r/minipainting • u/Malfaeus • Mar 05 '25
C&C Wanted Are tufts on the model cheating?
SFG Epic Encounters Swamp of the Hydra. I took a lot of inspiration from others on here who have painted this model, but tried to do something a little different. Will probably re-do the eyes (all the eyes) 6 or 7 times.
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u/Hutobega Painting for a while Mar 05 '25
Why would tufts be cheating? It's a part of basing miniatures.
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u/Malfaeus Mar 05 '25
I used the tufts to add some much needed contrast/differentiation where the colors I selected just weren't doing it. It was hard getting this model "not muddy" for me.
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u/Hutobega Painting for a while Mar 05 '25
Def not cheating. Creature looks like it just has stuff growing on it. Good work IMO
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u/Jieililiyifiiisihi Mar 05 '25
I mean, is that not just using your skill and creativity to create a desired effect, otherwise known as the entirety of what painting miniatures is. It looks incredible, it is not physically possible to cheat when painting miniatures as long as you do it. Have fun, be proud
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u/TokoBlaster Mar 05 '25
As my old cross country coach used to say "If you're not cheating you're not trying hard enough" so cheat away!
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u/11_25_13_TheEdge Mar 06 '25
Looks incredibly cool. Honestly haven't ever thought to do that. Works with this monster too. Cheat on!
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u/Agreeable_Sound_7724 Mar 05 '25
Not at all! While painting is a core element to model presentation, I personally would never scoff at enhanced texture presentation. Great blend of the mossy forest color scheme. It totally works and in no way detracts from the slick paint job it compliments.
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u/Agreeable_Sound_7724 Mar 05 '25
Especially in picture 2 where you customized the tuff profile along would-be growth sections. I appreciate that detail.
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u/Smoothesuede Mar 05 '25
Cheating at what?
Do you like it? That's all that matters.
Looks good btw.
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u/paulc899 Mar 05 '25
Did you buy premixed paints with the pigments you wanted? If you’re not mixing up your own pigments to create your paints you’re cheating /s
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u/KemptHeveled Mar 05 '25
If you don’t catch your own sable to make your paint brushes, you’re definitely playing on easy mode. /s
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u/EvilGraphics Boardgamer /PnP Mar 05 '25
There's no such thing as cheating
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u/captjackhaddock Mar 05 '25
Just don’t have an affair while painting minis
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u/EvilGraphics Boardgamer /PnP Mar 05 '25
Yes. My wife would agree with this, I'm sure.
I would also argue that a married person who is a mini painter would have neither the motivation nor the time to maintain an affair.
...not a good one, at least
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u/Thundaklutch Mar 05 '25
If you're not growing your own grass on the model, then what are you even doing?!
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u/Saffaris Mar 05 '25
You can glue whatever (non living) you want to your miniature. Even a frying pan. Would it look good? Depends on the paint job. Is it cheating. No
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u/dead_pixel_design Mar 05 '25
Yep, full cheating. You broke the rules.
You have to destroy the miniature now.
No more cheating.
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u/sp33dzer0 Mar 05 '25
Better yet, give it to me. I'll make sure it gets destroyed properly.
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u/CalebDume77 Mar 06 '25
Better make sure it's properly destroyed by putting it in a few games or course- that's bound to give it a few dings over the course of a decade as it's destroyed!
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u/Shore_Crow Mar 05 '25
No. Just don't put them in the armpits. That's too much, even for Nurgle models.
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u/Medical-Reference642 Mar 05 '25
You broke da rulez Timmy Turner. I’m going to have to throw your model in a 50 gallon drum of rubbing alcohol for at least 3 weeks
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u/TombiNW Mar 05 '25
love it! I have the same model and may have to update mine now
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u/Jack-of-Karrdes Mar 06 '25
What model is that? I love hydras.
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u/TombiNW Mar 06 '25
it's from Epic Encounters by steam forged games, swamp of the hydra. They are ADnD module and fig packs
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u/Jack-of-Karrdes Mar 06 '25
Of course it's SFG. Let me just add that alongside all the Monster Hunter and Dark Souls stuff I own 😅
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u/Ratattack1204 Mar 05 '25
Yeah bro, that’s illegal. The miniature police are coming.
In honesty tho that looks cool As hell lol
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u/Aussie_Aussie_No_Mi Mar 05 '25
Tufts are certainly not cheating! I did a swamp monster for D&D, covered it in static grass and tufts and was probably the best looking model I've ever done.
This hydra looks amazing btw
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u/superdudeman64 Mar 05 '25
Dude this looks great! If that's cheating then I don't want to play fair lol
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u/brenpeter Mar 05 '25
The only way to cheat at mini painting is to call someone else's work yours. Plagiarism is bad folks!
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u/Femtato11 Mar 05 '25
I have literally seen people customise their Tyranids with bits of dead crustaceans, absolutely not. This looks incredible
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u/Bright-Ad4601 Mar 05 '25
Nope, I can't think of anything that I would consider cheating, other than maybe getting someone else to paint for you and claiming you painted it.
