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So I bought lots of Chimera's for my IG army. I have painted up my first one to see how it looks. This is was going to be the color scheme for my entire army and all my tanks. To be honest it just seems like its missing something. I do not think it looks bad just a tad dull. I would appreciate any constructive criticism or ideas to make it look better.

Thanks

I'd go with an angular camo pattern, kind of like the Valhallan or even Tau camo schemes. Use a darker color that goes well with what you already have.

It does look good, though, but I agree that it needs a little something else.

The side skirts look good, but I feel as if the main body of the tank could use some more damage. Perhaps even some mud on the tracks?

It looks superb though, but definately needs something.

Do you think putting some of the transfers on it would help some? I thought about the camo pattern but am afraid to attempt that. I may look at it and see if i can come up with something though. I was hoping to add something small or change it first to see if it helps. Like I said its not bad, just missing something, just dont know what that is.

broxus wrote:Do you think putting some of the transfers on it would help some? I thought about the camo pattern but am afraid to attempt that. I may look at it and see if i can come up with something though. I was hoping to add something small or change it first to see if it helps. Like I said its not bad, just missing something, just dont know what that is.

The paint job looks really good by itself. So, no, it's definitely not bad at all. It's good work.

It is a little bland though and it's bland because there's this big tank with lots of flat surfaces (especially the skirts) with very few details to break up the shape and provide a degree of visual interest. So anything that breaks up those panels is going to help it feel more "finished". Decals will definitely work. Some well placed stowage might, too.

Also, you've gone with battle damage on the skirts, so we know your Chimera hasn't just rolled out of the manufactorum. You might as well go whole hog and add some general wear -- chips, scratches, rust streaking, dust, etc. That'll help too. Take a look at http://thepaintingcorps.blogspot.com/2008/03/here-is-old-tutorial-from-old-painting.html for some ideas.

Great straight out of the factury look, weather them a little, does not take long for any vehicle to get dirty, weathering not necessarily that hard, but does add character to the model. The tracks just look too clean for starters. Though I would do this after applying decals

If you don't want to add weathering or battle damage, simple unit markings make a world of difference. Check some of the tanks in the IG codex. They have a chevron painted on their front track in an offset or complementary color. That could break up some of the flat area.

Well I think it look pretty good as is. I like the sqad/unit markings idea and the camo could look pretty cool aswell. But if you can't think of anything just leave it. Sometimes simple is better.

They look I would leave them as is excpet for adding a little grim too the tank, like rust stains and oil stains.... If you need help on that type of stuff, take a walk to your local hobby store and look at the Squadron INsignal books about tanks and aircraft. They give you up close detail pictures of vehilces, and actual combat photos too.

More kill markings, "graffiti" by the crew, cammo netting, equipment, spare fuel cans, tank treads, mud, scratches, personal effects that make it looked lived in and used..oh and some trophies collected from around the imperium like skulls, banners, purity seals, propaganda posters, blessings from the techpriests, blood......did I forget anything?


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great painting by the way but it looks too fresh out of the showroom for hardcore gothic grimdark awsomesuaceness


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url=http://www.dakkadakka.com/gallery/75367-Conversion%2C%20Ork%20battle%20wagon.html][/url]

What's going on with the firing hatches? It looks like you've tried to do a bit of SENMM but got it upside down.

I'd recommend blacklining all the panel lines to make them more defined- thats what I think even your own eye sees missing.

Either Badab Black all over, or Black Ink heavilly watered down (I do it by dipping the brush in the ink, then dunking quickly in water 3-4 times- foolwed by a tap on a ppaper towel to get rid of the glob of water).

Fill in those panel grooves wth black instead of the base color, and it will insatantly look 5 times better- whilew keeping the same color.

Thats my $.02

J.Black wrote:What's going on with the firing hatches? It looks like you've tried to do a bit of SENMM but got it upside down.

He probably didn't like the now-obsolete lasguns, so he replaced them with viewing ports like on the turret cupola. The shading is a tad strong, though.

I would go with Calaban - I think you really need to darken the recesses between the armour plates with some darker washes.

I would also agree with those saying that you could do with some more unit markings etc.

Some simple camo could work well too.

MasterSlowPoke wrote:

J.Black wrote:What's going on with the firing hatches? It looks like you've tried to do a bit of SENMM but got it upside down.

He probably didn't like the now-obsolete lasguns, so he replaced them with viewing ports like on the turret cupola. The shading is a tad strong, though.

Yep the windows were to replace the guns, but now I wish I had made them gun slits. Any ideas on how to paint the back window ports to make them look better?

Thanks

broxus wrote:

MasterSlowPoke wrote:

J.Black wrote:What's going on with the firing hatches? It looks like you've tried to do a bit of SENMM but got it upside down.

He probably didn't like the now-obsolete lasguns, so he replaced them with viewing ports like on the turret cupola. The shading is a tad strong, though.

