Heyz CanadianPittbull, StormCaller, Steve-O and Aerin_Greenbow!! Look what u did to me!! Now u muz bear responsibility!!

Juz kidding, u guys inspired me enuff for me to take tat fers terrified step in destroying my figures.

I know I did a terrible job, especially for that Andira Runehand ( I alwaez LOL looking at it), but somehow I swell with pride everytime I look at them! Feels addictive and much more fun den I originally tot!

Fat Pig!

Grey Kher

Steelhorn

Shredsmurth (My very own custom werewolf Hero, stolen from Beastman base)

Ronan the Wild

Trenloe the Strong

Astarra Runewitch

I used just 4 colours (red blue green yellow) from Game Color Brand, and 2 normal brushes as well as 1 spray can of Citadel Brand 'Chaos Black' Primer. Had a friend with me to do the job.

Thanks once again all fellow painters who inspired me on! I promise not to poison ur eyes so much in future, but I juz couldn't control my pride Took me about 3 hours for all the 7 models.

These are a very good start. one thing I would suggest is to get a bit more steady with the brush and try to keep colours "in the lines" as it were of colours meet like say from an arm to a piece of clothing. As you get more familiar with the brush and application of paint you want to start making crisp lines so that paint colours are not bleeding into one another. Other things you can do to really bring out the shadows on these figures is using washes or iff you don't have those then you can start with a dark colour and build to a lighter or highlight of that colour. This really helps to make your figures pop and add a bit more depth. There are plenty of articles out there and videos that can help you with some of these other techniques but you are on the right track.

I think these look AMAZING, bro! I mean, it's pretty obvious they're your first tries, but all in all I'd say they came out really well! The werewolf guy looks a bit too dark (not enough detailing) but that might just be the camera not picking everything up. I'm glad you enjoyed the experience and look forward to seeing your future work as it improves! Good job! =D

You even did all the gold detailing on Andira Runehand (which I think looks pretty good). That's something I've been debating about doing when I get around to her, because I think I'm too lazy =P

.

Werewolf guy? I think you meant Beast Man

These look a lot better than my first attempt at painting miniatures... The biggest thing I notice, though, is that the surfaces look really flat since they're just one solid color. This is especially true on the bigger areas such as cloaks & Andira's flag.

A pretty basic technique to fix this involves highlighting & shading. Basically, if you want to paint a green cloak, get two green paints - one darker and one lighter. Then mix them together to make a third color, a medium green. Start by painting the whole cloak medium green. Then paint the 'grooves' in the cloak with the darker green, so it looks like those parts are in shadow ( shading ). Last, paint the highest points with the light green, bringing those parts out into the light ( highlighting ).

If you want a smoother transition between colors, you can mix the two greens in different proportions so that you have more than 3 colors. And you can add black to the darkest green mixes or white to the lightest green mixes to create even more shades. You still want to start with the middle green, then use progressively darker greens for the crevices, then finish with progressively lighter greens for the high points.

CanadianPittbull said:

According to Wanderer's comments that paint job is meant to represent Shredsmurth, a custom werewolf hero he designed. Yes, the figure is a Beastman. =P

Edit: Wanderer, I don't suppose you have the stats for Shredsmurth lying around? I have yet to use a custom hero but I still enjoy looking at them. =)

Steve-O said:

The custom heroes are in another thread:

www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_foros_discusion.asp

Thanks everyone for your positive feedbacks! And mahkra what u said is waaaaaay too advanced for me right now... I think.

I am having difficulty mixing all the colours proportionally to show the lighting effects, but I know wat u mean. They'd certainly be a major improvement to the colourings.

If its fine wif u guys, I'm gonna upload more and more of my attempts in this thread, hehe... I probably intend to paint every single hero.

P.S: Steve, my group enjoys playing my custom heroes, and Mahkra has given the link for them. But I am intending to change some minor stuff after the veterans of the forum gave their pieces. Probably getting around to it by tomorrow.

I don't think I did a very good job describing it, but the basic concept is pretty simple - make the crevices darker and the 'bumps' lighter.

