated in last year's Kickstarter that Reaper did, I have only scratched the surface of the Bones Miniatures I have to paint.

The spider model was a neat but relatively easy model to paint as well as quite a bit of fun to do.

Priming was done in Gesso, as is my preference when working with the flexible plastic material that the Bones are made of, before starting with a white basecoat. As usual, I have used the Citadel line of paints to do the miniature.

With the first coat of paint applied (Ceramite White), I coated the entire model with 'Drakenhof Nightshade' -- a dark blue wash. Once dry, I drybrushed the model with 'Etherium Blue' and followed that with 'Praxeti White'. Both are dry compounds though I went a bit heavier with the white.

I finished the model by using a layer of 'Teclis Blue' for the eyes (all eight of them) and 'White Scar' for the fangs. Between drying times and various coats, it only took between 2-3 hours to do.

The 'Snow Spider' was a critter that I did up the stats for to use in 'A Trick on the Tain' -- a low-level adventure module for Castles & Crusades:

SPIDER, SNOW
NO. ENCOUNTERED: 1-3 / 1-8
SIZE: Medium
HD: 3d6
MOVE: 40' / 20' climb
AC: 15
ATTACKS: Bite (1d6)
SPECIAL: Twilight Vision, Poison, Surprise
SAVES: P
INT: Low
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
TYPE: Vermin
TREASURE: Nil
XP: 35 + 3


Snow Spiders are typically found in tundra and arctic-like
climates. They survive by burrowing in the snow and
insulating their lairs with its own silken webbing which
helps keep warm. These appear to be a large and hairy
spider and is largely blueish-white in color. It is also a
highly aggressive and more intelligent when compared
to other spiders. As opposed to spinning webs to ensnare
its prey, it prefers to burrow and use the snow as
camouflage and lay in wait till its target draws close.
Snow spiders are greatly feared by the people who live
in this climate.


Combat: The bite of a snow spider delivers a powerful
venom which is easily capable of paralyzing a full-sized
humanoid. It will typically wait till until the prey draws
before it bursts out of the snow to deliver this bite. Any
other of these spiders in the immediate area will converge
as well for the promise of sustenance.


Poison: Anyone bitten by a snow spider must make a
successful save vs poison or suffer from 1d2 points of
dexterity loss for up to 1d6 hours and be required to
make another saving throw the following round. Those
who fail the second save become paralyzed for 1d8 hours.


Surprise: Snow Spiders hide by burrowing into the
snow. When one of these spiders bursts out of hiding,
surprise checks are made at CL5.

'A Trick on the Tain is available for purchase HERE.

M

Path of a Crusader (C&C)

A few years ago, Arcana Creations put out three little titles for Castles & Crusades via Brave Halfling Publishing.  Early last week, I contacted Steve Chenault and, with Troll Lord Game's blessing, have renewed our commitment to publish material for the game.

In celebration of this, the three original titles have received price cut for the digital releases.  If you don't have any of them and are looking for an even better deal, the three have been bundled together for $9.50 -- giving you a savings $7.35 (44% off).

You can go to the Storefront HERE or straight to the Bundle over HERE.

It shouldn't be much longer now fellow Crusaders.  There are new quests on the horizon!  Hopefully these will tie you over till then.

M