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For the annual Halloween challenge, last month our entrants produced a veritable Monster Mash of entries, ranging from subtle creeping horrors to terrifying and grotesque monstrosities and covering the full spectrum of spooky along the way. But as always, it's now over to you guys to pick the winners!

As usual, you are free to vote for as many entries as you like and for any reason they catch your eye, be that the technical quality of the paintjob, conversion work, choice of model, ambition and effort or anything else you like. You're also encouraged to leave some comments for the entrants, either here or on their own blogs and gallery pages. Many of the images also click through to the Dakka Gallery if you want to leave a vote there.

Without further ado, the entrants:



Rybrook: Legion of the Damned


Nevelon: Nighthaunt Heroes



CaptainWaffle: Maugan Ra


Maharg: Nighthaunts



Total: Chaos Spawn


Deadshot: Genestealer Broodlord


ZoBo: Horticulous Slimux



Modock: Romsky Vadimov


Straken619: Harbinger of the Apocalypse


Chris56: Undead Diorama


Coh Magnussen: ‘Ultramarines’


Vejut: Werewolf


Lipsdapips: Deathwatch Veteran


Tim 121RVC: Hobgoblin


Midget Gems: Freddy Kreugrot, the Wicked WAAAGH! of the West and Brain Transplant Orc


Evil D-185: The Beast


Jadenim: Alpha Legion Marine


Feltmonkey: Death Guard Plague Marine


SirOllox: Ork Boss Nob


Paradigm: Plague Marine of the Corroded Brotherhood


DV8: Warhound Titans

My votes go to Modock, Paradigm, Chris 56 and feltmonkey.
Not sure what's scary about your entry Modock, but since Paradigm gave you the green light and the paintjob is amazing as usual I have no right to complain. Good job.
Paradigm, your style works very well with this months theme, and I think it's your best work so far, at least from the things I've seen you paint for these competitions. And again, I'm dissapointed that you don't upload bigger pictures so I can examine the model more closely.
Chris 56, you should have uploaded a few more close ups, I almost didn't give you a vote because it's only with the close up that you can see how good the paintjob actualy is. Well done.
feltmonkey, although your plauge marine isn't as good as Paradigms', it is still very much worth the vote. Keep it up.

I am very sad that I wasn't able to enter this month, I actualy did make a killer project, but I am entering it in a local competition, and one of the rules is that I can't post pictures anywhere until it is over.

Nevelon: I like the ghostly blue on your models. Too bad the heads (masks) are blending in with the cloaks/upper bodies, they're not as striking as the horse. I would've given the masks extra highlights or glowing eyes. Still a fitting trio for this theme!
Total: Personally not a fan of these kind of models, but I love the large yellow eye on the back! Do you have a more detailed pic of that somewhere? Nice transitions from the blue to pale skin.
ZoBo: Cool use of the glow in the dark paint! Besides it's looking great in the dark, it also provides a more sinister look on the guy on top. I prefer that instead of an eye pupil on this model.
Modock: Awesome paintjob on an awesome war robot.
Straken619: Death itself, how much more can a Halloween entry be? Creepy guy, well done! The only crit I can think of are the eyes and tongue of the horse. It somehow makes the horse's head look alive, while the rest of the model is either ghostly or dead. Or did you do this on purpose? Otherwise white eyes or blue could do the trick.
Chris56: Great little dio, it's full of visually interesting stuff.
Coh Magnussen: Funny little fellows!
Lipsdapips: Man, what a crisp paintjob. Look at that small display on his arm!
Midget Gems: The most creative entry this month. Smart use of the "skirt" orc to turn him into a witch. Freddy is my favorite of the bunch. The smile on that Grot is just like Freddy.
Evil D-185: That thing is a nightmare.
Feltmonkey: Wow, the rust is inspiring! The glowing eye on the skull on the back is a nice little detail.
SirOllox: Either the green skin or the yellow armour need something to make them stand out from each other, IMO. I do like this kind of green "dragon-ish" colour tone a lot though!
Paradigm: Looks a bit like the Blanchitsu stuff: dark, dirty, greasy, post-apocalyptic.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with my entry, the Hobgoblin:

 Tim 121RVC wrote:
Nevelon: I like the ghostly blue on your models. Too bad the heads (masks) are blending in with the cloaks/upper bodies, they're not as striking as the horse. I would've given the masks extra highlights or glowing eyes. Still a fitting trio for this theme!

I think you are correct about the heads.

