Putting the Pain in Painting..

Sometimes the Hobby Gods simply don't feel like being on our side. Judging by the series of unfortunate events that have been happening to me these past weeks it seems like I have upset them... by actually feeling inspired and wanting to hobby.

I know right?

First, I had to experience first-hand what happens when you try to prime a model that has not been washed properly. Had to strip the paint off Black Ivan...
... which turned out to be a success!

Then I spent ~$100 on the NEW Citadel paints, a few nice paint brushes, a paint palette and some primers.. Ended up not being satisfied with the way P3 Black Primer covers metal (although this time there's no rubbing off resin), so Black Ivan is currently in for another Simple Green bath. Gah...
I mean, this time it was much better, but I just need a good coverage on the metal parts, because they are all super sharp and bedazzled with detail, so I can't have the paint cheap.. No, sir. I'll be using the Krylon Black Primer from now on. Have to order that from the manufacturer's website, though, since it's no longer in most stores...


Oh, and whaddaya know? The one day I really, really, really felt like painting I realized that I had left my newly acquired paints in my friend's car.... That was more than a week ago.
Now, weather has been pretty crazy here in Chicagoland. We're talking crazy humidity and high 80's-90F temperatures. It gets even worse inside a black car..
And of course many paints melted as the new shitty Citadel paint pots warped and paint leaked and dried up. Seriously! Even bored the incident I had trouble closing the new paint lids - even on paints that I had just opened to see the color inside. It's not like I was a savage and had dried paints around the ring of the lid, which would prevent it from closing properly. Nope. Some paints were literally untouched and still died on me. Below is a picture of the paints that were completely useless. Notice the plastic tray which I used as a paint palette once - it was also in the bag. Notice the warping..

I'm very disappointed. :( Looks like I'm going to have to splurge again on paints, huh? Seriously, what a fucking disaster. And of course the only paintbrush that got ruined in the whole mess of dried paint and leakage was my Kolinsky brush. Literally no other brushes were even touched by this cesspool of failure. Just my awesome brush. That was pretty cool. I think I managed to save some of the other paints that were in the car by adding some paint retardant/thinner... whatever the !@#$%^& it is. So hopefully that helps. The new Dry paints are hilarious when they are all dried up..

Oh! Oh! And to top it off, I really wanted to do some basing on the two 'jacks that I have painted, you know? Then I realized that I had forgotten my basing materials in Frozencore Joe's car. So a week or so ended up being wasted on stuff being stuck in people's cars.

Not a good week for Skarvald. Not a good week indeed. 

Black Ivan Down: Black No More!

Yesterday I posted about my priming malfunction with the Black Ivan and about the primer and paint peeling off way too easily.

Now, I was very unsure when I dropped the model in Simple Green.
I have used Simple Green to clean metal Games Workshop models and even an Ork Stompa, always with great results, but had never used the concentrated solution to clean Privateer Press' resin/plastic models. Even some pretty thorough Google Fu revealed only promises that Simple Green should work on resin/plastic models without melting the model itself.
The issue is, of course, that the resin/plastic which Privateer Press uses for their newer models is still relatively new and I'm guessing that not a lot of people have had to deal with such an issue..

Well I had to..  ;(

And, man, is Simple Green awesome! 

After 20 hours of soaking in Simple Green concentrate..

This is my Black Ivan model after approximately 20 hours spent inside concentrated Simple Green.
I took him out and gave him some scrubbing with an old brush and both the paint and primer simply disintegrated. I knew that the paint on the metallic parts would come off easily, but I was still very surprised with the results..

Now, keep in mind that this model was dunked in Simple Green a few hours after it was primed and that it was not cleaned in soapy solution before it was primed... a mistake which I'm never making again! If you have an older model, depending on the paint and primer used the results may not be the same and you might see some primer taint, which is when the primer gets inside the miniature and dyes it a certain color.

