Today I have the second of the three monstrous models from the Echidna’s Children boxed expansion set from Mythic Battles: Pantheon. Once again I’m submitting it for this year’s Monster March Painting Challenge being run by Swordmaster over at Path of an Outcast.
Inspiration for this model came largely from the official artwork, found in the rather nice Art Book that I got in the Kickstarter. The skin of the beast in Loic Muzy’s art is a rather ruddy tone, and I instead wanted something that wasn’t quite the colour of human skin, not quite the tone of a Lion’s coat. I did really like the stark contrast found in the painting, so I atttempted something not by using a zenithal spray of white over black (which all too many of the new-school of self-appointed “experts” making YouTube painting tutorials would say is the only way to paint) but by experimenting once again with Citadel’s Contrast paints. In this case, a very-dilluted with medium Wyldwood – which happens to be one of my least-liked colours from the range.
I feel like it came out pretty well, and certainly worked nicely as an experiment using this colour. I did go over it with some other colours, though – and with no signs of reactivation, it seemed to do the job without fuss. On the YouTubers point made above, the Zenithal technique is a worthwhile one, and I’m certainly not discounting it – just the rather dogmatic and arrogant way a lot of the YT’s present it while shilling this video’s sponsor. You’re not MJF, kids!
Originally the model’s wings were pretty much in the upright position, as this photo I “found” on the internet of an out-of-the-box version of the model shows. I gave it the old boiling water treatment, and luckily for me, the type of plastic these models are made from is stiff enough to hold the new pose pretty solidly. You can also see from this pic just how much I built up the base with slate chunks to fill in all of the open space on that large oblong disc.
The model’s not a bad one, but I’d hesitate to call it a good one. It’s got some very nice musulature on the lion’s body – possibly taken from a different 3d model? I wonder this since the heads are a lot more mediocre and the mane/hair down the beast’s back is simply made of verrry simple spikes that really don’t look like hair, fur or a mane of any kind – maybe Bart Simpson’s or a Dragonball Z character’s hair.
Still, the important thing (once again) is that the bloody thing is done and dusted! Adding one more step to being able to play this particular board game one day, and more realistically in the nearer future adding another monster to the stable for games like Kings of War, Age of Sigmar, or even Dragon Rampant.
As is custom for monster models, Chainsaw Girl Berkeley once again provides us with model scale (and yet another trophy for her wall!)
Azazel's Bitz Box. 
Nice work on the manticore. I wonder if it was a composite job, and a more experienced sculptor did the body.
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It certainly feels that way – or a store-bought asset with the wings, heads and “fur” bolted on later.
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Excellent work mate, the experiment with the tones has turned out brillantly.
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Thanks Dave – I appreciate that, the experiment on the skin contrast is probably the thing I’m happiest about on the model.
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Great work on the models, and MJF… I would never have thought to see him rear his ugly head here.
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Cheers Kenny! if you look around, subtle (and not to subtle) references to the squared circle aren’t terribly uncommon in my posts! 🙂
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Nice work mate.
Cheers Roger.
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Cheers Roger! 🙂
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Really nicely done mate – that flayed flesh is particularly fab, the repositioning of the wings has worked a treat! Well played mate 🤘
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Thank you Alex! Always flattered by your kind words!
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The wings adaptation turned out to be a genius move – much better. As usual, painted stellarly.
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Thanks Mark – once I did it, I was so much happier with the model than before!
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Nice work there- the pale brown tones came out especially well.
Cheers,
Pete.
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Cheers Pete – not quite so sickly-fleshy as the artwork, but there’s always another model down the road to give that look a try with… 😉
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Lovely work, the wing change and the base build up certainly work.
What are the bits coming out of the back meant to be, I’m not sure from the angle of the photos.
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Thank you! There’s hair sculpted like it’s from Dragonball Z, and then there’s a pair of …sticks? coming out of the back, with chains dangling from their top. I dunno, doesn’t make all that much sense to me, either!
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That Chimera’s power level is definitely over 9,000!!! I think it came out really nicely and I love your basing work as always. It really sets the scene around the mini as the basing should do. For what its worth, I completely agree with the need to zenithal prime your minis. I’ve never done that and I’d like to think that the quality of our paint jobs pretty much prove that it is an entirely unnecessary! 🙂
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Thanks! This model really needed the extra work on the base, as it was pretty large, plain and empty without some more slate and debris added – and now to me it looks like it’s movng across much more of an actual environment rather than another case of “tactical rock” – even if it reduced some of the height from the base..
Zenithal priming seems to pair well with Contrast paints and the like, and I’m playing with it on a few models I’ve got queued up – I don’t feel like I need to do it, but I’m always willing to play with a new technique to experiment a bit – except for those Army Painter reactivating paints – fuck those! 😀
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Excellent work, the piece looks lovely, and you’re spot on about the weird disconnect between different parts of the sculpt. Surprised by your take on Wyldwood though – for me it’s probably the best paint in the whole Contrast range. Horses and courses and all that, of course!
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Thanks Mikko!
On the paints thing, I guess for me I use the Contrast range mostly-thinned and mostly like a different kind of wash, over normal coloured paints – so in more subtle ways that the “official” way – not that there’s anything wrong with that – just the way the “feels” work best for me with them. Wyldwood is so dark with such strong pigment, I feel like I may as well just use a normal dark brown, then progressively drybrush/wash as normal – same with the Contrast Black, really…
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Yeah, it definitely looks like two different people sculpted this one. Nice work though, you’ve improved the bits that needed improvement and the final beast looks great.
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Thanks Wudu – not a favourite model by any means (well, I do like how the base turned out) – but most importantly – a completed one!
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