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Saga of the Rödmoon

“The flutist made a beautiful sound in the depth of the Kaernas forest. It was snowing. Käelma the native Hakkae called it. Hakkae had 27 different words for particular types of snow fall. Käelma was the 26th, a steel rain of black crystals that froze on your skin and caused instant frostbite with the cold winds. After that came what translated only as death, and Sgt. Borros did not intend to find out why.

27th Roslak Rovers, sheltered under the thick protective foliage of the massive Kaernas trees. Huddled around the flutist. The music was their shield, their comfort, their memory on this grey night before another battle. It was a song only a month old. A song of death and duty, of a hero and a daemon. The memory of it still left the men shaken, some weeping, but all of them focused. It was a story of the Emperor in the sun and his executioners in the night.

A month ago the Rovers were getting annihilated, outnumbered and out fought by the black crusade. Legions of the damned, supported by traitor Marines and daemons of the warp. The imperial lines were going to collapse and another planet would be consumed by the despoiler. The dark sorceries opened a rift between realms. Death visited Kaernas.

Borros had prayed, prayed like the elders thought him. Prayed for Sun Emperor’s deliverance.

A giant in grey armor, clad in pelts, and adorned with steel imagery and burning red runes of warding launched from the rift. Sprung on the traitor, daemon and damned alike. He cleaved them in half with massive sweeps of his frosted axe, flayed left and right with a massive claw dripping gore and sent explosive shells from his wrist cannon at the backs of all who tried and failed to escape the carnage. The lord of Grey flowed through the front line, propelled by a jet of blood. Even the enemy Defiler was left in pieces, it’s daemon hart ripped from it’s carcass.


It was over so shockingly fast. Defied comprehension. A dozen battered Rovers stood frozen like statues and stared in the black mercury eyes of the wolf.”








"The Bear shall take up the mantle of
Gatekeeper, and the Lost Kin return to the
Realms of Man. Brother shall slay brother, as
at the Dawn of Time, but the Were-kin stand
aloof. Their task set in stone before them. The
Son of the Traitor shall lay waste - First the
Gate, then the Palace. The Children of Russ
shall oppose him or perish, their names
reviled for all time. Now is the time, mighty
Wolf. Your hunt is nearing its end. Your
quarry is set before you. Your saga shall be
sung for all time."
— Prophecy of Frode


"The voice of Russ was the loudest of all, [Text lost] but Guilliman and Dorn gainsaid his counsel. To enter the Occularis Terribilis would bring disorder on the surviving Legions, they said, leaving Man vulnerable to both the xenite and apostate. It is said that Russ, as was often the way, took his own counsel and sent forth the Wulfen to hunt down Abaddon and his followers. Others say that the Thirteenth Great Company pursued the heretics of their own accord, as hounds at the chase who heed not the calls of their huntsman. Others still maintain that the Wulfen had been tainted by the Dark Gods and were summoned by their call to join the Traitor Legions in the netherworld"


News,

Imagine the bravest, the most dedicated, those who paid the heaviest price of the VI Legion, Adpetus Astartes, Vlka Fenryka, Emperor's executioners. A Warrior band of individual heroes and hounds, in pursuit in to the warp 10 millenia ago to hunt down Magnus and the rest of the heretic Primarchs. Imagine a beautiful set of illustrations by Dainton translated to model form by an exquisite set of conversions and hyper realistic, but moody paint jobs.

XX Legion fought in moonlight, these will dwell in a warp blizzard. Things will be flowing in different directions, there will be a swirl of death and thunder around each hero and huscarl, wulfen and wolf. A dozen or so insane(ly) powerful warriors and or beasts. Empowered by the liberties in army selection that is the seventh edition Warhammer 40000.

A whole new level of scale (beyond what the insanity that was and is Legion) and new material feel with different weathering effects.

I've finally started a brand new project. In the planning ever since I saw the new Horus model.This is a return to my first love, the Space Wolves, but the extreme 13th Great Company. You will notice a common theme to Alpha Legion. Stealth and duty, hated but loyal to death. I needed to wait until my birthday to open my box of goodies and have been having a blast this weekend.

