SBG

Ta u r i e l
Tips

Battle
Report

Painting
Masterclass

Issue T
1st April 2019
A Ta u r i e l f a n z i n e b y t h e f a n s - f o r t h e t r o l l s

TA
UR
IE
SP L
EC
!
IA
L

derdle!
Every Tolkien fan’s favourite elf is attacked by a relentless
host of monstrous trolls in our Tauriel special edition!
 EDITORIAL
SBG
Well Derdle-Erdle-Errr!
Welcome to the latest issue
of SBG and the first of
our issues focusing not on
A Tauriel fanzine by the fans - for the trolls
a specific place or battle,
but on a single much-loved
Issue T character.
April 1st 2019
We’re always keen to experiment with new ideas here at SBG Towers and,
when we first hit upon the idea of spending an entire issue investigating
Created and Edited by:
Tom Harrison one character, we knew we were onto a winner. Of course, the biggest
Damian O’Byrne challenge was deciding which of the multitude of Tolkien’s characters to
focus on. There are so many beloved and iconic characters out there
Layout & Design: that we knew that we would be upsetting someone whoever we chose.
Damian O’Byrne
On the Good side we debated selecting the likes of, Gandalf, Aragorn,
Copy Editor: Bilbo, Elsa and Thorin, whilst on the Evil side Sauron, The Witch King,
Tom Harrison Saruman, Alfrid and Smaug all seemed like strong contenders. However,
we ultimately settled on a character who we knew would unite fans of the
Principal Photography: books and films alike, a character loved not only for her powerful screen
Jim Muller
representation, but also for the great work she did bringing the races of
Article Contributors: dwarves and elves closer together. That’s right, we’re delighted to say that
Damian O’Byrne, Tom Harrison, all 48 pages of our latest issue will be dedicated to Tauriel!
Damian O’Byrne, Dave
Fredericks, Damian O’Byrne, Once we’d made this decision, we were immediately inundated with
Kev Lawrence, Damian O’Byrne,
requests for article submissions and even a number of remarkably long,
Damian O’Byrne, James Long,
fully-formed articles about the positive impact that Tauriel has had on
All images reproduced with the lives of Tolkien fans. In fact, we had to turn away most of the articles
the kind permission of the because they were all so similar - “Tauriel’s my favourite character in
photographers: Middle-earth”, “Watching The Desolation of Smaug made me realise what
Dave Fredericks, Damian
the novel of The Hobbit was missing”, “I wish Peter Jackson would go back
O’Byrne, Emma O’Byrne, Kev
Lawrence and insert Tauriel into the original The Lord of the Rings trilogy with CGI”
and so on. Sadly, we were constrained by the limited number of pages
available and simply had to pick our favourites. We’re sorry to those of you
Contact us:
SBGmagazine@gmail.com who didn’t make it into print this time but don’t worry, we’ve kept them all
on file and will be including them as part of our regular Tauriel SecSHON in
future issues. We were also hoping to feature an interview with Evangeline
Lilly but, as of yet, she hasn’t returned any of the several hundred calls
Damian has made and her number now seems to have been disconnected.
Fingers crossed Evangeline figures out what’s wrong with her phone and
we’re able to feature her interview in the next issue.

And that’s about all the space we have for another Editorial, it’s been great
fun creating the latest issue of SBG and we hope you enjoy the read. We’ll
be back next April with our next character special, we haven’t decided who
that will be just yet but we’re not willing to rule out Tauriel.
Enjoy the issue,
Damian & Tom

2 SBG Issue T 2019

CONTENTS
Tazza Towers 2
We use our patented Tauriel Scale to finally prove that some Tauriels

6
are taller than others, introduce our latest model hunt and more!
The Daughter of the Forest 3
We introduce a brand new Legendary Legion which allows you to
field Tauriel alongside her ever-present array of Angry Book Fans
Why Tauriel Is Realer Than You Are 6
Damian questions the wisdom of claiming that characters “aren’t real”
in a fictional universe filled with orcs, elves and a talking purse
Tom’s Top Tauriels 10
Damian forces Tom to examine the wide selection of Tauriels now
available so you can make the most of your money
Battle Report - Brief Encounter 12
10
Tauriel must contend with a host of monstrous spiders and protect
an amorous dwarf in our brand new scenario and Battle Report
The Dr’s Corner 14
Dr Grant is back with another article about his feelings. This time he
focuses on his feelings for Tauriel (parental discretion advised)
Tauctica - Tauriel 40

