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***note the pictures at the top are my original works. The latter pics are my recent, and much improved, works. check them out and comment please***

Hey all, I'm Curtis from Vancouver, Canada. I've never actually played Warhammer 40k though it's becoming a viable option at a really fast rate, and I'm an aspiring game developer/coder/2D and 3D graphic artist. I've been doing miniature models since I was a kid with my grandpa's and father's influence (attempts to keep me out of trouble). I started with WWII 1/34 scale figures (mostly tanks, boats, and planes) but I was never too good at the painting part (especially the fine details). I stopped for a long time to pursue academic and athletic interests and forgot all about models until I walked by a Games Workshop last month.

I recently - as in 3 weeks to the date - got into creating an Imperial Guard army with the intent to use the models as a physical source to gain inspiration for the game I'd like to create one day when I have the technical skill to do so. I figured posting what I have so far would give me some constructive feedback to use on the models I will be assembling in the future. I have an anti-air gun, a Valkyrie, a Basilisk, a Techpriest Enginseer with both sets of Servitors, Commissar Yarick, Cadian Snipers, Shaefer's Last Chancers, and a slew of conversion bits in transit already.

Note that I have only been doing these little guys for 3 weeks now, so don't be too harsh. And I already know I suck at the faces and scenery, and the mould lines =P As for the color scheme, I'm keeping it traditional and basic for now until I gain better painting skills. I also finished the models off with a clear spray to keep them from chipping and to make them look a little smexier =D Trust me, they look better IRL than the photos show, gloss-wise.

Oh, and the lighting really sucks...

That said, here's what I've compiled in 3 weeks.

Full army


Command Squad


Captain


I created the rock with green stuff (yet another skill i need to refine)

Standard Bearer

better looking rock, no?


Bodyguard/Sniper



Medic


Better resolution and lighting on the medic.

Vox Caster



Heavy Weapon Team (first kit I assembled)




Leman Russ Punisher Variant (for command tank purposes)
I added the extra flag from the command squad to the turret, then crafted my own supports for it out of plastic from the frames since it wouldn't stand up by itself. I put the bolters for the sponsons ABOVE the sponsons and the lascannon on the turret side as extra detail. You can see I took the liberty of making it battle scarred too, using an exacto knife and craft scissors for bullet hole and other heavier damage. The last thing to note is the blood splatter on the front and the torched (actually, I took a lighter to it then sealed it with the clear finish) tracks, exhaust and damage spots.

Oh, and I'm working on some burlap/medial gauze camo netting for the tank right now too.




The sponsons have different weapons =3



better look at how the flag is held up. Note that with the lascannon and the bolters, I filled in the indents usually hidden inside the sponsons by simply filling them with glue and painting over it after it dried and filled up to the top.

Sentinel Variant
This was created all with one kit, with the exception of the driver's arm which was taken from the command squad. Check out the armor plating on the middle leg joints and the armored fuel tanks on the back. To make the driver show with the closed top, I cut half the closed cage top and half the open cage top and glued them together (after a little trial and error for positioning), then pretty much glued one half up and open. That modification made me move the antennae over to the other side with a little filing to be done. I also added the missile pod to where the chainsaw would be, which moved the chainsaw to the leg. The addition of the fuel tank was simply the flamer tanks moved to the back and the armor is the Catchan emblem with the heavy cockpit armor cut in half and glued together. The fuel line is green stuff.





The gold detailing makes the Sentinel stand out even more =]

Unfinished Shock Troopers (will post the final result later)
I threw the models together in a hurry to post what they are set up as, and the glue trails and rough edges need to be fixed, I know.
Sergeants


This guy's head is from the Sentinel driver

Heavy Weapons


my camera sucks...

dunno if you can see it, but he has a cigar in his mouth =D fitting, no?

The weapons on these guys were taken off the command squad's bodyguard. I liked the shoulder pads better, what can I say.

Vox Casters


The grenade launcher was also taken off the command squad (also for the shoulder pad). And he's holding grenades like he's passing them to someone.

Injured Dude

This guy is gonna be my favorite by far, just because he's had a rough day and I want him to survive. He has a lasgun on his back. I took the head and both arms from the command squad as well.

Lasgunners



I also have a bunker roughly modeled on the Dawn of War Field Command with some changes, and in 6 hours of work I don't think I'm doing toooooo terribly on it, yet.



I dunno if you guys can tell, but the front of the structure can be removed as a damaged part, allowing enemy troops to assault through the front if blown open with heavy weapons.

Ports for garrisoned Guardsmen to shoot from. These ports are on both sides, and one on the right front too.

A guy stationed in front of the destructible front portion.

Top view with the master plans. Note that I want to add a vehicle ramp on the top left of this picture to allow the Leman Russ and Sentinels to get up top. Also allows enemy vehicles to assault the top troops.

