Skaven Warlord - Shading Armor & Skin

With the cloth more or less settled I have moved on to shading the bronze armor and his skin. My goal is to have a largely monochromatic model and using the same green on the armor as I did on the cloth has helped.

My feeling at this point is that I need to go back and really re-touch the base colour on the armor. It's too green and the transition is too sharp. I am very pleased with how keeping the light on the armor near his face has helped to draw the eyes there though.

The top shot gives a fair look at the actual shading on the helmet. It was taken with two lamps positioned to eliminate natural shadows. I made the crest very dark to help draw additional emphasis to the model's face.

I might go back and add some additional layers of shadow to the cloth in the folds closest to his belt line. The base colour seems to cover too much of the side there and I want more stark separation.

So next up: more of the same, really. It's all about back-and-forth at this stage.

(you'll notice three new tags in this post - Blending, Metallics and Skin - that will follow this model to the new blog format in coming months. I will focus less on specific types of model and more on specific techniques and PARTS of models.)

Skaven Warlord - Shading the Cloth

The moment I saw the new Skaven Warlord in the "Island of Blood" box set I knew I had to have one. In fact I knew I'd have to drop everything and get one painted.

I eeked out a couple of hours today to base coat the flesh and start the shading on the cloth. I tried the first highlight as well but I'm going to scrap the highlight and redo it.

What I'm debating now is whether or not the cloth actually needs to come darker at the bottom. What you see is mostly what you get though -- the photo was taken with top and front lighting. With the exception of a slight shadow in the top pic from his cleaver the painting is, for my first time, not too off in the photo!

I love this model. I can't say it enough. The new "Island of Blood" models are incredible. My bits order included the Warlock too - but I'm not as excited by that.

Feedback welcomed. Questions answered.

-- misterjustin

The Mathieu Fontaine Workshop Ogre

I was lucky enough to spend a weekend with Mathieu Fontaine at one of his masterclass painting workshops. The experience was incredible and this is the Ogre I painted. I'm still not convinced that it's finished - but I'm going to stop here for now and apply the techniques I picked up to other models.

If you get a chance to attend one of these masterclass workshops don't miss it. Really.

My thanks to Mathieu for his incredible help... and patience!

WFB - Orc Warboss on Boar

I haven't had a lot of time to paint recently but I made some time on Monday. I picked up this model the week it was released and have been meaning to paint it all that time.

I used the recipes from the most recent WD - featuring a boar boss from Kieth Robertson - as my starting point. The conversion was also inspired by his piece. Unfortunately it looks like the plastic Boar Boys have better models that my old warboss. I'm happy with the start - but feedback is *ALWAYS* welcome.

Averland Steam Tank

One week after launching Secret Weapon Miniatures I started a new day job. I've been so busy that I haven't had much time for painting. Well bugger that!

I get together with a group of folks on most Monday nights to paint and so I finally got back to my Steam Tank. Oh, sure, I did some work on the Imperial Guard Command Squad for my trench base display... but that's beside the point!

There is a lot of work left to be done before this model matches the vision I have for it. I am going to pay special attention to the Engineer sticking out of the top - which will remain removable so I can show off the interior - since he needs to be as weathered as his vehicle.

The base still needs some "wet" mud, a layer of gloss and a bit of additional detailing. I'm happy with how it is coming together though. Likewise all of the body weathering will see some additional work - and I still have to add the decorative elements. So very much left to do.

I'm only taking this model and the Command Squad with me on Monday nights for awhile though. Hopefully this means I'll have another update next week.

Averland Steam Tank - The Base

WIP shots on the base for the steam tank.

The white in the first image is PVA that will dry clear to form a small stream. There are rocks and texture beneath the PVA to add to the effect.

The second shot shows the depth at which the wheels will be submerged in "mud" - an effect that I'll add to by adding more dirt and then coating everything with gloss.

The third image gives a glimpse of the track ruts... and the rough edge of the putty that I still need to file. I moved the model itself to the extreme front of the base so that some of the detail will be visible after I attach the s'tank.

The last photo is a WIP shot of teeny tiny cattails. After the glue dries I'll prime and paint them before adding paper leaves and attaching them to the base around the stream... under the tank. Yup, nearly invisible detailing. Why? Because it should be there.