I'm going to leave Black Ivan in the solution for, oh I dunno, 8 or so more hours and then I'll drop him in a soapy solution for another 8 hours to make sure that all of the chemicals from the Simple Green are not present on the model when I prime him... AGAIN.

Black Ivan Down

Today I decided to work on my Black Ivan model, which was supposed to be my entry for the Lost Hemisphere's new monthly Paint the Target challenge
I was all excited about finally painting Harkevich's favorite 'jack.

Primed it black, using Privateer Press' Formula P3 Black Primer.
That's Negro Imprimador in Spanish for you, folks. Sounds intimidating, doesn't it?  
Wait a second.. I thought the adjective was supposed to be after the noun..

It was my first time priming with a P3 Primer and I was anxious at first. The weather outside was pretty hot, I suppose and it was slightly windy, but after shaking the can for ~1 minute I started priming and everything seemed alright.. The primer went on very smoothly and dried fast just like GW's (more expensive) Chaos Black Primer.
I was originally supposed to pick up a cheap-o Flat Black Krylon primer, but the nearby store was out of it, so I picked P3's Primer instead...

I started painting, following Hand Cannon Online's Tutorial: Basics – Back in Black: Painting Black Armour. I covered the model with a nice coat of Thamar Black (also my first P3 paint!) and started with the first coat of two-brush blending Coal Black on the armor plates, when I realized that I need a better brush for the actual blending part. So then I decided to start with the foundation for the rusty metal parts. There were a few spots that were difficult to reach with the sponges, so I decided to use a stippling brush.

And then when I applied slightly more pressure... the paint.. and the primer came straight off, revealing the grey resin/plastic underneath. Applying pressure with the tip of my fingernails also scratched the paint and got rid of the primer. I don't know what to think of it..

Was it the weather? Was it the primer? Did I not wait long enough for the primer to dry?

I suppose I should have cleaned the model with some soap water beforehand.. right?
But then again I didn't do that for my previous Warjacks and they were fine. I tried scratching the paint, and a lot of pressure is needed to show even a hint of grey...

I was just not feeling comfortable with the result, so I decided to throw the model in some Simple Green for a day or two and then see what happens... I'll give it a nice soap bath and I'll scrub it diligently with an old toothbrush.. and I'll be doing the same with all of my Privateer Press models.

Right now I've got Scrapjack soaking in a soapy solution and will try to prime it for tomorrow.
I have Flat Black Krylon, so hopefully things will be alright.

Monday Hobby Awesomeness! Woohoo!

Yes, I realize that the title sounds like something out of Goatboy's Extra 40k Thoughts but for the sake of my sanity and due to me being tired and lazy I'll just stick with this nonsensical, unproductive title.
Let's just say that today I didn't have a case of the Mondays. Let me start with the most recent thing:

1) I got interviewed today by The 11th Company Podcast! Again (I was in Episode 101: Now with 3 digits! as well :P) Pat sent me an e-mail a few days ago asking if I would like to chat with him about the new Ork Flyers which came this month and naturally I was all for it. While blogging is my preferred method of expressing my thoughts and ideas I actually like the podcast format. Maybe it was just because I had stuff to talk about. I mean, I talk about this hobby all the time with my friends, it's not unlike that, right? Pat and I talked about the new Ork Flyers, Puppets War' newest plane, Special Operations: KILLZONE (and my involvement with the project), our gaming communities and the newest White Dwarf.. +/- a few other hobby stuff.

It went for quite a while, actually, so hopefully you guys will enjoy it if you have the time! You know you want to listen to my soothing Bulgarian accent!

