The Disgraced & Dethroned; A Dark Elf, Chaos & General Warhammer log by lilloser

[lilloser2010]

Cheers Hobbit. I've worked hard to try and work in the aesthetic value I connected with when I first started collecting Druchii.

LilLoser

[dadadda]

Beautiful works.

[lilloser2010]

Cheers guys. I know it's not much fun looking at W.I.P's but I have another couple of projects I'm working on that i'm quite proud of.


I've been thinking about the background of this force and where a sorceress would fit in. Cynath (my lord) is currently roaming the Chaos wastes North of the Wall having dooped a garrison manning the Naggarond watch towers. Any Coven sorceresses initially deceived would be liable to turn around raise an alarm - not very good news for Cynath, so he's had them assassinated. Without a medium, guide or seer, traveling the ephemeral wastes would be quite difficult; nigh on suicidal. That's where this beauty comes in, the sorceress simply known as the child of the wastes.

The Child of the Wastes

I already have a big cat for her familiar (she's a crazy cat lady who has grown up in the Chaos wastes), and I intend to model a big fur collar for her cloak. I'm not really sure how to model her cloak at this time. I like the sleek look i've managed to sculpt for her legs. It would be a shame to cover them up with a cloak. I'm also rather stuck as to what to do for her right arm. I don't want her holding a totem, seer staff or big skull thing. Any suggestions would be ace.

I've also mocked this baby up;

The Harridan 'Red Ruin'

I had Lelith's body lying around in my bitz box for ages and I decided to mock this gal up to paint. Not sure if she'll be included in Cynath's force, but she looks really fun to paint. Not sure why I chose the name either, other than it just seemed to fit the character of the miniature.

Until next time.

LilLoser,


P.S. I've been writing up articles on paint brand comparisons for my website. I'm publishing the second installment tomorrow that deals with Vallejo paint (first one is already up dealing with Citadel paints). I' really appreciate any feedback you may have to share on how the article was written, constructed or presented; or whether you agree or disagree with anything i've written. Cheers warseer.

[Malenky_malchick]

That's some nice sculpting, I'm looking forwards to seeing the finished figure.

As for the arms, a staff and a sword is an old standby that could work.

[JackDaw]

The Child of the Wastes is looking great so far - I'd even go so far as to say a cloak would spoil her a little, the smooth sleek look of those legs is too good to cover up in my opinion. Plus a barely clothed elven mage wandering the wastes has a nice otherly feel to it. Right arm wise, I think something subtle would be best, along the lines of a hand in an arcane gesture held down behind the line of her leg, so that facing her head on you can't see what her hand is doing?

[lilloser2010]

@ Malenky_malchick; Thanks for the support man. Really loving your blog.

@ JackDaw: Hey there. My appetite for finishing off my Dark Elves is all your fault (your log is great, a fantastic inspiration). I agree completely about keeping the elegance of the legs and not obscuring them. I plan on sculpting some armour and a big sweeping cloak that her right hand is catching in the wind.

Here are a few progress shots of my Spear Elf unit. I've completed the black armour, and i've started work on the spears themselves. Most of the army is now assembled and awaiting a base coat.







Until next time.

LilLoser

[Foxtrick]

Just wanted to say, I like your models and found the general introduction to this thread - superb and I would actially love to see any written literature you may about your armies

[Mr.chair]

Maybe you could have her holding/pushing her cloak back behind her with her left hand, to help keep her legs exposed. Love your stuff, as always.

[lilloser2010]

@ MrChair. Great to hear from you agian man. I now have a much firmer idea of what I want to do with the cloak.

Just wanted to say, I like your models and found the general introduction to this thread - superb and I would actially love to see any written literature you may about your armies

Cheers dude. Unfortunately posting the history I have worked up behind this army would breach this forum's policy. Cynath's Mother has unique methods of maintaining control of the Ch'Ihll house and asserting her dominance within Druchii society. I will post up a fuller history of this army in an article for my blogsite, but in the mean time, I can post up a little Blurb about Cynath himself:

Cynath Ch’Ihll The Bastard Prince, Disgraced Son of Naggarond.

Cynath is one of the many illegitimate children sired by the Gorgon Queen, and until his disgrace, enjoyed every depravity his namesake entitled him too. His father- sire remains a mystery even to the most gifted of intelligencers within the first city. Whether it be beast, mortal, or daemon, Cynath is burdened with the mantle of bastard and may never be ruler of his house. Young, capricious and vain, Cynath leads a private army of house soldiers at the head of his personal retinue of cold one knights.

