[Tale of Painters] sovietspace's Epic and 40K Praetorian Guard madness

Well, it has been a while hasn't it! I'm shocked to realise its been about three months since I posted on here. In my defence the last few months of real life have been beyond hectic, with lots of ups and downs and as a result I've missed out on a load of awesome threads on LO (I can't believe how much I need to read!). But, thankfully, I did manage to get a fair bit of painting done

So, here are some more photos of where my ToP armies are, focusing on what I completed this month.

EPIC IG

This months entry:






I've got to say, I absolutely loved painting the Baneblade. Its not very often you can claim to painting a baneblade in a single day, and the forgeworld model is really well detailed considering the scale. I was also glad that I took the decision to break up the grey space with the company marking (the red stripe on bone). I think it makes the model stand out much more, and appeals to the organiser in me.

Is it sad that all my guard models are correctly organised in companies and platoons, with the markings to boot? Probably, but I don't care

The army to date:


All in all, I'm pleased how the epic is coming along. I think the grey colour scheme for the tanks really works en-mass, and the more vehicles I paint up the more I like it! What do you guys think?

For next month, there will be a Superheavy Tank Company, in the shape of three Shadowswords.

So, on to the star attraction, the Praetorians...

40k IG

So, after months of being behind on my points totals, I thought I'd pull my finger out and paint just under 400pts of 40k this month. It still leaves me short of where I should be, but its a vast improvement!

This months entry:


The army to date:


First up are the Veterans. For some reason I couldn't get a good photo of these guys, but these will do...





Though I'm using the Vostroyan models (which are beautiful), these are not Vostroyans on an exchange trip, but rather Praetorian 'Spire Born'. In my fluff, every Praetorian Infantry Company contains a few squads of Spire Born, normally in the 3rd (support) Platoon. They are the sons of Nobles and merchants, from the highest levels of the Hives of mother-Praetoria, and are equipped with the best weapons and armour the Regiment can offer. They are expected to prove themselves by dealing any threat that the poor grunts are overwhelmed by.

The bespoke equipment of the Vostroyan models fitted this idea brilliantly, and the Bearskin hats helps the army keep its British army heritage intact. With this in mind I used lots of gold and bright colours in order to make the Spire Born stand out, as they would expect!

Right, well thats a long enough post for tonight. Tomorrow I'll post up some good shots of the Medusa and the heroic Commissar Thorn, both of which I am very pleased with. Meanwhile, please let me know what you think guys!

Cheers

Right, lets continue with the rest of the photos from my 40k entry...

Next up with have the mighty Medusa...







I've tried to add a lot more realism to my Guard armies, as opposed to my heroic Dark Angels, and so I want the tanks to look like they have been through several months of hard campaigning. To this end I experimented with some of the tips in the Forgeworld Master Class book (which I would highly recommend!). I find one of the hardest things with weathering is knowing when you've gone over the top, and I'm not sure if I have on this Medusa, so I'd love to know what you all think.

I also used the new forgeworld weathering powders, especially the soot and dirt ones. I'm not entirely sure how best to use these yet, so I didn't go overboard, but I think they added to the model nicely.

I regret not adding any stowed kit, something I'm going to rectify with the rest of the tanks. I think it finishes the 'used' look.

Also in a departure from form, I painted the wonderful interior on the model. Its so nice, it would be rude not to!









I really think the interior adds to the overall tank, and even though it will rarely be seen, I'm happier knowing its there!

Next, my favourite model I produced this month, Commissar Thorn:



Its hard not to love this model. Like the Interrogator Chaplain, I think he is one of the best sculpts GW has produced. It just exudes character, and you can almost hear the orders bellowing from his mouth.

So, with all that in mind I was keen to get a good paint job done for him. I will admit one of the great frustrations with using the army painter method to get my Praetorians done is that it really does nothing to black. Where as I'm used to seeing black highlighted (as on my Ravenwing), I decided not to add too much to what the AP does, in order to keep painting quick. Plus I'm pretty sure that to highlight the black would make the model looks less gritty and push it into that 'heroic' paint style I mentioned earlier. What do you guys think?





So that's it for now. When I get a chance I'm going to take some shots of the Platoon Command Squad, as I realise these Praetorian command models have not have their 5 minutes of fame on this thread, which is simply not on. I've also finally got a big FW toy constructed and ready to paint, pictures coming in the new year...

Well then, here is something I have been meaning to add to my ToP thread for quite a while! After buying it at the beginning of 2008 I have finally managed to get my Marauder Destroyer constructed and I'm very excited indeed!

Now, to be clear from the start, I did not construct this myself. I dont really have the skills for a resin model of this scale yet, so, knowing I would get a good job I surrendered it to my good friend Jay at Dark Eye Studios. Based in Bristol, UK, this one man shop is a fantastic commission painter and builder and if you want a good job done, consider giving him an email!I hope, given that ToP is primarily a painting challenge, this wont ruffle too many feathers?

Anyway, some shots of the beast itself:









I just love this little shrine in the cockpit, very fluffy indeed!

A couple of bits I want to draw attention to, mainly to show the great work Dark Eye Studios can do. One of my main complaints about the Marauder is its landing gear, which stick out during flight, giving the whole plane the feel of a lander, as opposed to a fighter/bomber.



So, to get round this sticky problem, Jay magnetised the whole malarkey and make up some flush landing pads from plaster card, complete with tread on the bottom! Awesome! As for the wood block, that was to add stability to the interior of the model, giving it a healthy weight and some strength. Not that I intend to drop it.

The world might end if I did...





As good as the landing gear is, the real master stroke of Jays work is below. That right, what every good model plane needs! A flying stand!





Make of a steel rod, its just over 12'' tall, and has really made the Marauder into something special! It also has me itching for my next apoc game. The really good thing is that I have two of the wooden bases, that lift off over the flying stand. This means I can make one display base and one more practical gaming base. Good times!





Anyway, I'm aiming to make this my last entry for the ToP, so its a way away, but I thought I'd wet your appetite now!

All looking great. Really like what you are dong here. Re: tank weathering. From my days as a historical scale modeller WWII, I have a few suggestions if they will help. If a tank has seen weeks and months of combat without a refit then it will gather mud, dust, soot, rubble etc in all the nooks and cranies. To that end I'd wash the whole vehicle in devlan mud but watered down a bit. Better than that I'd use Burnt Umber oil paint thinned and left to dry for a few days.

I'd then dry brush a lighter tone of your main colour over the whole vehicle. This will age the vehicle. The tracks should be alot darker. If you look at real armour the tracks are a very dark, dull grey with just the odd glimmer of metal right on the edges where they are worn. Thick mud doesn't stick to tanks for long so resist putting it on, it does look out of scale.

Hope that helps. Have a look on the following link for weathering ideas.....

Right guys, I'm back!

First off, Justice for all, I never thanked you for your helpful post, I'm very sorry! I can say that I took your advice and gave the following Leman Russ a good wash with Delvan Mud. I've tried Burnt Umber in the past, and never really cracked doing it right. Any advice on that, or am I just being daft?

I'd love to know how you (and anybody else) thinks the wash and the rest of the weathering looks on this Russ. I think I may have gone a little bit over the top this time. But that said, there are some bits I really like. Its nowhere near what I'd like to achieve, but I still think I'm moving in the right direction



















I really must learn to take less pictures