20 Paints!

2) Hobby Splurge! And by that I mean, I spent a good chunk of my paycheck for some necessary hobby materials. If you remember my guide on painting green Khadoran warjacks, I mentioned that it was all using the NEW Citadel paints of which I owned none. Thus, it was time to splurge on all of the colors I needed. I desperately needed some primer and because I couldn't find any Krylon Flat Black primer I decided to give Privateer Press' Formula P3 Black Primer. I mean, it was $10 but that still a lot cheaper than GW's can of primer. I don't doubt that it will do a great job with covering my models. So far I have only good things to say about PP's models, rules and policies. Got exactly 20 paint pots, but I just know that in the future I'll need more. It's the way the cookie crumbles. And I actually don't even know what this idiom means... I do like cookies, though.
Then I also managed to snipe the last blister of Winter Guard Infantry (10), officially maxing out my unit of Winter Guard Infantry to a Leader and 9 Grunts + Unit Attachment and Officer + Kovnik Joe. I just need 2-3 Rocketeer dudes, but they are not a priority right now.

3) Played some games of Warmachine against my buddy John.
A. I lost a 15 pt. game with the Old Witch versus Drake McBane..
... in which I learned that, once again, the Witch is not ideal for small games.
... in which I learned that, although totally capable of scrapping two Nomads, the Behemoth is not enough shooting firepower to deal with a unit of Helberdiers and Cavalry.
... in which I learned that I actually need some accurate firepower to kill models as they are advancing towards me and especially after the turn I feat. A unit of Widowmakers and/or Widowmaker Marksman would have been ideal for this.
... in which I learned that I need to play it less aggressively with Scrapjack. I need to learn to Prowl with him in a safe position. Instead, he got charged with a Flank bonus and lost both of its arms. : ( 

- Behemoth

+ Destroyer

+ Widowmakers 

B. Won a 20 pt. game with a hilarious Karchev the Terrible list, by towing a Destroyer, a Black Ivan and a Juggernaut against a 3 different Titans and Xerxes..

... in which I learned that, once again, Warbeasts are so much better when shit hits the fan than Warjacks. 

... in which I learned that I need more 'jacks with Reach, because walls are annoying and I can't charge through them with my .5'' reach. When is the plastic/resin Spriggan coming out? :( 

4) Lost Hemisphere is having their new monthly Paint the Target challenge which is to paint a Warjack or a Warbeast. Well, I'm vowing to paint at least one Warjack by the end of June: my Black Ivan. So hopefully you'll get to see some more of my painted stuff. Woohoooo!

Khador Warjacks painted with new Citadel Paints!

This weekend I met with Brian from A Gentleman's Ones for some much-deserved hobby time and for the first time since I've know Brian we actually hung out for a reason that was not terrain-building or Special Operations: KILLZONE. And it was Glorious!

Those of you who read my blog on a regular basis know that I don't usually post about my painted models simply because.. well.. I don't paint a lot. It's not because I can't or I don't want to - it's just that whenever I start an army I can never decide how to paint it. I'm very familiar with color theory and the different types of brushes and paints, mind you. It's just my indecisiveness and inability to commit to a decision that usually leads to a lot of my stuff being factory gray. That is why I decided to let Brian teach me how to paint my Khadoran army. His stuff is always so astonishing and from the few times I've seen him paint, his entire process seems so spontaneous and carefree. I wanted my hobby to be like his, so I made the trip to his place with "Frozencore" Joe to get stuff done!

Green has always been my favorite color and I wanted my Khador stuff to be green. It's not the most original idea, but I like the look of it, so I wanted to do that. I wanted my army to be dirty, gritty and covered with rust and dust from months and months of constant warfare in the trenches. I didn't want pristine-looking 'jacks, I wanted them scratched and damaged, but still ready to punish the enemies of the Motherland!

After I explained to Brian what I wanted, he went and primed the models. He grabbed the Destroyer and I got to paint the Juggernaut. The rest is magic..

What you see below is the result of ~3 hours of painting. There are a lot of touch-ups, highlights and other things to add and fix on the models, but for now I am definitely happy with the results.

Destroyer and Juggernaut - 80% done!
OH! AND THEY ARE ALL PAINTED WITH THE NEW CITADEL PAINTS!!!

Space Wolves and the NEW Citadel Paint Range; Killzone Tokens and Cards

Hey there, Battle Brothers. Long time no see, but things here have been extremely busy with school, work and working with Frozencore Joe and Brian from A Gentleman's Ones on the Special Operations: KILLZONE tables (In case you have forgotten, we are working on TEN 3'x3' tables O_o)... Life happens, I suppose.