12
Damian examines how to get the most out of Tauriel in the game and
explains why it’s not really worth considering any other models
Painting Masterclass - Red Hair 42
Kev Lawrence is back with his latest tutorial, explaining how best to
recreate Tauriel’s flawless complexion and soothing, autumnal tresses
Sculpting Tips - Tauriel 43
Dave Fredericks details the unique challenges, both practical and
ethical, of creating a custom life-sized Tauriel sculpt for Damian
Hobby BLOG, Supporting SBG & Competition 44
Discover which pose of Tauriel everyone has been working on and
win enough GenerationShift bases for 94 Tauriels in the process! 42
The early issues of SBG
contain significantly less
Tauriel but some people
still consider them worth
a read! A limited number
of physical copies of Issues
1-7 are still available - email
sbgmagazine@gmail.com
to get yours!

2019 Issue T SBG 1

 Tazza owers
Behind the scenes news snippets from Tauriel

SBG SBG

Angry Book Fa ns
BAD TAUReIof E LS Whilst there
the best Tauriels k at som may not be
Later in the issue, Tom takes a loo
all Tauriels are successful - an official
that money can buy. However, not
roductions of the Daughter model for
here are two less-than-authentic rep our custom
g to us all...
of the Forest, may they be a warnin Angry Book
David Whitaker Tauriel: David Fan profile
ul
perfectly captured Tauriel’s youthf (see opposite), there are some
and
exuberance with a high quality wig models in the existing range that will
, wh ilst he
effective costume. However make great proxies. Alfrid, ‘Old’ Bilb
o
erdle-
made good use of screaming “D and Floi are not only holding books,
you
Erdle-Errr” to make you feel like but they also look like they could
ent
were in the movie, the omnipres be quoting from them, making them
t
cheesy grin betrayed the fact tha perfect for representing Angry Book
l Tau rie l.
this was not, in fact, the rea Fans in your games.
.
Maximum points for effort though
riel?
Tom Harrison Tauriel: Dreadful. Where’s Tau
say
Just dreadful. Not much else to There are several
l
really, so we’ve included a Taurie pictures of Tauriel
haiku to fill the space: hidden subtly
throughout this
Tauriel issue. The first
person to count
Tauriel is great them all and send
I don’t know why some hate her us the correct
I doubt this will help answer wins the chance to bu
O’Byrne, 2019 y
themselves a plastic Tauriel.

Large
Tauriels The Tauriel Scale
Some Tauriels are taller than
others. See?

Small
Tauriels

2 SBG Issue T 2019

The Daughter of the Forest
In this new Legendary Legion, we present rules for representing the moment when Tauriel
did literally any of the awesome things that she does. As with other Legendary Legions, The
Daughter of the Forest cannot take allies and may only include the profiles listed below.
When Tauriel saved the lives of Thorin’s Company
from the spiders of Mirkwood and then again from
Angry Book Fan.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ‘Free’
Bolg’s orcs, she ensured that the Battle of Five
Armies could be won which, in turn, allowed for Wherever Tauriel appears, an
Erebor to be re-established by Dain. When Tauriel Angry Book Fan is never far away.
saved the life of Bain in Lake-town, she ensured Whether anyone asks or not,
that Bard’s line could continue which led to Bain’s Angry Book Fans are always on
son Brand becoming the King of Dale. After the hand to explain how Tauriel is not
War of the Ring, Gandalf said that, were it not for real and how her inclusion has
the actions of Dain and Brand - who were only no place in the otherwise entirely
alive because of Tauriel - the north of Middle-earth realistic story of dragons, elves
would have been overrun and the actions of Frodo and orcs. Whilst they may not Wargear: Book
would have been for nought. In short, Tauriel saved be natural fighters, Angry Book (can use the Stun
Middle-earth and is probably the most significant Fans have a healthy supply of Will Special Strike)
character in the whole saga. thanks to their unwavering loyalty and tiresomely
to the crusade against Tauriel. repetitive rhetoric
Army Composition M F S D A W C M W F
Tauriel, Angry Book Fans
6 2/6+ 2 3 1 1 1 0 10 0

