Those reds are looking really nice! Bummer about autocorrect blowing out your whites. A red glaze could be nice, bring some of those deeper balck recess shades closer to red.
I have that old Minotaur. I hated trying to assemble him. It was way back before I started to pin models and glues didn’t hold worth a on that large of metal models.
I am not a big fan of the Hexwraith models (though, strangely, I am a fan of the Black Knights that share the kit) so I decided to order ten extra Dreadblade Harrows from the Mortal Realms magazine. My plan is then to buy ten Grimghast Reapers and swap the swords from the Harrows with the scythes from the Reapers, giving me some Hexwraiths and some Bladegheists.
For now, I dont' have the spare scythes, so I turned a spare Glaive from the Glaivewraith Stalkers Drummer into a scythe. I haven't bothered greenstuffing any extra haft, as this is a proof of concept rather than an actual finished version. I also added a bit of smartened up skull-on-chain from an old Chaos kit, and a plain skull to replace the helmed skull of the Dreadblade Harrow.
Do people think I have done enough to make it look like a Hexwraith instead of a Dreadblade Harrow?
Thematically there is a lot of overlap between the units. I think what you have put together is a great expression of the hexwraith. But it looks like a quick weapon swap for the Dreadblade.
Now as you are going to be fielding them as a unit, and not a HQ I think that will help avoid confusion. And if you are not fielding both units at the same time, there would be no confusion.
I think if I switch the Dreadblades to plainer bases that match the Knight of Shrouds and keep the Hexwraiths on the original bases, then paint the steeds slightly differently, they should look different enough.
Nice conversion. I did the same thing... I don’t like the Hexenwraith models either. I also found that you can swap the Dreadblade Harrows riders with minimum effort to creat a bit of variety...
Yes, seeing them painted makes me more confident too.
Perhaps I should buy the actual Hexwrith kit but build the Black Knights and use the leftover scythes for this, same as you.
I've experimented with swapping riders already and certainly think it is the way to go. Knowing you've done it and did not encounter unexpected problems is good.
I always like to make a little pilot hole before I start drilling out a barrel or similar.
Unfortunately, after a LOT of years of use, the tip of the compass I had been using finally lost its tip and was no longer quite sharp enough. Unless I wanted to wait to get one delivered, I would have to make my own!
I took a safety pin, and used pliers to twist off the safety bit, and partially unfolded the safety pin. Then I drilled a hole next to the graphite of a small IKEA pencil. Next, I used a small saw and a knife to put a groove in the end. The snapped end fits down the hole in the end of the pencil, and the groove holds the coil so that it won't rotate. Finally, super glue.
Tada!
Now I can safely drill out barrels again without risk of going off-centre! Hurrah and huzzah!
Cheers Joe and Gwyn. I wasn't sure about the sergeanr until the end, but I fancied doing something a bit different and was pleased how he turned out.
As for the compass, I originally started using it out of desperation that I couldn't find anything better. The hardened tip turned out to be perfect though, and I used it for more than ten years until it lost its tip. The safety pin is not quite as good, as it is too fine, but it'll do for now, and I am already finding it useful for other things too.
zahnib wrote: That's a neat head-swap on the scouts. Also, do you always drill your barrels after painting?
No, I always drill barrels before painting. I was just using that model as an example. It is one that had just arrived from an eBay purchase and was most conveniently located.
And wow, that headswap on the scouts... you would not believe how much hassle that was. It should have been easy, but was almost impossible to get right, due to getting rid of neck from the heads, and cutting space into the shoulders for the to fit. Hell, my Wraithlord conversions took longer, but were easier.
zahnib wrote: That's a neat head-swap on the scouts. Also, do you always drill your barrels after painting?
No, I always drill barrels before painting. I was just using that model as an example. It is one that had just arrived from an eBay purchase and was most conveniently located.
And wow, that headswap on the scouts... you would not believe how much hassle that was. It should have been easy, but was almost impossible to get right, due to getting rid of neck from the heads, and cutting space into the shoulders for the to fit. Hell, my Wraithlord conversions took longer, but were easier.
Oh I see, that makes sense. I was going to say that's an interesting way of doing it! Haha
I finally finished a lieutenant. Not an amazing paint job, but as these models become a bigger group, I am hoping they will have an impressive overall look.
The gold looks a lot better in person than it does on here.
Gitsplitta wrote: Love that. The texture on the armor... was that something you did or did it just happen?
It is semi-accidental, semi-deliberate.
I sprayed sliver, washed in thinned down contrast paints and then dry-brushed. The texture came from the drybrushing. I knew I'd get a texture, but not how it would come out.
You can see it on the speeders below too. I actually think that I have accidentally made a nice halfway between the original camo pattern Executioners and the newer metallic ones.
I've now completed the rides for the axe scouts.
First Speeder
Second Speeder
All of the boys together. I may not have enjoyed this painting process - it felt very mechanical. I know these aren't "well" painted because I was there when I did it.
However... I bloody love how these look now they are done.
As a quick note, here is a photo from near the end. I had four multi-meltas missing their fuel cannisters. I have a lovely stash of rods, tubes, I-beams, etc, and "The Choppper". I managed ot assemble some replacement parts to make use of these. Although multi-meltas are no longer in the codex, I don't plan on using this list competitively, so none of my friends will care that I have used an Index option.
I have a Crusader squad coming soon, and followed by two more not long after,
I am going to need an Emperor's Champion fairly soon, so I started converting one. I like the whole bare-arm vibe of the scouts, so I went that way again...
I like that the chains-on-axes theme continues, I like that he has the same style of chest plate as my crusaders... and I like the fact he definitely isn't Kharn!
I have also got a bunch done on a couple of Crusader squads.
I also have something big in the works... more to come soon.
So, I haven't done a lot of proper painting, but I've been doing some building and undercoating.
I got hold of this Caestus second hand. I'm not entirely sure whether it is genuine. Good chance it is a recast. It had already been desprued, and a little bit of cleaning done when I bought it. It was a bastard to put together. Lots of boiling water to straighten, pinning bits and greenstuff sculpting rather than just filling. Still, it looks okay now, and FW don't even sell them anymore, so this is likely to be my only one. I originally planned for it to go with my Astral Claws, but it just fits my Executioners too well.
I also built and undercoated a third Typhoon Land Speeder to go with two I did ages ago. I don't think any of them have been seen here before though.
And I got myself up to three Drop Pods, all undercoated.
The arrival of 9th and associated points changes have messed up my plans a touch, but that can always happen. I'll build some Company Vets and Sternguard Vets out of Mk2 armour, but until I see points costs I can't work out the ratios.
I've decided to put together a Scouty type Captain to use as a Vanguard Phobos Captain. The Primaris Keyword won't make any difference to the way I plan to use him, and it means I can start with an HQ on the table.I will probably make him out of a Sgt Telion, if I can get one for a decent EBay price.
I also put together a Missile Launcher scout to go with the Sniper guys. Haven't got a hooded head though, and can't win any auctions on EBay for a reasonable price, so he is waiting to be completed.
Those crusader squads look great, the heads are absolutely But, if I read correctly, they aren't available anymore? They would fit nicely on the new Space Marine models that are coming with 9th.
