Maledrakh picks some Bones

Ritual complete, the Undying Lord reached forth a skeletal hand, his hollow voice proclaiming, “I summon thee, Handmaidens of Yoldar. Come forth and dress thyselves in this New Flesh!”

   A pillar of eldritch fire burst from the summoning circle on the ground. The silent green flames burning without heat, consuming the remains of the virgin sacrifices. Atop the pillar; apparitions taking shape, squirming forms gradually coalescing into several young, naked women clinging to each other, writhing. A rising cacophony of gibbering howls, screams and moans erupted, voiceing the eternal hunger of the barren void. Palpable waves of noise rolled across the floor like a horrendous avalanche.

   The Lord basked in the green glow, his deranged batwinged henchman flapping hysterically, incessant cackling drowned out for once. The unflappable skeletal guard looking on, motionless, as the glowing forms seemingly came closer, into focus, becoming ever more …real.

—

Some random older Bones today, all of which have recently been rebased. When I originally recieved the first couple of Bones kickstarters I did not have a 3D printer, and was still using square bases for fantasy minis for the most part. Then came an extended period of trying out different styles and types of bases, and I eventually ended up using 30mm or 40mm rounds for them. I also have a tendency to prep, base and undercoat most minis before stuffing them in a box or a drawer to await painting.

Since I am a bit of a hoarder, this means that I have an …extensive… back catalogue of older minis waiting to be painted. And many of these are on bases that I no longer think fit the minis. This leads me to having bouts of rebasing every now and then, sticking them onto what currently are my go-to bases.

I like to believe that this means I get closer to the ideal base each time. Of course, no such ideal base exists outside of Platos Sphere of Forms.

It also means that sometimes I actually take the step to finish off some of these older minis as well as just rebase. Such as with these.

77558 Undying Lord of Death

—it has an all too human gaze, one that has seen it all…

Sculpted by Bob Ridolfi. This one is from the “Undying Lords” add-on set in the Bones 3 kickstarter.

I made it a 32mm 3Dprinted base.

77001 Skeletal Spearman

This is actually the O.G. Bones miniature. Way before the very first kickstarter, Reaper made and released a couple dozen or so of their most popular minis in this new PVC Bones material. These were cheap and obviously sold well enough that they chose to do a kickstarter to see if they could fund the moulds for some more. The kickstarter blew up. Massively. The rest is history.

This skeleton has the first bones SKU code of 77001. It is currently sold in packs of three identical skeletons. I believe I got this specific model as part of a Halloween gift in a mailorder shipment from Reaper some years ago. I had this model originally slated to be used in a diorama base for the colossal skeleton, but that did not materialise. It has been lying about the place ever since.

Being of the original Bones selection, it is made in the original soft and bendy material. You can see the soft details especially in the face. The teeth are barely there, and the eye sockets are not quite symmetrical. How much of this is because of shallow detailing in the original sculpt I do not know. It took a bit of boiling and pulling to reset the noodle-like spear into a semblance of straightness.

Sculpted by David Pugh

77631 Vorvorlaka

This is the second one of these I have painted, the first one being featured in a LAF painters league entry. I chose to paint this differently, with dark purple to red on the wings.

Nahnah-nahnah-nahnah-nahnah-Batman!

(Sorry I just had to.) This one has a 25mm base.

The Vorvorlaka is from the Graveyard Expansion in the Bones 3 kickstarter.

Sculpted by Bob Ridolfi

77095 Ghostly Summons

and with some light from beyond:

This mini is made in translucent green material. The key to painting translucents is to undercoat them with clear varnish. I used Army Painter Anti-Shine matt varnish spray for this one, back in the day.

I tried to pick out each of the three ladies with a different colour, at the same time trying out using Citadel Contrast on translucents for the first time. The top one is painted with Contrast Darkoath Flesh, I did not really like how it behaved, so I continued with shades: the next one with Citadel Reikland Flesh shade and the third one with Citadel Druuci Violet Shade. The green flames I did in the newly released Citadel Tesseract Glow technical paint.