Additional Rules
A The Daughter of the Forest force must always
include Tauriel who is always the army’s Leader. In
addition, you must include one Angry Book Fan for
every full 500 points in your army.
If taken as part of this Legendary Legion, Tauriel
gains the Troll Bane Special Rule and may re-roll all
failed To Wound rolls against Trolls.
She’s Not in the Book! The Angry Book Fan’s
relentless desire to remind people that Tauriel was
not in the books has a truly exasperating effect on
anyone within earshot.
At the end of an Angry Book Fan’s Move, all Hero
models within 6” (friendly and enemy) count as being
affected by the Sap Will Magical Power. This Special
Rule cannot be resisted, it is simply too exhausting.

A 1000 point The Daughter of the Forest army - Tauriel will provide the focal point for this force which
will hopefully counteract the disadvantages provided by the two Angry Book Fans you are forced to
include at this points level. This army will struggle with scenarios in which numbers play a factor but this
is just one of the many adversities a fan of Tauriel will have to contend with in day-to-day life - have fun!

2019 Issue T SBG 3

 Tom’s Top Tauriels

OM’S TOP Tauriels

It’s been over five years since Tauriel first Derdle’d onto our screens
and into our hearts in The Desolation of Smaug, forever improving The
Hobbit in the process. In the years since, there have been so many
reproductions of the character that it’s hard to know exactly which
order the discerning Tolkien fan should purchase them in. In this article,
Tom sets out to discover which is the definitive Tauriel, before quickly
realising that it might be a much tougher task then he first envisioned.

A recent poll on the Great British Hobbit League

Facebook page suggested that Tauriel was only the
8th best elf in the Middle-earth: Strategy Battle Game.
Thankfully, after it was revealed that the supporters
of Elrond and Gil-galad had conspired together
in a vote-rigging scandal, the objective truth that
Tauriel is the best elf has been restored to public
consciousness. Now, having blown away all of the
non-Tauriel competition, it’s my job to work out
which version of Tauriel is the best!
At first, I thought that one of the Games Workshop
Tauriels was going to be runaway winner - after
all, having an 84% chance of winning a Duel when
surrounded by six Gundabad orcs is enough to
make even the dwarven prisoners of the Mirkwood
gaol stare in wonder. However, it’s not all about
“Some Tauriels, even if not optimal
for their price, are invaluable as
discussion points for fancy dinner
parties with friends and family”
yelling ‘Derdle-Erdle-Errr’ while chucking a bucket
of dice because some Tauriels, even if not optimal
for their price, are invaluable as discussion points for
fancy dinner parties with friends and family. In fact,
each and every Tauriel brings its own unique blend
of charm, class and Derdle-tasticness - meaning that
it’s actually impossible to separate them. So, simply
sit back and enjoy as I muse over a selection of the
finest Tauriel products to come out of Mirkwood.

WETA Tauriel
What the WETA statue of Tauriel of the Woodland
Realm lacks in not costing £300, it makes up for
in being amazing. Sure, it’s the sort of Tauriel
whose purchase you might need to hide from
your spouse, but the staggeringly good detail and
likeness to Evangeline Lilly make it all worthwhile
[Damian - who’s Evangeline Lilly?]. The first Tauriel
statue that WETA released back in 2013 is long out of production and now sells for upwards of £700
on eBay - even Damian couldn’t convince Emma that that was a sensible purchase. So, the new Tauriel
of the Woodland Realm is not only the perfect centrepiece for your lounge but also a solid investment
for the future - of course, a Tauriel fan who sells one of their Tauriels has left the path of wisdom and
is no true Tauriel fan. Unfortunately, Tauriel of the Woodland Realm is only due to ship in April 2019 and,
whilst Damian has obviously pre-ordered his copy, it had yet to be delivered as we went to print. As
such, we can’t take any pictures to show off this stunning new sculpture so, instead, here’s a picture of
Damian waiting for the postman to deliver his statue (he’s not moved for 4 weeks).

