Volgon's Homebrew Kill Team - Reaper Chaincannon Done

[Volgon]

11 hours ago, Firedrake Cordova said:

If that's you're first ever mini, then I'd say you're off to a good start.

 

With regard to brushes, I'd recommend staying away from the 000 unless you're absolutely sure you need to use it. A good-quality size 0 should come to a fine point about as well as a 000, but also hold more paint/moisture - I've found paint dries on the brush very quickly, and it's also much easier to get paint near the ferrule due to the shortness of the bristles,

 

Yup, my first mini, just feel like I have a pretty good floor with how much hobby content I've consumed the past few years. As for the brush, I would only want to be using a 000 for highlighting, and I've heard similar warnings in the past about such a small brush. I was using a 0 for most of this mini and felt like it wasn't giving me good results when I tried highlighting. That is almost certainly user error, but I won't know whether I like the 000 unless I try it!

 

5 hours ago, YannTheMad said:

That paint scheme seems quite hard to achieve, but good job so far ^^ I'm eager to see more

 

I didn't find it TOO bad, the blue took the most time but I think I can speed that up by being less neat. I was trying to be neat to practice brush control, but since I painted the blue first, any overspill onto the trim just gets painted over anyway so I should be able to get my base coats down more quickly.

 

3 hours ago, Pearson73 said:

I really like the colour scheme, the blue pops without being too bright, and provides a good background for the chipping and weathering.

 

Thank you, I really like the blue and black combo, and I totally agree that the blue provides a wonderful backdrop for the brown chipping. The chipping is my favorite part of the mini!

 

 

Next tester I am going to try black trim instead of the dirty silver. Think blue Red Corsairs. I am worried that is going to homogenize the color scheme too much so I think I will have to expand the color scheme a little bit. A common piece of feedback I've received is needing a vibrant/warm color to compliment the cold colors. I tend to agree, though I will have to figure out which color(s) and which details to pick out in those colors. What I am considering changing:

1. The knife handle
2. The knife blade
3. The belt and leg buckles: these are Pro Acryl's White Gold but it doesn't stand out very well (at least in the photos). I would like a slightly darker cold Bronze/gold here (perhaps mixing some black or brown into the White Gold)
4. The undersuit ribbing: this is done in Vallejo's German Grey, and I like the color (it's a dark grey/blue), but in person it reads pretty close to just black.
5. The chest piping: IIRC, I also did these in the German Grey of the undersuit, but a bright silver or the current trim color (Vallejo's Exhaust Manifold washed with a thinned down Ratling Grime) could give some color variation.
6. Belt and tabard: these are a dark brown but I could stand to lighten them up quite a bit.
7. The weapon casings: this is something I have given pretty much no thought to and I'm not really sure what direction to go. I am not really looking for something super bright and vibrant (think retro Black Templars with the yellow gun casings with flames) but I do think they need to be something other than just black + trim color. Maybe I could use the White Gold on the casings here?

Edited April 28 by Volgon

[Rusted Boltgun]

Really enjoying your working through of your progress and your colour choices - I do like that blue. I like the use of it on the eye lenses too.

I also use that German Grey on the undersuits (I often user the primer too). It was quite distinct against the black in your photo before oil wash but the wash appears to have dulled it down significantly. Does it need re-establishing or a highlight? 

I agree that the chest piping might read better metallic.

 

[Volgon]

11 hours ago, Rusted Boltgun said:

Really enjoying your working through of your progress and your colour choices - I do like that blue. I like the use of it on the eye lenses too.

I also use that German Grey on the undersuits (I often user the primer too). It was quite distinct against the black in your photo before oil wash but the wash appears to have dulled it down significantly. Does it need re-establishing or a highlight? 

I agree that the chest piping might read better metallic.

 

 

Thank you! I've gotten a lot of compliments on the blue, it's a fantastic color. For the undersuit: IIRC I based it in German Grey, hit it with an oil wash and then didn't highlight it (or failed at highlighting, not sure which) because I'm still working on that technique, shaky hands and all. However, I think you are right, so when working on my second mini today, I decided to try highlighting the grey and it came out much better. You can see the results here:

 

I am super stoked about the lenses, I think they came out super well. I was somehow able to paint just the lens and left the recesses black which adds a ton of definition to a very small area. I also tried to highlight more this go round: I did the black, some of the blue, silvers, and brown. Not sure how noticeable it is for colors other than the black but it's there. Lastly, I added a bit of blood spatter on the chainsword to make it pop more. My weapon schemes leave a lot to be desired at the moment (truth be told I just haven't though about them that much, they are a bit of a bore to do once I'm closing in on the end) so I think the red is a nice splash of color and visceral weathering that matches the rest of the paintjob.

