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Vote time!

This month the topic was Ancients - Anything old: for example: Elves, mummies, venerable dreadnoughts, dinosaurs, Dante, crones, bearded sages, wizened elders. Space marine banner bearers also hold this title. Or for a more meta standpoint, a model from the depths of time. Early sculpts, actual lead models, minis steeped in history. Or personally, (and most importantly) anything that has been in your pile of shame or primed pile for multiple years.

As always, you're free to hand out as many votes as you like, and for any entry you feel deserves recognition, based on anything from technical proficiency or model choice, a neat conversion or a cool take on the theme, or anything else! You're also very welcome to leave some feedback here for the entrants, and many of the images click through to the Dakka gallery if you'd like to give out a vote or two there as well.


Daia T'Nara - Elrond: Half-Elf Lord


Leopold Helveine - NubH'grul the Skorketal king.


inmygravenimage - To the gates of Valhalla!


XvArcanevX - Ye Olde Forest Spirit Thingy:


JoshInJapan - Craftworld Eldar Guardians


theCrowe - Brutus Testudo


Gulgog TufToof - Summoning the Ancients


Pariah Press - Old Old One Eye


ShadowsAndDust - Blood Angels Eradicators


bong264 - Balrog


Captain Brown – Redemptionists


Vejut - Clan War Nezumi


halfling84 - Eirene from Ancient Bards


Geifer -Omega


endtransmission - Space Wolf Deathwatch Dreadnought


youwashock - Elric, the White Wolf.


KidCthulhu - Inquisitor Moebius Arzach and Adeptus Custodes Cavillus


Llamahead - Liche


Midget Gems - Contemptor Dreadnaught


Mr Nobody - Retro Armiger Knight


bantha_beast – Ancient Foes


Syro_ - Azrael


Maharg - Tomb Kings Chariot


Nevelon – RTB01 Ultramarines


CancelledApocalypse - Jain Zar


Ezki - Erza of Dedheim



If I missed anthing, please let me know.

There were a lot of good entries last month.

I can't believe I finished on the last day and I'm still in the middle of the list.

 ShadowsAndDust wrote:
There were a lot of good entries last month.

I second this; I put down about twice as many votes as I normally do!

Tough month to choose the votes. So many good entries!


Here's a few notions, in no particular order:

XvArcanevX - Ye Olde Forest Spirit Thingy: A heck of a cool model and nice work you've done with it. If I'm being totally honest, I think the backside is currently the "golden angle", which is a rare thing to say haha. The light hits the wings, the back carapace and the horns just right. I think the pictures are working a bit against you elsewhere, as there are many great volumes and lovely tones visible from different angles, but lost on others. I'm convinced, that this model would look stunning when held in hand! That being said, well done with the color scheme and differentiating the blue tones from each other. And kudos for being brave enough to push the contrast that high. I rarely am.

Syro_ - Azrael: For a three day project that is quite the achievement, especially with all the precise detail! And that banner is really cool. I think you have definitely outdone yourself. Well done!

Mr Nobody - Retro Armiger Knight: The weathering is convincing, especially on the back plate and the weapon. The crisp white and the near perfect lines with the contrasting blue are quite tasty (me being Finnish does have nothing to do it I swear ). Overall very nice work!

CancelledApocalypse - Jain Zar: Brilliant work on her! The lighting is well executed: it's clear where the the light is shining from and where it hits the character. The armor panels are well thought out and have a ton of contrast, even for a small surface as they are. Also your NMM is getting really good. Especially the Triskele(?) is particularly convincing! I spent a while in the gallery just admiring this. Would love to paint her one day, and this gives me a lot of inspiration!

youwashock - Elric, the White Wolf: Really liked the color harmony on this one, such as the contrast between the warm clothes and the cold metal. Lot's of character in the paint job, that is sort of a trademark of yours!



