Legion of the Damned Legionnaire

[SCC]

First off let me apologise for the photos, my sister-in-law has stolen our regular camera while she treks around Spain so I had to dig out the old camera and the auto-focus appears to be going screwy with age. That said it does flatter the layers of the flames so that they actually look better than in real life, so it's not all bad.

Let's look at the photos shall we?

A little blurry but you can see what's what.

Again I note the camera is flattering the flames, they're not that smooth in real life sadly, close but not that seamless by any means.

The camera insisted on focusing on the feet here rather than the backpack, which is a pity as I think the bone here is a considerable improvement over my old recipe.

I've always liked the LotD, I've got a bunch of the old models including Centurious, but I never got around to painting them but when I saw the new ones I pretty much had to go out and buy them straight away. In fact, I liked 'em so much I actually painted this guy, not just started, but actually finished.

OK Technically he needs a final hit of Dullcote but for all intents and purposes this is the first 40K mini I've finished in more than a year. I think that might be 'cos I found a quick, easy way to highlight the black armour rather than getting bogged down in layer, after layer of highlights and adjusting the highlights and glazing them and washing them and generally fiddling about like I normally do. I simply very lightly drybrushed the whole model with Astartes Battlegrey, washed it with Badab Black wash, carefully hit the sharp edges with a very fine AB highlight and washed it all again. That done I tidied up the black areas so that the drybrushed highlights weren't in daft places and then I moved on to the flames. Next time I might add a layer of brighter highlights for extra definition, we'll see.

The flames are done much the same way as folks all around the world have been doing LotD flames for years, start with a dark red at the bottom and work your way up to orange/yellow at the top. WD 361 (Aus - Jan 2010) has an excellent 'Eavy Metal on the LotD including flames if you need one.

The bone has one major change compared to my old method, the base colour is now Khemri Brown instead of Dheneb Stone or one of the darker Vallejo bone colours. From there I simply mix KB and Bleached Bone together in varying proportions to work through a few highlights. About halfway through I was with Badab Black followed by Devlan Mud before it dries. Sadly the right hand view, where the majority of the bone is (on the shoulder pad) just wouldn't come into focus with the old camera and nor would the backpack so you'll have to take my word for it.

At any rate I'm quite chuffed at having finished a mini so I've got another Legionnaire primed and ready to go plus I've got a new BA Death Company Marine on the blocks too, hopefully I can improve the black highlighting on these two.

[Isiah]

Well I think they look great. Bone excellent, flames brilliant. Justice done to superb models. Maybe the bases need spicing up?? Maybe :D.

 

Cheers

I

[The Damned]

I'd have to agree about the base.

I do like the back armour. Its got a nice menacing dull look to it. Kind of like a matt black. I think it looks quite nice.

[SCC]

I do like the back armour. Its got a nice menacing dull look to it. Kind of like a matt black. I think it looks quite nice.

That'll be the Dull Cote, I love that stuff, it takes any shine or gloss away absolutely leaving a deadly serious black, brilliant stuff.

 

I dunno about the base though, I'll admit this one is fairly one-dimensional but I kinda like it, it lets the focus rest of the model not the base.

 

I actually started this guy with the hopes of entering the Golden Bolter competition but real life got in the way and I didn't finish in time (obviously). I has actually planned to shroud the base in either a spectral mist or add little supernatural flames flickering and guttering on the ground to give it a little pizazz. I still might if I can figure out how to do the mist or GS some decent enough little flames.

[Enzo]

Great model, really appreeciate what you have done with the black armour, black power armour is always tricky. Will give it a whirl on my templars for sure :P May I also ask what brand dullcoat you are using? On the flames even if they aren't exactly what look like in real life they must still be pretty smooth. Although I must second what has been said about the base, could do with a little something, and well done on painting a model for the first time in a year. It can get hard sometimes!

[Momento Mori]

Beeeeaaaauuutiful! I'm really liking the job on this. I like the played down base too. Like you said, it emphasizes the model more.

 

Kudos! :)

[SCC]

I like the played down base too. Like you said, it emphasizes the model more.

Finally! Someone who gets it! ;)

 

I'm kidding guys, kidding. I still like the simple base, but perhaps the base is bland rather than just simple and that's what others have taken issue with. In retrospect I can agree with that. So I've tried my hand at sculpting flames, no real success so far but I think I'm getting the hang of it. Once I've got some good flames I'll have to think whether to paint them as flames should be (i.e. the reverse of the flames on the Legionnaire, light at the bottom, dark at the top), the same as the Legionnaire (and claim they're 'spectral' or similar) or perhaps even go with a blue/white 'aetheric fire' or something overtly supernatural. We're just talking some little flames here, not the whole base on fire, just little fires guttering and sputtering in one or two places.

 

Suggestions?