Chaos Warrior miniaturefrom Games Workshop. Painted by Alex Nemes.

This year instead of visiting Game Summit as a guest I’ve volunteered as an Ambassador in the Workshop section. Last year I had a great time attending workshops with Alex Nemes, practicing techniques on plastic Space Marines in the paint-and-take and competing in both the Golden Brush and Speed Painting Competition. I won both.

I had a great time and made some new friends at Game Summit, but if I have to be honest I felt that the Workshop was a distant fourth behind the Arena, RPG Den and Pavilion. This year is going to be different.

This year Alex Nemes is doing more than running a painting workshop, he’s running The Workshop entire. Under his leadership I am confident that the other areas of Game Summit will soon be jealous of The Workshop. He’s attracted new sponsors, secured new prizes and material. He is pouring all his energy into making Game Summit’s Workshop great and I’m happy to be a part of it.

In addition to all of this Mr. Nemes will be running a number of workshop to help painters of all levels improve. Even the most beginning painter who wishes only to field a minimally painted force in a minimum of time will benefit from Mr. Nemes’ teachings. To the right is a Chaos Warrior who’s flesh he painted in 20-30 minutes while discussing other painting concepts and also painting the cloak on another Warrior, seen below.

It was an informal planning session amongst the Workshop Ambassadors. We discussed the demonstrations and workshops we’d be running, and then Mr. Nemes showed us some of his techniques so that we could practice under his tutelage to make sure anyone coming to the paint-and-take will get the best, and consistent advice.

Chaos Warrior miniature from Games Workshop. Painted by Alex Nemes.

Ork Nob miniature from Games Workshop. Painted by Tyler Provick

I’m sure Mr. Nemes won’t be thrilled I’m showing his work. It was rushed, using some old paints he’d borrowed from a friend that probably hadn’t seen a brush in over a year. Still, I’m not sure I could replicate these rough blends even now. My own attempt, the Ork Nob above, isn’t as smooth and has some issues with the placement of highlights and shade. Knowing the theory of highlight placement and actually putting it into practice are two different things. True improvement can only be made by applying theory, not just studying it.

It was really helpful to see Mr. Nemes’ brushstrokes. Watch it live communicates so much more in mere minutes than even the most eloquently written tutorial. Sometimes the smallest detail can unlock the key to massive improvements, something which can only be seen to be understood.

Tyler

Motivation failing. Want to paint Flames of War.

Now, more than ever, I am feeling the drag of dedicating myself to a single project. Even I’m losing interest in posting yet another image of partially painted Brits. Tonight I had no energy to paint but forced myself to paint the blue of the canteens and the beige breadbags. I’m glad I did. Even painting that little bit means that I’m a little closer to being finished.

I don’t even think it’s painting the same figures that is wearing on me. Rather it’s the lack of variety of blog posts that has me down. I hope, at least, that you found those few painting theory articles I’ve posted interesting. In reality, it means it’s been a while since I’ve posted WIP shots of my Brits.

Four figures to a batch seems like the right number.

For the next little bit I’ll only be sharing figures as I finish them. I’d like to start showing the unit as it grows, which is more interesting to me. I’ll also think of something else to talk about in the mean time.

Tyler

Do not fear, I am still working on my 1812 project. I got hung up on the details of the last two and went too dark on the crossbelts. I need to simplify. As it is the lace, crossbelts and poms all have different base colours for the white. Poms are blue, lace greenish to show the colours within the lacing, and the crossbelts buff. Sometimes I get caught up in trying to make the miniatures look better and forget that I’m painting an army. At least the pants seem to match together.

This base is a fifth of the total unit. Figures by Victrix.

The newest addition to the base are in the left file. I like the loading figure, although I think that’s a sergeant’s arm. Oh well, there are enough spare right arms that it should be a problem. Theoretically I only need to finish eight more figures before I’ve painted enough for a Lasalle unit.

Seen from the side, the loading figure helps sell the animation of the base. Figures by Victrix.

In fact, I’m not going to attach these figures to their base just yet. This way I can temporarily base them for Lasalle and get two units out of them.

