17 November 2016

The HeroQuest Hero Quest: The Chaos Sorcerer



Best thing about Heroquest is the CHAOS SORCERER. 

First of all, he's a cracking figure to begin with, the details are sublime and just sharp enough to be visible without being too obvious to let the painter some freedom of judgement about what is what.

Best thing about the sorcerer is clearly his evocative Y shaped pose making anyone think about whether he's doing aerobics, preparing a genkidama, giving a hand for airport traffic or simply showing his dad how big a fish he's caught.

Best thing about this guy is that he has big muscles for a sorcerer, that's just how badass he is really. Instead of spending all his time in the library reading, whining about how heavy the books are, this one is doing one-armed pushups and squats while reading unholy tomes.


Best thing about this model is that it comes from a long line of skull headed badasses such as :

Masters of the Universe's very own Skeletor
Now of course Skeletor has to be the best inspiration when you look at this guy really. Problem is : everyone's done it before. That means my Hipsterish contradicting self won't allow me to go this way...

The Horned king from the Black Cauldron
Now here's the first fantasy villain that's really impressed me. Seeing that guy on the big screen back then surely left quite an impression on me. This is WAY more like it.


Willow's General Kael
Nothing earns respect amongst your troops as blunt undeserved violence, slaughter and wearing skulls for helmets. Awesome.

Highlander extraordinaire : The Kurgan
Same minus the beard and with a touch of arrogance that makes it one of the best villains EVER.


Games of Thornes' Lord of Bones
Because free violence and tits might not be enough to please the fans, here's a cool guy with bone armour as well. 


Now given all the ideas above, I had to draw a line of where I wanted to stand.

- Was the guy gonna be wearing spandex or be half naked ? 

I opted for a naked necrotic skin. That guy surely has the power to maintain his physical integrity and might at its best via unholy means... I'm a little disapointed the pictures don't show but there's actually a tint of purple in some parts of his flesh to make it look creepier and a little more organic.

- Was the guy wearing a mask or was the skull his own face, and then what colour should it be ?

This time I knew I didn't want the skull to be his face but a mask. I also had the feeling a bone face would be déjà-vu. For some reason I kinda wanted to have his skull face black to make it look terrifying but when I got to that part I realised it just didn't work, the face was not visible at all so I switched to some bluish steel instead to make it stand from the black helmet. I added glowing purple eyes and hesitated making the hands glow as well but refrained.

- What kind of gear would he be wearing?

Right from the start, I knew I wanted to give him some red with some freehand to make a small nod to his former incarnations. After painting the bright red of his tunic, I realised it would be hard to make checkers work. I thought about a line of them in the midlle of the tunic but it would have been a nightmare to do and messy to look at because of the folds. I then opted for simple lines in strategic places. It gives a bit of identity and offers a good but simple contrast, the kind of cheap tricks I like.
I decided to go for weathered red leathers for his boots and gloves too so I used a method I rarely do.

Starting from a dark grey (german grey from PA) I started building highlights with brighter red until orange (cadmium red from PA) and then toned it down and blended everything with 1 or 2 coats of Nuln Oil. I usually reach my level of shade/brightness from below so this was a bit unusual for me. I do love the look of it though.


Funnily enough, 2 models I've enjoyed a lot this year just happened to be the very plastic monopose monstrosities I usually despise. There's a french saying that roughly means "only idiots never change their minds", I guess that's so called "plastic crap" for you.


So who's going to follow me after this ? Well I'll summon He of three names !

20 comments:


  1. Really nice work JB, the leather elements are my favourite.

    Im still not really sold on the Battle Masters giant, but seeing him alongside a lovingly painted HQ Sorcerer certainly puts him in a favourable light.

    Really good stuff. That model was never "plastic crap" in my opinion. He has too many fun elements going on.

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    1. I actually think this model like many others prove old plastic doesn't mean crap although it doesn't exclude the possibility either.

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  2. Amazing work on that guy, I like your aproach of making the skull a helmet faceplate.....

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    1. It was a logical thing to do more than a special will or anything.
      Thanks a lot !

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  3. That was always my favorite model from the set. Excellent work!

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    1. I have to say I'm quite happy I managed to have this one when I was first assigned the elf (who went in the best hands really) !

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  4. Excellent work on the pattern; was never a fan of Heroquet's figure (yeah, yeah Heresy) but you created two great pieces out of those ordinary figures! ;-)

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    1. No heresy, never a fan either but some models just reveal their potential when the brush hits them.

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  5. Great work, JB!

    He's creepy as! Excellent moody paInt job.

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  6. Love this. The read leathers on the gloves and boots really make it.

    All the Chaos in HeroQuest tie together with the ball joining their horns. Only just realised that.

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    1. Horns in their balls, would that be the cause of their fall ? One wonders...

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  7. I have two sorcerers and I must admit that I have painted one in the classic Skeletor colours. Sorry.

    If it helps, I haven't painted the other one yet.

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    1. Aha, honestly, I would have painted him as Skeletor if I wasn't afraid to come after so many great versions. ^^

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  8. You've brought to life a true classic mec. Or is that brought to unlife? Skull heads are so confusing...

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    1. Nah mec, just unbrought him from death. That's the trick. ;)

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  9. You've given this mini the respect it demands JB. He's marvellous, the leather and freehand are lovely, along with the mask and the rotty skintone, they make for one of the better HQ sorcerers I've seen.

    I like that sorcerer and ogre shot. It looks like the sorcerer has just noticed the ogre (maybe he was on his phone or something) and is in mid-WOAH! stance.

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    1. Thanks a lot D.
      I suppose the mage is just so happy to see his friend after a long time alone...

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