To celebrate the release, October's Miniature of the Month was a random miniature taken from the game and I was lucky enough to get my hands on Oleksandr Halgrim, the duplicitous Captain of what was formerly the Mournhold City Watch.
I've already written about how much I love the miniatures from Cursed City, so I'll refrain from waxing too lyrically that subject here. Suffice it to say that the design and level of detail of every one of them is absolutely fantastic and I've ended up picking up a quite a few of the 'villains' as well as the heroes I've shown on the blog before .
Before we descend into the darkness of the haunted streets of Ulfenkarn though I'd just like to say that as with my other Miniature of the Month Masterclasses, this isn't a step by step tutorial. Rather than having photos of each and every stage of the process, there are only pictures of the finished miniature.
Although I do try and plan out painting projects in advance, there's quite a lot of jumping between the various elements of the miniature to build things up so it's a bit tricky doing a full step by step, but I do go through how everything was painted and all of the colours used are highlighted in bold.
To get best use out of this guide, you'll need to have a little bit of painting knowledge already as it makes use of a couple of more advanced techniques, but as a quick note; glazing is using a diluted paint to apply a tint to an existing colour. Stippling is using the brush to apply paint in a 'stabbing' motion so as to create or accentuate texture.
"In the Age of Myth, three Azyrite dynasties – Houses Altern, Vossheim, and Gaunt – built a stronghold, deep in the heart of Shyish. The Ebon Citadel stood defiantly atop the harsh windswept island of Szargorond. Despite its surroundings, the area grew into a bustling metropolis under the unfaltering leadership of the noble lineages. This city was named Mournhold.
The dawn of the Age of Chaos tested these proud rulers of Mournhold, as the city became the target of Slaughn the Ravener, a Daemon Prince in the service of the Blood God. For years, the hordes of Chaos laid siege to the city, eroding the defences and sapping any hope of victory. This was the moment Radukar the Wolf arrived with his fleet, leading a company of Kosargi ogors in defence of the city. Though whispers of the vampire’s foul reputation preceded him, he was nevertheless heralded as a saviour. In return for defending the weakened stronghold from further attacks, he asked only for a place amongst the nobility and a willing offering of blood to slake his thirst.
The noble houses felt they had little choice but to accept Radukar’s aid. But with that one alliance, Mournhold’s fate was sealed. The prosperous city would never again know peace. In the years to come, it was home only to terrors. The descent into the Cursed City that Mournhold is known as now did not happen overnight though. In the beginning, the vampire lord took up residence in the mighty Ebon Citadel and brooded in the shadows.
The balance of power in Mournhold was calamitously upended when the Great Necromancer Nagash created the Shyish Nadir. Where once the city had existed in the calm centre of the Realm of Death, now it teetered on the brink of a whirlwind of unimaginable energy. In the blink of an eye, the city was plunged into infernal darkness, its very fabric unravelling in the maelstrom of power. Strengthened by the surge of necromantic magic, Radukar and his Thirsting Court swept across the city in a night of bloodshed, purging any mortals that might threaten his authority.
The noble dynasties were slaughtered before dawn, with only the most subservient and sycophantic being given the Blood Kiss to join the ranks of the Wolf. The people of the city were nothing more than a source of fresh vitae, and the once-proud city was rechristened "Ulfenkarn", the Wolf’s Feast. With nobody left to oppose them, the vampiric overlords are free to indulge their every predatory urge and the city has become a place ruled by fear and shadow.
During the purge of the city, the traitorous Watch Captain Oleksandr Halgrim was swift to swear himself and his warriors to the Wolf’s cause. Now in death, he commands the vast legions of skeleton warriors known as the Ulfenwatch...."
Like all of the Cursed City miniatures, Halgrim is pretty quick and easy to clean up and assemble, though he's a little on the fragile side, so you'll need to take care when you're pushing the parts together. Once he was built and glued on to the base, I added some small chunks of slate and an extra skull before applying some texture paste to finish it off.
