Whats on my palette?

Bless me #warmongers for I have sinned, it's been over 5 months since my last confession! I've known exactly what I needed to paint so it didn't really require an overview to keep track.

When last I confessed I had these 6 items on my palette:

1. Genestealer Abberants
2. Genestealer Iconward
3. Genestealer familiars
4. Blood Bowl Humans
5. Callidus Assassin
6. Extra Knight weapons

Of which you can see only 1 of them has been done. In fact the Genestealer elements only got the  barest of attention, it at all and the assassin and weapons none. I still have an Abberant to do some sculpting on so there doesn't seem much point to progress any of the others with that figure not even out of the starting blocks. I'm looking at a way to do that outside of my evening hobby time though which might get it over the Big Build finish line.

I've finished my Blood Bowl Ogre, but that gave me time to finish off the Middenheim Marauders turn counters

I'll pop a TO DONE! post up soon for these, but then I'm free again [sort of].

So, my thinking is I should really crack on with my Deathwing Knights. They've been too long on hiatus, sitting taunting me. I also have their ride - a Land Raider Redeemer, that I think I should throw on some shades/texture at least, just to move it on [not that I've personally ever actually put paint on it, it came like this].

However, I have the Manchester Battle of the Brush to deal with:

February - Big Model - Dark Angel Redemptor Dreadnought

March - Character - Blood Bowl Ogre

April - Squad - Blood Bowl Team

May - Big Model - Land Raider? 

June - Character - ?

July - Squad - Deathwing Knights

As you can see I have a decent amount of time to get the Land Raider and Knights done, typically the Characters are my weak spot, but the stuff I've painted recently at least covers me for a few months. I do have another Blackstone Fortress model - Amallyn Shadowguide that may fill that gap.

Not to mention a load of Blood Bowl balls, long overdue Imperial Knight weapons and additional basecoats on those various Tyranids.

Blood Bowl - Human Team Original Middenheim Marauders - Flocking Hell! - TO DONE! again...

Afternoon #warmongers and although I finished #paintingwarhammer #bloodbowl team. I did decide to add flock to the bases. I'd contemplated it, thought it'd lose the effort I'd already done in the brown bases and asked online after creating a test base. Ultimately I went for it and I'm so glad I did.

It's like the verdigris weathering on my brassy bronze. As much as I love the metal effect [but hate doing it] and it looks great, as soon as you add the turquoise it just makes it better. It requires a leap of faith every time and adding flock was the same, particularly as I don't use it on any other bases.

But it works so well with the red and black and although I had some mixed feelings about the team the flock has levelled them up. So much so I'll probably do the elf team too, they could do with some love 💖

I did all these in a lunch break at work, there are only the coins still to do.

Turn and re-roll markers.

I feel perhaps I should have added a little more rust on the players, something I only decided to add to the ogre, but my Orc team will definitely have that as a feature so perhaps not. The rust is Ryza Rust, but thinned down as a wash - one way to get the effect of weathering powders without the powder and issues getting it to set.

These were the markers before flocking.

Which is nice but I spent so much time looking at the test piece below that I knew I would get so much more joy out of them flocked than left plain.

The test base, I really need to sort out all the balls as well.

So, a Big Build Basing Galactic Stamp of Approval. 

 And a Hobby Season Big Galactic Stamp of Approval, again because why not? I may not get as many models painted this year and it's the best stamp yet so I want to get the best value I can out of it!

'nids part 274 - Tyranid Warrior Termagants, Rippers and Carnifex head - basecoats

Afternoon #warmongers and I've been #paintingwarhammer on some outstanding Tyranid models. Outstanding in the sense they need to be painted, not so much they are 'amazing'. I have these 5 Devgaunts, some made from Hormagaunt 'chassis'.

I know this isn't exactly quality content but what I wanted to showcase just how bad my basecoats start off. Coincidentally Marc over at Old School Gaming did a similar post on his Iron Snakes, but I think my Tyranid are in a much worse state initially.

I had undercoated these red, but with hindsight I should have done them Bone colour, like I used to. It's much easier to cut in the red elements. I had started carefully doing the Bonewhite but after one ad a half models completely lost patience and just splashed on a load of paint expecting to pick out the red areas much as I used to do the 'liver' wash that I originally used to do.

Now if I'd done a Skeleton Bone prime, and then masked off the base and done that Red Oxide, I could have saved myself a bit of effort. Or perhaps, primed red and zenithal bone?

Whilst I was at it I threw on some Bonewhite on the 4 bases of Rippers hanging around.

I was a little more cautious on these, mainly to ensure the Red Planet BASE! was retained. All of these Tyranids will keep sitting on the shelf. Every now and again I'll add another step in the painting process until I reach the tipping point whereby a small push would get them done, should a window open up to focus on them. 

I had these Carnifex heads knocking around for a while so it made sense to get their first basecoat on too. All my nid bits are now ready for Bahama Blue on the chitin, but also cutting in that red for the fleshy parts where necessary.

With my Blood Bowl Ogre done and getting through these while I also finish off my Middenheim Marauders turn counters and a few Blood Bowl balls it's about time to take stock of what's on my palette, so expect an update next.

Blood Bowl - Human Team Original Middenheim Marauders - Ogre - TO DONE!

