gargantua-toys

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NEW species incoming: The BRUTE COCKATRICE! This beast is a new riff for an old well-known creature, so we hope you embrace it when it becomes available NEXT WEEK!

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The Drok is still dying to be painted...

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Our exclusive Wandurr is included in the FULL ACID DESERT BUNDLE. Even in the most hostile environment, surrounded by deadly creatures, he still manages to find time to sketch and document his explorations!

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Give it a welcome to our new MyMiniFactory shop! After receiving some feedback urging us to have a place there, we decided to give it a try. Some of our favorite creators are there offering their models, so why shouldn't we? We've uploaded all our miniatures and model kits, including the GIANTS kaiju and all the Acid Desert beasties.

And regarding the REALMS: Acid Desert models, we made a FULL STL+PDF BUNDLE, in which we include all the 16 minis and their respective creature cards and the Wandurr handbook notes!

In fact, as a special gift, we decided to make a new Dion Wandurr pose portraying him as he makes his notes and sketches of the fascinating fauna he's researching on his journey.

Also, because all this is new to us, and we want to push it to celebrate our landing on this new site, we are offering a 15% discount from today until next Friday 14, if you introduce our NEWSTORE15 code when you make your purchase. All items are included! If you were interested before, it's the perfect time to jump! Every way you can support our endeavor is a tremendous (you could say GARGANTUAN) boost to us, so please take a moment to check it out and share if you resonate with what we do!

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So Kaijune 2024 is here...

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The Acid Desert Gang TOGETHER. We are currently preparing the full set package, including some extra goodies! 👀

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We say goodbye to our first REALM with a BIG fella: the DROK! A humongous beast, the Drok was a delight to concept. Because we wanted it to be more in an upstanding position, in contrast to the Karakran, we gave it powerful legs, with plantigrade feet and wide hoove-like nails. From the first blocking of the creature, we sculpted an especially bulky head, crowned with a long curved horn, which made it even more ostentatious. Thus, we added a heavy, rounded tail to function as a counterweight.

And the little hands? Aside from being a funny element that contrasted with the bizarre proportions of the animal, we incorporated them as a way to hold on to the mite mounds it feeds off and to the partner when the mating season comes.

The colors were also thought to be striking and, because this time is a larger miniature, we could go crazy with the patterns and details. However, we followed the "Three Colors" key principle so it didn't go too gaudy.

Of course, we wouldn't make a creature mini without committing to, at least, a pair of different poses. That's why we produced, aside from a more "basic" one, another that showed the Drok's "appeal" in all its glory.

Because it has a little bit of a peacock, we thought it would be cool if it raised its four arms and showed the brightly-colored neck. The Drok could be using that posture to intimidate, as well as to courtship and attract a partner.

We hope you enjoyed all these behind-the-scenes details of the Drok mini! And if you enjoyed this ginormous creature and would like to print it yourself, please indulge and visit our stores to grab its Digital Miniature Kit! Or get the other creatures from the Ssizur Desert and complete the collection! Here are the links: Ko-fi / Cults 3D

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It's the turn of the Mur! This flying creature was one of the fastest to design, as we had the basic idea from the beginning.

Of course, there were some elements that we had to change and refurbish --as we had to do with the long ears-- to adapt them better to the printed mini, but the proportions and details didn't give us much of a headache. As you can see, the scorpion-like tail and the ear-tip "pompons" were there from the start.

The fur was another important part of the design because it could be boring without some material or texture variety in such a small model. We also thought this hair could be used in-universe, with the local tribe using it as an integral part of their costumes (more of that native people soon!).

For the colors, we wanted to establish that this creature had to mimic a particular leathery fruit that grows in the few oases found in Ssizur, so we gave the Mur those orange and earth tones. In contrast, its eyes are a vivid cobalt.

And that's all for today! As always, consider supporting us and "adopting" a Mur or any of its desert friends! Ko-fi / Cults 3D Hope you like it! Until the next one!

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Turnaround of the Zish-Zish 🖌️

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Meet the Zish-Zish! Our creature roster expands with another small species that inhabits the Ssizur desert. This time, an agile hopper reptavian that lives in packs (or mobs, if you will). Because it's a social animal, it uses its ears and colorful plumage to communicate with other members of its group and intimidate possible predators. All those characteristics were incorporated in the design of the Zish-Zish for its miniature, although if we wanted them to be noticeable, those had to be bold and exaggerated.

Also, we had to show at least a portion of how swift and expressive this creature is, so we ended up choosing the "hopping", "attacking", and "distressing" variants.

Of course, the attacking pose was the most challenging, but we managed to make it well-balanced thanks to the custom base with the porous desert rock. This animal rarely touches the hot sands, so it was the perfect opportunity for us to make some dynamic poses!

The final touch had to be the colors, and because this species was a mix between an avian and a reptile (you could say it's a little bit "dinosaur-ish"), we decided to give it some striking pigments. The aquamarine blue was perfect as a contrast to the acid yellow of the desert.

