Deathwatch Chaplain WIP #1

Chappy

Hot on the heels of the "minigun guys" comes the model of the Deathwatch Chaplain. He'll likely end up as a Blood Angel Chaplain, mostly because I don't have a Deathwatch force, and because he can fill the role of a Chaplain without a jump-pack.

So why this model next? Simple really: black armour. Horus himself needs starting, even if his base isn't yet finished, and I wanted a bit more practice with black before I went there.

Using the airbrush, I started on a first highlight with Mechanicus Standard Grey (air), followed by Dawnstone (air), followed by a light coat of Administratum Grey (air).

This did not work. I appear to have damaged part of the airbrush, and it was sputtering and spitting far too much. Couldn't get an even coat. I also probably have been using too small a needle (the 0.15mm) for this kind of work to learn properly, so I'll switch to a larger (0.4mm) for the next models, and have ordered something in between (0.2mm) to hopefully help in future. On a side note, after the current set of models I might go on a run of the Legions simply for airbrush practice. We'll see.

At any rate, with the airbrushing done there was something to work with. Fortunately, I have a black base paint that is now useless as a base paint. Leaving it out overnight can have that effect, but it was recovered with some flow improver and heavy shaking. It now has more in common with a layer paint, and is therefore excellent at blending highlights back into a darker area.

Let this be a lesson: that paint which is ruined, don't get rid of it, try and make something from it! Just because it's no longer useful for the original purpose doesn't mean it's not now useful for something else. A bit of thinner and it can be turned into a wash, or it might be good for dry-brushing, or good to just mix with something else. Experiment and see: it's not like there's anything to lose.

With the somewhat disastrous airbrushing now fixed, a bit of Dawnstone (layer) around selected edges, and that's the basic armour complete. Trimming was always going to be gold, which in this case became the following list:

• Retributor Armour (base)
• Druchii Violet (wash, over it all)
• Gehenna's Gold (layer)
• Auric Armour Gold (layer, edge highlighting)
• Liberator Gold (layer, fine edge highlighting, lots of shaking & stirring to mix the bottle properly)

In this case, Balthasar Gold probably would have been a better choice to start with; as it turns out, Retributor Amour and Druchii Violet more or less has the same appearance of a dull Balthasar Gold. I could have used the wash more sparingly to only do careful, select areas for a bit more depth had I started with something else, but lesson learned.

The Crozius Arcanum had a couple more steps done, namely the addition of a small amount of Druchii Violet at the end to help define a few places, and also some Reikland Fleshshade (wash, gloss) applied sparingly to tie together some of the metallic blending, and give some extra depth (for lack of a better word) overall. The Crozius will be a focal point of the entire model, so it deserves that little bit of extra effort.

Scrolls and parchment are likely to be painted next, allowing the missing shoulder pad, backpack, and head (skull-shaped helmet of course) to be added without trouble. The pace of this model has been surprisingly quick, but that probably as more to do with some spare time, and knowing which colours to use and how to achieve a desired look.

4 other models have actually been started as well: the remaining Grey Knight Terminators. That, however, is a post for another day.

-- silly painter.