A few words of my own entry:

When I started this project, I wanted to follow the original artwork of KyuYong Eom quite closely. Long story short and a few "throwing a brush" -moments later (not really, just a metaphor), I decided to go my own way with it.
I wanted to portray a "Dark Fantasy" themed scheme on her using a limited and a greyish palette. Nearly every color was mixed and somewhat tied together by applying the same tones for shadows and lit areas throughout the whole project (Scale75 Petroleum Grey, Rainy Grey and White Sands). The OSL effect from the candle felt very wrong first, but I learned that desaturating the orange and yellow using said shadow colors did the trick.

I'm also trying to practice when to keep working on a model and when to call it done. Usually I focus too much time on irrelevant things, such as smoothing everything out, and lose the sight of what's actually important. I'm not overly concerned if I feel that a model needs more work and I won't make the challenge, but this time the deadline worked in my favour. Following the guidelines of Alfonso "Banshee" Giraldes's philosophy of "feth smoothness", I wanted to get the model done before the challenge ends, without being too concerned of making everything perfect. Which in the end turned out to be one of my favorite works yet.

Thanks everyone and see you in the next one!

 Ezki wrote:
Tough month to choose the votes. So many good entries!

XvArcanevX - Ye Olde Forest Spirit Thingy: A heck of a cool model and nice work you've done with it. If I'm being totally honest, I think the backside is currently the "golden angle", which is a rare thing to say haha. The light hits the wings, the back carapace and the horns just right. I think the pictures are working a bit against you elsewhere, as there are many great volumes and lovely tones visible from different angles, but lost on others. I'm convinced, that this model would look stunning when held in hand! That being said, well done with the color scheme and differentiating the blue tones from each other. And kudos for being brave enough to push the contrast that high. I rarely am.

Thanks for the feedback and comments Ezki. I know what you mean regarding the angles on the pics. Truth is, this mini has a lot of different surfaces, with a lot of different tones and textures, that are all obscured or out of view depending on how you view it. For instance, and most obviously, the skin is actually a tiny part of the figure obscured by the tree bark, spear, hair and helmet. The beetle wings are brighter on the back due to being somewhat in the background/underside of the figure when viewed from the front, so I didn’t push the contrast as far at that angle. So on and so forth.

It was a challenging thing, but then in truth I find every mini kind of challenging, haha. At some point though I just tune into a look and go for it. Enjoying the process is key for me.

Anyway, love your entry, I always think you achieve buttery smooth blends/glazes and I think you excel with skintones. I really enjoyed the OSL and thought it added a lot of atmosphere to your entry.

I can’t say I’m familiar with the artist you mentioned. On the topic, that gives me an idea for a thread! Recommended miniature artists for viewing etc

Another month of outstanding entries. I, too, gave out a lot of votes. As always, everyone gets a comment.

Daia T'Nara: You did some nice work on a rather goofy model. The moustache is kind of hard to pick out against the rest for the face, but that's a function of the sculpt rather than your painting. I would have liked a little more variation in the browns, though.

Leopold Helveine: There is a lot going on with this model, and you did a great job picking out all the details. I like the pointillism on the staff and pants.

inmygravenimage : The faces on these models look really good. Are you experimenting with NMM on the weapons?

XvArcanevX : I like all of the cool blues against the earthy colors of the rest of the model. The wings must have taken a long time.

me: I wasn't sure how to approach these models. I'm not really an army painter any more, so I wanted them to all be unique. I sort of stumbled into doing them in classic craftworld colors.My favorite is the dude with the sword.

theCrowe: This guy's shell looks quite realistic. Also, kudos for highlighting the sword-- I have never been able to do that with TMM.

Gulgog TufToof: The glaring contrast between orange and purple is striking, but I'm especially impressed by the face. You managed to keep the whole thing GS-hybrid pale while still adding shadows deep enough to show details.

Pariah Press: A classic paint scheme on a classic model.

