The Vendetta (WIP 2)

A quick post this one, just to show that I have actually been working on some stuff lately!

I've been adding more to my Vespero figure lately and it's really beginning to take shape now. I know it looks a little scrappy in the pics but that's due to the figure having received a thin milliput wash.

Since the last pics I've been working mainly on the arms and sorting out the jerkin etc. The sleeves on the arms have been giving me some headaches determining what to do with them but it's getting there now.

More soon!

To Infinity and Beyond! - New Figs Inbound

So with a welcome and healthy pay day last week, I decided to treat myself to a new figure (I know, I have loads of unpainted stuff already but this one will be painted, promise!). The figure in question comes from a range that I had caught glimpses of occasionally but never truly checked out...

Now I won't lie, I'm a bit of a GW loyalist. I've not painted a non-GW miniature in over 10 years, though I have bought some for bits and pieces for conversions (some Victrix Napoleonics). However, this figure was just too good a sculpt to pass up and at a cool £6, I couldn't resist!

So what is the figure? Well it's an Infinity Ariadna Zouave Sapper.


So what swayed me to broaden my figure painting horizons? Well just look at the pose and detail of the sculpt, it's perfect! It's a one figure diorama!

I particularly the base that comes with the figure too. It adds a lot to the narrative as well as creating a better silhouette for the figure.

Anyone have any experience with Infinity figures? Anything to look out for (bad flash, miscast sections, rough surfaces etc)?

Also, you may have noticed a bit of a re-design for the blog, would love to know what you all think. Does it look better and have a better, easier to navigate layout?

For Elysia! - Forgeworld Elysian Tauros Venator

Many of you will probably have already seen the pics of the new Elysian vehicle from Forgeworld (FW), but here it is again incase:


Looks like a great kit, no arguments here!

The one thing I do hope though is that they create a version without the weapon mount. A small recon squad sitting on benches in the back or standing braced on the frame firing as the vehicle speeds along would look really cool!

The only real fault I have with this model is the price. While FW kits are intended to be a higher quality, more detailed product, the models produced are still intended for gamers. However, at £35 a pop for a light vehicle, they aren't exactly cheap for what you get, even as one off pieces.

For the same price you could probably pick up 2 AFV models of a similar style.

At the end of the day though, it does look super cool! I can feel my wallet burning in my pocket already!

What are your own thoughts?

Cool kit or missing the mark? A nice new option or pointless addition to the Elysian range?

Something In The Air - Airbush Inbound!

With a desire to expand my modelling and painting skill set, and also add a fun new tool to my collection, I recently purchased an airbrush and compressor with air tank (well, I say recently, but actually I bought it before New Year and it still hasn't arrived yet!).

Having seen the works of hobbyists such as Julien Casses and Mathieu Fontaine and the wonderful effects and finished they achieve using an airbrush, I want to have a go at producing similarly smooth finishes and flawless blends!

As I've never even held an airbrush before though, I felt it was necessary to do a bit of research on them in order to find out about basic things such as maintenance, set-up, paint thickness etc, as well as learning more about some of the effects that can be achieved. With this in mind I picked up the books "Airbrushing and Finishing Scale Models (Modelling Masterclass)" by Brett Green and "Air Brush Painting Techniques: 6 (Compendium Modelling Manuals)" from Osprey.

Airbrushing and Finishing Scale Models (Modelling Masterclass)

Both were good value for money, with "Airbrushing and Finishing Scale Models" probably the better of the two due to the more comprehensive look at the tool and its applications, however the Osprey book includes some good examples of using templates etc making it worth a look for the price too (about £7 from Amazon).

Air Brush Painting Techniques: 6 (Compendium Modelling Manuals)

I'll be sure to keep you all posted with my experimentation with my airbrush when it arrives. I've got a nice new Valkyrie kit (courtesy of my amazing girlfriend!) that is just dying to get some airbrush treatment!

In the meantime, back to learning how to take care of it to make sure it lasts!

