To Done - Dark Angel Tactical Squad

My first post on these was September 11th 2011, but as I don't recall if I'd already posted about them I may well have been working on them for months prior. Suffice to say after about 2.5 years I'm more than a little relieved to finally painting my first ever Dark Angel Tactical Squad.

I've finished them up with freehand Dark Angel symbols, pencilled in first and then painted Vallejo Stonewall Grey followed by some highlights in white.

The green is something I'm happy with, not overly highlighted, still dark in places and still obviously green in places. Thankfully these pics aren't too saturated but I think they give a decent enough representation of their true colours.

The symbols aren't spectacular but they're not bad, certainly they weren't as difficult as I expected and there isn't one that looks awful even if there are slight differentiations between the lengths of the wings on the swords. But I like that, it gives them some variety. You can also see some litanies written on to the armour. I've some awesome fluff yo go with this and why all their weapons are tarnished. When I get chance I'll tell you the tale of the 'Shards of Caliban'.

The Sergeant is perhaps my least favourite model. I wanted him dark skinned and I think it almost works but his eyes are a bit odd.

And the red Dark Angel symbol on his tabbard just sucks, the folds dont help recognising the symbols but I couldn't think of anything else so it'll have to do.

To help identify the two combat squads should I split them I put litanies on the left vent on five marines. I'd actually put quite a lot of 'text' already on the power armour and feel this may have been a bit too far but I did have fun making some strange 'illuminated' characters and typography as if each marine has decorated his armour with an oath or message from one of the many teachings important to the Dark Angels. It ties in that vibe of a knightly order - warrior priests, versed in the art of scripture as well as fighting. 

And Litanies on the right vent of the remaining five. The second from left has his litany in a spiral, to represent the Dark Angel obsession with such a shape. Don't know how they'll be perceived should I ever take them to Throne of Skulls. Not sure they'll stand out quite like my Tyranids do, even if they've been slaved over considerably more per model, we'll just have to see.

And here's there new home, a handy £2.49 craft box from Home Bargains.

All decked out with laminate floor cushioning foam, stuck in with double sided tape. Unfortunately it only takes 18 models, just short of two tactical squads :( Still, better than nothing.

Here's my big blue tick, for getting it done. Finally some Dark Angels in the bag a momentous occasion!

Dark Angel Tactical Squad update

It's been another 6 months since my last update but I've covered the why's and wherefors. Unfortunately these pics look worse than the model does in the flesh [or is that Ceramite?]. Usually the oversaturated colours make the models look very bright but in this instance it enhances the subtleties too much. However I'm sure when I do the final pics in daylight they'll look better.

Freehand DA symbol, it's but of a 'kipper' sword but I'm still quite pleased with my efforts. Penciled in forst then grey with some white highlights.

I really like the Verdigris now, glad I did it. When these are all complete I'll let you in on some fluff about it too.

Dark Angel Tactical Squad update

Dear Lord, nearly two years since I had something of worth to show on these guys and sadly that's had an effect on them. Since last time I added the weapons and coated them with Badab Black to try and tone the green down but I just can't accept that as their 'finished' look. In no way does a black washed base coat represent the quality I was hoping for, hence the hiatus. The downside is all the nooks and crannies are now coated with dust but hopefully I can cover that up.

In the mean time the solution to my problems with green was solved with a recent trip to GW where I asked if I could try out their new Dark Angels Green - Caliban Green and a young lad who was gaming offered to lend me his own paint to try out +1 to the community there [although the manager was also keen to offer too]. Anyway, I tried it and was impressed enough to purchase a pot there and then. So far the guys below have just had their helms 'updated'.

However, these guys are fully Caliban Greened. It actually works like paint should, unlike my Vallejo equivalent. Application of water thins it sufficiently to blend on the model and although I seem to be randomly making up where the highlights would hit I don't mind so much because this initial finish is something I'm happy with.

