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The Hanged Man's Tarot


JackDaw

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   http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/cebd5959-2d21-477d-8696-cf9afc1b6237_zpsr9ox7uvj_edit_1451664152286_zpshqwswoma.jpg

This is how it begins.

They hang the petty tarot-wytch at dawn, in the rain, as is custom in Haven. He is bound with rope blessed by the local Lector, his skull transfixed with the iron nail taken from the walls of the church that all know will hold his warp-borne powers at bay. The Constables take him to the Gallows-cart, that steam-and-chymikal walking edifice that serves as vehicle and punishing-post both, and he is hanged until the Lector and a local doctor of physik declare that both his body and soul are departed. The Constables continue their daily rounds, his body will adorn the Gallows-cart until dusk when it will be discarded into the dark waters of the canals of Haven. Such is the custom here.

A number of the faithful, overseen by a Constable, ensure that the wytch's possessions and abode are put to the torch. This is hard work in the constant rain that falls on Haven, but those who live here are accustomed to it. With thick tar and sticky naptha, they raise a smouldering flame and cleanse this small heresy. The cards used by the wytch to divine and translate his visions are burnt without further study, the hand-inked scratchings showing the Knave, Grotesque, Dancer, Key and others destroyed in seconds by guttering yellow flames.

This is unfortunate, as by the time the laying of this field is known to scryers with enough puissance and import to raise sufficient warnings, it is already far too late. But then, a great many things that occur in Haven are unfortunate. Such is the custom in the Drowning City.

This is how it begins, in the smallest heresies. And soon the first of our players will make himself known...

 

http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20151229_040225_zpsnlyqoxv1_edit_1451666465530_zpsqispr4sn.jpg

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Wonderful set-up - really enjoyed your previous 'reveal' blog The Currency of Lies, looking forward to this one!

I completely agree here. I'm looking forward to seeing what comes from this.
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Evening chaps, and thanks muchly for all the excitement and interest so far. I'm kinda putting a lot into this project, essentially starting my hobby from scratch, so its awesome to have your enthusiasm and support on board. As ever, the community here on B&C is awesome and its nice to be back in it. Some replies, a little bit of waffle and then some random pics to come today. Hopefully the first proper update in the next couple of days.

Kobrakei - Well, gotta make an entrance somehow dont I? msn-wink.gif

SanquiniusReborn - Intrigued is good, hopefully I can up that to enthralled.

Altis - Thanks fella

MrBear - So, excitement I take it? smile.png

Kriegsmacht - Ha, good to know fella. Hope you enjoy whats to come.

BeatTheBeat - Good to see you again as well man, hows things? I've knocked on BL and GWs door several times, but they never answer. I guess going solo is probably something to look into this year.

Lamby - Whoa, de ja vu... msn-wink.gif

Rojo - Hopefully you'll enjoy where this will go, I'm hugely excited about it.

The Hydra - Glad to hear it, will aim to provide something that keeps you hooked.

So, yes. Any of you that have seen my other projects know what to expect by now - all my projects are mainly story driven with gaming a distant second. I dont really play any more and creating a good story is far more important to me. There is an overall arc for this project, but with the space to branch out a bit - instead of concentrating on just one warband, I'm going for more of a collection of characters and interested parties - a Dramatis Personae - that will have shifting alliances and connections. Initially I'll be concentrating on the first 10 players, or cards from the eponymous Tarot. They are;

Knave, Grotesque, Low-man, Fool, Dancer, Hunter, Chariot, Key, Warden and Tower.


The first 9 will form three loose trinities of linked characters, at least to begin with. The Tower will be something...else. Enough blathering, here's some random pics from the workbench:

http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20151217_211906_zpspey4b89u_edit_1451770779640_zps7jlwrejm.jpg
Some rather lovely resin street bases, I added some discarded papers and leaves to break them up a bit and add to the sense of a decaying city

http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20151230_193058_zpsaxrmeagi_edit_1451770717780_zpsolis0qxu.jpg
Press-mould shenanigans! Nothing too spectacular but this is the first attempt in 20 years of hobby to cast/mould extra bits for myself. Small steps people..

http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160102_212704_zpswzd01ouu_edit_1451770795066_zpsyeviztos.jpg
Obligatory tease-shot of the wip characters so far. Not going into any more detail just yet.


So there we are folks. I don't seem to sleep anymore so doubtless I'll be working on something for this tonight. Hopefully my last 3 bits deliveries will turn up soon as well. Paint will happen, just as soon as I can save to sort out some new paints. Got something a bit special in mind for the painting, which might work beautifully or might crash and burn horribly...

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Got something a bit special in mind for the painting, which might work beautifully or might crash and burn horribly...

