The Elemental King Surfaces

Followers of My Facebook are aware that since the beginning of February, I've been working on the Trollblood Gargantuan model, the "Mountain King." (For the game Hordes from Privateer Press.)

I'm proud to say that 4 months later, my Elemental King is complete and a fearsome addition to my Hordebloods Project. I've posted some pics around, but this page contains the high resolution photos, including close ups of some of the detail. (I'd appreciate votes on CoolMiniOrNot and feel free to comment on DeviantArt.) He's also currently entered in the Golden Vinci 2015 and Bananalicious 2 contests.

Much of the process to create him was photographed and documented. I'll be posting some detailed WIP's over the next while.

Noteworthy Details:

• Painting his Skin
• This was the most asked question I received during his WIP.
• Prime black, use a sponge to stipple grey and white layers, highlight with light airbrushing, a little more sponging, larger cracks and crevices painted black, then washes to deepen the subtle wrinkles, highlight with white pigment, (weathering powder) then finished with a can of satin hard coat and a layer of airbrushed matte varnish.
• Painting the Crystals
• I liked the stone I painted for Mulg and was going for a similar look here.
• Prime black, airbrushed dark to light, shaded using dabs of wet paint blended with an eyeliner brush and finally edge highlighted.
• Sculpting
• His gut and left shoulder were resculpted to compensate for having to raise his lower arm up on that log.
• Rust Effect on his collar, chains and brackets.



The original inspiration for this beast.

• Painting a cold-blue/grey NMM, then layering real paint on iron, covered in multiple coats of an oxidizing (rust causing) chemical.
• The 2 Turtles
• A green-stuff base covered in pieces of real turtle scutes naturally shed by my turtles.
• Special Effects
• Heavy artists gel was used in layers to sculpt the special effects like water, flames, etc.
• Plant Life
• It's all real.
• The greenery is hobby moss and there's mushroom like white growths.
• Lots of small flowers, plants and buds collected from Windsor, Ontario, Canada surround the Water Whelp on his right side.
• Pearly Nails
• His finger and toenails were carved out with a Dremel and replaced with pearl chips.
• Watery Base
• Boxed in with overhead (transparency) paper and heavy gel to close the gaps.
• Filled with Woodland Scenics Realistic Water, some gravel and sand added to different layers so the ground looks disturbed.
• Topped with heavy gel to create waves and ripples.

Again, I'll go into specifics on how all this was achieved over the next while. In the meantime, be patient :)

High Res Photos:

(Click any of these to see full size.)

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Take a look at my entire Hordebloods project. Here you will find each model broken down into links showing each step: Concept, Works in Progress, (for both sculpting and painting) and final photos