Jump to content

Assault on Black Reach Ultramarines


JetfireUK

Recommended Posts

Hi folks, I haven't been on the forums for a while but I haven't lost interest in the hobby. At the end of last year I bought the AoBR boxed set and then got a second set of the Marine Squad, Commander and Dreadnaught. I have meant to start painting these for ages but the final straw was seeing Gareth's amazing 4th company based on the AoBR set. I've used a few of Gareth's techniques and this is where I've got to so far.

 

So far I have finished 7 marines of the first Tactical Squad with three nearly completed bar the backpacks and final highlights - you'll notice which three as their backpacks are attached at 90 degrees to normal. My favourite of all so far is the Sergeant. I used the WD article on painting faces and overall I'm very pleased with the result. What do you reckon?

 

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270734.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270736.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270738.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270739.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270740.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270741.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270742.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270744.jpg

 

In terms of the markings on the boltguns - I added these to make them a little more interesting and I might use the marking to denote Squad 1 and Squad 2. I've also tried to vary the check markings and script on each marine so that they appear unique - especially as both squads are from the AoBR set.

 

With the other Tactical Squad, the bodies of each marine are done and the weapons have been undercoated. I've still yet to finish triming and filing the backpacks (such a dull job!) before I can undercoat them white and basecoat them with Mordian Blue.

 

Overall I'm very pleased with the Marines. I've managed to avoid the temptation to rush through the figures and although it's taking me almost as long to paint as I have before - having a Two Tactical Squads on their way is an achievement for me.

 

I'd be grateful for your thoughts so far. I'm waiting until both Tactical Squads are finished before working on the Captains. I'm tempted to do some sort of conversion on one of them to make them stand out from each other. Then it's a toss up between the Two Dreadnaughts or the Terminators.

I too suck at faces... take that in a painting sense and not in the way of some obscure hobby... but I love your sergent. He has that weathered/aged/mid-battle "grrrr" look about him. If ever you wanna get sent a batch of models with bare heads to paint, let me know! ;) ;)

I love em except the bases are a little plain.

 

I like the base colors and rock scheme but maybe add a small touch of flock here and there on the base to make it look like a small bit of grass or other type or plant life is trying to grow.

It would help break up the color on the base a little.

Thanks for the comments so far chaps. I'm pretty pleased with how things have turned out and each week I do a little bit more to get the squads finished. I have a lot to thank Gareth for in terms of ideas for the freehand - it really makes the figures look more interesting than just plain blue.

 

The Sergeants' head was done just following the White Dwarf Lizardmen issue. I do okay at faces but using the wash of Regal blue around the eyes and crimson around the mouth helped to give more depth to the features.

 

The suggestion of adding a little flock to the bases is a good one. I think that I'll go back to it when I've finally finished the two squads. I can then make the additions to the bases and pull the whole army together.

 

Does anyone have any suggestions for the Black Reach captains? One will remain as standard but the other I fancy making at least some change to make it unique.

  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Chaps,

 

PROGRESS! <_<

 

I've finally got the second squad of AoBR marines finished and to prove it I've got some pictures handy!

 

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270751.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270752.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270754.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270755.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270756.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270757-1.jpg

 

I'm really pleased how these have turned out. The time scale I set myself didn't really go to plan, but considering the quality of the marines and my slow pace - these are probably the quickest and best painted squad I've done. I'm happier with these than my Black Legion marines and I thought I did them well! :D I think that the freehand approach (thanks, Gareth) and the red slashes on the bolters to help denote the squads really helps to separate these from the ocean of blue normally found on Ultramarines. The sergeant heads are also my best attempt at conveying flesh so far so overall I'm a very happy chap.

 

I'd really like to hear your thoughts, comments and criticisms as it'll help me improve in the future.

 

Next on the list is the AoBR commander followed by a Dreadnaught - then I'll get stuck into the Orks! I might actually get around to finish painting something after all!

Update!!

 

Here's my commander - please let me know what you think!

 

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270766.jpg

 

I need to do some minor touching up to the base but overall I'm very happy. I decided not to go overboard on detail as the sculpt is quite busy but I still think that this figure stands out. My favourite parts are the face and the banner with a faux gold effect.

 

So on to the Terminators! ;D

Thanks for the comments - it's always nice to hear what people think.

 

With regards to the two identical sergeants. I am a painter rather than a modeller and would rather have a well painted model in an identical pose rather than a badly modelled sergeant.

 

It's nice to see some other Ultramarines - some nice and shiny with great personalised details.

  • 1 month later...

Hi Chaps,

 

Where does a month go? Okay it's been a long time since I've posted anything of substance for a while but I've finally got around to getting something done - my AoBR Terminator squad! These took a while longer than anticipated as I wanted to put some effort into the painted details (the checkerboard pattern) and not rush them. Overall I'm fairly pleased with the look - near the 80% mark. The one main bug bear I've had is that the grainy white undercoat affects the quality and I find that the basecoat and subsequent layers wear off easier when handling the figures than with a black undercoat.

 

I'm also got most of my Dreadnaught done. I've worked the checkerboard pattern into the bodywork and I think that it's a nice motif that's used throughout my figures. I've still got some more to go in terms of details but it's coming together nicely.

 

As always let me know what you think - as it's always handy to get feedback. One question I have is whether I should add a bit of green flock to the bases to make them more interesting?

 

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270834.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270835.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270836.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270837.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270838.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y104/JetfireUK/SL270839.jpg

They look pretty awesome, to be honest. If you want to improve on them, try adding some more accent colors in, like red or gold. Also, if you are having problems with your paint/primer wearing off while you paint, you should try poster-puttying the models to the tops of paint pots you don't use, or something else about that size. That way, you can hold the pot instead of the model and it should stay put if you press it into the putty nice and firmly.

Very nice!

 

I particularly like the metal, specifically the way it looks on the Multi-Melta "Cowling" - What color is that? It doesn't look like Boltgun Metal in the pics?

 

Only suggestion I might add is that on the Power armor marines, I think the shading on the chest eagles could be a little deeper.

Thanks everyone for your comments, they're really helpful.

 

Void_Dragon and Mitchell93 thanks about adding accent colours. It's a good idea and one I'll run with on my next Terminator Squad. I found that I wasn't sure how to represent the 1st Company apart from white helmets so you've given me a lot of food for thought. Red would match in nicely with the wider 3rd company I have building up. Any ideas of the sorts of images I could represent in red or gold?

 

Verpine: With the Dreadnaught, I need to finish up the 'arms' as at most they've had a basecoat and a layer of boltgun metal with Badab Black - so I'll make sure those lenses are filled in! I'm probably going to run with the checkerboard look on the powerclaw to keep it in with the look of the powerfists on the Terminators. If I'm feeling brave I might try adding some scratches and dents too.

 

Vindictus: The cowling on the Multi-melta is very straightfoward - basecoat of Boltgun Metal followed by two generous coats of Badab Black. The washes work really well on metals and you can afford to be more daring as the finished colours look nice metal-like unlike the shine that the inks used to give. Why not give it a go?

 

Thanks again you lot I appreciate the feedback!

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.