|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 18, 2015 20:06:35 GMT
No progress on the dice demo vid, but I got my Giant Slugmonster Project started!  Start with a stable skeleton, just like with the Purple Worm. TP rolls are ideal as they can be formed easily. Take your time to get the posture right - every minute invested in that stage saves you 10 minutes later when you have to correct the posture of the figure!  Add volume to the midsection. I didn't want to waste too much aluminum foil (that stuff is very energy-hungry during production!), so I tried to use rolled newspaper.  It didn't work too well, so I reverted later to aluminum foil.  The body is quite top-heavy, so I filled the tail section with stones and hotglue.  The original Mashaaf has some very nice ugly pustules. I'll try to replicate them on a larger scale, so I sawed a pen in little bits and blend them in with lots of hotglue.   ...yep, that's definitely more the size I want a monster like this!  I almost feel sorry for the original Mashaaf: Not only does the title " Great Old One" sound a bit braggy now - it also gets totally pwned by that giant in the making!  |
|
|
|
Post by vestrivan on Mar 19, 2015 14:14:53 GMT
Good job tauster! So far it looks promising! |
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 19, 2015 19:37:21 GMT
Fair warning: Today it's getting ugly. Disgusting, even: I'm making the a**hole sphincter of a giant slugmonster!  Here's how the original Mashaaf's butt looks like: Pretty cool idea with the four serrated shells! - cut cardstock triangles and bend them inward - glue toothpick ends on - texturize both sides of the triangles - try not to burn yourself   Also, I started thinking about the tentacles and looked on youtube for sculpting tutorials, but other than these two tutorials ( here and here), I came up with nothing useful (I admit that I didn't do a really deeo search, just the first page of results - so there might be tons of great advice that I missed). This greenstuff-texturizing tool is absolutely awesome, but I wouldn't shell out that amount of money for two pieces of serrated plastic. I'll be keeping my eyes open to find something similar in real life. Shouldn't be that complicated... In the end I simply rolled some aluminum foil up really tight. That should do the trick. This is one of the most revolting situations Lady Forscale ever found herself in: Between two giant slug monsters making a size comparison of their rear ends. It can only get better from here on!  |
|
|
|
Post by DnDPaladin on Mar 19, 2015 22:41:20 GMT
i'm so making a figure like your, though mie will be able to swallow a figuring and then after some shaking the figurine would come out fromt he butt.
at least thats what i'd want mine to do, let be real i wont be able to reproduce your stuff. that thing is whack man !
|
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 22, 2015 11:04:03 GMT
Scotty shared a fantastic idea in his latest tutorial: Using donut-shaped beads for suction cups on tentacles.
I've got me a bag full of these years ago, even before terrain crafting. They have been sitting uselessly in the deepest recesses of my materials heap. No more!
|
|
|
|
Post by Sam on Mar 22, 2015 12:05:10 GMT
Looks like a pretty awesome build. It took me a minute to catch on that you were re-producing a larger copy of the figure. Looks great so far. I like it!
|
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 22, 2015 14:34:00 GMT
I just had the idea of turning these beads around and push them into hotglue to replicate the pustules Mashaaf sports everywhere. Smaller pustules (or even larger) could be made by using clay balls. *rubs hands* i'm so making a figure like your, though mie will be able to swallow a figuring and then after some shaking the figurine would come out fromt he butt. at least thats what i'd want mine to do, let be real i wont be able to reproduce your stuff. that thing is whack man ! totally great idea! My Purplw Worm is ust large enough to have dice going through - minis would definitely be stuck somewhere inside. Make sure you have the internal tunnel large enough and most importantly without sharp bends. If you can scavenge the hose of an old vacuum cleaner somewhere, you're set. And besides that: These figs are not anymore difficult than other stuff - they're just more work. Simple as that, they take longer to finish than for example a bunch of stalagmites. When you start, you might not know how to do every single aspect, but the answers will emerge during the process. And if not, just ask our community.  |
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 22, 2015 17:01:14 GMT
Here's the clay pieces that will become Mashaaf's pustules:  And besides that: These figs are not anymore difficult than other stuff - they're just more work. Simple as that, they take longer to finish than for example a bunch of stalagmites. When you start, you might not know how to do every single aspect, but the answers will emerge during the process. And if not, just ask our community. ...some additions to what I wrote about ideas emerging during the process: 1) Sometimes they don't. At least not immediately. Sometimes ideas need a little help to be born. 2) There's that saying about that it's smart to learn from errors and even smarter to learn from the errors or others. 3) Sometimes you first have to make something wrong to learn how to make it right. All of the above applies to me making my own Mashaaf. I have to find out how to make that aestethic of the fat, flowing bulges on the body, how to make the pustules, of to embed the rocks, how to form the maw, how to add tentacles and bladed arms, and so on. Some of these questions I have answers for, others not yet. This afternoon I was at a situation where I had to decide whether or not I'll experiment with the pustules on Mashaaf's body. Failure would have meant that a portion of it would have to be reworked, which means quite an amount of time and probably frustration, so I decided to make a smaller test piece where I can try out all the things I haven't found answers for so far. So I took some old paper towels I use for cleaning the brushes, wrapped foil around it and roughly sculpted a body:  A little playing later (approx. one hour), I had this - and several new ideas how to craft some aspects of the project:   |