In planning out the paint scheme for Halgrim, I drew inspiration from a variety of sources including the Warhammer studio team's colour scheme, though I did make a couple of changes, most notably switching the lining of the cloak from a pale tone to matching the outer fabric and using 'bluer' highlights on the armour plate as these fitted more with how I wanted him to look. I've also incorporated a little more texture on the fabric and leather as I wanted them to look old and poorly maintained as that seemed especially fitting for a warrior of the undead.
Red Cloak
The cloak was basecoated with Khorne Red. I then made a 1:1 mix of Khorne Red and Abaddon Black and thinned it down with Lahmian Medium until it was about the consistency of milk and painted it directly into the folds and on to the lower half of the cloak. It took a few layers to get a consistent finish, but once I was happy with it, I thinned some Khorne Red with Lahmian Medium to make a glaze which was used in conjunction with the Khorne Red/Abaddon Black mix to blend the transition between the red and black areas. This takes a bit of going back and forth, but take your time to let the glazes dry as it's really easy to 'lift' a glaze off by applying another layer too quickly.
With the blending finished, I began to apply some highlights to the edges and folds as well as some scuffs and scratches on the darker areas at the same using pure Khorne Red. This was followed by highlight of Wazdakka Red, which was refined with Squig Orange. I then used some dots of Kislev Flesh to create some extreme highlights on the points and folds of the fabric. As a final step, I lightly stippled a little Wazdakka Red onto the flatter areas on the back of the cloak, to add a little more depth to them.
Armour Plate
Although mostly intact, Halgrim's once proud armour is battered and scarred since it hasn't been maintained at all since he betrayed his oaths and joined the undead. I didn't want to go over the top, but I did want to use the details on the model to help convey this narrative. To start with, I applied a few thinned layers of Abbadon Black to get a nice smooth basecoat Once I was happy with this, I thinned down some Rhinox Hide with Lahmian Medium and painted it around the rivets and into the pitting, damage and recesses of the various plates of the armour to create the impression that dirt, grime and corrosion had begun to accumulate in them . Once this was dry, I repeated the process with thinned Doombull Brown, trying to keep it 'inside' the Rhinox Hide. If you find either of these browns get a little out of control and cover more of an area than you wanted, you can just tidy them up with a little Abaddon Black.
Once the dirt and grime was thoroughly dry, I used Dark Reaper to establish some initial highlights before refining them with Thunderhawk Blue. While doing these stages, I used some brush strokes perpendicular to the main highlight to create some scrapes and scratches on the armour,. As with the weathering, any areas I felt the highlights looked too 'chunky' or out of place, I tidied up with a little thinned Abaddon Black. As a finishing touch, I applied some fine dots of Fenrisian Grey to the rivets and corners of the armour plates which would naturally catch the most light light.
Leather Belt and Eyepatch
I wanted both of these to look like cracked and worn leather which hasn't been oiled or maintained for a long time, so began with a basecoat of Dryad Bark which was carefully shaded with Agrax Earth followed by Nuln Oil. Once the shades were fully dry, Dryad Bark was roughly layered back onto both areas to begin establishing texture. Gorthor Brown was then applied perpendicularly to the edges of the belt and eyepatch to create cracks and scratches in the leather. Baneblade Brown was then used to refine and highlight the leather, before some fine dots of Karak Stone were applied to the sharp corners as these would naturally catch on things more frequently so would have more wear and tear.
Halberd Haft
Just as the metal of Halgrim's weapons has seen better days, I wanted the wood of the halberd's haft to look like it was grimy and uncared for - mouldering but not decaying was the idea I had in mind. I started out with a basecoat of Steel Legion Drab which was shaded with Agrax Earth. Once this was dry, carefully drybrushed the haft with Steel Legion Drab, followed by Tallarn Sand and then Karak Stone, with each successive layer being applied more lightly than the previous one. I then went back and used some thinned Rakarth Flesh to establish some more precise highlights to the nicks and harder edges that have been worn into the wood.
To add the finishing touches, I thinned some Athonian Camo and Agrax Earth with Lahmian Medium to create glazes which were used to add some depth and tone back in. I used the Athonian Camo first, applying layers to the whole of the haft until I was happy with how it looked, before using the Agrax Earth glaze to darken the top and bottom areas a little.
