Sculpting Fantasy Miniatures + Half-Elf Ranger + Martin Longbow

Martin Longbow. 

Ok. Seven miniatures in a month? Considering sculpting is a new hobby for me and I already have a full life, I am surprised I found the time! The unexpected joy that comes from creating a new character from wire and putty has brought delight, albeit at odd hours of the day.

Now thay I have seven miniatures, I will send them off to have them cast in metal. The latest figurine is another character from the glory days of gaming. Alex Packwood had a few memorable characters but two that stand out were Claris the Cleric and Martin Longbow. The former was a D&D (Redbox) character, whereas Martin Longbow an AD&D character.

The main difference between the games being that Race became independent of Class. New classes were also added. One of those classes was the Ranger. Invented by one of the player's in Gary Gygax's Greyhawk campaign, the Ranger was based upon Aragorn from The Lord of the Rings. Of course Aragorn was the original half-elf, so what better race to choose? In the 1st edition of AD&D playing a half-elf gave offered added benefits. In latter editions your character is better off as either a human or an elf.

Game mechanics aside, Martin borrowed his name from a character in Magician, a popular book by Raymond E. Feist. His best work in my opinion. As an aside the world of Midkemia was from Raymond's own houseruled D&D campaign, which had an invasion by Tekumel (from M. A. R. Barker's Empire of the Petal Throne.) In his novel Magician, Tekumel became Kelewan.

On one of our more memorable gaming nights, Martin broke his Longbow when Alex rolled a 1 during combat. Rolling a 1 on the 20 sided die was a critical failure and in our house rules for bows, that meant a broken bow. Alex picked up another bow and tried to shoot again the following round. He rolled another 1. And again. And again. After his fifth consecutive 1, Alex stood up, strode to the sliding doors, opened them and threw his cursed die into the night!

With this miniature I added a few new strings to my bow. I utilised more wire tham usual; to shape and support the arms and bow. The original studs were too bulky, so I employed a ball pump needle for the task. I also found a better tool for cloaks. It has a small convex end, like the back of a tiny spoon, that makes for cleaner sculpting of folding cloth.

God bless and enjoy your week!

Sculpting Fantasy Miniatures + Wizard Star Hat University

Fly you fools!

Part of the joy of belonging to a gaming group is the creativity that comes from sharing time together in world's where the only limit is your imagination. Such as this Wizard of Star Hat University, or *^U, a character that came from our D&D sessions. Grant Stone liked the star I had painted on a wizard's hat and that began the back storyline of where wizards get their qualifications.

I would say that I could have been smoother with the folds of the robes and cloak. However, this does give him a road worn look; a traveller of paths seldom tread. The backpack and scroll were inspired by an old Citadel miniature I have. There is a touch of Terry Pratchett's Rincewind, Gandalf the Grey and Merlin. Quite the blend!

Tamiya Epoxy Putty

So that makes four miniatures. I may need to come up with a name for this enterprise. Perry Miniatures is already taken!

Have an awesome weekend and God bless you and your endeavors this coming week.

Fellowship of the Miniatures Painting Challenge 2016

Wood Elf Sentinal 

My entry for the 2016 Fellowship of the Miniatures painting challenge, Red Widow the Elven Sentinal.

I began painting this miniature with a mind to enter a female character that wasn't one of the obvious ones from the books or movies. I then decided I would go a step further and create my own character based on the female Wood Elf Sentinal miniature. 

God bless you this Easter. 

Immortals Wargaming Club Miniature Painting Competition

Immortals Miniature Wargaming Club

On Monday night I was a judge at the Immortals Painting Competition. Vanessa and I managed to get through judging a few dozen miniatures from three categories in just under three hours. No mean feat! The standard of painting was incredible. I snapped some photos on my phone but you can see better ones (soon) on the Immortals Facebook page.

Phillip Porter takes professional photos of each entry. 

Vanessa watches as the totals are tallied. 

Champion Claire with her winning miniature. 

Awards on the sponsors table. 

Thanks to Daniel for inviting me. It was an amazing night with so many inspirational works of art. My photos do them no justice.

Although Warhammer 40k was a popular choice, there where also miniatures from other wargames, from Lord of the Rings to Malifaux. However, Claire's excellent Space Marine took out the small category and was also the overall winner. Her attention to fine detail was beyond compare.

God bless you and have a great week.