You will also note I've added some Verdigris to the bronze bits. I know I was really happy with what I'd done previously and it kind of doesn't make sense - why would the Marines allow their weapons to become weathered and certainly not on the arid landscape of of Ferron Proxima? But the 40k universe is awash with anachronism and ungents used to placate machine spirits. Why wouldn't these warrior monks also revere the aged patina of their venerable weapons? They're totally clean on the inside for functionality, just ancient on the outside. At least it'll tie them in with the Deathwing.

This guy was my initial test model of Caliban Green and has actually had a set of extra highlights added that resulted in my happiness and continued progress with the rest of the squad. I then went back again with Badab Black/Army Painter Hard Tone and washed all the darker areas to bring back the effect I wanted and cover up the dust. There's definitely a richness now, I hope it comes across as I realised that it takes a while to do but that's OK. If a model takes three times longer than a Termagant, that makes sense as they're worth three times more. 

I obviously did all the bases and will probably do all the bases on the Dark Vengeance squad immediately after base coating so everything can be tidy. Additionally there's the freehand Chapter badge which is something to look forward to [NOT!] and I'll pick out a number of other details as well as trying to achieve a decent lens effect on the sniper scopes.

Dark Angel progress, honest!

Alongside the Deathwing progress I've continued on with my Space Marine Commander. His power sword has been painted in the same way as the Deathwing Captain, beautiful and scruffy! The same can be said for his cloak. There seems to be a lot of my 'old' way of painting in this - the scruffy slap-dash way I used to paint my Empire army. It got them done but was considerably removed from my wet-blending techniques I was capable of.

I've still to come to terms with the banner. Once again this is something I've seen executed with success. My local GW has the same AoBR Commander, painted quickly with what looks like solely Foundation paints but they seem to have picked out a wealth of detail on the banner. I've only painted the cloth and it feels like it's far from satisfactory but I must remember The Most Important Rule of Painting - it's not finished and to reserve judgement until it is.

In some respects the different kind of painting on the cloak works purely because it's material, it has a totally different physical quality and texture than any of the other bits on the model. Perhaps the shadows and highlights are actually too harsh for fabric but in the 41st Millenium who knows?

Still some little bits to do, hair, gun, banner and base at least.

Here's a bonus tidbit. I wanted to see if I could freehand the Dark Angel chapter badge on a standard Marine shoulder pad - they're a little smaller than a Terminator shoulder, not least because of the rim surrounding the pad. As this is one of the old plastic marines his shoulder pad is smaller still than the AoBR miniatures. I managed it and it's passable. I'm not sure I want to do them all this way, although how many Marines would I actually be doing? 15, 20? Surely that's in the realms of possibility? Or, should I just opt for decals of this? Ron's just done a few posts on decals on From the Warp so if I can find a way to put them on without it screaming "HE USED DECALS" it might be worth trying. I'll be doing some decals on my son's Eldar no doubt so perhaps that will be my opportunity to reacquaint myself with the procedure and results and what results I can achieve following some of Ron's tips.

To done! - Deathwing

When I first started painting Citadel Miniatures I got a bundle of Dwarves on slotta bases and with shields that you could position onto a lump on their forearm thus making a shield boss. At the time I painted the shields all the same, a 'silver' [white is called silver in heraldic terms, or so a White Dwarf article once told me] field, quartered with scarlet. Essentially it's your captains heraldry below, or the far right Terminator.

Originally I'd left these at the Mechrite Red stage. I wasn't convinced so added a little bit of highlighting. I'm still not 100% convinced but with pretty much all of my Dark Angels I think I'm thinking too much which is essentially getting in the way of doing, but you all gathered that already.

The captain is done, I've never been great with eyes but he'll do. I marvel sometimes at how much detail some folk get out of this model I feel mins is a little bit hamfisted. The Agmetic Eye for instance is such a big 'blob' compared to some of the super detailed lenses I've seen elsewhere. I'm not 100% convinced about his leather kilt thing. The green isn't too great but anymore highlighting would have looked odd I think.

I like the sword, the colours tie in with the base and the rest of the miniature. I do however thinkit's one of those things you do that straddles coolness and sloppy painting at the same time. I can clearly see where brush stokes are 'accidental' in their effect but I flip between admiring and despairing of it so best not to continue dwelling on it. One issue does still stand, the solitary gem in the Captains Crux Terminatus... do I leave it as or add a little brass mount and a coloured stone?