Tyler

Oh, how I wish I was one of those people that can keep all the facts together in their head and see the big picture. I’m painting some more Incorporated Militia and realized that I can’t wildly vary the pant colours like I’d intended. To do that would have required building the entire unit and then picking poses from them to form batches, each batch having a slightly different shade of jacket and pants. When they’re put back into the unit they’ll look realistically worn. I’ve discovered from my WWII Canadians that a unified painting and basing style is more important to unit integrity than specific shades. My Canadians are all different shades, but when placed together they blend together to form a whole.

Oh god, the pink

Now, since I’ve painting six of the eight miniatures that make up a base I’m going to end up with a clump of all the same colour pants. This isn’t terrible, just not exactly what I wanted. I’m not sure if I’m going to vary the pant colours beyond what will naturally happen when I mix up the batch from scratch each time. That’s ok, though. I never worry about mistakes I’ve already made. Make a note and try to do it right the next time.

Still, it’d be nice to be able to plan things out in my head like some people do. Oh well, back to painting. I was just taking a little break while a wash dried…

<thump> <thump> <thump>

<painting noises>

Oh God, the pink!

<photography noises>

<thump> <thump> <thump>

Well, that didn’t turn out at all. I tried to bring the highlighting on the jackets up a notch and ended up with a pink mess. How do you highlight red? I’ve since applied a few glazes of red to tone down the pink and I’m calling it good enough. Before the next batch I’m going to look at how people highlight red to try to get some ideas. Although maybe it doesn’t look to bad in this picture.

Tyler

While there is room for improvement I am very happy with these miniatures. If these are the worst results I achieve in my entire 1812 project I will be very, very happy.

I have a couple more miniatures primed and ready to go, just waiting for me to get a chance to paint them. I’m going to experiment with moving to a four-figure batch. I had previously decided that six was the magic number. Now I think there is no magic number, just an amount of figures I can comfortably paint in a set time period. While the majority of these miniatures are easy to paint the final details kill me. I will see if painting less models at the same time help things out.

Victrix 28mm Peninsular Center Company painted as Incorporated Militia of Upper Canada.

The reason I’m only painting two figures in my next batch is to round out this base of eight models. After that I have some interesting planning to do. One full base will be missing a figure from the back rank. There’ll be a half base of three figures and two full bases with the command group spread across them. Unfortunately this means the unit will look strange in column. Hmmm, this is something I need to think about. It’s too bad that British units didn’t deploy their colours directly behind the line in order to maximize firepower. That would make my job much easier. Still, I’m happy with my progress.

Tyler

Another few nights of painting left.

I’ve run out of podcasts to listen to so I brought my laptop into my workroom. I’m listening to audio commentary on Star Wars IV. I love listening to commentary while I paint. I’m not sure I would ever sit and watch a movie with the commentary. Well, that’s not true, I love commentary in general. For some movies, like Star Wars, I don’t need to watch what’s going on. However, with a movie like Seven Samurai which is in so many ways a visual movie, I could happily sit and watch it with the commentary.

The side effect to this is that I can take breaks and blog. This will be a little disjointed but it may result in me finally having an early night. You say, after painting my fill I’d go upstairs to my office and write a blog post, do a little promotion and then go to bed much later than I’d prefer. Now, when I take small breaks to rest cramping muscles I can write a bit.

I’ve just finished the lace around the facing colours on the collar. I would normally do all the lace at once, but I wanted to focus just on the collars since it was the most difficult. Not only did I have to paint a thin black line on the collar, around the back between the head and collar, but I needed to leave enough of the facing colour, in this case green, so that you can tell there was a facing colour. The black line also needed to be thick enough that I could then put a thin offwhite line on it to represent the actual lacing.

The more fine the detail, the more muscle control you need. In a perfect world this should be a problem but I, like most people, over-tense our muscles when we’re trying to have control. Really it is preferable to relax. Not only will it save you some sore muscles but you’ll actually have control. I find that once I’ve painted something a few times I’m able to relax. This is another reason I just focused on the collars, to be able to just relax into the painting.

