The Christmas spirit is well and truly upon us here in the Warhammer Community team, and our creative folks have been hard at work on some festive models of their own. Take a look at some of the Christmassy concoctions they’ve come up with.
Nick
‘Tis the season to be hobby and what better way to celebrate your love of all things Warhammer than to find a home for your miniatures on your Christmas tree?
I really wanted to put a model in a Christmas bauble and when the opportunity arose to turn the process into a How to Paint video, I jumped at the chance. I grabbed the fantastic new Jakkob Bugmansson XI miniature and painted him up in festive colours with a big white beard.
I wanted to make sure I could still use the model in games, so I worked out a way of making a slot in the base of the bauble using an Apocalypse Movement Tray and disguised it with interior filler. If you want to see exactly how I did it, check out the video!
Hatty
I love making cool, cute, one-off dioramas and scenes with Citadel miniatures, especially around seasonal times of the year like Christmas and Halloween. Last year, I painted ‘Father Cryptmas on his Slay’, and I wanted to do something new this year. I love the creepy vibe of the Nighthaunt miniatures, so I always turn to them for ideas.
This year, I’ve painted this little scene ‘Frosty the Snow Ghost’ where two Chainrasps are busy building a new servant for their Dark Lord from the freshly fallen snow. I used modelling putty to build Frosty himself and small polystyrene balls to make the snowballs. I also used glitter on top of a layer of Valhallan Blizzard to really make it sparkle!
The Chainrasps have been altered slightly, with one of their weapons being turned into a carrot for Frosty’s nose while the other holds a recently acquired, severed arm (from the second-hand shop), which he prepares to attach to the Snow Ghost.
All in all, this was great fun to build and paint!
Emma
Anyone who knows me knows how much I love Christmas. Last year, my friend Polina and I challenged ourselves to make the most festive miniature we could.
I’d always thought the movement of the Wild Riders' steeds would be perfect to make them look like they’re flying through the air, so I decided to build my miniature around the idea of Santa’s sleigh. I looked at many of the chariots on the webstore before deciding that only the sledge from the Radagast the Brown kit would do. Radagast himself was going to be Santa, but on seeing Da Red Gobbo, the poor wizard was relegated to the bitz box.
I used a bit of tree to mount Rudolf so he looks like he’s taking off, and I used the biggest base I could find to put it all together after I’d painted the component parts separately using Contrast paints.
I had great fun making it and was really pleased with how it all turned out. This Christmas, the scene takes pride of place on my mantelpiece, though after being in storage the snow has got a little yellowed for some reason, I blame the naughty Gobbo.
John
Father Squigmas was created for a fun seasonal campaign a few years ago. He was built entirely from Green Stuff and a Runt Herd from the Gretchin box. He would hide in buildings (all of which had a chimney of course) and if you ran into him, you’d have to roll a dice to find out if you were naughty or nice – almost no-one was ever nice.
Instead of a lump of coal though, he gave the gift of a herd of 25 squigs that the player would then have to deal with. Is there any greater gift than a herd of angry squigs? The other buildings held far more exciting presents, but by the end of the campaign, it was amazing how few people were willing to check them.
Dirk
I've painted Hrothgorn's Mantrappers for a user-created Advent Calendar on the German hobby message board, and I think they fit the bill for a festive paint job perfectly! You've got your big Santa, some eager little helpers, and even a red-nosed … well, not quite a reindeer, but you get the point!
I even wrote a short story where the grumpy old Icebrow Hunter accidentally becomes the Father Christmas of a swath of Ghur. This Santa Claus doesn't make a list though – it's more of a menu. That's life in the Realm of Beasts, eh?
Peachy
This year, I thought it would be nice and wholesome to make a Christmas diorama, featuring all the things kids love about the festive season: snow, reindeer, and (a)elves. So with that in mind, I set about creating my scene.
Unfortunately after all the models were built and painted, I accidentally left them near my Daughters of Khaine collection. During the night some stuff happened and I haven't had a chance to make a new one.
I'm sure the Christmas aelves are fine…
Rudolph is just having a little nap…
Everything’s okay…
Do you have any plans to get your army into the Christmas spirit? Perhaps an Ironclad from the Kharadron Overlords is on its way with bundles of cheer. With New Year, New Army just around the corner, all sorts of opportunities for conversion are ripe for the picking – and be sure to share your creations with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!