Averland Steam Tank

I haven't had an opportunity to work on a Warhammer Fantasy piece in a long time and when the plastic Steam Tank came out... well, I've been sitting on this model for awhile. Since I was already working with yellow in the airbrush, and had planned to paint this tank in the black/yellow Averland colours, the time was ripe for Steam Tankage.

The model will eventually be mounted on a base that gives the impression of mud and rain. The idea being a long, drawn out campaign as would have been common for troops on foot and horseback. If I ever get around to an Empire force I'll stick with Averland colours and the same theme.

Nothing is glued down at this point and I have a long way to go before I start making things permanent. I will also make the top removable so that the interior can be fully detailed and visible.

Capasus Commission - Finished

This is probably my most elaborate commission to date. While I have done larger models, with more detail, this was the first full conversion and paint job on commission.

I know that I've detailed the model in other posts - but I'll recap here: The wings and all of the weapon arms magnetically attach. You can lift the model by the wings or the lance - although it should, of course, be moved by the base. He has STRIPY PANTS, with which I am very happy. There is freehand on his legs and checks on much of the cloth.

This one shipped out this week and, much like my original magnetic general, I'm sad to see it go. The fella I painted this for went to great lengths to find me in order to get this model though and I'm glad I could meet his expectations.

WFB Project - Capasus Conversion

I've started in on a WFB conversion project - creating a pegasus captain, a Capasus (hey, I don't make this stuff up), based on the Empire General model. This one will have magnetic arms in the same fashion as the Empire General I did awhile back.

At this point the model includes pins in both legs 1/4" in to the leg and 1" in to the base. After I finish the conversion I will glue the model in place and add a weight for additional stability. I will also add rock, sand and vegetation to the base for additional depth.

This has been a fantastic break from my other current projects as I don't do much Warhammer Fantasy. It has also been nice to have a conversion to work on when I'm too tired to paint.

More on this one as other projects start to wrap up.

I'm going to post this guy on a couple of forums for some final feedback -- but I think he's finally ready to make his appearance on eBay. I have to say that I'm glad to have the project completed.

I am really pleased with the results of the magnets though. I already have four right arm options for the BT commander that this model inspired. I suspect that it will be very easy to get carried away creating combination options.

Magnetic Empire General Update

Another set of arms finished today; the only up side to being home sick, I suppose. I also finished the cloak and included the symbols of Sigmar in freehand... but I'm not entirely pleased with the result and hope for some feedback. At this stage only two sets of arms, two heads and one body to go. Oi.

For now it's time to take a break.

Empire General Update

I have finally had a chance to make some more progress on my Empire General project. In this case I made some changes to the armour, to add to the red/white theme, and finished a pair of arms and one head.

There's still a lot of clean-up to do, and a tail and base to be painted and finished, but overall I'm quite pleased with the results. I also have a lot of fun repositioning the pieces and swapping bits in and out. I am not a huge fan of magnetic commanders... and I've already started drilling and gluing a Space Marine.

It's going to be hard to let this one go when it's finished -- but I really don't have a use for him and a magnetic display piece doesn't make much sense. Hopefully he goes to someone that will use him on a regular basis.

Empire General 02

I got some painting done on this guy today. Unfortunately the metallics are so reflective that the whole thing looks totally washed out. This is actually quite likely the best painting I've ever done.

The last image is me lifting the entire model by the tip of the lance. I managed to pick up and move the model across the room -- all holding on to the lance that was simply attached via the magnet. Fun stuff.

Now I'm off to find a tutorial on photographing metallic paints.

I'm hoping to have the finished product on eBay within two weeks.

Warhammer Empire General 01

The new Warhammer Empire General comes with so many modeling options that I was immediately drawn to the model. The sculpting is excellent, especially for plastic, and so I had to pick one up. This seemed like the perfect model to experiment with rare earth magets on -- and now each of those arms, heads and even the cape can be attached to either body.

Like most first projects I learned a lot about how to (and not to) work with tiny, tiny magnets -- but I'm very happy with the result and plan on making a habit of this.

A few weeks to paint him up and he's eBay bound.