Saturday 20 September 2014

House Arryn Knight & Warhorse [Completed]

For the first time in my Game of Thrones miniature paint-job conversion project, I was completely stumped by how to paint a noble house's heraldry - more specifically that of House Arryn. This had contributed to the long delay in finishing knight numero quarto which had previously seen me paint knights of House Lannister, House Clegane and Renly's House Baratheon. The main stumbling block was the fact that House Arryn's heraldry has a perfect circle encircling a falcon and crescent moon. Painting symmetrical geometric designs is a skill that I am not ashamed to admit I do not have.

House Arryn knight on a warhorse [Completed]
House Arryn heraldry was adapted slightly to fit the heroic 28-mm scale miniature

In the end, to simplify matters seeing that this miniature was at 28-mm heroic scale, I took a step back from my usual obsessive compulsive painter tendencies to faithfully recreate designs verbatim. So that meant dispensing with the perfect circle around the falcon and crescent moon; the latter two was painted in creamy white as per descriptions I read in the Game of Thrones novels. In another first of sorts, I also dispensed with the usual careful 'planning and design' step I have for freehand painting attempts and decided to just 'wing it' - pun unintended - when painting House Arryn's heraldry.

A truly majestic bird ... the falcon

To paint the life bird resting atop the knight's right arm, I used the majestic Peregrine Falcon as the main point of reference. It gave a very nice contrast to the bronze falcon sitting on top of the knight's helmet. Meanwhile, the metallic silver of the knight's armour was given a blue wash to add a bit of dynamism to it. Moreover, it tied up nicely with the overall sky blue look of the House Arryn knight.

Contrast on the sky blue bits was partly subdued by bright lamps used in the photography session
Front and back view of the House Arryn Knight and Warhorse
Knight's armour was given a blue wash to make it look livelier as well as tie in to the overall colour scheme

Overall I am rather please that I have managed to persevere up to this stage of the project which has seen four knights from different noble houses being completed. To be honest, I am surprised I have gotten this far. That it has has been fun has obviously helped. Well four down and four more to go.

Bronze metal bird on the knight's helmet contrasts with the real life falcon on his right arm
As high as honour ... the motto of House Arryn


360 view of the House Arryn Knight on a Warhorse
For a 360 degree view of the House Arryn Knight and Warhorse - essentially a Bretonnian Knight painted in the colours of a noble house in the land of Westeros as described in the Game of Thrones books - please see the YouTube video below. For other videos, please visit my YouTube channel FourEyedMonster Miniatures. Be sure to choose the high definition (HD) option for the best view.



Although I am spoilt for choice as to my next noble house of Westeros, I am still unsure which one should be my next subject matter in this Game of Thrones miniature paint-job conversion project. I have only four Bretonnian Knights left to work with and as things stand they would most likely be painted in the colours of House Targaryen, House Martell, House Tully and House Tyrell. Next up will be House Targaryen if I can figure out how to paint its heraldry which arguably is the most difficult of all the noble houses. If not, I might attempt something simpler. Till then Valar Morghulis.  

18 comments:

  1. That's another terrific work, love these stunning colors!

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    1. Thanks ... I am only copying what I see in the beautiful colours envisioned by other traditional artists who bring the world of Westeros to life with their beautiful colour schemes. Can't take any credit whatsoever. :)

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  2. great job as usual!
    i am a fan of GoT, and i can't wait to see more of them!
    bye

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    1. I love GoT too but I have seemed to hit a rut in the reading of this books. I am stuck somewhere in Book Four and have decided to take a break from fantasy and indulge in some SciFi reading with what else but Star Trek books. :)

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    2. Book Four is the only one that I actually didn't like (a lot I might add:P), but it's worth it to fight through - book five is not as awesome as 1-3 but still really good :)

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    3. Yeah ... for some reason I am finding it rather hard to keep turning the pages of book four. It's still a good book but that's the issue I seem to have with books with so many pages EXCEPT Lord of the Rings.

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  3. Your skills are truly impressive, I love the way you master the colours and how you make them look so wonderful. A heraldry just in blue with a simple touch of white and you manage to make it look majestic. My admiration, I'm hooked to your Game of Thrones project!

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    1. You honour me with your very kind words Suber. Although I am constantly being reminded by how higher contrasts will make the minis look better (something I agree with depending on the minis) I guess I am as stubborn as can be because ... and I know I am going against set artistic rules ... I kinda love colours with low contrast too as I personally think at times too much contrast can make something look unrealistic. There are a lot of Japanese miniature painters who paint with low contrast yet they work they end up with results that look fantastic but then again they are true artists. ^_^

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  4. That's a really nice palette and great smooth blends :)

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    1. Thanks Zab ... getting a tad better at smooth blends ... not entirely there yet but kinda on the path I guess. :)

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  5. Great job on the mini, the cloth is really well done!

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  6. Great job. The heraldry is spot on.

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  7. Replies
    1. Thank you Vincent ... loving your current work too.

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  8. Very nice! You really nail those blue hues everytime. Well done!

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