 

I like the heraldry, I love the reconnection with my past, I'm not 100% happy with execution but happy enough. There's plenty of elements I'm ecstatic about but as a whole I'm not entirely sure they're as cohesive as they could have been. Once again it makes me think that perhaps I would have been better off doing a compeletly new chapter instead od pursuing one I had so much 'history' with. Black Templars perhaps or even Blood Angels...

But I am happy with the Ferron Crux Terminatus. It was definitely the right choice and at least from this angle they look like a solid cohesive unit.

And lets not forget the freehand Deathwing badges. Nor the first attempt at OSL lenses, which wasn't too shabby if perhaps scientifically backwards. The battle damage, which I applied in just a few places, which is OK and where it's not I just toned it down. The verdigris and bronze effects - lots of little lessons, which is perhaps why I do get that disharmonious feel to it.

So overall I think this is done. The mechrite red has gone on the base and I'm awaiting an order of Purity Seal to varnish them...

Gaming night 2nite

I'm only here because I'm smiling with having done some painting.

 Given it's my youngest's birthday next Tuesday and he's been harping on about it since the day after his last one I kind of have to go tonight or it'll be April before my next session. Thanks to the bumper crop of attendees last week the club is upgrading to a bigger room so again it's best I go to show support.

Although I don't fully equate my membership of the Lost Boys Gaming Club to being a member of my kendo club I think 'giri' still applies, in some small way. Giri 義理 is a Japanese value roughly corresponding to "duty", "obligation", or even "burden of obligation" in English.

Unlike kendo where my very attendance was sufficient to help others and support the club if I don't attend Lost Boys no one will suffer because of my absence. However, the club needs to pay for the facilities so that is important to have sufficient numbers to break even. Of course in this day and age we all have to economise so my two visits a month goal is, I think, a decent commitment to the club. Anyway, with more room I think I'm more likely to get a match tonight than last week so I'm looking forward to it.

Meanwhile, last night I got in some painting while watching some episodes of Modern Family on the Sky Go. I finished the first set of highlights on my elf Blood Bowl team [except for the Blitzers] and I haven't even introduced them to you yet! I also did a load of Tin Bitz on my AoBR Tac Squad weapons. Not a huge amount of progress but it's one more hurdle overcome, onto the next one and only time will tell if it's easier or not.

Deathwing Progress 4 - Power Weapons and Belial

Back in April I shared my idea for Belial and as the first Deathwing squad is approaching something close to completion I though I would turn my attentions to him in an attmpt to finish them simultaneously. First thing first was the height difference from this ancient miniature. As he is shorter than the Assault on Black Reach terminators I decided he needed a bit more base! I got to use my Dremmel and rout a slot into a piece of slate from the garden, this has then been Vermillioned!

I'm going to redo the lightening claws to fit the same style as the current force weapons I'm doing, both on the Terminator Sergeant and the AoBR Captain [see the end of this post for where that's at]. Some Badab Black wash still to be applied.

Next up was the hard part, painting over the green reinforcements. I thought they were cartoony but they did look well executed if a bit glossy and OTT. Everything that was 'green enamelled' will now be weathered bronze like the current Deathwing. Not sure if I should change his eye lenses to green though...?

Last up his Crux has been covered in Mechrite Red and then overbrushed in Vermillion as standard. Not entirely sure how to treat the vents on the top of the armour and I need to decide if I'll drill into the middle jewel on top and pin one of the Ravenwing upgrade sprue items. It should make him look even more impressive. He's currently taller than the other marines but only just taller than the sergeant with his Iron Halo. Of course I'm loate to do anything that'll easily snap off, especially as this is such a 'compact' model, even if it does weigh a tonne!

Referring back to what I said above, here's my first stab at power weapons [pun intended]. Just playing around with the Vermillion Art acrylic. Will add some more washes and highlights. It's not awesome but I'm confident it'll be sufficient in the end.