Fantastic! Nothing beats dropping a dread into the thick of it. And now you can do it with the added coolness of it actually arriving onto the table inside the pod. The only way this could be cooler is if you had a little speaker set in it to make the noises for you. Excellent work, love it!
Endtransmission was kind enough to send some hooded heads for me to do a couple more conversions.
I want to put the head on a scout, so I decided to use a few tools to hollow it out.
Next I carefully cut the face from the front of a scout head.
The head will go on this chap. I might not even use him very often but it will give me some flexibility on points for building lists in 9th. Either a weapon upgrade, or an extra body on the table.
endtransmission wrote: Oh nice work on the hood! They have been sitting in the bitz box for about 10 years... so someone should get some use out of them
It is much appreciated. It would be daft to have one guy without a hood!
Today is my birthday, so I treated myself to some bitz.
I am pretty certain that from one or both of these I can build some pretty awesome HQ Scout Marines without needing any Phobos armour parts.
I also bought this badass. Originally, I planned to turn him into bits, especially his gun. On reflection, he is way too awesome to not build stock. I just need to decide whether to use him as an Executioner. I might use him as a Mantis Warriors Captain, but use Phobos armour rules. He seems too neat and tidy to fit with my Executioners.
inmygravenimage wrote: Woo! Birthday! Is that a bloodbowl team you're using as the base figs?
Thanks gents.
Yeah, Blood Bowl. I reckon I can add some detailing and some green stuff to create some pretty decent scout-esque armour. It is a struggle tondecide which position to use though. I'm leaning towards Blitzer at the moment and might use a catcher for a grav-chuting lieutenant and a thrower for a grenade-lobbing lieutenant.
Typically enough, I barely used ANY of the bits shown for my Scout Captain build. Still plan to use them eventually though.
Instead, I used the legs from a Necromunda Goliath Forge-born that a buddy posted to me. I found a very nice chest plate and scraped away the Imperial Eagle, leaving just a skull in the centre. I sculpted the back to make it look roughly like a Scout. It'll need some sanding still, and maybe a teenesy bit more GS, but I have the rough shape pretty close. I used the arms from the Chaos Marauder kit (How useful is that kit, by the way? The actual models look like crap when assembled as they should be, but they are a gold mine for kit bashing) and a cut the arm from a Scout bolter. One of the shoulder guards is nicked from the Scout heavy bolter, but the other I hollowed out from the remains of the arm I chopped off in the same way I hollowed out the hooded head. His head is one of the duplicate heads I was lucky enough to ger with my Vigilator (see previous photo) - not only do you get two heads on the sprue in the pack anyway, I got the sprue twice! One head has a tiny antenna snapped off, so maybe it was deliberate, but deffo a nice bonus!
So far, it is all just pinned and blu-tacced. In addition to the job already mentioned, I need to put on an extended barrel/suppressor and some pouches. Not going to worry about a cloak. Although there are still los of bits to do, I am very happy with the overall posing of this guy.
I realised something - I think I am subconsciously trying to reproduce this guy from the original Rogue Trader rulebook; the feel of him, if not the exact sense of him.
This scout bolt gun has a barrel/suppressor thingy made from plastic rod. I also "turned" it a bit on my "Chopper" to put a groove in it. The magazine/clip is from a genestealer cults autogun. I don't like it in the picture. Might need replacing. The sight has a bit of rod which I cut off a short disc and then cut in half to make a mount. I now wonder if it needs a stock too?
The arms are from the Chaos Marauders kit. I think they originally held a flail. They have been pinned in position. Needs a little sanding on the greenstuff, but it is not too bad already. The shoulders had to be cut down to allow the pads to fit.
The main body has been pinned and reinforced between legs and torso. One of those shoulder pads is the one that comes loose with the Heavy Bolter from the Scouts box. The other was the solid arm the gun was on. I drilled it out with a very thick drill and carved at it with a craft knife. I need to choose a pistol and which packs to glue on. The axe is also from the Marauders kit, with any arrows removed, though I spot it is not perfect. It might be too big to suit the model anyway though.
I think I am happy with the greenstuff on the back.
Here is a more complete build with a temporary head. I have another head on the way from EBay that I hope will work.
Those kitbashes are amazing and you are evoking the feel from that cover art. And Bolters with surpressors look damn good and fit the scout aesthetic perfect.
I found the perfect head for it too. I already had it on my Champion model!
Also been painting test schemes for my Primaris marines. Can't decide between Howling Griffons or my Storm Lords successors (who, of course, are White Scars successors)
Using this method, I think the Whirlwinds probably look better, but on the table, both look good.
I will probably do another Howling Griffon tomorrow starting over a pink base layer.
Okay, totally off track this week! I need to paint my Executioners characters, but I can't get into that careful painting mindset, so allowed myself a tangent.
These two models represent the start of a SMALL force of Mantis Warriors. I've long planned to have all four of the Badab Secessionist chapters available to me. The Lamenters are my first and painting them takes a long time. I will probably keep adding to them forever. The Astral Claws are easy to paint, so I have a huge force planned. I already have lots built and painted that I have never even posted here. You'll see them once my Executioners are done. My Executioners will top out at arund 2000-2500 points, but each is a custom build - not a single model in that army so far is unmodified, except for three drop pods. They are therefore a long slog! These Mantis Warriors wil all be stock models, unconverted and top out at around 1000-1500 points...
I have had about 45 marines and a Mortis Contemptor lying around for a couple of years because they are already painted Averland Sunset. I've long had a plan to turn them into Mantis Warriors using washes. I think it needs two washes, not just one...
I think Gitsplitta needs to tell me what to do! Gits, two washes, or one?
Yeah, that is what I decided too, in the end. I've knocked out ten of these today. They look good held up next to images in Imperial Armour. Five need more green on a couple of spots, but that is it. No bases yet, but they won't get anything fancy, so it won't take long.
So, I've done a quick two day blast and started on my Mantis Warriors. It has been quite liberating to blitz and army where I genuinely don't have the same standards that I normally apply. I've also found a reciipe which, purely by accident, looks great. In my opinion anyway.
I started with way more than this, but sold some Centurions for a good price. I stripped some bikes and a drop pod as I did not see them as part of this force. I have a yellow rhino too, but can't decide what to do with it.
This force will come to around 75PL or 1500 points. If I don't get there, I'll add a few more bits, but I'd be happy to stick at 1500 points. It guarantees we'll have some Mantis Warriors for a series of Badab campaign weekends with strict chapter restrictions Arbitor Ian will be organising once lockdown relaxes, and all of it will be useable in Zone Mortalis for boarding missions, which is also necessary. As I will have 30 Tac Marines and 10 Assault Marines, I will probably add 10 Devastators if I add anything, as that would make a nice thematic demi-company.
I haven't painted any chapter symbols yet. I want to blitz the painting and leave them until last. I think I can paint something acceptable, but want to establish the correct painting order and practise a bit. I have also ordered a mountain of 32mm bases, and will be painting them on a very plain sand base. They should arrive in the next couple of days.
I will run them with -1 to hit at long range (or whetever the 9th Ed version is) and +3" range to help the Sternguard and flamer dudes out.
This Tac squad has three guys left who need a second wash and some detailing.
This Tac squad has seven guys left who need a second wash and some detailing.
