Bones 4 Miniatures: Blue!

I have returned to my color wheel schedule.  It's a new day, and blue is a fine color to reflect the fresh, clean energy of Spring!

It appears an outdoor gathering is in progress, with esteemed community members collecting near a memorial to brave local heroes.  There is the town chaplain (in muted blue vestment) and the town wizard (in mystical blue robes).  The event is catered by the tavern's serving lady carrying a tray, and a milkmaid carrying cow-fresh moolicious milk; both ladies are garbed in shades of blue. 

The statue has cracks and pits in it which clearly suggest weathered stone, but some parts of the statue were too long and thin to survive if they were carved out of stone.  So I imagined the statue was made out of stone and bronze, I tried to make the bronze look like the patina had worn away, but I think I kind of botched it due to haste. 

I hope that wizard has some powerful spells prepared, because whereas you or I have to deal with picnic ants, this garden party is about to be raided by fierce goblins!  Barely attired in blue fabric, these are the last of the organized goblin tribes in the Reaper Bones 4 kickstarter rewards; only straggler goblins remain. 

Again, because of the blue theme, I painted their armor and weapons as bronze with a grayish patina.  The patina is worn away at abrasion points.

Unfortunately, I kind of rushed this batch, and I discovered that I missed some spots, even on those goblins.  You would think that I would have extra time during the COVID19 quarantine, but I've been working from home and I feel like I'm busier than ever. 

Reaper Bushfire Relief & Bones 4 Miniatures: Animals!

Most animals in nature have neutral colors which provide valuable camouflage, but which do not fit my "color wheel" scheduling scheme; accordingly, I put several of these animals in their own batch.  In order to bring attention to the devastating Australian bushfires, I have selected models corresponding (more or less) with Australian wildlife.  Also, if you're looking for a thrilling adventure setting for your fantasy game featuring deadly wildlife, consider that many people describe Australia as a land 'where everything wants to kill you.'  Except the people; the people there are great.

Reaper Miniatures is helping Australian bushfire relief efforts with a fundraiser: for each purchase of Hope the Koala Druid by Jason Wiebe, Courage the Koala by Jason Wiebe, or the Australian Wildlife Pack by Andy Pieper, Reaper will donate $7.50 to the Australian Bushfire Relief Fund.  You can find out more about relief efforts by visiting Reaper or the RSPCA.  Australian legends tell of deadly drop bears, which look like giant koalas; when they hear a person speaking in a non-Australian accent, they drop out of their eucalyptus trees onto the hapless foreigners, viciously mauling and eating them.  Sure, they LOOK cute, but they are anything but cuddly.  Kangaroos will also beat the stuffing out of you, if they are provoked or otherwise in a bad mood.  I should point out that the minis I describe in this paragraph are cast in metal; the other minis I describe in this article are cast in Reaper's "black bones" plastic.

I understand that Australia's 'razorback' feral pigs are descended from domesticated farm animals and, although they will attack humans with deadly ferocity, they do not resemble the Dire Boar above.  The big lizard above is a Dire Crocodile, and I have painted it to honor the Australian saltwater crocodile.

For this Gulper catfish by Jason Wiebe, I was inspired by the beautiful colors of the blue salmon catfish (Neoarius graeffei), which actually has a slightly different fin configuration. If a giant catfish doesn't seem very scary, you should know that there are some Australian catfish who won't wait for prey to enter the water before they attack.

You will notice some colored orbs in this scene; these are sculpted as decorative carved pillar tops, but I have repurposed them as color-coded magical dungeon elements (like crystal balls and so forth).  As with my miniature painting scheme, I have used the color wheel as a motif in adventures ("use this ruby to activate the red portal, and this emerald to activate the green portal," for example), because I hope it's less frustrating for players if dungeon stuff has memorable colors, a distinctive appearance, and logical clues.  Plus, Bones 4 included 6 of these orbs, and the 6-spoked color wheel seemed a natural fit.