|
|
|
Post by dragon722 on Mar 22, 2015 17:14:51 GMT
Here's the clay pieces that will become Mashaaf's pustules: And besides that: These figs are not anymore difficult than other stuff - they're just more work. Simple as that, they take longer to finish than for example a bunch of stalagmites. When you start, you might not know how to do every single aspect, but the answers will emerge during the process. And if not, just ask our community. ...some additions to what I wrote about ideas emerging during the process: 1) Sometimes they don't. At least not immediately. Sometimes ideas need a little help to be born. 2) There's that saying about that it's smart to learn from errors and even smarter to learn from the errors or others. 3) Sometimes you first have to make something wrong to learn how to make it right. All of the above applies to me making my own Mashaaf. I have to find out how to make that aestethic of the fat, flowing bulges on the body, how to make the pustules, of to embed the rocks, how to form the maw, how to add tentacles and bladed arms, and so on. Some of these questions I have answers for, others not yet. This afternoon I was at a situation where I had to decide whether or not I'll experiment with the pustules on Mashaaf's body. Failure would have meant that a portion of it would have to be reworked, which means quite an amount of time and probably frustration, so I decided to make a smaller test piece where I can try out all the things I haven't found answers for so far. So I took some old paper towels I use for cleaning the brushes, wrapped foil around it and roughly sculpted a body: A little playing later (approx. one hour), I had this - and several new ideas how to craft some aspects of the project: those would be cool for water geysers like old faithful in the united states |
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 22, 2015 18:45:50 GMT
I realized only during the craftin that the testpiece looks like a lantern fish. This guy though is the little brother* of a humungous slug that's slurping, crawling, clawing and digging through the underdark... No water, no fish.  But. We've got the landshark, right? A fish with legs, crawling, clawing and digging through earth and stone... Then why not having a lantern fish hunting in the lightless tunnels of the underdark? *evil DM grin*  * Or sister? Honestly, I never looked... curufin, recognize that wooden square below the base of the eye? |
|
|
|
Post by curufin on Mar 22, 2015 18:52:13 GMT
Yes I do!. Those little things are so useful! Very cool build. I cant wait to see it painted.
|
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 22, 2015 19:38:57 GMT
I just wanted to start painting the anglerfish when I realized that it didn't have ridges/bulges on it's belly. Then I realized that the belly wouldn't be visible at all because the beast will be lying flat on the earth. Totally boring! the whole point of a giant creature bursting from the earth ust in front of the party is surprose, shock and terror. The originalMashaaf was sculpted with that in mind, it's posture is very dynamic. I tried hard to replicate that with my larger version, and totally forgot this aspect on the testpiece. Now I can't correct it's posture without totally remaking it (no way!). It's easily solved though - no baddie doesn't get badder with a few neodym magnets here and there!  Important points: 1) Glue the critter's magnet flush in, so you can lay the creature flat on it is belly and it's still stable without tilting. 2) Glue the one in the base at an angle. You will probably have to correct one ot both magnet's positions a few times. If you glue the belly amgnet too far towards the critter's end, leverage will overcome the magnets (except when you use really large and strong neodyms that will kill your player's smartphones, your TV and every electronic device within two neighboring states *g*). I had to re-glue the belly magnet and the base magnet until I got it right. Too far behind, both:  Better:  ...yeah, that's it!  I'm flocking da base only once:  Imagine the encounter: 1) Party discovers the anglerfish's eye sticking out of the tunnel floor. 2) Anglerfish explodes from the rock, nearly crushing one or several party members below and maybe biting one (poison?) 3) The party overcomes the monstrosity, when mommy (Reaper's original Mashaaf) comes bursting through through the tunnel wall 4) The party just barely survives Mommy. They are badly wounded, their spells mostly depleted ...and covered in gore and slime. Then the earth starts shaking again: Daddy comes...  |
|
|
|
Post by DnDPaladin on Mar 23, 2015 6:15:35 GMT
you are one whackos DM, you just can't stop showing them your stuff !