I will take advantage of the shading already done on these guys to relayer the Averland Yellow, then add the black stripes for the Tranquilty Sniper Veteran look. I will also extend the bolter barrels and consider using my few remaining scopes to make them look even better.
I will magnetise the Kheres Assault Cannons in order to give me options. Don't know if I will ever use them.
The top five will be Vanguard Veterans. I will PROBABLY give them the same paint scheme as the Sternguard Tranquility Sniper Veterans. Unless anyone has better ideas that won't be complicated?
These remaing yellow guys will probably make a third Tac Squad. The metal dudes are from various assorted EBay job lots and date from Rogue Trader and 2nd Edition, I think. They'll be painted last. I will make a lieutenant in the mean time from plastics.
Wow! That’s some solid progress on a sizeable force! The scheme looks really good and pretty straightforward too, perfect for a quick job. I like that you’ll be fitting the tranquility scheme in, even more so for using it to differentiate the Sternguard and Vanguard. You’ll be done by next weekend at this rate!
Thank you everyone for your comments. More of them to come soon, much progress has been made.
In the meantime, that Crozius Arcanum is immense! Who could possibly need such a comically-oversized weapon?!
Automatically Appended Next Post: So, today became DREADNOUGHT DAY!!!
I did a first pass on the Mantis Warrior Contemptor. More importantly I magnetised the arms. The base is the only one I've done so far, as my 32mm bases have not turned yet. As promised, it is super-simple. I will need to do some work on the yellow as it is too big an area to be left as just an undercoat on this model. Later, I'll build him at least one close combat arm alternative.
The rest of the day was spent on finally doing my Executioners Chaplain Venerable Dreadnought build. It is just a blu-tac fit right now, but I am very happy with it so far. I will be doing skulls in the recesses of the chest plate, like the faceplate on an Astral Claws one I did previously.
Today is a good day, because today is a dreadnought day! Chaplain Dread already looks great and heavily Skully, he’s going to look insane with his side panels filled with skulls
Quick note, Seventy - the Apothecary in your group of random metal dudes for the Mantis Warriors is from the Command Squad box, which I believe came out in early 3rd edition. The 2nd edition Apothecaries used one plastic arm, like the Techmarine and Chaplain in the same group.
Hmmm... that is midly irritating, especially as I just swapped out the two Rogue Trader librarians for what I think are 2nd Ed librarians. I am just using up models in my collection though, so I don't think I am bothered enough to buy a new model especially for this project. The plastic marines themselves range from 3rd to 5th edition, so not too stressed out about it.
Love how you "accidentally " started doing a Mantis Warriors force like that. The twice washed green looks great over the yellow, a really nicely done shade. It even looks great on the larger armour panels of the Contemptor, and that is not always the case.
The Chaplain Dread conversion looks great, that is my favourite Chaplain head in the Marine range and looks grand in the relic dread body like that.
I've been very, very careful about trying to do the green in one smooth coat only on the largest panels of the Contemptor. Even with that care, it is far from perfect, It'll do though.
I can't even remember what model that head is from, but it is an awesome one!
So, I finished the second Tactical Squad just now. I think they look pretty good all lined up. Look closely at some of the individual models and you'll wince, but who cares, they'll look fine on the table. Still no bases yet, so they are blu-tacced to 30mm bases and will get transferred to sandy 32m bases, same as the Dreadnought, as soon as I get the chance.
The progress is despite the fact I spent yesterday digging a trench and filling it will rubble, then today power-spraying my old concrete patio and fixing the rubble in the trench with concrete ready to lay a proper bed and put patio slabs down on Sunday. Then on Tuesday, I will then be setting up my four sawhorses with some lengths of wood between them to support 2'x2' boards and play a game of 9th edition outdoors in the sunshine. This army will be my "outdoor" army. It will be transported in old ready meal/takeaway plastic tubs. I suppose I will probbaly varnish it eventually. Makes no sense not to, as it will be getting plenty of abuse.The models in this post will add up to a PL of 25, enough to start a Crusade Campaign.
The Contemptor is no further along, but I also have unshown progress on the Tranquility Snipers. They are the only unit getting special treatment - extended barrels. The barrels are cut, drilled, and ready for pinning to the weapons. After that, they'll be tougher to paint than the current models, but should not take long. Another Tac squad and five Vanguard Veterans and another HQ should then get me to 50PL.
Getting there with this squad. Quite a bit of work has gone into getting them to this state!
This will be a Lieutenant with Jump Pack. More work needed than the rest, but I am confident I will have him ready for Tuesday,
I decided I wanted a jump pack librarian at 25PL instead of a lieutenant, so threw this guy together just now. He has just been undercoated!
I allowed myself a tiny bit of modelling as he is an HQ. Hollowed out part of the jump pack a touch to allow a better fit. Made an oriental-inspired blade from some old ones I had lying around. Cut a shoulder pad down to make it match the size of the metal ones.
Nevelon wrote: Is it just me/the pic, or is that plastic sword translucent? I wonder if you could preserve that by painting with glazes for a power field affect.
Cheers Viterbi.
Nevelon, It is not translucent, but I am planning something a bit glazey. My current thinking is that I will paint it the same as my Eldar Warlock blades.
So, this Assault Squad and Librarian are definitely "Battle Ready". That means I have 25PL of Mantis Warriors in 13 Days.
Hence, this armies Crisade title will be "The Army of 13 Days" So named after achieving the subjugation of Baker System following the insurrection of the Church of the Amethyst Emperor, revealed to be a genestealer cult front.
Tomorrow, I will use them in my first game of 9th edition, starting a Crusade.
We played the Eternal War missions instead of Crusading in the end, but I took some photos;
I lost EVERY one of the six deployment and first turn roll offs! In the first game, I also had pretty appalling rolls generally, and was forced into some desperate options that did not pay off.
Throughout the afternoon, my pair of missile launchers only caused damage once! In this forst game, I was trying to deal with an Invictor Warsuit, which my friend proxies with a Russian Toy he has done a good job of making suit his army. It looks like something from Terminator to me! Trying to take out two vehicles was just too much for me to manage, with limited Heavy Weapons and not managing to trigger psychic powers for mortal wounds. I charged the Impulsor out of desperation, but achieved nothing.
In the second game, my friend took out his Impulsor and added Inceptors. I combat squadded my units for flexibility, even though he ws using the Attrition special mission. He landed up using his Invictor to sit on an objective shilst hiding from my missile launchers, which I think was a mistake. I sent over a Tac Squad to tempt him out, but he went back into hiding afterwards. I deep struck in my Assault Squad and librarian and almost wiped out his Inceptors. After that, I moved over to his Intercessors, and killed most of them in a single amazing psychic phase, and chased down the remaining Inceptor. All of his models are female Space Marines using Hasslefree Miniatures heads, though you can't really tell from these photos.
His Warlord had been sitting on an objective, and emerged as my Librarian would have come for him next turn anyway, but he could not get the charge off. That allowed me a pot shot with a Missile Launcher! It was the one and only time I did damage with a Missle Launcher all afternoon, but I got his general, despite the cover!
By this time, I could not lose mission 2.
