Like many fantasy board game systems, the life of Descent Second Edition was greatly extended with the sequential release of expansion materials that built upon the components of the Core Box. Material from the First Edition was revamped and re-released in the form of Hero and Monster Collections, such as Oath of the Outcast. Entirely new material would be released in the form of “Small Box” and “Large Box” expansions, both of which featured an assortment of new characters, classes, enemies, status conditions, campaigns, and equipment. Small Boxes contained two new Heroes (each with a new class), two new Monster types, and a mini-campaign focused on a single Lieutenant (whose figure was released separately). Large Boxes would contain four Heroes (each with a new class), four new Monster types, and a full campaign with several new Lieutenants (again, miniatures released separately).
The first of the small box expansions was Lair of the Wyrm, which pitted Reynhart the Worthy and High Mage Quellen against the evil dragon Valyndra and her fire-themed minions.
The treacherous Wyrm Queen Valyndra has awoken from her slumber, unleashing her foul hybrid minions on the countryside to burn and raid as they please. Her lust for gold has lured her from her lair, and now it’s up to a few brave heroes to drive her back into hiding and destroy her cruel servants!
I imagine that one of the biggest challenges faced by the creators of Descent 2nd Edition was to design classes with abilities that were unique and varied enough to make them distinct while keeping within the four major archetypes. The difference between a Knight and a Berserker was relatively clear, the former being more of a tank and the latter being more focused on dealing heavy damage. But how many variations on the Warrior theme could they possibly imagine? How many different ways could a Healer heal, for instance? This limitation would seem least problematic in regards to the Mage archetype. After all, there are dozens of well established magic systems within the fantasy genre from which they could draw inspiration. The base game had the Runemaster (who benefited from Rune based equipment) and the Necromancer (who summoned a melee based minion), both of which have vastly different play styles to the Lair of the Wyrm expansion’s Geomancer class.
As Quellen’s dubious title implies, he is an elf that no longer resides within the Aymhelin. The Latari don’t have such ranks within their own arcane institutions, and certainly an elf as young as Quellen would not have risen so high before even reaching his one hundredth year of service to Lord Aenoeth. Quellen’s mysterious link to the natural world drove him to explore the outside world, far away from what he would soon learn is referred to as the “Green Gate.” Unlike many Latari, Quellen got on well with the other races inhabiting Terrinoth. He enjoyed the naïvety of humans, the craftsmanship of dwarves, the traditions of the orcs, and even the eccentricities of the gnomes. For that reason, Quellen devotes his unique powers to protecting those that gave him his title.
As the name would imply, a Geomancer’s abilities are focused on manipulating the ground itself through the creation of Summoned Stones. These moveable objects can be strategically placed to hinder enemy movement and block line of sight, or they can be used offensively as the target of AOE attacks (hitting enemies adjacent to the Stone) or channeling the Geomancer’s attacks through the space containing the Stone (effectively extending range and line of site). The use of these powers does require a significant amount of stamina, however, which is one of the reasons that High Mage Quellen makes such an excellent Geomancer. Both his Heroic Ability and his Heroic Feat regenerate fatigue, allowing him to continually exploit his innate connection with Terrinoth’s natural energies.
“I feed off the wisdom of others, even when it’s less filling than my own.“
The miniature for High Mage Queen was about average for the earlier Descent 2nd Edition releases. There is a lot of detail packed into a very small miniature, which is both a blessing and a curse. The sculpt is certainly not lacking in interest, but some of the details are just too fiddly to be well defined. The shoulder pad and ear on his left side are particularly lacking. But other features (such as his hands and flowing robes) are rather well executed and create a very dynamic miniature. As always, I attempted to stay as close to the reference art’s color palette as possible.
Overall, I think this mini looks great. I really didn’t think much of it when I first started the project, but as the different materials were added, the piece really came together. In retrospect, I would rate this miniature as the most satisfying model out of the first two boxes, although Shiver may still edge him out for best hero that I have finished to date. Can’t wait to get to some of the more recent releases though! Unfortunately, Shadow of Nerekhall continues to loom over me as well. But, with Lair of the Wyrm now officially complete, the Crown of Destiny Hero and Monster Collection is next on the docket.
Red Fabric: The red skirts and trim were base coated with VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822). The individual forms were picked out with VMC Cavalry Brown (70.982), then blended back into the base tone with mixes of the two colors. Highlights were then added to the most prominent areas with VMC German Red Brown Surface Primer (70.605), followed by point highlights of German Red Brown mixed 1:1 with VMG Medium Grey (70.987).
