Crimson Paladin II - Part III

 

Hats off to whoever sculpted that shield.

It's been a while since posting because work. Again. Sigh. I've been progressing in the background but ever so slowly.

The major change visible from that angle is the shield. I finally painted enough to be comfortable attaching it. During the preparation phase I'd noticed it didn't fit snugly to the arm so I'd actually put a small amount of green-stuff in place to correct for that. Of course I put too much on, but trimming it back was far easier than trying to add more.

The initial fitting had the shield at a strange angle and fortunately I was able to move it around without damage. I was going for a slightly raised shield look, as though he was about to deflect some incoming strike. If the shield is jutting out too far it just looks odd, but neither can it be too close to the body. I think I managed something acceptable, but I'm not entirely happy with the look. I'm hoping the head will help when that's in place.

Painting the shield is more troublesome that one might think. It's not bright enough with the reds, but they're very difficult to highlight between all the metallics. The back of the shield is also something I've been debating for a long time: do I make it black, red, something else? I settled on red eventually, but left it as dark as I could. I really can't tell how bright to make something until it's fully assembled, and trying to correct this later is not simple. Being nearly constantly tired doesn't help either.

The metallics are very simple at this stage, and will remain so until after varnishing. I'm not going for multiple colours: I'll stick with the same colours used for the rest of the armour trim and trust to highlights to make the shapes stand out. I can always change my mind later, and I am a little concerned about overwhelming with a single colour. There are gemstones that will break up the monotony, which of course will be red (everything is red: there is the blood, and there is nothing else) but weirdly I'm more concerned about the scroll messing with the overall balance.

Now that more of the model is assembled and I can start to get a feel of the composition, I'm noticing that the base is a bit barren. I will add depth to what is an uneven ground, but this is a Crimson Paladin in the middle of a fight. Whoever he's facing, they're in trouble and have likely already lost a limb. I figure a severed Sons of Horus arm lying on the ground would fit thematically.

-- silly painter.