For most of my undead, I put a little drop of red wash into the eye socket for a nice glow. Unfortunately, these guys are hollow. Nothing behind the masks but an angry soul and empty armor. It might be worth going back and putting a little red around the rims of the eye holes (for those who have them). That or a stronger silver highlight. I did put one on, but tend to be very timid with the edging. This is a case where a bolder hand would have been better.

One issue I have is that I tend to apply the same techniques regardless of model. Armor is painted one way, undead flesh another, bone its way, etc. While this makes the army look very coherent, sometimes it falls short on specific models where certain elements are close together and/or lacking. With the lack of heads on these nighthaunts, a lot of the standard things that would have picked out that detail and focus are lacking, and my stock armor formula wasn’t adjusted to compensate. My heavy armor scheme is also very dark, and doesn’t pop much next to black robes. Not normally a big issue, as the two things are often not on the same model.

This month seems kinda dead... and not because of Halloween....
Not many entries.... lots of people didnt finish and now everyone is voting in silence...

Anyway... lets see my top 3 in no particular order
Chris56: I really like this diorama. It looks carefully made. It's the moment the heroes go like "Oh they have an undead dragon!" And it fits the theme perfectly
Evil D-185: Another miniature that fits the theme perfectly. Excelent convertion and really well painted! I would like to see the original model just to compare them (if there is one and its not just bits and pieces you found at your house) From your WIP photos it looks like you changed almost everything.
Total: I dont know what I like about this miniature but it really got my attention. This thing is disturbing. Where is the mini from?


I really enjoyed painting my entry. It's totaly different from what I usually paint and the biggest miniature I have ever painted... yet.

 Tim 121RVC wrote:

Straken619: Death itself, how much more can a Halloween entry be? Creepy guy, well done! The only crit I can think of are the eyes and tongue of the horse. It somehow makes the horse's head look alive, while the rest of the model is either ghostly or dead. Or did you do this on purpose? Otherwise white eyes or blue could do the trick.

Im really glad you like it. Yeah the horse does look a little more alive than it should be. Painting the eyes blue or white might help but unfortunately I really like how I painted the eyes so I am not gonna change them The tongue is the only warm thing in a pretty cold miniature but I don't know what to do about it. I tried a layer or two of nuln oil but it still pops out.

And great work on Hobgoblin. Not a very known character but he is really cool.

Evil D-185: I really like the skin tones and the weathering on the metal. Gross monstrosities are in my book.
Lipsdapips: Those clean highlights tho. The lenses look brilliant too.
Chris56: The rusted metal and worn green cloth look particularly fantastic.

 Tim 121RVC wrote:

Total: Personally not a fan of these kind of models, but I love the large yellow eye on the back! Do you have a more detailed pic of that somewhere? Nice transitions from the blue to pale skin.

Thanks! I quite enjoyed painting the eyes - there's a slightly better picture of the large one on my gallery page (in a collage I made before I realised the 6 picture maximum)

 straken619 wrote:

Total: I dont know what I like about this miniature but it really got my attention. This thing is disturbing. Where is the mini from?

Thanks also! The majority of the mini is sculpted greenstuff; the only actual parts I used were:
- Plaguebearer left arm (the hand is sculpted)
- Chaos spawn right arm & insectoid leg things
- Hands from somewhere
- A skull
I'm glad you think it's disturbing - that's what I was going for! I like using the Tzeentch Liber Chaotica book and GW artworks like this for chaos spawn ideas.

Comments for all!

Rybrook - These look better in the bigger photos when you click through. The key to Legion of the Damned is the contrast between the flames and the black, and you've got that going well. The flames look good.

Nevelon - Your undead army must be looking pretty good. The contrast between the blue and the grey/black looks great. Some of the transitions are a bit blotchy, but it looks good.

CaptainWaffle - Really good, clean Eavy Metal style painting. Black, purple, and bone are the classic colours of a goth disco. The purple could do with being a touch brighter to boost the contrast, maybe. Great looking model overall though.

Maharg - Nice clean highlighting. The skull faces are very good. The gold could use a bit of something, maybe.

Total - Great work. Lovely transitions on the skin, and I love how you've done the ends of the tentacles to look like worms.

Deadshot - The blue-black chestpiece looks good, as does the face. It's a shame you didn't do anything with the base.

ZoBo - Good slimey, Nurgley stuff. Great toadstools, and the use of glow in the dark paints is a nice touch. It'll look particularly good on the tabletop during power cuts.

Modock - A tenuous connection to the theme? Excellent painting as always though. The nmm is great throughout, but I like the little touches - the rust in the missile launchers, the dust in the leg joins, the texture on the leather.

