Speed Painting Raven Guard

[SyNidus]

So i've largely assembled the army i like for my RG and now i want to paint them, but i know painting black is not an easy task.

 

What is the fastest way of painting a nice black shade with highlights and having it look good?

[Valaas]

My process is pretty straight forward.....

 

Abaddon Black base coat all over.....then edge highlight in Eshin Grey and then fine edge highlight with Dawnstone. Spot colour of red for eye lenses. Finish with some weathering. I find the small amounts of white are the most time consuming.

 

 

 

P.S. if your about to start painting you should join in the 'Hidden Hands of the Emperor' event which started yesterday! 

Edited June 29, 2017 by Valaas

[Filius]

So i've largely assembled the army i like for my RG and now i want to paint them, but i know painting black is not an easy task.

 

What is the fastest way of painting a nice black shade with highlights and having it look good?

 

"… painting Black is not an easy task." – really? I thought this would be the easiest Colour Scheme of all, as a) you don't need to build up the a layer for the Main Color, b) don't need to care for getting the the Soft Armour Parts black again (something most Painting Tutorials don't mention) and c) is quite forgiving when you make mistakes, just put Black over it again … I must admint I haven't tried it yet, but do I got something wrong here?

[Shrieker]

Base 2:1 chaos black:eshin grey.

'Fat edging' eshin grey

Nuln oil wash

Edge eshin grey

Thin edge adeptus grey

Highlights with a lighter grey.

 

Is my speed black recipe.

[The Yak]

Spray with black

Wash with black ink

Drybrush with black

Edge highlight with black

 

I'll get my coat...

[Race Bannon]

Pftt.  Dudes.

 

Spray black primer.

Paint black coat.

Done.

 

Let the light of the room "highlight" the edges.

 

:tu:

[NiceGuyAdi]

There are many ways of skinning the black cat. But a really important thing to remember is that nothing is actually ever black, except a black hole.

 

What we see as black will have variations of light running from extremely dark grey to a lighter grey, and variations of hue where the lighter it becomes, more colour tinting comes in.. Understanding this will help you avoid models that come out looking flat with difficult to perceive edges.

 

I'd recommend you read Major_Gilbear's post on black, which were a huge help for me when I did my last squad. Also take a look at LutherMax's recipe for his Death Guard which are just gorgeous.

[edit] Just reading back over the differences of opinion so far, I think SyNidus has managed to find the one topic that could cause a big argument on this subforum!

Edited June 16, 2017 by NiceGuyAdi

[The Yak]

Sorry people, I totally forgot to post the Raven Guard step by step... my bad.

 

 

 

 

For some reason I can't find the picture of the under-coated mini. Not that it is all that import. It's just a coat of Chaos Black spray.

After the initial under-coat I dry brushed the armour with a 2/1 mix of Abaddon Black and Mechanicus Standard Grey. I kept this dry brush fairly light because I wanted it to be pretty subtle.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4270_zpsphq7bcij.jpg

I then washed the mini with Nuln Oil to tone down the grey a bit.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4271_zps5xmnvxg7.jpg

Next up I neatened up the armour with some of the original dark grey mix used to edge highlight some parts of the armour

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4273_zpsferlkzwo.jpg

All of the steel areas were painted Leadbelcher.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4274_zpsjbchxdze.jpg

I then used Balthazar Gold to add some detail to a few areas of the mini. I chose Balthazar Gold because it is a bit darker and more subdued than some of the other GW golds, and I wanted to keep the Raven Guard fairly understated compared to most of the other Legions that I've painted so far.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4275_zpshhxo5nnp.jpg

Next up I gave the Leadbelcher a wash with Nuln Oil. Usually I'd use a single coat of the Nuln Oil, but because I wanted to keep the colours muted I applied a second coat. The gold was washed with Agrax Earthshade. I also added the Veteran's stripe on the helmet. I used a 2/1 mix of White Scar and Celestra Grey.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4276_zps9le5to1a.jpg

The eyes: I started off with Blood Red on the lens and below the lens to great a slight 'glow' effect. I made sure to keep a thin black line around the circumference of the eye.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4277_zpsm6knzffj.jpg

I then highlighted the eyes with Troll Slayer Orange.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4278_zpsqynw8ra8.jpg

The eyes were finished off with a coat of Tamiya Clear Red.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4279_zpsvawt7zub.jpg

I then painted the shoulder insignia using the White Scar/Celestra Grey Mix. The great thing about free handing over black armour is that any mistakes are easily corrected with some carefully applied Abaddon Black.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4280_zpsa36chshq.jpg

Legion symbol was a real pain to paint. In the end I relied on the sponge weathering and weathering powders to mostly obscure the icon because I wasn't really happy with it.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4281_zpspvjq8cjx.jpg

Next up I highlighted the silver and gold with Runefang Steel. I also started with the sponge weathering. I started by sponging Abaddon Black over the white details. Usually I sponge most panels of the armour, but because the black weathering would really show up on the black armour, I limited the sponging to the white details.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4283_zps8y6uypih.jpg

I finished him off by sponging some Leadbelcher onto the edges of the armour and around damaged areas. The trick with the metallic sponging is to keep it fairly limited. It's easy to get carried away and use to much Leadbelcher.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4284_zpszpabvtoq.jpg

Last of all I glued him to his base and applied the weathering powders. As usual I use Forgeworld's Aged Rust and Black Soot. In the case of the Black Soot I actually used it to tone down some of the metallic sponging and the white free hand as well as adding some soot stains to the power pack exhausts. The powders were sealed with a coat of matt varnish spray.

