Topic: A Painting Blog for my Tilean Campaign

[Zygmund]

Aha! Not a proper dirty dip then. Pretty much the way I tend to go with washes in certain projects.

-Z

[Sharkbelly]

That looks great! I remember when dipping first became a trend, and how some people really hated it. Ah, painting trends. Non-metallic metals, object-source lighting...

[Padre]

Remember my ongoing quest to change my 35 years black undercoat enamel painting method into a more modern (2010?) grey undercoat acrylic paint, dip and varnish method?

Well, I just completed my second unit. I needed as many foot men-at-arms as I could scrabble together from my bits boxes and sprues. I managed 25. They are needed for a garrison unit in my campaign. Also, they are something I have needed for a long time 'cos players keep dismounting mounted knights for siege assault games!

I had fun 'cos they had to be in heavy/plate armour (i.e. work as both) and have shields, which the Perry sprues didn't have. There were now enough simple sword arms either - lots of two handed weapons! So I had some scalpel work to do!

Here are the first batch modeled ..



I really enjoyed coming up with poses. I especially like the several I did with swords casually resting on their shoulder like the middle one here ...



I then primed, solid-block painted without leaving little black line gaps  (such a weird thing for me to do) ...



Then I applied the dip ...



Already I was liking what I saw.

Once dry, and the shields added, I could anti-shine varnish. Here they are now, with the black on their unfinished bases still wet!







Here is the real test. One of my old style (cartoon I called it) figures, next to the new style ...



I still like the old style, but boy do I like the new style. I also like how the enamal figure is giving the new figure a funny look!

The new figures feature in my latest campaign story.

[S.O.F]

I'm still not sold on the dip method myself. I've always been just the normal washes and have only used the army painter dip stuff to antique the mirrors I redid for the bathroom. Found it really shiny, which worked for that application, but gave me pause as to use it in the miniature setting since I've not always been happy with how matte clear coats take off that edge.

[Padre]

I know, the matt coats don't take away the full shine. I had to dull the lights to get the pics for the stories! But, I am still experimenting. And it was fun painting them quickly.

[S.O.F]

I know, the matt coats don't take away the full shine.

Yeah and I've found those always the most temperamental when it comes to climate variance. I have no indoor space for spraying to keep things controlled and have to rely on the whims of nature which means with temp and humidity I've yet to find the goldilocks zone for matt sprays.

[Padre]

I've never used sprays of any kind on figures, only occasionally on scenery. I brushed the anti-shine matt varnish on. Perhaps extra layers might work? I have yet to find out.

[Padre]

I have been working on a guard company for my kit-bashed Skaven 'Uber Weapon'. I already had six crew/attendants, but I wanted a regiment of gas-masked guys who can defend it in battle, without dying from the poisons it leaks. The attendants had allowed me to experiment with some designs.

The existing possibilities for Skaven gas-mask heads I found in the interweb were VERY expensive, so I recommenced my experiments with the following bits ...



The front of this first style of mask was to be cut from an ogre banner pole (of which I had several spares, having built an ogre army some time ago), and a bit chopped from a brush protector sleeve (many of which kick about with my old brushes) would be where the air tube plugs in.

The mask is here glued, with brass tacks used for the front and for a lens over the eye.



I messed about with real linen thread for a harness ...



... but was not convinced, so I messed about some more and actually gave some thought this time ...



Here is a head with the milliput on ...



I now realised I had some way to go. I wanted something like 25 of these!

Here are the two varieties of air tanks - original and the later 'improved' version.


Here are the four mask types.

1. Original (with the lovely thread I thought I had run out of for the feeder tube).


2. Pointy version (as I ran out of original shapes!)


3. Globe-ended, using the musician's beater end, because again I had none of the second version left!


4. Mark 4. These actually have real screws inside to counter with the non-stick plastic band.


The whole regiment, here ready for priming, from front and rear. Ranking them up is hell!





Here they are almost fully completed. Just a few bits need the anti-shine varnish, and I will put some flock on the bases.




They were truly nightmarish to rank up. I double based 16 of them (so, 8 pairs). Then I had to cut individuals off the bases to angle them very carefully behind a figure that they could just fit behind!

Here are a couple of the air tanks …



You can see the eye lenses here …



Here is the command (musician x2 – I think I got muddled up) and a standard. The standard bearer does not have a very long arm. That’s an ornamental brass had on the top!



They are Clan Skryre so I researched to correct rune!

