Tzeentch Daemon Kin

I figured I would show off a few more pics of my completed Tzeentch Daemonkin work. I am particularly pleased with how quickly the Horrors painted up. For all of my daemon skin I start with  Naggaroth Night Base followed by successive layers of Xereus Purple -> Genestealer Purple -> Pink Horror. Then I coat it all in a mix of Druchii Violet Shade and Vallejo Glaze Medium to thin the glaze and pull all he colours together. The only difference with the Horrors is that I used all the same colours through my airbrush. I focused on a Zenithal highlight style with an artistic flair by over highlighting the last layer. Then it was a sit down and grind out all the brush on details.

TLDR: Airbrushing saved me 3 hours of brushwork and made blends that I couldn't do with a traditional brush.

For Khorne!

I have finished 2 more models for my Warhammerd army. I agreed to paint both of these so that I could have some awesome models to hopefully drum up some more commissions.

The first that I completed was the Soulgrinder. Way back in the days of 4ed 40k, true line of sight wasn't a thing. So when my little brother let me assemble his Defiler, it looked more like a crab. When 5ed and TLoS arrived, some of his friends complained that he was modelling for advantage. With Khorne Daemonkin out, and my crazy idea to mix a Defiler and a Nemesis Dreadknight, I once again asked to model for him and repair my mistake. I also had a few bitz from the Bloodthirster kit.

Once the Soulgrinder was done, I immediately set to work on the Bloodthirster mk2. I did my best to create the fiery wings that were requested of me, and overall it was a fun and challenging project. I can't get over how amazingly well detailed this model is. I really want one for myself. One day...

And I continue to rant and rave about how amazing the airbrush is to use. Best. Anniversary. Gift. Ever.

The Deadline Approachs

As the Warhammer'd event looms ever nearer, my painting deadline continues to get closer and closer. At the timenof writing this, I have 10 more days/nights to hobby. In that time I need to complete a Soul Grinder, another Bloodthirster, and 2 High Elf cavalry characters. Also, if I'm aiming for max painting points (read:always) I need to build and paint a display board and paint the movement trays for my Daemon army.

Now, what have I finished in the meanwhile?

It has been a long time since I took the time to invest 6-8 hours into a single model that wasn't a tank or monster. I started with the BSB and only when he was done did I start in on Mannfred von Carstein. It was really rewarding to focus on these models one at a time and really put some love into them. The BSB even includes my first ever Freehand design on a banner, and even though he looks like Barney, I'm still quite happy with the result.

Anyways, I'll leave you with some pics as I get back to the grind.

So much progress!!

In the 17 days since my last post, I have pumped out an insane number of models. While not at the highest quality of my painting career, I think I have achieved a solid balance between quantity and quality.

I even managed to turn on my airbrush, finally. In truth I had been afraid to use it out of fear of damaging to airbrush or a model. Finally my friend Nick convinced me to use it on his Bloodthirster of Insensate Rage. I'm pretty sure he was tired of me whining about being afraid of it. So I turned it on and I've used it for about 6 hours so far. I have learned a tonne in that time, and I'm more excited to paint than ever before. As an added bonus, I get to use the Bloodthirster at Warhammerd.

A quick list of the models completed since the zombies:
-40 Dire Wolves
-35 Skeleton Warriors
-1 Necromancer
-6 Vargheists
-1 Varghulf
-1 Bloodthirster

So much rage!

Got an airbrush? Better do cheesy OSL

So many dogs!

Half and half

Airbrushing is fun!

Morr undead!!

A few weeks ago I showed off some Undead that I painted for my friend Brad. Well last week he sent me a text message in a panic because Warhammerd is only 5 weeks from today. He has given up on painting his Dwarf army in time for the event and asked if I could get his Vampire Counts done in time for the event.

He dropped off the army on Monday night and by bed time on Tuesday I had finished the zombies. I now have 40 dire wolves sitting on my desk waiting for primer,but it has been unseasonably cold and wet this week.

Thousand Sons Terminators

Continuing on with the Chaos army, I have finished up the Terminators. I used 1 of the Deathwing Knights box sets and 1 of the Chaos Lord in Terminator Armour.

The hooded heads for the Deathwing Knights all have faces showing underneath of them. Because of the actions of Ahriman and the Rubric spell, all Thousand Sons marines are permanently locked into their armour. To this end I needed to get rid of the faces and I did so using several different sized drill bits and a hobby knife.

Then all I needed to do what remove the Dark Angels symbols. I did leave a few remaining as trophies. Also, Tzeentch is often shown as a bird so some of the wings could stay.

I'm quite pleased with the final result and it has me excited to paint the standard Rubricae.

Slowing down to paint one at a time

On a few occasions now I have had the opportunity to slow down and paint single models for use in RPGs. The first up is a human ranger that I painted as a Christmas gift for my friend Nick. I use a LotR Rohan Archer for the model and a bit of slate for some fancy basing. It was a nice change of pace but I was disappointed with the cloth because up until this model everything had been in power armour.

Then we come to Thorfin the Dwarven. I painted this model for my own use in 1 of 2 games of D&D that I've had the chance to enjoy. The model is one of the beautifully sculpted Rackham Confrontation models. It is a shame that these models have long since gone out of production because to this day they remain some of the best sculpts that I have ever seen. He was a neat experiment with trying to paint the glowing blue and the half full wine bottle. My how far I've come in painter skill over the last 4 years.

Finally I present Grock, the half-orc paladin. After finishing the Dwarven table I needed a break from big projects and spent a couple hours on this. He was an attempt to work on different weathering techniques and freehand designs. Unfortunately the battle damage on the shield covered up the freehand triforce. The LotR Urukhai Captain has an interesting pose, but the smaller scale continues to challenge me. 

In the end it's nice to had that break and paint something just for fun. I also like to try out new techniques on these models as an opportunity to mess up and not wreck a big project.