From SidneyR: The Spider Demon for "The Lair of the Great Beast (35 points)

 

"Come into my parlour...."

So, dear Challengers, I have finally arrived at the Altar of the Snowlord, with just the final  Chamber to go.  When Curt suggested a creepy-crawly for the Chambers of Challenge XI map, I had in mind to paint a guardian spider-demon as my last Challenge to face before arriving at the final Chamber in the dungeon.

Maybe that's because I have had this magnificent sculpt in my lead mountain since I bought it in 2006.  I had originally purchased Him/She/It to complement my Japanese fantasy collection, but somehow - why oh why? - I'd left it until just about the last piece to paint in that collection. 

With the result that, as no collection is ever finished, I never painted it!  Not until now, that is... 

It is a wonderful sculpt, from Citadel Miniatures.  It comes in two parts, the body and legs as one casting and then a separate, malevolent head.  And its just incredibly.... brrrrr.... I don't now but it looks just - poised and ready.

Spiders are incredible creatures, and I have no problem in seeing this spider-demon as a fitting and cunning adversary for any brave adventurer getting this far into the dungeon. 

This Challenge I have loved painting ...pink.  What with the pink Book Golem leading the way, the pink Demon facing down the adventurers, and the pink Turtle Dragon all being painted, there was only one colour for this creepy dungeon dweller.  

A truly Slaanesh spider, then - enticing, cunning, exotic and chaotic - in the lurid pink shades of the Prince of Pleasure.   

As with so much in this Challenge, the non-historical sculpts have taken me back to the Village of Hommlet, to Starstone, to Cirith Ungol and to the adventurers in hundreds of dungeons of my youth in the Realms of Chaos.

Somehow, giant spiders seem so very AD&D - which to me, is another way of saying "they're so 1981"!

I'd painted up this female bard for a teleport within the Challenge, but I've not needed her in the end.  So, it's long overdue that she now is able to join her fellow adventurers in fighting their way into the Altar of the Snowlord.

She's a Midlam Miniatures sculpt, and - like all of the Midlam figures - is very cleanly cast and sculpted.  

I've had a thing for bards of all kinds for decades.  No, not the ludicrously over-blown bards of 1st Edition D&D, but the far more useful, rogues of later editions.  I always was entranced by their fighter/ thief/ magic-user/ Swiss Army Penknife skill-set - which is all a bit silly, but is the kind of thing which fits into so many fantasy settings.  

So here she is, plucking her lute and charming the spider-demon - well, at least she hopes so...

I added some additional green-stuff tresses to her hair.  I have no idea why I did this!  She had enough hair to start with, but now has lots more.  No doubt that strange fashion detail can come to the fore in some adventure.  Maybe she uses her hair to string her lute...?

And, because every adventure is better with friends, here's both the spider demon, the bard and her fellow adventurers from the Second Level, finally arrived at (nearly) Journey's End!

And for the points, there's one 25mm figure - the female bard - for 5 points, and then there's the sipder-demon.  He/She/It is quite large, so can I claim 10 points for the spider as a cavalry figure?  Miles can set me straight if that's 5 points too many (although, Miles, dear friend, be careful before you start any argument with a giant pink spider!!)  

And then there's 20 points for "The Lair of the Great Beast", totalling 35 points for this entry.

******* 

It is a very nice pink spider but ten points well.... oh hell I'm feeling generous but you'll need to let me interview you on the LWTV podcast sometime!  35 Points it shall be!

Miles