Hod's Sisters of the Burning Cross WIP

[Hod]

Hey guys. I'm a long time lurker and finally got around to getting some pictures of my army to post on the site. I also wanted to make sure to get my army blog started before the new sisters came out (so I can be an 'old school' type of guy and not one of those 'ban-wagoners').

I've been painting my sisters for about a few years now. They were the first army I started painting in 40K and really the reason I started painting 40K at all. None of the Space Marine or other stuff really drew me away from Fantasy, but when I started thinking about painting a SoB army, it sparked something. A few days later I received a package from ebay of ten sisters and cleared my paint desk and painted nothing but them for a little while. I really enjoyed the minis and ended up getting some Retributors, seraphims and maybe my favorite part of the Sisters, the Ecclesiarchy.

I am a huge Rackham Confrontation collector and can't but help to put some of my collection into my armies. So you will see a unit of Rackham here or there and some mixed GW / Rackham units here or there. If that offends you, I apologize in advance - I was never one to follow rules very much.

The sister's lore is also my favorite of all of the 40K universe. I really feel like it encompasses the fall of man in such a dark and righteous way that you can't help but think of stories full of anti-heroes who in the name of righteousness are the evilest people of them all. Not kid stories, but great stories none the less. I've read everything GW has to offer (which is pathetically little). I hope if we get new stuff, it also comes with some new fiction.

But onto the minis. I am a painter first and foremost and don't really play the game. This means my focus is on having fun painting each mini. So you will see a lot of little variation on my paint jobs. Backpack colors and shoulder pad colors change just because I hate painting the same mini twice with the exact same color scheme (even thought I do sometimes).

The first unit I took pictures of is the first ten sisters I painted. I actually only had nine GW sisters, so I added the Rackham Hospitaller to round it out to ten.

http://www.hodsminis.com/SoB/SoB_SistersSquad01.jpg

I would love to hear what you guys have to think about them. I hope to get some more pictures of the army going soon, so there should be some updates coming. What I have painted so far is a unit of Rackham Repentia, and GW Seraphim. I am currently working on a whole five man unit of Ecclesiarchy that is mixed Rackham / GW.

[WarriorFish]

Welcome to the B&C :) A good time to be joining up what with the latest scuttlebutt. You've got a really nice scheme and the extra details help them pop, I particularly like the freehand and robes :tu:

[Servant of Dante]

Welcome to the B&C! Beautiful models! Oh, and as usual, here's your flamer and three barrels of the Emperor's Promethium. Speak to a Mod when you run out. Or before.

To my annoyance, I've only been a Sisters player for a year. I started off with Blood Angels (loved them), but after 2 years I picked up Sisters and never looked back. I suppose I can claim to be part of the "old guard," but just barely.

But gosh, those Sisters look great. The Suqad Dominus (20 models) is the only thing I've ever painted.

Imperator Vult!

[Hod]

Hey guys. Forget to get a more detailed shot of the personal heraldry I did on each Sister's shin.

 

http://www.hodsminis.com/SoB/SoB_Heraldry_10_21_16.jpg

 

I also did a Icon for my Sisters that I painted on each on of their robes.

 

http://www.hodsminis.com/SoB/SoB_BurningCross_10_21_16.jpg

 

 

I also got a picture of my four Seraphim, still working on a St. Celestine to round out the five.

 

http://www.hodsminis.com/SoB/SoB_Seraphim_10_21_16.jpg

[dracpanzer]

They seem to have a bit of the feel of Bretonnia about them. I like the heraldry a lot. Nice job.

[Servant of Dante]

Very pretty. Very nice. I'm sure the Emperor is proud :P

[WarriorFish]

Crazy detailed! Excellent models and I really like the Seraphim base mod :tu:

[Hod]

Very pretty. Very nice. I'm sure the Emperor is proud

Hopefully not proud enough to decide to be re-born

[Grgobart]

Very impressive! In more ways than one. The least of which is making purple and red work together on the same model/scheme. And that's still a mighty achievement, I'd have not thought possible.

