Soulsmith's Disciples of Tzeentch

[Soulsmith]

The Pale Librarian

It had felt like months of jumping through hoops and doing endless tasks, solving riddles and puzzles throughout the vast structure, but finally Orestes had made it to the promised chamber inside the library. The door was old, worn, and seemed inexplicably... unrecognisable? No, it was more like the door was painted onto the wall, and when he had first seen it when he had apprenticed here, he had dismissed it on all other occasions. It laid relatively deep in the archives of the structure, within old, unsorted stacks of books, scrolls, and dust.
He approached, his eyes locked on the unremarkable portal as if in fear that to look away, to let his attention stray, would be to once again walk past and forget it was there. After so long, he couldn't allow it. It had a simple metal handle, of a brassy metal. As his hand grasped it, he was surprised by how warm it felt, so very un-metal, as if it had instantly become an extension of himself.
With a small nod, he turned it, and swung the door inwards. It made little noise as it whispered across. It made even less sound as it closed itself behind him. this chamber was the same old stonework and dust as the rest of the library and it's many small nooks. What was different was the air. It was warm, but so very dry. As if a great fire burned on every wall. But it was dark, and despite torches on multiple sconces it seemed as if only a long table in the center was lit. Orestes approached, apprehensive but so very alive. Finally the riddle was at the close! Knowledge had always driven him, and a personal burning desire to have it for himself. His satisfaction fled when he realised on the other end of the table from where he stood were two figures.
Two very small figures.
One stood on the table, and knelt to lift the other onto the surface. The one left behind flailed it's legs comically as the first pulled. They wore full robes, complete with hoods, of a rich orange fabric, that seemed to shimmer into purple when it moved. As the pair settled onto the tabletop, they froze, and turned to look at him. One's hood held total darkness, whilst the other's had a bright eye staring out at him from the center, with a bizarre pupil shaped like the number 8.
They stared and he stared back.
This continued for a little while.
And then they giggled.
"Lookie lookie! Bones! One of the scuttling, servile, serious servants of Sigmar!" The one with the eye began, turning from Orestes to his partner.
"I dare say you're correct! Say, bogglingly bookish boy, would you like a song?" The other looked at him from beneath the hood. Even without eyes, he could feel the creatures gaze bore into him, through him, around him. He knew this was a test, part of the challenge, the mystery. He made sure to speak clearly.
"A song would do me well, but I am done with words." He recited, trying not to make it seem like he was reading it out from the scroll in his head. The pair giggled again, and in unison, lowered their hoods. He wasn't quite prepared for what came next. The one with the eye had a head shaped like a crescent moon. The skin was pale, hairless, and seemed to crawl with veins under the surface that shifted like worms. There were no features but a mouth. On the tip of the moon was a bright brass bell, which tinkled as he wiggled the moon back and forth, side to side. Rolling around inside Orestes realised was the eyeball which had watched him earlier, staring out from within the confines of the bell. The creature named Bones had no eyes at all. No skin. It seemed to morph straight from skin to bone, a wretched human skull shrunk to childlike proportions. The teeth were a constant grin, a grimace of white. The being raised it's arms and out protruded two near skeletal hands, barely covered in a tight, dusty skin. The fingers were long, too long, and as his brain attempted to process this they began to rap, one after the other in a repetitive staccato upon the hollow skull of it's head. He tapped, whilst the other jingled and jangled, bouncing back and forth in it's robes as Bones bored through him from it's orbits.
Orestes waited. He didn't feel like there was anything he could do. This insane, childish music filled the room, bouncing from the stone back to his ears and becoming as oppressive as the darkness he noticed when he had first entered. He knew without trying that he could not speak, could not move, could not stop watching the dancing of the one figure, and the statuesque stillness of the other, fingers tapping.
The song continued.
Orestes felt rigid, his muscles demanding he move, that he fidget in some way or another. But his brain controlled him, and it needed to know the answer. All the answers. That is what mattered, all that ever mattered. As he forced through this bizarre, comical, nightmarish situation, he felt another presence enter the room, enter his body, his mind. He hadn't noticed the darkness deepen, until only the table was lit by an unknown source. There was no way the torches could cast such a light. All at once, he felt the presence, saw the darkness, and heard the silence. The two had stopped, and from the dark he saw bespectacled eyes watching him, the light playing from the glass.
"Very good boy. You did well, I have watched you, they have watched you. You are ready, I know this, I have seen it." The voice was a rasp, as if over pointed teeth. Stepping forward, the figure revealed itself as one of the senior archivists, a wizened, clean shaven man with a bald head and small glasses upon his nose.
"You will join us, you will work with us, help us. We will bring a change to this world, through knowledge and the strength it brings."
"Yes... I must know!" All at once Orestes felt the mental tension snap, his emotions pour forth.
"You will." The old man answered calmly. Orestes smiled, or began to, but stopped suddenly as he saw, glowing in the semi-darkness of the Archivist's pale face, a third eye open horizontally. It blazed with a knowledge, a power, a hatred Orestes knew was within him but with such strength.
All at once it was gone as the old man turned and stepped into the darkness. Bones turned with him and hopped from the table, and the last, that with the jingly-bell, waggled a finger at Orestes. It told him to follow.
----------------------
 
