The Tools for the Job - Kingdom Death Lion Knight, Butcher, and Survivors

 While I feel particularly with Kingdom Death I've more often been doing models on the gloomier side, more recently I've been interested in more vibrant paint jobs, even when the midtones or general sentiment has been darker. With this set where my client asked that I do something that I felt fit each piece, the unifying characteristic is a general reference point in more classic fantasy book covers and movie posters, or just an older sensibility of miniatures painting.

The Ninth Circle - Blackstone Fortress Rein & Raus and Traitor Guard

 

I wish regular old Cadians looked even half as good as these scum.

Hunter's Instinct - Blackstone Fortress Dahyak Greekh (Kroot) and Beastmen

I have a soft spot for Kroot with capes. There are probably around a dozen kits and collections I regret parting with, and one of them is my little Kroot collection led by Anghkor Prok from one of the few Gamesdays I went to. I played Tau right when they very first came out, and I always liked the Kroot line (more than the main Tau one, especially in the early days) which has unfortunately gone nearly unsupported: one ancient plastic kit, three equally ancient metal kits (one of which didn't need a model), two variants on an Inquisitor-scale model, and a little Forge World stuff. More than that, I've also had a soft spot for underdog mercenaries, rabble, bandits, or otherwise independent forces for as long as I can remember, from Warmachine mercs to Malifaux Outcasts to Astral Claws/Red Corsairs, to any number of post-apocalyptic settings including Mordheim (another regret). I'm going to be personally honest here: I think this sensibility might be the most typically American part of my lifestyle, very much influenced by the ideology if not always the aesthetic of Westerns, etc.

Noblesse Oblige - Kingdom Death Lion God modification

This was a salvage operation, and I don't think I would have done it if the Lion God weren't scheduled to be variously upgraded by new content, such as the Silver City which I'm anticipating even if the kickstarter has dragged so long "excited" is far too strong a word.

Dead Man Walking - Night Lords Dreadnought / Hellbrute

A quick one, today. This guy is basically stock, minus a couple horns I cut off to give a lower profile. What was by far most interesting to me on this project was trying to reconcile the organic/biomechanical sensibility (which I feel tends to approach overly cartoony designs) with my Night Lords (which are generally quite subdued, to counter the overwrought aesthetic of bats 'n' lightning.  I tried to go with a sick, vaguely Akira-esque blending of flesh into machinery: I thought that simply making the organic forms metallic (so closer to organic metal) wouldn't read, while a clearer delineation between flesh and metal when I was laying down colors honestly made him look weirdly naked.

I'm not going to do a ton in this style, but I'm pretty happy with how he looks, since it gives me options on how to do others when I want to.

Compulsion to Repeat - Kingdom Death White Lion set

This guy is practically where it all started, for me and KD: the White Lion is the first monster I painted, and one of the earliest KD models I painted.

He was also the first that I converted, I believe the first base I cast, and one of the first I later revised, all of which I've done a lot in the years since.

Now the Darkness Got a Hold on Me - Huron Blackheart conversion

While the Astral Claws are easily my favorite chapter, and Huron is also one of my favorite characters, I think the stock model for Huron Blackheart is just... dumpy.

So, of course, I needed to do something about that.

Like a river's flow, it never ends - Kingdom Death Legend of Zelda Homages

So, it's been quite some time.

I don't know how frequently I'll be doing this, but I'm starting my blog up after a dry spell, because I know I could use something a little lighter than what's become my day-to-day that, like everyone else's, has been pretty derailed these past weeks.

I'm starting off with some nostalgic homages to my favorite ol' N64 game, plus a note about my absence.

Feed Me! - Kingdom Death Lonely Tree

The Lonely Tree is both the last expansion I've painted for a client or myself, and the last I personally bought. It's... a difficult model, but I'm pretty happy with how this one came out, even though it took way longer than I intended.

The Halls of the Past - Silver Tower collected, complete painted box

I realized recently that I've actually completed my Silver Tower collection, but never remembered to consolidate them into one big, snazzy post, so, here's a little trip down memory lane.

Surviving - Early Kingdom Death Survivors, and some characters

For me, Screaming armor still embodies the best parts of survivors in Kingdom Death.

Boss Rush - Kingdom Death Nemeses, Watcher, Smoke Knight, Twilight Knights

This version of the Gold Smoke Knight is one I'm quite proud of.

We are the Earth-Intruders, We are the sharp-shooters - Amalynn Shadowguide & Spindle Drones

Eldar were actually my first serious army, in any game with miniatures at all, so I wanted to do something special with Amalynn Shadowguide, a model I thought was so close to being awesome, but had ended up a bit flat.

In Fearful Day, In Raging Night - Kingdom Death Nemeses and Gorm set in blue

I think I used all of my better "blue" references up in earlier titles. This one is a bit obscure. (Nerd cred if you get it.)

The Faithful - Taddeus the Purifier & Rogue Psykers

Taddeus is... probably my least favorite of the Blackstone heroes. I don't really like playing cleric-type characters (I actually often do

, trying to make it work, but it rarely does), and I think his face is, well, one that only a mother could love.

Om Nom Nom - 1.5 edition Screaming Antelope & Friends

There's a special place in my heart for the fleshy, gross monster that is the Screaming Antelope, and it was the first of my Kingdom Death monsters that I was really pleased with, but that doesn't mean that I couldn't improve on it, too. While it's been slow progress, with 1.5's release, I've taken the opportunity to tune and update my own collection, too.

Flame and Shadow - Pious Vorne and Ur-ghuls

Pious Vorne is one of my favorite recent models.

I will wander through the pines and make my way to nature's shrines - Abyssal Woods set, Part 0

So, this was a lot of fun: with the Abyssal Woods campaign coming... uh... some time in the future, I was happy that my client went with my suggestion that all his expansions that would integrate into the campaign be a single palette.

Sailing the Seas of Cheese - Blackstone Fortress Explorers: Espern Lorcarno & Janus Draik

 My group has been slowly making our way through Warhammer Quest: Blackstone Fortress. Crawling through the space-dungeon, if you will.

The Plants and the Animals Eat Each Other - Kingdom Death Lonely Tree and Slenderman

So, the Lonely Tree marks the very last Kingdom Death "monster" I had left to paint, before completing the first wave of expansions, and is one of the trickiest things to paint, since it's a modular kit.