'Infected' Zombies & Survivor SUV

    Infected zombies from Kraken 3D Studios swarm around a 3-D printed Land Rover

When I had ordered my 3-D printed zombies from John at JS Wargamer Printing, he'd given me a choice of standard modern zombies or "infected" ones from The Last of Us series. Of course, I had said, "Both!" This is my first batch of 10 zombies of the infected variety, with the Cordyceps fungus projects growing out of them. They are from the Apocalypse Dawn range designed by Kraken 3D Studios.

    Bloated or 'Nasty Zombies' painted up as infected "good old boys" in bib overalls and ball caps

Since many zombie games differentiate types of zombies, I decided to use this batch to create "runner" zombies and bloated or "Nasty Zombies" (as the Zombie RV rules call them). In this batch of 10, there was one pose each of a zombie that I thought could work for a runner and another pose that could be a bloated one. So, I tossed three of each into the batch, along with four more standard infected zombies -- if there is such a thing! What's more, I decided to make it even easier for me or my players to identify the runners and nasties as such and did a slightly different basing on these zombies. If you look closely, you will see the bloated zombies have a brick look to their basing and the runners have a smoother cobbled surface as opposed to the asphalt-looking ballast.

    These views do a good job of showing the Cordyceps fungal infections sprouting from the zombies

The most notable thing about this batch is they all have fungus growths projecting from their skin or clothes. In some cases, it is very marked and easy to see. On others, it is a little more subtle. One of the first questions I had was what color I should paint these growths. I did lots of Google Image searches and reading up on fan pages for the show for suggestions. I wasn't overwhelmed by the detail. I remember most of the scenes from the series that contain the infected being rather dark. I ended up settling on a light terra cotta base coat with a dull yellow highlight. A black wash over it would give it more depth and darken it up a bit. All in all, I'm happy with how the "infection" on my infected turned out.

    My 'runner' type zombies with their different bases to hopefully aid in telling them apart

The bloated ones are probably the most characterful of the designs. They are wearing bib overalls that are falling down along with a ball cap. I wanted to make each of the three look different even those the poses are identical. So, one got standard jeans look to their overalls, while another got a very faded, light blue tone. The third one had a brown Carhatt look to them. For the hats, I couldn't resist. I gave one a red and white MAGA cap, though making lettering small enough was probably beyond my skill -- even with the micron pens. Another is supposed to be a John Deere cap, while the third is a Cleveland Browns cap (if you can even tell!). I like how they turned out, in general, though I wish I was better at tiny details.

    I like how Kraken designed the ripped and tattered clothing of the zombies in this line

The runners were a bit easier, since all I had to do was use different colors of clothes, hair, and shoes. I like how the sculpts (can you call them that if they are designed and printed electronically?) have their shoes worn away and toes showing in places. For the runners' unique bases, I found some patterned styrene with a cobbled design. I did it in a lighter gray than the standard zombies, but kept it in gray and black so they wouldn't be confused with the nasty zombies' brick pattern. I really like the running pose and it is probably one of my favorite ones of the zombies I got from John.

    I really liked the other four poses, too -- especially the female crouching in green pants

There was a lot of variety in the four remaining zombies in this batch. Most notable is the female one wearing the bright green pants. Her crouched pose shows off her more female physique than some of the other female zombies from the previous two batches. She looks horrifying and like she's ready to spring on some poor survivor. I also like the one on the far right in the above photo. His dense Cordyceps infection sprouting out of his shoulder looks painful in a very cool, deformed sort of way. I also like the classic pose on the far left holding his hand up. You can almost hear him moaning for brains...ha, ha!

    The vehicle is a 3D printed Land Rover from Diabolical Terrain "dirtied up" a bit for the apocalypse

Finally, the 3D printed land rover was from Ron Weaver of Diabolical Terrain. He had a batch on sale at DayCon 2024 and this is the second of those I bought from him there that I have painted up. They are actually fairly easy and quick to paint up. I spray paint them black, then follow that up with a 50/50 mix of water and acrylic black paint to make sure it seeps into all of the crevices. I like the metallic green craft paint I used for it -- the shade seems like something you see on the streets fairly commonly. I gave it some dents with accompanying rust and a black wash overall. If it has a bit of a "dusty" look, that was unintentional. After four days of waiting to spray coat these zombies and land rover, dissuaded each day by the incredibly high humidity in Columbus, I decided to risk it. I think there IS a little frosting that happened to it. It's much more noticeable on the metallic green car than the zombie skin or clothes. However, wouldn't an automobile in the apocalypse typically have a layer of ash over it? So, in the end, between the dark blasck wash and the maybe humidity frosting, it works!

 So, what's next on my tabletop? A slight change of pace. I had a batch of five Sci-Fi type personalities on my desk that I have begun. More on what I will use them for in another post...

Miniature Painting & Purchasing Tally for 2024

• Miniatures acquired in 2024: 64
• Miniatures painted in 2024: 90