Hi all! Thought I should probably start a new modelling thread for this as a place to show off future non-destruction project. So kicking it off we ahve my first test model for my upcoming Disciples of Tzeentch. It wasn't something I was planning to use in a list but it's a fun model and much nicer in person than pictures, and also a steal off eBay. Meet the Pale Librarian, my magister:

Very much wip, but the skin is finished. I am pretty pleased since it was about 3 hours total in GW today painting, and for me that is fast. The photos are in my very quickly whipped up lightbox with light failing and a phone camera, but the legs are noticeably different from the skin. I highlighted that with Slaanesh Grey and Slaanesh grey/Pallid Wych, whereas the other flesh is Rakarth/Pallid, then Pallid. The armour is a bit different from the usual Tzeentch scheme, and is Incubi Darkness, recess washed Drakenhof Nightshade, then highlighted where the light hits with Kabalite Green. I thin I will make a mix between the two to blend it in a bit smoother but so far I am happy with the effect. Still need to do the leg armour. I will blend up to Sybarite, which will mostly be thin lines along the plates to indicate light and give that metal reflective look. See @Changer's brilliant work for what I am attempting. I also want to make that NMM look on the sword but with metallics, so light and dark sections making it look shiny. You know, Eldar power sword-ey. I'll use the guide in White Dwarf a couple months back for what they did on the Visarch. The armour will get a dark bronze trim.
All in all, very happy, and great fun. Really must say to everyone whenever you're in a rut, change it up! I needed a greenskin break! C&C welcome, enjoy the fluff, and @Mohojoe because you wanted to know when I posted Tzeentch.

[Mohojoe]

Wow. First off, kudos on your narrative, very well written, set the scene fantastically and left me wanting more which is key I think to blog/forum narrative chapters. You also did very well describing four characters, something I struggle with as I end up with tunnel vision on the protagonist. Really excited to see where the story goes.

The model is looking good so far, I'm on my phone so it's a bit hard to see overall but will check it out on the laptop when I get a chance. Will you be using any spot colours also?


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[Changer]

Love the story yourve written. And I've got to say I'm really looking forward to seeing how that armour comes out.  I suppose you'll wait to see how the armour looks next to the flesh, but have you considered adding a drop of colour to the flesh? A glaze of purple around the feet would compliment the armour you're going for, whilst showing the mutation?

Keep up the good work. I can't wait to see more.

[Soulsmith]

@Mohojoe Thanks buddy  yeah I enjoy writing just don't do it often but that's been playing in my head since I read the snippets for the acolytes in the army book. Maybe one day I will sculpt the familiars Spot colours I am currently thinking orange cloth. I would use pink but the flesh has purple undertones so I am not sure, advice is welcome! Not sure on eyes either, could do those orange and cloth pink. And want to do some trippy eye detail on the staff.

@Changer Thanks  Yeah I love the colour, I think bluey green is my favourite. It's fun working with less natural colours which is all my greenskins are. I was thinking about it. It may be the photos, but all the flesh is recess shaded a watered down purple, but I could glaze the feet more to make them darker. The bases will be snow so wouldn't be a bad idea.

[Soulsmith]

Here's se better photos showing the beginning of the effect on the armour and the difference in tone between the legs and the rest of the skin. Still think I'll give it a glaze and highlight again though to make the feet more purple.

