Painting [ghost] tanks with contrasts/washes

[Valkyrion]

Not to hijack the thread - but how would one go about painting vehicles in the style of those thousand sons?

Or are ghost vehicles a step too far even for 40k?!

Edited July 2, 2021 by Xenith
Post moved from Amicus for better reach

[Rik Lightstar]

I personally wouldn't attempt this with with a brush and Contrast paints over a vehicle, they just don't seem to work effectively over large flat areas, I'm yet to have seen an impressive result from it. I'd be very happy to be proven wrong though.

 

I'd say your best options really for getting similar results are either to airbrush with a build up of zenithal highlights followed by a "filter" of the Contrast paint thinned appropriately OR to drybrush it after watching a bunch of videos from Bohun, David Soper and the Artis Opus YouTube channels about drybrushing vehicles.

 

This scheme works well because they're comparatively small areas with lots of raised and recessed details to give visual interest.

 

Rik

[Xenith]

As per Rik, washes/contrasts dont like large flat areas, however that's if you're using them as intended. I think if you undercoated the tank then used a very light coat of the contrast like a glaze, not letting it pool, and just staining the surface, t would work. Do one panel at a time and leave to dry before moving to the next to avoid any smudges etc. 

[Valkyrion]

Do you think conventional vehicles in a ghost army would jar and kinda spoil the effect of the ghost infantry? 

[Xenith]

I dont think so - the old Legion of the Damned used to have Dreadnoughts and such.

[LameBeard]

On a chaos vehicle you can maybe convert it up so it gets more relief and also a “daemon possessed” feel that might make more sense as a ghost?

 

Or rather: the vehicles are mostly conventional but with ghostly bits, to indicate they’ve been possessed by ghosts?

[Valkyrion]

Following on from tanks - do the chaos marine daemon engines (forgefiend, heldrake et al) have enough trims to allow the contrast washes to work? 

Could you ghost up a maulerfiend easy enough, for instance?

[LameBeard]

Well the flyer decal sheet bits for chaos are tiny, so I’m assuming the helldrake has no large flat sections.