And that's it for the Zish-Zish! If you liked this species for our project REALMS and want to print one (or lots of them!), please consider supporting us. It includes some goodies so you can implement these in your campaigns, so give it a shot!

Every purchase helps us a lot to continue developing these critters! You can get the Zish-Zish and other beasties here:

Ko-fi / Cults 3D

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What about a special drop? As a complemental monster before we complete the Acid Desert set of creatures, here we have an Elemental! Yep, maybe it isn't too large, and it's not precisely the most dangerous inhabitant of Ssizur, but it could be more than cumbersome to your adventurer's party. It's made from the same rocks and sands that form part of the desert, and it has a hole in its face that sometimes can contain acid like the hot springs scattered on the porous surface. And watch out for that pointy stone spear in its hand! You can get this Desert Elemental at our sites. Your support would mean a lot! Ko-fi / Cults 3D

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Karakran painted! Let's dance!

Ko-Fi / Cults 3D

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As if weren't enough with the suffocating heat and the toxic fumes, the Ssizur desert also counts with some of the most deadly creatures around... Like the Karakran.

For this species, we wanted to create an arachnid that would fill the niche of a big feline. Sort of a mix between a troglobite --or a scorpion-- and a panther. We envisioned it as an agile and cunning predator, as well as well adapted to the acid desert biome.

Because it's an arachnid too, we respected the number of appendages, but we did them longer and with sharper claws and pseudopalps, perfect to grab and rip its prey.

For the sculpture, we had a basic blocking in which we played with the proportions of every part of the Karakran until we felt it was right. It took a while, but we didn't stop until we got that silhouette and imposing nature of a feline right!

Because we thought it was more than enough, we rejected the idea of making them venomous (also, we already had the Du-Meesh as a toxic critter).

Also, the colors had to be simple but had to resemble the likes of a desert scorpion or a tarantula. And a little bit of saturated color --the oranges-- here and there to underline some details. We had to achieve a mix between something realistic and something exciting to paint.

To also portray the "character" of this beast in the most amusing way possible, we sculpted two different poses: running and "dancing". The latter is both useful for attacking and for mating!

And if you want a Karakran to terrorize your party in your next campaign, or you simply want to print one and paint it because you want it to display on your monster shelf, go ahead and visit our sites to get one: Ko-fi / Cults 3D

As we are just getting started, any support would be appreciated!

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Du-Meesh printed and painted.

Now available in our shops!

Ko-Fi / Cults 3D

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Today we launch the tiniest specimen of the Ssizur desert: the Du-Meesh! This creature is smaller than a human but as its look may show, it's as adorable as dangerous!

The first idea came with a mouse-like creature that had a venom-spitting tail. Because we thought it would feel right at home, turning the tail into another "different" animal would make the Du-Meesh pretty striking, so we designed its appendage as a snake.

We also thought that using its tail as an umbrella would be pretty useful (and cute!) as a way to protect itself against the fierce sunlight. For the variant poses, we had to choose between a spit attack version, a standing version, and a quadruped version, but maybe we make a "Chillin' under the Sun" sometime in the future.

As with our other creatures for this set, we include the different poses (supported and un-supported), a custom base, and a bunch of digital goodies like a token, a bestiary monster sheet, and a page from the field sketches of Dion Wandurr himself! Oh, and the texts are both in English and Spanish. We hope you enjoyed this fun little creature! If you want to support GARGANTUA and treat yourself to some cool minis, please visit our links: Ko-fi / Cults 3D

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Finished Wandurr prototype!

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We needed an "anchor", a "tour guide" for the Project: REALMS. An explorer who would take us to the most amazing environments to teach us about creatures no one has seen before. But it needed to have personality, an idiosyncratic manner of studying those animals, but also his clothing should tell us about that character and his story. And so, Dion Wandurr was born.

From the beginning, we knew we wanted Wandurr to be histrionic and colorful. We wanted him to be pompous like a XXIXth Century English explorer with a tad of a bard. He's a storyteller --but instead of singing about brave knights and lovesick princes, he writes about the most unique creatures he gets to know in his voyages.

He also has a rather steampunk-esque prosthetic in his left leg. This is part of his mysterious backstory! But it's also the reason he wanted to study the wildlife of the different realms out there as it was a dangerous beast that tore his leg apart.

We experimented with lots of elements in his design, but learned that with Wandurr, "more is more": the more equipment and singular details we added to his design, the more it seemed like a real character who always wants to be prepared for a campaign. Oh, and we loved the poncho.

The colors had to reflect the struggle between function and personality, and we incorporated yellow and blue/brown so it had a lot of contrast and also, helped him fit thematically in our first desertic landscape.

So there he is. At the end of the day, what we wanted for Wandurr was that he was fun. To sculpt, to paint, and to play. Since he is the central piece of this project, we wanted to make sure he was available for you to use for free!

Yep, FREE. Hey, just visit one of our stores, loot him, and let us know about the upcoming adventures you're planning with him!

Ko-fi / Cults 3D

And stay tuned for our creatures!