It’s been a while since we’ve looked at some of the fantastic armies owned by the Middle-earth team, so we tasked Dan Entwisle to chat with Head Hobbit Rob Alderman about his sinister Dark Denizens of Mirkwood brood.
Dan: So, Rob, what was it about the dark forests of Mirkwood that drew your interest?
Rob: I saw a particularly stunning Dark Denizens of Mirkwood force that had been posted on the Great British Hobbit League Facebook group. Seeing that collection of spiders arrayed on the table really inspired me to start one of my own, focusing predominantly on the monstrous arachnids, to begin with. This army was also unlike my Moria and Mordor forces, as they require having a large core of low-point troops, i.e., Goblins or Orcs, whereas the descendants of Ungoliant have lower numbers but hit much harder.
Dan: What models did you decide to pick up first?
Rob: I started with the Spider Queen, of course! I wanted to keep the army focused primarily on spiders initially so, once I had finished painting her, I picked up an equal mix of Mirkwood and Giant Spiders to bulk out the numbers. I decided the best approach was to paint them in batches of 6 at a time, making sure to complete the same stage on each batch before moving on; thus ensuring that my ‘recipe’ didn’t vary too much as I progressed through the force.
Dan: Your spiders look different to those we have traditionally seen in Middle-earth. What made you decide to change things up?
Rob: I’m not the biggest fan of spiders in real life, but I saw one in the garden that I found particularly interesting, so I tried to replicate that as best I could. I ended up straying a little from the original garden spider, but I’m super pleased with how the army looks on the tabletop.
I began by basecoating everything with Chaos Black spray. I then followed this with a light dusting of Corax White spray to act as a highlight on the uppermost features of the spider. This catches only the raised areas of the model, leaving the original undercoat in the recesses. This helps when it comes to highlighting the model, as you are working from a much lighter basecoat on the most prominent parts. Once the basecoats had dried, I pre-shaded the whole model with a 1:1 mix of Balor Brown and Contrast Medium.
With that stage completed, I stippled Karak Stone across the thorax and body, making sure to build up plenty of colour towards the centre of these areas while being more sparing towards the edges. I then used the stippling technique again to apply Steel Legion Drab to the same areas, making sure to leave some Karak Stone showing towards the edges. I focused next on the leg joints, using a 1:1 mix of Lahmian Medium and Doombull Brown to pick out those details. I then used a 3:1 mix of Lahmian Medium and Rhinox Hide in the centre of the leg joints, making sure that the Doombull Brown was still visible on the edges. To complete the legs, I painted some white markings onto the joints, as seen in the pictures, using White Scar.
For the eyes and fangs, I started with a basecoat of Corvus Black, after which I built up the layers using a 1:1 mix of Corvus Black and Russ Grey, finishing with a final highlight of pure Russ Grey. Once the highlight had been applied, I popped a dot of White Scar towards the top of each eye to give the appearance of light reflecting.
For the bases, I kept it simple. I started by applying PVA glue before giving them a generous coating of sand. After giving them 24 hours to dry, I basecoated the sand using Dryad Bark, then drybrushed it with XV-88. The larger stones were then basecoated with Mechanicus Standard Grey to help give some variation to the bases. Once this was done, I drybrushed the whole of each base with Ushabti Bone as a final highlight. Then, with all the messy stages completed, I painted Mournfang Brown onto the rims of the bases. With the last painting stage complete, I applied a mixture of flock and Middenland Tufts to bring the bases to life.
Dan: Which of the models in the force is your favourite?
Rob: My favourite miniature to paint would have to be the humble Mirkwood Spider. They are creepy-looking, especially when on their own – they regularly cause me to second guess if a real spider has crept onto the table! In the game I really enjoy the challenge that the Spider Queen offers – thanks to her high Strength of 6 combined with her Monstrous Charge and Venom special rules, she can be a deadly assassin. However, you need to be careful with her, as she is incredibly fragile at only Defence 4. Make sure to shield her from enemy ranged attacks and pick her prey carefully – Strength 4 troops, in particular, can pose a serious threat should she lose in combat.
Dan: Are there any models that you want to add to the force? More spiders, perhaps?
Rob: The thing that's missing at the moment is Bat Swarms. They are swift enough to keep up with spiders, thanks to their ability to fly, and their Blinding Swarm special rule allows my spiders to threaten even the toughest of Heroes by halving their Fight value. I’m also keen to add a small Fell Wargs pack – this will help significantly boost my numbers as they are only 8 points each, which is far cheaper than the spiders.
Well, that army sure has given us the creeps – in a good way, of course. Big thanks to Rob for sharing his force with us – we can’t wait to see more of his collection. If you want to start a Dark Denizens of Mirkwood force of your own, then you’ll definitely want to pick up some Mirkwood Spiders.