New Year, New Project! - Vespero's Vendetta Part 1

First of all, let me wish you all a Happy New Year!

2010 looks set to be another great year for our hobby, with many manufacturers lining up some great new kits. I got a look at some of the new Beastmen sprues today, as ever the quality of the casting from GW is excellent and the number of arm and head options is truly vast.

The one thing I was a little surprised and let down by though was the lack of "extra bits" on the frames. These seem to be frames aimed more at producing massed regiments as opposed to kits full of conversion possibilities.

Sadly (depending on your view-point) this seems to be a bit of an emerging trend for GW based on the recent Skaven, and the soon to be released Beastmen. Perhaps its simply due to the horde type armies that both play as?

Anyway, with the new year comes some new ideas for projects, the current one being a remake and modernisation of the legendary Dogs of War - Vespero's Vendetta.

The Vendetta

The inspiration for this project began with the recently released Assassins Creed 2 computer game. A fantastic game, the latest installment is set in Renaissance Italy, meaning plenty of feathers, puff and slash, knee high boots etc, all the same sort of stuff we see in the styles and imagery of both the Empire and Tilea in the Warhammer Fantasy world.

Suitably inspired, I began by putting together an inspiration sheet including a collection of images of Renaissance re-enactors in duelist get-ups, some Carnivale masks and duelist weapons etc. The result was this, which is currently up on my magnetic noticeboard in my modelling room:


The next step was to begin cutting up parts and creating a mock up for the pose of the figure. Starting with some Catachan walking legs and Mordheim/Empire militia legs, I began creating a pose similar to the confident stride of Ezio on the cover of Assassins Creed 2:

Not exactly identical, but you can see where the inspiration is coming from.

Since then, I have begun to fill things out and apply some detail to the trousers. I have also opted for a more appropriate torso that can be detailed into something more in keeping with the Renaissance duelist look.

The head in the image above, from the Empire mage kit, works quite well for what I am after, however I want to keep my options open for the final design so I have also sculpted a head which I will be having cast so that I can sculpt a variety of mask designs.

Obviously this is all very early days yet and the WIP nature means that things will no doubt change in the coming weeks, but hopefully it is clear so far where I'm going. The plan is to produce a small unit of 5, all characters in their own right, but tied together by a common direction and posing.

More soon!

How To Paint Chipped Armour Tutorial

Had a couple of people ask how I did the chipped armour effect on this chap (above), so I have decided to put together another tutorial on this subject.

Chipped armour effects and other painted texture effects, also sometimes referred to as trompe l'oeil (French for "trick of the eye") can sometimes be tricky to get looking right, especially on white or black backgrounds due to a difficulty in creating the necessary contrast or definition for the effect to work.

There are two main ways of achieving the appearance of realistic chips and scratches on painted surfaces:

• Sponge - Applying the "chipping" colour using a piece of sponge or blister foam.


• Liquid Latex Mask - Applying liquid latex mask (Vallejo being my personal preference) to a surface painted with the desired "chipping" colour, before covering the entire surface with the overall desired colour and then gently removing the liquid mask with an eraser of cloth to reveal the chips.

Both techniques are fairly easy to do, with the sponge method undoubtably the easier and quicker of the two, yet I find it best to use a mixture of both to get a good variation in the size of and randomness of the chips.

The following tutorial looks at the sponge method, however the liquid latex technique is fairly similar in terms of application. So without further preamble, lets get down to it!

Prepare the Surface

The first step in the process is rather obviously to prepare the surface the chips will be applied to. In this example, the chips are being applied over a white surface, which requires a little extra thought.

Rather than simply applying the chipping to a perfect white surface, the white needs to be shaded a little first in order for the effect to work properly when it comes time to highlight the edges of the chips, but more on that later.

In this instance, the white was shaded with a mix of a touch of a heavily thinned touch of Vallejo Basalt Grey and Games Workshop Asurmen Blue wash (not very visible in the pic).


Let the Sponging Commence!

