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| Stirland Mud with sprinkles! |
So I ripped this guy off his brown base and stuck his brown butt on a black base. I made a special trip to the CLGS to get some of the new texture paint to try out a more complicated basing method other than my paint, sand and forget method.
A short aside about the local GW store: I am starting to really hate even going in there. May of the black shirts are ok but there are two that are just awful. Chris is loud, obnoxious and really a jerk. He is the black shirt that denied me the use of the new paints and then painted right in front of me without offering his own. I am still shocked at the thought of that. The other is Eric (but he spells it all weird). Both of them do this really fake chatting you up every flipping time you come in. "Whatcha workin on? (So I know what to sell you)" "Need and brushes (...at our crazy markup?)" "Why don't you enter our BS contest/tourny?"
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| ...a Drybrush later. |
Every time. I was just in there for a single pot of paint and I have to answer 15 questions. The same 15 questions I have to answer every time I am in there. I hate this nonsense. I hate it at K-mart when I have to answer 5 questions before I can sign my slip. No, I do not want to donate to your charity. No, I do not want to sign up for your card. No, I don't. No, I don't. No, I DON'T!
That is just how it is at GW stores. The mindless and patently insincere patter is bad enough but the never changing K-Mart style scripts is maddening. They know enough to remember my name, why can't they remember enough to know that I always say no. That I have never once taken them up on their offers.
/rant
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| Black wash turns everything to mud :( |
I started with a coat of Stirland Mud but found the paint a little too dry to apply, so I watered it down just a touch to make it usable. Then I found the grit in it not varied enough, so I sprinkled some sand on the wet paint to make it more lumpy and textured (first picture). Then it was too bland, so I dry brushed it Codex Grey (second picture). Then it was too bright, so I washed it Nuln Oil (third picture). Then it was too dark, so I dry brushed it Codex Grey again. Then it was not bright enough so I mixed in a little Bleached Bone without cleaning my brush and dry brushed it again (4th picture).
At this point, even if I simplify it, I have a 3 step basing process where there was just a two step. And I do not think it looks superior to just glue and sand. That "OMG NEW PAINTS" video was BS. This is not easier than painting sand!
I don't know, man. I am at a loss to come up with a plan that does not look like garbage and is still simple and easy. Tony had a good suggestion of trying to do city bases. I think I could do that fine on 40mm mases but on the smaller guys, it is going to be difficult to build convincing scenery. I want to do broken walls and rusty razorwire, but am going to get tired of making each base a masterpiece. Really I want the bases plain so that they do not detract from the model.
I am just at a loss. :(
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| The finished product... ? |
For what it's worth, I liked the second picture, although it's a bit simple.
ReplyDeleteWhat about adding a few bits of sprue cut down to look like small bricks? You could paint them brick red with the basecoat color before washing everything with Nuln Oil so they look scorched/weathered. I reckon just a couple would work on a 25mm base, with more on the bigger bases with maybe a bit of slightly larger wreckage added in. They don't need to be masterpieces, just a bit more visual interest that still helps the mini stand out and be awesome.
I hear you. I am going to try that with some sprue bits and old model train brick walls. The boys over at d6 Generation talked about this a while ago and had some great ideas. I am thinking some Mechrite Red and a black wash will give me what I want. Maybe some bleached bone dry brushed over too.
DeleteI agree with you though that the second one that is the textured paint and a dry brush looks the best. I only did the wash to darken down the base and thus brighten up the model. I am going to try it again and see how it turns out.
The next one is going to be a leader for the Long Fangs with a missile launcher!