Today's Topic of Discussion

I'm here to quickly jot down a few words and share them with you, but before that here's something that I have been meaning to do for a while...

If you frequent this blog then you probably know about Special Operations: KILLZONE. And unless you have been living under a rock you probably already know that Brian is selling sets of sweet-lookin' TOKENS and CARDS designed specifically to be used in addition to your beautifully painted (right?) Special Operatives Team.

CARDS AND TOKENS FOR YOU

Brian has been working feverishly on them and they are simply beautiful and so, so elegant. I definitely think that they are necessary on the tabletop because.. well.. you have everything you need ON the tabletop: no annoying rules to remember, no more having to peruse the rulebook every time you want to check a mission detail. It's all on the cards and on the tokens. As Brian would surely say: Glorious. 
And in all seriousness: Cards make almost everything better. I actually like to say that any game that has any cards in it instantly becomes more interesting and less of a "Serious business" ordeal. Being able to surprise your opponent and stop his evil master plan by playing your Fate cards has that sweet "You have triggered my trap card" vibe to it. It's hilarious and quite frankly - a must have.

And now for today's topic.

OMG!!1! GW HAS A NEW PAINT RANGE!1! PANIC!?!!! PANIC! BUY ALL AVAILABLE PAINTS BEFORE THEY DISAPPEAR. THE END IS NIGH!

...just kidding. Don't do that. 

I'm kidding yet again. You SHOULD probably do that. 

Just so you're on the safe side, ya know?

Games Workshop's paint range has seen plenty of changes throughout the years, but this one is by far the biggest change yet (I think?). Colors come and go and so do paint pots, but now we have more colors, a wider variety: glazes, bases, layers, shades, textures, dry paint, etc. etc. You can find a color chart on Games Workshop's website, but I think it's currently down and being fixed. Eh, who knows. 

Obviously this raises some concerns. Are all the colors going to stay the same or are the formulas changing completely. From what I understand GW has a new paint factory/provider thing and while many of the colors are almost identical the formulas are not 100% and it is possible that some colors will be slightly different. Or very different. That's why the names of all the paints are different now. GW didn't want to be selling a Scorpion Green that's now quite like the Scorpion Green of the good old days.

Now, if you could please turn your attention to the first image of this blog post.. Or, you know what? I'll just post it again for all to see: 

I got this cool little card from Games Workshop. They have a few for each of the three main games and cover some of the main factions. I thought it would be a good idea to grab the only Space Wolf card and share it with the blogosphere, considering that not everyone has access to a Games Workshop store in their area. 

Now, this Space Wolf Grey Hunter is very different from the usual Space Wolves we've seen over and over again in Codex: Space Wolves and the multitude of White Dwarf magazines. 

They are.. darker. Blue-er. 

Here's a "collage" with some Pre-2012 Paint Change Space Wolves, some Pre-2012 Paint Change Ultramarines and Pedro Kantor. 

Spot the Differences

Now, here's a curious questions: Is this new Space Wolf scheme going to be the NEW studio paint scheme for Space Wolves? What's going to happen with the "baby blue" Space Wolves?

Slapa-a-da paint, mon! Painting Da Silensurz!

Some of you probably still remember the conveted Ork Kommandoz I was building for eventual games of Killzone - you know.. Da Silensurz? Eight models, each with their own.. charm and back-story.

Well, after sitting in my new Battle Foam case for a month or so I decided to prime them.. and after priming I really, really wanted to start painting them. I got this surge, this need to do it.. 

You see, after Adepticon 2011 I had lost my mojo (if I even ever had one). I was sick of painting, building, even stopped playing games for a while, because I was just tired of it all. Not in a negative way, mind you - I was just tired of hobbying after painting 2,000 points of Space Wolves and playing so many game in such a small period of time. But I've been a "busy" bee these past few days and finally have some pictures to show. 

