[PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Discover the age-old techniques of painting...

Moderators: Layne, xFallenx, cultofkhaine

Forum rules
Remember that picture file size should be no larger than 256KB.
For the full Painting and Modelling rules, visit [url]http://www.druchii.net/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=27440[/url]
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

[PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

This is definitely a first for me, but I thought it would be fun and helpful to hear some critiques of what I've managed to put together since getting back into Warhammer just this past year (after about a 13 year break!)

As you'll see, I'd consider myself an amateur painter, but I'm definitely having fun getting back into it and have picked up a few helpful techniques in recent months. I must also apologize for the quality of the photos - they're from my IPhone. I did my best to edit them for max clarity, but I'll be looking to improve my photo setup in the not too distant future.

I definitely struggled for a while to decide on a colour scheme, but in the end went with blue, metallic purple, silver, and black. Yellow is sprinkled in in a few places for boosted contrast.
Attachments
Corsairs with handbows, from the back. I painted the model on the left first, then decided to do the cloak differently on the model to the right, which I think I prefer, though it took a few more minutes to paint.
Corsairs with handbows, from the back. I painted the model on the left first, then decided to do the cloak differently on the model to the right, which I think I prefer, though it took a few more minutes to paint.
Corsairs with handbows, from the front.
Corsairs with handbows, from the front.
These were some of the first models I'd painted in over 10 years. Using the old 5th edition champion model mixed with the last-gen spear elves.
These were some of the first models I'd painted in over 10 years. Using the old 5th edition champion model mixed with the last-gen spear elves.
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

A few more...
Attachments
Sorceress painted long ago, by my cousin. Wanting to change the skin tone, but otherwise I think she'll stay how she is.
Sorceress painted long ago, by my cousin. Wanting to change the skin tone, but otherwise I think she'll stay how she is.
Converted hag from the old Morathi on pegasus model and witch elf parts.
Converted hag from the old Morathi on pegasus model and witch elf parts.
hag1.jpg
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

Dreadlord/Master on dark pegasus. The rider is from the black dragon kit, with a corsair head. I used the dark pegasus from an old Morathi model. This also marks my first attempt at glowy lighting on the shield runes and the pegasus' eyes. Any tips on pulling that off convincingly?
Attachments
peglord1.jpg
peglord2.jpg
peglord3.jpg
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

This one's a pretty weird combination of stuff, but I had a bunch of parts and thought it would be fun to see what I could come up with for a sorceress on a dark steed. Kind of a "creativity out of necessity" thing. It's obviously a work in progress ;) .

The sorceress' body is from the black dragon kit, as well as the book in her left hand. The staff is a mash of stuff from the warrior/corsair kits. Her head is from the last-gen warrior kit as well. I wasn't sure how "sorceress" it would turn out, so I made some hair using a corsair head and some green stuff.

The only thing I did with the steed was to slap on a head from an old chaos knights kit, with some crude horns sculpted onto it.
Attachments
steedsorceress_wip.jpg
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

Last one for now - lord/hero on cold one. Banner on the back still needs painting.
Attachments
coldonelord.jpg
User avatar
Melle
Executioner
Posts: 187
Joined: Sat Sep 07, 2013 8:06 am
Location: sweden

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Melle »

nice plog start.
a few comments

corsairs:
loving the cloaks on both. right is better agreed, but i think maybe the out line yellow a tad to sharp. only thing i like better on the left one. though both look good.

pegasus: lovely model. glow on eyes look good .
not sure on the shield, though.


overall it all looks good, keep it up
"Dovie'andi se tovya sagain."

[CENTER]Image[/CENTER]
User avatar
Lord_azoth
Highborn
Posts: 743
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 12:57 pm

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Lord_azoth »

love your glowing effect, would you mind explaining how did you do it?
Death before dishonor
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

Melle - thanks! When I painted the first corsair I had the idea that I wanted to save time by just base coating/washing/drybrushing. But I liked the look of the individually painted/highlighted scales so much more that I decided the extra time was worth it.