Arming yourself with some sponge or blister foam (blister foam is free and a good size for the job!), choose an appropriate colour for your chips, bearing in mind that strong contrast, but not "too" strong is what we are after. For this example, I'm using GW Charadon Granite, a nice dark grey/green/brown which fits well with the fatigues on the figure.


When applying, get some paint on the sponge, then dab it against a piece of tissue to remove any excess paint that would spoil the effect, then lightly apply focusing on the edges of armour plates and areas that would receive natural wear and tear.

As you can see in the pic above, it can be a bit of a messy effect, so consider applying the chips before finishing the surrounding areas.

Edging

Now that the chips have been applied, it's time to work on making them look realistic and creating the "trick of the eye". To do this, we need to start applying some simple lighting effects to the chips.

To do this, mix some black with the chip colour from earlier and using a fine detail brush, apply some of this colour in a thin line around the top (relative to the direction light would be falling) inside edge of the chip to simulate shadow from the lip formed by the layer of paint that has been chipped away.

Next, apply a thin line of white (or white mixed with your overall surface colour) to the bottom outside edge of the chip. This simulates light catching the raised edge of the paint where it meets the chip, adding to the realism.


To go one step further, you could fill in some of the larger chips with some metallic paint (GW Mithril Silver being my preference) to get the look of chips and scratches going right through both paint and primer to expose the bare metal of armour plates.

Thats pretty much it. As I said, easy and quick to do!

Warhammer (etc) Figure Sculpting Tutorial - The Basics

Realised I never posted this here. Had originally done the tutorial for my good friend Grey_Death over at The Painting Corp (great blog, go check it out if you haven't already!), but thought I'd re-post here for completeness sake seeing as I'm trying to catalogue tutorials here.


Following his recent acquisition of some clay shapers, coupled with his first forays into sculpting with Green Stuff, Grey_Death was kind enough to ask me to contribute a tutorial or two on sculpting. Having never written a proper tutorial before, I hope you will all forgive the inevitable mistakes I will make along the way!

This tutorial will cover some old ground and hopefully a few new insights as well. First, the old ground:

Tools

There are a few core sculpting tools that all sculptors should have. Below is a list of the tools I use along with their uses (See image 1. below).

• 1. Pin Vice - Used to drill holes for pinning and creating holes (for mesh, gun barrels etc).
• 2. Jewelers Files - Nice, small files for filing down plastic/resin/metal/cured putty. Good for making sharp edges in cured putty.
• 3. Clay Shapers - Used to shape putty and smooth surfaces. I mainly use the white chisel headed one to do most of the shaping and smoothing, with the bullet headed one being used for concave shapes and creating folds etc.
• 4. Metal Sculpting Tools - These are from a cheap Gale Force 9 set. The tool with a half round on one end and a blade on the other gets used a lot to blend putty into other surfaces (cured putty/resin/metal/plastic etc). The pointed tool is used to create fine details and small holes, hair, rips etc.
• 5. Scalpel - Used to cut plastic/resin/cured putty into shape and to remove any excess putty.
• 6. Paper Clips - Used as pins for pinning figures and as armatures for sculpting over.

Above is also a list of a selection of putties I use for sculpting (Image 2.):

• 1. Fimo (Champagne) - I haven't actually used this yet, but it comes highly recommended. A good material to practice with as it doesn't cure unless baked. When working with it, keep your work sealed in a jar in a shaded area to avoid any dust getting on the putty, or any accidental smudging.
• 2. Green Stuff - The putty of choice for most sculptors. A 2 part epoxy resin that requires mixing before use. Can be mixed in different ratios in order to achieve a variety of sculpting times. The more yellow, the softer the mix will be and the longer the curing time, the more blue, the harder the mix will be and a shorter curing time. Knead thoroughly to ensure no lumps of yellow or blue otherwise they will ruin the finish as they won't cure properly.
• 3. Brown Stuff - Like Green Stuff, but a much firmer putty and more solid when cured, making it better for doing hard edged surfaces and mechanical parts.
• 4. Milliput - Super Fine - Used to bulk work on bases and also for making "Milliput washes" (milliput mixed with water), which are used to fill small impurities in resin and metal sufaces, and also in putty work. Washes can also be used in a thicker mix to fill small gaps and seams in sculpting and conversion work.
• 5. 1200 Grit Wet Dry Paper - Not a putty, but another tool used in conjunction with the putty. Used to sand surfaces to get a super smooth finish. I tend to sand all surfaces with this before painting in order to have a perfect surface to paint over. When sculpting, it can be used to sand out and seams and get a flush surface between putty and plastic/resin/metal/cured putty.