I like how fundamentaly different your philosophical approch to painting is to mine, looking at every model as an individual piece of art and purposefully going for slight variations. My desire to achieve a uni-form look accross the whole of my army, is rather compulsive, by contrast. But even if differences like the variations on the gold of those Seraphim Jump Packs would start haunting me, if they were my models, I have to admit, that sentiment pales in comparions to the overall awe and slight envy I feel when seeing your models.
I'll wager a guess and say that this isn't the result of pure talent, but also to a substantial degree, the fruits of hard work and practice. I personally chickened out early, when I realised, that mastering certain painting skills, would require way more dedication, practice and not to mention patience, than I was willing to put into a mere hobby. Most of the time I'm content with that decision and the results I achieve, by working/cheating around the shortcomings of my skill set. But it is seeing models painted like yours, that make me painfully aware of what I'll never be able to do this way.

It also makes me wonder, what could have made you hold back from posting pics of your models sooner. I remember how nervous I was before posting my first pics, afraid that what little pride I had in my work might have been unwarranted and simply a result of being to full of myself. Seeing your models, I could only imagine, the thought of actually discouraging other painters, to be a reason not to post these.

I do have one question about the Seraphim Superior, though. I tend to care a bit too much about details than neccessary, when converting models. E.g.: I once made a plastic Canoness and there were two loose ends of cloth, which I decided to join into a fly shaped knot, which I was to carve out of a piece of plastic. I worked long an hard on that piece, especially shaping the center knot of the fly, only to realize, that knot would later sit underneath the Canoness' cloak with only the ends of the fly poking out and being visible!
Slowly going back to the question, I have to say those scrolls are a good idea for keeping up your Seraphim and you implemented it brilliantly. Now I imagine those scrolls to be attached to one of those wax sigil things, like any other purity seal. With the other Seraphim, I can see those sigils placed somewhere between their backs and Jump Packs, but the Superior..? Rather than "where" I'd only like to ask IF you thought about where those scrolls are attached to?
It it very obvious to me, that from a strictly mechanical point of view, it is the best place on that model to drill into. I know, I only recently converted that very models into a banner bearer and my try to drill into her foot/boot came out her shin.

Keep up the good work and thanks for sharing!

[Hod]

Grobart, you are very correct in the time and patience it takes to paint these. And the reason I am able to give it to each model, is that I am in no hurry to paint an entire army, mostly because I have never had a group to play with. I only know one other mini friend and he is just a paint (and my teacher). Because of that, I have gotten quite anal about making sure I do each model the justice I think it deserves. What really irks me is when I didn't paint a mini well enough for what I believes the sculpt deserves. And the minor differences is the only way I can keep myself motivated to keep painting minis that are relatively the same. As for why it took me so long to put up pictures, that is because I don't have a picture taking area that I like. I don't know why I have such a hard time getting the right lighting, but for a few years now, I have just given up on taking pictures because I don't like how my minis look with the light set up I have. But after returning from two months away from my minis, I decided it was time to get over that, and have started my efforts again at getting a good light setup. It's still a work in progress, and I hope my pictures will keep getting better and better as the WIP goes along.

 

As for the Sister Superior Seraphim, I never thought about where her scrolls came from. I put them there because that's where St. Celestine has them going too, but now that you bring it up, that is a good question, where are those going? Maybe they're the purity seals from her underwear... I'll leave you with that thought.

[Servant of Dante]

Grobart, you are very correct in the time and patience it takes to paint these. And the reason I am able to give it to each model, is that I am in no hurry to paint an entire army, mostly because I have never had a group to play with. I only know one other mini friend and he is just a paint (and my teacher). Because of that, I have gotten quite anal about making sure I do each model the justice I think it deserves. What really irks me is when I didn't paint a mini well enough for what I believes the sculpt deserves. And the minor differences is the only way I can keep myself motivated to keep painting minis that are relatively the same. As for why it took me so long to put up pictures, that is because I don't have a picture taking area that I like. I don't know why I have such a hard time getting the right lighting, but for a few years now, I have just given up on taking pictures because I don't like how my minis look with the light set up I have. But after returning from two months away from my minis, I decided it was time to get over that, and have started my efforts again at getting a good light setup. It's still a work in progress, and I hope my pictures will keep getting better and better as the WIP goes along.

