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Wednesday 28 July 2010

Patients is a virtue...

So back to Orc's Drift after a few distractions of an undead nature...

After scouring ebay for wounded and dying minis (a cheerful pursuit!) I have finally assembled enough poor souls for Ferndale Snart's field hospital in Orc's Drift! Can't believe I didn't think to look for wounded dwarfs and elves though to represent the three allies defending Palesandre!

Either way Ferndale's hospital is complete and I think that calls for a nice groupshot!



Loads of fun to paint - especially because they all have their eyes closed! Even tried my hand at a bit of modelling and sculpted (I use the term very tenuously!) some stretchers for them - should Ferndale persuade any of the defenders of Orc's Drift to leave their posts and help him evacuate his wards...




First to be admitted is Sir Malahed - a noble knight of the order of the Grand League. This brave warrior fell at the hands of a huge troll whilst holding back the advancing Goblin tribes around Ortar - taking a brutal blow to the head, Sir Malahed bought enough time for his brothers-in-arms to gallantly leg it in order to fight another day.





During the same engagement Lars Brett, a swordsman of the 2nd Ortar Volunteers, also lay badly wounded. With his regiment beleagured on all sides and the retreat ringing in his ears, Lars stood and fought only to be brought down by a cruel goblin scimitar.





Dumbledern an apprentice mage, called early from his studies at the college in Merlinas, also met his match in the struggle against the goblins. Seeing the destruction wrougt by the evil magic of the cackling shaman facing him, Dumbledern attempted to halt the onslaught by engaging him in a battle of minds. Sadly for the apprentice he was not ready for such an opponent and has remained in an uneasy coma ever since...




Lastly and by no means least is Laceras, a warrior of one of the hill tribes that dwell in the mountains above Kachas Pass. Seeing the danger posed by the Goblin attack many of these hardy mountain men have flocked to the Grand League's aid. Laceras acquitted himself well in battle - working himself into a bloody frenzy he dispatched no less than twelve of the green vermin before a curved and rusty blade opened him up. Unaware of the grievous wound, Laceras fought on until the fight was done and he finally collapsed from blood loss. His ox-like constitution certainly saved him that day and even now, slipping in and out of consciousness, he deliriously calls for meat and ale to assuage his terrible hunger!





Will these brave men escape a second doom at the hands of the Kwae Karr orcs? Will Ferndale Snart stay sober enough to tend to their wounds?

One thing is for certain - being a patient has one virtue - in their unconscious states they are blissfully unaware of the green tide that yet creeps towards them, while the dwarfs and elves who crouch behind their make-shift barricades know all too well the fate that will befall fair Palesandre should their last stand fail...

2 comments:

  1. You always do such a nice job with your browns - not only leather but skin tones as well. Can you give a newbie a few pointers? :)

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  2. Pretty simple to be honest - I always feel I'm cheating a bit with the leather!

    First off undercoat the mini grey and when dry, wash with a watered down black ink wash - instant shading (thanks to King of Daveness!). Then I paint the leather bits in Vallejo leather brown mixed with matt medium so as not to obscure the shading, lighten that with vallejo buff and highlight. Then its just a straight brown ink wash - gives it a bit of a shine like leather!

    As for flesh - as above with the undercoating - then vallejo flat flesh mixed with matt medium, lighten it with white and highlight. For the wash I mix brown ink with matt medium (to take the shine off) and water it down.

    As an added cheat I always wash the whole mini afterwards with a very watered down black ink wash, also mixed with matt medium, to bring out the detail.

    Gotta love that matt medium!!

    Like I say with all those washes I feel a bit of a cheat - maybe one day when I've got time I'll master layering and all those other fiddly techniques...

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