ShadowsAndDust: Nice work on this classic BA paint scheme. I also like how you did the bases-- the sponge flock against the sandy base draws the eye without distracting from the rest of the model.

bong264: I like your homage to Bakshi. Am I mistaken, or is this model really tiny? It's almost like a 15mm scale monster.

Captain Brown: I like your classic paint scheme on these classic models. The white face masks really stand out against the black-and-flames robes.

Vejut : Good work on the lacing on the armor. That's one of the most frustrating thing about paining samurai and samurai-adjacent models.

halfling84: The blue and green stands out nicely against the black. I seem to recall your saying that the sword is clear plastic, but sadly it doesn't show up well in these photos.

More comments later, when I have time to sit down again.

 JoshInJapan wrote:

ShadowsAndDust: Nice work on this classic BA paint scheme. I also like how you did the bases-- the sponge flock against the sandy base draws the eye without distracting from the rest of the model.

Thanks for the comments, Josh. I love using flock as it adds texture, detail, color, and hides a multitude of sins. Got texture paste/paint on your models' feet? Flock it! Missed a spot? Flock it.

As for the BA color scheme, the only problem I have is that my camera doesn't differentiate the Wild Rider Red edge highlights enough from the Evil Sunz Scarlet base coat, so it looks like there are fewer edge highlights than there really are.

As for your Eldar, your paint jobs are good, and really bring out the detail in the old sculpts.

 ShadowsAndDust wrote:

 JoshInJapan wrote:

ShadowsAndDust: Nice work on this classic BA paint scheme. I also like how you did the bases-- the sponge flock against the sandy base draws the eye without distracting from the rest of the model.

Thanks for the comments, Josh. I love using flock as it adds texture, detail, color, and hides a multitude of sins. Got texture paste/paint on your models' feet? Flock it! Missed a spot? Flock it.

As for the BA color scheme, the only problem I have is that my camera doesn't differentiate the Wild Rider Red edge highlights enough from the Evil Sunz Scarlet base coat, so it looks like there are fewer edge highlights than there really are.

As for your Eldar, your paint jobs are good, and really bring out the detail in the old sculpts.

My camera often betrays me, as well.

Those old Eldar sculpts are really easy to paint. They are from an era with less bling, leaving a more-or-less blank canvas to paint over.

More comments!

Geifer: I'm not at all familiar with this character, but I assume you did them justice. Are they wielding an energy bow? If so, you really sold the effect.

endtransmission: This is an impressive model. The grey and steel all sort of runs together, but that leaves a great background for all the little bits and bobs-- the fangs are particularly impressive, as is the shield on the right shoulder.

youwashock: I do love me some Elric. The splash of purple near the crossguard is a nice little touch. It let's us know that he's wielding a magic sword, which makes up for the lack of runes on the sculpt.

KidCthulhu: These models remind me of just how weird the 40K universe is. I like that you kept yourself down to three colors on the inquisitor (not counting the face). The model is really busy, and a limited palette makes it easier to read.

Llamahead: I like the rusty metal look for the armor. Are you moving away from "dipping?" That seemed to be part of your signature style. If so, I think this model would benefit from something to define the details a bit more-- blacklining, spot washes, something like that.

Midget Gems: This is a pretty simple paintjob at first glance-- just red and yellow, with grey for the weapons, but there are a number of great little details. The trim at the base of the shoulderpads, as well as the "chevrons" ont he lower body, read as metallic, which I find remarkable given that they're basically the same colors as the edge highlights.

 JoshInJapan wrote:
Geifer: I'm not at all familiar with this character, but I assume you did them justice. Are they wielding an energy bow? If so, you really sold the effect.

Thank you. Yes, she has an energy bow (see below, picture spoilered for size).

JoshInJapan wrote: XvArcanevX : I like all of the cool blues against the earthy colors of the rest of the model. The wings must have taken a long time.

