It will come as no surprise to regular readers of this site that I am a great enthusiast for all things zombie-related. Zombie RPGs, zombie tabletop games, zombie comics, I’ve been there, done that, and gotten the proverbial T-shirt, My collection of zombie minis recently crossed the century mark and shows no sign of stopping its terrifying growth anytime soon. My point is that I’ve been around the block, zombie-wise.

So when a totally unique zombie mini strides into my line of vision, I sit up and take notice. Such a creature has crawled forth from the supremely talented folks at Hasslefree, and its name is Jotun. Obviously inspired by the giant boss zombies from the Resident Evil videogame franchise, these giant creatures make a truly impressive sight on any tabletop battlefield. I plan to use them in my RPG campaign in much the same role they play in the console games, as “minibosses” to put some fear back into players who grow complacent fighting ordinary shamblers.

Jotun stands 40mm tall, roughly half again as tall as the average 28mm adventurer. There are two different bodes available, and each ships with a selection of optional arms including a flamethrower, a minigun, a chainsaw, TWO different kinds of tentacles, and a clenched fist. Unfortunately, I assembled my three Jotuns some months ago before I started this website project, and I no longer remember just which arms originally came with each body. Plus I bought the optional extra arms pack just to confuse things further. Suffice it to say there are a wide variety of weapon systems available to customize this engine of destruction to your heart’s content.

The level of detail on these minis is, frankly, terrifying in a couple of different ways. First meaning that the grim visage of a giant cyber-zombie held together by steel plates and high-tech implants like some kind of hellish super-Frankenstein’s Monster naturally inspires terror in all who see it. The fear goes further than that, however. The extreme level of detail in these minis is enough to strike terror in the heart of any would-be painter who dares to try do them justice.

I don’t claim to be the world’s most elite mini painter. There are plenty of folks over at Cool Mini Or Not whose skills leave me in awe. But I have put in more than my share of time at the workbench, and I know what I’m about when it comes to painting figs, especially zombies. Jotun, however, caused me a real crisis of confidence. The problem is that his skin is patchy and full of gashes, wounds, and tears that reveal the muscles underneath. After a layer of primer and a basecoat of (rotting) flesh color, I found myself all but unable to differentiate between skin and non-skin. I even printed out some photo reference from CMON, including this amazing example. After hours of struggle, the best I could do was call it good enough and seal it up.

I must say that I’m reasonably pleased with the final result, even if it does seem a bit crude compared to the best examples out there. For any GM looking for the ultimate zombie killing machine, or any zed enthusiast looking for a truly unique addition to their collection, I really can’t recommend Jotun highly enough.

Pros: Totally unique, Numerous weapon options, Amazing detail

Cons: Maybe TOO detailed

Final Verdict: 5/5

MSRP: 5.50 GBP

Source: Hasslefree

Popularity: 29% [?]

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