Raven Guard project log

[Sception]

I'm normally a dedicated servant of the blasphemous powers, but I'll be painting a 30k Raven Guard army for a friend of mine who, in an unrelated matter, may be paying me a fair bit of money, so I figured I'd start a project log over here to track my progress.

 

Big projects start small, so first up is a batch of five test models, primed & ready to start painting:

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/test01_zpsoon18ktp.jpg

 

I've been looking for good references for 30k era Ravenguard color scheme & squad markings, I found THIS REFERENCE, but if there's any other good sources, please let me know. 

Edited July 12, 2016 by malisteen

[Joe]

in an unrelated matter, is paying me a lot of money,

Welcome to the wild world of commission painting. You've got a pretty good source for the colour scheme and squad-markings there; the Forge World books have fantastic artwork, and provide a solid basis for modelling/painting projects. I'd consider checking out the Collected Visions as well, assuming you can find a copy; it's got some fantastic alternatives to the schemes presented by Forge World.

 

Can't wait to see how these turn out; I'd entertained putting together a small RG force after I'm done with my Word Bearers.

[Sception]

Which forgeworld book has the 30k Raven Guard in it?

[Slips]

Book 3 Extermination (Fluff) and Age of Darkness Legions (rules) are the books you'd want.

 

You'll have to wait a bit more for the Generic Legion Units List since that book got taken down from the site since they haven't released the updated version for it yet (expect it around the Foregworld Weekender thats happening soons).

Edited July 3, 2016 by Slipstreams

[Sception]

Thanks.  I managed to sneak a peak at Extermination.  Very helpful.

 

 

Got the base coats mostly blocked in:

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/test02_zpsuswegzow.jpg

 

The camera's flash made the grey brushing on the armor much more stark than it is in person, but it will need to be brought down a bit with a black wash.  I'm not sure whether to use regular wash on the armor, or try the new glossy wash.  Does anybody have any experience with that stuff?

 

I'm skipping the old color-coded stuff, imo looks garish on a black scheme, and going for something closer to the black & white FW version of their colors.  not quite the same, since the FW version of the scheme has dark grey with black iconography on a lot of models, and I just don't see that working well in miniature form.  Also, the fw stuff has black or dark grey soft armor - the ribbed joint areas between the heavier plates of the power armor.  I'm opting instead to do those silver, which I think is more of a 40k raven guard thing?  But I prefer contrasting soft armor on power armored models, helps define the forms better when viewed on the table, imo, and the friend I'm painting these for has given me the go ahead to exercise some artistic license.

 

So, still needed - washes, edge highlights, freehand squad & legion markings, red eyes, and then these will be done apart from painting the plasma guns (red plasma coils to match the eyes).  Should have this mini test batch done this week, then it's just a matter of getting approval from the commissioner to start the first larger batch.

 

Any thoughts or advice from you guys?

Edited July 12, 2016 by malisteen

[MorgothNL]

Good start, and I wish you all the best with your progress and finding your ways along the way.

I'll wait with my comments until I see a more completed model and a picture without the flash (cause like you said, the grey drybrush highlight seems too light at the moment but that is most likely no true on the real model). 

 

Good luck and I'm waiting to see your progress and the models that will be in his list.

[Sception]

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/test03_zpsa9fahlkh.jpg

 

Well, this picture isn't ideal, but is somewhat better.  Still stuck with a flash, so the darker grey is still a bit starker than it is in person, and the lighter areas are washed out, but at least I'm using my own camera again, with its settings that I know how to manipulate, so this pic is a much better representation of how they actually look now than the last one was of how they looked back then.

 

The models still need edge highlighting, freehand squad markings, small rivets picket out, and plasmaguns painted.  Maybe a bit of brown wash around the backpack vents.  I had hoped to have these finished last weekend, but heavy workload thursday through sunday got in the way.  new target is wednesday.

Edited July 12, 2016 by malisteen

[Charlo]

Really nice looking RG!

[Sception]

Models are done but for the plasma guns, sealer, & maybe some gloss on the eyes.

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/test04_zpsksut7pqw.jpg

 

white balance is off in this pic, but I'm not going back to snap more pics tonight...

Edited July 14, 2016 by malisteen

[Sception]

Running a bit behind.  Lost a week to a bedbug incident*, and even now am stuck sleeping at a place that isn't my apartment where I can't really paint, so progress is slower than usual as I go back and forth.

 

Still, I got approval from the contracting friend on the test batch pictured above - sadly never did get a good picture of them finished, but oh well - and have received the first production batch:

 

10 mor deythans

10 breachers (those are the ones with the shields, right?)