Thanks for the comment. It was a really nice change of palette from the usual gritty colour schemes that so many of my usual factions end up sporting. I enjoyed playing around with the brighter colours and had actually bought this mini specifically with that in mind. The wings were pretty relaxing to paint in the end and, as I’d assembled them separately, the glazing was a fairly laid back process. I think at one point I went a little far with the white and had to dull down a few areas but it wasn’t too much trouble. I actually shocked myself with how quickly the whole mini came together, but then I had a few surprise days off so that helped.

I really enjoyed the vibrant colours on your unit this month and the highlights are impeccable too. The whole unit is very striking actually. Very nice work

Apparently fate has it that I shall be denied a slow winding down of work in December as various people have launched a surprise onslaught of jobs that they all want doing yesterday. Ah well. Back to squeezing in a few hours where I can.

youwashock: I do love me some Elric. The splash of purple near the crossguard is a nice little touch. It let's us know that he's wielding a magic sword, which makes up for the lack of runes on the sculpt.

Thanks, JoshInJapan! I really wanted to use red, but there was already a good bit of that on the model.

 youwashock wrote:

youwashock: I do love me some Elric. The splash of purple near the crossguard is a nice little touch. It let's us know that he's wielding a magic sword, which makes up for the lack of runes on the sculpt.

Thanks, JoshInJapan! I really wanted to use red, but there was already a good bit of that on the model.

You made the right choice, I think. Purple magic is evil magic after all.

One last round of comments for everyone!

Mr. Nobody: I'm not sure what scale this model is. I feel like it's Epic, which makes the cleanliness of the lines between blue and white extra impressive.

bantha-beast: The highlighting to white on traitor is really smooth-- the armor looks shiny and polished like a good traitor's armor should. The plasma coils are also quite effective.

Syro: Was your lighting really harsh? The colors looks rather washed out in the photos. Other than than, it looks really clean and crisp.

Maharg: Tomb Kings were some of the best models GW ever produced, in my opinion. You really did this model justice. The bone is particularly clean.

Nevelon: These models really hit me in the nostalgia. There's not a lot going on, especially compared to current marines, but that's a plus in my book. I wish I had kept all of mine...

CancelledApocalypse: Wow. The fade from red to purple in the hair and banner (scarf?) is really nice, and stands out well against the bone armor. Your NMM on the blades is stunning.

Exki: I like the way you really leaned into the lighting, with one whole side of the model in shadow. I have never achieved that effect in a satisfying way.

Overall, a great month of great models. Onward and upward, everyone!

 JoshInJapan wrote:
Daia T'Nara: You did some nice work on a rather goofy model. The moustache is kind of hard to pick out against the rest for the face, but that's a function of the sculpt rather than your painting. I would have liked a little more variation in the browns, though.

Thanks The moustache I think is partly on me - it's small enough to be around the point where my detail painting is 'gingerly move brush towards miniature, remove when paint appears', so even though I could tell I'd only really got colour on the top of the sculpted ridge, I let it be for fear of overdoing it and accidentally painting his whole top lip.

 Daia T'Nara wrote:

 JoshInJapan wrote:
Daia T'Nara: You did some nice work on a rather goofy model. The moustache is kind of hard to pick out against the rest for the face, but that's a function of the sculpt rather than your painting. I would have liked a little more variation in the browns, though.

Thanks The moustache I think is partly on me - it's small enough to be around the point where my detail painting is 'gingerly move brush towards miniature, remove when paint appears', so even though I could tell I'd only really got colour on the top of the sculpted ridge, I let it be for fear of overdoing it and accidentally painting his whole top lip.

Facial hair smaller than a ZZ-Top beard, is always a challenge on models of this size. Either it blends into the shading and highlights to the point of invisibility, or else stands out to the point of distraction.

Time for some winners!


In 3rd with 21 votes is Ezki with Erza of Dedheim. Just wow. And that’s what took the bronze this month.


