Al-elib Iblis

From the south, all the way from the lands of Araby came this deteriorating mad man, riding an obscure corpse cart filled with rotting bodies. On one stormy night he arrived to Sylvanian forest drawn by the very potent dark energies he felt. It is not known whether he was summoned by some powerful individual, Necrarach or Blood Dragon, who are lately gathering the troops within the Sylvanian borders, or for some other obscure, personal interest. The word about the pale rider with piercing insane eyes started to spread among townsfolk all throughout the Empire. It is said that the corpses risen back to life and fueled with arcane necro magic are pulling the damned thing relentlessly, day and night, without ever needing to stop for food or sleep. Cloaked in the green mist he is rarely to be seen and most often his arrival is foreshadowed only by unbearable putrid stench and cackling sadistic laughter. However, once he reveals himself, there better be no living person around! Stories have been told about men being paralyzed by his abysmal gaze and whipped to death, only to end up on his ever-growing pile of corpses. The sound of the sinister bell mounted on the top of his chariot freezes the blood in the veins of the living. When the chariot stops, Al-elib is seen knocking the bell four times, most often in vicinity of the graveyards and sites of the recently ended battles. Upon the fourth knock, the souls of the departed are seen leaving the bodies and being sucked by the demonic bell. It seems he is using the bell to collect the souls of the recently deceased and then channel this energy to the corpses pulling the cart and attacking the unsuspected pass byers. On top of all this, it is also believed he is bringer of disease, for wherever he arrives people start to suffer from various infections and deadly illnesses and so the misery he brings stays with people even after his departure. This mad man is whipping the animated corpses for no other reason than for pure fun. When bodies become wrecked beyond recognition, he likes to change the crew. So by all means, if you ever encounter this wicked necromancer and his cursed entourage, run as fast as you can!

I think this is a really cool looking model from Games Workshop and for the most part I enjoyed working on it. However, once I finished painting the cart, placing the corpses inside was a real nightmare! I barely managed to squeeze them in, using force. In the process the paint got pealed off on some of the hanging limbs. I would definitely recommend gluing the corpse pile on the wooden bottom of the cart prior gluing the poles that are sticking out. If you are interested in the whole process of painting this model and checking out all the posts concerning Al-elib, follow this link: corpse cart

Adding non GW miniatures to my Vampire Counts army

Last two weeks I've been painting non GW miniatures for a change. I've used three different companies for the first time. I'm pretty happy with the quality of their stuff and I'm going to use them again.

I've had my eye on Scibor Miniatures Necromancer for quite some time and finally decided to get it and paint it. He will be designated to the Todtstein Shock Troops. Model is cast in resin, great quality, no air bubbles, minor flesh to be cleaned. I had to place him on 50mm base, so he is taking four spaces in the unit, which is kind a logical since there are three zombies emerging from the ground around him. I had to put in extra effort on the base, to make the zombies look as though they are raising from the ground.

I'm pleased with the end result. Only thing I'm not 100% sure about is the green glow. Think maybe it would look better if I made it a bit more subtle.

Another company I've been wanting to try out for years is the Reaper Miniatures. I've always been a huge fan of their Bone Horror model, so I ordered it together with some Arachno Assassins. These are metal miniatures, although the company has many ranges, some in plastic, some in metal. I decided to paint one of the Assassins first. The design is really simple but effective! Since the model is 90% bone, you can paint it really fast.

Far back in the past, while browsing the internet, I stumbled upon Mournful Knights by Gamezone Miniatures. My mind was blown! They looked so menacing, vicious and packed with action. The whole unit looked as if in the glorious charge. I thought these models are really ahead of it's time. And still, even today I consider them to be one of the best cavalry models out there. That being said, there is some work required prior painting. The miniatures are metal and there are some gaps that needed to be filled with modeling putty. Another thing thing I noticed while painting my first knight is that sometimes it is hard to differentiate what is what on the model. All in all I really like the final result and can't wait to add more knights to the unit!

