Kobolds, Part A: Bones 3 Figures

     This past week I painted 3 of the six Kobolds from the Bones 3 Stoneskull Expansion set.  The last time I painted Bones Kobolds as back in May of 2016, so I referred back to my past color schemes for these guys.
      I prepped the figures in the usual way; soaking them in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish- soap added, then giving them a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying them.  I then glued the figures to 7/8" fender washers with Aleene's Tacky glue.  I then glued the washers to a tongue depressor with a couple drops of the Elmer's glue each.

      I began by painting the figures entirely Ceramcoat "Black".  When the Black was dry, I painted their skin Folk Art "Barnyard Red".  I then painted any pants of leggings with Reaper MSP "Olive Skin", and then painted any tunics/clothing with Folk Art "Dark Brown".  After that, I painted loincloths, if they had one with Americana "Terra Cotta".

      Next,  I painted the armor on the central one with Citadel "Snakebite Leather", and the belts on all three with Americana "Sable Brown".  I then painted the ax handles and the shield backs with Americana "Light Cinnamon", and then did the front of the shields with Folk Art " Deep Tomato Red". AFter that, I painted the glove on the central one with Americana "Mississippi Mud".

   I then painted the metal work on the shields with the "Black", and then did the swords and axe heads with Folk Art Metallics "Gunmetal Grey".  I let the figures dry for a while, and then gave them all a wash with Citadel "Nuln Oil" wash.  As you might be able to tell, I applied the wash a little too heavily.  The figures turned out so dark, I felt I could get away with highlighting by just using the base colors.  So, when the wash was dry, I highlighted the figures' skin  with the base color "Barnyard Red". I then painted black noses on the Kobolds, and Reaper MSP "Holly Berry" dots for eyes.  I realized at this point that a couple of them had mouths open enough for the teeth to show, so I went back and painted them Crafter's Acrylic "Light Antique White".  I then applied a little Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" over the teeth.

     As I mentioned, highlighting the clothing and armor was done by just re-applying the base colors.  I then highlighted the swords and axe heads with Ceramcoat "Metallic Silver".  Lastly, I painted the entire base with Americana "Mississippi Mud".
     I let the figures dry overnight and the next day I gave them a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish.    Then, when  the varnish was dry, I used some white glue to flock the bases.  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed them with Winsor & Newton Professional "Matt Varnish".

     Well, there they are.  I have to say, these were not great figures, and seem almost Bones 1 in their level of quality as opposed to Bones 3; with soft details, and a bit of flash.  And I'm afraid I was rather uninspired to give them really top notch paint jobs.  But, they are perfect for mixing in with all the other Kobolds I have assembled from the other Kickstarters, so will look just fine on the tabletop.

     So, it looks like domestic shipping of Bones 4 will start next week... (fingers crossed) so there is a good chance my box could arrive sometime the following week (week of April 1st).  My plan is to paint up the other three Kobolds that came in Stoneskull for next Monday, and after that I should be able to post an unboxing post; perhaps on Thursday the 4th or Monday the 8th; followed by my first Bones 4 painted figures!

Translucent Slimes: Bones 2 Figure

     This past weekend was the Cold Wars miniatures gaming convention, so I needed something real quick to paint last week, since I only had a few days to complete it and I was still frantically painting cavalrymen for my War of the Roses game.  So, I chose the two translucent slimes that came with the Bones 2 Gelatinous Cube & Slimes Add-On set.
     I prepped the figures in the usual way; soaking them in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added and then rinsing and drying.   I then glued them to 1/2"x1/2" black-primed steel bases with Gorilla superglue gel.  I then glued the figures to a  tongue depressor with a couple drops of the Elmer's glue each.

I went back and forth about whether to even base these or not, as bases on translucents are difficult to handle because you can see them through the mini.  In the end I decided on these small steel bases, with the hopes that their size and  the irregular nature of the miniatures' surface would make them had to see.  They fit completely under the large flat slime, and only stuck out a little from the more vertical slime. Their thinness would help the minis sit almost flat on the surface of the table too.

    I decided I would go for a Green Slime look with the vertical one, and an Ochre Jelly look for the flat one. So, I began by painting the vertical one with Mr Color "Clear Green" (This is not an acrylic paint and comes with all sorts of scary warnings on the label, so I would not recommend it.  I only have it as I picked up on clearance at a local hobby shop before I realized what it was.  I hope to replace it soon with some Tamiya clear.) , and I painted the flat one with Tamiya Color "Clear Yellow".

     Next, I gave the vertical one a wash with Iron Wind Metals "Dark Green" ink, and the flat one a wash with Iron Wind Metals "Orange" ink.

     I was happy with the how the vertical one looked at his point, but wasn't satisfied with the flat one; so I painted the shallow areas and crevices of the flat one with some Tamiya Color "Clear Orange" using a wet brush to thin it a little. Lastly, I painted the base of the green one with Americana "Zinc
     When they were dry, I gave them a coat of Americana "DuraClear Gloss Varnish".  I realized I still wanted the base of the green one to be matte, so I subsequently sprayed the figure with Testor's "Dullcote".  When that was dry, I went back over just the slime with the "DuraClear Gloss Varnish", leaving the base flat.