was about to say can't stop TPK but...
those are some nice work.
|
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 23, 2015 15:38:11 GMT
that's about right. so far, my players love encounters with crafted terrain and/or monsters. the sad aspect is that I barely have time for actual roleplaying, less than every two months...  |
|
|
|
Post by SpielMeisterKev! on Mar 23, 2015 17:37:51 GMT
Howdy, less than every two months... I swear, I hear violins? Kev! |
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 26, 2015 18:08:31 GMT
Progress on the painting front... Here's the angler's eye (the test piece of the testpiece, if you will). I'm not satisfied with the result, not at all. It looks like the clumsiest hand in the multiverse grabbed a paintbrush - just before it's owner had an epileptic seizure... Well, my respect for painters doing stuff like this and this his risen from " wow!  " to [speechless ]. I know that you can't compare airbrushed to regularly painted minis, but still... meh. It won't stop me (especially with the Bones I and II waiting to be painted), but I realized that the way I have to go is a lot longer, steeper and rockier than I thought.   The only thing I like is the glowing 'eye', with it's wet blended green-to-yellow-to-white:   In parellel I started with the Rock Angler (just invented that name). This will take quite a lot sessions, as I have to wait for each color to dry before I can turn the figure around... The belly of the beast. Bright yellow basepaint (watered down quite a bit), bright green washing, plus olive green washing.  Embedded rocks with the usual rock color scheme, and the WIP pustules: red basing, prime magenta washing. I'll probably add another dark red washing afterwards.  The unfinished maw (the usual 'flesh' color scheme). Teeth touched only by accident; they'll get based in bleached bone, highlighted in white (or the other way round???) and then some dark red washing. Toying with the idea of adding some hotglue saliva.  |
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 26, 2015 19:31:10 GMT
OK, the blue-purple color scheme didn't work out, not color-wise and certainly not painting skill-wise. So I started looking for alternatives. Flesh-colored (similar to Mother) would work well with the texture but wouldn't make sense for a Rock Angler. How about rock texture? Works well, it turned out: Tin foil, hotglue, a clay ball and a neodym (instead of making a whole new base, I can now use it with my modular magnetized terrain).  Rocky wins the staring contest:   Looks much more realistic for me! But. On a figure like Mashaaf, you want weird and screaming-in-your-face lurid colors. Plus, the 'flowing flesh' effect on Mashaaf's back needs a different coloration -I can't imagine a stone-looking color works there: how would you paint the embedded rocks if the flowing stuff around it is already stone? Ideas? |
|
|
|
Post by SpielMeisterKev! on Mar 26, 2015 19:56:55 GMT
Howdy,
There's something alive in here!
Kev!
|
|
|
|
Post by tauster on Mar 26, 2015 22:02:36 GMT
...just realized that a rock-colored 'angler eye' combined with a colorful body makes total sense: The Rock Angler sticks his camoflaged eye out and stonewalks outof the surrounding rock to pounce on its victim. Some deep sea creatures have colorful bodies and live in total darkness, so a creature being able to phase through rock, living in the eternal darkness of the Underdark can be colorful too. Several ideas popping up in my head... some plain nasty, others flat-out evil. Guess my players will hate these critters! And then, after they've been harrassed by Rock Anglers in all ways conceivable, right after they swear to all gods that they're going to eradicate the whole race, a deranged derro will pop out of the tunnelwall, riding one of these critters and saving the party from an even worse beast. |
|
|
|
Post by DnDPaladin on Mar 26, 2015 22:59:03 GMT
just had the worst image ever...
it started with tausters testicle and ended up with "after they've been harrassed by Rock Anglers in all ways conceivable"
i'll stop there... damn you for putting this tausters testicles in my mind to begin with... now i can't seem to read the title of the thread right anymore.
i like the rock guy more. but its as you said. the surface can be different from the rest.
but right now i'm gonna say... great work so far !
|
|
" to [speechless 