Grandmaster Flash

Over the long Easter weekend, I got the hobby itch and painted up the Grandmaster to accompany the recently painted Templars for the Choleric Order of the Yellow Bile.

The model is Ramsay Snow/Bolton from CMON's A Song of Ice & Fire miniatures game, and is, quite honestly, a beautiful sculpt. Not just for a board game mini either. It's just a cracking sculpt with huge amounts of character (just look at that smirk!). The only question I would have is why he's wearing a heavy gauntlet on just one hand... This might be down to the model being assembled from a number of parts, but there seems to be a definite wrist, and other painted versions I've seen tend towards a bare hand.

Despite the quality of the sculpt, the quality of the model left something to be desired. It had flash and seam lines everywhere. I know such figures tend towards such issues, and the material can make them somewhat tricky to deal with, but I've never come across one this awkward to clean up. Perhaps it was this particular model or casting, or perhaps it was simply due to the stark contrast with the detail of the sculpt. In hindsight, I wish I'd taken a 'before' photo.

Anyway, once the cleaning was done (mostly... I found a few bits I'd missed during the painting process), the painting was a doddle. Nice, deep details, for the most part, the two exceptions being the hilt of his sword (victim of a seam line running the length of it - the hilt of his dagger suffered likewise, so got the chop) and the chainmail loincloth, the edges of which blend into the trousers a bit much. These minor quibbles aside, I got this guy painted in a day (then basing, varnishing, etc. over the rest of the weekend).

He's a big old boy, standing about half a head taller than the Templars he will end up commanding. He does lack a hood, but that doesn't bother me massively as the Cult Magisters are already bare-headed, and the rank-and-file cultists will be as well.

So, all told, a model I didn't much enjoy working with, but one I'm rather happy with now it's done!

Already built and awaiting painting are the first six of what I hope will eventually be 18 cultists (to be joined by the two Magisters to form two units of ten). After that? Well, I've got a few ideas...

The Choleric Order of the Yellow Bile...

• 10 Poxwalkers – pestilence-ridden demons
• 5 Plaguetouched – half-demonic berserkers
• Dirty Frank – blind troglodyte king 
• 20 Wretches (here and here) - pitiful troglodytes
• 2 Cult Magisters - corrupt priests
• 5 Hunters – scouts and saboteurs
• 9 Templars – the cult militant
• Templar Grandmaster - the cult's warlord

...and friends...

• Ghoul King, bloodthirsty savage

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Disclaimer: All links to third-party sites are solely for the purposes of sourcing the products I have discussed, if anyone is so inclined. I have simply linked to the original manufacturer or the source I used (but feel free to shop around!) and make no money from people clicking through.

The Real Ghoul King (a.k.a. "Move Over, Dirty Frank")

In my last post, I mentioned that I was looking to build a small force of allies for the Choleric Order of the Yellow Bile. Well, progress on that has been rapid, mainly thanks to finally finding a model I've been after for some time...

The main delay has been in not knowing what model I was actually looking for. I had an ideal, but just couldn't find it. I love the concept of GW's Strigoi vampires. The ancient, bestial, savage ghoul kings were the best addition to the Vampire Counts canon in my mind. I had a 6th edition (I think) Strigoi force with Heresy Miniatures ghouls (might be a little NSFW) and cossacks and gypsies from West Wind's Vampire Wars line as my Strigany. I have, however, always preferred the concept to the official models - back then, I used a Heresy model as my vampire, but that was still a bit of a far cry from what I really wanted. Fast-forward to 2019, and I stumbled across a model from the Conan boardgame. It was exactly what I wanted in my Strigoi - imposing, feral, powerful - and I snapped one up on eBay as soon as I could.

So, with the ideal model finally in hand, I dove into painting and fitting it into my own little setting.

I wanted to ensure that the allied force led by this ghoul king both stood out from, and sat well next to the existing cult figures. To this end, I started with the same kind of skin tone I used for the Wretches (here and here) and Dirty Frank, but then highlighted up to a more pale tone (which is better in person than in my photos). The end result is pretty much what I hoped for - he's a nice balance between the Wretches and the original members of the cult, the Poxwalkers.

(L-R) Human, Poxwalker, Ghoul King, Dirty Frank.

He's a big lad, but still a good bit shorter than Dirty Frank - perfect for leading his own mob without stealing focus from the Choleric Order's star players. Speaking of his mob, I'll be adding some ghouls to his retinue, as well as a human necromancer looking to learn from his monstrous patron.

This does, however, mean that the Wretches are no longer really the "ghoulish troglodytes" I originally described them as, nor can Dirty Frank really continue to claim to be a "ghoul king". I shall be reworking their descriptions in due course...

The Choleric Order of the Yellow Bile...

• 10 Poxwalkers – pestilence-ridden demons
• 5 Plaguetouched – half-demonic berserkers
• Dirty Frank – blind troglodyte king
• 20 Wretches (here and here) – pitiful troglodytes
• 2 Cult Magisters – corrupt priests
• 5 Hunters – scouts and saboteurs
• 9 Templars – the cult militant

...and friends...

• Ghoul King – bloodthirsty savage

*** 
Disclaimer: All links to third-party sites are solely for the purposes of sourcing the products I have discussed, if anyone is so inclined. I have simply linked to the original manufacturer or the source I used (but feel free to shop around!) and make no money from people clicking through.

Chaos Vult!

It's been a while since I painted anything for the Choleric Order of the Yellow Bile, but I've had the Oathmark Human Infantry and the Frostgrave Cultists sat to one side for quite some time, just waiting to be turned into Templars for the cult. Recently, the urge to do some kitbashing came upon me, so I pulled out those kits and started mucking around with some bits and bobs. Before I knew it, I'd built nine figures!

The models were pretty straightforward to put together - Oathmark bodies and arms with Frostgrave heads. Only one neck joint had a gap that needed filling, but a shaving of sprue and some polystyrene cement saw to that. As usual, the biggest fuss was drilling out some of the hands to accommodate wire spears.

Paintjob was the by-now familiar brown/grey shades for clothing and then the varied yellows for the hoods and shields. I originally toyed with the idea of giving them a uniform (the concept being that they were members of the City Watch by day, and cultists by night), but I couldn't settle on a scheme that worked for me, and so they became more overtly culty. As the militant wing of the cult, it does make sense that they would be 'full-time', acting as enforcers and guards for the Magisters and cult operations.

Nine models is an odd number, and the reason for that is I am awaiting delivery of my Templar Grandmaster. Once he arrives, he'll fill up the unit to the desired 10 figures.

The Choleric Order of the Yellow Bile now stands at 52 models:

• 10 Poxwalkers – pestilence-ridden demons
• 5 Plaguetouched – half-demonic berserkers
• Dirty Frank – blind ghoul king
• 20 Wretches (here and here) – ghoulish troglodytes
• 2 Cult Magisters – corrupt priests
• 5 Hunters – scouts and saboteurs
• 9 Templars – the cult militant

It's not stopping there, though. Progress may be slow, but I've got more plans for this lot. Some regular cultists, for starters, and I'd like to add an allied force of some description to represent the other denizens of the under-city - not members of the cult, but with frequently aligning goals of their own. I have a few things under way on that score already...

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Disclaimer: All links to third-party sites are solely for the purposes of sourcing the products I have discussed, if anyone is so inclined. I have simply linked to the original manufacturer or the source I used (but feel free to shop around!) and make no money from people clicking through.