Now that, that is out of the road, on with the sculpting!

The Subject

The subject for this tutorial is a Victrix plastic Napoleonic Frenchman (example 1. below) which I am converting into a Rogue Trader. As the Victrix figures are a good deal smaller and thinner than Games Workshop's plastic figures, I will be using Green Stuff to bulk the figure out and to sculpt new feet in order to add some height to the figure.


The Sculpting

As can be seen in example 2 above, I have started by creating a rough base shape to work over for the feet. This was created by removing the original figures feet and putting two paper clip pins into the legs, running all the way down into the cork base. The rough shape of the feet was then built up over the paper clips and left to cure overnight. I always use a cork as a holder for sculpting projects as it is easy to push the pinned feet of models into, providing a nice large surface to hold onto that keeps your fingers away from the putty while you work on it. Champagne corks are best as they are nice and wide and have a nice flat, wide base to provide a stable surface for your work to stand on when you leave it to cure.


Putty is then added to the base work (See example 1 above) in order to add volume to the shape along with some basic details. The putty is then shaped and smoothed to form the shape of a booted foot (See example 2 above). No folds or creases are added on the boot at this stage as I find it easier to add these seperately once the shape is formed and cured. Where the freshly applied putty meets cured putty from the previous stage, the edges are smoothed into the previous layer using the half round end of the metal sculpting tool (See example 3 above). This is done with the metal tool as clay shapers aren't hard enough to press the putty flush, therefore leaving a fine seam that can show up in painting. The result of the smoothing with the metal tool can be seen in image (See example 4 above).


I began bulking out the legs, applying putty to one area at a time in order to provide room to work (1). The edges were smoothed with a metal tool before the bullet tipped clay shaper was used to add some folds around the knee and groin (See example 2 above and 1 below).


There are a few small imperfections in the putty on the thighs (See example 1 above), these will be filled with a milliput wash later and then sanded smooth. Putty was then applied to bulk out the jacket, pressed on into shape first with fingers (See example 2 above). The putty was then shaped as above, using the chisel tool to shape and smooth, the metal half round to smooth the edges into the plastic, and the bullet tool to create some light folds (See example 3 above).


As you can see, there is still a lot of work to do before the figure is finished, there is still a fair bit of shaping and volume to be added, along with the all important details, however these will be covered at a later time in a future tutorial on sculpting details.

Thanks again to Grey_Death for the opportunity, and thank you for reading. I hope that whether you are just starting out at sculpting, or if you have been sculpting for a while now, you will have picked up something of use here.

Cheers,

Dante

Worth A Look

Just a quick blog post this one. Just wanted to point out some great blogs well worth a look. I know I've been admiring the work on them lately:

First up:- Little Green Monsters - Some truly amazing sculpt work on show from this man and sound advice about tools and putty mixes too, check it out!

Secondly:- The Painting Corp - Amazing collection of tips, tutorials and advice on all things modelling. The frequency of updates mean there is always something new to read and the community around the blog ensures valued discussion. Run exceptionally well by some great guys.

Thirdly:- Dave Taylor Miniatures - Great guy and a fantastic modeller. His production rate is so high that in the space of a week he will have finished a new army in time for the next post! His blog also seems to send a lot of traffic my way, so thanks for that Dave!


There are a load more sites and blogs I intend to add to this at some point, these are just the ones I've been admiring lately, so go on, check them out!