We have a two way tie for second, at 23 votes each.
First up, Ye Olde Forest Spirit Thingy by XvArcanevX. Vibrant hues from the heart of the forest.










And a different kind of ancient from the far future, CancelledApocalypse's Jain Zar



And with the gold and 26 votes, youwashock and Elric, the White Wolf. Old metal, nostalgic green base, impeccable paint. Could we ask for more?








--

The quality level this month was off the charts. Amazing work all around. And while I didn’t do a formal count, when compiling the vote thread it felt like this was an incredible month for people finishing. There are always a number of people who start, but then life decides to kneecap them somewhere in the month and they can’t finish. No shame in that; it happens. But it looks like we collectively managed to overcome most of what the world was putting in our way this month. So kudo’s to everyone for chipping away at the pile of shame and getting paint down!

Now get cracking on the Open Round! Month is slipping away.

Wow. A huge thank you to all that voted for my model. The nostalgia was strong with this one, I feel. The other three models are astounding, and personally if I was to arrange the top picks, I would flip it around the middle, putting Ezki at the top spot and keeping CancelledApocalypse and XvArcanevX at 2nd or bumping me to put one of them at third. I agree that the quality and quantity of entries was great this month. It could just be my perception, but the monthly challenge has really been strong lately. Congrats to all who keep coming out and to Nev and Midget Gems for keeping the machine spirit running.

Congratulations to the winners and as always good job everyone getting something painted.

That's a whole bunch of spectacular and inspiring minis! Huge well done to everyone and to youwashock for taking the win with a beautiful model!

I said last month I'd do comments for everyone this month, but I'm still writing them up. Hopefully I'll post them later tonight or possibly tomorrow.

Congratulations on some well-deserved wins, youwashock, CancelledApocalypse, XvArcanevX, and Ezki. And good job all around to everyone who entered.

Congratulations to the winners. Can’t believe I ended up doing so well so thankyou to everyone who cast me a vote!

There were alot of great entries this month (again). The standard just keeps getting higher!

I’ll be busy this next few days so no feedback unfortunately but I really enjoyed viewing all the finished models.

Onto the next month it is…

Congratulations for the winners, all those models are really great.

Great work y'all!

I said I'd do comments for everyone this month, so here they are MASSIVE POST INCOMING!!!

Daia T'Nara - Ha ha, what an interesting model! Can't say I've ever seen that version of Elrond before, but he certainly has character! The red cloak and light leather(?) armour are well shaded and highlighted and the face is full of character. I particularly like that we can see there are orcs nearby... Nice work!

Leopold Helveine - I hope this isn't the last we see of your entries here, Leo, I've really enjoyed the fun conversions and mini dioramas you've come up with over the years. This is no exception. I'm really enjoying the interesting, slightly blueish take on ork flesh, and the battered, weathered and rusty metals and leathers are excellent as always. I don't know what's been going on with other dakka members in other sections of the site, but I hope it doesn't put you off posting more of your work here in future. If the worst happens and we don't see you again, good luck for the future and I hope you find a place you feel welcome and comfortable.

inmygravenimage - Ooh, I love these! It's not often you get to see vikings outside of raiding parties or invading armies, but these vikings look like they're about to set out on an adventure together! I can just imagine them taking on the gods themselves! They're also really nicely painted with excellent colour choices. I love the green fabrics against the greys, golds and silvers of their armour. They could have done with a coat of matte varnish in some areas (particularly the fabric) as the shine detracts from the lovely paintjob slightly, but otherwise a really strong entry, well worth a vote!

XvArcanevX - I think this is clearly one of the best entries this month, the blues are rich and gorgeous and the greens are striking. I particularly like the deep blue carapace of the insect and the base looks fantastic. If I had one complaint, though, it would be that there are a lot of similar blues and blue-whites clustered together - the skin, the wings, the spear haft, the metalics, the hair - which leads to a bit of difficulty separating the details for the viewer. I think they could have been broken up slightly with different maybe more desaturated colours to stop them becoming overpowering. Otherwise, though, it's a fantastic paintjob and well worthy of your podium place.