Back entrance where I will station entrenched troops in front of.

The top populated with my meagre army.

Perfect level for Guardsmen to shoot from on the main level.

Comparison for height compared to a Sentinel. You can also see the coms tower (made from empty prescription bottles) which will be the final objective to capture on this building.

Note the part of a prescription bottle used as infantry cover (to be turned into something metal with the final paint job). I made a perfect slot on the top of the frontal entrance for a heavy weapons team to take root for the defence. I plan to put an AA battery right behind that (perhaps in the dead center of the building top).

Steps leading up to the heavy weapons emplacement, good for a sniper.

Perhaps a better view of the approach to the fortification.

That is all for now, and any and all feedback is welcome. Let me know what you all think. I really didn't have a lot of extra bits to work conversions with but I think I did alright?

some nice ideas, tho I would suggest varnishing after you photograph them.

A little sand added to the flat up side of the bases before painting would help give the bases something more.

Keep at it, and a little more time spent on painting is never a bad thing

Most promising, all the little conversions help add a great deal of character to the army, nice one.

The bunker shows promise as well, mind that the spray paints can/will "melt" the poly. slightly.


I'm going to move this to the P & M board, as the showcase board is more for finished projects.

Looking good though !

Quit nice,the faces really aren't that bad, although it does look quite glossy, otherwise, have fun with 40k :3

Nice army, but the captain has some questionable looking 'bush' on its base

Toastedandy wrote:Nice army, but the captain has some questionable looking 'bush' on its base

I agree

reds8n wrote:Most promising, all the little conversions help add a great deal of character to the army, nice one.

The bunker shows promise as well, mind that the spray paints can/will "melt" the poly. slightly.


I'm going to move this to the P & M board, as the showcase board is more for finished projects.

Looking good though !

The melting of the styrofoam is a good thing I think, gives it a battle-weathered look =]


And as for the captain, yeah I know I suck at the scenery. I need to get way more supplies for that stuff since that's all fly tying material.

***EDIT TO AVOID DOUBLE POSTING***
My latest, first of the Cadian Shock Troopers to be slightly modified and completed.

I decided to gloss coat it AFTER I photographed it this time, good call on whoever said that.

I also figured out how to fix my lighting =DD





Thoughts?

Love the 'flip top' sentinel! very original, imho.
i don't like the way it's armed. a little OTT for me.
like the troops alot. like the way the outpost is coming together.

Sweet stuff Mate!

alarmingrick wrote:Love the 'flip top' sentinel! very original, imho.
i don't like the way it's armed. a little OTT for me.
like the troops alot. like the way the outpost is coming together.

thanks for the praise, you too bigmek.

as for the sentinel weaponry, most of my models right now are for show, not tell i suppose. I don't know how to play w40k yet so the models being game specced aren't a huge deal to me, I just like the look of a lot of guns on something lol plus it gives me more a reason to paint and work on my hand for the small details =]

***AVOIDING A DOUBLE POST***
I spray painted the bunker with a concrete looking textured paint, and added a satellite dish to the top and a control panel interface to the side (using green stuff). I'll post the new work on that when I'm off work tomorrow (or later today.......)

Did a lot more work on the bunker now, added the satellite dish on the top (i forgot to add the small dish inside the larger ones and the long antenna >< fail)
I used some outdoor finishing spray from home depot, makes a great coat for something like a tombstone. If you see, it's a nice concrete grey with white and black speckles in it, and its textured too making it feel way more authentic.

Note the paint DIDN"T warp/melt/f**k up the styrofoam.





I made the control panel and the dish support with green stuff. unfortunately i sprayed the control panel with the spray paint >< another fail

And my latest creation, the Sentinel-headed Shock Trooper Sergeant. I think he's my best paint job yet =3



no fail on the eyes this time, AND the grenade actually has a metallic pin =D i also managed to mix the catchan green with a more neon green from my regular (non-citadel) paints to add a little color on the edges of his armor. did the same deal on the chainsword, added a mix of red and brown (making burgandy) to make it look more worn.


digital camo? i think so. not too bad, yeah?

currently finishing up the injured soldier and the flamer unit (note there will be something sick on the flamer guy =D)
Comments plox.

Finished the injured dude, and this is even another step above the sergeant I finished yesterday. I think I'm grasping a decent hold on painting again =]


Dunno if you can see it, but his boots are covered in mud, the armor is heavily worn and dirty and damaged, and his knee is scraped and bloody =] His uniform has darker patches as where he would have been kneeling or sitting in dirt too. The bandage blood looks a lot better now that the washes have dried.

Closer view of the knee.

Note the bullet holes actually carved out with a hobby knife, and some of them are leaking blood. Mouth has a little blood coming from it too.

