From the painting desk #68 – Another motley crew
December 23, 2019Fighting the urge to present them as mötley crëw, here’s another batch of pirates – they never end, do they? This time it’s a mix of custom printed Heroforge pieces and miniatures I bought as physical objects. It’s funny how that has become a meaningful separation with the printer!
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First up are the brothers Mulligan. They are Heroforge creations, as you can probably see. The thing I love about Heroforge (and I might have to make a separate post on this) is that you can create your own pieces and tell your own stories. In this case, we have the good brothers. While I’ve never given them first names, I imagine them as this Irish duo, a classic combination where one is a huge, burly brawler and the other a fast-talking gunslinger. To tie them together visually I painted both with pale skin and red hair, and I think it works pretty well.
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Next we have the big swords. The woman on the left is another Heroforge piece, while the man is from Black Scorpion. While placing them side by side like this reveals the softer details of Heroforge pieces – especially compared to super crisp resin – I’m happy with both. Another thing in Heroforge’s favour is the control it gives you in customizing your minis. In this case I wanted a bit more diversity, so I wanted to create a female pirate who wasn’t whipcord-thin and abnormally busty. Instead I made a pirate that to my eye looks strong, with the heavy blade adding to the effect. I also gave her black African features.
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The final pair of this post are a pirate lord from Reaper miniatures (sculpted by Bob Ridolfi) and a drunk pirate (sculpted by Evgenii Tkachenko) I found for free on Thingiverse. The pirate lord is especially lovely, a really characterful piece with his expensive clothing and flowing locks! I gave him a blue and yellow colour scheme, which made me instantly think of Sweden. Who knows, maybe he is a Swedish pirate lord. Painting Reaper miniatures always reminds me that I should paint more Reaper miniatures. The drunk pirate, despite the sculpt’s simplicity, manages to have character as well. There’s something about the pose that I really like, he looks very much like a henchman.
I’m usually not a huge fan of how my minis look in these portrait-style pictures, so I figured I might start setting them up in some more scenic shots in addition to the close-ups. So here you go, here’s the pirate lord addressing his motley crew. I think they look like a wonderfully interesting group. To me, this is what I want to achieve: tiny little narratives with colourful characters. I don’t really game with my minis, so these little stories are what makes stuff interesting for me.
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As I’m writing this, my new printer – this time an FDM one for printing larger pieces – is on its way. Man oh man, this hobby never ceases to surprise me.
Dawn of the Lead 
Aweomse. I love the pale skinned brothers. I’m off to the google machine to look at this heroforge thing
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Thanks IRO! Heroforge can be really addictive…
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An addiction in this hobby??? Noooooo haha
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“It’s not a problem, I can stop just as soon as I finish this project.”
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Do like the Mulligan brothers.
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Cheers! They’re a lovely duo.
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Great stuff mate, and so cool to see your printed efforts looking so damn good! Very impressive
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Thanks Alex! The Heroforge pieces can be a touch frustrating because of sometimes soft or shallow detail, but it’s always rewarding to get to paint something you designed yourself.
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All very nice indeed! 🙂
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A Swedish pirate lord!
Great work on all of these – you indeed are the pirate king!
Hyvää uutta vuotta!
Keep the good stuff coming!
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Another great set of duos! I’m getting serious Snake Plissken vibes from the gunslionger. Not his ginger hair, but the hairstyle and of course, the patch!
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As I mentioned in another comment, I like it when minis tell a story. I hadn’t considered the Snake angle, but you’re absolutely correct!
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