Another tip is to thin the paint and use a couple of coats if needed. The paint will flow better. Often with a fine brush the paint tends to dry in the bristles, so I also add extra Slow-Dri. Finally, make sure you unload your brush before you begin. There’s nothing worse than flooding the fine detail you’re trying to paint.

The most challenging part of these miniatures is turning out to be the crossbelts and various straps. The Victrix miniatures have nice, fine detail with straps closer to a scale thickness than a metal miniature is capable of. The downside is they aren’t as raised, and harder to pick out. Compound this with the fact that my chosen basecolour doesn’t cover in a single coat. I’ve added two coats of a mix of buff and white. Right now I’m waiting for a shading wash to dry. I may have to put on a second wash to strengthen it, so I’m waiting for the first to dry.

One of the differences between this technique and my old technique is I’m not leaving such thick black lines for blacklining. This means I’m relying more on shading for differentiation between surfaces than normal. I’m worried that the washes I’m doing won’t be strong enough and may have to come back in and line in my blackline with a thin black wash. Unfortunately this is going to slow me down.

When I painted the red of the jackets I put a little red in the small areas between straps I normally leave black. This means there isn’t an existing black line to leave. I think next time I will add the black back in after painting the jacket, but before painting the straps. It’ll be easier since I don’t need as fine a line, but will help make the straps stand out.

Tyler

Every free second I’ve had this weekend I’ve wanted to paint these Victrix figures. The anticipation of painting them helped me power through the last of my WWII Canadians. Now that I’m actually painting them I find that I am enjoying the process even more than I expected. Sure, I was looking forward to painting them, but I didn’t think they would be this fun.

I am assembling a box of Victrix British Peninsular Center Company. At first I was planning on assembling the entire box; all 52 miniatures. I started even before I finished the Canadians, but once I’d finished painting them I got bored of just assembling every night. I had put 22 together which sure looked like a lot on the painting table, but wasn’t yet half of the box.

I drew three 60mm by 60mm squares on a scrap piece of floating floor I use as a tray and started planning my units. The Victrix box is comprised of four copies of two sprues. At first I was planning to build each sprue from start to finish before moving on to the next. However, after thinking about how I want each base to look I realized that I needed to pick and choose based on the collection of poses I wanted.

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I’m not 100% decided on what unit I’m going to paint these figures as. At first I was going to paint them as the 41st from Queenston Heights. However, I’m no longer convinced that the Incorporated Militia received Belgic shakos. The only reference I have says that they received shakos, but not what kind. It’s possible that they received surplus Stovepipe shakos instead of  new belgic shakos. If at some point I find out contrary I’ll paint then again with the proper headgear.

Of course, I’m still left with the problem of only needing 30 figures. Perhaps I’ll use any leftovers to expand the 49th Foot I have painted for use in skirmish gaming.

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I am trying a new painting style, even though I’ve been satisfied with what I’ve been painting lately. It’s plenty good, but I think I can be better. Specifically I am missing a little nuance of shading that my current role model David Imrie achieves in his painting. I’ve poked and prodded to find out what I’m missing and I think it comes down to washing and a fourth highlight. Mr. Imrie brushes on Army Paint Strong Tone after painting on his middle colour. Once this is dry he follow with another coat of his middle colour, this time as a highlight. The wash becomes two shades with a gradient, and he adds an extra highlight where needed. This results in more layers of highlights than is possible with merely painting on layers.

I am learning. The technique has worked the best on the flesh. While painting the pants I realized that adding some slow-dri to the wash helped it from staining surfaces. You can see the difference between the middle figure and the one on the right, where the right-most figure’s lower right (our left) leg is darker than it should be. The sculpting on these miniatures does a good job at catching the wash. I’m not sure if quite so many deep creases are natural for the crotches, but that’s certainly the common style.

So far this technique seems to be going fast. It’s very important to work from the inside out. Waiting for the wash to dry is a little annoying and may result in me stretching my legs from time to time. As I improve I expect to continue to speed up. I will be more familiar with the technique and the models.

