The Emperor's Green Dragons

[Montuhotep]

Quite the challenge you've just set for yourself then!

[metcalfedan]

@ Captain Mike. Viva is Spanish/Italian for "long live". So "Viva Metallica", as the method is called, would roughly translate to "Long live Metallics!"

:tu: I think I might sig that...

 

As for your colour scheme - can I suggest dark red fatigues - darker than the red on your armoured marines as it would contrast the green well, as well as sticking to the army's colour scheme. ;)

[Cedric]

@ Paladin.

Indeed, but without challenges, how is one to learn new tricks?

 

Some ideas to emulate oil effects a.t.m. is;

A. Use multiple colours of glaze on a metallic surface.

B. Go shopping for some rainbowy nailpolish.

 

If it comes down to it, I could always ask the local art college or art supply store if they know anything about oil effects.

 

@Metcalfedan.

The only downside with even more red is that I already have red bases, red cloth, red banners, red non-metallic weapon parts, red pauldrons and red eyes.

I know exactly how well red contrasts green (hence the abundance of red), but I'm afraid I'll overdo it if I include yet another shade of red in the existing palette.

[metcalfedan]

@Metcalfedan.

The only downside with even more red is that I already have red bases, red cloth, red banners, red non-metallic weapon parts and red eyes.

I know exactly how well red contrasts green (hence the abundance of red), but I'm afraid I'll overdo it if I include yet another shade of red in the existing palette.

Touche!

 

How about a nice dark brown?

 

EDIT: I started painting a Crimson Fist scout today with brown fatigues, when he's finished I'll PM you a pic so you can see

- I'm not putting any more pics on my Viva thread for a while as I'm hoping to get :tu: loads painted then revive the thread. Make a comeback - hopefully not Jacko style though ;) But don't tell anyone because it's top secret ;)

 

[Cedric]

So, here we go again.

Haven't touched a brush for the better part of the previous year, but for some reason I felt motivated to paint again! Perhaps I'll have a playable army done by summer so that I can actually have a game or two.

 

A really nice thing about the Vivia Metallica is that the metal undercolour actually shines through very well in good light, giving the model a nice look. The downside is that washing on large, flat surfaces is tricky beyond reason to do without getting an uneven result.

I'll try to spray the wash on for my next AOBR dread or rhinoes.

Perhaps spraying is the answer to my uneven wash issues?

 

I really enjoyed painting the dread! Large, easy model to work with.

I should try to get some practice painting lenses and find a tutorial on how to give the melta a burned look.

 

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2135.jpghttp://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2143.jpg

[onipunk]

The sarcophagus front looks brilliant, with the dragon and everything. Great model.

[Newtype]

Well done. :D

 

I think the wash on the Dreadnought looks fine. The areas of unevenness actually add to the finished appearance, like it has aged or been exposed to some type of toxic environment.

 

Keep up the good work.

[Cedric]

A new batch enter the fray!

 

This time it's a bunch of scouts/neophytes.

I am absolutely in love with their visored helmets! However, blue visors and blue lenses are a tad bit too dark to "pop" in this colour scheme, despite being glosscoated.

At least when wieved in standard tabletop light conditions...

Purple or orange/yellow lenses should stand out a bit more. Will have to get more paints to expand the palette!

 

The same goes with their leather boots on the red gravel. Brown tones on a rust red background blends a bit too well.

I'm thinking of switching to black boots with grey highlights instead. That should increase the contrast between the colours.

 

I had to postpone my previous idea of using some sort of mother-of-pearl-ish nailpolish to create an oil on water effect on the visors due to my poor makeup shopping skills (yes, I've asked female friends, shop clerks in makeup & art supply stores). Progress had to come before perfection, or I'd never get these done, but the search continues!

 

Another new thing I tried was highlight the armour with a few lines of mithril after the black wash but before the layers of green. It defines the edges somewhat better & will be a part of the regular process from now on.

 

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2152.jpg

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2147.jpg

 

[blackblade68]

WHERE did you get those scout helms? they're awesome!

[eleventhmarine]

amazed and impressed - i've been following your thread for a while now, and been eager to see the scouts painted... and boy did you knock one out of the park. the helmets/visors are fantastic... and I have always liked your basing scheme. I actually like that the brown of the boots blends into the red soil/rocks of the base. gives the impression of a true scout who infiltrates etc... some Forge World red weathering powder creeping up the legs would look awesome.

 

best of all you have reingnited my own drive to paint marines (been concentrating on a very large Hive Fleet for the last few months)

 

you have also inspired me to find an alternative to bare scout heads (suddenly reaslise how close yours are to HALO ODST helmets!!!)

 

cheers and keep up the stupendous work...

[Cedric]

@blackblade.

That was my impression too, hence the purchase. =)

They're from Pig Iron Productions, the model is "heavy infantry" IIRC.

 

@eleventhmarine.

Someone actually follows this blog, even after a hiatus that lasted nearly a year? Hah, well that's an ego boost. =)

FW weathering is a few notches above my painting skill level, I'd reckon. But perhaps I should see if I can't borrow someones dust just to give it a try on a model or so.