Another attempt at making camo on a small scale before I even attempt it on the uniforms. Not too bad, something still to be desired though... And another bullet hole with blood =3

Glancing blow to the dude's shoulder, leaving a mark but that arm unharmed. I also really like the effect of the cuts on his head

Next post will contain the flamer trooper with a nice addition to the flamer =3 stay tuned.
But first, comments on this guy?

Try watering down your paints a little and careful with the gloss kinda throws them off a little bit. Besides that the models are looking great. I am enjoying the bases, how did you make the tumbleweeds?

the tumbleweeds are made from a pack of reindeer moss, specifically designed for dioramas. I just took a small bit of it, glued it together in the center, rolled it around, then glued it to the base (or in some cases on the models, like on the heavy weapons team)

when you say water down the paints, for what exactly do you mean? i kinda like the intensity of the colors, and yeah the gloss before taking the pictures wasn't the best of ideas, but i started taking pictures AFTER they were finished. seemed like a good idea only after to get some constructive criticism lol... fail on my part. honestly though, they look pretty decent IRL. The photos don't do justice due to the glare...

***5.26.11 update, some decent work on the flamer***




My latest work on the flamer dude - about 30% finished, painting-wise.
Adding a nice touch to the actual weapon tomorrow, currently the metal is super gluing onto the flamethrower, should be dried by the time i wake up.
Will finish him up tomorrow and hopefully a regular lasgunner too.

Flamethrower is now complete, and I think the addition complements the model nicely. Though the painting of the fire could still use a little work. meh, i tried.





Anyone know what my next project is?


Hint: theres 12 guys total in this squad

Hint: this guy is the leader. and is that a girl with a rocket launcher to his right???

I'll start these soon as I finish off the remaining 5 shock troopers I have to paint.

And another delivery today gave me these guys finally




I also got another 2 heavy weapon teams to make the squad, but not sure how i wanna load them out yet so i'll save the pics of them for the time being.

Last thing for today,

fun with some greenstuff and a lasgunner =3





good thing i have a lot of lasgunners, get to play around some more =D
i really like how the skull on the shoulder pad came out.

alas, i have a few other guys to finish before this one can get started (painting wise that is).

so I swapped out my current lasgunner (basic lasgunner with no major modifications) into one of the HW squads, and took the base for a missile launcher. I think the change will better compliment my army, look see for yourselves.



i also decided on the heavy weapon loadouts, pics now available too, and with the bits from the HW squads and an old WWII german halftrack I made a mobile mortar. my next troop set i plan to have a guy pulling it (? maybe ?) and a guy holding mortar shells.







Here's what I have for you guys tonight. I also plan on finishing the missile launcher before I go to bed.

Dude, your stuff is looking very promising. I love the individual look on most of you're models. Consider me subscribed.

3D glasses anyone? I think he's coming straight from Thor IMAX Experience.





pictures of the finished result =3 my lighting is terrible right now since I'm kinda in the middle of moving lol... how i'm still finding time to make these little guys is beyond me.

next is the plasma gunner =D wonder what cool things I can do to him.

Got a new army shot for everyone to look at, see what i'm working with now. i think only half my army is painted currently, and theres still a bunch of things on the way (yarrick, 2 sentinels, basilisk, chimera, 2 snipers, bits upon conversion bits and some AA guns). Lighting is still bad since I'm in the process of moving...



scratch that, like a quarter of my current army is painted >< looks like i have some work cut out for me... and if you look at my screen, the 'nucks got some work cut out for them tomorrow too! =DD cheaa!


the plasma gunner, as promised.



Nothing too flashy since i out did myself on the last 2 special troopers. need them creativity battery to recharge first.


These guys came in the mail today, not shown is the chimera hatch that was delivered with these guys. Note the "barricades" you see are actually part of the heavy flamer team spruce. i think they will look like perfect little barricades when i'm through with them.



Death Korps Heavy Flamer Team


Funny story, i tried changing up their base by carving a new one to fit in between...
here's that end result...

four heavy bandages later and its STILL flowing through. inch deep by an inch long, grazed the bone. was WONDERful.

Yeah, I fk'd up. I would later take myself to the hospital to get it to stop bleeding.

And even with a now-fethed-up hand, I WILL finish one of these guys off before I sleep tonight.


wish me luck.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
ok so i lied, i didnt finish one. i remembered i had work in the morning... but this is what i got so far






and my favorite of the night




got through half the painting on the first guy and saw the "weapon bits" box beside me.
i then pondered for a bit
and the pondering lead to this.