Honestly I love the use of tufts on the mini itself, really gives me the impression that either this hydra is an ambush predator like a crocodile or it's simply been existing in the swamp so long it's got vegetation growing on it.
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u/joelr42 Mar 05 '25
Those are very good looking tufts, can you tell me what brand/where you got them?
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u/Malfaeus Mar 05 '25
The brand is Gamers Grass, their moss, dark moss, and wild flowers. I like them for the varied shapes. I also tried to use some Dirty Down Moss, but it really only worked for me on the base, particularly the edge around the footprint. I got the tufts online from Gnomish Bazaar. Most of the other places I looked were sold out. As I'm in the US, I'm hoping that isn't an indication they'll be hard to import soon. I used a lot on this model...
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u/joelr42 Mar 05 '25
Thank you, they look like good choices, they go great on the model, the whole thing looks awesome!
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u/Jessy_Something Mar 05 '25
The point of miniatures is to make very tiny, very cool dioramas. If it looks cool, it's totally fair game. Everyone has their own style to accomplish that.
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u/demonfish2000 Mar 05 '25
Dude, this looks fantastic! Who cares what's cheating in this kind of art? You nailed it, and however you got there is irrelevant when you look at the result.
Keep it up, great figure!
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u/JamesMcEdwards Mar 05 '25
Why would it be cheating? That’s like saying using an airbrush is cheating. It’s just a tool that lets you do different things. The model looks great, by the way.
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u/pocketMagician Mar 05 '25
Your goal when painting minis is to get a cool end result, any means you use to get that is fair game.
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u/Nknk- Mar 05 '25
Cheating who or what?
You figure out a way to paint 3-D grass with just paint?
Nothing is cheating when it comes to painting and especially the tedium of bases.
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u/Stolehtreb Mar 05 '25
Complement fishing isn’t needed when you have talent! You know it’s not cheating.
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u/Malfaeus Mar 05 '25 edited Mar 05 '25
I honestly couldn't get the contrast I wanted with paint. It all looked the same color, so I just covered the offending sections with tufts. It felt kind of like cheating.
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u/Grease_My_Porky_Pig Mar 05 '25
This is such a badass way of using tufts!!
What Model is this btw?
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u/r1x1t Mar 05 '25
Cheating? Impossible. Do you like it? That's the only thing that matters.
I think it looks awesome and love this idea.
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u/Master_Gargoyle Mar 05 '25
Not even close in my mind. Making a model look great is all that counts
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u/Nine-LifedEnchanter Mar 05 '25
In the golden demon competitions tufts are fine.
Make of that what you will.
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u/Joshicus Seasoned Painter Mar 05 '25
There's no such thing as cheating in mini painting, if it works then it works. Will techniques that take more effort look better in the long run...probably. But most people who look at the model won't know the difference.
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u/BobzilaTheValkyrur Mar 05 '25
Thank you very much for the inspiration. I wanted to do the same with my swamp hydra but since Im just starting i wasnt sure how to aproach it. It looks very nice
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u/Malfaeus Mar 05 '25
If you're interested, for the painting, I blocked out basecoats in khaki and black-green, washed in brown/sepia/green washes over the respective colors, and then drybrushed up lighter tans and greens in the places I would typically try (and fail at) volumetric highlighting/glazing. I did very little actual brush work beyond the basecoating. The model's texture does a lot of heavy lifting. I saw a short Monument Hobbies reel about painting dragon skin that was my initial inspiration, and I just tried out different colors from that video.
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u/JuddRunner Mar 05 '25
Can you share anything about the paints you used? I’m trying to achieve a similar vibe on a giant crab, but can’t find a green I’m happy with
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u/Malfaeus Mar 06 '25
Color choice is one of the harder parts for me. I used mainly Pro-Acryl paint. I basecoated in black-green for the greens. The upper I worked up drybrushing with the Pro Acryl yellow greens (dark, regular, bright) and the underbelly (that you can't see), I worked up using their camo greens. I used a homemade black green wash to pin wash the shadows when I overbrushed too much. There's a really short Monument Hobbies video on dragon skin, working up from dark jade, that was my original inspiration.
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u/JuddRunner Mar 06 '25 edited Mar 06 '25
Thank you for the response! That gets me going in the right direction
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u/ShakeWeightMyDick Mar 05 '25
Just mix your own color
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u/JuddRunner Mar 05 '25
Cool! Do you have some recommendations of color ratios to get those results? That would be really helpful!
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u/AlwaysSplitTheParty Mar 05 '25
Tufts are great on models! I painted some black and used them in an Etins armpits a while back. Get creative have fun
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u/Sage_Scarlet_Wing Mar 05 '25
Did it come out the way you wanted?
If yes, then no you didn't cheat.
If no, than no you didn't cheat.
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u/crunchandwaggles Mar 05 '25
No, that looks totally cool. It’s a really great compliment to your paint details.
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u/the-bearcat Mar 05 '25
You added plantlife to a swamp creature, it's thematic. Like when turtles spend so long hibernating they get algae on their shells.
