Devilry Afoot Followers & More

    'It's behind you!' My next batch of Devilry Afoot figures stalked by the mythical Nyah-Gwaheh

It's kind of appropriate that I'm painting figures up for games of Devilry Afoot so close to Halloween. When I slid the second batch over onto the main area of my painting desk, I decided to toss in an extra miniature. I believe it is one of the Reaper Bones monsters I bought awhile back that I thought would work for the Iroquoian mythical creature Nyah-Gwaheh. Often nicknamed the naked bear, this fierce creature supposedly has a large upper torso and a slender lower body. I actually have forgotten what Reaper calls this miniature, but for me, it's the naked bear!

Another look at my 2nd batch of Hunters & Followers for Devilry Afoot unaware of their deadly peril

All but one of the human figures in this batch are meant for Followers rather than Hunters. I modified two of them so they would be holding lanterns. The third figure that I modified is for Enoch Domigan, the brother from the sibling pair who founded the supernatural hunting society in 1797 in Franklinton, Ohio. I took one of the servants from the Brigade Games pack, Milady and Household Staff. The "servant" holding his hands behind his back as he strode forward purposefully was well-dressed and seemed to have a noble air about him. I slid a sword in his hands that are held behind his back and painted him up as a Gentleman archetype for the game. The similarly attired servant hold his hand outstretched was given a lantern and became a Follower. The other four figures came from a massive bag of 28mm figures my friend Mike S lent me. He knew I was looking for some that would work for the early frontier America period, when colonists were still using matchlocks and the occasional suit of armor. I picked out four of them (Dixon? Essex? Anyone know??) that I thought would make great Followers for Devilry Afoot, and included them in this batch.

    Enoch Domigan in jacket on the right, with a servant holding a lantern as they explore the woods

I didn't want Enoch to be "twinning" with his sister, who I'd painted dark green. So, I gave him a fairly standard dark blue coat with red trim. The lace on the facings was done in white, while that around the pockets was red. His neck scarf is in the hunting society's trademark blood red, while his vest is pale yellow and trousers are tan. I gave him a powdered wig and black boots with silver buckles. His servant has a dark blue vest, gray shirt, and faded blue pants. His wide boots are a worn leather, while his hat is a faded black. I like his puffy cheeks and bulbous nose, and the way he grips his knife scanning the area around him for dangers. I gave him gray feathers in his hat because he's a servant, after all -- he can't be outfancying his social betters!

    A woodsman Follower carries his trusty axe, while MacAfee holds his blunderbuss to defend himself

I really liked these next two figures for Followers. The masked and hooded man carrying an axe seemed perfect for a Woodsman hired by one of the wealthier inhabitants of Franklin to bring back game for the table. I painted him in green and brown tones to blend in with the trees as he hunts in the area around the town. The baggy trousers might be a tad out of style for 1797, but they would be cooler in the humidity beneath the trees. The mask gives him an almost Dread Pirate Roberts look, which only adds to the the stylish nature of the pose. Equally stylish is MacAfee, the very Scottish looking Follower in the plaid kilt and dark blue tam. I really like the way the tartan pattern came out. I painted it a red-brown with a dark cherry brown "grid" of horizontal and vertical stripes. To make the pattern pop, so to speak, I added a faded yellow dot at the intersections of the dark brown lines. MacAfee was given a brown vest jacket with wide, than cuffs. His undershirt is pale yellow and his cap is the traditional dark blue. The blunderbuss is a cool addition to the figure, and looks like it could give the supernatural creatures prowling the woods a painful surprise!

    Marib Domigan's servant Hanby, helpful holds a lantern, while Old Sarge carries a trusty halberd

Also from the servants in the Brigade Games pack is Hanby, helpfully holding aloft a lantern. Characters in light activate easier than those in shadow in the Devilry Afoot rules. So, some figures in a party are going to need to carry a lantern or torch (or perhaps "flaming brand" for the Brits, who think a torch is a flashlight? Haha). I gave him a matching jacket to Milady Marib from the first batch of hunters, and pale yellow trim with white lace. As a proper household servant, he wears a powdered wig and stoic expression, which may or may not crack when he spots one of the horrors that his lady is pursuing in the woods! Old Sarge is a retired soldier from the Revolutionary War. Since no one seemed to mind, he took his halberd pikestaff, which he'd carried for more than a decade, with him when he retired from the colors. Its wicked point might give even the angriest Nayh-Gwaheh a second thought when they see its gleaming at eye level! I painted Old Sarge in faded colors, tans and greys. I love the fact that he is barefoot and his bent floppy hat almost falls over his eyes. Marib gave him his blood reck scarf to show that he belongs amongst the society's followers. Doubtless, the retired soldier will prove useful in defending the people of Franklinton from the unspeakable terrors prowling the woods!

    I felt I was off to a good start in painting mythical Native American creatures with this 'naked bear'

Speaking of terrors, here is the first that I painted up for my Native American mythical creatures. As mentioned above, it is a Reaper Bones monster. Well, I think it is! I went through all 18 pages of their website but couldn't find it. So, if anyone recognizes it, let me know and I will ad that information! Even though you supposedly don't need to prime figures in this line, I gave him a first coat of Liquitex White Gesso. Since he showed up on my table about the same time as I was working on a batch of orcs, I decided to give his skin the same treatment, for the most part. It looked really good on the orcs and goblins. He received a walnut brown base coat, raw sienna dry brush, and very sparing khaki highlights. There are some many Incredible Hulk-like folds and "cuts" in his muscles that I wanted a flesh that I knew would look good but also looked brown and bear-like. His head and ears are not so bear like, but I am reasoning that it was more on account of his size and bipedal nature that the tribes called his kin "bears." I really like how his roaring mouth came out. The interior of his mouth is painted blood red with cardinal red highlights. The teeth were painted black first, then picked out in pale yellow. I did the same for the nails on his feet. I used the same pale yellow for the "whites" of his eyes, and a did a dark red-brown do for his eyes. At the last moment, I decided to use my narrowest nib black Micron pen and gave him a pupil, too. I really like how it made the eyes pop more!

    Close up of the roaring mouth of the Nyah-Gwaheh -- I thought the mouth and eyes came out nice

I don't know if the naked bear will show up in the first scenario I run of Devilry Afoot. I was originally planning on the hunters facing off against Native American shamans, their followers, and perhaps a skinwalker. This guy seems like overkill in that first mission -- I don't want to kill all of them off in the first game! Still, he is a terrifying looking creature, and perfect for horror skirmish gaming! I am exactly one week away from perhaps running that first game, so I'm not sure if I have time to get any skinwalkers done. I guess we'll have to stay tuned and see if I get some more monsters painted up quickly for the upcoming game (or if I don't get everything ready and back off and run something else).

    The back of the creature is also thickly muscled and cut deeply -- perfect for drybrushing!

What else is on my tabletop? Well, of course, another batch of six orcs from Gripping Beast. I also have three shamans fairly far long -- they should definitely be ready in time. Otherwise, I've stalled on scratch-building my stands of bamboo. I wasn't crazy with how my first idea was looking. So, I'm trying a second idea out to see if it looks more like what I want. I do have three rice paddies done, though, and will post pictures of them as soon as I get around to that. More to come!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 290
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 238

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 53
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 61

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 136
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 201