[Ravendove]

Even a man who has nothing can still offer his life.
+++ Thought for the day +++

Sons of Orar
A Space Marine Project Log​

This thread will chronicle my progress on a new Space Marine army from start to finish. Though the history of the Sons of Orar has been lost, what is known is that they revere Orar, an Ultramarines Captain who won great renown in the wake of the Horus Heresy, and claim him as their spiritual patriarch.

Why a project log?
I am a notoriously slow painter and prone to flutter between projects. I'm hoping that by steadily logging my progress I will be able to stick with it and see it through. Be warned, updates will be sporadic and occasionally few and far between. Nonetheless, thanks for reading!

Colour scheme
I have already done some test models and found a simple, effective technique that works well. I am aiming for a good quality tabletop standard. I will be using the following paints for the following areas:

Armour
Army Painter Red, P3 Khador Red, Blazing Orange, Baal Red Wash, Devlan Mud Wash
Pads, Helmets
Skull White, Fortress Grey, Vallejo Ghost Grey
Black
Chaos Black, Adeptus Battlegrey, Codex Grey
Metal
Boltgun Metal, Badab Black, Chainmail
Gold
Iyanden Darksun, Gryphonne Sepia, Burnished Gold, Shining Gold, Mithril Silver
Eyes, Gems, etc.
Dark Angels Green, Snot Green, Scorpion Green, Skull White
Cloth
Graveyard Earth, Kommando Khaki, Bleached Bone, Skull White
Leather
Scorched Brown, Bestial Brown, Snakebite Leather​

So that's it for the introduction
I've already had a ton of Forgeworld bits and most of the plastic kits shipped, even completed a few test models, so in the next couple of days I'll start blogging properly and get a load of in progress pictures up.

I will also cover how I plan to solve the Shoulder Pad symbol issue and some methods of converting the older marks of armour for some variation. If people are keen on the colour scheme maybe throw in a step-by-step tutorial. I've got some scenery on the go too and maybe that will get lumped into this log.

Somewhere along the line, there might even be a pet picture!

But...
...since it's considered rude to start a project log off without any pictures at all, I will leave you with my test model: Company Champion in Mk3 armour. Shield is by Scibor with the V scraped off and replaced by a FW Brass Etch Ultramarine symbol. I would take a more up to date picture, but am at work.

 

[King Ulrik Flamebeard]

That is a nice looking marine dude. I like the old style armour, the shield is pretty cool too. Could we get a better view of the shield and face? I will be watching this thread...

Kuffy

 

[praxis]

Nice one Ravendove. And the wife just walked in and said "wow, that is really, really, nice, a thing of beauty." An army of these boys will look stunning.

 

[Ravendove]

That is a nice looking marine dude. I like the old style armour, the shield is pretty cool too. Could we get a better view of the shield and face? I will be watching this thread...Kuffy

Sure. These pictures were taken a few days ago, and the white on the shield and gold ornamentation has been cleaned up a bit since. I've also added more defined highlights. Shield is by Scibor with the V scraped off and replaced by a FW Brass Etch Ultramarine symbol. I would take a more up to date picture, but am at work.

 

[morhathol]

The champion is amazing, I like the scheme very much. The red and white go good together and the gold looks very realistic. Well, at least to me as an amateur
Looking forward to see your progress, and good luck with it.

 

[niko]

Really good work. The colors work together extremely well. It's going to be a fantastic looking army! Keep it up!

 

[Ravendove]

A broad mind lacks focus.
+++ Thought for the day +++​

Getting started
So here's what I've got to work on so far. Forgeworld MkIII armour, Ferox Bolter set, Red Scorpion Veteran set, Gale Force 9 magnetic bases, tons of extra plastic bits ordered from bits sites, a Tactical Squad, Razorback and a huge box of Space Marine bits from various sets over the years.

Oh, and a wardrobe full of sprue!

 

[Ravendove]

Tactical Squad A
So I decided to start with a the Tactical Squad. Here are the first half in their semi-assembled glory. A mix of marks of armour, sergeant armed with an Infernus Pistol (counts as Combi-Melta) and a Missile Launcher guy on the right. You'll notice arms are not glued on - this is to make painting chests and bolters easier.

Any pieces that are going to be white (shoulder pads, Sergeant head) will be sprayed separately. Seen here, mounted on cork so for ease of spraying while holding.

You'll also spot Sicarius in the background, who I will be converting to represent my Captain eventually.