As I stated above I did not like how the contrast paint behaved, I needed to go over the spots several times. The shades went on as usual, not much of a problem. The tesseract glow really upped the brightness of the green and made it seem much more glowy.

I based the whole thing on a 40mm base.

The Ghostly Summons if from the “Haunts” add-on in the Vampire Pledge Core Set from the first Bones kickstarter.

Sculpted by Julie Guthrie

What foul sorcery is this?!?

These minis were finished September 12th 2020.

It has been a while since I painted anything. A combination of my arms acting up again and my just not feeling it. Call it the recurring fallow season.

So I am getting back on track with some Orcs.  These are partly from the first Bones kickstarter and partly from the third. All together a nice little band of 10.

There are nine different orcs that are variants made on only two basic bodies, plus a singular warchief that I think fits in with the lot of them.

I originally based them on 40mm round bases with sloped edges, the thinner-than-citadel knockoff ones. But there was always something not quite right about them, the bases were simply too large for the minis. So off they came. I ended up with making 37mm 3D-printed ones instead. I think they fit well on these minis.

77064: Kavorgh, Orc Warboss
Sculpted by Bobby Jackson

This one is different from the others, much fatter/more thicc and with a significantly larger head.  Also the subtle and understated weapon has a different vibe to it. None of this is really all that strange since the model is made by a different sculptor than the rest.

A large one indeed!

This Orc is from the Bones 1 kickstarter Vampire Core Set, the BBEG subset.

all the rest were sculpted by Tre Manor:

77059 Orc Berzerker (Two Handed Sword)

This one is Starscream to Kavorghs Megatron.

77042 Orc Marauder (Sword and shield)

77051 Orc Stalker (Two Weapons)

77045 Orc Hunter (Spear)

77056 Orc Sniper (Archer)

Being from the first kickstarter, these are all in the original blinding white bendy bones that does not fare too well when compared to metal versions of the same mini. There is a certain loss of detail sharpness due to the material, especially noticeable in the mouth and around the nose and eyes.  On the other hand, the price is much lower and the material can withstand heavy handling and being thrown about without breaking. Also the weapons have a tendency to be a bit bent. I simply could not straighten out that spear any better than that!

These five orcs were all in the original KS Vampire pledge Core set selection of minis, a fact that lets us know that these minis were among the best selling metal minis Reaper had at the time.

But wait, there’s more!

From Bones 3 core set, “Orcs” subset:

77429 Orc Grunt 

77432 Orc Slicer (Scimitar and shield)

77430 Orc Slayer ( Axe and shield)

77431 Orc Chopper (2H axe)

These are further variants made on the same two bodies as the first lot. The reapermini.com webstore does not list the sculptor on these for some reason, but I am going with Tre Manor who did the original five. Presumably all nine of them were sculpted  at the same time, long before Bones even was a thing.

These four are made in the newer and improved Bones material. The PVC used in later Bones kickstarters is more rigid than the earlier iterations, and also with a hint of grey in the plastic. Still slightly bendy  and not brittle at all.

These orcs are larger than men. Several of the metal versions are called “Black Orcs” instead of just Orcs. For some reason, Reaper often have different names and/or designations for the metal and the bones versions of the same mini.

These minis were finished September 10th 2020.

Just some random older Bones today. I have been looking through the drawers a picking a few bones that I deemed in need of a different base than what I originally gave them. During my search I have come across a few minis that I got the itch to paint, here is the first batch:

From Bones 1, Nor’Okk the Ettin

…maybe I should get me a turntable and start making 360 videos instead…

50mm base

77103 Nor’Okk the Ettin

Reaper Miniatures 2012

from the Bones 1 kickstarter, “Mind Your Manors” add-on

Sculpted by Tre Manor

Bones classic (The orginial soft bendy material)

50mm base

From Bones 3, the Werearmadillo

Obviously, lycanthropy has spread too far…and this is a reminder that Reaper are from Texas, where armadillos are native and as I understand it, seen as pests. I would really like to know how the sales figures for this model compares to other lycanthropes.

This one was chosen for painting mostly for the easy win.