 

As for the Sister Superior Seraphim, I never thought about where her scrolls came from. I put them there because that's where St. Celestine has them going too, but now that you bring it up, that is a good question, where are those going? Maybe they're the purity seals from her underwear... I'll leave you with that thought.

*reads post*

 

*looks back at pictures*

 

Can't . . . Unsee

 

Dang it Hod!

 

I still love the purity seals. I shouldn't even bother painting any more of my models (I probably will someday, it's just not as fun as rules writing and thinking about the fluff)

[Servant of Dante]

Very pretty. Very nice. I'm sure the Emperor is proud

Hopefully not proud enough to decide to be re-born

I hope not. We need him up there channeling the power of a thousand witches into the Astronomican.

And the setting would get less fun (imo) :P

[Hod]

So I got a few more pictures taken. The first is of the one Retributor I've painted. I you haven't noticed, I"m doing a different color scheme for each unit (Regular Sisters in black, Seraphim in Red and Retributor's in Bone).

 

http://www.hodsminis.com/SoB/SoB_Retributor01_10_21_16.jpg

 

The next is my Firebrand Preacher. He's a Rackham mini who I added a pope hat to and some icons. I love Rackham minis and I really like how this one turned out. I know right now there aren't great rules for the Ecclesiarchy, but I'm hopeful that they will play a bigger role in the future and am doing a six man unit of all Ecclesiarchy.

 

http://www.hodsminis.com/SoB/SoB_Firebrand01_10_22_16.jpg

 

And finally is a Priest I've been working on converting. It's Wyrd's Governor's Proxy with a banner and some Icons to make him part of the Ecclesiarchy.

 

http://www.hodsminis.com/SoB/SoB_Priest02_10_22_16.jpg

[Hod]

*reads post*

 

*looks back at pictures*

 

Can't . . . Unsee

 

Dang it Hod!

 

I still love the purity seals. I shouldn't even bother painting any more of my models (I probably will someday, it's just not as fun as rules writing and thinking about the fluff)

 

 

I hope my painting doesn't discourage your painting, that is not the point at all. I post them only to encourage painting. I hope my ideas can give you ideas. Seeing painters better than me has always inspired me - and you need to also remember, if you spent 10+ hours on one mini, you could make it look pretty good too.

[Sume]

Those are wonderful.  

 

I am currently redoing my sister of battle army.  I originally when I first got the models years ago, wanted Ebon Chalice colors.  Painting white for me was a no go.  So they ended up as Martyrd lady colors.  Then I sold them and got them back.  Redid them with my diy scheme, and now I am repainting them.  

 

Seeing better painters then myself always makes me try harder and or ask questions.  Like the gentleman that taught me how to paint 10 years or so.  I still come up to him with questions.  Like white was one of the most recent ones.  Such a hard color to master.

[Hod]

Those are wonderful.  

 

I am currently redoing my sister of battle army.  I originally when I first got the models years ago, wanted Ebon Chalice colors.  Painting white for me was a no go.  So they ended up as Martyrd lady colors.  Then I sold them and got them back.  Redid them with my diy scheme, and now I am repainting them.  

 

Seeing better painters then myself always makes me try harder and or ask questions.  Like the gentleman that taught me how to paint 10 years or so.  I still come up to him with questions.  Like white was one of the most recent ones.  Such a hard color to master.

 

I'm glad you enjoyed them. As toe the hardest colors, that for me has to be Yellow and White. The problem with these colors is that their base color is so bright that is can be really hard to do the shadows. For me, with those colors, I do a Shadow coat that is much darker (like Blue for White, or Brown for Yellow) than the color I want Base coat to be. I then thin my Base paint big and in about two or three layers, I put down the Base coat (White or Yellow). This results with a Base coat that already has the shadows worked in. Then I just paint up the highlights.

[Sume]

Yeap, yellow and white are the hardest colors.  Black can be a pain at times to, expect its easier to master then the other two.