I want to considerably up the ante from Legion (sure I'll add to them too) and truly go nuts with the best of FW models... Which I painstakingly avoided with Legion's plastic only goal. There's something to be said about the power of restrictions, and equally letting go once you've built the stamina and skills in a given area. I want to make Legion look crude in comparison, and Space Wolves built out of the box look like toys.

I hope you enjoy the journey and feel free to engage in discussion and feedback.

Migs



A Lord and his hound - Wolf Lord Harkon Bloodmoon a few details from primer and very early look at first of the Wulfen.



Birthday treats and the warmth in which the frozen beasts will take shape...



And as always, also to be found here:
http://legionofplastic.blogspot.com/2014/09/vlka-fenryka-wulfenkind-attack.html

Thanks guys! Hopefully it will be a few years of Awesome breaking out from the Warp!




Automatically Appended Next Post:

 ProfessionalAmateur wrote:
Veuve Clicquot? Fancy!

Spoiler:

It might not be fancy, I don't know much about Champagne

Costs less than Horus for sure And is a birthday present.

This blog is already up to a brilliant start We've established a whole new value system for models too!

The Art of Preparation

It's only a week into the project that I fully realize how healthy this is and how much I needed this. Gone are the old restrictions, and I'm busy designing the new vision, new focus, and that is always a process of creation, but also elimination.

I think I will do a single model each month - part of the massive appeal of this new project. By the end of next year I will have an army of 15 warrior gods and wulfen beasts, and possibly some armor for them.

Last night I airbrushed all the base colors on the Lord and his base. Feels like cheating. Smooth as photoshop, fast as a rendering farm. I've got some new paints from spain, seen in the picture, that have simply stunning flesh tones. For somebody who has lived in the cold moonlight saturation for years and years, getting to paint a very realistic, feral, deep and vivid skin is quite a feast.

I also picked the palette last night. Seen in the picture below. And cleaned this bigger drawer that used to be for Legion paints. I will use a bunch of reds - something I almost avoided all together for Legion.

The full new back of tricks will include:
Airbrushing to get the overall direction of light, but the tool will not be visible at all in the finished piece. (the model air color palette is not pictured, 5 or so paints that I apply with the airbrush on Tamiya grey spray)
Vallejo and these new Acrylics 77 something, Tamiya acrylics applied as progressive wash like flows of highlights and shadow.
Oil paints! Full on weathering techniques I learnt doing the knight. (not in the picture)
Enamel filters (not in the picture)
pihments
pledge and tamiya flat medium varnish to get the exact gloss (lack of where I need it)
combination of metallics (acrylic and enamel) left unvarnished to really get that pop.
I believe this will result to the best miniatures I've ever painted, with a style that is distinctly mine, but also a fresh combination of different influences. First results in a week or so I would estimate.

 pantheralegionnaire wrote:


Using the Horus model as a "regular" Wolf Lord, though? And not a Primarch? Yeah....that's a whole new take on scale. What will you do when (eventually) a Primarch Wolf-King model comes out? I look forward to you "up-scaling" that.

There will be seneschal's, banner men, servitors and other humans in the force to really ram that scale home! When Leman Russ is eventually released, I will convert him into another leader, like this first Lord. Infact, I plan to build quite a few of the Primarch's into Wolf heroes of different kind. Angron is too recognizable to be used wholly, but he will donate parts across the project.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 weirdingway wrote:

Oh I wonder if the Warhammer Forge Skin Wolves will be making an appearance? Or maybe they're too bestial ...

Not too bestial. I ordered them a few weeks ago, and cannot wait to see where I will go with them. Might convert them heavily into count as thunder wolf cavalry. Lots of alternative plans too.

Thanks guys,

I spent another few hours painting, to realize this is going to be the worst model to start with, as it is so detailed and has so little skin visible, you won't see the hopefully beautiful grey armor and the contrasting bestial skin and splashes of gore.

