Bastarding Camps

Finally got the full DA Tactical Squad finished....well the figs are all done barring the weathering and chipping I want to do just before I base them. Need to pick up a few bits and bobs first. The thing that's holding me back on the bases is that I cannot for love nor money find anywhere that sells fine gravel/grit/sand. Looked everywhere. Usually see piles of perfect material on the street from where they are (constantly) relaying the pavements but as it's winter and everywhere is covered in a mess of ice, snow, slush, muck - that's out. I get around to the basing at some point.
Next up to paint is the Helbrute. Gorgeous fig. Not usually that into Chaos but the models that come with the DV boxed set are lush. After painting a squad, I really wanted to do a solo model. Can't be arsed with Balthasar (the one kinda crappy model in the box) and fancied something LARGE!! Helbrute it is. However. The colour scheme. The GW scheme of red skin and red armour is just daft. After looking at numerous versions on the net; still couldn't really decide. I considered changing the Chaos lot to another chapter but do kinda want to stick with the Crimson Slaughter. Red skin my arse though. Finally decided on doing the armour a dark rich red. Not too shiny shiny bling bling red as seem to be the norm and the skin a dark leathery brown. Tough and cured looking. The face was down first so I could then stick it into the model and put the 2 main halves together. All good, all good - WTF......serious crevices at the join seems. Especially going down one leg. Tried the liquid green stuff but its not really that effective and leaves a gritty texture. Balls. Anyways. the skin is all based, washed, layered and looking good. Really happy with the brown choice (mournfang brown and aba black mix). Again had to mix up my own dark brown wash. Really happy with the outcome.

Helbrute WIP

(edit: finally got round to getting a wee shot of this bugger. Went with a nice dark wine red for the armour base (Aba black + Kho red) - really begining to come together)


Havent had hardly anytime to paint recently due to all the preparation work I have on my plate at the mo for an ele English camp next week. Figs just a sitting there.......staring at me........bloody camps!!!
I pop up a few progress pics when I have some tie in the moro. Till then, keep on painting folks :)

First Five Finished

Well....that's the test lot finally done. Managed to squeeze in a few hours to finish them off in between marking bastarding test papers! Pretty happy with them overall (the figs not the sodding test papers). First figs I've painted in about 10 years. It's all starting to come back! Still hate painting faces, that much hasn't changed!

Photos are still a bit shite. Need to set something up for that. Anyways here's a few shots.

 Next up -  finish off the rest of Raph's Tac Squad and then.......;)

Plasma Bitches!

Finally got to doing the 3 plasma guns in the Tac squad (Sgt. Raphael's pistol, plasma canon and a plasma gun). I've made the casings black rather than the usual red and I really don't like the usual Dark Angel's red casings.

Piss easy and loadsa fun :) Drybrushing a plasma glow on the coils(?) really makes a huge difference and looks fucksmart on the fig! Quick n simple to do, well worth it. Added a little surrrounding drybrush as well to bring out the glow effect.
Paints used: black primer based with Altdorf Guard Blue, then shaded with Drakenhof Nightshade. Dry brushed highlights with Caledor Sky (I think) mixed with a bit more each time of white. Finally gave them a light watered glaze with Drak. Night. to soften the glow and tone down the 'powdery' effect. When I (eventually) paint Raph's head, I give the right side a little touch of blue glow as well I reckon. Nothing too severe, just a touch ㅋ

 

Surplice to requirements

Term is nearly over and holidays are looming. 1 more week and it's winter holidays. 2 months of freedom (barring the 2 winter english camps I have to teach and flying home for a fortnight!) Managing to scounge an hour or two in the evenings though to do a wee bit more on the first half of Squad Raph.

Getting there!

Armour is done (will probably add a few light point highlights at the end....maybe) soft joints done and the chest aquilas as well. The aquilas came out exactly the way I wanted them. Didn't want that creamy warm bone effect that I've seen everywhere. Was looking more for a greyish weathered bone colour. Real bone is not creamy once it's weathered. Based the aquilas with Dawnstone and then (as I don't have Agrax Earthshade) shaded them with a wash made up of Sepia, Crimson and Nightshade. Highlighted with a mix of Dawnstone and Screaming Skull. Worked just how I wanted it.

Working on the weapons now. Decided on black/grey for the casings instead of the ubiquitous red. They're Space Marines, not Santa's little helpers ;) Finished up Raphael's surplice as well. It turned out.........ok. Not 100% happy with it. Will probably go back later and add a light glaze to soften it down a bit. It's fine but there is something bugging me about it......
As a test batch, this lot are coming along nicely.

All Layered Up

Busy as buggery recently. Exam season and writing test for my students takes up a shit-ton of time. Managed to get the first half of the Tac Squad's armour, including the 3 plasma carriers (Raphael, cannon and gun) finished though. Several layers to finally get what I wanted.
 I wanted the armour to (obv.) be dark green with lighter points of light without them ending up too light (DARK Angels after all) and without those yellowy green highlights I've seen about so much which make them look more like Salamanders than DAs. So, that meant Moot Green was not going to be used at all. After basing with Caliban and then washing them with Bieltan - I went for 4 layers of highlights, going from Caliban > Warpstone. I've gone for a (faux/pseudo/sorta) zenithal lighting approach. I've cheated at times but overall I wanted and reckon I've got the overhead light source the way I wanted.
I may put a few lighter spot highlights on the very apex of some edges (powerpacks, fingers, pauldrons etc) and then give them a really watered down green wash to bring it all together but haven't totally decided yet.
After the Caliban basecoat and Bieltan wash, the layer ratios from Clb>Wrp were 3:1, 2:1, 1:1, 1:2. Keeping Clb in the mix seems to keep any yellowiness in check.
Anyways - see what you think. Photos are a bit shite and really arent showing the top highlights well - ipad doesnt take the greatest of fig photos. Gonna need to dig out my proper camera at some point

I re-blacked the ribbing in the joint softspots (behind knees, inside elbows etc.) I'll highlight those later with dark grey. Some folk keep them green but done black they really make the armour plates pop a lot more)
Overall - really happy so far. Not bad for the first figs I've painted in 10 years ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Finally getting m'paint on

Crazy busy weekend; unexpected visit by some of the future in-laws, dinner party till the wee hours and a ton of work to be getting done for work meant I barely got started on the first squad I'm gonna paint from my new DV box. There are loads of good tutorials lucking about. Some really good, some basic and a few......
After reading a few and checking out some the colour/paint schemes out there - decided on tackling the Dark Angels Tactical Squad first. Managed to get them trimmed and spray primed black on Saturday but nowt much else until today. I've finally decided on a scheme so today got them fully base coated. I want a really dark green scheme. A lot of other painters (the GW versions too) have used a very bright yellowy green for the final highlights. Not going that way as they end up looking more Salamander than DA. So hoping to avoid that when the time comes. Also not going the way of using red for the bolter and plasma guns' casings. Just not a fan. They end up being a bit 'festive'.  The emperor's finest are not known for delivering Christmas presents to all the little boys n girls!
Anyways, I base coated them with 2 coats of caliban green thinned down with a few drops of water and a few drops of retarder medium to give a nice smooth even coat. I painted the power packs separately for the first coat and then attached them before applying the second. I'll attach the weapons later after doing the chest aquilas. I've base coated the whole squad but after the wash, think I'll split the squad and paint them in 2 sets of 5.........maybe ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Squad Raphael

Vet. Sgt. Raphael

 Not the best of photos but you get the general idea.