 

[Ravendove]

Here's a shot of some of the first painted marines in the squad. Sergeant is finished, two marines are mostly done (missing arms still) and the last bloke is awaiting the overcoat of red. So far, he's been undercoated (Army Painter Red) and washed twice (Baal Red, then Devlan Mud in recesses only). After that, I cover the armour plates in Khador Red. Lastly, thin highlights are done with Blazing Orange sparingly on top edges.

Khador Red is a paint by Privateer Press for their Warmachine line. It's essentially Blood Red, but I find it gives better coverage.

Behind them you can see the finished shoulder pads, while arms and bolters are awaiting undercoat.

Looking at these photos, I think the Pistol casing is highlighted a bit too brightly. Instead of Codex Grey > Fortress Grey, I might go with Adeptus Battlegrey > Codex Grey. You'll also notice the Purity Seal hasn't been painted - I haven't yet decided which colour to use for the wax. Red just seems to blend in too much, while green is used for the eyes. What do people think is a good colour to use on red armour?

 

[danjones87]

Looking awesome!

The red is really nice and crisp. The white might need a little more low lights and the accordions need painting a different colour too!

Dan

 

[xbanditsx]

I painted one of these guys for fun a while back and really enjoyed it, but I'm not brave enough to do an army of them - too much white!

Looking good so far.

 

[Ravendove]

Listen not to the alien, look not upon the alien, speak not unto the alien!
+++ Thought for the day +++​

Tactical Squad

First five Tactical Marines are now pretty much done. Purity Seals to go and some other small bits to tidy up. Next up is finishing the Missile Launcher and an additional four 'running' marines to go with the Sergeant. One of these will carry a Meltagun.

One thing this blog has made me notice: I need to set up a photobox with proper lighting, as these tend to come out differently if I'm taking pictures in the evening. Orange highlights are a lot harder to see when the miniature is baked in yellow light from a lamp.

Command Squad

I've started experimenting with different colours for Power Weapons. Still not happy with this, but I think it works a lot better with the red than light blue. It definitely needs to be more 'glowy'. Instead of building up from a Gretchin Green -> Skull White + Wash, I might try going from Dark Angels -> Scorpion Green + Wash.

Here's a sneak peek at the Command Squad Standard Bearer, in a pose held together by green stuff. I haven't yet decided if the whole squad should be without helmets or carry shields.

Purity Seals

Testing out a simple purple here on a test model. Hormagaunt Purple base, with 50% white added as highlight. It looks quite muted, but I don't want to detract from the model too much. How do you guys think this looks? Would blue or green or darker red work better?

Finally...

Some pictures of a Land Speeder with magnetic bases in action! I'll post some more detailed pictures of the Land Speeder tomorrow.

 

[King Ulrik Flamebeard]

They look great dude. I like the green power sword, it works well with the rest of the colour scheme. And that landspeeder is just showing off.

Kuffy

Some of use can't spell can we!

 

[The bearded one]

Elves are probably driving that land speeder... darn show-offs..

Now a shot of it on the ceiling ^^

They are seriously baffeling, keep it up, the command guy is epic, and I love those old armour marks. I'd better watch this.

 

[And Justice For All]

Really like what you got going on here. Really clean and bright. I'd love to see your full force (when done) in game.

 

[Ravendove]

A small mind is a tidy mind
+++ Thought for the day +++​

Rhino

In between doing the Tactical Squad, I've been slowly putting the Rhino together. So far we have the interior completed and the outer shell basecoated. Side panels are white with red detail (to match the Shoulder Pads). Forgeworld Ultramarine Brass Etch icons are used for the Omega symbol.

Here are the parts that need partial painting before assembly, as these compose the interior. White undercoat, Bleached Bone basecoat, Gryphonne Sepia wash in the recesses, white highlight. Quite simple, but looks good.

Yellow on the hazard stripes is done with Iyanden Darksun base, Elf Flesh for left/top line highlight and Snakebite Leather for right hand side line highlight. Simple, but an easy way to give off a slight embossed effect. Tomorrow we tackle the hull: washes, highlights and detailing!

 

[praxis]

Excellent interior, looking forward to seeing the finished Rhino. Rep for that sir.

 

[Ravendove]

Rhino

So the Rhino is almost complete. I've templated and painted a large Tactical arrow on the hatch, but someone suggested I invert the colours (red arrow on white doors). I've included a Photoshop mockup of how it would look - what do people think? Which looks better?

 

[danjones87]

White on red is better.

Dan

 

[praxis]

With Dan on this one definitely.