New look sneaky business

New look assassin, with no purple and more blue greys. I'm happier overall with thes colours for my Karond Kar DE army. I'm thinking of theming it around Lokhir Fellheart's dread fleet as I've got such a soft spot for Corsairs with their 4+ save and 2 attacks! Plus I love the nautical theme for Dark Elf raiders.

Sneaky business

A couple of shots of my Dark Elf assassin Eldrich or 'Swiftblade' as he's more often called. The base is still to be covered in snow and small pieces if tundra. And I'm going to do some directional lighting on his potion so that will pop a bit more. 

I've decided my Dark Elves are going to be mainly blue/greens with purples and golds as spot colours and you can see this on this test model for the army. Given that Eldrich skulks around in the shadows, his colours are much darker than the rest of the normal troopers will be. I'll post a full painting summary when he's 100% finished.

Dawn of the (Un)Dead: Hexwraiths

The Riders on the Storm (play while checking them out for full effect!) are finished and I can't wait to use these guys in a game. Gotta say I really loved painting the ethereal colours, but I would say that controlling the washes is something that I can keep working on as there are quite a few watermarks here and there. Which I might have to go back and redo. The wood grain finish is similar to the necromancer and with the metals I've added an extra bit of detail, namely the verdigris effect that uses a similar colour to the ethereals themselves. This could either be 'older' metal or an allusion to the 'ethereal reanimation process' and 'nercormantic magicks' that Dieter von Schloss has used to conjure up these guys.



Some PVA still drying on the bases.

A couple of close up shots on the wood grain and verdigris.

Dawn of the (Un)Dead: Necromancer

And the mad man behind the recent reports of Undead minions being summoned in barrows nearby Carroburg appears: Dieter von Schloss.

So the idea with this guy was to have lots of blacks and muted tones to contrast with his pale, deathly skin tone. I imagine that he's essentially nocturnal and spends lots of time rummaging through dusty tomes and in the dirt digging up former grave sites to increase his "army."

He's a complete mysanthrope, like this guy, and is hell bent on personal power. 

A word on the painting:

This was my first attempt at wood grain on anything, so would appreciate any comments/tips on what I've done. Initially, I painted the staff from Scorched Brown up but it disappeared in the black robes. So I opted instead to build up from Khemri Brown with a wash of Gryphone Sepia.

I also wanted some blood reds here and there, note the pages of his spell book have a 'blood' red hue - glazed Baal Red. He doesn't use ink... And the strapping is a dark red as well to tie in with the armour in the banshee, Ulrike.

Der Panzer-Grpyhs

A nice, meaty unit of six Demigryphs knights... just knight-less at this stage.

This one is more of a tutorial approach for how I paint my metals.

Silver:

Basecoat: Boltgun metal

Wash: Badab Black

Highlight: Boltgun metal

Highlight: Chainmail

Gold:

Basecoat: Tin bitz

Wash: Devlan Mud

Layer: Shining Gold

Layer: Burnished Gold

Wash: 1:1 Leviathan Purple + Gryphonne  Sepia

Layer: 1:1 Shining Gold + Mithril Silver

It's quite a few steps for the gold, but well worth it I think. In my Empire Carroburg army usually gold is reserved for the Elite units and characters as a result. What I find this metal/gold combo does is for the gold to really "pop" off from the "darker" silver. I like that this adds a more weighty feel to the weapons and armour, whereas the mithril step, for me at least, is really an elven trait of metal with a cleaner and brighter finish of a highly polished effect which I've used at times in the case of the metal wizard and engineer on mechanical steed.

Gaz, hope this gives you a guide as to what I do.

Brothers in Arms

Brothers in Arms, not just a Dire Straights classic....

Gotta say that in the game these guys are terrific. I've never had three on the board at once but in a unit of Greatswords it makes them SO effective.

Strong Winds....

Like many Empire Generals, there's nothing better than having an arsenal of magic to throw at lightning bolts or fireballs from afar at your enemy, call on raw bestial fury to bolster your troops, predict the future and avoid blows, fool your enemies in a mystifying miasma or turn enemy weapons to molten lead....

And what's better than one wizard?