In the third mission, I made the mistake of leaving my Tac Squad where his Invictor Warsuit could move and target them on turn 1. He killed all but one in a single round of fire, and the last died due to morale! My deep strike managed to take out his Warlord again, but I lost my Assault Squad to the same Invictor, followed by the Librarian, whose psychihc phase was not rolling hot enough this time around. His Inceptors took out a Combat Squad and gave him the game, as I was left with a single combat squad.
All in all, the terrain rules are complicated, but much better. The missions have a lot of book keeping, but enjoyable. Primaris Marines in general are good, Invictors are CRAZY good, and it is tough to deal with two vehicles at 500 points.
Oh yeah, he hates the Inceptor models so he uses Reivers on Dark Eldar Hellion hover boards!
He is a very tech-minded person, so he seems to enjoy converting. Not one of his armies is "out of the box". He hates painting though, so does a tabletop standard out of consideration for others, but doesn't agonise over each individual model, just makes an army look good. Which is fine, of course.
I'm no allowing myself much in the way of conversion for these fellas, and what I do needs to be relatively quick, but I've done a couple of things.
I turned these Tac marines into Sternguard Veterans by giving them lengthened barrels and scopes. They also give me some extra firepower for Invictus Suits! These lot get the veteran job purely because they came pre-washed and I am not doing any stripping. They'll get a layer of yellow, then the stripes to make them Tranquility Snipers. I MIGHT break my own rule and sort out the worst bits of flash, especially on the heads.
I used some leftovers from building droppods to make a Cyclone Missile Launcher for the top of my Contemptor. Only blu-tacced so far. I think I will wait a day or two before gluing to see if anything occurs to me, or if anyone suggests anything, but I think the core of the build is there.
During lockdown, my club has done a series of podcast style interviews with members and posted them on YouTube to help with the fact we can't meet up with each other.
Mine is the latest to go up, so here is the first part of an approximately two hour interview! I briefly mention Dakka at around the fifty minute mark, and again in the next part, which is not up yet.
Great job on the tranquility stern guard. I like the thought of a missile launcher being used as a Sniper rifle! I suppose Collateral Damage isn’t really a thing in the Grim Darkness of the far future! Mind you don’t lose them on the battlefield!
inmygravenimage wrote:Very snazzy, I can hardly see them
See who?
Viterbi wrote:They look so 80's (in a very good way) Nice work!
Exactly what I was aiming for, thanks
gobert wrote:Great job on the tranquility stern guard. I like the thought of a missile launcher being used as a Sniper rifle! I suppose Collateral Damage isn’t really a thing in the Grim Darkness of the far future! Mind you don’t lose them on the battlefield!
Well, the missile launchers landed up in there for two reasons. 1) Two of the missile launchers had the dark shade, so couldn't easily be washed green. 2) I need more heavy weapons in the army, and Sternguard can take two. Maybe the missiles are silent?
So, I had to go away on holiday for a week for my MIL's birthday, but I got most of this squad done before I left and finished them yesterday.
I have also built a Lieutenant and a pair of Company Veterans, so that will bring me to 50PL. I was planning to play against Arbitorian's Marines Errant on Thursday, but my wife now has a cough, so we have to self-isolate until we can get test results back. More painting time, I suppose.
I have a Tac squad ready to paint, A Dev squad ready to build, another Librarian half-painted, the Contemptor Dread in progress and more Sternguard ready to finish. That will get me to 100PL when this army will be at the Demi-company-with-support stage and will be COMPLETE.
You have a good eye for an interesting space marine. It's hard to be enthusiastic about another space marine army after decades of the big shouldered buffties but you're finding schemes and poses that feel fresh and fun.
Viterbi wrote: Nice squad, John Woo marine is just lovely. Does he always switch positions with "Two-Swords"? Both should be a deadly duo!
Woo and Two constantly swap one's bolt pistol for the other's chainsword. They get in trouble with Lieutenant Coren every time they do it, but they are mavericks and can't be stopped.
I have (well) over two hundred firstborn marines, I reckon, and need to put effort into a good few of them to be able to build the bolter-huggers without too much boredome!
Automatically Appended Next Post: For those very few of you who might be interested, the second part of my YouTube is now up...
Just before the nine minute mark, I mention Dakka, especially Gitsplitta.
Automatically Appended Next Post: And now for something completely different....
I needed a break from Mantis Warriors so I started something a bit silly.
I'm sure some of you are old enough to get the reference.
Automatically Appended Next Post: And then I got inspired to go in the loft and dig out the first two models I EVER painted, using Humbrol enamels in 1988!
These three models, Lieutenant and two Company Veterans bring me to 50PL; Two Tac Squads, two half Assault Squads, half a Sniper squad, four company leadership. I'll do an army shot when I get the opportunity.
Thanks. I think the two colours really helps. Marine armies do risk monotony. I also like that the Tranquility Snipers blend in slightly with my board. They've had a 25PL outing. Missed out on playing Ian at 50PL last Thursday as the wife worried we had Covid so we took precautions until our test results came back. (Negative, thankfully).
Cute is not quite what I was aiming for, but I'll.take it
Good to hear you tested negative, even if you missed out on a game. There’s gonna be a lot of isolations for the cold once the schools reopen! Better to be precautious i suppose
School started again in the UK, so I have been back at work full time instead of working essentially part-time from home. In a desperate attempt to avoid public transport, I've been making a 22 mile round-trip on my bicycle, so I've not been doing much painting!
But I have done some. Aaaaand... yesterday I managed to take a bad fall from my bike and badly mash up my feet. God knows how, as I went full over the handlebars, so no clue at all how my feet landed up getting so badly hurt. Anyway, I included my feet in a photo of m latest Sniper Vet, so you can see the bruising.
The left toe is fine, just a bit of bruising. I don't think the right toe is broken, but I can't put any weight on it at all, so could neither ride to work, nor walk to the nearest public transport, so I could not go to work tody, except for attending some online meetings. I've done some work today, but also squeezed in a bit of painting to finish my Dreadnought. Unlike the rest, I allowed a liiiiittle bit of highlighting due to its size, and put a yellow glaze on. I really had to restrain myself from doing more and more to the model - it is finished, useable, and that is what this project is about...
And here is a shot of where I am at with phase 3, which will bring me to 75PL...
Phase 4 is built, based and undercoated, but I have no yellow models left, so I'll actually have to paint these myself, before washing! The horror! But then the project will be over, and I will have at least a small army for all four Secessionist chapters.
Thanks everyone. Toe is on the mend, so I will go back to work tomorrow. For that reason I wanted to get as much painting as possible done this weekend.
I almost finished off the final five snipers Friday night. Saturday I was at a socially distanced wedding, so got nothing done, and today, I got a chunk done on the third tactical squad and finished the snipers.
Finally, here is an image of the remaining 13 models to compelte the demi-company and finish the army. The yellow spray is the only spray I had that would not have made the base coating ten times harder. I'll just mix up and batch of Averland Sunset/Iyanden Darksun and hope that I only need one coat of yellow to get the job done before doign everything else the usual way. That will be nine missile launchers in the army! And I'll still have plenty more in the box...
I've no idea what this will be points-wise in the new codex, but I like having a demi-company with some support and plan to go no further, unless I go for the slim possibility of some more HQ/characters for tactical reasons.
Gitsplitta wrote: The Tranquility Snipers are really well done Fifty. Nice work all-round!