Afternoon #warmongers and I've finished #paintingwarhammer #bloodbowl Ogre. Since I started back in the hobby nine years ago I've had some improvement in my painting skill. I can clearly see the change from those first Tyranids to what I do now.

Despite certain elements being rougher they are better. My Dark Angels have progressed too, but as I've painted less understandably the improvement has been less noticeable. However, because I delayed doing them for so long maybe they are just being painted at the same level thanks to my Tyranid painting experience.

Anyway, thanks to expanding the variety of things I paint - Underwolrd's warbands and Blood Bowl teams I have noticed I've 'levelled-up'. Ylthari's Guardians was a big step up and I think this is another one.

This is Bo, the 'Box', my Blood Bowl Ogre. When I painted his face I just thought of the 'Face of Bo' not that he looks like the Face of Bo but it just sprang to mind. However, Bo was too hard for him to spell and he can't count so the Middenheim Marauders gave him the X identifier and couple dwith his name he got the Box nickname.

He's sponsored by Orcidas, hence the three stripes on his paints, inverted on the other side [pictured above].

I think the rust stains sold it to me, just some extra tone to elevate it. That is I think the thing I need to hold onto the most. I try and add texture and underpainting to what I do, adding in additional tones on top will just enhance everything.

His face is definitely the part I'm most proud of - a departure for me, still far from perfect but for just an hour, or so, work I'm well chuffed.

I did try and tweak the pupil on the right, as we look at it. It's better but still gozzy. I can also so some random red splodges on his team badge, I didn't fix them as they almost look like it's worn off, which fits the weathering. Teeth could have been a little less basic but nevermind.

Now to decide if I'm going to apply some flock. I may do my Elven team first as a grass pitch makes more sense for them. I also need to finish the balls, turn markers and coins.

Till then here's my Big Galactic Stamp of Approval for being a good boy!

Blood Bowl - Human Team Original Middenheim Marauders - Ogre - facecoats

Afternoon #warmongers and I'm continuing #paintingwarhammer #bloodbowl Ogre. Having finished the white quartered highlights, silver buckles, black leather and Warplock Bronze gut plate it was time to go at the skin. I wanted him to echo the brown skin tones of the 2nd edition Oldheim Ogres team [shown further down]. So I highlighted all the previously shaded skin with Valejo Game Color Leather brown.

I had thought I'd add some tattoos/face-paint similar to these guys but ultimately didn't.

All the leather straps are black, but the actual gut plate harness was Rhinox Hide, washed with Army Painter Dark Tone [black]. Various stippling took place on the highlights to add more texture/hide mistakes.

I added some extremely minimal highlights to the red [first stage highlights from my Red Planet Basing mix] just to add that definition between armour plates.

I also decided to paint his chest 'rosette' - white as it's still in that quarter and I'd already sacrificed some white with the black armour plate. But I added red edging for a bit more contrast.

And boom - the face. I used Valejo Game Color Bronzed flesh for this but added a small amount of heavy red for the sides of the face, nose and temples.

The grooves in the lips were a little clumsy and the pupils on his eyes slightly off centre, but the right as we look at it took 5 or 6 goes, because my hands were shaking so much, to get this and when tabletop viewing it's not as prominent.

Adding that red texture took this to a whole new level for me. Of course the brush strokes are pronounced and it's far from perfect but it's a level of detail I would not have used int he past and yet it's made such a huge difference.

I tried a bit of stippling on his head for more texture, I could have gone with stubble but happy with this so I'll leave it be. You can see some of the red highlights more clearly in this pic.

Nothing extra, just pics using my camera magnifying app to get macro-shots.

I may well try and fix that eye, get the rosette and all the leather and metallics done... oh and the base 😲 yes, usually the base is done first but this has still got to happen...

Blood Bowl - Human Team Original Middenheim Marauders - Ogre Basecoats

Afternoon #warmongers and I'm continuing #paintingwarhammer #bloodbowl Ogre. After a matt black prime and red oxide zenithal highlight I had some pretty decent coverage. Given the cold weather I did the full 2 minutes of shaking both spray cans and even kept them warm [by holding them in front of the tumble dryer vent as I shook them]. I then quartered the uniform with Valejo Game Color Stonewall Grey. It amazes me that I've used this paint as a base for almost every white I've ever done and teeth too. It's spurted out of the dropper bottle numerous times but still feels like there's half a bottle left, and after a decade too!

I'm still a little undecided on some elements. I had envisaged a roughly painted belly plate in team colours but it might be silver or bronze... Army Painter Strong Tone washes over everything - I have noticed a glossy finish to this batch, maybe it's because I can never be bothered to shake the bottles. I also think I should be thinning them a bit more. They work much better with water to break down the surface tension and bleed into the crevices more.

A couple of nights on and I've done all the first Stonewall Grey highlights and all the Valejo Game Color Heavy Red [or Khorne Red] highlights. I then did Vermilion art acrylics for the next red highlights.

Now I think the other Marauders were done with VGC Bloody Red but I wanted to play around and I felt this colour might give me some more interesting results and I think it was justified in the end.

It's such an odd paint, very thick but has quite an opaqueness when watered down, but that can easily become a glaze depending how you work the paint with the brush. But then a quick stipple and you get the signature hammered texture finish.

White highlights next and I may even add in some additional edge highlighting on the red, not to make it 'pop' you understand, but to add definition ;)