It will take a long time to paint too, but it is so enjoyable to paint single minis. It doesn't matter how long it takes.

I need to make a quick business trip, so there will be bit of a brake after sunday, but still expect the first fully finished model within two weeks.

 endtransmission wrote:
Ah I'll be interested to see how those scalecolour paints come out. I've been looking at the flesh and steel sets recently and contemplating a purchase

So far worth every penny! The shades are great and they are incredibly full of pigment!

Thanks

Check out the photo John sent me:

http://legionofplastic.blogspot.com/2014/09/vlka-fenryka-inspiration-and-another.html

I had a good few nights and the 1st model is more than half way done. These days the most painting I get done at the time is one or 2 hours, and the only way to get anything finished is to be disciplined and do something every almost every night.

I applied an oil wash and an enamel filter last night. Since some folks asked about the filter, it's a product, by www.migproductionswebshop.com . This particular hue is called "panzer grey blue filter"or something similar. A great way to add a little variation to the grey. I also use their Abteilung oils.

The thing with the oils is that they need a long time to dry and it so happens I had to leave on a business trip and the paint should be conveniently cured when I get back on Friday. Then a few more nights and I should finally be ready to show you some pictures.

 Apologist wrote:
Fantastic to see you back on the horse,
...

Waiting with baited breath on the first of the Vlka Fenryka! Any plans for Abnett-style leather masks etc.? I always thought that was a great touch and would provide a great opportunity for freehand knotwork.

Thanks Mate!

Yes, there are plans for leather masks in places It's an interesting detail to balance as there hasn't been a miniature or artwork representation really. I've been sketching and thinking about it though. At least the human models in the project will get leather masks of some kind. At least some of them..

I've been re-reading Prosper Burns on my trip and making notes from iBooks like you. It's a brilliant book and a very convenient tool. I have so many ideas born out of reading it again. As always, taking inspiration, but going to slightly different places too

Cannot wait to be back on the project tomorrow night with all of this bottled up energy to spend on Hjarkor Rödmoon, called Lord Hjar, Jarl.

Gentlemen,

Lord Hjar has been painted and I am ready to face the photographic hardship of trying to get a hundred subtle shades of grey blues and grey browns to show. Hopefully with some success tonight.

I already took a long glance at the bits box. Pure, raw, Warhammer gothic waiting to be hacked and built in unimaginable ways and I already have ideas for a dozen very characterful models to follow Lord Hjar. One by one.

migs

The first moment of truth. Lord of the Wulfen. A hundred subtle shades of Grey. Eyes of burning black mercury prey from a sun-starved skin of scar tissue and a ten millennia of winter.

Very very hard to photograph the grey hues, and to get the wide range of gloss effect, from the sparkle of the metal, to the sheen of the frosted areas, to the matt of the wolf pelt and armor, to the glow of the runes (which fails the most, and show I need to go back, add oomph and apply a thin ink glade for satin reflectivity)






and full photo dump:

http://legionofplastic.blogspot.com/2014/10/vlka-fenryka-hjarkor-rodmoon-called.html

Will add to Flickr (has the best compression) later today.

I also updated the first post to kick of this blog properly

Looking forward to your comments!

Thanks guys!

He is an interesting starting point. There is very little flat armor to show off how well I can weather and add interest to it. This will obviously be sorted with many of the following models.

I've really combined everything I've learned and put it in a new context that hopefully pushes the results even further. Going back to black undercoat was really refreshing and a nice challenge after years and years. And overall working on something new is just so healthy.

I can barely contain the excitement of the stuff I am working on. A wulfen, a wolf priest, a wolf guard, and an iron priest are accumulating parts and forming in my head. I also have 4 more wulfen in sights and giant wolves without riders that will rep thunder-wolf cavalry...

I obviously also need to give you some size comparison shots. The sheer size of him, married to the tiny amazing detail that Eagan is such a master sculpting, makes a world of difference. He really is starting to feel more like a GW painting taking three dimensional form.

M

Thanks mate! Much appreciated.