Sword, Dagger and Halberd Blades
As with the armour plate, I wanted to convey a feeling that Halgrim's weapons have not been maintained since he was raised into his second life by Radukar the Wold, so both blades were basecoated with a couple of thin layers of Iron Warriors before being shade with Agrax Earth and then once that had fully dried, shaded again with Nuln Oil. I then took some Nihilakh Oxide and painted into some of the pitted and corroded areas of the blades - less is more here as weathering can overwhelm a model if you're not careful. Initial highlights were then added using Ironbreaker and these were refined using dots and thin strokes of Stormhost Silver.
As a final finishing touch, I thinned down some Mournfang Brown with Lahmian Medium and then applied a patchy glaze to the blades to add to the patina of grime and rust that has accumulated upon them.
Surcoat
An initial basecoat of Thondia Brown was shaded with Agrax Earth. Once this had dried, Thondia Brown was then stippled back on to the surcoat to create an initial layer of texture, this was refined with Doombull Brown which was also stippled on to the fabric, though with more of a focus towards the edges. To refine things further, I used Skrag Brown to begin highlighting the edges of the surcoat, following this with a more limited application of Deathclaw Brown. To finish things off, some dots of Cadian Flesh were used to create extreme highlights on the sharpest corners and the ends of the rotting strands of fabric.
Bones
Both the skulls on the base and Halgrim's own skeletal remains were basecoated with a couple of thin layers of Morghast Bone which was then shaded with Seraphim Sepia, taking care to ensure that it didn't pool too heavily outside of the recesses. Morghast Bone was then layered back on to the bones, before a highlight of Ushabti Bone was added to add some initial definition. A finer highlight of Screaming Skull was then used to add further definition.
As the bones were now looking a little too clean for my liking, I thinned down some Seraphim Sepia and Morghast Bone to create glazes which I then used to 'yellow' the bones a little in places which helped to create the impression that rather than being sterile and healthy they're more 'mouldering old bones that have been reanimated by fell magics'.
Brass
Just as with the steel of the weapons, I knew that I wanted the brass of Halgrim's gorget, mail and weapon to be tarnished with age and ill-care as well. With this in mind, I started by basecoating them all with Balthasar Gold which I shaded with Agrax Earth. I then roughly layered everything with Hashut Copper, in some places, particularly the gorget this was more stippled than layered to help add some depth and texture to the colour.
The next step was to use Nihilakh Oxide to add some verdigris, though I did this in a 'less is more' kind of way, so concentrated on areas where moisture would naturally accumulate, so around some of the rivets and pitting on the gorget, and in the recesses of the weapon hilts and pommels. I also carefully painted it on to a couple of the scales of the mail armour, though for these I ensured that it stayed on the 'flat' of the scales as the edges would be chipped and scuffed free of corrosion by their movement. With the verdigris in place, I then stippled all of the brass areas with Sycorax Bronze, again paying more attention to the edges of scales of the mail armour when I got to those. I then used Ironbreaker to add a final highlight to the brass areas to finish them off.
Misericorde Sheath
To contrast with the oiled leather of his sword belt, I painted the ruined sheath of Halgrim's misericorde in a deep crimson colour, which began with a basecoat of Gal Vorbak Red. Much as I love the colour of this paint, the pot I have is incredibly viscous so it needs to be thinned a little and applied in a few layers to get a consistent finish. Once this was done, a shade of Agrax Earth was applied and once this was dry the sheath was stippled with Gal Vorbak Red. Highlights were then applied to the sharp edges of the sheath and the rips and tears in the leather using first Word Bearers Red, which were refined using a 1:1 mix of Word Bearers Red and Pink Horror. Finally, dots of a 1:1 mix of Pink Horror and Ionrach Skin were then applied to the 'sharpest' points of the highlights.
