Modeling: Kaelyssa Complete

This has been the first time where I have really focused to get a model done in a short period of time.  As you saw in my previous post http://spacejunky74.blogspot.com/2011/10/modeling-rayvn-wip-1.html I had put on the base coat and the initial wash.  The next step was to dry brush white over the washed blue.  Although I like the look that the Privateer Press uses for the army, mine have turned into a more "glowing" look, and I am really enjoying it.  Here is a  of pictures with the dry brushed white complete.

Next up was to color the non-armor items.  I used Boltgun Metal on the rifle and the sword.  I was able to keep some of the blue undertone while painting these and I think they turned out really well.  I also used a green on the cloak, but was able to keep blue in the divots which gives it a really nice look.  I also painted the breast plate a little more solid white in order to solidify the look.  Now looking back at it, I wish I would have left it alone.  The night in which I completed the dry brushing, I was really not happy about the look and thought I would hate the model.  But the next morning, I looked at it again and the look really grew on me.  I am very happy with the model now.

The next step was to complete the base.  I also noticed that I had not painted the goggles.  So I painted them before working on the base.  I also forgot to paint around the base which I regreted later.  It turned out looking good, but a lesson for me in writing down the correct order to make sure I do not miss steps.  For the base, the first step was to put tape on the base to cover the open parts of the slot.  

After this I put down a layer of Elmer's glue.  I use a toothpick to spread out the glue.  I know some people use a 50/50 of Elmer's and water.  I tried that on one of my models and did not like how well the material stuck to the base.  So I am sticking to 100% Elmer's.  

After the glue has been well spread, I start to pile on the material in a Tupperware tray.  I press down over the entire base to ensure that I have it well covered.  I also use the toothpick to press down the material especially between the legs to make sure it is covered well.  Once the material is on, I use the toothpick to get the excess out off of the base.  I then stick the model in a small paper bag and spray it with a compressed air can.  This gets all of the loose material off of the base.  

Once I was happy with the material, I painted the base.  I will eventually paint the front arc onto the base, but I have not used a reliable method for getting this in the correct spot.  I am going to try something new once I have some more models ready for it.  Here is the finished model.

I am very happy how the model turned out.  To have it finished working only a little bit on it in the evenings each night over a three night period is very exciting for me.  Putting together this blog has helped me greatly in motivating me to complete other models I have.  The smaller models are a challenge, but can be fun.  My next model to paint is the Artificer and should be a challenge.  I can't wait.

Modeling: Warpwolf Stalker Complete

So I decided to do a post today on a model I have already completed, and I feel is my best work so far.  The Circle of Orboros Warpwolf Stalker.  This model was slightly difficult to put together.  I have never pinned models before, but I can see how useful that technique could be.  I started the model off with a black base coat.  The first thing I learned was that brown on black becomes purple.  So the brown skin on the model is a lot of layers of paint to get the color correct.

What I have not really tried out is a method for getting the muscular look in the legs.  I have read what is in the force book on it and just decided not to go with that technique on this model.  I still think the muscles look decent event without the texture.

From the above view, you can start to see some of the detail in the hair.  I just brushed the brown over the black base coat, trying to leave the black in the crevices.  This seamed to work really well and I think is the most technically painted area I did that looks good.  You can also see the gold areas of the mask and feet with the green areas.  This took a little work to get right, but I found a way that limited the amount of touch up needed on the model.

 
Here you can see some more detail on the feet and especially on the armored arm.  You also get a good look at the back side of the basing material.  For this I used Elmer's and Dark Green heavy turf.  Although the turn is a little thicker than I expected, I still like the way it looks on my models.  I am also using rocks from a hobby store on each of the bases I am completing to add to the look.

The last picture got a little light saturation, but you can see more of the back hair and back musculature.  This model was pretty fun to paint and I can tell that I am going to enjoy painting all of the Circle warbeasts.  The hardest part was getting to some of the more "isolated" location on the model because I put it on the base before painting.  This is something I will have to look at during future painting attempts.  I hope you enjoy this paint job.  As always, any thoughts are welcome.

Modeling: Kaelyssa WIP (1)

Here is my first painting post.  This will be for Kaelyssa.  A little background on this painting job first.  I tried to use the P3 base coat spray paint for the first time on a set of 7 models, including Kaelyssa.  Either due to it being a new bottle, the temperature outside, or because I stutter sprayed instead of just straight spraying, the model had a think rough coat instead of a smooth base coat.  This required me to take my Dremel with the brass brush so I could remove the original coat.

I did have some problems getting all of the paint off, but I did what I could with the Dremel.  So now came time for base coat #2.  This time I took only 2 models (Kaelyssa and the Artificer) and base coated them properly.  I will show the work on the Artificer in a separate posting.  This time the base coat went on pretty decently.

With a good white base coat, I decided to try a new method for putting on the standard Retribution blue lines.  I have tried before to just get the seams soaked in blue, then just cleaning up as needed.  I found that this was very tedious.  This time I am going to just do a coat in the blue wash, and attempt to dry brush the needed white on top.  You will get to see how well this goes on the blog.  Here is what is looks like with the blue wash.

Next up is the white dry brush and some detail work.  See you in part 2.

Welcome to my gaming blog!!

After much consternation and delaying things as long as I could, I have decided to start writing my gaming blog.  Most of my posts will be Warmachine/Hordes related and will be painting, battle reports, and thoughts I have on models and lists.  I will post as often as I can.

A little about myself: I have been playing table top games seriously (if you can call it that) for about 6 years.  Before that I played a mix of online games, card games, and board games.  I was first introduced to table top gaming by Ograloch and Guillius (http://guillius.blogspot.com/). Although I sustained a heavy number of loses as I started playing Warhammer, I still enjoyed the game.  My main Warhammer Fantasy army has been Dark Elves although I have played Daemons as well.  My main Warhammer 40k has been Tau with some Daemons sprinkled in as well.  Based on changes to my gaming group, we have now shifted to Warmachine and Hordes.

I am currently playing one army in each of the games.  My Warmachine army is Retribution of Scyrah.  My Hordes army is Circle.  Although mo model collection is still somewhat minimal, I am hoping to stock up and have enough painted to field full 35pt lists with both armies by January.

I will be posting in this blog about the models I have previously painted, new ones I am painting, and battle reports as I have time.  I hope you enjoy the content and I look forward to hearing from everyone.

Spacejunky