5 more tactical support (the rest of the test unit)

5 recon scouts

1 rhino

a bunch of magnetized weapons - I'm not sure which exactly go with which models, but that doesn't matter since I don't plan to paint weapons differently from one unit to another

 

I've started with the infantry, leaving the tank and weapons aside.  Got some cleaning done, priming, basic overbrush and basing done.  The owner would like me to focus on finishing the mor deythans first, here's the initial prep work on them:

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/mordeythan01_zps43xjppir.jpg

 

please excuse the even worse than usual picture - my camera's memory card was in my laptop at the place where I'm sleeping, while the models are at my usual place, so I only had a phone to take a picture with, and it's not the best camera.

 

I'm busy today, but tomorrow is mostly free, so I plan to get some progress on these guys done then, along with better pictures of these plus pics of the rest of the models in the batch.

 

 

 

*if you're considering bedbugs, well... having tried them now, I'd strongly recommend you to opt for some other far more pleasant alternative.  Like ticks.  Or roaches.

[Jarl Kjaran Coldheart]

Those are sexy looking models!

[AlphariusOmegon108]

How do you paint these beauties?

[Sception]

Process:

basic undercoat:

- black primer

- black undercoat to get what primer missed

- heavy overbrush of 2 parts abaddon black, 1 part mechanicus standard grey

- light drybrush of mechanicus grey around raised edges

 

bases

- paint metal bits on base steel legion drab

- heavy stipple/drybrush metal bits on base jokaero orange

- more lightly stipple/drybrush metal bits on base leadbelcher

- paint concrete panels P3 Bastion Grey

- paint rubble mechanicus grey

- wash metal & panels with agrax earthshade

- wash rubble & some metal areas with nuln oil

- brush/stipple base with bastion/mechanicus/leadbealcher as appropriate

- even more lightly brush/stipple with 1 part bastion 1 part celestra / celestra / runefang steel respectively

 

Metal bits:

- base coat leadbelcher

- wash nuln oil

- highlight runefang

 

Black Armor:

- wash nuln oil

- fix any mistakes & clean up any wash splotchiness with 2 part black 1 part grey mix from before

- edge highlight mechanicus grey

 

White Bits:

- multiple watered down coats of celestra grey

- wash nuln oil

- celestra grey again

- layer white

 

Red eyes:

- mephiston red

- P3 khador red base

- 2 parts red base 1 part white

- bloodletter glaze to reduce pinkishness

- ardcoat gloss after matt spary varnish

 

 

Note that I went back and fourth between the different areas, such that the 'black wash' step in several of the above are all the same step in practice.  I use a mix of P3 and GW paints, but I listed the GW equivalents for most of the P3 that I use, since for the most part they're pretty interchangeable.  For instance, I use a P3 paint instead of the runefang steel, but it's basically the same thing.  The only exceptions are the Khador red base and Bastion Grey, which I specifically listed since they don't really have good GW equivalents.

 

 

 

How I did the hand painted stuff:

 

squad numbers on center of chest:

- pigma micron pen, easy peasy

 

legion numbers on knees:

- skinny brush

- 2 horizontal parallel lines of celestra grey

- one vertical line in middle

- add x's to either side

- highlight white over already laid down design

- in some places my hand wasn't steady enough and I ended up with hour glasses instead of Xs.  in those places I painted black dots in to fix the problem.

 

tactical support squad marking:

- paint celestra circle

- paint 2 parts black 1 part mechanicus circle inside celestra circle to make a ring.

- paint celestra triangle in that

- layer white over design

 

 

 

My family is unexpectedly in town, so no extra painting progress or pictures today after all.  Definitely tomorrow, though.

Edited August 14, 2016 by malisteen

[Sception]

Whelp, I finally finished the mor deythans.

 

Sadly, while I've recovered my memory card, my old camera's battery is finally well and truely dead, so I'm stuck with lousy camera phone for the foreseeable future.  Maybe I can get the guy I'm painting these for to take better pictures for me?  Anyway:

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/mordeythan02_zpszp5veqdx.jpg

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/mordeythan03_zpsxvmk4uyr.jpg

 

I'm done all ten, apart from the weapons, but you can make out little enough in these smaller pics...  

 

I was happy with how they turned out, especially the white capes (and matching helmet cowls to imply hooded cloaks), though they are admittedly somewhat messy in person, which doesn't really come through in these low quality photos.

 

Process was:

 

black undercoat

watered down celestra grey (2 coats)

black wash

layer back the celestra grey

 

then super water down some white - this would honestly probably be better done with medium rather than water, but hindsight and all.

 

Anyway, I diluted the white till it was milk-like in consistency, practically a wash or glaze, very transparent.  Then I wiped most of it off the brush so it wouldn't run, and just kind of built up highlighted areas on the cape with repeated layers of that till I liked the result.  If I went too far anywhere, I went back in with watered down celestra to bring it back down a bit.

 

 

I couldn't fit the squad number on their chest bit, so I put a white circle on the left knee and put it there.  These guys are pretty much covered with details already, so no other freehand squad markings.

