Thursday, 31 October 2024

Bob Olley Iron Claw/Essex Miniatures Undead.

 Something ghostly for Halloween: Undead.

These undead were sculpted in the 1980s by Bob Olley, and are from his time at both Essex Miniatures (this range is still in production) and at Games Workshop as Iron Claw Miniatures. I am aware that Bob Olley's sculpting can divide opinion, however I quite like how he has sculpted these Undead, and both ranges fit nicely together. Incidentally, some of the Essex Miniatures are a mix of Skeletons and Zombies from their Undead range.

A few of these miniatures I had painted a little while ago, however I wasn't a 100% happy with them and so I modified the paintwork. The painting involved starting with a white undercoat, then a wash of Citadels Tesseract Glow, then a wash of Citadels Nighthuant Gloom, then a light white dry brush, and finally a slightly watered down wash of Tesseract Glow again.

Overall I am very happy with how they have turned out. I kept with the slightly dark autumnal look to the bases from earlier. I think that the paint scheme I have chosen brings out a lot of their details without making them too busy. The idea of the army was to give them the feel of the Deadmen of Dunharrow from the Lord of the Rings, and are part of my broader on/off Lord of the Rings project using Bob Olley sculpted miniatures. I have been painting Iron Claw Goblins as well, but more of that in November.

Enjoy :)

Undead!
Essex Miniatures Undead King.

Standard Bearers, on the left Iron Claw, and on the right Essex Miniatures.

Both Essex Miniatures.
Both Iron Claw Miniatures.
On the left Iron Claw, and the right Essex Miniatures.
Both Iron Claw.
Both Essex Miniatures.
On the left Iron Claw, and on the right Essex Miniatures.
On the left Essex Miniatures, and the right Iron Claw.
Both Essex Miniatures.
Again, both Essex Miniatures.
A lone Essex Miniatures Zombie with Knife.
I haven't as yet collected any of the Iron Claw Undead Cavalry, and so these are all from Essex Miniatures.This one is Q89 Skeleton:Mounted with hooded cloak and Cutlass on galloping horse.
I love the dynamism and sense of movement of the Cavalry, and this is my favourite.
Right side view.
Essex Miniatures Q86 Skeleton:Mounted with sword on galloping horse.
Right side view.
Essex Miniatures Q88 Skeleton:Mounted wearing a helmet with Axe and shield on galloping horse.
Right side view.
Essex Miniatures Q87 Skeleton: Mounted at full gallop with Spear.
Right side view.

Next update maybe Iron Claw Goblins, if I get around to photographing them, or something else if I don't!

8 comments:

  1. These are pure gold, totally distinctive of an era, they do have quite a load of personality!

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Suber. I love their detailing and the individualistic personality of them, and you're right they do capture that mid to late 1980s era.

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  2. Replies
    1. Thank you, it's quite an enjoyable paint scheme to use. Fairly quick to do as well.

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  3. Very effective looking undead Lee, I would say you got the look from the Return of the King movie perfectly.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Dave. I wanted to go for a look similar to the Return of the King rather than a generic pale ghostly look. I did like the Army of the Dead in that film, and thought that this more simple but bright colour scheme would bring out the great details in the miniatures.

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  4. Beautiful bunch of bones. Very inspiring.

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