Friday 23 December 2016

From KeithS: The Sightless Sisters (80 points)

Greetings from the snowy North!  For my first effort of the Challenge, I present to you the Sightless Sisters.  A few years back, I wrote a dungeon for my ongoing D&D game that I've since sold to be published as the Desert Shrine of the Sightless Sisters (eventually, I hope).  Anyway, the dungeon centers around a strange, ancient ziggurat deep in a lonely desert, which is said to be inhabited by a group of blind, voiceless women who guard an ancient secret.  The women have no eyes or tongues, hence the name.  I've since run the adventure a few times at gaming conventions, to some success.

I've thought for awhile that it'd be fun to paint miniatures to go along with the dungeon.  So, I ordered this bevy of 16 female warriors from Viking Forge (old Asgard line in 25mm) and managed to get them done from start to finish on Tuesday before heading to the Shire (New Hampshire) for Christmas with the family.

The obligatory group shot.  I agonized over the shields.  I did not want to paint them with anything that would give away the "secret" they guard.  Plus, painting the shields in all different colors allows for tracking their hit points in a melee.



The back side.  I mixed up the sheath colors a bit just for variety (same with hair color).  The tunic and leggings were different colors but, alas, after inking they looked pretty similar and not contrasty, as I'd intended.



The dead eyes were weird to do.  I dug them out with a pin - not perfect, but gives them a weird, freakish appearance, as intended.  The figures are all based for dungeon use, which for me involves using wood filler sculpted and carved to represent stone tiles.






The dead eyes...

All in all a relatively easy start, mainly to get on the board off the bat.  I still need their captain, but I've yet to find a figure that works. 

I'll be paint free for a few days until I return home, where I have hundreds of figures standing by, ready and primed!


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First, congratulations on your upcoming publication! That is very exciting news. 

Sightless (and tongueless) Sisters. How wonderfully macabre! As you say, their scarred eyes are very creepy and I quite like the flagstone bases you'e created for them. Will you be showing us more characters from the adventure? I hope so.

Well done Keith!

16 comments:

  1. Nice and very creepy first entry, sounds an interesting adventure to be sure

    Ian

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  2. Congratulations for the publications!!! Poor sisters...

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  3. Wow, cool back story and congrats on being published. Nice work all around.

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  4. Excellently creepy! And congratulations on becoming a published author!

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  5. At a quick first glance, these formidable action figures reminded me of my all-girls school field hockey team!
    Great back story and I look forward to finding out what their secret is ......

    And could Curt tag/label as Sarah's Choice?

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  6. Nothing wrong with the shields. I am pleased to be given a heads up about old Asgard as well. Nice to get some points on the table and these in no way disappoint!

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  7. Creepy stuff Keith. Very cool indeed!

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  8. While these ladies are a bit creepy indeed, there's nothing creepy about the paintjob: very nicely done!

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  9. Nice start, very atmospheric....

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  10. The eyes! The eyes! Creepy as heck--they'll make a great impression on the game table. Great job!

    I was irresistibly reminded of this slice of surrealism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ2q9NmYf6g

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  11. The dead eyes are quite spooky, you achieved your desired result there, to be sure.
    Best,
    M

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  12. Nice outing and very unsettling. It must be part of the women's DNA to color coordinate despite blindness. I would hazard a guess that my wife would say removing the eyes and tongues from themselves is backwards, as they shouldve done it to the men. Except for the men's ears which would be left perfect and unblemished! ;)

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