 

 

 

 

They're supposed to be a stealthy elite scout bunch, and at first I had tried a dark grey & black 'recon variant' color scheme from the FW book, but it did not turn out at all well, you couldn't really see any of the cool detailing and the test model didn't look like they'd stand out at all as a unit, so I decided to emphasize their out-of-character role as a fancy elite centerpiece unit that should stand out on the table by using more white instead of less, even if it came a bit at the expense of their in-character role as an infiltration team that doesn't want to stand out.  The owner liked them, so that't good enough for me.

Edited August 28, 2016 by malisteen

[Sception]

Got some better pics of the Mor Deythan's from the owner (thanks!)

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/mordeythan04_zpsw6tr2xem.jpg

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/mordeythan07_zpsxo8vnltq.jpg

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/mordeythan05_zpsawhaets1.jpg

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/mordeythan06_zpsnsomo0d4.jpg

 

 

 

Next up, I gotta paint the rest of the squad's weapons - two more missile launchers, plus a bunch of sniper rifles and combi weapons

 

 

Oh, and for fun, since I was moving stuff from my phone anyway, here's a pic of the whole pile before I started on it:

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/army_zpsdbctjbyn.jpg

 

Long ways to go, yet.

[Sception]

It's been a while since I've updated this thread, mostly due to lack of camera. 5 scouts, 5 plasma gunners, and a handful of assorted weapons were finished since my last update.

Left in the initial pile are 10 breachers and a rhino. The breachers were supposed to be done today, but have been delayed by a combination of non-project-related family hubbub and the fact that I forgot I was supposed to apply brass etching raven guard chapter symbols to their shields, and had to back and add them which took longer than expected, in a couple cases the glue hardened almost instantly with the sigils misaligned and I had to carefully cut them away and reposition them, etc. It was kind of a fiasco, but they're in place now, so things are back on track.
 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/breachers01_zpsgo6tkfev.jpg

[The Pounder]

Nicely done!

I may nick your method of painting black for my

Reavers and Justaerin.

Thanks.

[Sception]

If you're borrowing it, I recently dropped the initial grey overbrush & drybrush.  I find there's little discernible difference, since I kind of layering it over again after the black wash anyway, though I might bring it back for characters.

 

The dark grey also works a lot better on smaller & more detailed models which still look black, but less well on large flat panels like tanks and such, which do end up looking just grey.  Might skip the dark grey and just go from black to edge highlights?  or maybe just go with a darker dark black, like 4 or 5 parts black to 1 part grey, instead of 2 or 3?  I'm not sure.  I'm going to have to try some things on my own black legion rhinos where messing up isn't a big deal before I start work on the commisioned vehicles.

Edited October 20, 2016 by malisteen

[foamy248]

These are really nice Raven Guard  The Mor Deythan look great (+ good idea with the cowl designs on the helmets). Keep it up!

[Charlo]

Wooooah those are some nice breachers!

 

Also totally sold me on the under-slung missile launcher.

[Sception]

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/breachers02_zpseesmiv2d.jpg

 

Finished the breachers.  Only got pics of these five, though.  Just the rhino left in the first batch.

[Sception]

The Mor Deythans' rhino is done, finishing the first batch that I started back in July:

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/rhino01_zpsuxhdgn90.jpg

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/rhino02_zpslyybl5ye.jpg

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/rhino03_zpsu1r9ovw1.jpg

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/rhino04_zpsketqeehx.jpg

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/rhino05_zpsgqku1rew.jpg

 

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z142/Malisteen/Ravenguard/rhino06_zpsh7cf4w0z.jpg

 

Total painted so far:

 

5 sniper scouts

10 plasma support marines

10 breachers

10 mor deythans

1 rhino

 

At some point I'll have to ask the owner to take a group shot of them for me.

 

Second similarly sized batch should be arriving next week, though with the holidays coming up I doubt I'll have much to show before january.

[Sception]

I was right, basically no time to work over the holidays.  But now that they're done, it's time to start up again.  Right now I've got some... seekers, I think they're called?  A Raven Guard power armored infantry unit, anyway.  Plus four apothecaries and a rhino in need of some serious fixing up (I have a history with that rhino, which I'll get into when I get around to working more on it specifically.

 

I've started everything except the rhino, but after being idle for so long, working on so many models at once was a bit much, so I've decided to work on finishing up just one apothecary at a time until I'm feeling warmed up again.

 

Here's the first so far:

http://i.imgur.com/7ZVeUT4.png

 

Somewhat blotchy after the blackwash, but that'll clean up in layering.

[Sception]

Clean up layering took forever.  Like, I thought it was going to be maybe an hour, and instead it was multiple hours over a couple days.  I'm so glad there are only a handful of these apothecaries.

 

http://i.imgur.com/7EK7O9J.png

 

There's a lot yet to do if I'm going to finish this by tomorrow evening.  It's not impossible, but it'll certainly be a stretch.

[Nemac Vradon]

Well, that's my likes used for the day already. Very very nice Raven Guard malisteen. What is your recipe for the white cloaks (If you don't mind sharing :tu:).

 

Nemac