Try searching Youtube for "Hot Lead Vol. 2 - Blending". That video has some pretty good close-up shots of one method for making the shadows darker and the high points lighter. Many different techniques can achieve that "shadowed" effect, so if their 'blending' technique doesn't suit you, try watching a few different tutorials until you see a method that you like.

Wanderer999 said:

I personally never got into the mixing scene. Another somewhat easier technique you could use is called "drybrushing." Paint the whole area one solid, darkish colour, then get a lighter colour of the same type and wipe off most of the paint from the brush with a paper towel or something. Then run the brush over the ridges and they'll get picked out in the brighter colour while the crevices stay darker. Real pros will talk about using mixing and drybrushing together to do several layers of increasing highlights, but I generally stick to two colours. It provides a lot more depth for relatively little effort.

For example, if you took Shredsmuth there and drybrushed his black fur with a greyish colour, it would add serious detail to the figure in one simple step. If you're using Citadel paints, I'd recommend something like Shadow Grey (Codex Grey would also work, and would make his fur look more "flat" while Shadow would make it look a bit "shiney" and lusterous.) If you're using some other brand you can probably Google a conversion chart to find similar shades in their line of paints. The best part about drybrushing is you can go over the figure two or three times to get just the right amount of detail. The first pass will give you a little, and if it's not enough you can do a second pass.

These are pretty good for a first attempt. In fact if you use the dip method they will look better.

All you do is block paint the mini with basic colors like you already did. Then either dip the mini, or use a brush(preferred) to coat the whole mini with Minwax Tudor polyshades stain. This will darken the minis and bring out the details. It will also seal the mini and protect the paint.

The dip method is the fastest/easiest method for newbies. (the type of method that certain Frogs like to use)

www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/43744/the-dip-method-a-step-by-step-guide-to-painting-mi

Steve-O said:

Ah gotcha. Although I think there are a couple D&D werewolf minis that would be super awesome for the Shredmurth character.

Whoah! That's the best advice I've had so far! The DIP method! But seems like the DIP is not going to be readily available in game shops... The guide said it used PolyShades from MiniWax. Is that something from a DIY home fix shop?

Indeed! Looks you are on the right track here, Wanderer!

You'll quickly with some more practise see that it gets easier and easier, and in the end you'll be painting and suddently be done with a miniture and not remembering painting all of it becuase you've been daydreaming or something..

I've never tried the DiP method, but if you check it out, be sure to post some photos here on the forum!

May the brush be with you ^^

SC

Yes, it's basically a combination stain/varnish for carpentry/woodworking. Stores like Homely Hardware or HomeFix DIY should carry it (or comparable products from other brands).

Wanderer999 said:

Yes, I find this exact type of stain at my local Ace Hardware.

I have a big problem. I CANT find the Polyshade thingy anywhere in Singapore.

On the other hand, I found something called 'wood stain' and the model name was Red Mahogany... Since it costs 30 bucks per regular can, I didn't dare buy it in case its the wrong stuff. Any idea if the wood stain is the same as what you guys use?

Maybe someone can help you find an alternate to MinWax Polyshades. Just make sure it is combined one-coat polyurethane and stain. As long as it is like that, you could just try to find a color that is close to Tudor.

Researching stain & varnish products in Singapore isn't the easiest thing to do stateside, but I found a possible lead:

Betex Wintone (from Brightex Paints) appears to be a combination stain/varnish, though I couldn't tell if it's a polyurethane varnish or another type. http://www.brightexpaints.com/html/product_wood_furniture_coatings.htm

http://www.kangaroopaints.com.sg/pro_3.htm#2 also looked like a potential lead, but I couldn't get the page to load. Maybe you'll have more luck with that website locally?

The most important thing about painting miniatures is, well, painting them. Don't worry about doing a "superb" job, just do it and the quality will come in time. So kudos on making the leap and actually painting some of the figs

-shnar

Hi mahkra no luck here as well.... Guess tat company u searched for is probably bust by now (lolz)

I think I will get the wood stain varnish and give it a shot. At most I will lose 14 bucks and then split the damage amongst my group