As for the yellow lines - I totally see your point. However... I've grown somewhat fond of them, despite their not being very realistic looking. It actually helped inspire name of the army, as I felt like it gave the cloaks a sort of weird yellowy light hitting them at a harsh angle, sort of like at dawn or sunset. But perhaps I have taken it too far - on the last three I painted I think the lines are even thicker! Once I have a bunch done I'll post some pics of the unit with all of them together, to see if the effect I'm thinking of is actually happening.

As for the glowy shield... I figured he would be carrying a magic shield much of the time, so rationalized it to myself ;)

As you can tell, I am prone to sacrificing realism for whimsy. But if we can't do that in Warhammer Fantasy, where can we?

Lord_azoth - with pleasure!

For the glowing effect, I used the GW teclis blue and white scar paints, starting with the blue and working up through a mix of the two up to pure white. I watered them down HEAVILY. Like, until they were probably the consistency of skim milk or maybe more watery than that. Starting with the straight blue, I applied the watered down paint in smaller and smaller areas, letting each one dry - which took a while - before going to the next, smaller area with a lighter in colour. Most of the layers needed a few coats with the same colour - particularly the darkest ones - as the paint is so transparent when it's that thin. When I got to straight white, the final highlight, I didn't bother watering the paint any more than normal.
Datalink7
Noble
Posts: 460
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2003 2:28 am

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Datalink7 »

Looking great. Yellow might not be my first choice, but your technique/painting skills are good. Look forward to seeing more.
Ashes and Diamons,
Foe and Friend,
We are all equal,
In the End.
User avatar
Lord_azoth
Highborn
Posts: 743
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 12:57 pm

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Lord_azoth »

thanks for the recipe mate!
Death before dishonor
User avatar
anthalont
Shade
Posts: 110
Joined: Mon Apr 15, 2013 6:12 pm

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by anthalont »

Very nice army, I like the color scheme 8)
Seems you really pimped that corsair cloak with a few more touches, looks great!;)
The glow effect looks ace, I like your dreadlord much

Looking forward for more!
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

Howdy! With the holidays on top of everything else, there hasn't been much opportunity to paint. Nonetheless, I wanted to share some works in progress!

First up, painted up enough corsairs for a front rank. I will do something more with the standard eventually, but haven't decided quite what yet. There will be a small unit flller in the 3rd/4th rank (that's what that green base represents right now), and I need to add some snow to a couple bases still. I'm pretty happy with how they're turning out.

Image
Image

A view of the cloaks. Fourth from the left will be redone to match the others, eventually:

Image

BSB on dark steed WIP, still needs a bit of green stuff-ing.

Image

And my most recent purchase, Doomfire Warlocks. I've decided to magnetize the bodies so that I can swap them out for Dark Riders just by swapping the torsos. Not sure how often I'll need to do that, but the versatility/savings appealed to me.

Image
Image
Image

Drilling into those warlock torsos was a pain, and will need some putty work to tidy up, but other than that it was a simple process!

Hope to have some painted up in the coming weeks!
User avatar
Rowena
Highborn
Posts: 665
Joined: Sun Sep 16, 2012 5:30 pm

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Rowena »

That's really a great idea!
My painting blog

Even without Games Workshop, we will endure. Armies of the Unsupported Age, the models are out there.
User avatar
xFallenx
Malekith's Best Friend
Posts: 1255
Joined: Fri Sep 22, 2006 1:04 am
Location: Calgary, Alberta
Contact:

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by xFallenx »

^ that. I can't wait to see the paint job.
Oct 2013-Current: 3-2-0
User avatar
Sevekai
Slave (off the Altar)
Posts: 17
Joined: Mon Nov 18, 2013 12:40 am

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Sevekai »

Your Corsair cloaks are awesome! Love them!
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

Thanks guys!

I basically used the same method on the scales (minus a few steps, and with a less polished execution) as ThePaintingClinic on Youtube, though I'm using GW paints and he uses Vallejo. Man, I've learned a lot from that guy - essential subscription if you enjoy painting and dark elves. Here's the video on corsair cloaks, if you haven't seen it already: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzadajYfkIQ

I also stole the idea to magnetize the DR/Warlocks from him. What a gentleman!
User avatar
xFallenx
Malekith's Best Friend
Posts: 1255
Joined: Fri Sep 22, 2006 1:04 am
Location: Calgary, Alberta
Contact:

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by xFallenx »

He's my inspiration to painting as well, though I have to admit that I haven't had the time to watch his newest vid's.
Oct 2013-Current: 3-2-0
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

Progress continues to be slow and unpredictable! It's also my nature to jump from one thing to another, starting lots of new projects before finishing old ones. The humanity!

