Dark Angels 40K Character WIP - Part 2

 

Greetings and welcome back. While my Dark Angels character project started with six models, Lazarus caught my attention this week, so he got all the paint.  He's coming along nicely.  My old iPhone was having difficulties figuring out where to focus, so parts of these pics are a bit fuzzy.

I like how the sword came out.  A bit less cartoon-ish than the scheme I've been using and a bit more like what I've been doing with the 30K Dark Angels power blades. I played a bit with crackly bits around the power nodes...don't love it, but don't hate it either. I've started in a bit with the highlighting of armor and what-not.

I like where the cape is at this point.  Not christmas-like, not purple...sort of a brownish burgundy?  I think it'll do. basically done with the backpack and iron halo bits.  Nice splash of red on the right shoulder pad/  Why do these things only catch my eye posting photos?!  Heh.

More cape! The studio paint job puts some color on the tips of feathers on the helmet.  I haven't decided yet what I want to do there.  There is more shadow than appears in the pics here.  but I still think I could get more definition there...and then maybe some tips on the feathers?  Not sure.  I like the plain white.

So that's where I'm at with the project as the week closes out.  Check back next week to see if I pick up another character or continue to knock out Lazarus.  I do like to follow the natural ebb and flow of inspiration and he was great fun to paint this week.

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

On the Workbench [April] - Horus Heresy Edition!

 

Just a short post today to share some recent Horus Heresy Dark Angels builds. I had some unusually large blocks of free time over the weekend and decided it was a good time to put some work inn on the plastic Spartan kit form the recent Horus Heresy box set. I had picked up some Dark Angels Land Raider kit off eBay last year and it fit perfectly on the new kit.  I'm still sorting what I want to do with the top cupola, so it's left off.  Possibly a multi-melta w/Legion gunner.  Maybe a swell looking tank commander.  Can't decide.  The rule of cool will most likely win out since it's unlikely this beast will see a real game.

While I was in the box, the Contemptor kit came out to play too.  I used the recently acquired Dark Angels torso from Forge World. At first I was concerned this model would end up too similar to the all resin Forge World Dark Angels model.  But that kit has a lot of different detail on the legs and arms.  This somewhat more plain version with only the fancy torso and newer missile rack should stand on its own.

I'm waiting on the correct size magnets for the arms (dare I say elbows?) so I can magnetize all the weapons. So for now he waits as is, partially assembled while I crack on with Azrael and company.  Stay tuned later in the week for a progress reveal there. This fella will likely make another appearance later this year during DreadTober 2023.

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

Dark Angels 40K Character WIP - Part 1

 

Greetings and welcome back.  With the winter community challenges behind me, it was time to take stock of my collection and reach for inspiration to guide my next project.  I've been reading the Arks of Omen: Vashtorr since acquiring the new Primaris Azrael model...and thinking about the soon-to-be-pre-ordered Lion and that was all I needed to get set on the path to painting more 40k Dark Angels.

I knew I was going to paint Azrael, so I decided to pull in a couple more characters that have been waiting in the wings for quite some time.  Master Lazarus was a must for the new lore and then a handful of utility characters would suit. The one pre-painted Lieutenant has been requisitioned from the Blades of Vengeance project and his armor is undergoing the rites of color to match his new chapter. Not much else to share about the Lieutenants at this time.

The ancient has only had his green armor base coat applied.  This is the newer of the two Primaris Ancient models...maybe a limited edition?  I don't keep track, honestly. It's very close to the original Ancient, but with a couple more characterful details, like the shoulder slung bolt rifle.

The Techmarine likewise has only had an armor base coat.  I do very much like this version of a techmarine though.  Great dynamic pose, lots going on.

Master Lazarus caught my attention right away and so has enjoyed more paint so far. To my eye, this is just a great Space marine pose.  No so original, I know, but I just like how the whole thing comes together.

Not much to see here really, but progress none-the-less! This brings us to the main event...Azrael!

His original model was SO diminutive. You could be forgiven for thinking HE was a watcher in the dark. This new model brings him back up to date after decades, so it's about time. He's sort of anti-climatic when stood next to Lazarus. I guess I'm just too used to seeing all the over-the-top primarchs and what not.  I mean he's JUST a normal Primaris marine. :) Lots going on here though and I hope to do him justice with the paint.With that banner and the (admittedly simple) diarama base, he's sure to stand out.

I managed to get a pretty even coat of paint with a brush here, so that's cool.  Very early days as you can see.  I'm not exactly batch painting, but I am taking advantage of various colors on the wet palette to move things along and not waste paint. By the time I'm finished, I'll either be primed and ready to paint The Lion returned, or totally sick of Dark Angels green.  I guess time will tell. 😀 Either way, it was past time to put some more work in on my collection of 40K Dark Angels.

So that's going to take me through April for sure, maybe longer.  We'll have to see. Best of luck with your own lives and projects.

Cheers and Happy gaming!

On the Workbench [April] - Arbites and Azrael!

 

Greetings.  

With the passing of Squaduary and MonsterMarch, it's time to return to my monthly "On the Workbench" posts.  This month, I have some Adeptus Arbites models from the Soulshackle Kill Team box in production.   The models are all very fun and characterful so I want to have representations of all the various members of the team, but I also would like a few extra of the models that are likely to be most useful during games (yes, the ones I rarely if ever play 😂).  So I went out to eBay and picked up a second set of Arbites to go with those from the Soulshackle box. So far, I have completed all of the models from one set, and I think three or maybe four from the second.

