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When do you consider a normal (regular troop) model done?

I consider mine done after one coat of 4 colors (Clothes, Leather/hair, skin, detail).

Even though I am a horrible painter I would have to say I consider it done when I am finished painting that model?

I paint regular troops with a base color 5-8 Block/detail colors followed by going back and correct any mistakess. Then I brush on a minwax dip followed by a matte spray.

My average guardsman gets
Ruddy brown Primer/undercoat
Tan: gas mask, packs, sheaths
Black: rifle body, Boots, Eye Pieces
Metalic Silver: Rifle metal, Gas mask fittings, blades ,etc
Grey: Gloves
Bronze: imperial emblems

It's not going to win any awards, but ever since I discovered "the dip", I am fielding figures that I am proud to say I painted.

The standards for my models quality is directly inproportionally the time spent painting. Or in other words, if I've been painting for a while I'll think 'bugger that, it'll do'.

kight wrote:Even though I am a horrible painter I would have to say I consider it done when I am finished painting that model?

That's the question. What do you consider done? I know some people are "trim, prime, base coat, another base coat, uniform, skin, hair, leather, guns, emblems, Wash (uniform, skin, hair, leather, guns, emblems), dry brush (uniform, skin, hair, leather, guns, emblems), fancy base, shellac." and spend two hours per model.

I'm closer to "Prime, clothes, skin, leather" and since i prime in grey, I don't paint the guns. I probably spend a total of 20 minutes per model.

I really only do mine to the point where I can tell them apart on the battlefield from the opposition and from each other.

Undercoat
Basecoat (often more than 1 coat as my base coat is a bit thin)
Some details (eyes, weapons, raised items such as aquilla, honour markings)
Unit colour markers or rank markers
Wash
Varnish

I really am a very slap-dash painter and tbh that's fine for me and the use I put them to.

If after I do it, my eyes dont bleed. Running a guard AND ork army, I pretty much Do maybe 6 colours max.

My minimum standard is simply the best paint job I can do on that particular model. Nothing else would make my Army on the table.

base coat, primary, trim + highlights, details 10-50 mins, depending on model

Would it not be easier to see what we think is a minimum standard with pictures? instead of "this, this this and this" It would be "THIS"

1.) all the parts are painted
2.) all the paints are solid
3.) all the lines are crisp

Once I get here, I usually slap on just a touch of highlighting and bring it to the sprayer.

Basecoat (all colors)
Ink
1st highlight (all colors)
2nd highlight (all colors)
Ink retouch
3rd highlight (selected colors)
finished

I paint every little detail, then give it a badab black wash. (or Gryphonie Sepia if human flesh)

If it looks okay from a couple of feet away that's okay. I struggle with patience painting so many Ork Boyz.

Generally the cost of the model depends on how much time and detail I spend on it.

Black spray.
Kommando Khaki on fatigues (usually two coats to overcome the black)
Deneb Stone highlight on fatigues
Sepia wash against fatigues (if they've not been neck deep wading through the gak, they're not my guys)
Adeptus Battlegrey on Armor bits
Tallarn Flesh on skin
Aquillas get drybrushed bolt-gun
Armor/lasguns get Codex Grey highlights.
Maybe a touch of delvan mud on skin. Maybe.

Bases get painted gretchin green and flocked with gravel.
Pewter stuff and exceptional paintjobs get sealed,
I cut corners appropriately, depending on how frantic/drunk/tired I'm feeling.

ICs and special characters get eyes painted and even more work. For all the work I put into it, it's a shame they don't look better.

TheSecretSquig wrote:My minimum standard is simply the best paint job I can do on that particular model. Nothing else would make my Army on the table.

^ this pretty much.

Even though I play Orks, I spend a staggering amount of time painting even the boyz.
I dont think I have a "Tabletop Standard" anymore... When I paint, its an all or nothing bit. Everything gets everything painted.

Every stage of painting comes with that extra little frisson of worry that I´m going to knacker what I´ve done before, then miraculously it all just seems to come together. That said they could always do with a tad more weathering, a detail here or there & re-doing the bit I just knackered! In a word Neverending...........