Also considering using bright aqua blue on the staff, purely because I'm thinking about using glow in the dark pigments.

[Mohojoe]

Fudging awesome!

[ZealousJ]

I'm still avoiding that model but you've made it clear it's much better than the stock pictures.

I almost went for the same colours on my Tzeentch stuff but changed my mind at the last minute. It's good to see it looks as swish in real life as it does in my head.

Great work

[Soulsmith]

Thanks guys  Pictures still aren't as clear as I would like but I don't have a camera @ZealousJ It is much nicer, I think it never got the limelight as it was kind of shunted out couple years prior to end times with no big release. Still, it's just as well designed as the Gaunt Summoner, who I assembled at the same time, and actually is in my mind a better miniature. It's just so very unsettling, perfect Tzeentch stuff. Don't know if he is any good though, 120 points is the same as a GS with familiars, or a Tzaangor Shaman.

[ZealousJ]

36 minutes ago, Soulsmith said:

Thanks guys  Pictures still aren't as clear as I would like but I don't have a camera @ZealousJ It is much nicer, I think it never got the limelight as it was kind of shunted out couple years prior to end times with no big release. Still, it's just as well designed as the Gaunt Summoner, who I assembled at the same time, and actually is in my mind a better miniature. It's just so very unsettling, perfect Tzeentch stuff. Don't know if he is any good though, 120 points is the same as a GS with familiars, or a Tzaangor Shaman.

I'm equally unsure about how useful he will be. I'm definitely taking a magister or chaos sorcerer lord though. I need a fluffy, sorry, narrative background to ky armies and do I really want a human (ish) leader.

I'm traditionally an orc player too, so it'll be interesting to watch how you get on with more sophisticated arcane nonsense :).

[Soulsmith]

29 minutes ago, ZealousJ said:

I'm equally unsure about how useful he will be. I'm definitely taking a magister or chaos sorcerer lord though. I need a fluffy, sorry, narrative background to ky armies and do I really want a human (ish) leader.

I'm traditionally an orc player too, so it'll be interesting to watch how you get on with more sophisticated arcane nonsense :).

I'll play a couple games at 1k and switch stuff in and out to give the magister a try for sure. Against non-horde armies he may prove more useful than the GS purely as a more survivable destiny dice generator.

Oh no I totally agree, I have fluff for all my forces. Even my greenskins have an entire society and place in their world. Sure, it's a bit less dark, twisted, and comical than this, but even so. I really want this characters descent into the cult to be a weird experience. Who knows where Orestes will end up!

[Circus of Paint]

That's an usual look for a Tzeentchian, being all dark and brooding as opposed to the deep blues I'm used to seeing.

I too have a Magister on the paintingdesk at the moment - lovely model isn't it?  

[Tzaangor Management]

Loving the colours so far, the armour colour is very reminiscent of a beetle's carapace, helped, no doubt, by the purple tinge to the skin.

Can't wait to see how the Tzaangors will look! 

[Soulsmith]

Thanks guys! Yeah I want them to have relatively dark armour and mutations since they will be based in snow. The magister really is a much nicer model then any photos GW have out out suggest.

Yeah I only noticed that after I was done but I like it! It should get a bit brighter, another two layers to go though may blend a darker one in as well and another wash. Definitely going to glaze the feet again. Thanks! My local is going to be running a narrative 300 point escalation in late May, so I'm planning on running a tzaangor shaman and 3 skyfires as my base warband. It's set in the kharadrons sky realm place so the boards will have sections only fliers can go. So tzaangors will appear in May! Post magister I'll be trying to finish as much of my ironjawz 1k as possible in April and May will be tzaangor month.

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[ZealousJ]

5 hours ago, Soulsmith said:

Thanks guys! Yeah I want them to have relatively dark armour and mutations since they will be based in snow. The magister really is a much nicer model then any photos GW have out out suggest.

Yeah I only noticed that after I was done but I like it! It should get a bit brighter, another two layers to go though may blend a darker one in as well and another wash. Definitely going to glaze the feet again. Thanks! My local is going to be running a narrative 300 point escalation in late May, so I'm planning on running a tzaangor shaman and 3 skyfires as my base warband. It's set in the kharadrons sky realm place so the boards will have sections only fliers can go. So tzaangors will appear in May! Post magister I'll be trying to finish as much of my ironjawz 1k as possible in April and May will be tzaangor month.