Hair
I wanted the strands of hair still clinging to Halgrim's mouldering skull to hint at his age and experience prior to his second life, so opted to paint them in hues of grey to suggest he was a warrior who had seen more than a few summers but wasn't quite into his autumn years. I began by basecoating the hair with Skavenblight Dinge which I then shaded with Nuln Oil. I then picked out the individual strands with a layer of Skavenblight Dinge, followed by a layer of Stormvermin Fur making sure to leave some of the previous layer showing. With the basic tones now in place, I started to add in highlights, beginning with Dawnstone, followed by Administratum Grey. I then took some Grey Seer and carefully added a final highlight to the ends of the strands. To help tie everything together and smooth the transition between the tones, I thinned a little Nuln Oil and applied it as a glaze over the all of the hair.
The Base
There are a few parts to the base, so rather than roll them all into one big wall of text, I'll break down each of the individual elements in their own sections. In terms of the order I painted them in, I worked from 'messiest' to 'tidiest', which is to say I did the earth first as it involved drybrushing, then blocked in the basecoats for the other areas and worked them up separately, starting with the fallen stonework, then the roots growing round the pillar and finishing with the skulls (which were painted as described in the 'Bones' section above before the lower areas of each were glazed with some thinned Dryad Bark to help 'bed them in' to the earth).
- Earth
The earth was nice and quick and easy to do, beginning with a basecoat of a couple of thinned layers of Dryad Bark to make sure it evenly covered the texture paste, I then drybrushed the earth, first with Gorthor Brown, then with Baneblade Brown and lastly and most sparingly with Karak Stone. With each lighter drybrushing, I tried to apply less pressure to the brush so as to ensure some of each of the preceding layer stayed visible.
- Stones and Pillar
The tumbled masonry and stones on the base were basecoated with Dawnstone before being shaded with Agrax Earth. Once this was dried, I used some thinned Dawnstone and over the course of a few layers built up a grey tone I was happy with, being careful to leave some of the shaded grey showing though in places so the stone has a weathered and worn appearance. Once this was done, I then used the same thinned Dawnstone to pick out the edges of all the stones and the carved details on the pillar. The next step was to start to add some highlights with Administrum Grey, these were mainly focused on the edges of the stones and pillar, but I also picked out the chips and scratches as well and stippled a little onto the broken ends as well to add some depth and definition to them. A finer highlight of Grey Seer was then applied to all of the hard edges before White Scar was used very sparingly to pick out some extreme highlights on the corners of the pillar sections.
To help tie the stonework into the rest of the base and convey the decay of Ulfenkarn, I thinned some Athonian Camo to make a glaze and applied it to the recesses and lower surfaces of the sections of the shattered pillar, as well as to some of the recesses on the smaller stones and around some of the roots tangled around everything. Once the initial glazes were dry, I went back and added subsequent layers in a few places so that the greens looked more natural and less uniform - but you can do this to taste.
- Roots
The roots that have now entangle the fallen masonry of the once glorious city were based with Mechanicus Standard Grey which was then shaded with two layers of Agrax Earth, making sure that the first layer was thoroughly dry before applying the second. I then roughly layered Death Korps Drab onto the roots to add a slightly sickly tone to them to create the impression that their growth may not be entirely natural, before sketching in some initial highlights using Gorthor Brown. Next I used some Baneblade Brown to refine the highlights, focusing on more on the tips of the branches that are starting to grow around the front and top of the shattered pillar. Once I was happy with how everything looked, I applied a glaze of Agrax Earth over the roots and branches to help tie everything together.
The very last step to finish Halgrim off was to paint the rim of his base Abaddon Black and with that, the base - and the miniature were complete.
This paint scheme wasn't quite as long and involving paint as the Leagues of Votann Hearthkyn Warrior and the colours and techniques would map quite nicely on to both the Ulfenwatch miniatures from Cursed City and the Deathrattle Skeletons from the Age of Sigmar range so you could get a fantastic cohesive force painted up quite quickly I think and I'll probably do this with the Skeleton Warriors I have in my Soulblight Gravelords Warcry warband when get around to painting them. The only additional element to bear in mind about the Skeleton Warriors is that they carry shields, though I think these would work well painted using the recipe used for the brass areas I outlined above.
Until next time, as always, thanks for reading - I hope you found this Miniature of the Month Masterclass useful and if you give any of the suggestions in it a try, I'd love to hear how you get on.
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