I’m calling these guys done now. Just some simple table top level paints and back into the box. Unfortunately the basing material I put on the bases means they don’t all fit nicely into the tray provided, so I may end up having to design and 3D print something.
Working on getting this set done using mostly Contrast paints for a quick table top level paint job. Better to be painted quickly than not painted at all.
Here's a quick tutorial on how to paint Stormcast guys quickly using Contrast paints for a non-metallic gold look. Its not the best paint job, but its quick and easy and I think it looks decent on the table top. Check after the jump for more pictures and a link to the youtube video.
Another warband painted up for Warhammer Underworlds. These guys were a combination of contrast paints and standard methods to get a decent outcome in a reasonable amount of time. One of the challenges with this warband is that there's such a diversity in painting the different troops.
I picked this guy out of my old Age of Sigmar starter kit because there are rules for him in Silver tower. I've been painting up all the figures and expansions for that, but haven't had a chance to play it yet. Anyway, gave this guy a go with contrast paints and am pretty happy with the results, especially his big icon. Very simple to do with contrast and decent results for the amount of work required.
Here's a Skaven clawlord/warlord painted up with contrast paints. As expected he painted up pretty quickly. I used contrast paints for a non-metallic metal look on the silver and bronze areas. This is passable, but a little more effort with some highlights or drybrushing would really help.
Here's a tutorial for Magore's fiends. I painted them up in a pretty standard colour scheme. I laid down the red first with my airbrush then painted everything overtop of that.
I've pick up some contrast paints, so my next tutorials will probably be experimenting with different techniques (short cuts) with them.
Here's a tutorial and some pics of the Sepulchral Guard from Warhammer Underworlds. I experimented with some inks to see if I could come up with a homebrew contrast (didn't work), and I talk about that in the video. I may have used the wrong paints, mixes or even the undercoat... not sure, but when I have a chance to use the contrast paints I'll post an update.
I started these guys right after Thundrik's warband, but wasn't able to get at them over the weekend. Overall they were fun to paint. I think what made it a lot easier was airbrushing the base colours (roughly). This meant I didn't need to do multiple coats of light grey to get good coverage on their skin. Other than that these guys were pretty straight forward. Check out the video and additional pictures below.
These guys painted up pretty quick, and were pretty fun. I started with a silver base and added variation to the metallics from there and some different colours for the fabric and leather details. I used the Skywardens as my guide for colours (purple suits, light brown leather and black boots). I tried to add lots of copper because I like how it looks. I checked out the official video and found the guys a bit dark, so tried for a brighter look. Video and more pics after the break.
I just finished up the Ironskull's boyz for Warhammer Underworlds. This warband painted up nice and fast since they have a fairly simple paint scheme. The yellow is a little tricky to keep bright and clean, but I think it turned out ok. You don't want it to perfect as these guys are orruks (orcs), and aren't likely to keep their stuff in good shape.
Here's my attempt at doing the Godsworn hunt in a Jem and the Holograms theme. I think I got inspiration from some themed warband on Facebook. Anyway, I basically used the below pic as a colour guide. I didn't do anything too crazy with painting techniques, so the pictures are mostly useful for reference if you want to do something similar. A full painting tutorial is available after the break if you want to see how I did them.
I think the bases are what made this work so well for me. You can see more about that in the video, but the last picture below was the inspiration. Let me know what you think, or if you have any suggestions for future warband themes.
I just finished these guys up and did a recap video of where I deviated from the Warhammer TV tutorial. For future projects I'll try to record more as I go, but until I get back into a groove this might be all you get. I'm working with a new setup for taking pictures, so I need to work on the consistency a little.
I had a chance to finish off the Tazaagors over the weekend. I basically followed the paint splatter guide, with the exception of the gold. For that I used the Vallejo liquid gold (alcohol based paint). It comes our really shiny, almost a gold leaf look. I may give it a gloss shade wash, but for now its just pure gold.
