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Ok here's the other wraithlord - with a converted brightlance combi-flamer long rifle!





The original wraithlord has also been re-based to match the rest of the force. Here they are together.

Wow! That WL looks amazing. I've always loved the brightlance as a carried weapon conversions and you've pulled it off brilliantly. The weathering on his feet look magnificent too. Yet another standout piece, can't wait to see more.

Aryllon,

Very nice conversion on the second Wraithlord, so say nothing about the great paint job.

Cheers,

CB

Cheers guys!

I might re-paint his scatter laser as it was my first attempt at OSL which turned out dreadful - just white barrels with blueish recesses... definitely need to add a surrounding glow or think of a different approach...

Holy moly, brilliant work on those guys!

Well, this weekend I used my airbrush for the very first time.

The results weren't bad, but nothing to be amazed by. I have to say the very first things I've started learning about are paint thickness (obvious one to need to understand), PSI and distance from the subject. And the correlation between those three.

Too thin paint, too close to the model or too much PSI and you can wave goodbye to a nice smooth paint application..!

I started with some bases as there's plenty of room for error... bit of pre-shading, white top-down basecoat to eliminate excess shade, colour basecoat & wash. Definitely put too heavy a coat of the primary base colour down, the shading is pretty much nonexistent now.

Damn those Wraith Lords looks awesome together.

Looks like you go some good practice in with the airbrush, I think some of the pre shading is still showing through, as it doesn't look flat and uniform.

EDC

I've had my airbrush for a while but still haven't used it. Honestly I'm a bit intimidated from using it as opposed to my much more familiar brushes. Smart idea starting with the bases and I look forward to see what you do with the airbrush next.

It happens to all of us. I'm pretty rubbish with an airbrush myself. I'm only able to mainly use it as basecoat. Still cant figure out shading and gradients very well.

Still, your models are very smoothly painted. Props!

From my limited airbrush experience:

Thin pain...thinner paint...still thinner than you think for better coverage and smoothness.

Have a toilet roll handy and give it some test sprays to determine how far you want to be away from your model.

Clean twice as long as you paint and when you think you have cleaned everything do it one more time.

Hope that helps,

CB

Awesome, cheers for the feedback guys. I'm enjoying it and keen to keep learning.

IF - don't worry, I had mine for a few months before I dared to try! Just watch a bunch of videos and tutorials online, make sure you don't cut any corners on the steps they suggest & equipment required, then just spray up some flat basecoats & bases to start with.

Yeah CB, I have discovered that a lot of cleaning is involved! Haha

I typically use very thin paint already for my brushwork (almost watery) so I'm thinking my airbrush paint might actually need to be slightly thicker. But not much. A few of the guides I read / watched showed splatter and streaky runniness being caused by paint that was too thin. I also noticed I managed to get a really tiny bend on the tip of my airbrush needle that's causing paint to gather then fly off in droplets (which is probably the main reason). Luckily I bought a spare needle so that's sorted for now.

Here's a bit more progress, I downed the airbrush and started the details on Eldrad's base. The basecoat, shading and highlights are done, also some corrosion, but I haven't been too neat because it will be hidden under a thin layer of red dust (per the regular basing substrate). The dust will in turn be 'blown away' from the upmost surfaces (I'll lightly drybrush the original colours back through and pick out some sharp edges).

Bases are looking great so far, where did this tree bits come from?

EDC

Ha, the tree bits are pieces of paperclip and green stuff!

Except on the other Farseer, where a lot of it was part of the original Wraithsinger cast (I just added extra branches).

These are awesome! Puts my own painting and converting efforts to shame.

Love the Bonesinger->Farseer, and the Bright Lance combi-flamer is damn cool

Can't wait to see more

 Aryllon wrote:
I typically use very thin paint already for my brushwork (almost watery) so I'm thinking my airbrush paint might actually need to be slightly thicker. But not much. A few of the guides I read / watched showed splatter and streaky runniness being caused by paint that was too thin. I also noticed I managed to get a really tiny bend on the tip of my airbrush needle that's causing paint to gather then fly off in droplets (which is probably the main reason). Luckily I bought a spare needle so that's sorted for now.

Aryllon,

That was the reason for the old toilet rolls standing by to test on...give them a coat of primer and you can hold it up in front of the brush to check.