I'd suggest painting up a test model of some description in that case.
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It's a great start JackDaw...I've always been a massive fan of your writing, but that first tease is really something else! You really ought to look at getting into some serious novel-writing if you aren't already. I'm excited to see how this progresses, and especially as this is giving off a huge Blanchian vibe. Also going to throw in an early guess that The Tower turns out to be a true-scaled, massive gothic Astartes, but I know whatever it is will surpass my expectations thumbsup.gif

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Dosjetka - Aye I'll dig out some kind of practice mini if I can. What I have in mind is kind of the natural evolution of the bleak, cold, limited pallette I was using on the Iron Talons and my Dark Elves, which is more my style than the Angels of Seraph were, so in theory it should work pretty well.

 

Kobrakei - Bah you'll make me blush mate. Was pretty happy with that teaser, seemed to come together pretty easily and smoothly. The next piece has taken me most of the day to edit and smooth out by comparison. Hopefully at some point this year I can get something published again. And Blanche meets Victorian Industrial meets Bas-Lag what was I was aiming for :) In regards to the Tower...I couldnt possibly say. Got a couple of options floating around at the moment, trying to decide on something ftting.

 

RIght, photos have finally uploaded to Photobucket, time for a little editing and polish and then hopefully Scene the First will appear...

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http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160103_203030_zpswcjql1m6_edit_1451853546598_zpswoqhwa6y.jpg


~ Interior; a place of habitation in Haven

The man wakes abruptly, thrashing his way to a sitting position amidst the sprawl of bolsters and sheets on his bed. He can feel his heart racing and sweat prickling his skin unpleasantly. One hand claws feebly at the lumen globe by the side of his bed but it fails to ignite, the gloom of night remaining oppressive and thick. The shock of waking suddenly settled into a vague sense of unease, tendrils of fear creeping up his spine as the man realises he isn't alone in his own bedchamber.

A figure sits at his dressing table, hunched and lost in the gloom, showing nothing but the vague outline of a long cloak or coat with a high collar. There is a suggestion, a hint of something wrong with the proportions of its face. Something scratches in the dark room and for brief seconds the intruders face is lit from below by the guttering tiny flame of a lucifer-stick. Dark leathery skin, the colour of old blood, an over-long hooked nose. It is the face of a grotesque, an arlecchino of the Enclave's endless commedia plays and balls.

"Hello Arno". The arlecchino speaks in a dry whisper.

Fear sweeps through Arno Pater, gripping his heart. Numb fingers manage to find the panic button that should have brought stimm-bloated life-wards crashing into the room, but no matter how frantically he pushes there is no response. Rescue fails to appear in a mass of augmented muscle and overloaded aggression centres. The arlecchino sighs, hunches itself deeper into the chair it sits in. Dry mouthed, Arno finds his voice, a lost little thing in the night.

"Oh shek. You're the Knave. Oh, shek me. Shek me, what do you want?"

The Knave is silent for a long moment. Outside, the rain falls on Haven as it always does.

"Let me tell you a story Arno. A long time ago, far from here, there was a man. He was special, but not in a good way, not in a way that made his life easier. So he had to do bad things to survive. Then one day some very powerful men and women came and found him, and they took him away.
"Now these powerful men and women took the man and did things to him, and gave him different names. So many names that he almost forgot his own. They told him they wanted him to keep doing the bad things that he had been doing, only now he would be doing them for these powerful men and women."

A thin tired contempt had entered the Knave's dry whisper.

"They sent the man to many places, under many names and he did many terrible things. He broke laws and helped others break them. He created anarchy, but never chaos. That was important. He was a tool, a ghost.
"They made him kill people, Arno. Some deserved it. Some did not. He was caught sometimes and sometimes he was not. Was hurt sometimes, and sometimes not. And every time, he danced to their tune, followed their script."

The Knave stands, wraps its long coat around itself and draws a long heavy pistol that fills the bedroom with the rising whine of its charge. Shrinking deeper into his bed as though it would protect him from this apparition, Arno manages to stammer a question.

"Wh...why do these people want me dead?"

The Knave pauses, head cocked as though in confusion, eyes glittering in the depths of its hooked-nose grotesquery.

"Oh. Oh, I'm sorry Arno, no. Those people have nothing to do with this. No, you see - that man is more of a freelancer these days..."

The las-piece discharges with a sharp crack, the bolt drilling a coin-sized hole in Arno Pater's throat and splintering the nalwood headboard behind. A thin finger of smoke trails from the cauterised wound. The death of the Lamplighters Guild secretary will cause problems in Haven, problems that can be turned to opportunities by the right people. The Knave leaves as quietly as it arrived, a small illuminum-inked card picturing a grinning vulpid left on the table as Arno Pater's corpse slowly cools.

Outside, the rain continues to fall on Haven, washing away a multitude of sins.

~ End Scene

 

http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160103_191539_zpsaq56snrd_edit_1451852279363_zps7jbirkdt.jpghttp://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160103_191458_zpsu9rqhtb7_edit_1451852345509_zpsy9epvq2q.jpg
http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160103_191512_zpsch8hhldj_edit_1451852324119_zps0qshbmhh.jpghttp://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160103_191524_zpsrhw91akr_edit_1451852372651_zpse8nb0sgi.jpg
The Knave, a person of much intrigue and cause of much lament in Haven

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Afternoon folks.

