Tomb Thursday P53: Trusted Steed

Greetings, sand dune doomers! Another week is nearly in the books, but first let’s sift through more sandy STLs and see what’s new for our desert campaign build.

We’ve got a nice mix of everything today: a new Egyptian-esque 3D print, a flexible scatter terrain piece, and a prepainted miniature that’s a perfect fit for our monster mix. None are showstoppers on their own, yet they will help bring your desert vibe to life!

As the dungeon master, you may have one tomb of ruins that’s been through it while another underground burial site might be in pristine condition. The same could go for individual rooms beneath the sands. DM Ben is going with this hybrid approach, so he needs enough DnD game pieces to fit any sorta scenario.

We’ll get this DnD blog post going with a great mount pick by good ol’ Devon Jones. We’ve featured several STLs from his two-part series, featuring a variety of rideable animals. We think this free Skeletal Horse would be perfect in our sacred tomb treasure room.

Egyptians and neighboring rulers believed the dearly departed needed their earthly status and tools in the next realm. Horses were rare, exceptionally costly, and imported, making them elite status symbols far more valuable than standard beasts of burden like donkeys. So, if a king included his trusty steed, you could definitely assume he was a big wig.

Alas, we had to 3D-print this deceased stallion a couple of times because its tail was a bit fragile. So, be mindful of how you slice and de-plate this one. Nothing to it in terms of a paint job either.

• Prime Flat Black | Slapchop Base.
• Layer Citadel Contrast Skeleton Horde.
• Edge with Citadel Screaming Skull.
• Eye: ASP Blood Red.

Then, add a clear base, and you’re done in a snap. You can also try our fancier undead paint scheme if you want something a little snazzier.

Next, let’s switch gears to a little scatter terrain. We’re longtime fans of Fantastic Plants & Rocks and their diverse range of gameboard goodies. Their Kickstarters (Volume 5 out now) and monthly Patreon are also very cost-friendly. We got this damaged stone from their Ancient Greek Ruins set on Patreon.

This was an oldie but a goodie from our immense Pile of Opportunity, as this sample ruin column was 3D printed in FDM (before we ever got our hands on a resin printer). We think two to four of these in a partially damaged chamber would be really slick.

DM Ben wasn’t sure how our earlier ivory paint scheme would translate here, so we started with a single sample ruins column. Not too shabby, right? We made this one just a little dirtier than our previous large ivory column.

Lastly, let’s tap into our pre-painted miniatures collection and the time-saving they provide for a weary hobbyist. This nasty
uncommon Magma Scorpion from the Planar Perils set. This is a Pathfinder Battles set and has all sorts of great DnD creatures for your TTRPG campaign. The lava element may not be a perfect desert fit, but it sure does look cool.

Until next time!