10 SBG Issue T 2019

 Tom’s Top Tauriels

Games Workshop’s Two Tauriels

For many hobbyists This second Tauriel
this will be their entry was released in 2014
point into Tauriel alongside The Battle
fandom. An excellent, of the Five Armies and
dynamic sculpt that, depicts the Daughter
along with Radagast of the Forest wielding
and Legolas, may well her twin daggers
have paved the way (Thranduil having
for the new range of destroyed her bow
plastic Middle-earth by this point). Sadly,
Heroes. As if that it’s now out of
wasn’t enough, this production, making it
sculpt is now available even more desirable
alongside Legolas at which, given it is
a discounted price - Tauriel, was already
BARGAIN. very desirable indeed.

Lego Tauriel Bridge direct Tauriel

Who doesn’t love
Lego? If the idea
of a teeny tiny
Lego Evangeline
Lilly is somehow
not enough to
entice you into
hunting down
the now out-
of-production
Tauriel mini-
figs from the Attack on Laketown
and Escape from Mirkwood Spiders
Lego sets, perhaps a cheeky bit of
trivia will. Despite the fact that the
Mirkwood spiders sequence appears
in The Desolation of Smaug, the
Escape from Mirkwood Spiders set was
released alongside the sets for An
Unexpected Journey in 2012, as it was
packaged by Lego at a time when the
plan was to only have two films.You
can see the evidence of this change
on the box art, which contains a
small red sticker that says ‘Special The
Hobbit Trilogy Preview Set’. Thankfully,
we eventually got three films, allowing
us to enjoy even more Tauriel action.
This posabale Tauriel comes with a
range of optional weapons including
her bow and twin daggers. As if that
wasn’t enough to keep the conversation
flowing at dinner parties, just like
the Lego mini-fig, this action figure
was released early in An Unexpected
Journey themed packaging, having been
produced for sale when the Hobbit
trilogy was still only two films.
Funko Pop! Tauriel
Oh those eyes! Over the last few
years, Funko Pop!s have emerged
for almost every conceivable pop
culture property. Alongside Funko
Pop!s for film, music, sport and
TV, there is now even a range of
powerful historical women available
like Queen Elizabeth 11, Hilary
Clinton and, of course, Tauriel. Not
only is this hands down the cutest
Tauriel available, but the deep black
eyes betray a lifetime of wisdom and experience, making
this the perfect Tauriel for the intellectual.

2019 Issue T SBG 11

 As Thorin’s Company are attacked by the spawn of Ungolient, Kili finds himself alone,
surrounded by monstrous spiders in the depths of Mirkwood. Just as it seems that the young
dwarf is destined for a grisly death, salvation arrives from a most unexpected person...
Participants
Good models
Tauriel with Elf bow, Kili the Dwarf
Evil models
8 Mirkwood Spiders
Layout
This battle takes place on a 2’x2’ board representing
a small wooded section in the heart of Mirkwood.
There should be trees and rocky undergrowth
scattered around the board.
Starting Positions
The Good player deploys Kili 8” directly away from
the centre of the eastern board edge and Tauriel 8”
directly away from the centre of the western board
edge (leaving them 8” apart). The Evil player then
places his first four Mirkwood Spiders touching the
centre of each board edge. The other four spiders
are not deployed at the start of the game.
The Good side has Priority in the first turn.
12SBG
14 SBGIssue
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2019
Objectives
The Evil side is attempting to wipe out young
romance forever. The Evil side wins if Kili and Tauriel
are both slain. The Good side wins if both Tauriel
and Kili are alive when all eight spiders are dead.
Any other result is a draw. Neither side can be
Broken in this scenario.
Special rules
Throw Me a Dagger, Quick!: Tauriel’s arrival has
saved Kili from certain death but the dwarf is yet to
recover his weapons. Kili counts as unarmed until
Tauriel has killed her first spider.
The Spawn of Ungolient: Tauriel and Kili are
fighting for their lives and will have to kill many
spiders before they drive them away. From Turn
2 onwards, the Evil player can begin to deploy his
remaining four spiders using the Maelstrom of Battle
rules. However, there may only ever be a maximum
of four spiders on the board at any one time.
There’s Good Juice Inside: The Mirkwood Spiders
are set on a succulent meal of dwarf and elf maiden.
All spiders must charge if they are able to do so.