I managed to get a few more hours and finish this guy up. He's surprisingly large, which the 40mm base kind of hides in the pictures. Anyway, finished up using the paint splatter article, with a few substitutions and change of order. I like how he turned out and if I ever get around to doing the khorne half of the age of sigmar starter set then I'll use the same general paint scheme.
I picked up the new White Dwarf and found some time Saturday afternoon to get started on the free mini. I haven't gone through the whole issue yet, but liked the idea of getting the guy painted up quickly by following the paint splatter article. I really like those articles and hope that they revive the 'eavy metal master class ones some day. The only thing I changed is that I did all the base colours and washes together rather than doing one full colour before moving onto the next like the article shows. I prefer doing it this way because I can fix any mistakes with the next layer rather that going back and fixing something that was fully complete.
As far as the new white dwarf goes I'm hopeful that they can figure out what it takes to become something like the "golden age" ones. There is promise with how GW is approaching videos and social media, so if it can become a true hobby magazine then I'll keep buying it. Time will tell.
Here's some of my work in progress pictures. Overall I like the paint scheme and will use this guy as a test for any further Khorne guys I do.
Here's a few more pictures of Lord-Celestantas assembled. I'm slowly working my way through assembling the guys and trying to make sure I get all of the mold lines and fit things nicely.
These guys are impressive, and I can't wait to start painting them. I'm holding off until I have have them all assembled though since I want to lay down the base colours with my airbrush, so I hope to do that all at once.
Here's a video showing the Khorgorath and Bloodstoker assembly. They are pretty straightforward, and have minimal cleanup needed to make them work. The Khorgorath has a couple joints that should be filled before painting, but otherwise its easy to assemble. I've been really impressed with the Chaos models in this set... they are a step ahead for sure, and quite impessive. I'm not as much of a fan of the forces of Sigmar, but they are ok too.
I've added some side by side shots with my Helbrute below since there has been some talk that they are very similar. That's sort of true, but they are very different models. I don't really see any commonality other then general size and a similar pose.
Here's that Liberator test model from the White Dwarf that I was working on. He turned out ok, and I think I can make some improvements when I start painting up the guys from the box set. Overall this is a managable paint scheme and should be repeatable enough for a whole army. The longest bit is the edging, but its not too difficult and I'm sure I'll figure out ways to make it go faster.
Here's my unboxing video showing the contents of the Age of Sigmar Warhammer starter set. Probably not much new in there, so I'll add some thoughts and opinions below.
First off, its a nicely packaged starter. Much more of a starter than previous GW offerings, in that you can actually play full games with the models and rules supplied. The previous ones were sort of half baked in my opinion, because you needed the army books to play the full game, and didn't really have enough models to have a proper force. This one seems different in that sense, so is more catered towards the first time gamer than the long time neck beard.
As for the sprues, of course the details are amazing and all of that, but the thing I've noticed is that the good and evil guys are totally separate on the sprues. You can easily split the box without clipping anything. The sprues are either completely one side or are divided down the middle and can be snapped in half. This is a great design, and will make splitting with friends that much easier.
In terms of the new faction (Sigmarines), I can't say that I'm thrilled by them. I don't particularly like painting space marines, and that's what these guys feel like. One of thing things I like about fantasy are the troops and their smaller scale, so these guys are basically the opposite of that. I'm also not keen on the round bases, but we'll have to see how that works out with game play. I'm not about to rebase all of my guys yet, but maybe I will if I get indications that the round bases are the way to go in the long run.
For me one of the key things about a gaming system is that it is supported and living. This means an active player community and new releases. I think the approach GW has taken will allow give them the opportunity to have successful releases for a long time, and allow the game to flourish. Sure, it needs some sort of mass battle set of advanced rules, but that's secondary to having a game that can support continual releases and a large catalog of miniatures. Maybe Kings of War will be the competitive rule set for tournaments. Maybe GW will release something even better. Who knows. All I care is that Fantasy remains profitable so GW keeps producing models.