Straken619 - Cracking job. Very atmospheric and frightening, and I really like how you fade out the lower parts of the model by making them lighter, implying that he is fading into existence.

Chris56 - Brilliant work as ever. It would have taken me six months to paint that many miniatures, never mind build them into a diorama. Great painting too - favorite touches are the nmm on the sword of the skeleton climbing out of the ground, and the checkered patch on the boss skelly's cloak.

Coh Magnussen - Not sure what's haloween-themed about a squad of Ultramar- wait a minute... Very funny idea nicely executed.

Vejut - That looks a big, dynamic model. The base is particularly good. Simple but interesting.

Lipsdapips - In classic LDP style, an ultra-clean Ultramarine (via Deathwatch). Not hugely haloweeny, but you've really got that Eavy Metal style down spot on. Nice details on the wrist display, and particularly the hammer's handle.

Tim 121RVC - I loved seeing how you made the kitbash. I sort of assumed it was an official model! With the painting, you've let the wash pool on flat areas a bit, making sort of muddy patches where there wouldn't be shadow, such as the side of the hat. Sometimes it's better to either paint the wash just into the shadows, or go back with your basecoat over the areas you don't want to be shaded. It looks great overall, though!

Midget Gems - More great convertions from you, MG. I like it when you do your funny stuff!

Evil D-185 - Really cool. I like the skintone particularly, and the base. Really nightmarish model overall. Nice idea to photophop him onto a background.

Jadenim - Good tabletop Alpha Legion. You've picked out all the details well, on things like the severed guardsman head.

SirOllox - Nice work. The grisly blades of the axe are well-done.

Paradigm - A great, plague-riddled Plague Marine. The grubby, ancient-looking armour contrasts nicely with the bright pink tentacles.

DV8 - Really good, clean work. I like the trees on the bases.

Sorry I haven't gone more in-depth. I'm still recovering from the plague, so a bit lacking in energy at the moment. See you next month!

Little smaller crop of entries this time around. I myself didn't finish my entry due to needing other models painted. Anyways, here's where my 5 votes went:
Nevelon: Those Nighthaunt models turned out amazing! Almost makes me want to start an army of them myself (not gonna happen anytime soon though).
ZoBo: I really like the glowing bits on Horticulous and Mulch. I mean, the rest of the model turned out great too, but interesting stuff like that really catches my eye.
Lipsdapips: While perhaps not as spooky as a lot of the other entries, your Deathwatch guy is very well executed, and I'd be afraid if he was swinging that giant-ass hammer at me!
Jadenim: I love anything Alpha Legion, and your armor color looks a lot cooler than that of my own Alpha Legion models (which are basically just blue with green edge highlights). HAIL HYDRA!!!
DV8: I love how you did the trees on the bases to give the Titan models a sense of scale, showing that they are in fact huge machines the size of a building. I'd be pretty scared if those were marching at me firing their weapons.

Overall those of you who did finish did a pretty good job. I only wish I could have gotten my Poxwalkers done in time, but alas it was not to be. Shout out as always to Paradigm for organizing these challenges. See you all in the November thread!

All I can say is wow! You all really outdid yourselves this month; impressive entries all around!

 ZergSmasher wrote:
Little smaller crop of entries this time around. I myself didn't finish my entry due to needing other models painted. Anyways, here's where my 5 votes went:
Nevelon: Those Nighthaunt models turned out amazing! Almost makes me want to start an army of them myself (not gonna happen anytime soon though).
ZoBo: I really like the glowing bits on Horticulous and Mulch. I mean, the rest of the model turned out great too, but interesting stuff like that really catches my eye.
Lipsdapips: While perhaps not as spooky as a lot of the other entries, your Deathwatch guy is very well executed, and I'd be afraid if he was swinging that giant-ass hammer at me!
Jadenim: I love anything Alpha Legion, and your armor color looks a lot cooler than that of my own Alpha Legion models (which are basically just blue with green edge highlights). HAIL HYDRA!!!
DV8: I love how you did the trees on the bases to give the Titan models a sense of scale, showing that they are in fact huge machines the size of a building. I'd be pretty scared if those were marching at me firing their weapons.

Overall those of you who did finish did a pretty good job. I only wish I could have gotten my Poxwalkers done in time, but alas it was not to be. Shout out as always to Paradigm for organizing these challenges. See you all in the November thread!

Thanks Zergsmasher! For reference it’s regal blue with a stegadon green highlight, but the key is a Biel tan green wash; until I started doing the wash they were just...blue, but it gives a really nice texture to the colour and that “is it blue, is it green?” effect. And confusion is key! For the Emperor!

feltmonkey wrote:Nevelon - Your undead army must be looking pretty good. The contrast between the blue and the grey/black looks great. Some of the transitions are a bit blotchy, but it looks good.