Green Robes: The areas of green cloth were base coated with a 1:1 mix of VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822) and VMC Uniform Green (70.922). The major forms were picked out with pure Uniform Green, then blended back into the shadows with incremental mixes of the two colors. Highlights were applied with a 1:1 mix of Uniform Green and VMC Ice Yellow (70.858).
Gold Trim: These areas were painted with a standard non-metallic metal approach using the following colors: VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822), VGC Heavy Brown (72.153), VGC Heavy Goldbrown (72.151), and VMC Ice Yellow (70.858).
Leather: The belts and tassets were base coated with VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822). A base layer was then applied with a 1:1:1 mix of Chocolate Brown (70.872), VMC German Red Brown Surface Primer (70.605), and VMC Orange Brown (70.981). The major forms were picked out with the addition of more Orange Brown, followed by pure Orange Brown. Highlights were applied with a 1:1 mix of Orange Brown and VMC Dark Sand (70.847).
White Cloth: These areas were base coated with VMC Neutral Grey (70.992). The major forms were picked out with a 1:1 mix of Neutral Grey and VMC Ivory (70.918), followed by a 1:2 mix of the same colors. Highlights were applied with pure Ivory.
Skin: The areas of flesh were base coated with a 1:1 mix of VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822) and VNFP Base Flesh (74.004). Major forms were picked out with pure Base Flesh, followed by a 1:1 mid of Base Flesh and VNFP Medium Flesh (74.005), and lightened with the addition of an equal measure of VNFP Fairy Flesh (74.007). Highlights were added with pure Fairy Flesh.
Hair: The blonde hair was base coated with VMC Chocolate Brown (70.872). Major forms were blocked in with a 1:1 mix of Chocolate Brown and VMC Japanese Uniform WWII (70.923). Individual strands were picked out with pure Japanese Uniform, then highlighted with a 1:1 mix of Japanese Uniform and VGC Bonewhite (72.034), with final point highlights of pure Bonewhite applied sparingly.
Sometimes, when you combine two things, you get something much better than either of the first two things. For instance, a Reese’s Peanut Butter cup (or tree, given that it is Christmas time right now) is at least ten times better than peanut butter or chocolate alone. Owlbears are notoriously cool. And sharks with frickin’ laser beams are obviously superior to the individual components. Unfortunately, I don’t think the same pattern applies to the half-dragon Hybrid Sentinels in Descent 2nd Edition’s Lair of the Wyrm expansion.
Nobody knows exactly where they came from, but there is no doubt in anyone’s mind that hybrids are a force to be reckoned with! They walk like men, fly like dragons, and devastate anything in their path. While their sense of honor and duty may not be understood by most people, they have both in ample supply and will fight to the death to defend their kin.
Let’s face it dragons are powerful, intimidating, and exotic. Men are just… men. And this is entirely evident by the abilities of these monsters. Flying? That’s a dragon thing. Thick armor? Also more of a dragon thing. And Fire Breath? All of the interesting aspects of this enemy come from their dragon side, but they are just watered down by being half human. To make matters even worse, Descent already had a dragon hybrid in Belthir, a Lieutenant from the core box. But his is somewhat different from that of the Hybrid Sentinels, who have horns but lack a tail. They do get a +1 damage bonus to attacks targeting Heroes with Might attributes of two or less (Prey on the Weak), but this doesn’t really compensate for their other flaws. They’re not bad, per se, they just feel a little uninspired. But hey, at least they’re not more spiders…
The miniatures for this group are also rather lackluster. The swords are all bowed, the filigree is poorly defined and asymmetrical, and their faces are not well sculpted. Even more frustrating, however, is the amount of space that is difficult to reach with a knife or a brush. It is very hard to render non-metallic metal armor when there is a giant shield or wing in your way, but these obstructions are not so close that you can get away with leaving these areas in shadow. Still, they didn’t take all that long to paint, and turned out reasonably nice in the end.
I chose to paint the Minions following the color palette of the reference art.
For the Master, however, I was inspired by a texture sample I saw on Pinterest.
I really liked the contrast between the orange highlights and greenish-blue shadows. I was unsuccessful in recreating this look, but the final result was still rather striking.
I can’t really say I enjoyed the process of painting this group, but I’m happy with the end results. One more hero to go in this small box expansion, then on to another Hero and Monster collection. Stay tuned for more!
