Dark Angels - Scout Camo cloaks colours

Unfortunately [or fortunately depending on your point of view] I didn;t take anymore WiP pics after this. I actually did a few highlights on all the black polygons and then promptly painted all the black bits, green bits, metalics and eveything else but it just doesn't show up in the pics as progress so I didn't even bother.

However, the basis for the pattern is complete in these so you can get the jist until you see the finished article. For some reason though all I'm seeing is a fruit loaf or cake, filled with raisins and orange peel, which isn;t a bad thing I suppose.

I certainly don't think they've been ruined, far from it it's just the feeling I get from them is difficult to articulate thanks to this whole 'cake' motif I'm getting, cos I like cake. Still, I'm glad I did it as otherwise it'd just be some red cloaks. This isn't a new skill, because afterall I did do this 19-20 years ago but it has been something different to do which has made it fresh and exciting.

Hopefully I'll feel equally motivated and excited when I crank out the airbrush and have a pop at some of my tanks. I'll need a little practice first as the last time I used one was probably in '91/'92 at school and I'll tell you the amusing anecdote surrounding those airbrush lessons when I attempt to hone my talents as a little humility of my own might help temper the amusment I'll have at someone else's expense...

Dark Angels - Scout Camo cloak patterns

This was quite laborious, and I really started ot think this was a mistake part way through. Painting all these polygons took quite a while made more time consuming by making the shapes so small. The titan carapace shapes were about twice the size.

I did try and switch scales so it was quicker to do but somehow I still kept pretty much the same size which does make me feel happy that I was at least consistent and now the job is done it doesn;t matter so much how time-consuming the process was but at the time it was a little frustrating.

I'm pretty sure I could have left this right here, the effect is still pretty cool and you can still see the smooth highlights on the cloaks. However I'm not one to shirk from a plan so I'll be continuing on with the planned bonewhite and black polygons.

I'm also quite relieved that the scouts have an increased BS now and can be part of that demi-company so it's a cheap ob-sec scoring unit, ones we're short of now Sammael, Azreal and Belial don't unlock Deathwing and Ravenwing as troops :(

Anyway, it's nice to have options so I can always rock out my old Space Crusade scouts should I need some more ;)

Dark Angels - Scout Camo cloaks

I spent most of last week on the scouts, you'll be pleased to know they're finished now, I'll get chance to do their completed pics this weekend. In the mean time most of my WiP pictures are of their camo cloaks I'll be posting these over the next few days with the big reveal of the finished models next week as progress on the Tac squad will be slow going. Anyway I did my usual highlighting procedure for the cloaks, matching how I do the highlighting for the Red Planet base, these are supposed to match the surroundings afterall.

Funnily enough the vermilion texture on the cloaks didn't catch as much as I thought it would with the highlights, but no bother because I'll be adding my own Ferron Camo pattern. I'm actually a little worried as these came out really well and I haven't attempted this technique in about 19 years and not on cloaks! I really don't want to screw up what's turned out quite nice.

However, I will be repeating the urban camo effect I did on my War Griffons titan carapace. As you can see the majority is just basic grey with a slightly stippled effect and then random shapes with some lighter and some darker.

I'll be adjusting it slightly so the lighter shapes will all be bonewhite [obviously] and they'll be smaller polygons, to better represent the Wraithbone chips on the Surface of Ferron Proxima. Then I will do the darker polygons as black, just for some variety. I think a darker red wouldn;t show up as much so hopefully the extreme will work.

Cabinet models at Manchester GW

Nipped into GW to pick up a Knight base the other week and took a few photos of the models that interested me in the display cabinet. There was this green and orange Maleceptor which made me actually like the model, not enough to buy one obviously! The rules just don't appeal to me, I just can't bank on the randomness of the 'Psychic Phase' [aka the disappointment phase] so investing in this both in £s and pts especially when this is smaller than but more expensive than a Tervigon to buy.

The same painter also put together a Spawn of Cryptus which was equally nice.

But this conversion of the Spawn was really clever, utilising it as a base for a Tyranid Prime!

Had to get this fella on 'film' for you all as I knew it was such a killer idea, shame the kitbash is probably more expensive than the standard option.I suppose it does allow you to keep the three Warrior brood intact without sacrificing a model to become a Prime though and if you don't run Genestealers then maybe the spawn would be redundant anyway and the Deathstorm box does provide all the bits to achieve this.

Lastly some of the nice new AdMech models, I certainly prefer the Cult Mechanicus theme and kits than the Skitarii. I remember reading that Skitarii were more 'techno-barbarians' than the steampunk we seem to have gotten. So I'd definitely go cult first if I was going to invest in another army [which I'm not] and then if I wanted Skitarii I'd do some crazy conversions from Warhammer Fantasy models, that's if they still exist in the near future!

I thought I'd share this too, it's the 'shed' I'll be getting in a few weeks to move my hobby into, although mine will be 10' x 6'. It's an expensive to do, but it will free up our back room to become a dining room and more importantly remove my 'crap' from the house

And just to ensure this does go ahead [well the deposit has been paid so it better had] the wife encouraged me with this for Father's Day

Dark Angels - Scouts, Jetfighters and MOAR

See, I AM painting them! For some reason the Scouts are calling to me I think it's the camo cloaks and the plan I have to paint them. Of course they have to be red so I'm introducing yet more to the colours in my Dark Angels mix! As I needed to tip my last order from Element Games* [see below] over the £80 for free delivery threshold I also got some Martian Earth technical paint and some Khorne Red base - which I believe is the closest to Mechrite Red and not that Mephiston they tried to foist on me when the new range came out. So I had a quick go on the cloaks and I'm impressed. It seems a lot thinner than the old Foundation paint but went on very opaque. It did dry a little less so but I can live with that.