JoshInJapan - I'm a sucker for the old Rogue Trader eldar sculpts and you've done a fantastic job with all the different colour schemes. I assume they're all the main craftworld schemes, although the blue one looks a bit more Ybraesil than Alaitoc in terms of that turquoise armour. Though Ybraesil is my craftworld, I think I like the Saim Hann one most out of the five - though they're all beautifully painted with lovely light and shade on the armour plates. One of my favourites this month!

TheCrowe - An ancient roman turtle. Because of the roman testudo formation. Love it! And really nicely painted, too. I particularly like the vibrant shield and the realistic shell markings.

Gulgog Tuftoof - I have a big soft spot for GSC as some of the earliest models I ever owned were acolytes and neophytes. Love the purple and orange combination and the shattered glass base looks really cool. The face also looks suitably angry and alienesque. I must get my old models out and see about painting them up...

Pariah Press - Another properly old model, I have to admit to really not liking the sculpts for the Tyranids after 2nd edition - 2nd edition was great for me, all the Tyranids looked really interesting, unique and alienesque, 3rd edition took everything and made it look janky and out of proportion, before later editions just started to look generic - and I've only recently started to come back round to the Tyranid aesthetic, mainly due to the awesome recent sculpts. This model is unfortunately everything I don't like about 3rd edition, but you've taken the old model and given it a classic paintjob and done it very well! Nice neat freehand on the yellows and reds and the highlighting on the black is well done.

ShadowsAndDust - I assume these primaris eradicators were created ten thousand years ago, were frozen, and have only recently been awoken by Cawl. You've done a nice job with these Blood Angels, very neat and crisp, with some nice edge highlighting. Are they for a larger army project?

Bong264 - Gotta say, this is a really weird little model, but I love it. Is it a lion-man-balrog hybrid? Or is it just a bloke wearing a Cowardly Lion from the Wizard of Oz costume?

Captain Brown - I love old Necromunda, and this is a beautiful old school paintjob to go with them! The black and bone colours go particularly well with the flame patterns (very Legion of the Damned!), and the white masks give a perfect focal point for the models. Nice job!

Vejut - Nice group of ratmen, with good colour choices. It's a little difficult to see as the images are a bit blurry, but they look neat and tidy and the blue certainly pops!

halfling84 - Not familiar with this model, but it's very striking, the colour combination is cool and the green flesh in particular is very nicely done!

Geifer - A really fun little model, with beautiful work done on the blue and white clothing and a really nice glow effect on the bow. I realise SW scale is a bit smaller than 40k, but is she as tiny as she looks? That base almost seems to swallow her!

endtransmission - That's a deceptively good dread! At first glance, it doesn't immediately slap you in the face, due to the overall dark tones and grimdark style that dominate the model, but the more you look at it, the more details start to emerge. From the gorgeous viking shield/roundel, to the beautiful worn gold and the subtle bone, to the believably battered black/silver armour, It's a paintjob with fantastic depth. You've done some lovely work on this! Well done!

youwashock - Definitely one of the top minis this month, the highlighting on the red, gold and silver armour is great, the face is full of character and I love the purple flame/energy effect on the sword. The thing that really sells it to me, though, is the classic goblin green base. Nice!

KidCthulhu - Now those are some proper old minis! I have a custodian myself that I keep meaning to paint, but I just can't get past the memes... It's definitely a product of the 80s, and comports with the old lore about Custodes stripping off their armour to show their shame for failing to protect the emperor. Not sure the oiling up of their bodies really carries the same message, though... Love what you've done with these, the flesh tones are good and the white is nicely highlighted. The inquisitor is also really interesting, and not one I'm very familiar with. The green blade was a very good choice.