[Volgon]

I decided I was ready to start working on the kill team itself rather than testers. Picked the melta gunner first: the 3 regular gunners are fairly similar to the regular legionary testers I was doing so didn't have to worry about any new techniques.

 

I am super happy with the result! This was the first time I used the embossed shoulder pad with the symbol and I am very happy with how it came out. It was a little flat at first because I used Bold Titanium White so didn't have any color to highlight up to, but the weathering added some complexity so I think it looks pretty ok. No oil washes this time, I haven't had much success with them, so I want to sit down on some throwaways to work out how to best use them. My oil washes seem to keep separating, leaving some particulates that I have to clean up and not staining the recesses very well, so I think I may be thinning them too much. Will have to work on that.

 

Lastly, I chose a different color to highlight the black. Originally I was using Stormvermin Fur after seeing a result on reddit I really liked. I found it not a very compelling color IRL however. This time I tried a silver and REALLY like the result. It adds a bit of brightness/pop that I think looks great. Also it's in line with the weathered aesthetic; it has a chipped paint look to go along with the mud/dirty weathering. I find it much easier to sell my poor edge highlighting as paint chipping with the silver.

[Volgon]

Finished up the Plasma Gunner. First time trying a plasma effect and it came out ok but not great. Would like to try it again with some fluorescent paints or contrast paints instead; I think they would be much easier to get a good result from. Nothing else too different from the norm, just working through the more basic guys before moving on to the more exciting operatives.

 

[Volgon]

Another gunner done! Flamer this time, last of the regular gunners.

 

Edited May 23 by Volgon

[Firedrake Cordova]

Looks good. The texturing on the knife blade looks interesting  

[Volgon]

Thanks @Firedrake Cordova, personally I felt I overdid the weathering on the knife too much. Might touch it up with some more red or re-layer the metallic on some areas to pull back the muddy look.

 

Have a few updates! First off I finished the Missile Launcher heavy gunner:

 

I'm a bit ambivalent to the result. On one hand, this was one of my favorite conversions so I am really happy to see him painted up. I like the weathering; I went heavier on the silver chipping inside of larger spots of brown. I've been trying that technique on the last few minis but did more of it this time. I also really like how the ML barrel came out. I've been slowly adding more colors to the scheme and with this one I did Canoptek Alloy on the barrel trim with the same Ratling Grime wash I use for all my silver metallics. I think it came out great! Just different enough to break things up.

 

On the other hand, I had a LOT of trouble getting coverage on the gold and red. I was layering over the black primer which was probably my first mistake, though I haven't had too much trouble with that before. Those times were on smaller details though so maybe that was why? On the small red lens details on the ML I got fine coverage over the same primer. At some point I just moved on so I could finish the mini.

 

Lastly I picked up some of this:

 

Hopefully the color about matches the brown I've been using for weathering. Haven't used any of this stuff before but will try it out soon.  I would like to do some muddy battlefield/trench style bases. Scatter some detritus around the base like bones, skulls, armor pieces. Maybe some display barbed wire if any companies sell it? Will have to look into that.

[Firedrake Cordova]

There's a few companies that make scale barbed wire - Army Painter for one. There's also a few tutorials on YouTube for it - it really depends on how detailed (and therefore spiky) you want it.  

[MithrilForge]

@Volgon- great work here, I’m loving the weathered and chipped look 

the blue is great! Probably my favourite part of all of it… 

I feel ya on the gold over the black … although retributor armor is pretty good at going over black , what base gold did you use ?…

 

cheers, Mithril 

[Volgon]

5 hours ago, Firedrake Cordova said:

There's a few companies that make scale barbed wire - Army Painter for one. There's also a few tutorials on YouTube for it - it really depends on how detailed (and therefore spiky) you want it.  

 

Good to know, I had a quick search after my post and found some other companies that sell a similar product so definitely plenty of options there.

 

1 hour ago, MithrilForge said:

@Volgon- great work here, I’m loving the weathered and chipped look 

the blue is great! Probably my favourite part of all of it… 

I feel ya on the gold over the black … although retributor armor is pretty good at going over black , what base gold did you use ?…

 

cheers, Mithril 

 

Thank you! The blue is Vallejo Model Color Andrea Blue over a black primer. It's a really fantastic color. I think I am going to try glazing again to bring some more depth into it. I like the blue enough that I am not fussed if I can't get it to work well, would just like to expand my skill range and "level up" a bit. I have some Frostheart contrast paint that I am hoping would work well as a shadow glaze. All the videos and pictures I've seen of it in action look pretty close to the Andrea Blue so maybe it will work, or maybe it won't be dark enough. Just have to try!