Axe is intentional, what isn't captured very well, is I've used a tamiya snow weathering powder to gently frost the metal, and the see the black cracks as veins of darkness and ice that make the blade so lethal.

Scale shot is a must! I will do that soon, probably with some WIP stuff to share this weekend.

BTW, do you have any experience of the Ammobunker forums? I've heard great things and as I am looking for an active discussion around the blog, I decide to give it a go:

http://s3.zetaboards.com/The_Ammobunker/topic/7697037/1/

Thanks. I'm hoping to share a bunch of WIP models this weekend!!

The famous flow, intriguing state of hobby bliss where ideas turn into beginnings and you feel like hiding in a bunker for a few days to just work on the models.

Ideas can be really fragile, fickle things that need to be exposed to others in the correct order. A WIP picture of a model in a project like this is like seeing a puzzle piece half finished. You can respect the craft and build intrigue, but then what.

And I hope that is part of the charm, enjoyable and a nice tease.

Last night was spent on the holiest of hobby times, sorting out a new brilliant bits box, where a dozen models was already sketched together in their respective compartment. I flirted with the idea of sharing a picture, but then felt like posting the inside of my brain on the inter web and decided to wait. I found a great quality tool box thing, that has little, medium and large yellow compartments inside that can not only be arranged to my liking, but also picked up to work on an individual model.

Today I have pictures of Bone crafting aides for a wolf priest that will be based on the Salamander Primarch, Vulkan. A Kraken slaying warrior god specialized in the arts of healing and death. The surgeons are sinister beings, crafted fro their purpose, wearing different animal skull masks and to be heavily detailed with chapter lore. Also featured is an Iron Priest in terminator armor, with an assault cannon. First of many Mechanicus themed things in the Rout of Terror. It's a simple conversion that strikes a nice balance between recognizable silhouette and novelty. I've thrown a toy space marine in there to show the scale.

It does look brutal and very hard, but somehow not very sharp...no criticism but it's not "shiny" like a lot of weapons are. That's cool; just a stylistic observation. Looks like something "The Kurgan" would carry...beaten out of meteoric iron or something.

Hah! I totally agree with you. It really does not look, and is not sharp. One genuine problem with GW axes that my painting hasn't really helped. The flat at the edge is probably 0.3-.05 wide, centimeters if it was real size... This is a great point you make and something I need to be mindful of with the future models. Sharpen them blades!

Pantheralegionnaire: Thanks. Totally, much more flesh on the first wulfen already and more on the way.

Apologist: I understand the concern. In the fluff weapons made of death world predator bone are mentioned, and I was going to paint the blade to match the bone elsewhere on the models. A small, mean axe (from Empire kits) would not be a bad alternative though! Hmmm...

I love the medicine quote. It's such a key point to understand that a Wolf Priest is not a chaplain in dogmatic religious purpose, but a shaman apothecarion in a survival context, as religions of hunter gatheres (and Fenris) were about surviving and making meanings.

Thanks for your thoughtful feedback gents!

Evening by evening, an hour or so at a time the work continues. I realize that for the sake of myself and you, finding a good balance/cadence between painted and wip is stuff is quite key. At the same time, I really want to feel free to enjoy what ever feels like the most fun thing to work on at the time. Feel like it's individual models, but with some "factory" style benefits. An example being how airbrushing one model at a time is a little silly really.

So I've got the Iron Priest and the Wulfen ready for Airbrushing and I think I will finish the 3 surgeons for painting before the next airbrush session. I have also worked on the Wolf Priest (Vulcan) who is going to be the most representative model of the ambition so far, and a Wolf Guard leader with the mark of Wulfen (Gorgon) who looks just plain bestial - like Braveheart turned into a Space Marine and cursed by the Wulfen.

Pictures again this weekend. Aiming for a weekly cadence should be neat, with something finished each month.

It's getting pretty intense in California. There is so much insane stuff in the works now that I had to stop and share this before diving into painting and finishing some models. There will be a myriad of really strange seneschals and thralls, but I am also really pushing the Marines themselves to be VERY gothic.

