Showing posts with label Single-fig. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Single-fig. Show all posts

Thursday, September 23, 2021

Star Wars Legion - Clone Wars Core Set and Commander Rex

 After painting Rex with my son, he convinced me to get the core set (what a fool I am). The kit was good for a first offering for new players and new collectors. And I got to take Citadel Contrast for a spin to add another skill for my painting belt.


The models were decent. ObiWan and Clone Troopers were supplied in bags, basically clean except for mould lines.  Owing to their spindly bits, Grevious, two Droidekas, and the  B-1 Battle Droids were still on sprue. The plastic is definitely different from Games Workshop sprue. It was less solvable than GW plastic when using Testors and Tamiya plastic glue. Parts kept coming unwelded, but a little super glue put it right. Detail was tight and almost always movie/animation accurate, and the extra parts for Grevious even allowed for some simple conversions (see below for an extra surprise; you can blame my son for it). After assembling them, I realized the 28mm accurate scale is so much more fiddly than the 28mm heroics I'm used to.  Hands and guns are smaller.  Weapons are smaller too. But the accurate proportions make for great squads. In a crowd, they look like right even when base to base.

I was not interested in spending months painting these minis.  Especially since my son had lost interest in playing almost immediately after purchase. I was delighted to find Sorastro's painting guides for Legion.  He helped me get from prime to table-ready in less than a month. This was my first adventure with Citadel's Contrast paint, and the advice to thin with medium and how to handle flow was excellent.  His colors were spot on too. After spending the pandemic bemoaning my mistake, it was refreshing to go so fast from concept to finished product.

















Friday, May 22, 2020

Pholos - Magos Biologis



This Tech-Priest Dominus from 2017 is the first 40K miniature I had done in over 5 years.  My last army were the Heirs of Vulcan, Mega Man-style Space Marines that I never got around to finishing before I sold the lot during spring cleaning.  The new Adeptus Mechanicus minis as well as the hype around 8th Edition finally got me to pull the trigger on more models.

The thing that really hooked me was the change in resources available to hobbyists during my hiatus.  The explosion of high production-quality painting tutorials on YouTube, lead by none other than Duncan Rhodes on Warhammer TV, is what really got me excited to paint.  I assembled miniatures for Blue Table Painting around 2005 which included conversions fed by their huge bitz wall.  But as much as I loved creating a new model, I didn't have the talent for my painting to keep up with my building.  This mini became the gateway to my current hobby enjoyment.  In addition to finding a Bob Rossian Joy of Painting, I have slowed down the rate of purchase, and I have also worked to level up my painting with each mini.  Check out other projects tagged Warhammer 40K for the latest.


The colors reflect the theme of the army.  Verdant green on ripped robes with gold sleeves.  This ragtag assemblage hates the weakness of flesh, and they despise the plants they're turning into war material for the Imperium.  The bottles of unguents keeping them alive are just as sickly green as their robes.

I pushed my skills in terms of layering.  At this point, I was doing no wet blending or even palette mixing.  Following painting tutorials, I applied a base, wash, base again on raised areas, and layers.  The techniques were basic, but seeing the miniature go from grey to painted was transformative.  I settled into a routine of finishing a single color through to highlights with this miniature.  Rather than base-coating everything (and reaching a featureless mini some people call "the ugly stage"), it felt good to practice basic techniques then iterate on the next color.  Before finishing the model, I went back over my novice areas and applied what I had learned.  This one miniature taught me so much about the process of painting.  If you also have a fear of painting, maybe try painting a squad leader before picking up a squad?

The base is a small circular medallion from a craft bin.  The cork and basing material help give it height in the display case without building a whole diorama.  The base is painted with drybrushing.  I finished it with stain after sanding away any stray brown base paint.  The bushes and grass from model railroad supplies.

First Coat

Almost Done

Around and Around

Monday, October 5, 2009

Fimo Monsters

Assassin Vine
Will-o-wisp

Shambling Mound, "Poop Monster"

Above Miniature Points: Fimo x2 (1) + Special Techniques (Fimo armature, synthetic grass) x2 (10) = 11
Current Point Total: -200

I created these monsters as part of a recent campaign from Sculpey III. The Assassin Vine is my favorite here. I made it around an armature of wire that held together pretty well, even after the oven. The white sphere is a will-o-wisp. I attempted to use the blond synthetic grass and failed miserably. We'll see how it works next time. The third is what my group affectionately calls "The Poop Monster" and was my attempt at a Shambling Mound. It nsupposed to be covered in lichen and have rocks for eyes and teeth. The rocks worked well, but the lichen never got done by game time. We'll see if I ever get around to finishing it.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Warhammer: Age of Reckoning Orc Warboss

Above Miniature Points: 2
Current Point Total: -250

I'm painting this miniature for a friend. It is the Orc Warboss miniature from Warhammer: Age of Reckoning's Collector's Edition. I converted it from it's static pose by standing him atop an Empire Cavalryman that has been unhorsed and stood on. I added the shield shaped like an Orc head, and the scenic base is from cork. Pics as I take them.