Unable to take the mantle of Lord of the Black House, Cynath was marked for the life of an indolent prince, taking whatever pleasures he could in what would be an inevitably short, violent life. One of the black princes indiscretions earned him a temporary exile to the northern watch towers. On one of the hunting trips that occupied his time in the northern way towers, Cynath discovered an ebony and gold mask wearing the rictus grin of a forgotten elven god. The mask had an hallucinogenic effect of Cynath, allowing the bastard prince to dream the dreams of a dead god.

Fuelled by these strange dreams, Cynath lit the witch light of the towers and drove his host into the barren wastes. The host of the bastard prince now roams the wastes, driven by mad visions of an alien deity. The penalty for this desertion is disgrace for the ruling house, but the Ch'Ihll dynasty is little affected by the actions of a bastard offspring.


More progress, however incremental that advancement may be.



I've just bought a new set of brushes and just had to try them out on the banner bearer's face. I'm thrilled with the quality of the brushes and how this section of my army is turning out. I feel I've got the right balance of cartoon sinister and fantasy realism. While painting this miniature I came upon the cool idea of painting dark elves of rank in a slightly bluer tone. This signifies the current fashion in Naggarond at the moment and makes their high born stature instantly recognizable.



The motif of the army will be the Medusa shield from the Cold one kit. This is a playful nod toward some of the literature I used when creating the story behind the army and reflects somewhat on the uneasy relationship Cynath has with his Matriarchal mother.



And finally, another W.I.P pic of Val Kraihe (which translates from Druchii as the Crow)



More pictures and a blurb of history of this character soon on my blog.

[D6damage]

Dear god, these are awesome. Absolutely brilliant. And I'm sorry Lilloser, but I have to say this: if anyone from the Games Workshop design team is reading this, PLEASE shamelessly rip off Lilloser's spearmen designs - the current range of models stinks. This is how they should look.

[dadadda]

Wow, beautiful work! I love your Val Kraihe.

[JackDaw]

Love that little snippet of fluff for Cynath, loads of atmosphere behind it - drop me a pm when you've got the full story up on your blog, I'd love to read it.

Your spears are looking great as well, kudos to you for having the patience to paint each of them to that level. The mirrored effect on the blades is stunning, the skintone on the std bearer spot on and I love the asthetic of an entire unit with gorgon shields. The Crow is also an inspired piece of conversion and sculpting, theres so much movement there.

I'm postively jealous sir, the House of Chains pales in comparison to the Black House.

[Indreth]

Very dynamic pose of the Assassin! Great piece of Work!

[Kaos]

That assassin is going to be a killer! Yes, a BIG FAT PUN INTENDED! :P

Spearmen shaping up nice, looking forward as usual to the finished result! Even if it takes ten more years hehe

Cheers-Kaos

[lilloser2010]

@ d6damage; cheers man. I hope gw copy them too; it would make my life much easier to buy the kit instead of make them.

@dadda; thank you. The pose has been inspired by your own dynamic conversions.

@ jackdaw; thanks again man. I promised myself at the start of this project that there would
Be no compromises with this project. I've grown up with the dark elf range and I wanted my visual interpretation of the race to match up with the models on the field. It's something that your doing so impressively with your own dark elves and has inspired me to pick this project up again.

I'll pm you the rough draft of the mattiarch's fluff. In fact the crow's back histroy is inspired by your nickname- if you get the chance look up crows. They are unbelievably intelligent and enigmatic creatures.

@ indreth; thank you.

@kaos; cheers dude. I appreciate your continued support (for the next ten years as I finish off the front rank!) however,
I've put down the first layer on the base and blocked in the purple- and the warriors are on danger of looking complete. How unusual will that be.

I have a new target for this army. With rumours stirring of the druchii beig redone late 2013 I hope to have the army completed by then.

But I have been known to break a promise or two.

In the meantime, val's wip blog entry is up replete with additional photographs and this history;

Val Kraihe 'The Crow' Assassin

Studying one of the thousand aspects of Khaine the child only now remembered as the crow has become an outcast in the fraternity of assassins.*

While meditating on the Khaineth Zarrid (a death blow that shatters the spinal column) when a crow entered her enumerations and *posed the assassin a riddle.*

The child assassin, unable offer a response, barred her throat for restitution. When she awoke from her trance the child assassin found a pair of knives resting in her lap, but had lost her voice to the fled crow.*

Ever devorced from her elvish anima, the assassin has taken on bestial aspects. Her silence has been replaced with a hideous squawk. Her feet have become elongated ending in talons. Her back has become bent, a low sloping gait replacing her race's usual elegance.*

Rejected by her peers and mutilated by her masters, the crow occupies highest spires of Naggarond maddened by the riddle of the crow.

