Pathfinder Battles Preview: A Second Look at Rise of the Runelords

Friday, February 03, 2012

Last week I previewed several miniatures from our upcoming Rise of the Runelords Pathfinder Battles prepainted miniature set, scheduled for an early summer release. WizKids is still finalizing the details on the product mix and exact release date, so while we do not yet have a product page for the set, I DO have some more really cool images to show you of paint masters!

To recap, a “paint master” is an early output of the miniature painted as a guide to the factory artists who will paint the final production run. So far, we’ve been really impressed with the factory’s ability to match the quality of our paint masters, so we’re pushing things a bit with this latest release to ensure that you receive the highest possible quality miniatures we can deliver.

So these images don’t look exactly like the final minis will look, but this is what they’re shooting for, and I suspect the final product will be very close to what you see here.

These miniatures support the Rise of the Runelords Anniversary Edition, a massive hardcover collection of our very first Adventure Path that we’re releasing this summer as a special 10th Anniversary present to ourselves (and to you!).

Up first this week is the Ghoul, a common miniature that represents a key enemy in the Adventure Path’s second installment. I’ve always been fond of ghouls as deadly undead menaces for low-level parties, and this guy looks great, nasty long tongue and all! (And no, his left arm isn’t quite so straight in real life.)

If you thought ghouls were terrifying, wait until you get a load of the Denizen of Leng, another common who will come in handy as your players reach the second half of the Adventure Path. Drawn to the world from an otherworldly plateau and possessed of weird eldritch powers, this alien mystic subs in nicely for any kid of oddball spellcaster eager to keep his ugly mug hidden behind soiled linen strips.

This miniature, the uncommon Wraith, is a good example of something new we’re trying with this set—clear plastic! When appropriate (as in the case of incorporeal undead), we plan to produce certain miniatures in this set with a translucent plastic, adding to the otherworldly effect. This figure is an almost direct translation of the wraith illustration from the Pathfinder RPG Bestiary, but it took us several tries to get a workable sculpt from the waist down, as the original art is not particularly helpful in this regard. I’m really happy with how he turned out.

Last up today is another clear plastic miniature, the relentless Scanderig (or Forgefiend). This original creature made his first appearance in the original Rise of the Runelords campaign, and countless player characters have since been stuffed inside its fiery belly. He is both Large and rare, and in person he looks absolutely amazing. Note the painted “bars” on the back of the mini. The original illustration didn’t show the creature’s back, so our master painter added the lines with paint to create a sort of grill effect. We didn’t so much care for that, so the final miniature will have an “open” front and back, which ought to help light shine through the red plastic, enhancing the fire effect.

One of the cool things about this second set of Pathfinder Battles miniatures, for us here at Paizo, is to see original Pathfinder creatures in plastic. The Scanderig is just one of many in the Rise of the Runelords set, but the others will have to wait for future Fridays, and future Pathfinder Battles previews.

Until then,

Erik Mona
Publisher