One effect I got back when working on Manfred’s cloak was an ink drop swirl. That swirly pattern you get when you just drop a bit of ink into clear water, or splash some cream into your coffee. The two colors haven’t blended yet, but have a cool organic mixing. That’s the transition I’m trying for on these guys. Due to it’s nature, I’m relying on how the washes dry to get it. I think it works easier on the larger, solid bits, but the nighthaunts are more streamy and tattered. So it might come across blotchy in spots, but I figure the more I fuss with trying to get it perfect, the more muddy it will end up being.

ZergSmasher wrote:Nevelon: Those Nighthaunt models turned out amazing! Almost makes me want to start an army of them myself (not gonna happen anytime soon though).

The Nighthaunt range is really cool looking. You have to love plastic; we never had stuff like this when we were stuck with metal. I really should devote some more time to building/painting them. At least to get another batch primed and ready for next October. Building an undead army, one Halloween at a time!

Wow, hell of a close fight going on for third place there! Only 2 votes separating 6 entries there.

Lots of really technically proficient entries this month, so the theme was the deciding factor in my voting, those entries that really captured the spooky Halloween spirit. To that end, votes to Nev, Chris, Evil, Straken and Feltmonkey! Top work, folks (even if Evil's entry will haunt my nightmares for quite some time... )

Great work all round peeps!

 Nevelon wrote:

feltmonkey wrote:Nevelon - Your undead army must be looking pretty good. The contrast between the blue and the grey/black looks great. Some of the transitions are a bit blotchy, but it looks good.

One effect I got back when working on Manfred’s cloak was an ink drop swirl. That swirly pattern you get when you just drop a bit of ink into clear water, or splash some cream into your coffee. The two colors haven’t blended yet, but have a cool organic mixing. That’s the transition I’m trying for on these guys. Due to it’s nature, I’m relying on how the washes dry to get it. I think it works easier on the larger, solid bits, but the nighthaunts are more streamy and tattered. So it might come across blotchy in spots, but I figure the more I fuss with trying to get it perfect, the more muddy it will end up being.

Ah, I see! That's a really cool idea. Apologies for misunderstanding what you were going for.

Nice work everyone, thanks for the comments on my entry here and in the thread, it seems Freddy Kreugrot, was the most liked model, I might use the witch as a stormboy

Picking out my Favs this month

Evil D-185 - I thought the first pic was box art to start with, terrifyingly epic.
Chris56 - Really cool diorama from you again with loads of cool well painted models.
Straken619 - I really like how you have done this and faded the colours in, big pics would help us see it in all is glory, it was only when I zoomed in that I noticed you had used several different colours on the robe
Para and felt - both brilliant plague marines
Tim 121RVC - The base and the model work really well together and make it very Halloweenie
Nevelon - I really like your undead model and the contrast you put on them with the red and blue.
Zobo - you have got the sliminess of the snail just right glow in the dark bits are an excellent extra touch (When I tried to do it a broke a glow stick in half and ended up damaging the paint on the model)

Some great models this month!

Thanks to all who said nice things about my minis. I really enjoyed painting these guys and doing something a little less bright and colourful.
I voted a couple of days ago, but I'm pretty sure I voted for ZoBo, Modock, Straken, Lipsdapips, Evil D-185, Feltmonkey and Paradigm.

Anyhow, to the comments!

Rybrook - always wanted to paint some of these guys and you've done a great job - inspired me to do one of my own;

Nev - thanks for the advice on painting those cloaks - the blue on the horse's hooves and ribs looks particularly cool;

CaptainWaffle: super-crisp paintjob on Maugan Ra, I'd love to see more of your army;

Maharg - great contrast on the purple robes and goldy-copper metals - this colour scheme works really well!;

Total - quite frankly disturbing. The modelling is great but I can't get past the eyes - they are superb;

Deadshot - looks like GW work! Very strong paintjob;

ZoBo - bloody brilliant job on a very cool model - everything balances extremely well but I especially like the little touches of colour on the fungi;

Modock - amazing paintwork as always. The rust and corrosion on the nmm looks fantastic;

Straken - I love this. You have done a superb job and given the model a kind of 'Dark Souls' look. A must-vote for me;

Coh Magnusson - a great idea well executed. I can actually imagine the hatted grot trick-or-treating!;

