Festus the Leechlord

This model has been sitting on the painting table for a while now, getting the odd bit done to it in-between other things. However, last night, I made the final push and finished him – Festus the Leechlord is ready to take to the field!

This is the kind of model that is absolutely loaded with detail, and just as you think you have finished one section, something else pops up to demand your attention. There is probably more detail on this model than there is on, say, a Maggoth Lord!

Festus himself is quite an easy model to tackle – the bulk of him is the same pallid flesh I did for the Blightkings (nicely linking him to the rest of the Rotbringers), then there is just his apron and tentacles, really.

The issues start with the massive wooden backpack, its grisly contents, the bottles on his belt, and his staff. There are all sorts of little things to get your brush round on these, from the Nurgling on the platform holding a foot, to the skulls, scrolls and fungi on the staff.

Then there is the poor guy getting force-fed Festus’ latest brew…

This is kinda of the centrepiece of the model, after Festus himself, and GW’s painters do a far better job than me! However, I think it was just within the limits of my own talent to get the point across – he is getting fed the concoction and literally falling apart, so there is a mixture of skin and bone, all wrapped up in gooey green stuff that is dissolving his robes. I was going to add a touch of the gunky Nurgle’s Rot paint to him, but felt that would have probably gone too far.

The bottle Festus is holding could well have been a chore in itself, and GW’s painters have gone as far as painting in the surface tension of the liquid! I went for a simpler route – the whole bottle was painted Celestial Grey and highlighted with white, with Moot Green used for the liquid and two lots of Biel-Tan Green laid on top and allowed to settle towards the bottom rather than giving a blanket cover. A dot of Caliban Green was added to the very bottom to give the appearance of depth.

Seems to work well enough.

This week, I am hoping to finish off a bunch of Chaos Warhounds (just about finished already), a Blood Throne of Khorne and, if I can avoid being distracted, Skarbrand himself. Fingers crossed that this can all get done, as I have a BIG project planned for the weekend…