Swordmaster's Army Pictures - Swordmasters/Palace Guard x 2

[Ptolemy]

Hi guys!

Thanks for the comments! I have 3 of them painted now, 2 more that I painted to look acceptable in a unit of 5 for the most recent tournament. I didn't win the prize for best painted but I got an honourable mention so I guess I am going to the right direction

@ Iluvatar

I am more happy with the second face too! Thanks to Ptolemy's advice I didn't try to use such strong contrast and "make up" does help a lot too!

@ Ptolemy

Thanks! Actually, it is just layering. If you want to know more details I can provide the names of the paints I used. Leather armour is done with Vallejo Model Colours.

Cheers!

Yes, please. Leather is one of those things I'm still 'meh' at.

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Hi Ptolemy,

I use Scorched Brown as a base colour. Then the following layers (from Vallejo Model Colours):

- Burnt Umber
- German Cam. Med. Brown
- Tan Earth

Hope that helps!

Cheers!

[Lord Anathir]

I think for that leather the parts that should be dark are to me not dark enough. I mean, in the last photo post, the second photo, both knees are bent forward but the colour of the shade of the front of the shin area which basically has no light striking it is almost the same as the back of heal or even the top of the foot. To me that shin area should be scorched brown almost black and then progressing from dark brown to light brown on top of the foot from join to the toes.

I would go ... some sort of medial brown like beastial then wash it black or better glaze it scorched brown + a drop of black just to show you where the highlights are necessary. the highlighting part of the leather looks good, I think its the shades that need some fixing.

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

HI LA,

Thanks for the suggestion! I think I simply ignored the light source and indeed I should work on the boots.

Cheers!

[Glonojad]

Did You manage to paint any more Sisters?

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Hi Glonojad!

I managed to finish 3 of them and 2 are progressed so that from afar they look like painted. However, they are not finished yet. I had to stop painting due to moving to another city but it is almost over and hopefully I will get back to it next week. I will post pictures as soon as I have some progress to report!

Cheers!

[Glonojad]

Yes, as I knew of this moving houses' hassle I wasn't sure how much did You manage fo finish before

So I am patiently waiting for more

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Hi guys!

I hope to get to painting soon and will commence the work on Sisters. They are by themselves a unit that will attract attention thanks to flaming bows and arrows. However, I was wondering how could I improve my painting skills and techniques to make my regiments look better, more vibrant. I have my chosen blue-gold scheme I would love to keep. I am sure there is a way to improve it though so it does not look so dark and gloom from afar.

While I have some ideas I will try to implement I would greatly appreciate your feedback what can improve the visual effect.

Thanks in advance!

[Elessehta of Yvresse]

Looking for more painting awards Mate?
Adjusting your colour scheme doesn't mean starting from scratch. Your work is really nice already, but if you augmented your lovely blue with a purple highlight, you'd find it catch the eye more I think.

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Hi Ele,

Merely trying to improve my skills I am happy you think my color scheme is nice already and I don't plan to change it. As you say, adding purple might help and I started doing that already. I was just wondering how to add to the existing colors in order to make the models look nice from afar. I have been told the army looks good but dark from the point of view of the person who is on the other side of a table for example.

Cheers!

[Elessehta of Yvresse]

The blue is nice, but on the pale side, and your gold is muted too, they go so well together though.
Part of the issue is your seeming aversion to white.
To add some brightness, maybe do a test model keeping everything how you'd normally do it, but instead of your nice golden wood grain effect, try a cool white/grey.
Maybe add some silver to the golden armour here and there as well, edging here and there, or a detail piece.

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Hi Ele,

Increasing contrast by adding more light colors (even white) is something I intend to do so thanks for reminding me about it! I will do some tests of course and try to improve the contrast further! I have some ideas I would like to try out so I hope I will be able to find time to do so!

Thanks again for taking time and adding very helpful advice!

Cheers!

[Glonojad]

Well, I don't really thing there's much left for You to improve upon, what with alresdy great skill and a good contrasting scheme, but perhaps You could try to make the gold brighter. I think it may be worth a try because with NMM you lose that natural shine of metallics which improve the contrast with matt clothes on a "classically" painted miniature.

Just my 2 grosze

[Iluvatar]

Hi Swordmaster,
I'm not sure I can help since I'm not a greay painter or modellist, but here's a first advice: could you post a picture of your army as a whole, as people/judges see it during a tournament? It could help identify what could be improved to make it pop more.
Iluvatar

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Hi guys!

Thanks a lot for feedback!

@ Glonojad

I am going to address the whole process of painting "Gold" as I have learned from a very experienced player that I don't do it properly and that, in fact, I add to much "yellow". I have a plan on how to address that that may involve change of paints. We will see, I am currently trying to find time for any painting

@ Iluvatar

That may be a good idea indeed! I borrowed the pictures from Hoodling and his blog where he reported on our game on CanCon (http://hoodlinghole.blogspot.com.au/201 ... art-4.html). I will try to get more of similar, opponent point of view ones, if these below are not enough. Let me know if that is the case!