In my excitement to returning to my first love army, I have decided to aim for a full 2000pt army within next year. Made of heroes and other expensive beings, it is not entirely unrealistic. Not with the momentum.

I love the game effect of Thunder Wolves, and the new plastic models are really brilliant, but the idea of Marines riding wolves is just silly (vs. plain stupid for Logan's sled?). So my cavalry will be made with just the wolves and their respective bionics to rep equipment, but the Wulfen Lord will just run and hunt with his wolves!

Would very much appreciate hearing your comments on Lord Balewolf.



and more pictures: Legion of Plastic


Migs

The Axe is from Logan.

We seem to have the reverse take on the models. To me Ferrus is bigger than Horus. Clearly. This has been echoed on the blogger and email comments I've gotten from people working with same models.

Looking forward to seeing what you do with your conversions! That's the best part of the hobby and by far the best way to do constructive criticism. To show a better way


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Malika2 wrote:
I'm surprised to see how well normal Marine/Terminator parts seem to fit with the Primarch models!

If you pick the right arm, as there seems a wide range in size and mount them just right on the torso piece, they look ok. I'm also using Ork! arms on this and other models actually. Same caveats apply.

 pantheralegionnaire wrote:

And to chime in on the size issue, Vulkan is supposed to be the biggest Primarch, in terms of raw size and strength. Not sure how that might factor into an army composition but figured I'd mention it.

That's cool! Thanks for the info - it makes sense.

The sword is still under review I like it for being the most precisely engineered GW sword. It is actually sharp and straight. I need a sword for game play reasons, and because there will be so many axes and hammers elsewhere in the army, but would very much appreciate tips on where to find one that is sharp and crisp and fitting.

m

 jah-joshua wrote:
i like the sword...
to me, there is nothing on the sword that makes it look specifically DA, like feathers for example...
the shape of the blade is cool...

...

here it just looks suitably barbaric and brutal...

Thanks, that's exactly how I see it!

And thank god for the Primarch size comments, finally the bottle neck has opened and the topic is getting proper momentum!

I'm having such a blast the project has fast spiraled into a focused, grand vision. Where Legion ebb and flow took years and years of work, creating the Rout may be a thunderclap of a year to get to a full warrior band at 2000 pts. My rout will be a band of ridiculously diverse beings that still share a common, strictly focused, raw and austere aesthetic.

There are major advances to report. And possibly pictures Monday to stay on the weekly cadence.

I have done all the airbrush base color work, and then hand painted the skin for three new models. Balewolf, the first Wulfen and the Assault Cannon Iron Priest terminator. Airbrushing still feels like cheating. It is such a fantastic tool to apply zenith highlight and incredibly smooth depth. I think it combines quite well with my weatherly and gritty brush work to create something that really doesn't look tool driven, has enough technical definition but also emotion. I will now switch gears to finishing Jarl Balewolf, as him and the wolf are fast becoming the core of this whole exercise. The visual heart of what imagery I am after. Finishing them may take a week of long evenings. But should be worth your wait.

I really enjoy painting these. I get the same meditative kick out of it as I always do, but it doesn't feel representative or so utterly unforgiving as the water colourly flowing shading of say Alpharius and Alpharius. It's also very clear that I am doing something very new to myself. Black primer, airbrush, oils, Legion learnings, plus all the vehicle painting learnings... Very heavy use of pigments.

After a week of Army builder gymnastics, I've put together a 2000pt group that can do the Sky Warriors proud on the battle field and be fun to build. One take away during Legion was that it is actually a really fun game and I want to play more. But it's annoying to build so much random stuff that doesn't really work so well as an army. - and this happens by default if you take years to build as the game changes so much. 7th Edition Space wolves still have all the hall marks of what have always been my favorite playing force. Speed, very active in all the different game phases and best suited for ripping enemies apart in close combat. I have on purpose stayed away from Psykers though. They don't work so well with my vision for the 13th, and being able to re-learn the game and 7th edition without magic will be helpful step.

