Woldwarden Step-by-Step

Took on the Woldwarden next. Made some changes from the Woldwatcher experiences and went ahead with the sponge painting approach again.

1. Base coat all stone areas black (this guy was primed white - mistake). White out the "eyes" and some of the surrounding area. The sponging will help delineate the appropriate eye area.
   
2. Sponge or stipple (in tight areas) in consecutive, diminishing layers - VMC Black Grey, P3 Ironhull Gray, P3 Cryx Bane Base, P3 Cryx Bane Highlight, P3 Trollblood Highlight. Careful to leave recessed areas black.
3. Paint all the wood and ropes with a 50/50 mix of VGC Charred Brown and RMS Dark Shadow. The Dark Shadow kills a lot of the red in the Charred Brown, making for a nice even brown with a suggestion of gray tones.
4. Paint all the wood "flesh" or exposed inner parts with a 5:1 mix of VGC Khaki and the mix for the rest of the wood. This deepens the Khaki and makes for a nice base.
5. Paint all the ropes with a 50/50 mix of VGC Khaki and VGC Earth. Careful to keep this on the ropes and knots only. Leave some dark recesses as appropriate.
6. Wash entire wood/rope areas with a mix of VMC Matte Medium, water, P3 Armor Wash, and VMC German Camo Black Brown, in equal portions.
7. Highlight wood and ropes with their original colors. Highlight up more with adding VGC Khaki as appropriate.
8. Wash the "eyes" with P3 Turquoise Ink. Leave some whiter areas in the middle; focus on edges.
   
9. Base per Circle Basing article below.

That's it. I'm on Step 9 now, and the highlighting turned out great! It's all recorded here, so I won't forget what I've done or planned to do. Will update with pictures (at this point, I have a lot of photograph and show).

Pics, as promised.























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Bones & Leaves

Some new techniques I stumbled upon or modified from other sources that I should document quick. First up, old bones; the kind sitting on the ground waiting...

Old bones
1. Base coat with VGC Bonewhite.
2. Wash with a watered mix of VGC Sepia Ink & VMC US Field Drab.
3. Glaze with a very light layer of VMC Brown Violet (actually a greenish color).
4. Highlight back up with VGC Bonewhite.
5. Pick out teeth with RMS Linen White.

And every once in a while, PP sculpts a model with leaves or grass. These can be hard to paint to match whatever terrain goes on the base. But I came up with this...

Leaves in Pewter
1. Base coast with VMC Brown Violet.
2. Highlight with P3 Ordic Olive
3. Consequetive highlights with P3 Ordic Olive and P3 Moldy Ochre mixed.
4. Last highlight should have a little more Moldy Ochre than you think you need; it really pops!

That's it. Both of the techniques were developed on my latest Shifting Stones. Should have pictures... eventually.

Sentry Stones













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Shifting Stones










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Feralgeist #2 and new Trollbloods basing

Did another "accidental" Feralgeist. Did the same process, but started with more of a 50/50 GW Dark Green and Yellow ink mix near the bottom and slowly transitioned into a mostly yellow ink near the top. Actually, did the top 1/3 and the bottom 1/3 and then transitioned between. Did the bones the same as before. The base was a bit different. Followed the Cygnar base process, but after the ballast dried, I deviated...

1. Dry brush VGC Earth on the turf
2. Dry brush a layer of VGC Earth and VGC Khaki mixed on the high areas
   
3. Dry brush straight VGC Khaki near the tips of stuff
4. Paint on front arc markings with VMC German Camo Brown Black
   
5. Glue on smallish areas of my custom Summer Mix flock
6. Glue on some areas around and above (where possible) of straight GF9 Summer Blend

Looks really good. A dryer look with a lot of texture in the base. This method will be great for my trolls. The second Feralgeist is outside now, his layer of gloss coat drying nicely. Started two Sentry Stones as well, in my standard sponged-on rock method. They looks great with a lot of turquoise-glowing areas. Just need to finish up the sculpted foliage and base them.












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Front arc markings...

Just to keep it all straight and organized, I'm writing my front arc markings color choices here. The goal is to have colors that are dark, subtle and easily overlooked when simply viewing the model, but easy enough to see in play, while also helping to tie the army together in a cohesive style.

1. Cygnar - VGC Imperial Blue
2. Circle Orboros - VMC Black Gray
3. Cryx - VGC Scurf Green
   
4. Trollbloods - VMC German Camo Black Brown
   
5. Highborn Covenant - VGC Royal Purple
6. Legion of Everblight - RMS Walnut Brown

Painting the front arcs involves using YoungWolf7's front arc measuring templates, a fine brush (0 or 1) and a steady hand. Be sure to thin the paints with Stokes Magic Sauce because the lines get thick with raised borders otherwise. Ugly...

Minions will use the color of the faction they'll most likely see time with. For example, my first Feralgeist went with the Circle Orboros front arc markings. My second one will go with Trollbloods. The colors are subtle enough, and faint enough, to not matter. Being painted's the most important part. Yay!

Feralgeist: A Bit of Random Painting

I somehow just started this guy. After buying some P3 Turquoise Ink, I realized I could get a cool color if I mixed some of my preexisting inks. With my Feralgeist sitting there, primed and waiting, I went to town. Here's what I did...

1. Cover the entire spirit portion of the model with a 50/50 mix of GW Dark Green Ink and GW Yellow Ink. Mixing in some Vallejo Matte Medium on the subsequent layers, I was able to darken the effect.*
   
2. Paint the carcass with a solid base coat of VGC Bone White
3. Wash the carcass with a mix of VGC Dark Fleshtone and water, with a drop of VMC US Field Drab, to cut the red tone. This gives an appoximation of P3 Idrian Flesh, as recommended for this model in NQ #16.
4. Highlight the bones' natural edges with RMS Creamy Ivory. This approximates the 50/50 mix of P3 Menoth White Highlight and 'Jack Bone, again as recommended in NQ #16.
   
5. Wash the entire carcass with a blend of one part GW Red Ink, two parts GW Brown Ink, and lots of water. I added some more red ink to the mix for a little extra gore. Worked well.
6. Re-highlight the bones' natural edges as in step 4, but keep it subtle.
   
7. Base as Circle Bases tutorial below - this guy will work most often with my Circle. I skipped the front arc markings since he has no melee weapon and will often be used in other factions; the colors won't clash that way. I also skipped the leaves, since his usable base area is kind of limited.
   

*Two thoughts: be sure to let each layer dry thoroughly; I almost ruined the effect in places as the ink rubbed off. And on my next Feralgeist, only use one layer of ink, with no Matte Medium - the effect was cooler before adding too much color - the yellow stayed high, and the green went into the recesses. Oh well, next time.

Voila! He looks neat. His gloss coat is drying as I write this. He'll get dull coated tomorrow and maybe I'll get some pictures. Overall, took about two hours; should knock out the second one quick while the method is still fresh in my mind.

Good night, all!