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But... It's April now

[Soulsmith]

1 hour ago, ZealousJ said:

But... It's April now

 

I'm afraid that means it will be a wait until tzaangor. I say it's so I can do more ironjawz, but also I can't afford to buy them until payday. If I really get a hankering I have a Gaunt Summoner too but I want to put him on a hero base. Probably the top of some stairs.

 

[ZealousJ]

1 hour ago, Soulsmith said:

 

I'm afraid that means it will be a wait until tzaangor. I say it's so I can do more ironjawz, but also I can't afford to buy them until payday. If I really get a hankering I have a Gaunt Summoner too but I want to put him on a hero base. Probably the top of some stairs.

 

Well if I must wait for Tzaangors at least I get to see your ironjaws. I also wouldn't want to get in the way of the 1000 point project

[Soulsmith]

Hey guys! As I just put in the April thread, the magister is done:

]

I am happy with everything except his toes and the eye of his staff. Rather rushed it but eh, I will come back at a later date. I have only one old orange paint so when I get more I'll go back over it. Really enjoyed doing the heat colourations on the staff, that will stick throughout the army. Also the sword went better than I thought, and enjoyed overall using colours I haven't before.

Up next:

And the shaman arrives tomorrow

[Ademo]

Great work man, the eye on the staff is really effective! The greenish armour too is refreshinv to see instead of the normal stock blue

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[Killax]

Fantastic update  

[Crowsfoot]

On 4/1/2017 at 7:27 PM, Soulsmith said:

Thanks guys  Pictures still aren't as clear as I would like but I don't have a camera @ZealousJ It is much nicer, I think it never got the limelight as it was kind of shunted out couple years prior to end times with no big release. Still, it's just as well designed as the Gaunt Summoner, who I assembled at the same time, and actually is in my mind a better miniature. It's just so very unsettling, perfect Tzeentch stuff. Don't know if he is any good though, 120 points is the same as a GS with familiars, or a Tzaangor Shaman.

What phone are you taking pics with, have you looked into getting a camera app?

[Crowsfoot]

I think the eye looks great, transition in colour on the armour is really well done as well, I think the eyes could be a tad brighter but a really good well painted model, I love your choice of colours.

Excellent.

[Davariel]

That magister looks great, the colour scheme is nicely arcane and sinister 

I'm excited to see where the story of your army goes too (I'm a sucker for well written fluff)!

[Soulsmith]

Thanks a lot people More painting to be done today, as well as hopefully a Tzaangor shaman to assemble (come on post!

@Crowsfoot Im using an HTC one, if you have any app recommendations lemme know! Agree on the eyes, I will be picking up some of the new oranges and hopefully I can work something better out.

@Davariel Thanks  Enjoyed writing it, will bring the next segment when I finish, or get a good chunk done, of this little Tzaangor group. Split narratives and all that. I'll theme their segment around the campaign my local GW is running. It's really small scale so my starting force is literally 3 skyfires and a shaman. It focuses around finding stones which allow them to retool a portal to enter the aether realm above. Of course, as a flying force, it's going to give them an edge  

EDIT: If anyone wants recipes as well for colours lemme know  

[Crowsfoot]

1 minute ago, Soulsmith said:

Thanks a lot people More painting to be done today, as well as hopefully a Tzaangor shaman to assemble (come on post!

@Crowsfoot Im using an HTC one, if you have any app recommendations lemme know! Agree on the eyes, I will be picking up some of the new oranges and hopefully I can work something better out.

@Davariel Thanks  Enjoyed writing it, will bring the next segment when I finish, or get a good chunk done, of this little Tzaangor group. Split narratives and all that. I'll theme their segment around the campaign my local GW is running. It's really small scale so my starting force is literally 3 skyfires and a shaman. It focuses around finding stones which allow them to retool a portal to enter the aether realm above. Of course, as a flying force, it's going to give them an edge  

I have an Iphone so no can do on recommending an app for your HTC.

Orange, interesting choice 

[Soulsmith]

I had eyes and cloth left to do, and needed some warm colours, and thought I'd include at least something classically Tzeentch. Thought pink would blend in too much with the skin tones for eyes, so it ended up being cloth. Very pleased with the cloth choice, though I may try to use yellow on eyes. Also need to think up some names for the Tzaangors!