You can begin to recognize my strategy, with both squad leader styles (HtH and Ranged) in the upper right.  Then an extra grenade launcher because it may be more useful than the very cool looking heavy stubber (or webber) in games, etc.  In the end there will be enough of everything to paint a full team, plus the extras to provide flexibility on the table top.

But enough of that - on to the main topic.  I managed to get a hold of Azrael from eBay as well!  Crossing the rubicon, or not, it's great to finally have a decent sized representation of the Dark Angels chapter master.  His diminutive predecessors were cool sculpts and all, but he very much needed to be right sized to fit the rest of the chapter. I'm imagining he will be my next painting project, but I'm not committed to that yet. There is a lot of fantastic detail here, so he'll make a fun and challenging project whenever I get started.  Titan legios are also calling my name from where they lounge, loved, but untouched.

I prepped the base, but left Azrael blue-tac'ed for now. He can easily be popped off for painting, and the right leg is also only attached to the body with blue-tac so I can pull that out to make painting the robes and under robes easier. The head is also only dry-fitted for now. I loved the option to have the Watcher either carrying the scabbard or the helmet.  I chose the scabbard since a) I love the winged helm look (same as The Lion, which I just completed), and b) he has no scabbard otherwise on his person.  He has to have *somewhere* to put the sword when he needs to sign a requisition scroll or what not.  It can't always be stashed in the bowels of the mutant, the heretic, or the xenos!

So that's it for today.  I need to complete assembling the Soulshackle box contents so they can be properly stowed in the Battle Foam inserts I picked up.  I'd like to have the walls playable with the prior Kill Team "into-the-dark" themed boxes so I can manage a boarding action game, or Zone Mortalis for Horus Heresy. I'm slowly working my way towards hosting either or both this spring now that the 21st century plague has abated somewhat. Whether or not I have a painted board really isn't that import at this stage - though I've been slowly acquiring what I need to paint up the interior of a space hulk...

More to follow as the week moves on...

Cheers and Happy Gaming!

#MonsterMarch7 - To DONE!

 

Greetings and welcome back.  Today I share my completed #MonsterMarch7 project - Lion E;'Jonson of the Dark Angels Legion as seen in the age of the Horus Heresy, bringing the Emperor's justice to the Night Lords during the Thramas Crusade.I've been interested in and collecting Dark Angels models since 3rd edition Warhammer 40,000...I guess that's form the late 90's?  I dunno...a long time.  So this project, for me, is like 25 years in the making.  Yes, I took the coward's path and painted mostly according to the Forge World studio art. But man, I'm super stoked to have this model completed in my collection. It makes my 20-something self proud, even as my 50-something self feels a little foolish at the whole thing. 😂

The project was not without it's hiccups.  I guess no large project ever is in this hobby.  In the final hours, I applied the matte varnish to seal all of my hard work. And the rocks of the diorama inexplicably reacted with the varnish and turned purple. Nothing else on The Lion, his base, nor the rest of the diorama base changed...just the grey rock. I didn't think to photograph the diorama base, but ALL of the grey rock looked exactly like this piece I'm showing.  All of it.

I don't recall what I did over the project with shades/washes/etc.  But something reacted oddly with the varnish before it dried. This was using Model Masters Lusterless Flat varnish (I still covet a few cans for special projects like this) over Proacryl paint and GW shades.  I've used this varnish for years, and have used it with these same Proacryl colors with never an ill effect like this.  So weird.  Even more odd is the fact that the Lion's gaming base (as shown above) is fine and it's the SAME PAINT varnished at the SAME TIME under the SAME  CONDITIONS!? eh, whatevah.

No sense crying over it.  After a few choice words - there is always sense in that, right? - I settled down and carefully repainted the purple rocks.  As you can see in these final pics, everything worked out in the end.  However, I haven't applied a final coat of varnish, and I may not ever.  I took these final project photos to share just in case the whole horror scene repeats should I choose to varnish the completed diorama base once again. It's not a game piece, so I'm thinking enough is enough.  No need to varnish again, as it'll rarely be touched to a point that the paint might rub off to reveal the sealed purple/grey rocks below.

So that's a wrap on #MonsterMarch7, and I guess I completed this fella just in time now that his 40K self walks the galaxy once more. OF COURSE I will have to have that model for the collection; and maybe I won't wait a year or more to paint it!  hah. For now, I'm just sitting back and enjoying this one completion for the Hobby year.  It's a fantastic model and was pure joy for me to paint. Another one goes in the DONE pile.

If don't already follow Swordmaster's blog, take some time out to have a look.  There were so many fun projects in MonsterMarch7, well worth the look. If you want to see a bit more of the Lion, I dropped a few extra photos below, after the break. Otherwise, it's good bye for now. I'm at a loss for what to pick up next.  It was going to be more mini titans...but now I'm on a Horus Heresy roll...so maybe Deathwing Companions? So much great stuff going on right now.  Spacehulk/Gallowdark terrain?!  I dunno...

Cheers and Happy Gaming!