The Company of the Great Wolf supplement has proven the perfect platform to build my heroes, and again, I will use Sentinels of Mars (Terra) allied department to build some of my loved Mechanicus things. I will later ad a small guard component using the solar auxilia.

In the Wolf Codex, there is a great little passage that describes the tunnels, halls, ducts and caves of Fang being full of heavily armed thralls, servitors, wolves and the combinations of the three. Building these will be a ton of fun. And my bit box is filling up with concepts that make the Surgical Thralls look like Neighbors.

What has made me most excited though, is the idea to outsource the Drop pod and vehicle pool manual labor. I have hired the great folks of Frontline Gaming to purchase, clean, assemble and prime black 3 Drop Pods and 2 Storm Wolves, that I will then painstakingly paint to look like massive things of steel and adamantium. This is the stuff that has always been pure pain for me, and realizing I can concentrate on creating amazing models and adding value only where there is value to add on the vehicles is a real epiphany for somebody working 60 hour weeks.

As ever, excited to hear your thoughts.

Hope the links work, because Rhuncir Gorevlkae says hello!

Rhuncir Gorevlkae, called Lord Balewolf, Jarl by migsula, on Flickr

Rhuncir Gorevlkae, called Lord Balewolf, Jarl by migsula, on Flickr

Rhuncir Gorevlkae, called Lord Balewolf, Jarl by migsula, on Flickr



Automatically Appended Next Post:
Okay, images don't work :/ anybody have experience of linking from FLICKR?

Well DAKKA is a notorious killer of picture quality The compression is so severe/archaic. Interestingly, the hot linking worked on other forums. Too bad my favorite all time web forum, Dakka, needs to be the worst user experience...

I'll link from blogger.

Balkwolf is done (minus a pool of blood and spatter on the base after final varnish on the base)

Let me know what you think!

Thanks guys! So good to get some comments.

Pantheralegionnaire: I'm pondering the eye too. It's currently with this uber reflective metallic, so I know a touch of ink here and there will make a nice effect, and the plan was red, but also there is enough red. With each project I tend to decide NOT to use one primary color to make it tougher and to have a distinct visual. With Legion it was Red, this time it'll be either green or blue. Likely green. Which points to blue

I'm absolutely positive Forge World will cater this project so nicely. Cannot even describe how amazing it will be when they eventually do Leman Russ and actual SW kits. But I'm really happy I started before all the toys. The Mechanicus stuff will still have a wolfy theme, and I think I will try to find something different than a lot of red. Currently I think a ton of metal, as I'm really enjoying the metallics at the moment.

I decided to edit a post about different aspects that have come up. For the (Alpha) Legion project, at times random posts about inspiration, vision and what drives decision making seemed to be of big interest.

In the new Space Wolves codex, an applicant sees their Bio Mass grow by 80% when they receive the Canis Helix, and that on top of sturdy, tall, scandinavianesque physique of what I imagine the people of Fenris possess. Astartes are described as warriors gods in all the background. This is where I start. Legion was about doing my take on what the Plastic Space Marine kits should be. This is a celebration of Forge World's vision and taking everything up a notch as pieces of art that can stand on their own. I want my Sky Warriors to feel and look like the Warrior Gods they are. "True-scale or Art-scale" can be missing the point. It's not about numbers, it's about expressing the correct feeling.

For that end, hopefully many of you get the opportunity to see these in real life, with the right reference set of other miniatures. Until then, it's time for me to work on and finish a few human sized beings to give you that reference.

I am Finnish and grew up with Scandinavian folklore, children's books and general aesthetics, in the seasons of utter cold and darkness and endless days of the summer. So indirectly or directly that is one key inspiration. I draw from the same Northern European imagery Games Workshop and their Art Direction also drinks deeply from. I've spent three years of my life in the Uk and now three years in California. Both key influences.

The eyes on the wolf and the Sky Warriors are black metallic. This wonderful dark metallic paint that makes it as if the dark pit is staring at you what ever the angle. In the fluff the wolf eyes are described as golden, while Altansar Eldar and other good forces stuck in the Eye of Terror have black eyes. Putting the two together here.