[John Rainbow]

These are looking really nice Swordmaster. I'm a big fan of the sisters you've done and the NMM looks pretty decent to me - I certainly don't feel qualified to give you any advice on them!

[Iluvatar]

Hey, picture from Hoodling's Hole, I should have remembered them since I follow his blog!

As I said, I'm definitely not an expert, but here's what comes to my mind at first sight:
- movement trays. These are details, but they are not uniformly flocked/painted. Having them neater would improved the general coherency of the army.
- banners! I'm sure they look fine at close view, but since your army has no center piece to catch the eye, I would say that banners must take some of this role. Currently, they are mostly blue over a blue army, except Bob, and for him I'd say that green is not the best colour to match your color scheme...
- you could do with a replacement of your Eagle. Hobbit ones are very nice; Gamezone also makes good-looking ones. Bigger, more majesty to them. Not a big deal, but maybe it could help?
- another detail: base your RBT. Make a round base with MDF, put some rocks/high grass. Put one of the crew on the rock to have him show the target. Again, not a big thing, but I believe it can really improve the feel of "I've thought about details" in an army.
- the general color scheme of the army feels like blue with touches of white. While this is nice for close up views, cold colors don't catch the eye. If you manage to have a warmer touch somehow (warmer gold? banners? a warmer secondary color?), I believe it will help...
- this is hard to do with MSU, but unit fillers usually improve the look of an army. For your army, I'd look to have more scenic bases. For instance, Ellyrian Reavers could be modelled jumping over a trunk that spans over several bases - not that hard to do (you can find such bases on the net easily, or do them your self), but it could give more dynamic to units that look "bland" otherwise. Hopefully this can be done with basing only, not remodelling too much of the models...

Here's what I can think about with my close-to-null experience. I truly don't know how much these remarks are worth, but if you can grab some idea from it, I guess it will be a small start of the pay back for the enjoyment I get from all your posts, especially BR...

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Hi guys,

Thanks a lot for the feedback! I really appreciate it and any comment and suggestion is always considered carefully! So don't be shy to provide them!

@ John Rainbow

Cheers! I am happy to hear you like my work! Sisters are definitely tricky, as I tried a few new things (color shifting cloaks, flaming bows and arrows, female faces ) and all that was experimenting!

Please, don't feel like you have nothing to add! It does not have to be about the technique or colors used. It is also about the general impression you have when looking at the miniatures. Iluvatar provided a lot of great comments and they are not about the fact that my NMM still needs to get improved in order to look "realistic"

In any case, knowing that my current painting looks good is also encouraging and I am really glad you like the look of these miniatures as they are!

@ Ilovatar

I have some more from other battles but majority are still from behind my own army I think I should review them regardless as the comments you had based on these few are already great! Thanks a lot for taking the time to address them!

1. It is a good observation, I didn't pay attention to them and it seems that the reason they turned out to be non-uniform is because I prepared them at different time. While I tried to use the same approach it seems I should have been more careful. Also, some of the trays are not painted or flocked yet as I have just assembled them (Lions and Sisters).

2. I am definitely going to work on banners. In terms of details I need to work on a better quality free hand for sure. In terms of colors though, I wonder what could I do? I think I need to keep them similar to fit the theme but maybe reverse colors would do the trick? I will browse some of the experts blogs to see what they are using. Btw, green banner is from old, 5ed Lions before I changed to the different painting scheme Bob is not the guy who likes to show off but in the future I will paint a new miniature to represent him too!

3. I was indeed considering replacing eagles with either their bigger version (and yes, LotR ones are just fantastic) but also with something alternative. Maybe some kind of elementals?

4. I actually bought a scenic base for eagle claw and even have a new plastic kit to replace the old one! I was also considering adding a banner next to the crew but replacement is on the list for sure.

5. Very good point. I started adding reds and purples to the clothes to break the cold feeling of the blueish metal. As I have also mentioned before, it was suggested I use too much "yellow" and that probably adds to that cold effect too.

6. Scenic bases are indeed good option and I am currently experimenting with some for Sisters. I need to do a better job for the painting though. But I also know that such bases will look good only if more units are going to have them. I will work on those of course and I need to make some decisions now.

Thanks a lot for the feedback one more time! It is more helpful than you think and I hope I will be able to pay off that debt with improved look of the miniatures in nearby future!

Cheers!

[Iluvatar]

Glad I could provide some thoughts and ideas for improvement! But please, don't consider your self in debt: it's very much the opposite!

Well, actually, I consider myself in debt with all of Ulthuan. And the TK forum for that matter... I took so much from both will very little contribution!

Movement trays... hopefully it won't take that long to do. 2 or 3 night sessions, maybe?