You got it: Many wizards - and all in brightly coloured attire to boot!

Firestarers, less frightening than this firestarter....

Wyssan's wildform anyone? I used some parts from both the Dryad sprue (staff) and the flagellant head to make this guy more 'rustic' and wild in appearance. The idea I was going for was that he spends a lot of time wandering the wildmoors than in crowded cities, drawing as he does from natural places for the strength of his magic. I also imagine that he's quite cantankerous by nature.

The only one of my wizards with a pointy hat.... a shadowy figure

A bit of detail on the book and the fingers that are beginning to cast a spell

When one sense diminishes, the others... Playing on the whole 'blind but can see the light' theme.

The alchemist shields his face from toxic fumes. With this wizard I imagined that his powers come more from primitive and experimental chemistry - alchemy - combining Empire science and magic.

Gazing into the heavens would clearly mean that this wizard would need a range of optics and "scientific" equipment in order for his magic to work.

Drawing on the power of the dead...

Meikle... what were you thinking?!

Firstly, let me say this: I. Love. This. Model. And I think this is reason enough to have one in an Empire army.

That said, there are a lot of haters out there on the interwebs who question why you would ever take an engineer on a Monstrous Mechanical Steed of Muppetry. And while I would agree that in most cases this may be true - an engineer is best used as support - this isn't the only reasons to put a model on the board. He just adds so much character to the game and put with a unit of pistoliers it really adds to the randomness and feel of the Empire. I've used him in a unit of pistoliers in this way before and been pleased with the results, no they didn't vanguard but, man it was great when I had to charge them in to combat against some greenskin fast cavalry!

And so, behold! The Marvellous Mechanical Monstrosity of Miraculous Meandering! Piloted by 'Mad' Otto von Ritterberg with repeater pistol.

Painting wise, I followed an old WD article and the guide by Neil Green, who I think is a great painter and a really clear guide in giving details/steps.

I should say that the metal legs and head are much brighter than the metals that I usually do for Empire and I went all the way up to Mithril Silver for this one.

Love to hear your thoughts on this one.

Witch hunting militia

Here's my 10 man militia. The theme is that these guys are a travelling band of witch hunters who follow around a Witch Hunter character from village to village doing the "dirt" for Sigmar. I kept the red a constant in this unit to tie them to the rest of the army, but only as a spot colour for these guys. Instead, I've gone for a Black and Tan theme for more muted colours. It works with the army but also offers a point of difference.

In terms of "conversions to the one, true Sogmarite faith" (read: butchery of wizards/witches) these guys haven't managed any so far, but they have felled one of Gaz's giants and lived to tell the tale! I love the tracker using faith to "feel" out the tracks of a heretic, whilst restraining a slavering attack dog. And the pitchfork!

All I need to do now is the character...

Lucky Ludwig

I think it was John Blanche who once said that the 'essence' of the Empire in warhammer was a man with a sword and a gun. I think this image really appeals to me - they're basically "us" in a strange and frightening world.

Enter "lucky" Ludwig and the "Long shots," so named for their accuracy and their marksman's reputation for gambling and luck when hitting his mark. Note the Sigmarite cards which I made out of plasticard. The narrative hook for this unit  is that anyone joining it needs to prove their marksmanship by hitting a card at 100 paces....blindfolded!

Hey ratboy...

So when Warhammer 8th Ed was released I had to have me one of them bright new shiny sets filled with great new miniatures. I was particularly interested by the Skaven, the shape of the new models seemed to me to be quite easy and engaging to paint, being based on the 'S' shape - Jack, being the trained 'artist' does that sound about right?

Anyway, here is the ratboy champion model for my bunker of 20 clanrats with hand weapons and shields.

I went with a tarnished and heavily rusted metal on the miniature, with a dark grey (approrpiately Skavenblight Dinge after Gaz's suggestion to contrast and it does work well with the orange/browns in the metal armour - thanks Gaz, legend). Another touch that I needed - especially once they were all ranked up - was the little 'pops' of "wyrdstone" otherwise the unit was a bit too brown. I did a basecoat of Astromanacon Grey on any shard pieces or trinkets at the waist and then loosely washed it with scorpion green - around the shard as well to simulate a glowing effect. See the full painting guide below. Dave this might interest you perhaps with your Skaven army on the go?