=3

a little work done as of late only... a little sad about that, but hey what can you do when you're packing up the house and moving.




just a little more color on this guy, only thing i've really had time to do in the last few days. turns out my paints managed to get misplaced for the last 3 days and magically reappeared today after i got back from the repair shop. you might notice the gold i used on this guy is darker than the gold on the other models' accents, and that's cuz this gold is the citadel gold. the other is from a dollar store. they both work, just gives me more coloring options now =]

and the wires won't stay their current colors... i took them out of a broken headphone line lol.




my next work of scenery to be completed once i get time to do the bunker i started... the bunker will go on the top part of this ... thing ...
i like the tiered approach to the bunker, gives my little guardsmen "cover" in the form of barricades and trenches (which will be put in as i go about creating this thing).



my army case, which is a modified fishing tackle box. i added some plastic dividers, took some out, and will be fitting it with custom shaped foam and other padding when i also get more time. my instructions on the front there have been partially carried out now, as i spry painted it all black and have the outline for the imperial eagle on it now. just gotta figure out a way to create a decent looking raised eagle shape to go on both sides, and smaller ones possibly the side boxes too. right now it contains my paints, modelling tools and scenery materials.

and lastly...



what my thumb looks like after it got acquainted with my f***ing sharp xacto knife... i went to bed with the cut butterfly bandaged and woke up with a COMPLETELY bloodstained pillow. it was lovely.

i SHOULD have the cyclops done by tomorrow night, but don't hold me to my word on that... soon as i'm done with this one i'll start the green stuffed guardsman and paint up and battle scar some barricades.

Also,
New addition for my collection.






I'm gonna get a set of orks and tyranids too I think to see which I can best paint to make an opposing force for my guardsmen.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Continuing on with my new-found downtime...





Managed to finish off the cyclops i started like a week back. been real tough to find some time to actually do these little guys and misplacing my paints didn't help. now that it's all sorted out again, expect to see more regular updates again =]

first time i've decided to undercoat something. think it worked out for the best from what i have finished on him currently.



did some cool drybrushing on this guy, the sickly colors worked perfectly i think =D



no space marine, tainted or not, is complete without their pack.



i'll have him finished by tomorrow night assuming i can find the rest of my missing paint, which happens to be the light colors needed to finish the bone shoulder pad and the skulls on his belt...

my good light also burnt out so my picture quality will suck until i can get that replaced... the current pics of the shaded suit don't do justice to how it looks irl.

with a little comments and suggestions from another board, i finished the plague marine.

i kept the pack as is, and turned the gold to that same color (boltgun metal) and made serious use of my washes on this guy. the eyes i had already re-done in gore (brilliant minds think alike) and then washed them out extra with your advice. you'll find a nice shaded effect on the shoulder piece (the bone one), and the nurgle mark on the other shoulder has been highlighted, and the armor on the arm was changed to mithril sivler, drybrushed with catchan green, then also washed out =]






just for a break from all the modelling and painting...
i thought i'd share my puppy passed out on the couch lettin it all hang loose lol

A bit of a larger update...

The mobile mortar is finally done.





the main color of the mortar is boltgun metal with drybrushing of mithril silver, then the green is a color i picked up at some art store called sap green (close to gobin, but a little darker), then i brushed catchan over it too. the wheels have a little brown brushed onto them to make it look overall a little worn out and heavily used.

not too pleased with the quality of these pics, doesn't give justice to my work, especially since i'm down to one crappy light. i need to get my good light back up and running ><

The custom armored guardsman was also painted. I did him in 3 steps, as outlined below. First time greenstuffing something so don't be too harsh =]

Step 1 - initial greenstuff placement:




i put a little on the legs and feet to give it the look like he had tactical armor. i added the same thing on the elbows too to make him more armored (too bad he still counts as having flak armor). I also added a skull to the right hand shoulder pad for visual effect. The back armor kinda resembles the Dead Space suit, what with the segmented lines.

Step 2 - base colors added:




i kept the colors pretty basic again just because i didn't wanna mess anything up on the first greenstuffed mini i made. i decided on the all silver gun with the green too, just to give a little shine to him.

Step 3 - finalization of details and washes:





What do ya think, from what you see in step 1 to step 3? not a bad progression huh? The details were all added after the base colors were finished and touched up, and the skull came out pretty decent but the eyes still have something to be desired... also, since the back armor is Dead Space-ish, should I have colored them lighter blue, yellow or red???

My girlfriend has jumped onto the W40k bandwagon with me now, and this is her first attempt at making a plague marine. she chose them as my opposing force for the guardsmen, and those with a better half know it's better just to nod and agree, just roll with it

Day 1:



Day 2:



Considering it's her first, i wouldn't say it's coming along too badly =] I'm providing her with instruction as it makes good practice for my job coming up of instructing rookie painters on how to properly paint. GameStars, the place i get my minis from, offered me the gig when i showed them my top IG minis, though i'm not sure if it's an actual legit offer yet. Time will tell.

And this plague marine of mine went from this:





To this:





=] that is all for now, i'll have a guardsman ready for tomorrow night.