Nova 2 Month Countdown

Normally I'd take a pic of everything done for the countdown but sadly I don't have the time today. Work is pretty busy and I'm getting ready to finally go in for surgery. So I'll be out of the mix for at least a week. But I did get some progress done on the Fellblade, I started to muck up the cans but they will need some rust... the tank might be made of ceramite but I doubt the fuel cans are..  they will also be getting a good bit of fuel leaking. 

 Still no soot action but that is getting close.. also the oil and rust streaking.

 Mucking brought the brightness down on the cans and I really like the way it looks on there now. When they are complete I think it should be a nice add.

 I started some of the heat fatigue on the main gun and the LAS.. They will be a little cleaner the the rest but will also get some soot.It's funny that it feels close to being done but there are so many small affects that need to be added that it really does need some work still haha

 I also made this guy up for a Praetor or Centurion .. I wanted to make up something cool to add to the force and I wasn't liking the look of the other models. I think he looks decent.

 So far it's just some of the basics but he should take too long to get wrapped up.

So.. what do I still need to get finished.

Fellblade -  80% done
Corax -  30% done
Praetor -  15% done
Drop Pod - 5% done (it's cleaned and filed)
Rhino -  5% done (cleaned and filed but the funny part is I started to build out my lists and I could never get the second rhino in)

Model wise that's pretty much it but two of the things aren't much done..  I was hoping to have the Fellblade completely done by July but it's close enough I guess.

Display board. .  now this is going to take some time I have some large plans that I hope I can actually get done. I ordered the lights and I need to start cranking out some rock scape stuffs..  plus finish the laser cut designs. As long as I have a full month to work on it I think I should be ok..

Right now I think I'm in pretty good shape but I guess we'll see.

Super Heavy Metals..

 This weekend I got some solid work in on the Fellblade. I figured the weathering on this beast was going to take some time and that is an understatement haha.. The tracks got a heavy treatment and they are close to being done, I'll be going back and wiping away some areas but I wanted them to have that dark stained look.

 The enamels is still drying so it has a lot of sheen left, heavy application takes a while to cure. So far no soot added but I'll be adding that to the cannon barrels and rear stacks. I'll also be adding some leaked fuel stains.

 This is just the first layer of grime on the body, once it's actually dry and I can clear it I'll start on spot grime.

 I started the heat fatigue on the stacks but I'll be adding fuel stains and soot.

I also started on the fuel cans and I'm testing with red first. Right now its just a red blend with some chips but I won't get the full look until I have them all dirtied up and the brackets painted steel. They really stand out as they are so clean. If I can tone them down I think it might look good with the red. If not I'm probably going to go with a green. I want to add some color but I also don't want them to be the focal point of the tank haha..

Reinforcements have arrived..

Wow... it took longer then I was expecting but I got the rest of the Tactical and the Vets done..  Painting 20 dudes in batch was a lot .. so that brings us up to 20 Tactical and 10 Vets finished up.

 The first squad all wrapped up. For the time it took and the many steps to get them all done it really doesn't have that hit you in the face pop that my Eldar do. Not that there isn't as many steps involved.

Prime
Airbrush 4 shade blend from black, 60%, 40% and 20%
Bone
Steel
Brass
Black Oil Wash
Hand blend from white to 60% for the highlights
verdigris the bases
rust the bases with 3 colors of rust
grime up the models and base
finish up the eyes using 6 colors
so many levels of matte clear
final highlight
And that is just for the tacticals.. not the Vets that also have addition bits and what not.. All that and I look at them and I'm like .. yup.. they're black haha..  I do like them.. just wish they had a little more pop. I have a couple of add on ideas I might work on if I have the added time but I'm not really expecting that to be a thing .. so we'll see.

 The pictures aren't the best as I really didn't have much time to take them so I'll have to get some better shots at the 2 month count down.

 The second Tactical squad..

 And then the Vets.. I went with two flamers just for fun and gave the Sarge a plasma pistol and power fist.