Thanks. I am very pleased with the Tranquility Snipers. Although they are nothing special, I think they add a certain something to the overall effect of the army.
Viterbi wrote:That's a lot of missile launchers Good luck on only needing one coat of the yellow paint mix!
I blitz-painted one this evening. One coat would probably be just okay, as I'll be washing green anyway, but I actually do two thin coats. The first coat dried quickly enough to make it an easy job though.
inmygravenimage wrote:As a big fan of the missile launcher, I approve this use of missile launchers. could do with more missile launchers
It occurs to me that the Dreadnought also has a double-missile launcher, arguably giving me a total of eleven... how is that?
That is certainly a lot of Tactical Marines. I like how in a big army like these the monopose Marines do not look out of place at all. They all look great together.
And the bonus of you getting the grunts out of the way is you can concentrate on bigger pieces like the Contemptor. Any plans for any rhino based tanks?
And I hope the toe(s) are in full operational order now, that does not look fun at all.
Gitsplitta wrote:Wow, that's great! I don't think I have that many regular marines in my army!
Mine are not as well painted though. It is a very slapdash army at the level of the individual model.
ListenToMeWarriors wrote:That is certainly a lot of Tactical Marines. I like how in a big army like these the monopose Marines do not look out of place at all. They all look great together.
And the bonus of you getting the grunts out of the way is you can concentrate on bigger pieces like the Contemptor. Any plans for any rhino based tanks?
And I hope the toe(s) are in full operational order now, that does not look fun at all.
Part of me wants them all standing to attention, in order to be able to line up on parade, but the almost-action poses look good as a group, now I consider it.
Nice one! Not much more to go, though I like LTMW idea of adding Rhinos and Razorbacks
It is theoretically possible, but extremely unlikely. I have plenty of Rhino chassis, but a dozen of them are already base-coated for my Astral Claws. I don't need any for my Executioners, but I will need plenty for Lamenters.
I think it is likely I will add a Company Champion, Chaplain and maybe a Techmarine in order to fill out a full Demi-Company, but not urgently.
So I have an image of a Chaos Champion in my gallery that I painted as a kid back in about '92, maybe '93.
It only has one vote, and the person scored it a 1.
I can't work out if someone has mis-clicked, deliberately been a tool or they have such a skewed perception that they really believe it is that bad.
Out of curiousity, what would people suggest is fair? Personally, I am biased because as it is one of my favourite sculpts and at the time it was probably the best I had painted a model, but I feel like it is a 7, whilst recognising that others might go lower. The bone is meant to look as if it is dirty, and fresh from the ground and I was very pleased with the red and the flames. The metallics are admittedly quite gak, but a wash now would mean it is not a product purely of the early 90s anymore.
I'd be grateful to hear what others think, as now I am worried a model I love and am proud of is actually an embarassment.
The robes are good, better then average, 6ish
The sword is awesome, love the layered flame effects, Solid 8
The metallics could use a wash, little flat. Weakest part of the model, and tend to draw focus. 3-5
Eyes could use an unholy glow, or more shadow.
Based, but only basically.
Overall I’d go with something in the 7ish range for paint. Being a classic model it gets high scores for coolness, and while a separate category, that tends to impact paint scores.
You did a great job. Don't change it. That's a beauty of a childhood paint job, done when we didn't have access to all the tools and resources of the modern day
It really is a cool model, with a good paintjob. I think Nevelon summed up my thoughts on it pretty well. 7ish feels right, certainly nowhere near a 1. Now to go find out how to see what votes my pics have got!
Thanks everyone. Glad my biased eye was not too far off!
A while back I finished my third Tac squad. Not very exciting, so I did not post it. Note the Terminator Honours on the sarge. Good for Crusade Honours!
I just finished my Dev squad too. Also, far from exciting, but important as it means I have finished all non-HQ for my Demi-company. Again, the sarge has Terminator Honours. I meant to check inside the barrels of the missile launchers. I'd better paint them black.
These are the only models left to finish a 100PL force. After this, I am likely to paint a Chapter Champion to round out the Command Squad and a third LIbrarian, just because, but this will be, as such, the END of the 100PL project! Woohoo!
Automatically Appended Next Post:
gobert wrote: It really is a cool model, with a good paintjob. I think Nevelon summed up my thoughts on it pretty well. 7ish feels right, certainly nowhere near a 1. Now to go find out how to see what votes my pics have got!
I was a bit tricksy. I noticed that model only had one vote, so I went into that gallery, and went through filtering to see which models had a rating of 10/10, then 9/10, and so on, all the way down to 1/10.
Awesome, only 3 more minis before full Demi company pics! Thanks for the pointer, Some of my WIP shots have been rated as 1s! Some kind soul seems to have voted 10 for one of mine, so I don’t think we can trust these outliers!
Thanks folks. It is a very careful freehand, not a transfer. The sligh distortions are really there, not just due to the curved surface, unfortunately. Still, the curves make tat very hard to tell!
It is not fancy painted art like some folk can do, but I am pleased with how it looks. Now I need to do the rest of it without messing up!
It would be my honor... and yes, I'd FIND a use for it. I have a favor to ask though. Would you be willing to do an older version of the Mantis Warrior badge for me?
gobert wrote: Some of my WIP shots have been rated as 1s! Some kind soul seems to have voted 10 for one of mine, so I don’t think we can trust these outliers!
I tend to put my WIP pics up as "not to be voted on" for this reason - how can people truly judge a WIP, compared to a finished product? I don't tend to vote on Gallery pics that seem to be WIP either, for the same reason.
As for yon Chaos Champion, Forty-Nine? Looks fine to me, and I like the effect you got on the sword. The base is in keeping with the period it was painted in, but I could see people preferring a more elaborate effort today.
Dysartes, your last two messages average out to Fifty, but you are just missing the mark by a tiny bit. Mind you, beats the seventy you went for a while back!
Cheers. I now assume it was either a troll or a misclick on that guy. I'm happy to acknolwedge it was not a perfect paint job, I was in my early teens, after all, but I feel six or seven if fair.
Firstly, that model is at least a solid 7 for me - don’t go worrying about voting by internet sprites. It makes me think of my first Eldar army and how proud I was of certain paint jobs!
Your freehand on those banners is brilliant, just really great. This Mantis force looks really nice as a group effort already - are you basing them on 30mm bases?
So, I have finished the actual painting for the Mantis Warriors... except...
Well, I don't know whether to get hold of some transfers for the shoulder pad symbol, paint them myself, or try to GS and then press-mould little ones to put on...
Never mind though, as far as I am concerned, these models are table-top ready. If you have followed this so far, you'll know that this army has been painted in less than three months, and I have not painted individual models to a very high standard. Nevertheless, I feel the army impact is great. I am very pleased.
I plan to use Stealthy chapter tactic to represent their ambush strategy, and maybe Bolter Fusillades due to the massive numbers of Bolters in the army. If I don't go for Bolter Fusillades, I am really not sure what seems fluffy...
First, here is the demi-company command. There are three combi-plasmas in there and the Lieutenant has a master-crafted bolt gun. These fellas will, as a general rule, hang back and shoot until fairly late game bu have weapons to mean they can get in melee if I need them to.