Due to an abundance of areas that were difficult to reach with a brush, the entire figure was covered with VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822)This ensured that there would be no spots of bare plastic visible at the end.
Green Skin: The green dragon flesh was base coated with VMC Refractive Green (70.890). A shade tone was created with equal proportions of Refractive Green, VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822), and VMC Dark Sea Blue (70.898). The major forms were lightened with a 1:1 mix of Refractive Green and VMC Golden Olive (70.857), followed by a 1:2 mix of the same colors. Highlights of pure Golden Olive were applied to the brightest areas. Some tonal variation was added with a 1:1 mix of Refractive Green and VMC Orange Brown (70.981) and lightened with a 1:2 mix of the same colors.
Steel: The steel armor was painted with a standard non-metallic metal approach using the following colors: VMC Black (70.950), VMC Medium Grey (70.987), and VMC Ivory (70.918). Tonal variation was added with the inclusion of VMC Orange Brown (70.981) to the midtones.
Red Cloak and Trim: The areas of red were base coated with a 1:1 mix of VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822) and Vallejo Nocturna Fantasy Pro Sanctuary Red (74.020). The major forms were then picked out with a 1:2 mix of the same colors, followed by pure Sanctuary Red. Highlights were applied with a 1:1 mix of Sanctuary Red and VNFP Inferno Red (74.022), followed by point highlights of pure Inferno Red.
Orange Skin: A base coat of VMC German Red Brown Surface Primer (70.605) was applied over the German Camo Black Brown. The main forms were picked out with a 1:1 mix of German Red Brown Surface Primer and VMC Bright Orange (70.851), followed by pure Bright Orange, and then a 1:1 mix of Bright Orange and VMC Sunny Skin Tone (70.845). Point highlights of pure Sunny Skin Tone were applied sparingly. Some tonal Variation was added with a 1:1 mix of German Camo Black Brown and VGC Turquoise (Also known as Falcon Turquoise) (72.024).
Black Armor: The Master’s black armor was painted with a standard non-metallic metal approach beginning with a base coat with a 1:1 mix of VMC Black (70.950) and VGC Turquoise (Also known as Falcon Turquoise) (72.024). This was lightened with the inclusion of VMC Medium Grey (70.987) and highlighted with the inclusion of VMC Ivory (70.918).
Blue Cloak/Trim: The blue areas were base coated with VMC Dark Sea Blue (70.898), and shaded with a 1:1 mix of Dark Sea Blue and VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822). The major forms were picked out with a 1:1 mix of Dark Sea Blue and VGC Turquoise (Also known as Falcon Turquoise) (72.024), followed by a 1:2 mix of the same colors, and then the addition of an equal measure of VMC Medium Grey (70.987). Point highlights were applied with additional Medium Grey added to the previous mix.
Skulls: The Skulls were base coated with VGC Khaki (72.061), shaded with mixes of Khaki and VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822) and lightened with mixes of Khaki and VMC Ivory (70.918).
When it comes to translating heroic qualities to gameplay mechanics, some concepts work better than others. Brute strength is quite easy, as you just increase attack values. Fortitude is similarly uncomplicated, as you just increase defense values. But when it comes to a warrior who inspires others to great deeds, things are a bit more tricky.
Some games approach leadership as a support trait, represented by granting allies extra actions or boosting their attacks. These abilities are often balanced by nerfing the attack value of the leader itself, forcing the player to retreat to the rear line and direct the battle from a safe distance. While accurate to real world warfare, this approach does not effectively capture the feeling of an inspiring warrior… Descent 2nd Edition does not stumble into this particular pitfall, however! Enter Reynhart the Worthy, the prototypical member of the Champion Class introduced in the Lair of the Wyrm expansion.
“I’ve been known to lose, but never to give up!“
Being a knightly squire cheated out of his rightful destiny, Reynhart is a reasonably powerful Warrior right from the start. But his true might comes from the amazing (and potentially over powered) abilities of the Champion class, which revolve around the unique Valor tokens. This resource can be spent to add damage to attacks, add blocks to defense, or to perform counterattacks once the appropriate abilities are unlocked. Valor is not particularly hard to generate, either, as tokens can be acquired when Reynhart kills an enemy, uses a specific surge ability, or uses the class specific Horn of Courage item. Some class cards even extend these abilities to nearby heroes, allowing the production of multiple Valor with each kill. In fact, with the right combination of abilities, a single action could produce up to nine Valor distributed among the party. Furthermore, most of the Champion’s abilities are passive, requiring no Fatigue in order to be used. Coupled with Reynhart’s Hero Ability and Heroic Feat, which greatly reduce the chance that his attacks miss, and this Hero definitely proves to be just as “worthy” as his title implies.