Hope that helps,

CB

I love the wraithlords! They look fantastic. I am interested in following your progress with an airbrush as I would like to get into it too and am wondering how quickly it takes you to get good results. Look forward to more!

Thanks very much guys

CB - yeah I've been spraying inside a large cardboard box and using the back of it for that exact purpose. Much safer than not knowing until I spray onto the model!

Bottle - thanks, much appreicated! My next steps with the airbrush are up on my Nurgle plog if that's of interest. I haven't mastered any sort of fading yet, but the basic application and control over the spray (fine-ness, cover, consistency) is getting there. At least to a passable standard anyway!

Regardless, the bases turned out ok. They aren't as varied in tone and colour as my nurgle bases (because this is the first force I created ages ago, before I learned much about basing, so if I start adding variation they won't look consistent) but I still think they compliment the army colour scheme well enough.

Eldrad's base turned out as I imagined it - I wanted it big and interesting, but not stand-out enough to distract attention away from the model. But I'll wait until he's mounted on it to see if I need to go back and adjust.

I'm also finding that tiny little tufts of static grass looks a lot better than big splotches.

Sorry for the image quality - I'll spend more time taking proper pictures when the models are complete.

The bases seem to be coming along nicely, Aryllon - good work thus far.

If anyone was wondering what the little 'tree' base was for...

... say hello to my Eldar Vindicare



I have all the bits on standby to complete the set, Eversor and Culexus are ready and waiting to be converted.

The eversor is based on Lelith Hesperax and the Culexus uses a medusae head to replace the Imperial gothic headpiece.

Amazing, I can't say that I've ever seen converted Eldar before. That Vindicare conversion is stunning, I assume that you'll be using these Eldar assassins as counts-as to their Imperial counterparts? The Wraithlords look the business - I love the colour scheme that you've gone for, and especially like how the blue blends in with the purple.

Awesome stuff, keep up the good work!

Good lord that looks brilliant

Can't wait to see the Culexus. The Medusae head is perfect

For the Eversor, I'd picture a Biting Blade from the Scorpion Exarch, but can't wait to see what you produce

Wow what an awesome conversion idea. Really excited to see these next 4 models come together.

That's a nice conversion, Aryllon - what sort of paint scheme were you thinking?

What beautiful stuff you have here! Consider me well and truly subbed. That farseer is especially beautiful - if you feel self conscious for having rushed some parts, it doesn't show whatsoever, wonderful paintwork, and paintwork that all fits together tremendously. Can't wait for progress on the 'vindicare'

Wow i am blown away by the quality of the paintjobs on these models.

The wraithknights are stunning

Nice build on the sniper. It’s amazing what a few swaps can do to completely change a mini.

Should be fun to see painted.

Subbed as well. I can't quite seem to put my finger on what you made the vindicare's helm from. Dark eldar? Old epic revenant titan? Gorgeous either way.

Looks like a Kabalite Warrior head with the top rounded off

Thanks very much guys, feedback is always appreciated.
So, small update - Warseer is back! Which means, my fluff is back! I'm going to add it all in to this thread so that I have a duplicate copy, keep your eyes peeled for the imminent update...

Cosmic wrote:Amazing, I can't say that I've ever seen converted Eldar before. That Vindicare conversion is stunning, I assume that you'll be using these Eldar assassins as counts-as to their Imperial counterparts?

Check out the link to Andy Hicks' blog in my first post - have a look at his converted wraithknight and phoenix lords, but especially the scratch-built super-heavy!

Dysartes wrote:That's a nice conversion, Aryllon - what sort of paint scheme were you thinking?

Likely black and white, but leaning towards more white.

Rypher wrote:Subbed as well. I can't quite seem to put my finger on what you made the vindicare's helm from. Dark eldar? Old epic revenant titan? Gorgeous either way.

Ynneadwraith had it correct, it's just a filed-down kabalite warrior. The pistol arm had to be repositioned, bit of greenstuff to build out the sleeve and elbow, plus a hand / weapon rebuild with bits taken from various eldar models. Plus of course the scratch-built base.

Craftworld Aryllon - Lore (Part 1)

Far from Terra in a region oft avoided by the Imperium of man, past the ghoul stars and towards the eastern fringe, is an Eldar world-ship that is little-known even among its own kind.

Hidden among the seemingly-random maelstrom of rubble and planetoids known as the Caessan Fields - an asteroid belt orbiting in an unorthodox loop around twin blue stars - rests Craftworld Aryllon, home to the lineage of Royal House Aryllon and bearer of secrets.

