Wednesday, 18 January 2023

From FrederickC - Some Lord of the Rings Bits and Bobs (107 points)

 No big points bomb this week as I have been down with a cold for a few days. I decided to work on clearing away a lot of loose ends to make room on my desk for some large projects that are coming down the pipe. What we have today is a mix of Uruk-hai Berserkers, Mordor Uruk-hai, some Dwarf Heroes, a trio of Trolls, and a collection of Mines of Moria terrain and dead.

The three Uruk-hai Berserkers are metal figures from Games Workshop that were mixed in with the secondhand Uruk-hai Scout that I was given. The paint job left much to be desired, so they got stripped back down to raw metal and then were primed black with a rattle can. Vallejo acrylics were used for most of the colors - Cavalry Brown for the skin areas, Leather Brown for the loincloth, sandals, and gloves, and Gun Metal for the helmet and sword. They were then given a coat of Army Painter Strong Tone Quickshade.



 The three Mordor Uruk-hai were from another blister of metal figures from Games Workshop that I picked up years ago, and they have been sitting in the pending box ever since they got mounted on their bases and primed black. Again, I used primarily Vallejo acrylics, but also some craft store acrylics that I still have in my paint box. I used a colour called Hippo Grey for the skin areas, and Charcoal for the cloaks. The leather pieces got painted a mix of Leather Brown, Chocolate Brown, and Flat Earth, while helmets, greaves, gauntlets, and weapons were painted with Gun Metal. Finally I gave them a coat of Citadel Agrax Earthshade.

 



 Next up are four Dwarven Heroes consisting of a Shieldbearer, a King's Champion, and two Heralds.These are resin figures from Games Workshop that were available at one time as metal miniatures. Like the Dwarves I painted for last week's submission, these were mounted on their bases, some sand glued down to the base with PVA glue, and then primed black with an airbrush. I used mostly Vallejo acrylics, but also some Partha paints for the True Blue and Bronze Metallic.

King's Champion flanked by two Heralds

A side view to show off the banner designs

A Shieldbearer is a Minor Hero bodyguard

A view from another angle to show off the shield design

 The three trolls are a mix of two Games Workshop Cave Trolls, one in metal and the other in plastic, and a Reaper Miniatures Mountain Troll that I am going to use as a Mordor Troll. The metal Cave Troll I purchased years ago, and like the Mordor Uruk-hai, it was prepped and then gathered dust. The plastic Cave Troll is the one that comes with the Mines of Moria starter box. Somebody bought it, but was only interested in the Moria Goblins and the Fellowship figures, so I ended up with the Cave Troll and the terrain. The Reaper Mountain Troll is a massive metal figure that has since been replaced with a plastic version of the sculpt. Again, Vallejo acrylics were used, followed by a wash of Citadel Agrax Earthshade. I had used Medium Flesh on the Mountain Troll as a base colour, and with the Earthshade wash, it came out looking a bit more orange than I expected, but it still looks pretty menacing. These all stand 55-60mm tall.

Reaper Mountain Troll, plastic Cave Troll, and metal Cave Troll
 
The backside of the trio of trolls

 Lastly I have two sets of terrain pieces from the Mines of Moria starter box. I got one set from someone who only wanted the Fellowship figures and the Moria Goblins, and the other from someone who just wanted all the figures, including the Cave Troll. So I ended up being given a total of 8 pillars, 4 trapdoors, 2 chests, 2 wells, 2 sarcophagi, and 6 assorted skeleton/skull pieces. These were all primed black using a rattle can, and then dry brushed with progressively lighter shades of grey. I used Iraqi Sand on the skeletons and skulls, Stone Grey on all the pages, Chocolate Brown on the chests and book covers, with Bronze Metallic and Gun Metal painted on various other bits. I then used a fine tipped Sharpie to put lines of dots and dashes on the pages to look like writing. Finally everything got a wash with Citadel Agrax Earthshade. I am not quite sure how this should all be scored, either just based on volume, or counting the 6 supine skeletons and two seated dead as half figures. The points claimed are for the mix of the two methods, but I will accept whatever adjustment Minion Miles makes.

Two sets of Mines of Moria terrain
 
An elevated view

A closeup showing the dead and skeletons and the detail on the pages

The points being claimed are as follows:

10 x 28mm figures @ 5 points = 50 points

8 x 28mm half figures @ 2.5 points = 20 points

3 x 54mm figures @ 10 points = 30 points

0.35 of a terrain cube @ 20 points = 7 points

 

Minion Miles: WOW these are great - especially the banners - top notch stuff.

23 comments:

  1. Love that a slow-week-entry for you is still 100+ points. Nice job Frederick.

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  2. This is a slow week! Lovely, really those Dwarves

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    1. Thanks, Peter. I think the Dwarves were the most enjoyable to paint, but I am to a fan of GW resin as a material.

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    2. "not" a fan of GW resin. (Damned autocorrect)

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  3. A wonderful LotR post, Frederick. I really like the Dwarf banner bearers.

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    1. Thanks, Curt. I reverted to some old school techniques to paint those.

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  4. Pretty dwarfs and Lotr pieces! Reaper troll looks like a good fit for a Mordor Troll.

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    1. Thanks, Teemu. The Reaper troll does the job, and at a fraction of the price of a GW troll.

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  5. A great collection this! I love those Mordor Uruk-Hai.

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    1. Thanks, Martijn. I wasn't too thrilled by their appearance until I applied the Citadel Agrax Earthshade, which really gave them the look I was trying to achieve.

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  6. Lovely fantasy roundup. That hippo grey works great for evil skin.

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    1. Thanks, Pete. It's the Agrax Earthshade wash that really gives it that evil look.

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  7. An excellent collection of figures!

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  8. Really nice tones on these!

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    1. Thanks, Barks. A lot is due to the 'magic of Citadel washes'.

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  9. Great stuff man - especially the dwarves and Moria terrain - we should get that out in a game!

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    1. Thanks, Dallas. I have been thinking of a narrative campaign related to Balin's reconquest of Moria. I certainly have the necessary dwarves, goblins, and cave trolls, and you have the 'fire demon'. :^)

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