Sunday, August 28, 2016

40k Deathwatch - Painting Deathwatch the wrong way.

I'll admit, going into the project I was feelign confident that it would be a snap to batch paint the Deathwatch, and it was - at least up to the point that I finished the line highlighting and the silver arms. Then I started all the little fiddly details, and let me tell you it is no longer the right way to be doing it. I can't begin to count how many times I've had to go back and touch up another part I missed each time I changed colors - since the models are so individualized, there's no real rhythm or routine to rely on. "Oh, there's another bit of gold filigree I missed." Cap paint, wash brush, touch up with previous color, repeat. 23 models is way too many, so following the efforts over this past weekend I'm going to be finishing them off in smaller groups where the models are all broadly the same type (all the jump troops, the tactical guys, the characters, etc.) to hopefully cut down on the back and forth. That said, a fair bit of progress!


The addition of the gold and boltgun metallics really helps the models start to pop. I also took some time working on the faces for the various helmetless models though as mentioned above, these pics point out I missed a skintone step on one of the vanguard vets. Gah!


Time to consider how to finish them off. On the left is Watch Force Artemis (plus a Librarian in terminator plate), and on the right Kill Team Cassius. I think I'll knock out the seven jump troops from the two kill teams as a group next, followed by the ten tac marines, and finally the six characters individually (including the biker and terminator in that as they don't have similarly styled compatriots in the force). On the whole I am really digging this project - while the painting up front was admittedly rather tedious, the amount of detail on them has really been fun to paint and I'm really digging how they're coming together!

Off to Nova midweek for a couple days chock full of heresy goodness which means there still a few days left to get in on the rather excellent raffles for some beautiful armies. The money goes to a good cause, and you need not be present to win - the armies and other models will happily be shipped anywhere in the world! Check 'em out - a couple bucks could win you some truly epic prizes!

11 comments:

  1. Good luck at Nova man, I hope you have a great time with the 30k and I'm looking forward to seeing lots of photos.

    The points you raise about the painting of the Deathwatch I am also suffering at the moment as I paint my SoH Reavers, I thought it would be easy, metallics bordering black but as you've highlighted it's not just a walk in the park.

    Great work as always

    Jack

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  2. No matter the hassle of detail-work you are doing a bang on job!

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  3. yeah i guess there's really no batch painting at this point. still, they look great :)

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  4. A batch of models that finally breaks Joel! My goodness! Looking forward to seeing you at nova!

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  5. Good idea on breaking them into batches now. At least you figured it out before you got through the rest of them eh?

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  6. Fiddly but effective results. Very cool mate.

    Good luck at the Con!

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  7. Good luck at the convention. Knock 'em dead, JM.




    Figuratively, of course.

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  8. This sort of break up of the batch process fills me with dread for my own deathwatch team :(

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  9. Yeah man these are looking great already.

    It is always the fiddly bits that take the longest, but I actually find that it is that stage that I prefer the most as it is adding character to the models. Def a good idea to break it into smaller groups though :D

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  10. Looks like it will be well worth it in the end.

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  11. @RED SCORPS: Thanks very much!

    @Manus: I appreciate it!

    @Zab: Indeed, came screeching to a halt. Hah!

    @Greg Hess: Totally, they really deserve being painted as individuals - batch painting them sort of does 'em a disservice.

    @Rory Priest: Hah! The speed of batch painting was actually a detriment once I got past the black and silver. I was spending a ton of time backtracking. Smaller groups should alleviate that I hope!

    @Dai: Cheers, bud!

    @Zzzzzz: I'll be happy if I can eke out a single win. Generally my W/L record is really just a L record. Hah!

    @Dave Weston: Aye, they're crammed with detail which has been a blast to paint but doesn't lend itself well to full-on batch painting past a certain point in the colors...

    @NafNaf: I totally agree - I was pretty tired of 'em during the line highlight stage, but now that I'm into the details I'm really enjoying them again!

    @Monkeychucka: Thanks man!

    I appreciate the kind words, everyone!

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