Hiram's Lost Legion

Back in the old days it wasn't easy to gather large units of extremely skillful, experienced and disciplined warriors, unconditionally loyal to its leader and faithful to the cause. One of those leaders who succeeded to gain upmost respect and loyalty from his fellow warriors was Hiram Von Todtstein, a mighty king who commanded an elite unit of warriors known as the 1st. Hiram's Volunteer Division or Hiram’s Legion. Members of this Legion were ready to shed their blood for bellowed king, who was at the same time their comrade in battle. Division was known for its stubbornness and relentlessness and was one of the most renowned throughout the Old World. Hiram’s Division was usually deployed were toughest fighting was going on in order to "extinguish the flames" in shortest time possible. 

On one cold morning, the Legion was sent to the Cursed Marshes with task to annihilate the Skaven horde which had strongholds and secret hideouts in this area from which they continuously raided the nearby city of Marienburg, capital of Wastelands, and other surrounding human settlements. Why was the Legion sent on this mission alone, and in secrecy, remains a mystery. What we do know is that upon entering the Cursed Marshes, Legion was never to be seen again. Seems that their foe, the Skaven horde, also fled the area, never to infest it again. Tales were told of daemonic swamp dwellers, ancient demons that were somehow part of the marsh itself, of strange mists and abominations staring from the swampy abyss. However destiny of the 1st. Division together with the Skaven horde became a thing of the past and legend, up until the recent days. 

Hiram, returning to his new (un)life knew very well where to head first, for he never forgot his faithful and fearful legion. And thus, risen from the eerie swamp, the legion marches once again, only this time under a darker banner… 

I really had a blast making this unit. Currently it is just 20 man strong but I definitely plan to add more ranks to it. Hopefully I'll reach 50 with time. I wanted these skeletons to look like they were freshly risen from the ground, with all the dirt, lichen, moss, grass and other vegetation growing on them. Accordingly, I made their weapons and armour really ragged and rusty. The whole process was a bit time-consuming because after painting I had to add the pigments for rust and dirt and also various flock, static grass, leaves, etc, but I think it was worth it. The miniatures are Games Workshop Deathrattle Skeleton Warriors.

And here are some photos of the individual skeleton warriors:

Kardak Khan

 Kain wasted no time with the gathering of the troops. Commanders and powerful undead individuals were summoned to serve as captains in the upcoming war. In many areas of the old world, graveyards had the so-called "sinners ground" – a part of the graveyard dedicated to murderers, thieves and other villains who lie in unmarked graves, condemned forever to oblivion.
Once buried there, there was no turning back. Or so they claimed...
Upon entering one such site, Kain felt the strong negative energy and was drawn to a special unmarked location, a mass grave in form of a catacomb. Endless corridors filled with corpses led to the deepest point where Kain discovered a corpse in heavily damaged full body armor. These where the remains of Kardak Khan, a cruel and merciless killer. A mercenary and a sadist who killed in the most horrifying ways – women and children, young and old, all was fair game. For profit or for sport, it mattered not. This perverted individual was obsessed with pain and suffering of others. When he was finally caught and brought to justice his torturers had a special treatment in store for him, for some of them were relatives and family members of his victims. After torturing him for days they strapped on his armor and dragged him to the local town square for public stoning. Full body armor allowed stoning to last for hours until Kardak was crushed both physically and spiritually. It is said that his last words to his torturers were a promise of vengeance and return.

Kain didn't hesitate for a moment and raised a perfect captain for his growing army – one among many to follow, and thus, after so many centuries, Kardak kept his promise. After all, evil calls upon evil.
Fear the return!!!

For Kardak I used Krell of the Great Axe, Lord of Undeath by Games Workshop. This is one of my favorite GW sculpts from the newer era. It was a real joy painting this mini. Lots of different metal textures allowed me to experiment with various pigments and washes to achieve rusted metal and oxidized bronze. Green glowing eyes and read on his helmet break the monotony of dark colors that dominate the model.