A couple of 'ratboy's' mates....

Now just a couple more slaves to go, right.....?

I was lucky enough to pick up a steal on eBay which has bolstered my force to 44 "makeshift" slaves. I say makeshift because I'd originally intended to have two massive blocks of clanrats, but didn't have enough shields to add these guys to either my unit with hand weapons and shields or spears and shields. So they're slaves. Actually having different weapons (though I'm sure illegal in strict game play) looks more rag-tag and slave like. I imagine these guys are so lowly that they've just grabbed whatever weapons they could find. In fact, I'm sure their cruel masters sent them to battle without any weapons or a one-between-two system reminiscent of the of this scene from Enemy at the Gates. And yes, I fully expect these rats to die just as quickly....

As always, love to hear what you think.

TC's Clanrats painting guide

Undercoat spray: Army Painter Brown

Tarnished metal - I would advise doing this first on all metal and finishing all the way through these steps FIRST, as it's messy as!
Basecoat: Bestial Brown
Drybrush: Troll Slayer Orange
Wash: 1:1 Devlan Mud + Fuegan Orange
Highlight:  Boltgun Metal (sparingly and in patches)
Highlight: Chainmail (only on previously 'chipped' areas)

Fur
Basecoat: Calthan Brown
Wash: Gryphone Sepia
Layer: Calthan Brown
Layer: Graveyard Earth (focusing on raised areas, leaving some Calthan showing)

Dark grey cloaks - mix up which pieces of cloth are dark grey or brown within the unit for rag-tag/mottley effect
Basecoat: Skavenblight Dinge
Wash: Nuln Oil
Layer: Skavenblight Dinge
Drybrush: Graveyard Earth (lowest areas of the cloak only to simulate muddy edges)

Dark brown cloaks mix up which pieces of cloth are dark grey or brown within the unit for rag-tag/mottley effect
Basecoat: Calthan Brown
Wash: Gryphone Sepia
Layer: Calthan Brown
Drybrush: Graveyard Earth (lowest areas of the cloak only to simulate muddy edges)

Skin - adding the glazes really made a difference to my mind and made the skin tone different to human skin, which was important in differentiating these to human skin tones
Basecoat: Tallarn Flesh
Wash: Gyrphone Sepia
Layer: Tallarn Flesh
Glaze: Leviathan Purple
Glaze: Baal Red

Wyrdstone shards and trinkets
Basecoat: Astromanacon Grey
Wash: Scorpion Green (watered down to a thicker consistency than a GW wash) and apply twice (or three times if you're happy with the effect), letting the first coat dry first. Again, I applied this in the area surrounding the shard as well.

Eyes
Basecoat: Mechrite Red
Layer: Troll Slayer Orange
Layer: Yellow (of your choice really)

Dawn of the (Un)Dead: Ulrike Mach 1

As mentioned earlier, this is Ulrike 'the Wicked Wench' Mach 1. She wasn't happy with the cut and colour, so when she came back to the salon we went with a new look.... Definitely nothing against rangas...

Dawn of the (Un)Dead: Hexwraiths WIP

So a WIP shot of another ethereal unit: Hexwraiths.

I debated whether to make these guys Black Knights for the game, thinking that the BKs might be more of a hard hitting unit.... but who am I kidding? These grim reaper models rock! And I was so inspired by Chris Peach's ones in a WD from earlier this year where he used the ethereal theme (admittedly with mor greens than blue) I had to give them a go.

What do you think? Metals and wood grain still to go, as well as basing. 

Dawn of the(Un)Dead: Banshee

Another update for the VCs I'm putting together: Ulrike von Straumellberg, the banshee.

This was actually the first model that I bought from the VC range - I just love the pose so much. It also got me thinking about a narrative for my VC army. The basic idea is that the army is being built by a necromancer who is trying to resurrect a vampire from the 'true death.' He has come to live outside of Carroburg (conveniently where my Empire army is from - posts coming soon) and it's in this region that Ulrike or 'the Wicked Wench' haunts a roadside coaching inn called 'The Wicked Wench'. Augmented by the necromancer's power, Ulrike is terrorizing the surrounding farms.