 These guys had a ton of detail to them and it added some more time but I think they came out looking pretty cool. The Sarge needs a little more detail done to the blue glow but it looks ok for now. When I finish up all the other models that have the glow I'm going to go back and hit them all so I don't have to keep mixing up the colors ..

So that brings me up to 55 infantry troops...

20 Tacticals
10 Veterans
5 Support
10 Dark Fury
10 Mor Deythan

I do have a few more characters to knock out but thankfully it's all the bulk troops I need!! Whoots... I'm hoping to have the Fellblade done by the end of next week as well. I have a schedule I'm trying to stick to,.. hopefully I can keep on it.

The rumble of thunder..

I got some work done on the Fellblade ... I got a lot of chipping done on the main body and a little on the turret. I think it's a good start but it won't really start coming together until I add the grim and other streaking. I went with more of a metal base for the Superheavy as I felt it for use less ceramite and go with more of the heavy iron look. I'll also get to add some more rust and rust streaking. With that in mind I chipped the black a bit more but the bone definitely looks the worse for wear as the front and rear would take the most wear..

 Some areas still have a pretty high gloss as I'm working on those areas the most at the moment (the turret most of all). The turret is also just the base bone for the moment until I go back and start the blending and chipping of the black on the top.

 I added a vehicle number to the front and it will get some stream, spatter and some soot as it's right below the demo cannon.

 On the side without the ladder I added the Legion number .. I might go with the vehicle number on the back of the turret as well but I haven't fully decided.

 Also thinking on the barrels that will be mounted. I'm thinking of going with a heavy chipped red to add some more pop but I don't know if it would stand out a little too much. So many decisions but this thing is so damn big haha

I also did the rough base blends on the remaining 20 guys and I'm in the process of adding the steel color to the accessories. I'm hopping back and forth between them as I really want to get the infantry guys 100% done as they take the longest and I have more fun with the vehicles.

To the front..

 The Deimos is done .. This weekend I had some time and I wanted to finish this tank up. I added some oil streaking, using white, raw umber and blue to add some add coloring to it.

 I think it added some added interest to the tank.. some of the area were looking a little too plain to me and I think it was really throwing it off. So .. pretty happy with the outcome. I included some of the pictures that are a now and then..

 The pic above is with the oil streaking. It's not a slap in the face with the look but a small minor detail but to me I think it really adds to the model.

 Above is before.

 Streaking..

 None..

 Streaking..

None..
I also got some work done to the Fellblade and I'll be posting them up later this week. I'll be adding the oil streaking to it as well since I'm liking the look. Anyway I can make the black have more interest is a plus to me! 8)

Boots on ground...

 I finished up the first Tactical Squad which feels pretty good as I only have 10 more guys I HAVE to have done and 10 more I'd like to get done. I think they came out looking pretty solid and blend right in with rest of the force.

 I didn't realize it when I pulled 10 of the Tacticals out but there are a mix of two of the squads in there. To keep the squads separate I used similar but different bases. I also gave one squad some damage and on has all studded shoulders. Doesn't matter much really as I'll be painting the other ones as well but still haha..

 Here are a couple pictures in progress. The white highlight blends look harsh before I finish out the weathering. They need to be stronger then normal or the grime will wipe them out completely.

 You can also see the bases are in a rougher version. After I add multiple layers of rust I then start to mute the bases so they don't pop so much.

 Here they are after I started adding the grime. They still needed a couple of more coats to get them where I wanted them.

 I also added some of the highlights and the markings on the Rhino. I added the 19th marking to the front fender and..

 The vehicle number to the rear fender. I just picked a random number for the tank haha... as will it's brother. I like the look of the numbering and I'll be adding it to the super heavy and the Land Raider. It adds more realism to the tank which is their whole look so I think it's a win.

 I do need to do a little more streaking but I think the tank is pretty much done.

 I'm liking the look and I think when the whole force is done it will look nice.

I've never tried to painting an entire army in this short of time so it's pretty crazy but cool. Just got to keep on keeping on to get my butt ready for Nova !  8)