I then drybush/wetbushed the cloaks with my Vermilion craft acrylic. Even when dry this became a little tacky to touch but it did add a subtle texture I hoped to benefit from in subsequent highlights. This is going to be a lot fun as it's all rooted in the Ferron Proxima theme so I'm loving the opportunity to do my Ferron camo pattern, regardless of the not inconsiderable effort involved.

Sadly the Milliput cloak is a bit out of place amongst the plastic counterparts but hopefully it'll be less conspicuous once complete.

And my Jetfighter is starting to come together. I want it magnetised so I can try both flyers and looking at the leaks I want to try both flyers! However, the cockpit/canopy situation is a bit fussy. I was debating the colour of the canopy, originally it was going to be Tamiya Clear Orange X-26 but I think introducing orange into my Ravenwing may be a mistake so will go with Tamiya Clear Red X-27. I've sprayed the internals of the cockpit Red Oxide and washed it, I won't have to do a great deal inside as most of the colours will be obscured by the canopy colour.

Although it would be nice to see the result before sticking it in I'm not so sure that's possible as there are still two extra pieces that enclose the canopy to glue in places which actually makes the canopy impossible to open - sounds like typical AdMech design principles!

This is what arrived from Element Games - my missing Ravenwing Command Squad/Knights box.

And my Google AdSense funded Imperial Knight Warden and two pots of paint. OOH I'm gonna have me some fun!

* Incidentally when I ordered from element games I got some loyalty points and a code so you can get double 'Element Crystals' (Store Credit). My referral code is DAV910.

• If you feel the urge to use it on any order I'll receive extra Element Crystals to my account, but
• You receive DOUBLE Element Crystals too, so everyone wins! 

All you have to do is enter the code above at the end of the checkout stage, or not, it's up to you.

The return of the Free Radical Collective - MOAR cultist pics

I know this is more of the same but once again I am working behind the scenes on stuff so while I regale you with more pictures of all my Dark Vengeance cultists I can get on with the Dark Angels safe in the knowledge you're actually getting some posts out of me in the mean time.

The whole point of these extra photos is to see both the new and old cultists together and see if they're a cohesive fashion even if it is a rabble.

And I think they turned out alright. Perhaps a drybrush of grey on some of the debris on the newer ones but otherwise they all fit together OK.

There was a lot more blue on the Genestealer cultists, which make sense as it's their affinity to the Tyranids that brings about the colouring, but it does help tie both the red and orange fatigued group together.

Anyway, that's it hope you enjoyed the pics :)

'nids part 172 - Genestealer Cultists - TO DONE!

I don't quite know why I got a sweat on for completing these guys. They are on my list so I don't feel too bad about allocating hobby time to them even if they're currently of zero use to me. But these were actually a little bit more fun to paint than the Free Radical Collective Cultists I'd already done.

I think it was perhaps because there were the familiar nid elements; all the unfamiliar bits, which were in fact easier second time around, were smaller so were painted quicker. The mix of the two just made it a more pleasant experience, although I did begin to lose patience at the end but that was more to do with the pressure to get the Dark Angels back on the table.

So anyway, alongside the 10 cultists I threw in the pilot from the Battle for Macragge kit. He's carrying some vital geneseed vials so we better hope he hasn't been infected by Genestealers...

This guy was one of the most mutated cultists and I particularly like how I repurposed his chaos tattoo brand as toxic elements from his toxin sacs - it's not convincing in any shape or form, I just like it.

I'm also digging the orange fatigues. I wanted a rabble red planet wasteland look for all the cultists, both chaos and Genestealer so I chose both red and orange as base colours with all the other elements tying it together, like the blue accents. I must admit there is far too much colour going on, an assault on the senses.

But I'm just delighted to have them done even if they're a bit garish and even rushed in places. Being able to be happy with something that was done quickly is a lesson I'm proud to learn. It was indecision and inactivity that killed my forays into painting when I was a child so 'progress is progress' as the FRC are wont to say

I'm also getting to explore the colour scheme I had down for my Squats way back when - orange and blue so this was quite a rewarding trip down memory lane for me.

Super chuffed with this guys heavy stubber - only paint and washes on this, no technical paints and I think it came out particularly realistic and grungy. I love the contrast between that realism and primary almost comicbook elements on his nid features.

I was a bit lazy on some of the FRC markings resulting in a lot of stylised R's but this complete logo came out particularly well.

The Warrior faced cultist was perhaps my least favourite conversion but I think the red face actually saved it, you still can't quite work out what's going on with his features but it's definitely better than I thought it would. The stylised R's on both sides of his hood are debatable though.

This fella is covered in R's, I wanted it to be a random expression, like some lunatic repeating the same symbol but I'm not sure it worked as I intended as I didn't do any markings above the waste

So it's like he started scrawling on his clothes and then got bored!

This one has been infected by an Adrenal Gland biomorph.

The pilot, he's still an unexpected bonus, he's not got any FRC markings so is he complicit in their cult, who knows?

Rear shots of the hooded guy.

Yet more shots from behind so you can see all the details.

This guy's got all the tools.

And the rust still looks pretty cool.

Now i know certain buddies will be disappointed this is not a Dark Angels post but they were in progress long before Blog Wars and will actually benefit me as I work on the Dark Angel Scouts as there are certain similarities. I did also have zero interest in fielding scouts up until the new Codex leaks suggested that two demi-companies give away free Transports - which will mean my Land Raiders will need to be progressed so the scouts will definitely keep their spot on the table, as will the Tactical Squad and their Macragge counterparts that I've not even cleaned the mold lines off! Then I may even have to look at my old skool lead [pb] ones to make up the numbers before I even consider buying new plastic.

Anyway I gets the red stamp of approval!