 

And as for the gold, it's Vallejo Game Color Polished Gold, but to be honest I think it is a pretty old bottle (like ~10 years old). I was just using it as that's what I had on hand from a separate hobby endeavor. It isn't a focal color so I haven't really thought to replace it until now.

[Wolf Lord Duregar]

On 5/11/2024 at 10:31 PM, Volgon said:

Finished up the Plasma Gunner. First time trying a plasma effect and it came out ok but not great. Would like to try it again with some fluorescent paints or contrast paints instead; I think they would be much easier to get a good result from. Nothing else too different from the norm, just working through the more basic guys before moving on to the more exciting operatives.

 

 

What a lovely blue! Really like it, well done.

 

Would be nice to see the plasma effect with another background. It might look better with a white background?   I do agree on using something like this over green. Green might work too, but I find this more interesting as the of the blue armour.  Cool pose too!

[Volgon]

@Wolf Lord Duregar A friend told me the same about the background when I first took the photo so I have another one:

 

The gun is a little out of focus but you can see the plasma coil a bit better.

[Wolf Lord Duregar]

Ah yeah - much better! I do like it actually! have you improved it since the last pic..?

[Volgon]

@Wolf Lord Duregar I've thought about returning and trying to touch it up a bit but other than the basing I consider him done. I'll return to plasma coils at some point as I have at least one other conversion with a plasma weapon. I would like to potentially try some Contrast paints next time as I feel their nature would make plasma coils easier to accomplish but we'll see!

[Wolf Lord Duregar]

Ah it looks good, was just curious if you had actually touched it up! The background did the trick..

 

Agreed - not tried any contrast paints myself but watched a lot of videos. I think there is potential..

Edited May 24 by Wolf Lord Duregar

[Volgon]

@Wolf Lord Duregar Darcy Bono on youtube has a really simple Contrast plasma recipe that I would like to try. The other option is fluorescents if you really want to sell the plasma, I think those look really nice as well. The thing I am not sure about (and haven't really researched yet) is how to get a bit of OSL around the coil without an airbrush. I tried stippling white around the border but really didn't like the texture it left behind. Drybrushing seems like a non-starter since it is working on a flat surface rather than an angled/edge one. I guess glazing is the answer? I have only done a slight bit of glazing so far and it has never come out very noticeable so it's something I might practice first before applying it to a mini.

[Wolf Lord Duregar]

Yeah - seems like you have the ambition and will so I would suggest that. Find some scrap and practice on, and show me.. i mean us.. I need tips too. Might have to have a look on YT, not looked at plasma painting. Thanks for the heads-up, as I have some plasma weapons that need paint, soon..

Not sure what shade I want mine in though. Probably green or blue of some flavour. ThoughbI like yours, but it would not look good with the rest I suspect..

 

 

[Volgon]

@Wolf Lord Duregar For sure, for colors I went with the orange because it's complimentary on the color wheel to the blue of the armor. Just depends what force you are playing or their color scheme really. I like reds for Black Legion, purple/pinks for Sons of Horus etc. Personally I didn't want to do blue or green since they are too close to the color scheme of the armor and I wanted a different color.

[Wolf Lord Duregar]

Yeah - clever, i felt the same when i painted Space Wolves with plasma weaponry (now it is Escher gangers). Totally agree on doing it that way. You need a nice contrast to make it pop, or look right!

[Firedrake Cordova]

Juan Hidalgo's plasma tutorial is really good, too, as is Duncan's ...  

Edited May 25 by Firedrake Cordova

[Volgon]

Reaper Chaincannon is about finished:

 

Might clean up some of the weathering a bit, the helmet and the Terminator shoulder pad need some touch ups. First time doing stone which came out ok? I just winged it.

 

Not sure what the next project will be. I could start the Heavy Bolter gunner to round out the heavies. The other option is painting another normal Legionary to work on some techniques. I'd like to really try some glazing so I can add a bit of depth to the blue. I love the color but I'd like to elevate my skill a little bit.

Edited Tuesday at 10:10 PM by Volgon

[MithrilForge]

When i saw the reaper Chaincannon guy my thoughts went straight to the Jungle ... "Gonna have me some Fun...Gonna have me some Fun! ... " 

 

M

[Pearson73]

What a brute! The helmet details look great picked out in white. The team is really looking solid overall, the posing gives them all a lot of character. I say go for a line trooper next and play around with upping your techniques!

[Volgon]

Thanks @Pearson73! The great thing about a Kill Team is that there are few enough operatives that you can really commit to giving every member a character-ish level conversion. It's not the cheapest (but it's Warhammer so what is?) but it gives me a completely unique team that nobody else has which feels great especially once I see a new model painted up. As for your suggestion, I think that is what I'm going to do. It will give me an excuse to play around with the basing texture paste as well. I haven't cracked it open yet but it's time to get some proper bases on these lads.