No Dice Unrolled recently posted a review on Hero Forge, a site that allows you to create a fully customized miniature (made with quality and in a material of your choice) and have it sent to you. In order to write the review, we were given a small budget with which we made four miniatures, two each.
Once arrived, while I was admiring them preparing to write the review, I thought that the greatest value of these miniatures, beyond the quality of the materials or the precision of construction, is the high degree of customization provided. So you understand how satisfied we are with the Hero Forge products, in every single miniature, it is essential to tell you the story behind each of them..
This article was created to tell you what lies behind the two miniatures that I designed. Here are the stories of Aukan and Boilbur and how they are reflected in their miniatures.
The first miniature of Hero Forge: Aukan “Mead Drinker” Itakaiathi
Aukan was one of the main protagonists of a D&D 3.5 campaign set in the Forgotten Realms that lasted 146 sessions (including 6 of 12 hours). He is a goliath barbarian whose tribe was annihilated and enslaved by frost giants. Aukan has experienced many adventures, from traveling from Cormyr to the hidden kingdom of Ra-Khati (almost to Kara-Tur) to saving the Weave (the foundation of magic) in the heart of Anauroch.
At the end of his narrative cycle he became Mualio, the Lone Hunter. It is an epic figure of the Goliath culture, believed to be an immortal hero. It is actually a title that is passed from one goliath to another along with the Hunter’s Crown, an artifact with great powers. By accepting it, the old identity is abandoned to become Mualio and help one’s people. This is why he wears the helmet with deer horns. Aukan found the former Mualio prisoner of the yuan-ti in the Serpent Hills and, having received the Crown, was able to return home to the Gray Peaks to free his people from the yoke of the frost giants in a great final fight against a mighty paragon at the head of his fellow mates.
On his return voyage from Ra-Khati home, he reached Damara, he helped saving the population and in doing so he obtained a magic axe, Unbendable, which following the rules of the weapon of legacy grewing in power with him as a result of rituals and tests. For this I chose a pose in which the goliath emphasized his beloved weapon.
The miniature base and its objects
At the feet of Aukan I chose to put a sword planted in the ground, symbol of the many opponents beaten in his long years as an adventurer, along with a bottle. His nickname is “Mead Drinker” and the player behind the brave Aukan, Matteo, never missed an opportunity to propose to play “drink and tell”, a classic Goliath game. Each participant had to drink a substantial amount of beer or mead and then tell something about their life. Only those who remained conscious and able to tell their story with the most eloquence could move on to the next round. It was a game that allowed the group to interact, get to know each other and cement a deep relationship!
The second Hero Forge miniature: Boilbur Redbeard
Boilbur is one of the three Redbeard brothers, the core of the group of adventurers involved in a Hackmaster V edition campaign set in the Kingdoms of Kalamar, still running (currently c.60 sessions). After all this time he has finally reached the fourth level … Great satisfaction!
Boilbur is a heavy warrior with a formidable build. For him I chose to make the mini as thick as possible and its muscle structure has almost the maximum parameters. Like any Hackmaster dwarf he has miner skills, which is why I added the pickaxe on top of the backpack. It really is part of his equipment as he is the most loaded of the whole group. But the real vocation of Boilbur is cooking. His Cooking skill has been increased with each level up; Paolo, his player, does not fail to emphasize how disgusting other people’s dishes are compared to his delicacies. After all, he has 6 of Charisma, what do you expect? I therefore chose a pan from among the objects available for this miniature,a detail I think would have been impossible to find elsewhere.
Boilbur’s armor
Boilbur recently traveled north to free the dwarven settlement of Coldhall from an orc tribe that had assaulted it, enslaving the population. The difficulty of surviving in the northern lands, the brutality perpetrated against his fellow dwarfs, the effort in taking away a group of undernourished survivors from a makeshift hiding place; and the final battle against a fearsome black ogre when only he and his brother Thorek left standing and they didn’t have 10 hit points togheter.
It was a very difficult test, but also a rewarding one. He found Zomed, (dwarven name chart, blame Kenzer & Co.) soon to become his wife and (even better for an adventurer), a well-made armor and shield. So Boilbur became a real steel wall on legs and, for him, I chose a defensive pose, with the shield raised, to underline his remarkable ability to resist blows.
And what happens to the miniatures?
Aukan has been retired for years. He protects his people under the name of Mualio but, having called his firstborn Aukan, he is sure his name will never be forgotten. Matteo will not forget it either, very fond of his gigantic Goliath who jumped on enemies with damage modifiers that were scary just to say out loud!
The Aukan miniature became Matteo’s birthday present as an undying reminder of one of the most beautiful campaigns we shared together.
Boilbur, on the other hand, still has a long way to go. He must accompany his brother Thorek, a cleric of the god of freedom, to free the dwarven kingdom of Karasta from the yoke of the Kalamar Empire. It will be a long journey, especially with a challenging and deadly game like Hackmaster. But now Paolo has such a beautiful miniature on his side that I will have to think twice, as a DM, before taking him out!