Llamahead - That's a really interesting lich and a cool colour scheme to go with it. It could do with some interest - some shading to provide definition particularly around the face, as the colours are somewhat flat, though the harsh flash on the camera may also be contributing to that impression. Overall, a very neat little mini, not one I've ever seen before.

Midget Gems - That's a really nice Blood Angels Contemptor. I like your colour choices: the more coppery colour for the metallics works well with the orange highlights on the red and the focused use of silver on the gun barrel and claws breaks up the red at the same time as keeping everything balanced. That yellow head is also gorgeous.

Mr Nobody - One of my favourites this month, I still have some of these models from the old epic system. I might have to paint them in this beautiful scheme! The blue and white is beautifully striking, especially the stripe and checker markings. The gorgeous fade from lighter to darker blue is just lovely and the chipping well considered and well excecuted. How tall does it stand compared to the modern knights?

bantha_beast - That's some gorgeous work on some truly ancient minis. I particularly like the orange glow of the plasma on the chaos marine. The blue armour of the Ultramarine is also really nicely and subtley shaded and highlighted. Excellent work!

Syro_ - Sterling work getting your Azrael done in only three days! The lighting's a bit harsh on those pics, so it's difficult to see too much detail, but it looks neatly painted with some nice shading.

Maharg - Your usual flawless work! I like that you've hit the brief twice (or is that three times?), ancient egyptian-style skeletons and a really old warhammer kit! Your colour choices as usual are spot on, and your particular style is so consistent, super neat, smooth and good looking. One of my favourites this month (and most months, tbh).

Nevelon - The epitome of ancient: the oldest plastic marines in 40k! To my shame, I sold all my RTB01 marines about six years ago, just before getting back into the hobby. I keep looking at ebay lots of them, wistfully... These are really nicely painted, in your usual smurfy style! For me, the base rims could be a little tidier (my usual bugbear - one I'll freely admit I've been slipping on myself, recently!), and they could use a little bit of highlighting on the blue, but otherwise a nice, neat addition to your ultramarine forces.

Ezki - Absolutely fantastic piece, and my favourite of the month by far. Beautiful use of light and shadow, the OSL is great . The only thing I can find to criticise negatively is the lighting on the fingers of the left hand - it's a little too strong. From the position they're in, direct light from the flame should mostly be blocked by the flared end of the staff and the nobbly portrusions just below the fingers. There would be a bit of bounce light from the floor, her thighs and the loin cloth/dress fabric, but that would result in a much less strong yellow on the fingers - unless the fingers are glowing themselves, in which case there should be some OSL on the staff itself, around her fingers. But, other than that tiny downside, this is far and away the best paintjob of the month, imo.

 Ezki wrote:
CancelledApocalypse - Jain Zar: Brilliant work on her! The lighting is well executed: it's clear where the the light is shining from and where it hits the character. The armor panels are well thought out and have a ton of contrast, even for a small surface as they are. Also your NMM is getting really good. Especially the Triskele(?) is particularly convincing! I spent a while in the gallery just admiring this. Would love to paint her one day, and this gives me a lot of inspiration!

Thanks Ezki, I'm pretty proud of this one, though as time has gone on I'm seeing more and more things I think I could have done better. I'm going to have to bite the bullet and learn to do proper nmm on armour, I'm at the point where I'm pretty confident doing it on blades. I just know it'll take a ton more time, so I'm reluctant to do it at the moment - especially as I'm always rushing to finish at the end of a month.

 JoshInJapan wrote:
CancelledApocalypse: Wow. The fade from red to purple in the hair and banner (scarf?) is really nice, and stands out well against the bone armor. Your NMM on the blades is stunning.

Cheers Josh, much appreciated! The blades came out about as well as I could have hoped. I'm really enjoying painting them these days.

And thanks for the compliment, youwashock! I loved your Elric!

Thanks to everyone who voted and commented. I don't do it very often myself (commenting, I mean, I vote every month like clockwork ) as it takes a long time to do, so to those who do, it's very much appreciated. See you all next month!