Just a couple quick shots of some things I've been up to:

1. Corsair unit filler in progress
Image

2. Painted up the converted Sorceress on Dark Steed
Image

My wife's got a nice SLR camera, but I'll save the nice photos (and the effort...) until there are more finished units to share.

Cheers!
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

A couple of updates! I finally got around to (almost) finishing up my unit of "convertible" warlocks. Dark rider variants are coming soon...

I wanted the warlocks to look really unnatural - like their magic and curse had left visible marks on their skin and eyes. I feel like the bright blue and severe contrast on the skin mostly achieves that effect. I decided in the end on the purple hair because the colour felt "Slaanesh" to me. Besides, I tried white/gray but it didn't look right next to the blue skin.

Image

Image

Image

And - just for fun, a kitbashed dreadlord who will become my army general, Ecator - Scythe of the Dawn:

Image

Image

Simple conversion - slapped the Cairn Wraith's scythe onto the fleetmaster (with an extra leg from one of the scourgerunner crew, and a head from the COC crew). The hands/arms holding the scythe are corsair bits.

On that note... got a chariot! Probably will be painting that next. Way more fun than batch painting core models!
User avatar
Amboadine
Miscast into the Warp
Miscast into the Warp
Posts: 3510
Joined: Mon Nov 19, 2007 11:07 am
Location: Investigating Mantica

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Amboadine »

Those warlocks are definitely on the unnatural side. Pretty nice though, good choice of colour.
Nice conversion too, although the scythe looks a little strangely shaped in the middle or is that the intention?
User avatar
Underway
Silver Khaine Winner
Posts: 2492
Joined: Fri Jun 20, 2003 7:04 pm
Location: Contemplating the construction of my fleet.

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Underway »

LOVE the fleetmaster. Simple conversion of the leg with a nice job of the green stuff. I really want to model mine in a "Crossing of the Delaware" pose, especially as my druchii are modeled standing on ice. It fits. I'm going to completely steal your idea here....
Image
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

Amboadine - thanks! Yes, especially in a picture quality that accentuates the contrast, the warlocks look quite unnatural! In person it's a touch less jarring. I feel though like my painting has drifted more towards a high contrast, not-so-realistic style anyway, so might as well play to that I guess!

As for the fleetmaster's scythe - I think I see what you mean by the middle part of the scythe. I'm looking at it now in person and it doesn't seem as strange. The scythe itself is curved quite a bit so it was delicate work trying to pin it into place while retaining a natural curve. Perhaps when painted up it will look more natural.

Underway - thanks so much! Yeah I toyed with the idea of leaving the sword leg on, but in the end didn't go with it. If I assemble a scourgerunner one of the crew can have the sword leg! :D
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

I should also mention re: the warlock skin tones - I did decide to go with that colour after viewing Enkiel's Plog and how he did them (much more technically proficiently I might add!). Great to find inspiration here!

Page 2 of his Plog are his 'locks: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=72996&start=25
User avatar
Enkiel
Assassin
Posts: 566
Joined: Thu Nov 05, 2009 2:15 pm

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Enkiel »

Scythe wrote:I should also mention re: the warlock skin tones - I did decide to go with that colour after viewing Enkiel's Plog and how he did them (much more technically proficiently I might add!). Great to find inspiration here!

Page 2 of his Plog are his 'locks: http://druchii.net/phpBB3/viewtopic.php ... 6&start=25

so THAT'S why they looked familiar! :P

great job, i think the extra white with the dark shadow really add alot to the surreal look of the rider.
User avatar
Scythe
Death Night Survivor
Posts: 92
Joined: Mon Aug 26, 2013 5:47 am
Location: BC, Canada

Re: [PLOG] - Reapers of the Dawn

Post by Scythe »

And now for something completely different...

What to do with those myriad extra bits leftover after building a COC?

Image

Image

Makeshift RBT conversion! Got the idea after seeing something similar on eBay.

Can't tell if it's cool, overdone, or some combination thereof. Thoughts?
Post Reply