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l522/kizzdougs/DSCN4298_zpsqrdloj0x.jpg

I the end the Raven Guard was much quicker and easier to pain than many of the other Legions. I often see people complaining about painting black armour, but if you make sure not to highlight to starkly and use weathering powders and sponge weathering to your advantage it can be pretty straight forward. Because of the simplicity of the scheme I'd probably be able to pump out Raven Guard marines/vehicles at a much quicker rate than I could with any other Legion. The most time/effort went into the free hand and this could easily be taken care of with some decals, and the Raven Guard happen to have a particularly nice decal sheet.

This is from the legend that is Kizzdougs. Check out his thread in the works in progress forum. He has a scheme for pre heresy Dark Angels and Iron Hands that, along with the above, gives 3 different ways to paint black

[Race Bannon]

Woah.  That is way past table-top quality.  Btw SyN, do you want TT quality or something more involved?

[duz_]

Woah.  That is way past table-top quality.  Btw SyN, do you want TT quality or something more involved?

Yes this...

As you can see there are many simple and quick dirty ways of doing RG ;)

 

If its basic TT quality I'd go

 

• Black primer
• Ulthuan Grey any of the heraldry
• Nulin wash
• Eshin highlight, or light dry brush for super quick and dirty ;)

[The Yak]

True, but I suppose he could always take a few steps out and not do the battle damage

[WAR]

True, but I suppose he could always take a few steps out and not do the battle damage

 

I just found the black spray, light 2/1 Abbadon Black/Mechanicus standard grey drybrush, followed by a black ink wash was an interesting technique that might appeal and may be helpful for a quickly painted force

 

Anyway keep the ideas and suggestions coming folks, the more the merrier. This thread could become the go-to source of knowledge for budding Raven Guard Generals over the years.

 

I guess we should update the RG Resource page..........

 

While I don't play RG but ill throw in link how I paint black for my Adepta Sororitas 

[Claws and Effect]

1) Chaos black spray (I do this while they're still on the sprues)

 

2) Anything that isn't black.

 

3) Touch up any areas you slopped.

 

4) Wash things in appropriate colors. I use Nuln Oil for the majority, and Agrax Earthshade for purity seals.

 

5) Base it.

 

Done.

[SyNidus]

Thanks for all the feedback gentlemen,

 

I am looking for TT quality but at the same time i don't want to get board painting them. I do like that legionaire but i'll probably cut down on the steps and perhaps modify the formula a little.

 

I'm thinking some dark shade of blue mixed with black instead of eshin grey. Maybe it'll produce the raven black that looks almost blue.

 

Keep the ideas coming though, i'm not decided yet.

[Claws and Effect]

If you want a blue-black, you could always do a little edge highlighting with a dark blue instead of the more common gray.

[duz_]

I wonder if eshin grey with drakenhof wash + macragge blue & ironbreaker dry brush would work?

[Filius]

Just in Case anyone is interested: The official GW Guide uses these Combinations to paint Black Power Armour …

 

• Raven Guard: Chaos Black (Base), Dark Reaper, Administratum Grey – with the most "black" result, imho.
• Black Templars: Abaddon Black (Base), Dark Reaper, Thunderhawk Blue (sic!) - with the most "blue" and best result, imho.
• Iron Hands: Chaos Black (Base), Dark Reaper, Thunderhawl Blue, Celestra Grey - with the stongest edges, imho.

Once again: Like so manythings here in the Ravenspire, even a Thread about painting black (sic!) shows a great sense of humor. A thread about painting black!

[Bedouin2]

I think I'm the only one who has replaced the "blue effect" of shade and highlights with purple lol. Got inspired by seeing an image of a raven and noticed the purple shine their feathers have in the sun. I use Druchii Violet mixed with Inktense Violet from Scale 75 to deepen the shade of purple, also thinned down with a decent dose of Lahmian medium. Figure I share that for anyone wanting something other than blue. Also if you live in the US and want to get Scale 75 paint, find a third party source for it. Ordering directly from them, it took over 2 weeks for it to arrive. Their metallics are amazing as well. You can find packs of their paint throughout ebay.

[Claws and Effect]

I see the girls walk by dressed in their summer clothes.

 

I have to turn my head until my darkness goes.

[SanguinaryGuardsman]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjJe1rBdm9U

 

Add some painting music.  Makes everything better.

[duz_]

Or if Acadaca isn't your thing

 

https://youtu.be/uivqPSPpz-Y

[Shadow Captain Vyper]

I'd like to put my vote on: 

[Claws and Effect]

Vyper....see my post above :D

[Shadow Captain Vyper]

Vyper....see my post above :D

 

Oh, I know, I just need to make sure everyone else knows too. :D

[The Yak]

Or just to prove that not all Raven Guard are Rockers...

 

 

 

I don't know how to get a picture link, I could swear some of you are Iron Hands in disguise!!

Edited June 17, 2017 by The Yak