You know that little voice you get at 1 in the morning, the one that tells you it has a great solution to the posing problem you had on a mini? The one that spurs you into a little converting session when you, you just know its talking crap?

Yeah. Don't listen to that voice.

Ruined about £4 worth of bits last night because I could just not stop cutting, even when I knew it was all going wrong. Sigh. On the plus side, the replacement arms I'm ordering have resulted in a flash of inspiration and hopefully a much better model at the end of the day. So, silver linings and all that.

The Psycho, Sanguinius Reborn - Ah thanks gents, too kind. Far from perfection at the moment, but I strive.

Mr Bear - Ha good to know, will endeavour to keep that excitement going. The Knave is probably my favourite model I've converted for a few years now, even more so than the Angels I did.

Right, so aside from butchering one conversion entirely, I have been poking some other stuff. I've got 2 bits orders on the way, one which should turn up tomorrow and give me what I need to finish off 3 characters (Cards? Personae?) entirely bar greenstuff. The other order, which I have been waiting for since mid-December (sigh) has everything I need for one Card (I think I like referring to them as Cards) and a few other small pieces - hopefully that'll be picked and sent soon. Gonna have to make another order today to replace the ruined stuff from last night and then internally debate whether I can afford to entirely scrap one completed model and replace her with another one. Here's a quick shufti at the various prep-works and conversions on the go at the moment, in no particular order:

http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/warden_zpsldiuafo7_edit_1452004415110_zps4pu6gomn.jpghttp://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/gunfarmer_zpsj0r2ofe7_edit_1452004465687_zps9hluontl.jpghttp://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/key_zps0al2iwo6_edit_1452004517517_zpsfc1kbq0e.jpg
http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/dancer_zpsazzr6yfr_edit_1452004445430_zpslxhmulqn.jpghttp://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160105_135200_zpscyosfug0_edit_1452004482021_zpsm0dtgdbv.jpg

Few random thoughts - I didn't realise until the morning after that I'd basically made a 40k version of the Winter Soldier... That Underhive Scummer is pretty much my favourite Necromunda model. Not doing much to him other than giving him a less-ridiculous pistol and filling in the holes in his shirt. I want him to be a shlub, but not a bum...The plan for Rakarth's body is something that in my mind works nicely. Hopefully I can pull it off in the model-flesh.... The Callidus is a really nice model, if a little silly. Lose the ponytail and the masonry and she's damn nice. And yes, removing the eyes wasnt fun...

Think that's it for now folks, working on Scene the Second soon, where we meet another Card and learn a little more about Haven. Questions, comments and requests all welcome smile.png

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Thank God I'm not the only one who thinks that the ponytail is stupid. I plan to get one eventually... and I also plan to take off the stupid ponytail. I might keep the masonry, though. Or, then again, perhaps not. Still, this is incredible work, and I look forward to seeing more!

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Afternoon all

Electric Paladin - I have good news, the ponytail is an entirely separate piece, so no cutting involved. Without it, shes so much better. And thank you smile.png More on its way soon.

So, as mentioned last time, I've been struggling with one Card, the Grotesque, and messed up his arms beyond repair the other night. Replacements have been ordered and are on their way, so he should look much better, but man, that Grotesque. I think I've matched a head to the body that will give a nice ab-human look. Then I see a different head entirely that would work even better in making him look like an abhuman and not a mutant/twist, so I order that and not the original head. Then I mess up the arms while waiting for the new head. Then I find new arms that will make a better overall model - then the head arrives and it might be too damn small. Sigh. Totally misjudged he size of the Bloodreaver heads, so back to the drawing board there. Ironically, I think if I'd stuck my original abhuman style of ordinary Ork body and legs, the head would have been perfect. But then the arms would not work. SIGH.

Just to prove I'm not always a hobby-failure, here's a few non-filter pics of the Knave, showing his lovely gs barnet - pretty pleased with how it came out and I think it adds a lot to that head, which is already pretty nice with the scars but lacked a little something. Also a quick pic of the next completed assembly of a Card, the Huntsman. Working on his intro at the moment, as well as a decent name for him as I don't think Saint Walker really works for him anymore...

http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160103_191539_zps3eakerl8_edit_1452177808447_zpslmypqtya.jpghttp://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160103_191458_zpsrj62fltp_edit_1452177787002_zps3ayrzs5t.jpg
http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/ac145/Jackdaw1982/The%20Hanged%20Mans%20Tarot/20160106_223312_zpslpcbvmu5_edit_1452176768975_zpsbns0d8qn.jpg


That's all for now folks, comments and so forth welcome as always.

Jack.

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Nice, love he background piece posted with the Knave. He is a lovely conversion. I saw you put down Bas-Lag as an inspiration, funnily enough I'm rereading Perturabo Street Station at the moment. Have you ever played Dishonoured because that had lost of cool themes and characters that would fit into your vision.

I'm also converting my own model out of the Callideus, interested to see what else you do with yours.

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