 CancelledApocalypse wrote:

ShadowsAndDust - I assume these primaris eradicators were created ten thousand years ago, were frozen, and have only recently been awoken by Cawl. You've done a nice job with these Blood Angels, very neat and crisp, with some nice edge highlighting. Are they for a larger army project?

Thanks for the kind words. I don't play any miniature war games, I just enjoy painting the models. I also really like the look of space marines and Blood Angels in particular, so I guess I'm building an army, though not intentionally.

 CancelledApocalypse wrote:
Geifer - A really fun little model, with beautiful work done on the blue and white clothing and a really nice glow effect on the bow. I realise SW scale is a bit smaller than 40k, but is she as tiny as she looks? That base almost seems to swallow her!

Thank you. Legion models are actually a little larger than 40k models, albeit usually skinnier with less exaggerated proportions aside from the head. Omega is a skinny kid, of course. She is only 24mm tall in that pose (bow excluded).

She'd be around 27mm tall in a straight pose, compared to a 38mm tall adult male Jango clone.

Incidentally that made her the perfect candidate for last month because I don't think I would have gotten a larger model done in time.

 Geifer wrote:

 CancelledApocalypse wrote:
Geifer - A really fun little model, with beautiful work done on the blue and white clothing and a really nice glow effect on the bow. I realise SW scale is a bit smaller than 40k, but is she as tiny as she looks? That base almost seems to swallow her!

Thank you. Legion models are actually a little larger than 40k models, albeit usually skinnier with less exaggerated proportions aside from the head. Omega is a skinny kid, of course. She is only 24mm tall in that pose (bow excluded).

She'd be around 27mm tall in a straight pose, compared to a 38mm tall adult male Jango clone.

Incidentally that made her the perfect candidate for last month because I don't think I would have gotten a larger model done in time.

Oops! Not sure where I got them being smaller from, then... Well, you learn (or relearn) something every day.

youwashock - Definitely one of the top minis this month, the highlighting on the red, gold and silver armour is great, the face is full of character and I love the purple flame/energy effect on the sword. The thing that really sells it to me, though, is the classic goblin green base. Nice!


Thanks, CancelledApocalypse!

 CancelledApocalypse wrote:

JoshInJapan - I'm a sucker for the old Rogue Trader eldar sculpts and you've done a fantastic job with all the different colour schemes. I assume they're all the main craftworld schemes, although the blue one looks a bit more Ybraesil than Alaitoc in terms of that turquoise armour. Though Ybraesil is my craftworld, I think I like the Saim Hann one most out of the five - though they're all beautifully painted with lovely light and shade on the armour plates. One of my favourites this month!

Thanks! You're right about my choices of color-- I was originally planning to do them all as Eldritch Raiders, but the first one I did looked more like Ulthwe, so I opted to go with craftworld color schemes. I chose turquoise instead of blue because I thought Alaitoc and Iyanden are just too similar otherwise.

 CancelledApocalypse wrote:
Pariah Press - Another properly old model, I have to admit to really not liking the sculpts for the Tyranids after 2nd edition - 2nd edition was great for me, all the Tyranids looked really interesting, unique and alienesque, 3rd edition took everything and made it look janky and out of proportion, before later editions just started to look generic - and I've only recently started to come back round to the Tyranid aesthetic, mainly due to the awesome recent sculpts. This model is unfortunately everything I don't like about 3rd edition, but you've taken the old model and given it a classic paintjob and done it very well! Nice neat freehand on the yellows and reds and the highlighting on the black is well done.

Heh heh, yeah most of the third edition Tyranids were pretty derpy-looking (though I do like The Red Terror), and Old One Eye is no exception. He may be the derpiest of the lot, if I'm being honest! I found it on the free table at work, and it's one of the very last unpainted 'Nids I own, so it was time to paint him up. Thanks for the comments.