N’Zoth Corrupted Carnival Ride, Hearthstone
With Blizzcon going fully digital for the first time in 2020, the Hearthstone team reached out to Volpin Props for a unique piece of set sculpture to promote their latest expansion “Madness at the Darkmoon Faire.” We only had 14 days to go from a single sketch of an unreleased Hearthstone card to a fully sculpted, painted and finished corrupted old god!
When sculpting and painting this piece, we worked hard to emulate the bright colors and vibrant contrast that is the embodiment of the Hearthstone aesthetic. Cartoonish wooden paneling contrasts with gooey purple tentacles. Creepy handpainted acrylic eyes set into epoxy sculpted eyelids stare at you from all angles, even when you’re in the ride’s seat! N’Zoth’s gryphon form is over 7’ tall, 9’ wide, and fully ride worthy thanks to a welded steel substructure mounting the seat to the baseplate. Sculpted mostly in epoxy clay over urethane foam, steel reinforcements inside the body, wings, and tail add rigidity while keeping his weight low for mobility. Our carnival ride is mounted to a 4’x4’ “skateboard” with locking casters to make posing him inside the set of the Darkmoon Faire quick and easy. He was a huge hit on the Hearthstone livestream and we’re hoping to see him in person at future live Blizzcon events!
