300 Challenge: Cryx Chicks Part 4

My 300 Challenge is back in gear as of tonight. I have a great deal to get done before I head home for Christmas break, but I think I can do it. My Satyxis raiders and witches are done enough to be put back on the shelf, so I am sending them off the painting table and getting ready for some new stuff. My final steps were to highlight the hair, ink the flesh, and add water effect for the bases.

 The bases on these gals were finished with some snakebite leather and sepia wash. I am getting low on sepia, however, as I have found it works for lots of applications, such as wood, water, and leather.

 I should apologize for my lighting. I can't seem to get it back the way I had it. These all look too washed out and over-highlighted. Time to try a light box again, I guess.

 I even had time to work on Sorscha. She is a nice model. I have heard from several gaming buddies that they don't like her. Not sure why, I think she looks cool. The base needs some work, but I need to look at some reference pictures before I finish it.

This, along with a couple odds and ends brings me to 26 done for this session. Next on the painting table are my Circle of Orboros models that will be used in the tournament I am going to over break. They are already mostly done, so they will help me post some quick numbers on the boards. After that I will probably go back to GW for the win. Current total: 135. Still a long way to go!

-Maniple

300 Challenge: Cryx Chicks Part 3

These models have gotten easier as I went along. I think the problem with tackling a highly detailed mini is that all the details are not immediately clear when it is primed all one color. As I added washes and picked out details it got easier and easier to see what was going on. I guess the lesson is just to get started and let the details worry about themselves.

Skarre is coming along nicely. I want to do some free hand work on her cloak and make her a nice centerpiece model. The weapons will also get an extra touch, perhaps with magical glow or damascus steel effect. We'll see.

 They don't need a lot of work, just a few highlights and a little work on the base. I will probably dull down the colors a bit as well. If they are raiders, they should be a little less ostentatious. 

 The main change at this step was shading the horns, highlighting the flesh, and picking out some of the belts and other details.

Skarre will get a fresh base as well. I hope to be done with these chicks pretty soon so I can get to work on a new army. it has been slow going, but we are almost done!


-Maniple

300 Challenge: Cryx Chicks Part 2

I have been working bit by bit on the Satyxis Raiders. They are starting to get some definition, but I have a long way to go.

 I really like these bases. They are resin bases that I bought online from Kerr & King. They needed a little cleaning up, but the detail is good and they also have a depression for water effect to go into. I painted the stone gray and then washed it with brown and green wash. I will highlight it again with gray to pick out the edges.

 I should really just work on a few at a time, but I am loathe to waste any paint. This is the mob as I am working on them. I am still in the basic colors stage and they need a lot of cleanup. I often make the mistake of continuing to work on them even when I am tired, so the paint job is not as neat as I would like. I seem to spend a lot of time fixing mistakes.

 She is looking pretty good. I think I will go with white hair on this unit and black on the chicks with whips. They will be easier to distinguish that way. Now that the models have some color, I want to go back and work on the skin and faces a little bit. There are many parts I missed that I originally thought were going to be cloth, but are in fact bare flesh. These models are so finely detailed that you only pick up on some of the subtle details when you actually start applying the paint. Again, these are mistakes that are costing me time!

These girls need some bases! I ordered some new ones from Back2Base-IX and they look pretty good. I went with a simple wood decking base as I want to eventually model them on the deck of a ship. That would be pretty cool, right?

Another thing I noticed in my painting this week is just how important it is to check and double check your models before painting them for flashing and mold lines. I seem to remember going over these models very carefully, but I have found a bunch of things that need fixing. Again, time wasted.

Unfortunately I did not get much painting done during October. November's schedule looks better, but I am pretty sure my painting schedule is going to roll over into December to finish my goal of painting 300 models. However, if I can get through my entire backlog before I head home for Christmas, I will count it as a victory.

Cheers,

Maniple

300 Challenge: Cryx Chicks Part 1

My next step in the 300 Challenge is into Warmachine. I already have a bunch of models painted up, but these Satyxis models have been sitting around for over a year. I did manage at some point to get them on some nice Back2Base-ix resin bases, but after priming them I got sidetracked. As you can see, they are highly detailed and come in a variety of poses. My first step was to paint the skin with a blend of Elf Flesh and Rotting Flesh. I then hit the wooden bases with some Scorched Brown.

 As you can see, I have a ways to go. My plan is to try and do two colors every day this week and get them done in four days. I should be fine. Today was flesh and wood, tomorrow will be cloth and leather.

 This group comes to the table half done. The models still need a lot of work, however. There are a lot of buckles and straps to pick out as well as mistakes to clean up from my previous attempt to get them on the table quickly.

 Here is the new sculpt of Pirate Queen Skarre. I really like her pose, but she needs a new base. I think I can find something that will work.

This is the old version. still pretty cool, but she is chiefly being used as a test piece for the other one so I can get my colors right.

So far so good, more updates soon!


-Maniple