Where Shaddes off Greye had a bunch of colors, each with grey added in, here I have a lot less, but full intense skin and reds for example. Very different aesthetic! Almost night and day, without pun intended. Legion in between was so very colorful, yet avoided red all together. Avoiding one primary color has been a great successful differentiator, and this time that might be avoiding green. And introducing some blue here and there.

I also nearly felt there are too many eye catchers on Balewolf. So much detail, bone, fur, gem, metal, skin, and if it wasn't for tying many of them together in categories of color and feel, the model would be overwhelming and lack focus/impact.

Basing has always been a very critical part of my miniatures. I feel I have consistently gone beyond what most other modelers have done with every single miniature in the army. It's about setting the world, giving a glimpse of the weather and wear and feel of the place. A place I define. I have used MIG city dirt and flat earth pigments to establish the base hue, so it is very brown grey and has a clear step change from both the Sky Warrior's and the Wolf's hue. And like everything with me that is very intentional. When the wolves go war, in art, they always bring the cold and the grey with them. That's how I feel and that's what I want to keep experimenting with. I will shy away from Snow, as that overly defines the terrain, but I want to continue to study subtle frosting effects and ice.

Thanks gents.

Weirdingway - I apply the pigments mixed to some paint for adhesion and plenty of water. It dries super matte and realistic. I seal it by airbrushing Johnson clear mixed with Tamiya matte medium. Testers dulcet spray works well too.

Malika - there will squads of terminators (built from among other things the Forge World possessed Word Bearers) and thunder wolves (GW kit without riders) and Thralls and servitors and different Mechanicus constructs.... It'll all become clear in time

With every single army or squad project I've ever done, I've taken a new step - usually for the better. Some of the biggest failures have led to the biggest successes. Like the utterly plain and lifeless first take on Inquisitor Silas, and the explosion of bravery that turned him into such a visceral piece that immediately spun a retinue of grim darkness. I have purposefully tried to learn or achieve something with each project. Tried to combat mannerism, the plague of even the greatest of artists. I see an incredible amount of extremely talented painters who've completely stagnated to repeating what works for them (and at times very well I should add). I am too curious to stop experimenting and searching. With the Rout it is the same, yet different. I worked on Legion for so long, and learned so much, while staying at a fairly constant level in terms of quality that this reset has been fantastic.

Going from a water painterly work on white undercoat, to zenith oomph, understated realism, with very intense and deep metallics and plenty of flat bone and deep red in the mix. It's a fundamental new style, yet recognizably mine I think. The first 4 models I've been painting have each though me something important.

The fact that this time it's going to be a very curated collection, a very clear vision and not a collection of sub themes that span years, makes it quite interesting. I want to put the entire lot together in a year. I feel almost like a movie director might, or so I'd imagine . The kind who writes his own stuff and shoots it too. Different pieces are coming together. Ideas need to be evaluated on a whole new level. Not just that a good idea is great, it needs to be the RIGHT idea. Something that enhances everything else in the army. One key challenge is to do this without the backdrop. With every unit a centerpiece in its own way.

I'm guessing that a beautiful collection of calm Solar Auxilia could be the follow on to create the calm.

I'm enjoying building, painting, narrating the storyline and working out the army mechanics. All at the same time. I'm hand picking key drivers from Abnett's Prospero Burns, and each and every edition of the Space Wolves codex. There are some real gems in there. The way the current one describes the things that hunt the vast labyrinth of the Fang, or how the previous talks about the 13th.

It's becoming clear my Company is returning from the Eye of Terror changed. And with a direct link to the lost. The Taboo of all taboos for the Sky Warriors. Yet also what they have been searching for. The premise for the next great hunt, and a study of good and evil, of those deepest grey areas of loyalty. It's clear there is something in the subject matter that deeply attracts me. Like Alpha Legion, like the Inquisition, all so horribly grey to do good. I love the added twist of Space Wolves' hatred against the Inquisition, and even the Ministorum. The Vlka Fenryka history is ridden with bloodshed against the tyranny and dogma of said institutions... one of the very very few forces in the universe who can go unpunished.