     While simple, I'm really happy with how these turned out. 
      And in those that didn't hear the news, Reaper announced that they have begun Bones 4 Kickstarter fulfillment!  If you didn't see it, check out the Reaper CEO's video message for an amazing look at one of their Kickstarter fulfillment warehouses!

Basilisk: Bones 2 Figure

     This past week I wanted an easy to paint figure because of the pressing last minute painting I'm doing in preparation for Cold Wars this coming weekend.  So, I picked the Basilisk out of my remaining Bones 2 pile.
    I had no idea what a Basilisk was supposed to look like, so I turned to my old 1978 Monster Manual for Guidance.  It's description describes them as being dull brown with yellowish underbellies and glowing pale green eyes; so thats the coloration I decided to go for.
      I prepped the figure in the usual way, soaking it in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving it a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying it.  I then glued the figure to a black-primed 1" fender washer with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then placed the figure in my painting grip.

     I began by painting the whole figure including the base with Americana "Raw Umber", and then did the underbelly with Apple Barrel "Yellow".

     Then after those colors had time to dry, I gave the entire figure a wash with Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash.  When the wash was dry, I drybrushed the main body with Ceramcoat "territorial Beige", followed by a lighter drybrush with Americana "Khaki Tan".

     I continued with the drybrushing of the main body, moving next to Crafter's Acrylic "Taupe", and then just a touch of Americana "Bleached Sand".  After that, I used the "Bleached Sand" to paint the teeth, then highlighted the underbelly with Crafter's Acrylic "Daffodil Yellow".  Next, I painted the eyes with Crafter's Acrylic "Citrus Green", and then painted the center of the eye with the lighter Americana "Margarita".  I then lightly drybrushed around the eye with the "Margarita" to provide a little of the eyes' Object Source Lighting "glow".  I finished the figure by painting in Americana "Snow White" pupils in the eyes.
      I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish.    Then, when  the varnish was dry, I used some white glue to flock the base.  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed it with Testor's Dullcote". 

     Well, it was a rush job, and I think it shows a little; but in general I'm happy with it as a gaming figure.

Behir: Bones 3 Figure

    This past week I painted the Behir figure from the Bones 3 Stoneskull Expansion, as I continue to work my way through the remaining figures I haven't painted yet from that set while waiting for the arrival of Bones 4.  At this point, all I have left are the Kobolds and the big Iron Golem.
         I prepped the figure in the usual way, soaking the pieces in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving them a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying them.  Next, I assembled the figure using Gorilla Superglue gel.  I then glued the figure to a 3" fender washer with Aleene's Tacky glue.   In my rush to begin, I forgot to pre-prime the washer; so after I glued the figure on, I painted the washer with a brush on clear primer.   The washer didn't fit in my painting grip, so I hand held the washer for painting.
   

     I began by painting the head and main body with Crafter's Acrylic "Tropical Blue", and then painted the top back portion and the body crest with Americana "Forest Green".  After that, I painted the belly scales with Folk Art "Celadon Green".

     Next, I painted the horns with Americana "Wedgewood Blue", and then painted the mouth with Crafter's Acrylic "Tutti Frutti".  I then painted the teeth with Crafter's Acrylic "Light Antique White", and the claws with Reaper MSP "Frosty Blue". 

      At this point, I repainted the main body scales with Folk Art Color Shift "Blue Flash".   I let the figure dry for a while, and then I gave the entire thing a wash with Citadel "Nuln Oil" wash.  When the wash was dry, I drybrushed the main body scales with the base "Blue Flash" mixed with a little Folk Art Pearl "Aqua Moire".  I then hit a few individual scales with just the "Aqua Moire".

        Next, I drybrushed the back and body crest with Folk Art "Color Shift "Green Flash", and then drybrushed the belly scales with the base "Celadon Green", and then a little Americana "Snow White".  I then hit each claw with a dab of the "Celadon Green" as well.  After that, I highlighted the legs with a mix of the "Tropical Blue", and Crafter's Acrylic "Cool Blue".  I worked on the head next, highlighting the mouth with Crafter's Acrylic "Cherry Blossom Pink", and the teeth with the "Snow White".    I then highlighted the horns with Ceramcoat "Denim Blue".  After that, I painted the eyes with Crafter's Acrylic "Margarita " and gave them Black pupils, and then used the Black to paint in the nostrils as well.   Lastly, I painted the entire base with Americana "Mississippi Mud".

     I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish.    Then, when  the varnish was dry, I used some white glue to flock the base.  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed it with Testor's Dullcote".    When the Dullcote was dry, I painted the eyes with Americana "DuraClear Gloss Varnish".

         I'm really happy how this figure turned out.  I have to say though, the way it corkscrews around and has legs sticking out everywhere, it was a bit of challenge to paint.  This is one that might benefit from being painted disassembled first; or maybe assembled into top and bottom halves before painting.