Descended from a long line of Daqanknights, Reynhart was destined for a glorious career in service to the Citadel. He became a squire for Sir Nessly at the exceptionally young age of nine, and was already competing in melees before his eleventh birthday. Yet, tragedy was overdue for young Reynhart. As he prepared Sir Nessly’s armor for a joust at Baron Zachareth’s annual tourney, he witnessed a cloaked stranger sneaking into his master’s tent, chisel in hand. Reynhart knew what the man was about, as sabotaging a knight’s armor before a joust was a common ploy implemented by unworthy, treacherous knights. Reynhart drew his sword and mortally wounded the man—who turned out to be Zachareth’s cousin and royal treasurer. Reynhart was forced to flee the tourney or face the block for his crime. Since then he has sold his sword and kept his head low, waiting for a day that he might take his vengeance.
Unfortunately, his miniature is a bit less… impressive. It’s not terrible compared to other early Descent 2E sculpts, but still suffers from the same flaw as the rest of this line: the overambitious attempt to include too many details in too small of a miniature. The multiple plates of his armor are poorly separated, the filigree is poorly defined, and mold lines always seem to go right through both of these areas. While these problems could be fixed with a sharp blade and some patience, his overly narrow nose and lopsided face were less amenable to correction. Still, compared to the ever-looming threats of the Tinashi and Orkell sculpts, Reynhart still seems to have gotten off easy in the face department.
Like most armored characters, the majority of time painting was spent on the non-metallic metal. In keeping with the his reference art, the steel was heavily tinted with blue tones, which was new to me, but a satisfying challenge. Since much of his stomach was shielded by the posing of his arms, the small amount of detail I was able to apply to the belts and straps in that area is not visible in the pictures. This was another very poorly sculpted area with a large mold defect obliterating the entire left side of his gambeson.
Overall, I’m pretty pleased with this one. While the sculpt was a bit lacking in some regards, I feel that I was able to amplify the details and really bring out the character that was hidden behind the deficiencies. Part of the joy of painting these miniatures is how much they push me to overcome the limitations of the plastic. The challenge IS the point, after all! If I needed perfect sculpts, I would have abandoned this game long ago, or just focused on the later releases.
One more miniature down, a couple hundred left to go… (just in Descent, of course….)
Blue Steel: The main areas of armor were painted with a standard non-metallic metal approach using VMC Black (70.950), VGC Falcon Turquoise (72.024), and VMC Pale Grey Blue (70.907). The Falcon Turquoise was used only as a tint for the two primary colors.
Grey Steel: The sword, shoulders and tassets were painted with a standard non-metallic metal approach using VMC Black (70.950) and VMC Pale Grey Blue (70.907).
Turquoise Details: The tabard and turquoise trim were base coated with a 1:1 mix of VMC Dark Sea Blue (70.898) and VGC Falcon Turquoise (72.024). The main forms were then lightened with the incremental inclusion of additional Falcon Turquoise, followed by VMC Sky Blue (70.961). Highlights were applied with pure Sky Blue. The white design on the tabard was base coated with Sky Blue, shaded with a 3:1 mix of Sky Blue and Dark Sea Blue. The design was then lightened with a 1:1 mix of Sky Blue and VMC Ivory (70.918) and highlighted with pure Ivory.
Leather Gambeson: The gambeson was blocked in with German Camo Black Brown (70.822), then base coated with VMC Flat Earth (70.983). Areas of shade were applied with a 1:1 mix of Flat Earth and VMC Chocolate Brown (70.872). Major forms were lightened with a 1:1 mix of Flat Earth and VMC Dark Sand (70.847), followed by highlights of a 1:2 mix of the same colors.
Red Leather and Hair: The gloves, belts, and hair were all blocked in with VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822), then base coated with VMC Mahogany Brown (70.946). The main forms were then lightened with a 1:1 mix of Mahogany Brown and VMC Sunny Skin Tone (70.945), followed by a 1:2 mix of the same colors. Point highlights were applied sparingly with pure Sunny Skin Tone.