Two close up …



These last few show how well the dip worked. Well, I think so. This is a major departure from my normal black lining technique, but I love the way it has come out …

[Padre]

Still soldiering on with acrylics and a dip (wash) technique, trying to move on from enamels. I think it works fairly well on the likes of skaven and undead. Here's an old metal warpfire thrower team I finished the other day ...

[Padre]

I think the wash technique works fairly well on other robed figures. The Wizard Lord Nicolo Bentiglovio ...

[Padre]

I thought I would put my ongoing foray into halfling modelling here. I already made a large regiment of halfling pike (see the 2020 painting thread posts from https://warhammer-empire.com/theforum/index.php?topic=53795.msg1054589#msg1054589 on)

Here I will start with the three crewmen I just bashed for a Wizkids' Bolt thrower (two engines in a blister for £5, a bargain).



The bolt heads don't all look the same, but why should they? Different heads for different targets, possibly? Or just the lack of standardisation inherent in a pre-industrial society?

The engine's commander. I love this helmet on the sprue.



The other two crewmen have old, plastic, GW Bretonnian heads, for a bit of variety from the pike, archers and crossbow who all have the same kind of helmet on an 'official' head'.





 

[Padre]

A company of kit-bashed Halfling crossbowmen, being Wargames Atlantic figures with GW and Perry crossbows and some Perry and GW heads!



Musician. One hand needed to blow the horn, while the other hand holds a crossbow in case things get 'sticky' and he needs to join in the company's efforts.


Commander

[Orfeo_Culzean]

Lots of great conversion ideas!
Styled skavens with gas masks are good.
I hope to see more of your adaptations of AoS minis for FB. And, of course, new miniatures for the Tilean army project 

[Sharkbelly]

Those are awesome!

[GamesPoet]

Hobbit crossbows for the win!

[Rowsdower]

Very inventive

[Padre]

A couple more halflings, kitbashed. First a 'counts-as' musician, 'cos I reckon a sup of ale is as uplifting to a halfling as any horn a-tooting or drum a-beating ...



And a weird old Bretonnian bit used as what i like to think is a suitably halfling sort of standard ...

[GamesPoet]

More coolness!

[Zygmund]

Love the CB Halflings!

In your campaign, do you give them S 4, Range 30" crossbows, or do you reduce either or both because of the halflings' low strength? And how do you price them points wise? I mean with normal crossbows and BS 4, halflings instead of normal humans would make a superb choice for crossbowmen, and any prince would want an endless supply of them! 

-Z

[S.O.F]

Love the CB Halflings!

In your campaign, do you give them S 4, Range 30" crossbows, or do you reduce either or both because of the halflings' low strength? And how do you price them points wise? I mean with normal crossbows and BS 4, halflings instead of normal humans would make a superb choice for crossbowmen, and any prince would want an endless supply of them! 

-Z

Points to bring to the table may not be the only element, they would be a nightmare on logistics. An endless supply would be like a swarm of locusts for the Prince's stores of food stuffs.

[GamesPoet]

Remember, an army marches on its stomach.  If the general doesn't have a surplus of food, don't hire mercenary hobbits!

[Padre]

We are using Rufus's old Tilean list, the one used in the Treachery and Greed campaign. In that halflings with crossbows are listed (with points) and it is stated they use light crossbows, being the sort that mounted crossbow use - 20" range, S4. I reckon they do not fire so far because they don't use the winches to tighten them. Except I have put the winches on most of the models because little halflings will most likely need the winches to load them!

[Padre]

And ... I am back to working on these.

I want to replicate the cartoon look of the other several thousands of figures I own, yet improve my shocking faces and hands. So, I spray a primer, paint flesh where it goes, wash with Agrax Earth Shade, then undercoat the rest with black.



From here I will block on base paints (as the closest to enamels) as per usual. Hopefully the end result will be figures that fit in with my others, but look way better in the photos!

[Syphon]

And ... I am back to working on these.

I want to replicate the cartoon look of the other several thousands of figures I own, yet improve my shocking faces and hands. So, I spray a primer, paint flesh where it goes, wash with Agrax Earth Shade, then undercoat the rest with black.



From here I will block on base paints (as the closest to enamels) as per usual. Hopefully the end result will be figures that fit in with my others, but look way better in the photos!

Airbrush or spraycan primer?

[Padre]

Spray can.

I tried an airbrush in the 1980s using enamel paint. It blocked up and became non-functional within about 2 uses. I know it is different with acrylics but the experience and expense so disheartened me I gave up on airbrushes entirely.