Yep the windows were to replace the guns, but now I wish I had made them gun slits. Any ideas on how to paint the back window ports to make them look better?

Thanks

I'd add the following elements to the back door:
- grease on the hydraulics
- a good amount of dusting towards the bottom of the door plate.

Generally speaking, your Chimera looks too clean, you need to weather the bottom with to simulate dust and (if you want) mud on the tracks. That will go a long way towards making the vehicle more interesting. Additional markings would also be good: what company is the Chimera attached to? Is it the dedicated transport of a particular squad? If so, add decals to signal those elements.

Your paintjob is fantastic, what I would suggest is getting hold of a copy of Imperial Armour Masterclass and have a bash at some of the weathering teqniques.

Mud splatters, rust and oil/fuel leaks will give your tanks an extra touch of realism.

Although I would suggest buying a cheap Airfix tank to practice on before you attack those expensive GW or FW models.

I'd actually pick out the bits on the track guards (the strips with the chunky bolts) in the goldy bronze colour you've used (and weather them as they're bare metal then). I think that would do a world of good. As there's already small spot colours such as the eagles and veiwing slits I'd try to avoid more small details and extra symbols - stick with your colours already but pick out a few extra details.

I do have a quick question also; I have a FW Manticore I am assembling. I was planning to add the Chimera track guards like my Chimera Model but what I am undecided on is this:

Should I put on the Chimera Armored Skirts on a Manticore similar to my Chimera?

Its long-range artillery so I am not sure if it’s needed because it shouldn’t go to the front lines. So would you put it on if you were me? Do you think uniformity would look good.

broxus wrote:Yep the windows were to replace the guns, but now I wish I had made them gun slits. Any ideas on how to paint the back window ports to make them look better?

I can't tell what the shape is from the picture. Are the windows simply spheres stuck into the round portal housings or are they half spheres on top of (blue) tapered cylinders?

If the bases are tapered cylinders, then it would probably be a good idea to paint them either the same color as the tank or maybe a dull metallic color -- something like tin bitz washed with badab black with boltgun metal overbrushed. If there are no bases and we're looking at simple spheres, then you need to bring out the reflection and refraction highlighting and shading a bit more. I see that effect on the sensor glass on the turret hatch, and it looks great there, but I don't see the effect on the windows at all, with the exception of the highlight on the top. What I would suggest is to take a look at some photos of glass spheres and practice capturing the same effect. With window and sensor glass, where you're only ever going to view a single face from pretty much one angle, you can trick the eye very effectively. However, with a sphere, the refraction is going to change based on the viewing angle, so that's going to be a problem.

broxus wrote:I do have a quick question also; I have a FW Manticore I am assembling. I was planning to add the Chimera track guards like my Chimera Model but what I am undecided on is this:

Should I put on the Chimera Armored Skirts on a Manticore similar to my Chimera?

Its long-range artillery so I am not sure if it’s needed because it shouldn’t go to the front lines. So would you put it on if you were me? Do you think uniformity would look good.

It really depends on the aesthetics of your army. Do you want an army that's impressive in its uniformity, where all of the units look and feel like they're part of a well-oiled unified whole? Or do you want an army that's impressive in its personality and details, with individual units adjusting their standard operating procedures? On the level of background and fluff, to what extent do your Guard commanders prize and encourage (or enforce) uniformity? Is that different for the different combat arms? Maybe your artillery commanders are a little more freewheeling than your infantry commanders, or vice versa. How are those atttudes going to manifest themselves in your models and on the tabletop?

Personally, I'm fairly fluffy. So instead of trying to figure out whether I should or shouldn't put an armored skirt on, I'd think about why that extra piece of kit would be there in the first place. Maybe your Guardsmen have been battling highly mobile armies and they've discovered that the rear can become the front line in a heartbeat, so your artillery commanders require all of their vehicles to have armored skirts. On the other hand, maybe after years or even decades of campaigning, the forgeworlds of your regiment are strapped for resources or time so requisitions for track skirts get turned down routinely.

Hi, sorry for making a slight hijack, but I have a question, also regarding IG vehicles.

I've painted mine in a camo scheme, and am going to use some wash on it, after applying damage etc. - but I was wondering, if after having applied the wash, should I then add highlights, or should I do those before, or not at all?

Highlight after washing.

Try adding some dusting to the bottom, as if it's been driving down a lot of dry dirt roads. Some paint chipping is also a good idea. Painting the rivets in a metallic colour could also help, and so could painting some company or squad markings on it.

@broxus , there is absolutely nothing wrong or dull with your Chimera, infact i promise you it can look better in less than 5 seconds.

Take your Chimera into the day light or under a proper lamp.

Retake the picture without flash. The color discrepancy in the 2nd pic between the foreground and background shows its been washed out by the flash.