77498 Werearmadillo

from the Bones 3 Stoneskull expansion

Reaper Miniatures 2016

Sculpted by James Van Schaik

Classic Bones

50mm base

From Bones 3: Gug

“It was a paw, fully two feet and a half across, and equipped with formidable talons. After it came another paw, and after that a great black-furred arm to which both of the paws were attached by short forearms. Then two pink eyes shone, and the head of the awakened gug sentry, large as a barrel, wabbled into view. The eyes jutted two inches from each side, shaded by bony protuberances overgrown with coarse hairs. But the head was chiefly terrible because of the mouth. That mouth had great yellow fangs and ran from the top to the bottom of the head, opening vertically instead of horizontally.”

H.P.Lovecraft, The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath

Ahoy, my dream enemy! Have at you!

Also, this one will be a part of the Kings of War Nightstalkers army.

77524 Gug, Eldritch Horror

from the Bones 3 Mythos expansion

Reaper Miniatures 2016

Sculpted by Michael Brower

Classic Bones

40mm base

From Bones 3: Vegepygmies

The Children of the Forest. Now, where has that three eyed raven gotten to?

At last, vegetables that fight back! Take that you Vile Weeds!

77513 Vegepygmies

from the Bones 3 Stoneskull expansion

Reaper Miniatures 2016

Sculpted by Kevin Williams

Classic Bones

20mm bases

And at last:

With a meat cleaver, still looking for some elevenses.

Second breakfast!

77562 Undead Halfling Rogue

from Bones 3, Undying Lords add on

Reaper Miniatures 2016

Sculpted by Bob Ridolfi

Classic Bones

20mm base

All available from reapermini.com

These minis were finished June 28th 2020

The last couple of weeks have been full up with work and not much time for other things. I have been plonking away at these just a little at a time since my last post about a fortnight ago.  These are member of the Sauroid Tribes according to the flavour text. (Assuming the “Sauriod” is a typo, and the later “Sauroid” is the correct name). Each of “these warring tribes are highly territorial and will brook no trespassers on their sacred lands”, and they constantly battle both amongst themselves and with the warlike Jade Fire Clan orcs.

Cross referencing the tribe names in the flavor text with the kickstarter expansion image we find that each model represents a separate tribe:

From left to right Skywing, Bloodcrest. Blacktooth, Thunderfoot and Armorback. So that is five distinct tribes with a totalt of one miniature each available ;P

These have been released to retail by Reaper, so they have proper SKU numbers. (# in parenthesis are from the expansion image)

44063 Blacktooth Savage  (#601)

Tyrannosaurman! Painted in mostly the same scheme as the T-Rex-lookalike Blacktooth Terror. Black and red being markers for “evil”. He likes to wear thunderfoot skulls as pauldrons.

40mm base.

44064 Armorback Barbarian (#602)

Anklyosaurman! I found a picture of a tortoise with this colouration, so I went with it

32mm base.

44065  Thunderfoot Defender (#603)

Triceratopsman! Mostly the same colours as the upcoming Triceratops aka Thunderfoot Behemoth.

35mm base.

44066 Bloodcrest Smasher (#604)

Parasaurolophusman! Just some old-school dino colours for this one.

35mm base.

44067 Skywing Stormcaller (#605)

Pteranodonman! I modelled the paint scheme after a seagull. This one has a South American Prehispanic vibe going on. Probably on account of the headdress. Not the macahuitl at all. No sirree Bob!
32mm base.

You are in big trouble now, little man.

44063-44067 Sauroids

Bones 4 kickstarter, 2019

Reaper Miniatures

Sculpted by Chris Lewis

Made in Bones Black PVC

available from reapermini.com

These models were completed the 24th of April.

The “pictures or it never happened”picture:

The entire Bones 4 core set completed. 163 minis, including a few scenery bits, some chibis and a great big Dragon. All for a hundred bucks. Plus shipping, fees and taxes. So maybe around 200 bucks for me then. Still a massively good deal. Not pictured are also two different bags of bases that I did not use, and 4 more of each of the pillar toppers that were included in the set.

Ah, the quiet satisfaction of completing a thing and reaching a milestone. *Achievement unlocked*

so, onto the next. Onwards and upwards!