Like my first attempts at the three layer technique I will learn lessons that can only be learned through practice. If I see as much improvement from this as I did from my first attempts at this I am excited for the quality of work I’ll be able to produce.

Tyler

I can feel the fatigue settle in as I start painting yet another set of webbing. Fortunately, the end is nigh as I am mid-way through my last batch. Partly to blame is the batch size, eight models instead of the normal six. The question was: which is better, a batch of six and a batch of two, or a batch of eight and finished. My choice is self-evident. At this stage the idea of six and two fills me with greater loathing than I am experiencing with my batch of eight, so I am contented by my choice. Eight will not become my regular batch.

I’ve ordered my box of Victrix and although it hasn’t arrived I am keen to finish my Canadians first, even if the new miniatures must remain unloved until I do. I am saddened that the time has passed from surprisingly quick delivery to standard Canada Post and pray daily to my wife: “Any mail?” Refrain: “No” “Maybe tomorrow, Amen.” My dealer was even good enough to send it earlier than expected. I hope Canada Post doesn’t let his good deed go to waste.

The last batch, minus the two prone figures.

Back to the Canadians. To experiment or not the experiment, that is the question. Is it nobler in the mind to suffer the chore and bore of repeated brushstrokes or take up new techniques amongst a sea of styles and by experimenting, change them? By which I mean to say that I’m unhappy with the flesh this batch because I tried something new. I’m always trying something new, although in this case it is more a variant of my existing technique rather than something all new. I tried a wash to darken the shading. I’d also mixed my shade a little darker to begin with and ended up with too harsh of a transition between shade and mid.

To make things worse, the sculpting on the Bolt Action Miniatures faces is poor. Faces are pinched and puckered, making it difficult to use the surface of the miniature as a guide for shades and highlight. At least this comes at the end where I already have a crowd of miniatures in which to lose this batch. I’m also less than satisfied with the battledress, but that was simply caused by over-highlighting. The final highlight requires a confident painter. It takes confidence to leave an entire leg un-highlighted because there’s nothing that would catch the light. Perhaps I need another step between mid-tone and final highlight. Something to think of.

Tyler

This is something the gentlemen on the Napoleon Podcast like to say about Napoleon. It’s a good podcast, though centered completely on the life and times of Napoleon. My interest in Napoleon is secondary as he features very little in the War of 1812. However, it is an interesting story and it never hurts to expand ones basic knowledge of such a “well known” subject. This is all just a round-about way to mention that I’m still painting and feel like I’m on the home stretch. Oh, I still have another 20 figures to paint so I guess technically I’m at the half-way point, or almost there since I still have to varnish and base the current batch of six.

I’m not sure what is making it feel like I’m almost done. Perhaps because I’ve painted as many miniatures already as I have yet to paint. Perhaps because of Christmas my ability to buy new miniatures will be temporarily eclipsed by my ability to paint them. For whatever reason I have been enjoying this project, not least for the increased confidence of being able to complete future wargaming projects.

The fourth batch, first highlight. The green is staying on the grey side, as intended.

I’m made some changes to my colours for this batch. My saga in paint mixing continues as I try yet another shade of green. This time I am happy with the results. While studying the various colour plates, original examples in the War Museum, and recreationist’s pictures I’ve realized that I’ve been painting my webbing with too much white. The problem stems from not going dark enough with my initial basecoat. In this batch I’ve darkened the webbing and I think the result is good.

Weathered and ready for insignia. Even on the final highlight the green looks pleasantly grey and faded. I may have found my favorite combination for WWII Canadian Battledress Green.

Here we have the mostly finished batch. All that really remains is to add the insignia to the shoulders and paint the bases. Follow that up with varnish and flock and they will complete my first order of twenty miniatures. I have another eight waiting to paint but I may take a quick break. I want to at least finish painting the Wargames Factory Viking and review it on this blog. I’d also like to paint my Big Wullie for the Warlord Games Big Wullie painting competition. I didn’t think I’d get the chance, but the deadline for the contest was pushed back to January 1st.

