Today we have another pair of heroes from FFG’s Journeys in Middle Earth board game. Since the last few posts of models from this game have been from the Forces of Shadow, I felt it was time to do another couple of player characters.
So first up we have the Chieftain of the Beornings himself, Beorn – in both his human and bear forms.
Beorn was one of those models that was hard to get started on, but then once I sat down and concentrated on working on him after the initial skin and fur coats, really almost painted himself in what turned out to be a pleasant morning and early afternoon where I got both forms completed.
There’s not a lot else to say here really, Naturalistic colours for both models, some pleasant blending, and they were done pretty simply and easily.
The second character for today is another one of the many (created) Heroes from Journeys in Middle-Earth board game in the form of Calaminth Took, presumably a relative of Pippin. I guess she provides the game with the same role for hobbits that Tauriel provides for the Hobbit films since there – as I mentioned when I posted my painted Elena and Beravor there aren’t a whole lot of canon female characters in Tolkien’s writings, and even fewer when it comes to adventurer-protagonist-type characters. Calaminth was cleaned and primed as I’d initially hoped to get her painted for Fembuary this year, but it didn’t end up happening at the time, so as a model that seemed relatively straightforward to get painted, I’ve gotten her done now, bit by bit over a few days.
Of course, this same expansion includes artwork for a female Rohirrim with African features and an Asian Elf, but I’ll have more to say regarding my thoughts on those models once I have them painted.
As far as painting Calaminth, there’s really not a lot to go on, so I took inspiration from the character card (as seen above). A bit of a cross between sterotypical Ye Olde Matronly English Inkeeper and “Hobbit”. (Complete with a somehow-immaculate apron even in the midst of adventuring in the wilds!) Another model that was a bit hard to get started on but went pretty smoothly and quickly once I did start work. And that’s that! Now I need to decide whether to paint another pair of heroes, or do some more villains. I’ve got plenty of both all ready and prepped for painting…
Azazel's Bitz Box. 
Great work on all 3 mate, shame the bear version is smaller than the man, but the painting is spot on. The colours you’ve gone with the Hobbit look spot on, and remind me of Sam’s wife in the movie
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Thanks Dave – and I do agree with both your and Rodor’s points on scale, but Boardgame models, I guess! Good spot on Sam’s wife as well!
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Lovely work mate – Calaminth is particularly fab!!
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And if you don’t agree, she’ll bonk you on the head!
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Well… more like on the knees 😂
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You’ve just made her sound *far* more intimidating:
Calamith Took, the kneecapping hobbit.
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Great work again as always Az.
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Thank you!
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Lovely work- I like the grey highlights on the fur- brighth without looking washed out.
Cheers,
Pete.
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Thanks Pete – highlighting black is always a (not) fun task! 😉
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Once again it seems to us that the scale between the miniatures has not been respected at all for these game pieces: Calaminth Took is about half the height of a Beorn in human form, which should be much more imposing than an average man. …
Nice work on the miniatures, however, and in particular on the bear’s fur and Beorn’s clothing.
Miss Took is a funny character, even if from the illustration on the card she seems to have a more agile and youthful aspect than the miniature transposition: she could be Pippin’s aunt, ready to beat him for his pranks, or join him on the next adventure!
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You’re not wrong, my friend – and as Dave pointed out, the Bear form of Beorn should really be bigger again than the mountain of a man!
He is a little bigger than the regular humans in the range, but I think once again the real culprit is their use – board game models – as distinct from our wargame models that (usually, sometimes) use a stricter, more consistent scale.
Then again, she is a Took – she might be closely related to old Bullroarer!
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Good work on the painting. That bear is especially impressive, you’ve taken the highlights really far and it has really paid off.
I think it’s quite nice to add in extra characters. In Tolkien’s time it might have been unthinkable to have an adventurous female protagonist but things have moved on. Regarding the elf and Rohirrim (I’m looking forward to seeing those), I don’t recall that Tolkein made any special comment that the people of Middle Earth looked particularly like northern Europeans (though it wouldn’t surprise me if he had intended it) so it shouldn’t be particularly ‘non-canon’ whatever they look like.
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I both disagree and agree with a lot of what you’ve written on different levels, though when discussing Tolkien’s intent we really do need to look at the context of his life and circumstances as well as when he wrote the stores. It’s pretty safe to assume that most of them looked very Algo-Saxon, though – given his reportedlystated aim of writing a “Mythology of England”. Anyway, once i paint those two, I’ll do a thought piece to go alongside it which should stimulatre some healthy discussion!. 🙂
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All very nice! 🙂 I particularly like Calaminth!
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Thank you, John!
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Lovely work on all three mate, though she might not be “cannon” Calaminth is a lovely miniature, she reminds me of Melissa McCathy (no bad thing tbh).
Cheers Roger.
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Non-canon is pretty much the only way to have more than a couple of females in a Middle-Earth setting, it turns out! 😀
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Awesome work, love the colors especially the cloak.
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Thank you, Nick!
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Calaminth is not a bad looking mini or creation from FFG (well other than almost all hobbits never leaving the Shire but nobody really follows that!). I really like the human Beorn too. He looks just perfect and you really painted him up nicely. Is it just me or is the bear form a little squat looking? I don’t care for the minis GW came up with Beorn and think they’re a little below GW’s usually high standards so I really am glad FFG (mostly) got him right!
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After having played a few miniatures and video games set in Middle-Earth, you’d think that Hobbits *not* leaving the shire are the rarity, wouldn’t you?
I do like the Beorn model as well, and the bear could really have done to be scaled up by at least 50%, but such is life with board game models, I suppose!
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