The fact that these feral, savage beasts, are the most noble, honorable and humane defenders of the imperium of man. That the All Father's executioners are it's most keen defenders of the weak is a fantastic storyline.

Hold that thought.

migs

PS. I have progress on the Wolf Priests bone crafters. A special order to tend the Wulfen perhaps. There is still a lot of detail to add. I have purposefully added detail that will force me to paint something I haven't tried before. Like glass orbs filled with blood and healing balms.

 pantheralegionnaire wrote:
I love the animal masks, especially on the big guy. (Man, that Nurgle model gets around!) Are you going to try cowls as described in "Prospero Burns?"

The Cairn Wraith conversion doesn't seem to fit in to me, though. I am sure you can tie it in with the paint scheme, but it seems very high-tech (the "tail" and the fact that it's floating) unlike the almost shamanistic feel of the other models.

Thanks. This is a different Nurgle model, one of the new knights So same but different I guess. And I totally share your concern. Right now I am pushing to find where the stuff brakes and or strays too far the wrong way. I want to build really weird stuff though, and have two models in the works that are a lot weirder. As the puzzle forms, I'll decide fit over individual coolness.




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 Bruticus wrote:
I haven't commented so far as I wasn't sure I could be constructive. I love the project but I have some reservations.

I think the painting is absolutely flawless, really love the way you have disguised the airbrushing and I love that instead of painting in a Golden Daemon - 'show off and highlight every little detail' type way you have gone for an understated overall effect. Also I think the faces are the best I have ever seen, the paint work on Bloodmoon's face is exceptional, soft and natural. It almost looks like the resin has been stained that colour rather than painted, I have no idea how you've achieved it.

I'm not quite sold on the conversions yet though. I think Bloodmoon looks too stock for my tastes while Balewolf doesn't quite work for me. Perhaps it is just the big plastic wolf, I think they are quite jarring next to Forgeworld levels of detail, but I suppose there is no option. It's a shame Warhammer forge has no alternative wolves.

Oddly I've come across some similar issues with a project I am working on, and I've even been making some models that look rather similar to your bone crafters (although fortunately they are a totally different concept despite sharing some parts). I wish I had found that bird skull though! Is that from an ogre kit? I think these guys look like really solid conversions, although they too might look a bit plastic next to the primarchs. I am also not keen on the cairn wraith but for some reason I seem to just have a grudge against that particular model!

The scale of the marines is great and the core concept - of using the best models available all together in one place - is obviously pretty bulletproof. I would love to be able to paint skin like you do, if you ever feel like sharing a tutorial.

Thanks mate. Between the praise, you are so critical it's a welcome challenge. I'm not going to defend or argue my decisions, but appreciate the feedback. It's like a pact really. Permission for me to be critical with the lovely work you produce too. But will also help moving forward so keep going!

Sometimes, when you do a drawing in perspective and feel like it looks a little odd, flipping the paper around, to see the mirror image often reveals exactly what was wrong. I also think the best criticisms is to show how to do something better. Not always applicable obviously. Ultimately if my work doesn't draw dislike and criticism it is not relevant work.

I don't understand the criticism on the wolf. I got it at Ammobunker too. I think it's a fantastic sculpt, captures canine feel and motion beautifully. Perhaps there is a step change in resolution of detail, I can appreciate that, Eagan in was would have done it differently, vs. somebody in the studio in CAD, but then the comparison is mostly between armor detail and fur. things that don't really compare to begin with.

On the skin, can't address enough how important getting the right shade is. And the Scale 75 paints I've been using are FANTASTIC.

Thanks for taking the time to be critical.

Definitely not a threat. Like any relationship or interaction, taking a step on the critical side is a sign for willingness and expectation to engage on a deeper level.

I airbrush the base skin color. Then all brushwork.