Damian, Tom and James decided to give the scenario a
go. Unsurprisingly, Damian took control of Tauriel and
James partnered up with him by controlling Kili. Could
Tom and his hideous spiders spoil their beautiful party?
Turn 1
The game began with Damian charging Tauriel straight
into a spider. Not wanting the pair to be separated,
James moved Kili towards Tauriel while yelling “I could
have anything down my trousers!”. In response, Tom
rushed the other spiders towards the Heroes and, while
one was able to charge the unarmed Kili, he was left
frustrated after all of his Spider Webs missed their target.
In a bid to protect Kili, Tauriel called a Heroic Combat
and dispatched the spider she faced (although she had to
use another Might point to do so) before charging into
the spider fighting the young dwarf. After easily winning
the Fight together, Tauriel thrust her dagger through the
monster’s head, allowing Kili to grab his weapon!
Turn 2
Tom won Priority so James called a Heroic Move with Kili
and both Heroes charged a spider each. Tom moved two
more Mirkwood Spiders onto the board and risked firing
Spider Webs into combat, only to miss with both. Tauriel
won her Duel and, after causing one wound, used her
final Might point to kill the beast. Things didn’t go as well
for Kili, who lost a wound despite now having a sword.
Turn 3
Tom won Priority again so Kili used his final Might point
to call another Heroic Move and charge a spider. Tauriel
charged into two spiders to make best use of her Blade
Mistress Special Rule, although she had to use both of her
Will points after fluffing her Courage Test! With 4 Attacks
Battle Report - Brief Encounter
and the higher Fight value, Tauriel easily won
the Duel and, with a mighty cry of “Derdle-
Erdle-Errr!”, she dispatched both spiders in a
whirl of blades! Kili was obviously distracted
by Tauriel’s heroics as, whilst he was able to
win his Duel, he couldn’t land a telling blow.
Turn 4
James and Damian won back Priority, allowing
Kili and Tauriel to charge a spider each before
Tom’s final spider entered the board. Kili won
his Fight and caused a wound, but Tauriel
must have been busy wondering whether
Kili was tall for a dwarf because she lost her
Fight, allowing Tom’s spider to inflict a wound!
Damian didn’t use any Fate points as he
wanted to save this for future Spider Webs, as
Tom was bound to get lucky at least once -
our Heroes weren’t out of the woods yet!
Turn 5
Tom won back Priority and, with no Might
remaining, James and Damian had no choice
but to let the spiders attack! To Damian’s
horror, Tauriel had to use all three of her Fate
points to avoid being Paralysed after suffering a
direct hit from a Spider Web - Tauriel was now
on 1 Wound and out of Might, Will and Fate!
Clearly enraged by the spider’s attempts to
Paralyse her, Tauriel fought back with vengeful
fury and dispatched the beast. Things were
looking grim for Kili as he was charged by
the two remaining spiders but, with a roar of
delight, James rolled a 6 to win the Duel, killing
one spider to leave just one remaining.
Turn 6
United by a common enemy, Kili and Tauriel
charged forwards into the final spider, easily
besting the beast in a flurry of knives and
knowing glances. However, for once Tauriel’s
barrage of attacks failed to find the mark
and it was Kili who landed the killing blow.
As Tauriel gazed down in surprise and maybe
even admiration, a bond had been formed
between the unlikeliest of friends.
2019 Issue T SBG 13
 Tauctica - Tauriel
TAUCTICA
Damian O’Byrne is the founder of the Tauriel Appreciation Society (TAP), whose members
spend their time repeatedly explaining to Angry Book Fans (see page 3 for our custom
profile) that all of the characters are made up. He’s also thrown Tauriel on the table at
every opportunity, so is perfectly poised to offer his top Tauriel tips for your games.
I
t’s no secret that I’m a huge fan
of Tauriel. From the first time
I saw The Desolation of Smaug,
I thought Evangeline Lilly’s
portrayal was note-perfect and
one of the best original additions
to The Hobbit trilogy. Not only
does she have, hands down, the
best musical theme in The Hobbit
trilogy but her character slots
comfortably into Middle-earth,
offering a glimpse of the physical
strength of elvish women, only
previously glimpsed on screen
in the flight to the ford in The
Fellowship of the Ring. Naturally,
as soon as the model and profile
were released in 2013, I was
eager to get her onto the table
and she’s been a staple of my
Thranduil’s Halls armies ever
since. In this article, I’ll be passing
on my top tips for getting the
most out of her in your games.
Death? Let Me Give It to You!
The first thing to focus on is the
strength of Tauriel’s base profile.
Fight value 6, Strength 4 and 3
Might are strong stats for a Hero
and her Elven-made daggers mean
that she’ll win tied Fights on a
3+. However, what really sets her
apart is the fact that she has 3
Attacks - not only is she unique
40 SBG Issue T 2019
in the Thranduil’s Halls army list
in this regard (assuming you don’t
upgrade Thranduil to have his
second Elven-made sword), but
she’s actually the only elf Hero in
the game to boast 3 Attacks for
less than 100 points.
Of course, any good Tauriel
general will tell you that, when
played right, Tauriel doesn’t
have 3 Attacks - she has loads of
Attacks! Tauriel’s Blade Mistress
Special Rule grants her an extra
Attack for every enemy she
is engaged with after the first.
This means that, should you win
Priority, you can all but assume
that she has 4 Attacks as there’s
normally a way to charge two
enemy models. Losing Priority
can be a surprisingly frustrating
experience for any budding
Tauriel commander as a canny
opponent will simply throw a
single enemy model into our
beloved. My favourite thing about
Blade Mistress is that it perfectly
captures Tauriel’s depiction in
the movies - she gets better if
you charge her aggressively into
multiple enemies which really
encourages you to play in a
thematic manner!
However, whilst it can be
tempting to hurl Tauriel forward
with absolute impunity, bear
in mind that the dice gods will
always be tempted to throw a
spanner in the works - I’ve lost
track of the amount of times
I’ve confidently thrown my four
dice and looked on in horror
as a 3 highest comes up. Even
with 3 Might points, Tauriel can
realistically only ‘deal’ with one
of these chokes in each game
Tauriel is a rare
case in the
Strategy Battle
Game as she
wants to be
outnumbered in
a Duel - getting
better and
better the more
opponents she is
fighting against!