For those keeping count my project total has increased by four figures. The reason is simple, to get the collection of figures for this Canadian platoon I want I needed to buy an extra four models. Instead of languishing in a box somewhere I will paint them as I paint the rest. They won’t strictly go to waste, as two are PIAT gunners who could be attached to the platoon from company level.

I decided to include the traditional heartfelt apologies for lack of posts at the end lest I appear to be too hard luck to suffer to live. A nasty stomach bug accounted for a couple of days, the rest I have no excuse for. There is certainly an element of wanting to make big useful posts instead of smaller conversational pieces, something I’ve suffered from before. I hope to remedy that by making at least one more post this weekend.

Perhaps now would be a good time to mention what a wonderful resource Google Reader is for those wanting to follow a blog. Creating a Google account is simple and free. It gives you access to a wide range of Google resources, including Google Reader. Within Reader you can add the blogs you visit frequently to your subscription list, then visit the Google Reader website as a single source for updates and new blog posts.

There are a couple of useful goodies that make this process even easier, both found in the Settings section, under Goodies. The first is Put Reader in a Bookmark. Simply drag the next button provided into your browser’s quick-link bar and hit it anytime you are reader for a new blog post. It brings you directly to the blog in question so you can see and access the entire website. When I’m in the mood to read blogs I open my browser, hit next and read. So simple.

The second is similar, in that it is a bookmark for your quick links. It’s called Subscribe as you Surf, and is a link which will automatically load the blog you are currently reading into Google Reader. So, find a new blog you may want to check out, click the Subscribe button on your browser quick-link bar and it will automatically open Reader to allow you to subscribe. It’s somewhat of a misnomer, you don’t subscribe to the blog until you do so within Google Reader, but it’s a lot easier than copying and pasting a URL or trying to find a mis-placed RSS link.

Essentially, if a blog updates daily I read it daily. If it updates rarely I don’t waste any time endlessly checking the website for new content. When there is some, I see it instantly. This is especially useful for the wargaming genre of blogs, since many seem to update in flurries between long periods of inactivity. I miss nothing. I don’t worry if a blog I am subscribing to will remain active. Either it does, and I see it, or it doesn’t, and I don’t. Perfect. Check it out.

Tyler

Ever wonder what happened to your time when you look back at a week and wonder why you didn’t get much done? The first excuse to your lips is that you were busy. However, closer inspection reveals that to be hardly true. This is a situation I commonly find myself in. In my own defense, I was a bit busy getting some Christmas shopping done, getting vaccinated against H1N1 and watching some good hockey. That’s just self-delusion, however, as I regret those missed opportunities where I could be painting.

Here’s my fourth attempt at Canadian Battledress Green. This is just the shade and was informed by viewing the real article at the Canadian National War Museum in Ottawa.

I am making progress, don’t get me wrong. I’ll have a Month Four progress report shortly. It’s just that there’s a lot I was hoping to get done that I didn’t. I’ll give you an overview of what I’m planning and maybe it will become clear. I wanted to paint the Big Wullie figure that came with Black Powder for the Warlord Games Forum painting contest. Fortunately the deadline was pushed back a month. Speaking of Black Powder, I’d wanted to give my view on the game, even though I haven’t played it. I also want to review that Wargames Factory Viking I’m almost finished painting, plus assemble, paint and review an Ancient German and Zulu from the same company. I also want to review Artizan and Crusader WWII figures now that I’ve painted up a bunch. I just finished reading Republic to Empire and want to sound off on it, especially as it’s getting some unfair reviews on The Miniatures Page. Finally, I’m still deciding on which battle of the War of 1812 I want to recreate. Every time I think I’ve made up my mind something changes it. I need to write at least one more article for that series comparing the OOB of Crysler’s Farm and Lundy’s Lane and discussing how I would represent the battle in Black Powder and Republic to Empire.

That’s not to mention talking about the guy at work I’ve discovered used to be a re-enactor and who’s interested in miniature wargaming, or how there are some concepts in rules that I’ve decided I will no-longer accept without a critical eye. If anything, time is going to become even shorter and most of this will have to wait for the new year. At least I won’t ever look at a empty post and wonder what to talk about.

Tyler