Vejut - another interesting model from you, Vejut. Fur works well but the pink around the ears and mouth are even better;

Lipsdapips - another great model. Your edge highlighting is always very good, but that hammer handle takes it to the next level!;

Tim121RVC - fantastic conversion of one of Spidey's best enemies. Have you read the Superior Spiderman issues with Hobbie? - fantastic stuff;

MG - another awesome set of Orky conversion goodness. My favourite is Freddy by far. Very cool;

Evil D-185 - Wow! What a fantastic conversion with a truly awesome paintjob. This looks completely top-notch. Another auto-vote;

Jadenim - very clean AL marine with great highlighting on the greaves especially;

Feltmonkey - wonderful contrast on this model. The bluish tint on the horns and knife counter the lovely rust reds really well;

SirOllox - one of my favourite ork bits that axe over the shoulder and you have done a great job on the painting. The blood on that axe is great;

Paradigm - Love the subtle transitions on this model. From blues to rusts to reds across the plates and horns look fantastic;

DV8 - how the hell did you get TWO titans painted so quickly!? Great job. The check patterns look awesome.


Thanks as always to Paradigm and MG for doing all of the hard work so the rest of us get to participate, see inspiring ideas and improve our painting.
Congratulations to all and see everyone next month.

Zobo and Evil D. Wowowowowowwo

A bit more compact month regarding entries but nonetheless good job people.

Thanks to Power Elephant, Tim 121RVC, Feltmonkey and Chris56 for the uplifting comments.

I have a few thoughts on my mind that I would like to say for some time now. My intend is definitely not to bring anyone down.
I know that Dakka is mostly about GW but I feel the bias towards GW minis is very noticeable. A bit more objectivity wouldn't hurt.

Entering with a non GW mini is already a disadvantage. I know my entry doesn't fit the theme but having a skull on the armor
doesn't make it scary and mini being in heroic scale doesn't help either(big head, huge hands, enormous shoulder pads).

What I'm trying to say is to look past the mini and look at the entry as a whole. Look at the effort, special techniques, conversion
weird ideas...

I really don't wanna put negativity onto these challenges which I love immensely! I always thankful for it and I respect Paradigm for
running them for so long cause I know it takes a lot of time and effort which I don't take for granted. Also I'm grateful for the work
MG is doing on the chart.

If I came across as a jerk I deeply apologize.

Peace!

Winners!

In third, ZoBo, with Horticulous Slimux







A point ahead in second, Feltmonkey's Plague Marine:













And in first, Evil D-185's horrifying Beast:














Congrats to all! See you next month!

Very nice work this month from everyone. Grats to the winners. Special mention to the pack who were just off the podium. 6 guys all within a scant handful of votes apart.

Thanks for everyone who voted for me, This was my personal best for the year (so far!)

Gratz to ZoBo and Evil D-185, and to everyone who entered this month. See you next month!

Well done and congrats, Zobo, Felt and Evil D

Table will be updated sometime in the week.

 Modock wrote:

I have a few thoughts on my mind that I would like to say for some time now. My intend is definitely not to bring anyone down.
I know that Dakka is mostly about GW but I feel the bias towards GW minis is very noticeable. A bit more objectivity wouldn't hurt.

Entering with a non GW mini is already a disadvantage. I know my entry doesn't fit the theme but having a skull on the armor
doesn't make it scary and mini being in heroic scale doesn't help either(big head, huge hands, enormous shoulder pads).

What I'm trying to say is to look past the mini and look at the entry as a whole. Look at the effort, special techniques, conversion
weird ideas...

I really don't wanna put negativity onto these challenges which I love immensely! I always thankful for it and I respect Paradigm for
running them for so long cause I know it takes a lot of time and effort which I don't take for granted. Also I'm grateful for the work
MG is doing on the chart.

If I came across as a jerk I deeply apologize.

Peace!

Don't worry you didn't, and yes there is that bias but I think that is also reflective of the hobby in general (just a guess) GW has the most exposure, more easily availible and therefore people are more familiar with their models. I don't think anyone who has your talent (one if not the best painter who regularly enters this challenge) could ever really be overlooked for votes. Its a very rare month when you don't get a vote from me. I really like it when you, Vejut and others enter none GW models, gives me a chance to see what else is out there and you are certainly doing a wonderful job showing off the infinity range

Hope you don't feel bad about the entry and the votes it got. Specially your entries and all the regulars, are ones I look forward to every month

Thanks MG.

I just think that painting various minis from other companies makes things more interesting. I enjoy seeing painted minis I've never seen before.

Well anyways, congrats to the winners and to all entrants.