A little while ago I mentioned that I was dissatisfied with GW’s hobbit-inspired ratlings, and the only way I could see getting my hands on ratlings I liked was either to do a massive modelling project or commission a sculptor.
Well, last week you might remember I mentioned my brother Chris’s blog, which mainly chronicles his D&D adventures. Chris is a trained printmedia artist with a long-term interest in sculpting miniatures, and I had a chat with him about making some tough, leathery little bastards inspired by the aesthetic of the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Svirfneblin (deep gnomes).
He agreed to give it a go and the above sketch is his first rough whack at the job. I’m pretty excited, and will of course keep track of how this goes on my blog. He has a cartoonish style that I think suits this idea well, given the exaggerated features I’m after. I particularly like the mandarin collars, the sneaky ninja boots and the felt helmets, which Chris tells me are based on World War One Romanian felt helmets.
For anyone who’s interested, here’s a link to some greens he has made and some of his future projects in miniature design.
January 20th, 2013 at 5:11 pm
Noice! I suppose that’s one way around the sculpt problem, if you’re lucky enough to know someone who can sculpt.
January 26th, 2013 at 7:33 am
Yeah I don’t know why I didn’t think of asking him sooner