I know that I haven't really been showing my stuff as much on this blog. It has to do with the fact that I just never really had anything special to offer to the community. I'm not saying that by showing you my WIP Silensur Kommandos I am doing you a huge favor, but I feel like they are going somewhere. You know? You've probably noticed that the last handful of posts were either by Frozencore Joe or interviews/guest posts from 4chan. I guess you can say that they have inspired me to start slappin' some paint on models..

Da Silensurz!

I decided to paint my Silesurz kommandoz like I painted my orkz for Adepticon 2010. I really like the brighter, slightly irradiated/glowing skin tone for my Orkz. I also like highlighting and heavy dry-brushing to give ork shin that weathered look. After all they don't really use any lotion. 

This is my WIP so far:

All models are primed with Chaos Black primer. Too much of a pussy to try a different brand. 

Orkz always look like shit, before you start washing and fixing things. Keep that in mind.

Skin: 

"Ugh! I'm kovur'd in paint!"

First, the models are base-coated with Knarloc Green foundation paint. After the paint dries a heavy, slightly wet dry-brush of Goblin Green is painted all over the skin surface, followed by a light-to-medium dry-brush of Scorpion Green. This will give the skin a very bright, almost glowing look. The dry-brushing gives the skin a rugged, "tough" look. A very generous wash with Thraka Green bring everything together, tones down the brightness. Then you will apply a cautious, light dry-brush of Scorpion Green when everything is dry - focus on the facial features, top of the muscles, the fingers, etc. A glaze (very watered-down wash) of Devlan Mud is then painted in the recesses of the skin and also where the skin is too bright. Remember, we are painting Kommandos, so then need to be dulled down. 

Metal Bitz:

Simply base-coat Tin Bitz, then drybrush Chainmail and wash Badab Black. This is it for now.

Shirts:

Notice Killface's bandana. See the painted-in recesses?

Decided to do blue shirts, which was two parts Mordian Blue and some Chaos Black, If I am not mistaken. Then, instead of washing the blue I mixed some off same color with a lot of Chaos Black and started painting in the recesses, the folds, etc. Where there were no folds in the shirt I simply created some by painting them. What you want to do then is go around the folds that you painted with Mordian Blue, thus creating some depth.

Pants: 

Urban camo! Fenris Grey foundation paint all over! Then, grab some Chaos Black and start drawing pretty thick lines all over the paints. Don't be too smooth and fluid, be harsh and angular. Think of rubble. Then I grabbed Astronomicon Grey and started to paint little clusters of dots all over the pants. And then you wash the whole thing with Badab Black.

Othe Gubbinz: 

Leather is painted Calthan Brown - which means gloves, shoes, belts, straps. etc. Then wash Devlan Mud. 

Backpacks for now are painted Catachan Green, I believe. Later on I will paint Jungle camo on them.

 Naturally there's a lot left. Orkz are really hard to paint when you focus on a few models. The details never end.. I need to dirty-up the skin, paint more camo on weapons, skin, backpacks and then highlight it all. Of course basing the bases is also needed, but it will be the last thing I do. I need to go over some of the places where I slapa'd-da-paint too much.


Obviously very much WIP, but I figured some of you might find the process interesting enough.

Next time I will show you my Ogre Kingdoms models, but before that I have something else in store for you..

It came from 4chan: Interview with The God-Emperor of Mankind!

Welcome to yet another glorious edition of It Came From 4chan! This time we are going to talk about art and painting. And nope, I'm not talking about slapping paint on primed miniatures, but about an aspect of our hobby that we really don't get to see that often outside of the new pretty army books and codices. Yes, I am talking about Warhammer 40,000-inspired fan art and more importantly the drawings of everyone's favorite Primarchs, done by the one and only God-Emperor of Mankind (deviantART Gallery)
The elusive self-taught artist volunteered to share some trade secrets with us, the mere mortals, so if you like awesome pictures and cherish your life you will read this interview!