Skin: The face was base coated with VGC Heavy Skintone (72.142). Shade was applied to the eye sockets and mouth with a 1:1 mix of Heavy Skintone and VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822). The major forms were lightened with a 1:1 mix of Heavy Skintone and VMC Flat Flesh (70.955), followed by pure Flat Flesh, and finally with a 1:1 mix of Flat Flesh and VMC Light Flesh (70.928). Point highlights were applied sparingly with pure Light Flesh.
The first boxed expansion for Descent Second Edition was Lair of the Wyrm, which featured two new Heroes, two new Hero Classes, two new Monsters, and a four quest mini-campaign featuring the new draconic Lieutenant Valyndra (sold separately). As one might expect of a campaign centered around a dragon, fire played a very heavy role in Lair of the Wyrm. Many of the map tiles featured lava pools, the Burning condition was introduced, and all three of the new enemies featured fire attacks of one variety or another. So it is altogether fitting to begin the painting of this expansion with the most thematic additions, the Fire Imps.
While not particularly imposing, having one of the lowest health stats in the game, Fire Imps are fast and can strike from a moderate range. Being born from fire themselves, these demons are not only immune to fire damage, but they actually heal when occupying lava spaces, which are prevalent in this campaign. Their attacks may seem weak as well, but the ability to inflict the Burning condition forces the heroes to either take damage (including adjacent heroes) or lose an action in putting out the flames. Melee fighters may also want to keep their distance from the Masters (there are two in this Monster group), as a finishing blow will cause damage to Heroes adjacent to the target.
The miniatures were rather fun to paint. There were no particularly bad mould lines, the flames were rather dynamic, and other than a slightly odd expression on the smaller imp, the details were pretty well defined. It was quite easy to match the color palette of the reference art, and the rest was a matter of patience and persistence in blending all the swirls and waves of the fire. Personally, I think the effect was successfully achieved, and these flames look bright and hot!
The most difficult challenge I encountered was finding a way to differentiate the Masters from the Minions. This would normally be accomplished by incorporating red into their clothing, changing the fur color for more bestial foes, or giving them more extravagant equipment (upgrading steel armor to gold, for instance). But in this case, everything was already red and there was no fur or armor to change. I thought about painting the imps differently, with charred skin or to be glowing white-hot, but was afraid that this would not be effective at such a tiny scale. So, the solution was to alter the flames. My wife pointed out that blue flames are actually hotter than yellow flames, so this would allow the Masters to be not only more dangerous, but also create more contrast. However, I did not want to create the typical pure blue flame that looks magical or ethereal. Instead, I chose to emulate the blue-to-orange appearance of an alcohol fire, as pictured below:
By fading the blue flames into more natural tones that were already used on the Imps, this accomplished the goal of creating strong color contrast while also tying the two components together into a cohesive palette.
While this effect may not have come off perfectly, I am very pleased with the final result. The flames look vibrant and dangerous, and the Imps look charmingly fiesty. Overall, I think I actually prefer the Masters to the Minions here… let me know which you prefer.
*** Because fire is hottest at its center, painting flames requires an inversion of the normal base/layer/highlight technique in which the lightest tones are used in the recesses and the darkest tones appear towards the edges.***
Flames: The normal flames were blocked in with Schmincke Titanium White in order to have a bright, vibrant starting point for the fire. This was then covered with a base coat of VMC Flat Yellow (70.953). The major forms of the fire were built up with progressive mixes of Flat Yellow and VGC Orange Flame (72.008), with the tips of each swirl reaching pure Orange Flame. The very tips were then darkened with incremental inclusion of VMC Smoke (70.939) to the Orange Flame.
Blue Fire: The blue flames also began with a Schmincke Titanium White undercoat. Rather than starting with the lightest colors, however, the hottest part of these flames would actually be the deepest blue tones. Therefore, the base coat was accomplished with VMC Flat Blue (70.962) mixed 1:1 with VMC Sky Blue (70.961). The major forms were then lightened with a 1:2 mix of the same colors, followed by pure Sky Blue. At this point, the blue tones were transitioned into VMC Flat Yellow (70.953), afterwhich the tips were painted using the same method as the regular flames of the Minions.
Imps: The imps were blocked in with VMC German Camo Black Brown (70.822), then base coated with a 1:1 mix of German Camo Black Brown and VMC Flat Red (70.957). The major forms were lightened with the progressive inclusion of VGC Orange Flame (72.008) to the base tone, followed by the inclusion of VMC Flat Yellow (70.953) for highlights.
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