Scientists have used science to prove that Damian’s custom-made
‘Derdle’ dice increase Tauriel’s chances of rolling a 6 by nearly 174%
and they happen more often than
you might think. Despite her 3
Fate points, a Defence of 5 and
2 Wounds mean that Tauriel is
relatively squishy when Fights do
go against her. It goes without
saying that no-one wants to
experience the devastation of
taking their Tauriel off the board
after one bad roll of the dice as
that can, nay should, make you
go into mourning for weeks.
Thankfully, there are a couple
of ways you can mitigate against
these freak rolls.
“Tauriel gets better if you charge her aggressively
into multiple enemies which really encourages
you to play in a thematic manner!”
I’m Not on My Own
The first of these is to ensure
that Tauriel is in range of a banner
to give her a re-roll when the
worst happens. A banner is
always valuable in an army list
with high Fight value Warriors
and, fortunately, the Thranduil’s
Halls army list has three different
options for durable Defence 6
banner-bearers. Of course, there’s
an argument that keeping your
sole banner-bearer near the
‘4’ Attack, Fight 6 Hero is a bit
overkill (personally I think it’s just
enough kill) and you might decide
that your banner is of more use
elsewhere in the battle-line. In
these cases, I always try to ensure
that Tauriel is supported by a
Mirkwood Elf with an Elven-made
glaive or a Palace Guard with a
spear to add that extra dice to
the Duel roll and further improve
my odds. Thankfully, after you’ve
engineered a situation where
Tauriel wins the Duel, you can be
fairly confident that her 4 Attacks
at Strength 4 will easily cut down
the two Warriors she is facing.
The Power of Love
There’s another avenue that
a particularly reckless Tauriel
general may wish to consider -
exploiting her Vengeful Fury Special
Rule by getting Kili killed! If you
include Kili the Dwarf, Champion
of Erebor in your force, not only
do you get an additional Defence
8, 3 Might Hero, but you can
charge him forward and try to get
him killed at the first opportunity
whilst screaming “BECAUSE IT
WAS REAL!”. With the tiresome
dwarf cold in the ground, Tauriel
Tauctica - Tauriel
becomes Strength 5, allowing
her to cut through Defence 3,
Defence 5 and Defence 7 models
far more easily. Of course, the
Daughter of the Forest will also
drop to Defence 4 but I would
argue that there’s not a huge
difference between Defence 5 and
Defence 4 on a 2 Wound model
and that the benefits of Strength
5 far outweigh the negatives of
Defence 4, so try to get that
irksome dwarf killed at the first
opportunity!
Finally, there’s one last thing you
can do when fighting with Tauriel
to throw the odds decisively in
your favour - as you grab your
dice, be sure to yell “Derdle-
Erdle-Errr” at the top of your
voice (this should sound like
Tauriel’s theme in the movies).
Having conducted five years
of research, I can categorically
confirm that your chances of
rolling a 6 are exponentially
increased by executing the
‘Derdle’ manoeuvre. I have also
created custom ‘Derdle’ Dice
(seen in the picture above) to
further increase my chances of
a successful Derdle. The dream
is to roll six dice and have them
spell out Derdle as you yell
Derdle, crushing your opponent’s
models and, more importantly,
their spirit. As of yet, I’ve never
managed this Tauriel-tastic goal
but it’s the dream that keeps me
fighting the good fight #itisourfight.
Other ‘Options’
Some people believe that Legolas
and Thranduil are better options
than Tauriel. They’re wrong.
It Is Our Fight!
And that’s it, in short, always take
Tauriel, the rest is all filler.
2019 Issue T SBG 41
 PAINTING MASTERCLASS Tauriel
We agonised for a long time about exactly what we’d
ask Kev Lawrence to paint for this issue. Kev’s first
choice was two Smaugs but we thought that didn’t
particularly fit the theme. After going back and forth several hundred times,
we ultimately decided on a very unexpected choice - Tauriel! In this guide,
Kev will be focusing on Tauriel’s face and hair, the full painting guide will be
featured in his Patreon painting guide for April. If you like Kev’s painting guides
in SBG (who wouldn’t?!) then you can get one every month by supporting him
on Patreon, at www.patreon.com/middleearthpaintingguides.