For those who recognise the Wicked Wench, it is a deliberate nod to Icewind Dale II and Hedron Kerdos' ship (and mother!).

Ulrike outside of the Wicked Wench

Screaming from the tower

I really love the ethereal blues from GW, so I used their guide and again checked out Warboss Tae's guide to painting the Mortis Engine Spirit Host before putting brush to palette.

Originally, I had painted the hair bright red and the armour a tarnished black iron with six coats of Nuln Oil. But on reflection and after feedback from N-bombs the darker hair suits my more 'naturalistic' scheme, as does the contrasting 'blood armour' scheme - thanks to Andrew Kenrick from White Dwarf July 2013 for the step-by-step guide for the Khorne Lord of Skulls!

Ethereal units

Basecoat: Astronomican grey

Wash: 1:3 Hawk Turquoise + Asurman Blue

Highlight: Astronomican grey

Highlight: 1:1 Astronomican grey + Ceramite white

Highlight: Skull white

Wash: 1:1 Hawk Turquoise + Asurman Blue (recesses – negative space)

Wash: Thinned Thraka Green (recesses only)

Blood Armour

Basecoat: Tin Bitz

Glaze: Thin Baal Red

Wash: Carroburg Crimson

Wash: Nuln Oil (recesses only)

Highlight: Boltgun metal (edges only)

Highlight: Mithril silver (over boltgun, edges only)

Weapons/chains

Bsaecoat: Tin bitz

Layer: 1:1 Tin bitz + Boltgun metal

Layer: Boltgun metal

Was: Nuln Oil

Tarnished gold

Basecoat: Tin bitz

Wash: Devlan Mud

Layer: Shinning Gold

Layer: Burnished Gold

Wash: 1:1 Gryphone Sepia + Leviathan Purple

Highlight: 1:1 Shining Gold + Mithril Silver

Wash: 1:1:1 Hawk Turqouoize

Hair

Bsaecoat: Abaddon Black

Wash: Nuln Oil

Highlight: Skavenblight Dinge

Wash: Nuln Oil

Dawn of the (Un)Dead: Ghouls

Hi all an update for my current project: Vampire Counts. Gotta love these models. They're so evocative of the current The Descent/Walking Dead vibe for all things zombie-esque. So pumped for WD season 4!

I researched a Ghoul painting guide quite a bit before starting these guys as I was keen to avoid the green look. I wanted a fleshy/bloody look. Credit and shout outs must go to both Warboss Tae who inspired me with his ghoul vid on the YouTubes and also Girl Painting's guide to painting zombies. Certainly need to tag both of these painters who are terrific in providing step-by-step guides. Love their work!

Pretty happy with my results overall. I'm unsure of weather to go up another highlight on the skin with Rakarth Flesh or not. My thoughts were that these guys should still be dirty and devolved but would be interested to hear others thoughts.

The Paint Splatter: Introduction

Hi all and welcome to The Paint Splatter - my blog to keep my fellow Nerd-hammer mates updated with some of the hobby related stuff I've been up to. I've been following a really great blog - The Beard Bunker - and thought the name was really cool, so I've gone with The Paint Splatter, which probably best describes my painting style.

Image by Loadus (c)

Basically, my idea is to post images of my hobby projects - models, terrain, etc - to keep me going and to share some of my projects with friends. It's also a way of keeping me accountable to finishing projects that I start, which I'm sure fellow collectors are prone to.... "these Empire models are awesome - I must build and paint 4000 points worth...." *two weeks later*... "but Vampire Counts are spooky and cool and it is halloween soon, so...." You know how it goes, right?

I'll also post some of the colours combos and steps that I've done along the way and hope these are useful to anyone reading the blog.

I'm not sure I'm as qualified as some like Warboss Tae, Girl Painting or PirateVikingPainting to give painting advice, but I hope someone or my wargaming crew might find it useful.

Ultimately, I'd like to improve my painting skills and would welcome comments and tips. I think one of the key areas to improve is accuracy in my brush strokes, hence the 'splatter' in 'The Paint Splatter'. So if anyone has any tips or recommendations that would be great.