Oh, Molly Dear...

Back on my hobby table, the 6 Month Mountain Reduction Challenge has begun. I started by doing some basic organizing and deciding exactly what it is I am going to focus on accomplishing in the next several months. First on the list is my Super Dungeon Explore project. With only a few more models left to complete, that should be an easy thing to accomplish. Malifaux is then another priority, as I am eager to get the community back up and running. I will begin by completing the Ressers, as well as some terrain, as we decided it was much needed after our first Sunday game session. 

When I sat down to paint, I managed to knock out the Guild Autopsies pretty quickly. I’ve always liked these models, but I never put them on the painting table because they just weren’t very good in 1.5. Now, however, these guys are pretty awesome and I will be using them a lot more. I strayed a bit from my normal rotted flesh recipes and opted for something that looked a bit more embalmed. This meant very pale flesh with fewer dark washes, focusing mostly on violets and reds to make up the shadows. I spent extra time working on the reds around their opened skin.

It took me quite a while to decide on a color scheme I wanted for the Guild uniforms. As I play Guild as well, I want to be sure that the scheme I choose for the autopsies will also match the variety of guild rank and file that will follow at some point. In the end, I decided to go with a green-grey coat and grey or dark slacks. I like the almost ‘confederate’ look of these guys and I think it will look very good when the Guild get into these colors as well. They will look like a uniformed force, but a distinctly rag-tag uniformed force. To set them apart from their more lively kin, I muddied up their clothes quite a bit with a number of brown and Sepia washes, as well as Secret Weapon Baby Poop and Stone washes. 

After completing the autopsies, I almost randomly picked Molly Squidpidge. More than anything in the new edition, I have been exited to play with Molly as a master. In the past, she hasn't been very viable, but that is all changed now, so I am looking forward to seeing how she plays. 

As far as the model, I'm not sure if I was ever really too excited about it. There was just something that didn't strike my fancy. However, when I started painting my own version, I quickly took it back. Rather than the bright yellows you see so commonly with Molly, I decided to go for a dress that looked a bit more old fashioned and quite a bit more muted.

What I really like about this model is that she is essentially made entirely of 3 colors. You have the violet of her dress, the dark browns of her hair and shoes and the beige that makes up the trim on her dress. Her skin tone was created by using the violet from her dress alongside that neutral tone of the trim, and then I set everything off with just a few hints of color like her green eye shadow. I gave a nod to her usual color scheme in the sunflower in her hair.

Then it was time for blood. I didn't want Molly to appear like she was a gory model or anything like that. Instead, she takes very good care of herself, but is simply unable to avoid making a mess of her
dress when she coughs up blood which, according to the fluff, she does quite often.While the front of her dress has been ruined, the back of the dress is still very much as she would like to keep it, clean and pretty. I think this is a good metaphor for Molly herself. She tries to move on as though she were still alive, but her undeath ends up being something of an inconvenience that keeps coming up.

At the time of writing, I had picked her up and started painting so quickly that I hadn't really decided what base she was going to have. So, unfortunately, Molly is just slightly unfinished, but there will be more from her later.

More to Come.

-Nick