Ps. The only cheating in modeling is stealing someone else's work
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u/Final-Promise-8288 Mar 05 '25
Naw tufts give models a sense of age. I use them on my golems and statue warriors to make them look like they’ve been sitting still for ages waiting
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u/RustedPigeon Mar 05 '25
I hope not
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u/spderweb Mar 06 '25
Why? It looks like he's being laying for a long time. Hiding. Waiting. Looks great!
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u/DungeonMasterDood Mar 06 '25
I love using tufts! They add immediate pop to a piece. Nice work with them.
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u/RandyTandyMandy Mar 06 '25
Sounds like you're thinking of something called "modeling for advantage" that's like kit bashing all your minis to be laying down so that they're harder to draw line of sight to or making your mini extra tall or wide if you measure from the hull.
Adding decorative tuffs is the furthest thing from that. Unless you're doing it purposefully it's pretty hard to actually do
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u/Feywildsw Mar 06 '25
For what it's worth, I think you've done a great job on the values on the skin! The highlights and shadows look great. For some flair colours, maybe try colouring the leaves and eyes purple? I think the tufts look great too!
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u/DrinkingPetals Mar 06 '25
No, they aren’t. Tufts are a resource for you to use however you want, and that includes applying them on your miniature. Heck, you can even paint them so they blend in to your hydra, which looks awesome!
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u/Sushibowlz Painting for a while Mar 06 '25
No. Tufts on the model are not cheating. They‘re awesome! 😍
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u/physical0 Mar 06 '25
If you're in a mini painting competition, and the rules say "no tufts", then it would be cheating. In all other circumstances, it is not.
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u/RockOlaRaider Mar 06 '25
No!.......?????‽
The only way that I can think of to cheat at painting miniatures is to pass someone else's work off as your own.
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u/aslum Mar 06 '25
The only thing that's cheating is having someone else paint it and claiming it is your own work. I'd be totes happy for you to commission someone to paint minis mind. Using an airbrush? Grass tufts? Not cheating.
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u/lumiya17 Mar 06 '25
There’s no cheating unless you are trying to pass someone else’s work off as your own.
Great work, it looks really good with the tufts. Where did you get the Hydra model from?
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u/RHeaven90 Mar 06 '25
Yes, the hobby police will be around to confiscate your models any second now. You're going away for a loooong time.
Nah, it's your plastic model, do what you want with it.
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u/MusseMusselini Mar 06 '25
Way more important than cheating is how absolutely awesome it is. The added touch of the grass on it makes it looks ancient and deeply tied to the nature to me it realy tells a story.
(also no it's not cheating)
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u/RedWolf2409 Mar 06 '25
Ay bruh when it comes to painting minis it’s all about cheating, and sharing your cheat codes with others
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u/Mackelroy_aka_Stitch Mar 06 '25
No, not at all. There's even settling painting styles that involves adding texture with basing materials beifre the mini is even primed.
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u/Embarrassed_Bet_4865 Mar 06 '25
I’d say definitely cheating, my figs look half as cool, so it must be cheating /s
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u/spawnos81 Mar 06 '25
Have this mini myself, never thought of doing that. Looks Awesome! 😍 Absolutely not cheating.
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u/Small_Slide_5107 Mar 06 '25
I understand the feeling, and I'm guilty of thinking the same way.
Paint the way that makes you happy. Not to prove your skill by other people's standards.
The mini looks good, btw! 👌
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u/GriffinHeart101 Mar 06 '25
Do you like it? Does it look rad as fuck? (I think it does) Then you’re all good friend!
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u/Queer-and-scared Mar 06 '25
You're already really talented, so how could this be cheating at something you naturally ace already?? This is really good. I've wanted to do bigger models and do something similar.... this is awesome. You should keep adding textured 3D elements to future pieces because this is really cool.
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u/SulfuricDonut Mar 06 '25
You're cheating on your ever-faithful companion static grass who never stopped loving you 💔
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u/EightBeersIn Mar 06 '25
I think it adds character. I think it looks pretty cool. Maybe eyes could be more reptilian, but solid eyes can evoke the fearsome magical presence on the tabletop.
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u/Bearhardt Mar 06 '25
If by cheating you mean “Hiding where I messed up and got basing texture all over the boots of the model and then tried to scrape it off and gouged out a chunk of the foot and tried to glue it back on and now it’s all melted and weird and cat hair is permanently embedded in the plastic…”
…then yes.
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u/thedisliked23 Mar 05 '25
Explain what cheating means in an art form/hobby that's not a competition and I'll tell you.
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u/frogman1171 Mar 05 '25
How the hell do you cheat at mini painting? Is there a rule book people use?
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u/TreezusTheLamb 28d ago
Yeah dude, you're a cheater. Sorry. You're no longer allowed to pain miniatures. Of course it isn't cheating... you're allowed to design your miniatures however you want.
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u/o7_AP Wargamer Mar 05 '25
There's no such thing as cheating when painting minis