Painted faces

As I make some progress with terrain, Deathwing and other bits and pieces I also decided to get some paint on the few faces that are 'exposed' on the Assault on Black Reach figures.

Ultimately I'm trying to continue to do dark skinned marines based on my Dark Angel genesis 3 figure. This is my attempt to capture the 'native american' fluff that the Deathwing was original famed for and fits the landscape fluff of Ferron Proxima with its red planet desert environments. 

This tactical squad sergeant is coming along nicely and I'm really loathe to put anymore highlights on the green now. Orkhide shade with Badab Black wash and it's actually where I want it to be and all the other details just pop because the armour colour is so dark, although it looks much darker than under daylight.

Company Captain has had his skintones done as well and there is some initial [very] rough highlights on his cloak and tabbard. Really I should go lighter on the next set of highlights but I like the dirty brown, although it needs tidying up, a lot. Initial colours on the power sword too. Thinned Vermillion with a Badab Black wash, more shading to come and then some lightening FX.

Back to a shot on a black background and in daylight so you can see the green isn't quite as dark as the above pic. The other big question is whether to do the verdigris effect on all the bronze to match the Deathwing [pictured so you can compare the two] I like what I've done on the tac squad already and think the contrast between the bronze and the green would removed if some turquoise was introduced. I'll know better when I've painted all the guns to attach to the rest of the squad...

One more decision - how about some tribal war paint? Not to mention do I paint the eyes [oh G.O.D. don't let me make that decision!] 



Deathwing progress 3

There are two great guides to painting freehand Dark Angel symbols and I did a bit of both and added a bit myself after finally deciding [YES I can make a decision eventually] to go freehand, first the two tutorials you should read if you want to get all unforgiven!

• http://theangelstalon.blogspot.com/2008/09/painting-tutorial-dark-angels-markings.html
• http://fromthewarp.blogspot.com/2009/03/trick-to-painting-small-icons.html

Here's how I started, with a simple pencil crayon sketch first, I did the sword first then wrapped the wing arcs round it then added the feathers. One thing I didn't want to do is cut back into the design, it was a one pass shot and each bit was to be right first time, in direct contrast to the two tutorials which work on simple shapes first.

The battle damaged terminator and how I was going to paint around the scarring.

At this point I see the advantage to Ron's guide in that by making the wing arc first you can guarantee the tip feathers are both level, mine tip up a bit and one badge has a flat wing and an upturned one, still it's hardly noticeable. Mechrite Red is my weapon of choice for the colour, thinned a bit and I'm so pleased with the results I don't even think I'm going to add any highlights, the mixed opacity makes it work all by itself.

Following on from the top and bottom feathers it's simple enough to but the two middle feathers in place. Just do one line, then the next and you will then have an idea of where to but the next strokes to thicken them up and balance each feather with each gap. Finally a simple cut-in of Bonewhite to make the zig-zag in the broken sword [the worst bit actually]. The first one I did seemed to take ages.

And so I planned to do the remaining four in two sittings, with the first two taking me over halfway I could feel happy about finishing off the last two and not get antsy about the whole process. Somehow I got the first of these done in around 8 minutes - still a lot of time one might say which is why I get agitated - a lot of time spent painting very little even if the results look great [or at least I think so].

So all five were complete in under an hour, and other bits and bobs got painted too. As a production line I think doing the sword as step one on all the miniatures, then doing the top and bottom feathers and finally coming in last to put the middle wings is the most efficient way to do it. Your hand gets used to what's expected of if and it's easier to repeat the process X5

And somehow the use of the orange pencil crayons adds to it in a way, or at least doesn't detract enough that I feel I have to paint out any of my guides. Still to decide on the heraldry and I actually fancy putting the original Deathwing tribal stripes on side of the terminator armour. But overall I can't believe they came out so well. There is something to this freehand mullarky. It is labour intensive and the area painted is so small but they're all starting to come together now because of it. I'm much less apprehensive about doing the same to the Tac squad, but their shoulder pads are a little bit smaller so I'm still slightly concerned.