I did more work on the Apothecary than I can really justify. What can I say? I just enjoy painting white. Note the Eagle back-packs. They seem inappropriate for my treacherous Astral Claws, too bling for my Executioners and the wrong imagery for my Lamenters, so I have used them here. I have one or two more for more leaders, so I might add a Captain and/or a Chapter Champion at some point, but they are not part of the 2000 point force.
Some chapter-level support came along in the form of two Librarians. I think these are the worst looking models in the army. I used Contrast paints on them, and they are fine for tabletop, but not up to much as individual pieces at all. They will probably each advance with one of the Assault Squads.
Here is a Contemptor Dread to provide guidance and counsel for the novice Lieutenant. Again, he will do most of his work at range. He has magnetised arms, so I may make him more of a close-combat variant if I find it necessary.
Here are the three Tactical Squads, and the core of the army. All have plasma, combi-plasma and missile launcher. I considered even loading on power-swords, but decided that would be micky-taking, as this will mainly be a PL army. Again, they will sit back for a while, before a late-game advance.
The remaining squads of the demi-company. As you can see, the Assault Squad cannot be fielded together, as half have jump-packs. I assume that the assault squads were split half-and-half and the rest are with the Captain, Chaplain, Company Champion and other Lieutenant. They probably miss their squad-mates terribly, but with typical Astartes stoicism are hiding it well.
The Assault Squads will move forward early, and often come in on the flanks or back-field from reserve (A White Scar stratagem allows opposite table edge arrivals as well as just the flanks). They are meant to prevent too much board control for the opponent and prevent the Tactical Squads getting swamped early.
With 48" range, the Dev Squad will sit as far back as possible to get good fields of fire. Sarge has yet another combi-plasma. I actually used up waaaaay too many combi-plasmas in this army. I'll probbaly need to get a bunch more for my Astral Claws.
Here is the rest of the Chapter-level support. Ten Tranquility Sniper Veterans, also known as Sternguard. I do not know yet whether they will find work as two combat squads or one large squad.
I think they make a great contrast for the rest of the army, off-setting the ubiquitous green and adding a lovely 80s feel.
An army shot. See what I mean about the Snipers?
And the whole 100PL/2000point army fits in a half-size KR case.
Finished results looking spiffy, well done you! Also can I just say extra kudos for using old school Marines and fitting your project into a KR multicase- I like planning my stuff out the same way!
Nice work turning around the Demi company! Really impressive speed and pretty decent quality, and not just the quality of numbers! How come the Dev Sgt and jump Libby have purple and orange plasma when everyone else has coded standard blue? Good luck sorting the shoulder pads out. I like the sound of GS press moulds, I think that much freehand in one go would be enough to send you insane!
I wanted a spot colour for the Librarians rather than just more blue.
For the Devs it was just on impulse. I'd been playing around on a piece of cardboard seeing how dark blue with purple highlights might work and so I had those colours on hand, and just felt like using them.
Astral Claws
- 45 Terminators plus Terminator HQs and 3 or 4 Land Raiders using them as Dark Angels successors
- 1000 points of bikers, again using them as Dark Angels successors
- A demi-company
- Predators and Whirlwinds
Tyrant's Legion
- Using Orlocks from the original Necromunda with tanks
Executioners
- Finish what you've seen
Lamenters
- Start a Crusade force
- Continue the mostly 2nd Ed stuff I have shown previously
Primaris
- My White Scars successors
- Howling Griffons
Mentor Legion
- Blitz the 2nd ed list I have teased previously.
And so far, that assumes I stick to Marines and don't go back to Eldar, start my GSC in earnest or get back to my Nighthaunt...
First priority might be to finish my skeletons for Underworlds, but beyond that, I reeeeeally don't know.
I wanted to jump into this blog and just say that I've been away from this hobby and this forum for ten years. The day I get back I see a thread I lurked in when I was last here, and I see Gitsplitta is still active. It's like I never left. Your Mantis Warriors look so sick dude.
They all look great Fifty, but to me it's the Tranquility Snipers that really set the whole army off. You did a fantastic job on them. Really sweet work.
I put together the parts for an Ancient for Gitsplitta.
I gave him a katana-like weapon similar to that I gave to my Librarian. It has no curvature, so isn't a katana, and is too long to be a tanto, but it has a good vibe for the Mantis Warriors, and that is what matters. The arm is one I cut off from the Dark Angel sergeant that came in one of the starter set a few editions back. The head is from the same model.
I'll need to get hold of another backpack with the eagle bits on if I do a company champion, but I am sure my gaming club will be able to help me there if I need it.
I had no banner pole for the actual banner, so had to use a spare arm from a space marine biker and another random part I don't even recognise, plus some styrene rod, but all sorted now.
Gits, let me know if you want anything changed. Also, I plan to put him on a 32mm base. That okay? And shall I base it the same as the rest of my guys, or leave him for you to base?
Frustratingly, the weather here has been too crappy to risk spraying an undercoat on Gitsplitta's Ancient, and I can't be bothered to set up my airbrush as I hate airbrushing! As a result, no progress there.
I allowed myself some time to play around, working out how to convert my Dreadblade Harrows using Grimghast Reapers to make Hexwraiths (and turn the Grimghast Reapers into low-rent Bladegheist Revenants.) I'm very confident I can pull off the Hexwraith conversion and... hopeful... that I can get some Bladegheists out of it too. I also spent some time tidying up and gluing together some Scibor and Brother Vinny ogres to use as Ogryns and as a Slave Ogryn gang.
But now, back to work...
Having blitzed through the Mantis Warriors like nobodies business, I am taking my time on my Executioners.
I am making a new, slightly larger axe blade for one of the models I showed earlier. I was going to use Kharn as the basis for an Emperor's Champion, but I decided the model was better suited to a Space Marine Captain wielding a relic blade and the Teeth of Terra. As a result, this conversion, which will represent one of the axes of Fafnir Rann...
The first image shows a 0.5mm sheet of styrene flanked by two bits that are 0.25mm thick. You can see from the second image the sizes I was working at! Much harder than the blades I made for my Wraithlords. I think this attempt will be okay once I tidy up the green stuff, but I might have another go and try to do it with a little more flair and precision on where the curves go.
I've also done some painting. The photos are taken under daylight bulbs, so the bone looks washed out as hell, but here is progress so far on two of my three planned Executioners Death Speakers. (Not to mention the Dreadnought Death Speaker!)
Happy with how the Ivanus Enkomi conversion looks. I think I did an okay job of turning the minotaur on his chest into something vaguely resembling a sternum. Maybe I should add a clavicle too, but I think it is fine. The cloak is meant to be worn leather. I think it looks... okay. I want to use a similar method for Amon Kull's clothing too. (Amon Kull being the big fella).
Great update and a nice conversion. Regarding the worn leather, you could try and stipple on some more texture although that has the risk on ruining what you've done so far, which looks already nice.
Viterbi wrote: Great update and a nice conversion. Regarding the worn leather, you could try and stipple on some more texture although that has the risk on ruining what you've done so far, which looks already nice.