[Elfboy]

Absolutely stunning. That spearmen unit looks good enough to be an elite regiment. The effect on the spears look very nice.
That crow conversion promises to be something special too, nice bit of fluff as well.

[Malenky_malchick]

Those spear elves looks fantastic! I can't wait to see them all painted.

[Lord Azoth]

love your DE mate, the conversions rock! and this last one..this assassin really kills me!...keep on amazing us!

[lilloser2010]

Cheers Elfboy, Malenky_malchick and Lord Azoth.

An aside, The Cold One Knight

I've been hard at work (my real work, not this fun play-time work) but I have managed to complete the W.I.P of The Child of the Wastes (photos to follow).

I've been chasing an idea around my skull for the past week, and I think it would help me write down a few of these thoughts to clarify them. I'd love your input and I would especially love anyone with Game zone knights to post a comment.

I've just started to read the first of the Malus Darkblade books and when I envisioned the colds ones charge at the crossbowmen in the very first chapter, I realised it wasn't games workshop's raptor style I imagined in the scene; it was gamezone's predators.

I slumped back into my chair and looked over at the W.I.P cold ones I've had created and thought '*****, will I have to re-do these?'

Although I am a huge fan of the new cold ones, when analyzed, I believe they are a little too small. When you measure a druchii rider and then compare it to their Nauglir mount, you can see that they are actually smaller than a man on a horse equivalent.

When I imagine Nauglir I see great big lumbering beasts, slow to accelerate, but incredibly quick when they hit top speed. Not to say obscenly violent once they have the taste of blood on thier tongue. I started playing the game when a Cold one knight's charge was second only to a choas knight's. The combination of fear and 2 attacks made these mounts apex predator, but have recedded in light of the super heavy cavalry ogres can field, the dread of a juggernought surge and the super enchanced chaos chosen knights. Gav Thorpe wrote that Nauglir with two attacks were too good for the gaming envirmoment of the time (the druchii nobles riding them wouldn't be too impressed being out matched in combat by their mounts). Although I moaned and yelled and threw my toys out of the pram I could understand his point. I hope with the changes seen in 8th we will be seeing Cold one knights as monstrous cavalry with their second attack and frenzy, returning them to the forefront of the most devastating cavalry unit in the Warhammer universe.

Until that day, when I put my models on the table I want to feel the substantial weight of metal. I want to see the massive killing bulk of these cold blooded creatures as they streak forward into the heart of the enemy line. I remember being absolutely terrified of my friends chaos terminator's because they were big, bulky and darkly painted. Logically, I knew I could starcannon them to death (back in the good old days when Ulthwe seer council was king), but they were under my skin and disrupted my normal thought processes. I think there is a psychological advantage in having game zone predators for the same reason.

While envisioning what my perfect Druchii force would look like, it wasn't Jes Goodwin's tremendous sculpts that was at the spear tip of my force. The crown in the House of Ch'Ihll has always been its cold one knights, and for this I need Nauglir worthy to bear Cynath to battle.

So, if you have game zone predator knights please get in touch with me and let me know what you think of them, and if you could take some comparison shots for scale I would be highly appreciative.



Cheers for sticking with me.

LilLoser

[lilloser2010]

The Child of the Wastes






As is the custom with Autarii tribes, on the first night of he Child's life she was left to survive the cold of Naggaroth's desolate wastes, north of the towers. Her birth had taken the life of her mother, and the Child was weak and small. However she did not perish that night, but from then on the tribes people saw that she could no longer cast a shadow. The Child was cast out, left for dead a second time.

It s said that her cloak was a daemons gift, in payment for sparing her life on thy first night. By learning the art of shadow she may hide herself from the horrors of the north.

The cloak she possesses sifts in and out of reality, twisting in the unseen etheric winds that buffet a mans destiny this way or that. If you stare for long enough into the shadows, you may see constellations spinning in wild, furious riot. You may dram of the dead, or see nightmares stare back at you in silent vigil.


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For more, larger photos please check out my blogsite here

LilLoser