Banners are a longer work. But if you're looking at repainting them, I believe it would be worth to think of them as a whole - they could tell part of the story of the army. Where do their regiments come from? Does that reflect on their banners? Do they have a symbol that ties all of them to the Outcasts? I'm thinking it would look good to have a special design for Bob's banner, and a reminder of this one on all others - just like if the banner bearers had added the Outcasts symbol to their own flag after joining the army. Not sure it would help the global view for the army (a repeated symbol would likely be small), but if you manage to draw the eye to them, it would improve the general coherence...
Colors, that's trickier. Others can probably give better advice than me to fit your color scheme...

An elemental could be interesting and fit your Outcasts theme. But I struggle to find a suitable model - it needs to be large enough, majestic, and it's obviously better if it evokes some flying ability... Do you have any idea?

Get to work on this Eagle Claw scenic base then! Do you have any picture somewhere, so we can get an idea of how it could look?
(and maybe, someday, I'll post a picture of my own... one of the very few completely painted model in my army! )

Good luck finding some time to do all of this... But having a goal and a project often really helps for motivation!

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Hi Iluvatar!

I have ordered some Arcane Bases made by MicroArt Studio, here is the link to the example I intend to use for the Eagle Claw:

http://shop.microartstudio.com/arcane-b ... p-892.html

I have some infantry and cavalry bases to test out too. If that works then I will try to order more and rebase the army. It will also pose a new challenge on how to update the movement trays That is the disadvantage of a slow painter I am afraid. If I painted quicker I would be above to finish the army before I change my mind about techniques, colors or bases

When I designed banners before I wanted to reflect golden-blue scheme I use for the entire army and that would be the bond between units. At the same time to add to the individual feel they would retain some symbols characteristic for that regiment. Hence, plastic lions have lion head on theirs. But of course, finding a symbol to repeat on the banners is good idea to add to that effect. I actually tried to do that. The simple symbol on the shields of Sea Guard is the one. I repeated that on the back banners of the heavy cavalry but they are very small so it is not visible at all (shields do the thing though).

I don't have the idea about the alternative model. In fact, magical phoenix would be great here but unfortunately we already have one in the list.

In any case talking about the option rekindles my interest into painting so thanks for that and I will post some updates, hopefully soon!

Cheers!

[Glonojad]

Well, I don't really get the "too much yellow in gold" idea... isn't yellow a warm colour already? What was ths suggsstion for replacement? White? Orange? Maybe orange...

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

HI Glonojad,

My understanding is that I add too many yellowish layers and not enough darker tones on one end of the spectrum. I start with scorched brown and such but it seems the contrast is not good enough when I immediately go to yellow colors instead of creating a bigger areas of darker brown.

Will need to experiment!

[Baleanoon]

Hi guys!

I hope to get to painting soon and will commence the work on Sisters. They are by themselves a unit that will attract attention thanks to flaming bows and arrows. However, I was wondering how could I improve my painting skills and techniques to make my regiments look better, more vibrant. I have my chosen blue-gold scheme I would love to keep. I am sure there is a way to improve it though so it does not look so dark and gloom from afar.

While I have some ideas I will try to implement I would greatly appreciate your feedback what can improve the visual effect.

Thanks in advance!

Try looking at the edge paints by GW or adding straight white to your last layer it will add that "pop" which will make your models more memorable when it comes to voting. Since you have a such a dark scheme you will need to work on drawing the eye from across the room, so either a bright center piece model or an suitably impressive display board.

[Glonojad]

Adding mode brown would neither make the gold brighter nor the model more contrasting... thee's no option but to make a prototype I guess

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Hi guys!

@ Baleanoon

Display board was in plans some time ago but due to lack of commitment and then moving to new place I had to abandon the project. Good news is that the materials I accumulated for it are going to be used by another forum member, who is far better organized in terms of his modelling projects! I am sure Jimmy will use them to great effect!

I will see if I can do something about center piece models though. They might not be as big as typical large monsters but I would love to give it a try. Time is an issue though.

@ Glonojad

What I meant is that the area covered by "yellow" may be smaller in comparison to that covered by brown. At least that is what I observed on good examples and that is my understanding of the comment on what I need to improve.

Indeed, I need to paint some more but as I have mentioned, time is a luxury. The thing is it is not going to be better so I really need to find out the way now!

[Elessehta of Yvresse]

I know I do a lot of talking in my blog SM, but dude more pictures~

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Sorry mate, you are right, will post when I have some updates.

[Glonojad]

Well, if the warmth of gold is the issue, then perhaps You could try some orange instead of pure yellow?

If prototyping a full miniature is toi much - then perhaps You could take some bits and make small sample prototypes?

[T.D.]

Your painting is on a par with your playing!

Really nice blog

[Swordmaster of Hoeth]

Cheers, mate! I really appreciate your kind words! A pity I haven't updated the blog yet but I am working on it!