Frustratingly, I noticed a really annoying mould line on the leather in a really obvious place once I went to actually glue it in place. I think I missed it because I bought the model as part of a job lot and it was already undercoated black. It is not a line of flash, but a discontinuity in the smooth flow of the cloack, just where is peels back from the models left leg. It is incredibly obvious once the model is assembled and can't be missed, annyongly. Rather than strip what I have done, I used a couple of layers of vallejo plastic putty to smooth out the problem and repainted that section with Rhinox Hide again. It is still a teensy bit noticeable, but should not be a problem once broken up with stippling again. That s the long way to explain that I was considering some more stippling and washing anyway, but have to redo quite a bit now anyway, so have less to lose, so will probably try.
I am away in the country with the wife this weekend though, as she has been working from home such long hours due to Covid that she was getting pretty bad cabin fever. (She is upstairs working even now!) As a result, I won't get to do any work on these guys this weekend. :( I suppose I could have brought paint and models with me, but it just didn't seem worth it for how much opportunity I will likely get.
In other news, I entered the Black Library Open submissions for the third time this year. It had to be a horror submission, and I had to explain it in 100 words and provide a 500 word writing sample.
This was my blurb:
King of Rats draws on Cronenberg’s The Fly, Kafka’s The Metamorphosis and Irvine Welsh’s Filth, to create a story of Skaven foulness narrated unreliably in the first person by a man and a rat.
In the Free City of Varamontium, an unprincipled but successful rat-catcher is changing nightly– becoming kin to that which he hunts; an abomination fit only for the Hellpits of Clans Moulder. Will he rid himself of his parasitic rat-brothers and thwart the Master Moulder’s scheme? Or will he succumb and sabotage The Sigil, allowing teeming Skaven multitudes to pour through gnawholes and claim his city?
I feel like the general idea is a strong one, for horror in particular, and my writing sample was good, I hope! If anyone is interested enough to read the 500 word sample, feel free to ask!
Some progress on one of my chaplains. Really just his hair to do on the main body and his arms to finish off.
Far from perfect, but I am very happy with him. Better than I normally paint black, this is for sure.
I followed this guide, but used Badab Black, Vallejo Dark Grey, Citadel's old (old, very old) Shadow Grey and another even older light grey from the oroginal Citadel range.
Mine is not a patch on theirs, but I was A) painting in terrible light, B) not fussed about the perfect finish and C) nowhere near as good a painter!
I might go back and glaze my transitions. We'll see.
inmygravenimage wrote: He's looking very cool. I love his big hair.
Me too. I was planning to paint it yellow to match the Lieutenant, but I think I am going to do it in black instead.
gobert wrote:Looks pretty good to me fifty, did you find it any quicker than trying to edge highlight?
Well, I am not sure I found it a huge amount quicker, but I certainly find it more enjoyable, and I prefer how it looks, even though it is a bit rough and ready compared to the tutorial. I will probably do some black glazes to smooth out those transitions.
Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll wrote:Thats a good technique for black, and I think it came out quite good on your model tbh.
Thanks. I think so too. I think it is a good model to use the technique on.
Automatically Appended Next Post: I finally had some good weather for undercoating whilst I was actually at home, so here is Gitsplitta's Ancient, ready for painting.
He is well-lit by my lovely new daylight lamp. I already don't know how I lived without it. I love lamp.
That is Darktt's blog on the monitor. I came across it when it was a new, young thing, but haven't been back enough. I am going through it all now, so I can post a "NICE!" message on it later.
Ancient conversion looks cool and that lamp is a really nice addition to the desk. I've been saying I need new lights since last year, someday I have to take the plunge.
I'm working my way backwards on your blog, but I dont get a lot of time to visit dakka outside of posting, so I'm only 2 pages in! so far the mantis guys look great and looking forward to those executioners.
I didn't realise that I hadn't posted a photo of my completed chaplain, and I've also completed a drop pod since then. A second drop pod is well under way and I've also done some little bits of work of three 5-man Crusader squads which I think I previewed long ago. That means I will have a big 1000 point, 50PL photo to come soon.
the
Today though, the only photo I took was a bit of a random one. I needed a tray for my Land Speeder Storms to enable them to fit with the rest of thr 50PL into one KR case. However, all I had was random bits of pluck from other KR foam! Even the base of the tray is actually three small vertical bits hot glue-gunned together, with the interior walls cleverly arranged to reinforce!
Hopefully it won't just fall apart the first time I use it! (Seems sturdy so far)
I have an MEng in Aeronautical Engineering, but I find that with a good grasp of engineering principles, you can apply the logic to any type of engineering, including foam!
As mentioned, I forgot to post pictures of the finished Chaplain. I am very pleased with him. I like the technique for painting black, even though I did it quite roughly. I much prefer how it looks compared to edge-lining. Also pictured is my first 25PL. I still need to touch up those Crusaders though.
The second drop-pod is half-painted too, and then it will just be two more Crusader squads to touch up and it will be 50PL done. The next 25PL will be three Land Speeder Typhoons (already base-coated) and some veterans (not even built!)
I was also in an odd mood this evening, so I felt like getting my next army out for a preview. I have waaaay more Astral Claws than this, but it will be my first 100PL Astral Claws army. I'll have to use Legends rules for it. That doesn't bother me as I don't play competitively. Three tac squads, a full bike squad, a biker command squad containing two veterans, a company champion, an apothecary and an ancient. On top of the laptop are my Captain, Chaplain and Librarian. Off to one side are a box of bits for future units, potentially a techmarine, for example.
Love the giant book strapped to the front of the Libby's bike. I just think it's funny that he took off the bolters and added a bookshelf. Then he found the right page, (presumably the one that emits high powered explosive psy-energy on command) and strapped it open with the business end da if the enemy. But imagine the accidents that the rookie psykers encountering that book in the library and reading that spell on that page for the first time must have!
And I hope he's notified his insurance company about those modifications!
I decided I needed a break from the relentless grind of bashing out marines. I spent a little bit of time doing some modelling work converting some Dreadblade Harrows to make Hexwraiths. Still not done yet, as I intend to add some chains and so on, and there are another nine to go, but here is the first. I have four more partway through for a squad of five. The scythes come from Grimghast Reapers, so I'll be using the swords from the Dreadblade Harrows to create some Bladegheist Revenants.
Today though, I really put in some work to paint something nicely. I want to get my Sepulchral Guard finished, as I started them aaaaages ago now. Today's model was my least favourite of the set, and I really didn't like the dark grey I had done on his hood, so I switched it up for a leather finish like that on my chaplain. I spent a bit longer and used a few more shades this time (Rhinox Hide, Mournfang Brown, Skrag Brow, Balor Brown and Ushabti Bone, with a little Abaddon Black for shaded areas.) I also wanted to do a good job on the handle of his scythe, and struggled to find some colours I liked for it. In the end, I went for a paler shade than the hood by using Vallejo USA Olive Drab, Flat Earth and English Uniform, with a little Agrax Earthshade to darken. I might put in one more set of very fine lighter lines too. The blade did not turn out as well as I hoped, and I might still go back to it. I started with Leadbelcher, two coats of Agrax, some Typhus Corrosion, but not all over, then Mournfang, Skrag, Ryza Rust for the rusty shades, annd Ironbreaker for the edge. I think the edge is too smooth, so I might roughen it up and add some more Agrax, but not today!
Having finished this model, I now actually really like it. There are some great angles to view it from. Still not my favourite, but I am happy with how it looks. Of course, there are things about it I wish looked better, but overall, I am happy...