One of the oldest families of the ancient empire, the Aryllonii were among the first to flee the Eldar homeworlds before the fall. Ever known for their love of knowledge and intellectual pursuits they had long predicted their race's demise, hence were amongst the first to construct a world-ship which could flee the cataclysm to come. Rather than a huge realspace vessel House Aryllon instead built a relatively small craft that could traverse the webway itself, to more easily achieve great distance from the homeworlds. Upon completion and without fanfare, Craftworld Aryllon made its departure and disappeared from realspace. This footnote from the tale of the fall is as much as most Eldar now know of their secretive Aryllonii cousins.

Those few with current-day knowledge of the minor craftworld largely dismiss it as simply one of the Pale Courts - halls of forgotten lineages and little reknown. However, rather than being a weakness it's diminutive size was wholly deliberate. It is small enough that powerful disruption fields and psychic shielding make it near-invisible to scanners and psykers alike, keeping it both figuratively and literally out of sight and out of mind - exactly the desired effect, a necessity of the secrets it holds. Within this elusive world-ship is a concealed webway gate which leads to the real Aryllon, a much larger craft of unique design suspended within a sealed region of the webway. Built in secret this is the true home of the Aryllonii, a place they survive and prosper in hiding from the wider universe until the day it is safe to share their secrets once more.

Lecturers, scholars, artisans and curators, Aryllon's founders were long known as custodians of Eldar heritage, keepers of untold knowledge and guardians of ancient technology. It's sweeping domes and magnificent spires thus contain vast galleries and libraries, shrines to every kind of skill and pursuit, extensive armoriums housing not only every kind of vehicle and weapon but also the resources to maintain and produce them, along with grander and more esoteric technologies such as engines that can initiate life-supporting ecosystems on dead planets - they guard it all.

But rather than using these tools for good it is with great pain and shame they stand back, quietly allowing the never-ending cataclysms and evils of the war-torn galaxy to play out - for the Aryllonii must instead preserve their race's greatest technological assets for the Time of Ending, so that their true potential may be harnessed when it is most needed.

Very few Aryllon therefore engage in direct warfare; a single shrine of Dire Avengers exists as a standing army to protect the small realspace city-craft, while civilians almost never serve as guardians or even vehicle crew. They do however maintain a huge standing council of powerful psykers which enables the craftworld to influence events on a grand scale. Conflict is therefore for the most part avoided, or the brunt redirected. If they are drawn to war, Aryllon use every available resource in order to minimise their own risk, bolstering their lines by steering fate to ensure that rangers, Harlequin and corsairs are always at hand to play a leading role. If this is insufficent, Aryllon then turn to other craftworlds for support - or even their Commorite kin. It is said that other, more sinister allies also sometimes support the Aryllonii at war - or rather the evidence suggests as much.

This reliance on other factions is reluctant however- the path of penance is well walked upon Aryllon, the sacrifices of their allies and wilful inaction in the face of tragedy on a galactic scale an impossible burden of guilt for those as emotionally heightened as the Eldar. Aryllon loathe the loss of any Eldar life, hence their ghost constructs hold a unique and vaunted postition within the craftworld's culture; spiritstones protect Eldar souls on the battlefield, so Aryllonii Eldar feel it is much better to lose a wraith construct as the vessel of that soul, a mere tool not beyond their skilled bonesingers to replace, than a living being. All Aryllonii are therefore granted the mercy of a long and productive life in return for the likelihood and honour of being called on to protect their people after death.

This combined reliance on external support and wraith constructs simply reinforces the welcome perception that they are a small outpost with little millitary might to call upon. It is for the best that other Eldar do not know of the scale of their arsenal, the size of their true population, the immeasurably rare and flawlessly maintained weaponry and vehicles which they possess, or the existence of the fully-functional ancient craftworld within the webway. Millions of precious Eldar lives have been lost while Craftworld Aryllon watches and waits, able yet unable to intervene.

Aryllon is a craftworld within a craftworld; a place of librarians and curators, psykers and diplomats, where bonesingers master the ballads of old, where ancient technology sees everyday use, where the light of Eldar superiority over the natural universe has merely dimmed, and where knowledge is preserved for the greater good of the Eldar race... yet all of it shamefully unseen, unused, detatched, and hidden.

Hope you like!