 

Ah, yes. HALO was what I had in mind when thinking of visored helmets. It would be the coolest thing ever to create a mirroring surface on the visors, or at least the oil on water effect I originally had in mind. Failing that, at least I get to practice this technique of painting lenses and reflections.

 

I like to try different things in order to compare. The next batch of neos/scouts will likely be with black boots and orange or purple visors, just to see how they match up to this batch.

I'm with you on the camo effect, thought! If I ever get around to sniper scouts with camo cloaks, red & brown is a given! (perhaps with some fine grain sand to give the camouflage a texture... Ah, further ideas to be implemented!)

 

I'm glad to have inspired you! Part of the rewarding aspect with the community is to leech off others ideas while brainstorming your own to others in some symbiotic fashion.

[Cedric]

Time to clean the brushes for another Call of the Imperium!

 

The aim is to complete a dread, 2 speeders and 2 rhinos come july... and perhaps top it off with an LCR + AssTerms at the end of summer.

I'll try to spray one of the vehicles with wash to see if the results turns out smooth.

Then I'll have a somewhat functional army to toss at my oponents!

[Kadris]

wow, these are looking great! love the use of DE icons, fits the theme very well. the custom shoulder badges look great too, very well defined and not bulky.

 

keep it up, love to see more.

[Cedric]

As part of the Call of the Imperium (these deadlines really help my progress!), here's a few pics of recent work.

 

I've managed to further slim down the painting process! :D

I now prime with metallic spray and use 3 layers of green wash, as opposed to prime black, paint mithril, wash 1 black and 3 green layers.

Got myself a metallic primer from Army Painter, Platemail metal. It is equivalent to Chainmail in shinynyess and I'd seriously recommend anyone painting metallics to try it. ;)

 

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2187.jpg

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2192.jpg

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2188.jpg

[Cedric]

Call of the Imperium update.

 

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2197.jpg

[Brother Sevrance]

Im not a very big fan of gold I think lol. I do like the metallic green and the orange shoulder paldrons. But I think you should have gone with silver with the plastron and paldrons. Anyway besides my own hatred for gold I really good job =). I hope the army is coming together quickly for you!

[manofmanynames]

Very nice painting.The Emperor's Champion counts as is my favorite.

[sniperous]

i like the colours schemes reminds me of some chinese parade i seen on tv :)

[Cedric]

Thank you all!

 

Should I reacch the point when special veteran squads will be an option, I'll likely consider painting them somewhat differently than the others.

I wish I could say my army was coming together quickly, but my time for painting has been spent elsewhere.

 

To my dismay I have found that the new (not so new now...) Space Wolves box with power armour and CCW's are a sad mix of fur and bare heads. =(

My plan was to use the old box for the bulk of my troops. Now I have to beg friends for helmeted heads & spend time carving off fur where possible.

Pehraps it's time to cough up cash for Assault Squads instead...

[Cedric]

Call of the Imperium IV complete!

 

I know I can paint better, but a deadline is a deadline and I have found it hard to get spare time to paint.

At least it is decent for tabletop purposes.

 

Next up will be assault terminators! I'll have to put in my best for these guys. As they'll be a centerpiece of my army, they deserve it.

 

And some sort of deornamentation of a Space Wolves squad. I need the CC armament, but the fur doesn't go well with the overall dragon theme.

Thankfully, runes and skulls are easier to fit in.

 

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2249.jpg

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2243.jpg

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2242.jpg

[Cedric]

New work in the pipeline!

This will be a count-as marshall.

With 6 attacks on the charge and rerolls both to hit and wound this bad boy will quickly shred his opponents guts to ribbons.

All while looking properly draconic, of course.

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2261.jpghttp://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z178/the_lord34/IMG_2256.jpg

[Quixus]

Awesome model. Are those Terminator arms?

[Captain Mick]

Very nice models, well done :P .

[The Black Watch]

Can't believe I missed this thread! LOVE the concept, LOVE the metallic green, LOVE the chapter iconography! It works very well together and really stands out. One of the best DIY's I've seen. Consider me subscribed.

 

You can see your painting just getting better and better with each post and I admire your desire to convert as much as possible to make it unique. If I was to give you one critique, I'd say the Terminator arms on the Marshall are a *little* too big and out of proportion.

 

Where did you get the Scythe for the Chaplain?

 

Dragons Rule! :D

[Cedric]

Thank you!

 

@Quixus

Yes, those are Terminator arms.

Turns out buying a pair of PA lightning claws from a bits shop was not an option; they are always sold out.

 

@The Black Watch

Practice makes perfect, as they say. Though I have gotten a bit lazy in order to promote productivity over meticulousness.

 

Yes, the TDA arms are big and out of proportions. But then again, I'm a fan of the aesthetics including Samus Aran from Metroid...

However, cutting the TDA LC's off and sticking them on regular PA arms would've given an even more disproportionate look, I think. Those gloves aren't exactly petite. At least they have the shoulderpads to match! ;)

 

The scythe is from Typhus, a Chaos character.

I hate to buy a full blister just for a single minor component and leave the rest of the model to rot in a box, but what is a poor hobbyist to do when he finds himself stuck with an idea too cool not to try. :rolleyes:

Best of luck with your own Dragons!