Hair Face

1 2 1 2
1. Paint the hair Tau Light 2. Wash the hair with 1. Paint the face with 2. Wash the face with
Ocre over an Abaddon an 80:20 mix of water a 50:50 mix of Ratskin a 50:50 mix of Reikland
Black undercoat. and Evil Sunz Scarlet. Flesh and Bestigor Flesh. Fleshshade and water.

3 4 3 4
3. Wash the hair with 4. Add a further 3. Paint two dots 4. Add a little more
a 50:50 mix of Agrax wash to the hair using of Screaming Skull Bestigor Flesh to the
Earthshade and water.  Reikland Fleshshade. into each eye socket.  previous mix and
Highlight the face with highlight the face again.
a 50:50 mix of Ratskin Once dry, apply a final
Flesh and Bestigor Flesh. highlight of pure Bestigor
Flesh. Paint the lips in
6 with Bugman’s Glow
and the eyebrows with
6. Add two drops Mournfang Brown (with
of water and a small a tiny amount of Evil
amount of Carroburg Sunz Scarlet mixed in). 
5 Crimson to Reikland
Fleshshade and 5. Finally, add a tiny
5. Highlight raised areas wash the hair. Finally, amount of white to
of the hair with a 50:50 wash the hair with a Bestigor Flesh and
mix of Evil Sunz Scarlet
and Tau Light Ocre.
50:50 mix of Agrax
Earthshade and water.
5 highlight the forehead,
nose and cheekbones. 
42 SBG Issue T 2019