Why bother with a giant weasel miniature?
Mostly, because they are cool. It’s only a CR 1/8 creature so it’s not going to be much of a threat, nor will druids see this Beast as a good option for a combat wild shape, but they might use it for a wild shape when they need to get through a narrow tunnel in the dark when they need something a little chonkier. Gnomes and druids often use mastiffs and wolves and ponies as mounts, but how much more awesome would it be to ride up on a giant weasel? I’ll answer that question for you: WAY more awesome. They are just as fast as mastiffs and wolves and ponies, so why not?
What about this mini?
This miniature, like the ochre jelly baby, the cat, the raven, the pixie, the sprite, the giant riding lizard, and the hezrou miniatures, is a bit problematic. This unpainted metal miniature is from Otherworld Miniatures, a company which I have bought many minis from over the years. It has very recently closed as a result of the owner’s retirement, so their minis are no longer available for purchase directly from them. However, it’s closed so recently that Otherworld Miniature products are still available in retail shops and on the internet. As a result, I’m putting a number of videos of their miniatures up now so if you like their mini(s), you can scout around for them before they are all gone. Supposedly, they were going to sell their molds to another company, but nothing has been heard on that for months, so it’s anyone’s guess who has the molds or if anyone will be making more of their minis at this point. If you want one of their minis, this is probably the time to look for them, in case they are not available in future. I have quite a few of their miniatures, because I really like them. This particular one is part of a pack of 3 different giant weasel sculpts, Giant Weasels (3) WE16. The base size for the giant weasel is medium, as it is meant to be, so I am happy.
I painted this miniature in the colours of a black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes) because, although I have never worked with black-footed ferrets (yet), I like their story, and it is one of the many stories which got me into my field. They were thought to be extinct, and then when I was still in school a small population of them was discovered, and due to a huge effort the species was saved from extinction. There are still only a few hundred of these cool little animals left, but they are doing much better than they previously had been. Although I have not worked with black-footed ferrets, I have worked with a number of other species which have similarly dropped down to a small handful of individuals (some of which were also thought to be extinct at one point) and which were brought back from the brink of extinction. Too many species, frankly. So I am a big fan of spreading information about these amazing species who have beaten the odds, and do so even while playing Dungeons and Dragons.
How useful is this mini, really?
Giant weasels are included in 5 published Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition books:
- Ghosts Of Saltmarsh
- Monster Manual
- Tales From The Yawning Portal
- Volo’s Guide To Monsters
- Xanathar’s Guide To Everything
That isn’t a ton of books, but the cool factor was enough for me. This is the sort of creature that I am spending my time with when I am a druid or a ranger. Or really any other class, because I love animals (obviously). Your mileage may vary though. But if you also love animals, this sculpt is really nice and you won’t regret picking this guy up.
But why are you doing this?
As usual for these videos, my aim is to both provide good views of the featured miniatures from all angles as well as giving you accurate sizing information about them. As I already pointed out, the giant weasel miniature is on a medium size base, which is the right size. I would like to also thank the wildlife artist Sherrie York, incredible reduction linocut artist, for kindly allowing me to use one of her reduction linocuts, Shivano Sunset, as the backdrop for my minis in the video.