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So, I'm trying to get a simple 1000 point army painted up for Adepticon. I am a horribly slow painter. I am also not willing to compromise on the quality of paint job... it's my army, I' want it to look as good as I can make it. I have been painting like a mad man for months and while I've made good progress, and I only have a small number of models to go... (14 and-a-half)... I look at the 7 weeks left and everything I have to do (including all the non-40k responsibilities in my life) and I have to swallow hard. I've mapped it all out... and theoretically I should be able to bring everything in on time... but there's no margin for error. Just as important... It's not really fun at this point... I'm just pounding it out trying to keep up with my schedule.

I've done what I can to speed myself up... got an airbrush, am learning how to use it (and it does help tremendously), but in the end it's just slow going.

So. We come to the point of this post.


1. What things do you do to increase the speed of your painting *without* compromising quality?? How do you make yourself more efficient?

2. When you're painting against a deadline for extended periods... how do you keep the fun in it? Or do you just suck it up and plow through?



Please keep your responses focused on the topics at hand. If you don't have any experience or advice on the above, you don't need to post that fact... just leave the bandwidth for those folks who can help us by answering the above.

Thanks,
Gits

Hmm, let's see what I cna add from my WHFB experience, where 100+ models for an army is perfectly normal :

1.a.: assembly line painting; starting with bigger numbers of basecoat and then scaling down for detail. For example, I'll undercoat the skin on 20 grots, do consecutive highlights on 10, touch up with black on 5, do block colours on 5, then down to 2 or 3 for the fine detailing: eyes, teeth, rust,...

1.b: choice of colours. If all the guys have red pouches, it stands out. if one has a red pouch, the other a red knife shath, the third a red auspex... you can still add lots of detail with just one colour.

1.c. good colour technique. By that I mean: learn how to get you highlighting and shading on a colour right, so you can do it easily on lots of models. As an example, in my armies teeth and claws are all scorched brown > bubonic brown < bleached bone for regular grunts, with more stages for characters. This means that I can always paint bone consistently.

2.a. : good music; anythting that you'll dream away on makes time fly.

2.b. change the type of colour. If you've painted a lot of yellow, do something else, etc.

2.c. reward yourself with something special after a squad is done. A character, a mini you've had you eye on,...

2.d. Keep getting games in; it's the best motivator IMO!

Thanks CK, those are all excellent suggestions. My 2d has really been off. Have had one game in 2 months maybe... Your assembly line painting sequence is very interesting too. Aw heck, it's all good advice, thanks!

Definitely agree with 2.a. Music or a tv show you've been wanting to watch (but nothing detailed enough that you need to pause to look at the screen more than a couple of times--it's why action tv shows are the best, although West Wing is great because it's all Aaron Sorkin dialogue driving it).

If you're painting for a tourney, then get your three colours on all of your models straight away. Once that's done, it'll be less stress and more fun to paint since you'll be painting to make your army look better rather than as a requirement of entry.

I agree with you both on the music or TV, I have both in my studio so that part isn't an issue... though American TV has been inundated with absolute crap lately. Seems that all of my favorite shows (US & BBC) are in-between seasons so there's nothing new to watch. The pressure to produce high quality on a tight schedule that kind of sucks some of the joy out of it for me. Especially as I have others depending on my to do so (since I'm in the team tournament at said Con).

I did actually budget time for working on a movement tray too, so at least I'm thinking along those lines, which is good. No time for extra fluffy things like team banners and such, but mayhap my companions will be faster than I am and have some extra time for doing such things.

I have been working the past 3 months to get my Fantasy Orc and Goblin army ready for a tourney that is in two weeks. I had to suck it up and just get 3 colors on 50 or so Orcs, but I have finally gotten everything that I need painted, now I can go back and add details and improve the overall look of the army over the next two weeks. Not everything will be to the standard that I would like it to be, but at least it will not be just primed or even gray models.

I have found that setting small goals has helped, like tonight i have the goal of finishing the Night Goblin Shaman (just need to paint the wings on his staff), and to get the skin done on the crew for the rock lobber (they currently just have 1 coat of a 5 step process). If i have time after that then i will try and finish the crew because its just the rocks and leather left.

I like to watch movies or TV while painting, but have found that its better to put music on instead because then your not getting distracted by the TV.

Good luck with finishing up the army.

Cloudburst

Hey GS,

What I've done in the past (and I should do in the present)

- Make up 5 models (as I'm a SM player this is perfect for an assault squad, half tac squad etc)
- Spray basecoat on those 5 models
- While those 5 are drying make up the next 5 models.
- once those are made, and based, start with base colours on the 5 who were based and should now be dry.
- Due to how my current colour scheme is once I finish the last of the first 5, i can start the wash cycle on the first one. once I reach the last model the second batch should be ready for their base colour then wash.

After the second batch is done, go back over the first batch to get good coverage/high lighting. with the same then done for batch two (if the second batch isnt dry I take a quick break go out for a quick walk around the desk get amped up for the next part)

once the base colours are done I bring out single colour detail on the first 5 (black/silver for weapons or base blue for power weapons pouches etc) then move on to the next 5.

At this point you could do another round of detail highlighting or start on the second round of models.

So this might seem weird, but it has helped me keep going. I use a regular red plastic cup (like a beer cup) for my water. I used my clippers to make a random number of cuts along the edge (in your case I'd make the number of things needed to be painted - 1). After I finished a model, I'd cut a tab off. The first few didn't seem like much, but now that I am down to 2 tabs (I had at least a hundred) its quite exciting. I think I will give the cup a funeral pyre when its over.

I also made an excel sheet with all the points models cost, and a running total of points painted (among other things) to see the actual numbers going up as I finished stuff. I can email it to you if you'd like to edit it for your own use.

Here's what I suggest.

Assemble, base and then primor all the models in your army.

Put the must fundamental paintjob on all your figures. Yes, this goes against your desire to not compromise, but just follow me here.

Once you've got a "3-color paintjob" on all of your figures and they are essentially completely painted as far as the "rules" go, go back and start detail work on one model at a time. Do your characters first, upgraded infantry second, vehicles third, basic troops last.

Doing this will get you at least a painted army should you not finish in time. It will also let you get games in as you work to bring your army to a higher standard of painting.

@Knightley: That sounds like a good system... back and fourth with different stages keeps things fresh and moves you along... thanks!

@WM: I think I'd like that... thank you!

Which part?

Sorry, the excel file... though the cup idea is cool too! (but you don't have to send me a beer cup)... *grin*