Almost finished another. Done for the weekend though, so posting now.
After months of blitzing models, it feels odd to have worked on only one model for an entire day.
The main rust patch on the sword is a very thin bit of half-dry paint and thickly layered paint on top as I've broken that blade at least four times and am trying to reinforce it!
Nice looking Sepulchral Guard, really like the worn leather bits and the bright red contrasts really well of the muted colours of the rest of the mini.
Thanks everyone. I'm glad people like the rust, as it is something I have thought about a lot over the years and I feel I am approaching an outcome I am happy with!
I'm also glad someone commented on the warm/cold colours as it is something I give a lot more thought now, ever since I did it by accident on my Eldar.
Today I am meant to be writing, but I am writing a Nighthaunt short story, and it has me thinking about Grimghast Reapers. Specifically, i am thinking about whether I want to go back and paint the weapons differently to he ghostly parts of the model.
One option would be to do what Mengel does and gradually fade the weapon into the hands with highlighting. I quite like this look...
Another look I am considering though is a much harsher transition at various different locations on the weapon for every model in the unit, trying to show that the weapons are sometimes ethereal, sometimes corporeal.
I just painted a test on some cardboard for using Coelia Greenshade and Abaddon black to create a harsh boundary between the spectral Nihilakh Oxide colours and the rusty blade. What do people think? Which option do you think will look better? Ultimately, I think I am happy enough with the test on card that I might need to do it on some test models...
Yeah I honestly thought that that was some mineral sample in the last photo, or like one of those "mineral pools from above" photos. Super cool effect.
Yeah, that’s a pretty cool effect. I like the idea of it becoming more real as they swing it. The sharp transition is nicely done, I think it increases the effect
That is a neat effect. I almost want to suggest spreading it more, say to the chains and other bits - just in random patterns - but I highly suspect less is more for this effect...
Arakasi wrote: That is a neat effect. I almost want to suggest spreading it more, say to the chains and other bits - just in random patterns - but I highly suspect less is more for this effect...
I had the exact same thought. Love to see more of it, but it would probably reduce the effect overall.
That looks fantastic! I would suggest thinking about what story you're telling with the movement. In this one you have the solid part showing he just finished a downward swing; if you want to show him preparing to attach from that position, start making the bottom of the mace solid as he's going to be swinging back up again shortly
As the others said, it would be nice to see some other parts, like the chains phasing in/out of reality. Maybe some models where you have duplicates, bits of the chain could be solid instead?
Be a sad day for ghosts to loose control and get their chain snagged on something as they charge forward. Be laughed at for all eternity as the ghost who trips .
I have a bunch more of these in the production line now. I have twenty being painted and they will all get this weapon treatment. I probably won't bother to go back and change the twenty I already did - I'll just have half the unit with weapons appearing and the other half without. If that looks terrible, I shall have to do them all, but I'll see how it looks.
Here are a few of them...
And here is another finished one. Not quite as good, I think, but still more than adequate for a troop choice with 40 models in the unit!
Cool idea and really nicely done. Maybe you could do the other hand/arm with a similar effect. It wouldn't be much more like doing chains and such, but may give a nice symmetry to the models?
And those rusty skeletons before look amazing!
I like how this is looking, but feel I may need to do the effect on at least three-quarters of the army instead of just half.
I need to do a wash on all of the weapons and skin, then do the ghostly fade on these lot. At that stage I'll need to decide whether to do another ten.
Seriously considering doing the hands on ten of them, as others have suggested. The other, of course, is do do the chains.
Maybe I should even do hands on ten and chains on the other ten.
These look brilliant Fifty, had a quick catch up on your thread and the transition from ethereal to corporeal really set them off. A great way to add some interest to the hordes of undead ghosties!
That’s a serious bunch of ghosties! I like the idea of having a variety of different things coming in and out of reality; nothing, weapons, hands and chains seems like a good mix. It should give a bit of variety amongst the duplicate minis without too much effort
Thanks for the compliments. I think that twenty of the forty is not quite enough with transitions, so I'll do another ten. Probably hands, rather than chains, or most likely a bit of both.
Graven, I am quite sure your boy could pull it off. The rust on your Blightkings looks great - I'm sure you could help him with it for the Nighthaunt.
I wanted to finish these today, but I've been poorly. Pretty sure it is just a head cold, not the 'rona, though my boss and a colleague do have it, so I can't be sure. I reckon I just caught a cold from the tool on the train who took his mask off immediately prior to sneezing in my direction. Way to miss the point of a mask, idiot. Anyway, I spent much of today sleeping, so a minor delay has been caused.
Ghost boys are looking good Fifty! And corporeal weapons should certainly help in hitting enemies. The question of course is, if they went through walls or something, would the weapons be left behind...
mcmattila wrote:Ghost boys are looking good Fifty! And corporeal weapons should certainly help in hitting enemies. The question of course is, if they went through walls or something, would the weapons be left behind...
They can turn them on and off. (They have a magic button)
I can officially state that having Covid sucks a lot. I've been iller a few times in my life, most notably when I had penicillin-resistant tonsilitis, ate no food for over 48 hours and almost none for five days, went full on delirious with delusions that I was six hundred people, and lost almost ten kilos in a couple of weeks... but this is top three so far and I haven't recovered yet. Very up and down. (No, it was not just a head cold!)
Anyway, I've managed a teensy bit of painting each day and have my Chainguard to post. I ought to set up a proper background, but I made some nice amospheric photos...
The Spirit Guardian still needs his pin washes for his deep shading, but he looks good enough to be in the photos.
Get well soon Fifty! I was lucky and only had mild symptoms with my infection, but it was still worse than any I had the last ten years so I feel you. One another note those ghost in the woods shot look really cool!
Get well old son. Sorry for Papa blessing you. We had it in April, kids brushed it off, but we were out of action for a week and a month of hacking cough. Not as ill as Swine flu, not as grim as norovirus, but still pretty awful.
Nighthaunts are stunning, btw.
Sucks that you have the ‘rona, hopefully you fight it off soon. The ghosties are looking fantastic haunting the woods. I love the splash of colour from the roses and green flames. They’re going to be a great looking army
Someone made a post on an Oldhammer Facebook group that made me feel like checking whether I actually own every single Jes Goodwin Eldar Harlequin model from Rogue Trader. I have the boxed set in good condition in the loft, but took out all the spares and blister models...
Good news is, I have spares of every model the boxed set, so I can leave that as a collectible in its own right if I want to paint a whole set...
Bad news was, no trouper 11!
Good news is, I just found the only one of him on Ebay and bought him
I also have a few spare character models...
And a few jetbikes
When the new guy arrives, I will have a complete set of Jes Goodwin Goodwin harlequins to go with my complete set of Jes Goodwin Chaos Champions!
Damn, very nice. I think I have two sets of the box, none of the blisters. I keep thinking about checking if they are actually viable with modern rules. So much has changed since the RT days. And they have an eclectic selection of wargear.
.
on that large of metal models.
Scouts are looking great!
But, if I read correctly, they aren't available anymore? They would fit nicely on the new Space Marine models that are coming with 9th.
an army of these please.
Nice work!
could do with more missile launchers 