[Grgobart]

Nice Priest and Preacher! Did you somehow cast the green stuff Ecclesiarchal 'I's on the Priest's belt and banner? They seem pretty similar to the ones, on the back of the pole-bound book of the Preacher.

The Retributor looks wonderful, too. I do spot an unusual backpack, though. Is there a story behind it, or is it just to individualise your models some more?

And pardon, for my nosy focus in details again, but is there any particalar reason, why there is a German flag in the middle of one of the scrolls of the Preacher?

I hope this doesn't come accross as nitpicking, I'm just curious and fascinated by details.

[Hod]

Nice Priest and Preacher! Did you somehow cast the green stuff Ecclesiarchal 'I's on the Priest's belt and banner? They seem pretty similar to the ones, on the back of the pole-bound book of the Preacher.

The Retributor looks wonderful, too. I do spot an unusual backpack, though. Is there a story behind it, or is it just to individualise your models some more?

And pardon, for my nosy focus in details again, but is there any particalar reason, why there is a German flag in the middle of one of the scrolls of the Preacher?

I hope this doesn't come accross as nitpicking, I'm just curious and fascinated by details.

You're not nitpicking at all. I am more than happy to share the ins and outs of my models.

All the Ecclessiarchal 'I''s are cast from Greenstuff. I've used some sisters and even a few Warrior-Acolytes to make some different 'I' molds. I make the mold with Greenstuff, then also use Greenstuff in the molds.

The backpack on the Retributor is from the 2nd Edition Space Marines (and first plastic Space Marines) I bought back in '91. They are a little bit smaller than the current Space Marine backpacks and much more the right size for sisters. I don't have enough backpacks for all my sister, so I decided to supplement some of my Retributors with these old school backpacks. Since the sisters have the lore of having old, but well taken care of stuff, I thought it fit.

The German flag is because I bought that miniature in Berlin. I do a lot of traveling, and while traveling I search for old Rackham stuff or just good deals on minis. So I usually come home from from traveling with minis from all over the world. I do the flags on them, just to remind myself where I got them. I have one mini I got in Rome and then went to the Tuesday blessing of the Relics at the Vatican and got it blessed by the Pope - it's a standard-bearer model I plan on doing an ornate Papal Seal on the banner.

[WAR]

Great stuff. 

[Servant of Dante]

 

*reads post*

 

*looks back at pictures*

 

Can't . . . Unsee

 

Dang it Hod!

 

I still love the purity seals. I shouldn't even bother painting any more of my models (I probably will someday, it's just not as fun as rules writing and thinking about the fluff)

 

 

I hope my painting doesn't discourage your painting, that is not the point at all. I post them only to encourage painting. I hope my ideas can give you ideas. Seeing painters better than me has always inspired me - and you need to also remember, if you spent 10+ hours on one mini, you could make it look pretty good too.

 

Oh, I did spend a good 120-150 hours on the squad I do have painted, and I'm quite proud of my  Simulacrum Imperialis (and Veteran Superior Margrettia; I cleaned up her paint in a 6 hour binge that went till 3AM. I can't think of another time I went to bed that drained :P totally worth it :) )

[Hod]

Oh, I did spend a good 120-150 hours on the squad I do have painted, and I'm quite proud of my Simulacrum Imperialis (and Veteran Superior Margrettia; I cleaned up her paint in a 6 hour binge that went till 3AM. I can't think of another time I went to bed that drained totally worth it )

I well painted sister is always worth it.

[Zoatibix]

Very nice looking army!

[Hod]

Got some pictures of my Repentia and Mistress. This is all Rackham stuff. The Repentia are Sessair Fiannas and the Mistress is a Cadwallen character. I added the red scraps of fabric over their heads. And yes, in my Chapter the Repentia can show their face. The Rackham Fianna's faces were just too pretty to cover up.

 

http://www.hodsminis.com/SoB/SoB_Repentia_10_27_16.jpg

 

 

http://www.hodsminis.com/SoB/SoB_Mistress_10_27_16.jpg

[Servant of Dante]

I can't say I like those sculpts any more than I like the GW ones, but the paint still looks great!