The Ape Attack! subset from the Bones 4 Core set

I chose to go different paths with each of them. These are so big, I think they are more useful as individuals than as a team. After all, there is only so much you can to with three giant apes, one of which that for some reason seems to have joined the Roman legions.

And I was not kidding when I said they were giant apes:

They are twice the height of a man, and what looks like ten times the mass.

#83: The Great White Ape

Drybrushed from black with a series of offwhites, ochre, beige and greys, and a couple of skin tones on the nekkid flesh.

This one does double duty as an abominable snowman.

40mm base.

#84: The Barlgura

A barlgura is a D&D chaotic evil demonic creature of the Abyssal plane. Described as semi-intelligent and brutally violent, looking like an eight foot tall blue-skinned Orangutan with wickedly sharp claws. The model is of a much larger Gorilla…Well… close enough. Let’s just call him King Louie and leave it at that. “Oobee-doo! I wanna beat up you-oo-oo!”

50mm base

#85: Ingkay Ongkay 

“My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next.” (Gladiator, 2000)

So, Reaper…Pray tell. What is it I am not familiar with here? In what context might I need a giant romanesque-armoured gladius-wielding ape exactly?

50mm base.

#83, #84, #85 the Ape Attack! subset

Bones 4 Core set, 2019

Reaper Miniatures

unknown sculptor

Made in Bonesium PVC

40mm and 50mm bases

should be available from reapermini.com some time in the future in Bones.

More from the Bones 4 core set: we have arrived at the subset “Hungering Dead”:

Yup, these are your archetypical ghouls. Flesh eating horrors out looking for some nosh. Gnawers of bone, eaters of the dead. Which begs the question: do they count as cannibals if they no longer are human?

Here is my very fast method of painting ghouls and similar effectively:

These started out with a solid black undercoat. Then each was drybrushed several times with different beige tones, such as Citadel Ionrach Skin and Karak Stone. Then they were given washes on the undersides with shades such as Citadel Athonian Camoshade and Team Yankee Ordnance Shade. When dry, they were lightly drybrushed again with lighter fleshtones up to almost pure white, keeping to the top surfaces which leaves a kind of zenithal effect. The base rock were done in dark greengrey, drybrushed with yellowy sand, and then lighter drybrushed with offwhite. Black eye sockets with a white dot for the eye lends a sinister look to them.

Dot in some details here and there, bases and done.  I did these ghouls and the Grymwatch in a single sitting, taking breaks for drying time only.

#123;

He brought his very own packed lunch.

#124:

Subject #B4C-124 displays elongated limbs on a gaunt frame, and a foul disposition when peckish.

#125:

Obviously the hero of the group.

A little too fresh for our tastes…

#123-125, the Hungering Dead subset

Bones 4 Core set, 2019

Reaper Miniatures

Sculpted by Bob Ridolfi

Made in Bonesium PVC

30mm bases.

should be available from reapermini.com some time in the future in Bones. At least two of these are currently available in metal.

Pallando, Radagast, Saruman, Gandalf, Alatar. The five Istari, or Maiar spirits, that were sent to Middle Earth in human form to counter the works of Sauron.

You will notice that Gandalf is originally both ginger and a heavy drinker.

(No, this is not what Reaper calls them. Yes, I should have used #45 as Gandalf and some completely different mini as Pallando if I wanted to take this more seriously. #11 is just another wizard that also was in the Bones 4 kickstarter Core set, but not from the “Wizards” subset that was added to the core set as a strech goal.)

#11: Gandalf the Grey

#45: Pallando the Blue

This could have been movie Gandalf.

#46: Saruman the White

Grima…have you seen my cape lately? It has a little picture of a skull on it….Grima… Are we the baddies?

#47: Alatar the Blue

…and his best friend Lil’Smaug.

#48: Radagast the Brown

…and his best friend The Angry Inch.

No, we are the good guys! Go bother some orcs!

#11, #45, #46, #47, #48

Bones 4 Core set, 2019, #11 plus the “Wizards” subset

Reaper Miniatures

Sculpted by Bobby Jackson

Made in Bonesium PVC

30mm bases

should be available from reapermini.com some time in the future in Bones.