I paint in layers.

For example I've been painting glade guard. I did the cloaks with hormagaunt purple as a base, then I used warlock purple. Then I drybrushed over that with burnished gold for a magical looks. Scout cloaks are hormagaunt purple with a layer of ice blue and then this lavendar from delta ceramcoat.

The green parts of the uniforms are dark angels, then a layer of snot, then the top layer is camo green.

The flesh parts are tallern flesh with elf flesh over them. I do the eyes with a white paint marker, then a dot of black in the center.

The hair is a darker yellow with a light lemon yellow on top. I also went over that with gryphonne sepia wash. I've started going over the green parts of the uniforms with a green wash, brown with devlin mud, and purples with the purple wash.

Then i base it. Bases are sand, moss, and/or a couple of rocks.

Then it must be clear-coated. I've been doing all this for every model.

I go 3 layers of any color: base, shade/wash, highlight. It's the best work to effect ratio in my opinion.

ATD FTW

Tyranids, so... Primer, skin wash, carapace, details.

Maybe 5 minutes total per troop.

They have gotten higher over the years, I used to be happy with a single highlight layer and maybe an inking.

Absolute basic now would be:

All features painted, eyes/teeth/nails etc, all accessories. Clean lines

Primer - base colours down, 1st highlight later, washes, 2nd highlight layer, 3rd layer on anything that needed it to smooth out like whites or yellows.

I paint to the highest standard I'm capable of, triple- or quadruple-shade highlights, blending if I'm up to it, multiple washes, clear coat, multiple basing materials.

When I can stay focused enough to actually finish, that is. I've got more models between states of completion than I do completed models.

base coat
top coat
highlighting
eyes, pouches, belt buckles, straps, rune plates, teeth, sculpted icons, all picked out and painted.
weapons with barrels drilled out
accent colors, shaded and highlighted
based


Yeah, I spend a lot of time painting even my rank and file guys.

My minimum standard would be pretty low as i actually rather play with bare plastic then a rushed paint job ( after all , something rushed can actually be counter productive and makes a model harder
to see on a gaming table )

However if i do choose to paint , my minimum would be working in batches ( units of 5 for squad , or unit of 3 for larger models )
i give myself deadlines per mini x the amount in each squad , 25-30 mins for foot troop , 30 - 45 mins for ogre + sized models.

Which works out to.... which ever i can complete in 2-3 hours ( my attention span )

Primer(white)
base colors
Two shades
Three highlights

Absolute minimum is clean lines (i.e. colors where they are supposed to be and not where they aren't supposed to be), drybrushed highlights, fiddly details like eyes and teeth, and a wash to shade recesses. Time spent completely depends on the model. Rank & file Plague Marine or VC Zombie might be 10-20 minutes total, where a Death Guard Terminator may be 30-45 minutes... but that's a guess at best because I haven't painted a single miniature in years. I always have the assembly line going (everyone gets inked, everyone gets Bolt Gun Metal, everyone gets Brass detail, etc). When I get cranking on a project a lot of models tend to get finished quickly.

I'm not a great painter by any means but those little extra bit of attention to detail is what helps my miniatures stand out on the table. In a good way. Really. Check my gallery for examples if you wish. Not amazingly awesome, but definitely 100% tabletop acceptable and look decent enough from a foot or so away.

Ugavine wrote:
If it looks okay from a couple of feet away that's okay. I struggle with patience painting so many Ork Boyz.

Generally the cost of the model depends on how much time and detail I spend on it.

Amen to that!
Painting 10 orc boys at a time here. One color at the time, and the rank and file troops does not get the same love my warbosses etc. gets.

Mine is something like:

Undercoat (Black)
Armor (Red, Yellow, Blue)
Guns (Blue)
Extras(Skin, Leather, Etc.)

Gets more harsh with every army.
Nids- slap that black on with some red and white, forget hte eyes!
Eldar- gotta get them eyes an little details
Chaos- learn to wash and power weapons.
White scars- painting htem in about 30 peices each with heavy washes for a dirty rugged look....... takes a while but its worth it.