Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Medieval Demons "Gang" for Idols of Torment

So finally I've painted an "army" for Idols of Torment, the excellent game the Conscripts helped playtest. After an extremely successful Kickstarter the boys are beavering away on the deliverables, for which I (for one) can hardly wait! 

Ever since we started work on Idols, I'd thought that the setting and backstory was really cool and reminiscent of Dore and crazy medieval woodcuts of devils. You know, this sort of thing:



Imagery like this really inspired me to try and find some suitable models to create a "demon gang" for Idols. And in some fortuitous Internet browsing I found the wonderful Antediluvian Miniatures web store which scratched that itch perfectly. 


The models in this post are all from Antediluvian's excellent "Medieval Demons" range and proprietor Andrew Taylor was kind enough to accommodate my specific needs for an Idols gang. In the game, your force consists of only eight models - two Slayers (close combat dudes), two Lurkers (ranged attacks), two Stalkers (fast guys), one Corrupter and one Reaper. 

Slayer and Lurker

Stalker

I asked Andrew to sell me two Demons with clubs, two with hand-gonnes, and two armed only with their claws, the last of which I converted by adding wings from some Reaper Bones demon models - I think that worked out well.

The ninth model required is a Totem - for this I used a Games Workshop Chaos banner bit from the bits box - decorated with the seal of Stolas, Prince of Hell, as illustrated in the Ars Goetia.

And here is the Prince himself, another model from Antediluvian. This model was the one that really sold me on the range, I just love it. My late wife Pam's favourite bird was the owl and this one really gets me. It's based on Louis Le Breton's depiction of Stolas from the infamous Dictionnaire Infernal, 1863 edition. He's described as "a Great Prince of Hell, [who] commands twenty-six legions of demons. He teaches astronomy and is knowledgeable about herbs, plants, and precious stones. He is often depicted as a raven or a crowned owl with long legs."[

Another big draw to the Antediluvian range is this amazing Baphomet model. Baphomet didn't appear in Ars Goetia or other traditional volumes of demonology; this is somewhat surprising because he was cited as early as 1307 in transcripts of the heresy trials of the Knights Templar. However his physical appearance was essentially a creation of the 19th-century French esotericist Eliphas Levi, as the so-called Sabbatic Goat. Anyway it's a famous image and one I definitely wanted to be represented in my Idols gang. 

Another shot of Stolas, did I mention I love this model?? Just a cracking sculpt and a great representation of the illustration by Le Breton.


Antediluvian Baphomet pictured with a "Lost" model from Idols of Torment

So in summary I can say that the Antediluvian Miniatures Medieval Demons range is excellent and their customer service was exceptional. The models aren't overly large (I would put them at a slender 28mm) and are not cheap (Stolas is about 40mm tall and clocks in at 6GBP) but they are perfect for what I want them for. They were really fun to paint too.

 Have fun!

2 comments:

Bill said...

Beautiful work on these. They've been on my radar for a while now but just haven't been able to justify the purchase. Might have to work harder on my justification, seeing these!

Greg B said...

Great work on these Dallas. Some really, really cool figures here, but I have to agree that Stolas is the most disturbing and best of the bunch.