From EvanH: The Riddle of the Sphinx - Awdry's Atoll (45 points)

Greetings, Challengers and Challenge Fans! I've taken a balloon trip to the azure waters and pristine beaches of Awdry's Atoll, where the locals venerate shiny discs which are used in a multitude of ways.

Hoping to blend in, I have secured one of these discs, and here is the result.

But wait a minute, who's this young fellow in the travel-stained tunic? And why is he looking so apprehensive?

It's Oedipus, Prince of Corinth, on the road to Thebes. He's had an eventful journey. He accidentally killed a nobleman in a road rage incident, and fought off the man's retainers, barely escaping with his life. It's understandable that he's feeling a bit rattled. But this is something else...

On the road outside Thebes, with the tombs of the citizens on one side and a sheer cliff on the other, a monster has taken up residence; the Sphinx. Beautiful and terrible, she demands that all who approach the city answer her riddle. The bones of those who have failed rest among the grass and cobbles of the neglected road.

Oedipus composes himself. A prince of Corinth should not show fear, even if the smell of blood and musk around the monster threatens to overwhelm him.

She lazily stretches her wings, surreptitiously extending her claws. This will be easy, she thinks, he looks so tasty. She asks her riddle.

"What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening?"

Oedipus considers his answer. The Sphinx is crafty. Her riddles will be anything but literal.

He speaks.

"The answer is... man. He crawls on all fours as an infant, walks upright on two legs in his prime, and uses a stick to support himself in old age."

The Sphinx stares at Oedipus. The moments stretch into an eternity as the prince stares back, his heart pounding. But he knows he's answered correctly, or the Sphinx would have leaped upon him by now...

The Sphinx screams in rage. She leaps over Oedipus' head and over the cliff behind him, folding her wings and plummeting to her death on the rocks below. The curse of Thebes is lifted!

Oedipus enters the city and is acclaimed as a hero. The widowed Queen Jocasta notices the young man as well, and the Fates begin weaving new threads to snare mortals and drag them to their doom...

That's enough of the story for now. Let's look at the component parts of this vignette. Firstly, the base; a disc of foamcore was glued to the CD to give it a bit of depth, and the edges roughly chamfered back. The cobbled road was made by gluing a strip of textured paper to the base.

As you can see, the paper is perfect for the job. I picked it up at an art supplies shop in Sydney.

The groundwork was laid down with Vallejo White Pumice Paste and a mixture of sand and fine gravel. Pebbles and skulls were strewn about to emphasise the desolation of the Sphinx's lair, while Tajima Tufts provided the finishing touch. The grass tufts were drybrushed with light brown to give them a sere, dried-out look.

Oedipus is a Crusader Miniatures Apulian Spearman, given a head tilt and a bend to the leg so that he can prop up a foot and look the beastie in the eye.

The Sphinx is a Reaper Bones monster, painted in leonine colours to bring home her bestial nature. Make no mistake, this is a dangerous man-eater!

So points-wise, that's 5 points for Oedipus, 10 for the Sphinx (based on my previous lion hybrids such as Challenge IX's Griffin and Manticore), and 30 points for completing Awdry's Atoll, for a respectable 45 points.

Not sure about where to go from here, so we'll just have to see what grabs my attention next. Earth Goddess worshippers? More monsters? Floppy hats? Who can say?

Stay tuned...

Ev

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Wow, what an excellent little diorama here Even, really top notch.  While I have never been a huge "bones" fan as I find a lot of them pretty cartoony and some of the sculpts are pretty weak detail wise, there are ones like this that make me wish I would have backed some of the kickstarters.

Excellent choice of colours and composition here, please keep stuff like this coming!

-ByronM