30 figures in 30 days update - Snakes in the desert

On my quest to paint 30 figures in 30 days (take a look at Brushes and Bases blog) I moved to the desert locale and selected some of the Splintered Light minis I have. I received a new ink color in the mail ( Naples Yellow) and was hoping it would produce a more consistent linen color for my painting. It works okay, and it also makes a very nice grayish green when mixed with black.

The snakes have been primered for awhile so they needed to be done and I also selected some player character typed that have a bit of a desert feel. 

I did quite a variation of color on the snakes, but I think I prefer the tan color and will stick with that for the majority of the ones left to paint. I didn't base the snakes as they are pretty stable without basing, and the elongated base ones would have to fit on a really big washer. 

Snakes reverse.

I threw together the terrain with foam board and some water putty rocks made with an old Woodland Scenics rock mold. The backdrop was painted by my lovely and talented wife, who took a break from painting seascapes in her studio to help me out. 

The men are a mix of heroes, thieves and MU's from Splintered Lights Player Character sets. The cleric in red is a bit out of place for the desert, but I wanted to get one mini painted using the red ink, which I have been struggling with trying to get good colors. The Naples Yellow worked out well for mixing colors for the others, and I used a Sepia tone high flow acrylic from Golden for the washes. 

Some pics focusing in on individuals and different angles.

This brings me to 20 figures completed for the month of July. I need to bear down next week to finish strong and hope to have at least one mounted 25mm miniature completed in the mix. 

Crafting projects

The last couple of weeks have been disrupted by weather days at work so weekends have been cut short with work and chores and the game I had been planning to play is still set up on the table. I will attempt it next weekend.

 I've been focusing instead on some smaller projects that will lead to my Desert game. 

Buildings, excavation sites, and how to set up the terrain seem daunting, so I have just been doing them in smaller test projects to iron out any kinks. 

I found a decent way to strip the paper covering off of dollar store foam so I can have a ready supply of 1/4 inch foam. Easier for buildings, walls and small relief terrain than shaving down the 1/2 inch + pink board. I also bought some impression rollers for clay and they actually work pretty good on the dollar store foam. 

These are 3D printed texture rollers for clay. The detail edges are not exceptionally sharp so they do need some pressure to get an impression in foam. 

I got these on Etsy, about $10 each. They are a harder plastic than the standard 3D printed objects I've purchased in the past, but have only just started using them so will have to see how well they hold up. The figure is 15mm for size comparison. The cobble pattern left deeper impressions than the flagstone one. I tested the other 2 and they were about as deep as the flagstone. One other test I need to do is to sand down the skin of the foam and perhaps softer middle foam will lend itself to deeper impressions. All in all if they last for any length of time I think they are worth the money. I have air dry clay I can use too, but foam is faster, weighs less and is less messy.

I also tested some home made sculpt a mold using shredded TP and durhams water putty. I may try to fine tune the mix, but would rather get some plaster of paris to work with.

This is a test piece for covered excavation sites for the Desert terrain. I'm adopting a few standard sizes for them so they can be covered with a selection of either buildings, or simple terrain.

Son of Snakes and some scorpions.

Still working on the big wall terrain piece, but I had alot of figures come in so I took a painting break. Some I got last weekend and was able to paint a few. Splintered Light 15mm sons of snakes with spears and five crypt scorpions by Essex (I believe). These are a great addition for my desert adventures in addition to the mummies, skeletons and Sons of Annubis I already have. They have yet to get the flat varnish coating. I painted them with inks and the snake mini came out really well with the shading technique I've been using.
I may have gone overboard because I also ordered egyptian villagers and some African porters ( to work as excavators on archeological digs), and some mounted Tauregs from Old Glory.

Son of Snakes with scorpion

reverse.

I forgot,,, I also got some camels!

Have to finish the right side and lower ground, paint and add foliage.