+ inload: apologist's work +

[apologist]

Hi all,
Just signed up a few days ago, and after some great advice, I've plumped for the Nomads. Although I'm new to the game (and trying desperately not to read anything before I can get hold of the third edition rules), I've been painting for a few years, and have painted a couple of Corvus Belli's beautiful models already.

While he's no Nomad, here's the first:

He's got a fairly grungy colour scheme, and I'm intending to paint future models a bit brighter in order to help fit the aesthetic.

Some related models, to give you an idea of where I'll be going once the Nomads infiltrate my letterbox. I hope it's okay to put non-Covus Belli figures here to help illustrate the sort of feel and colours I'm going for, but if not, let me know and I'll happily redact them.

Some examples of orangey lenses that might get used (though I'm toying with an Aleph-like pink lens glow)


...and some faces: my favourite part of painting:






A couple of Hasslefree space hobbits – potential civvies?


Another potential target/objective; a grand old military warhorse from Chris Borer Miniatures


Some cool figures from Heresy that I'll probably use as a loaner squad for enemy forces in test games. Excuse the quick 'n' dirty paintjob!


I'm particularly looking forward to painting some more anime-styled female figures. Up to now, I've mainly painted aliens, robots and burly men; but I do have a couple of examples of kick-ass heroines:


Colour Scheme
The colour scheme I'd like to use for my Nomads is reddy-orange, like this threatening robot:


I'd like to get some Anime influences like purple hair:


...and a converted Coca-Cola giveaway toy I picked up from eBay. Not sure what he could be used as, but a trusty steed's always useful!


But the clothing is likely to be sort of pseudo-Star Wars rebels crossed with US convict uniforms; a bit like this stogie-chomping dogsbody from Hasslefree miniatures:



I'd also like to get in some urban Mexican, Army of Two, Halo and street gang influences. I thought a Día de Muertos style decoration on one of the Tomcats' ballistic masks/helmets would be a cool bit of personalisation; as would some tattooes. What do you think?

How far do Nomads take body mods? I've seen some cool non-human skintones (greens and blues) plus hair colours. Those really appeal.

The faction seems a bit more non-uniform than the others. Would it be appropriate to add a lot of personalisation and custom colours to individuals, or would that be going too far, background-wise?

+++
Next up, some Nomads. Hope you liked the examples, and I'd love some feedback on the potential colour scheme ideas.

[Arachas]

So much awesome! I can't wait for your first Infinity models.

[mbdeyes]

What? That giant rideable bird isn't from Infinity? I figured it was more GenCon reveals....

So disappointed... I wanted the bulldog to be USAriadna's version of the dog warrior.....

In all seriousness, though, I too look forward to seeing what you can do with Corbus Belli's beautiful models.

[Claudius Sol]

Those look great, apologist! The colorschemes work well and the technique is quite high.

No problem about those other miniatures, we're fairly lax about miniature origins here in the 'Sphere.

I love the Chocobo and your faces are rather well done. I look forward to seeing what you do with your Infinity faces. They're of a much higher caliber than Privateer Press, Games Workshop, and Hasslefree. More so, if you're starting from Operation: Icestorm.

[Mob of Blondes]

How far do Nomads take body mods? I've seen some cool non-human skintones (greens and blues) plus hair colours. Those really appeal.

Hydra hair, lizard faces, bunny ears... are official. Then:

[Harlekin]

Yes! Those models just rock. That's a ton of hilariousness.

[Hordshyrd]

Very nice paintjobs sir.

On a complete tangent it's been a while since I saw an update from the guy who was scratchbuilding those two... Wonder where he's at with the Burt moderator and Cookie Morlock...

[Maru]

Ye the Pug of war is Nomads legit would say
chicken = REM
and painting - cool different then sterile infinity , but cool
actualy a bit cleaner would improve your painting a lot

[apologist]

Thanks for all the feedback, chaps. After spending a bit of time constructing some scenery, I was pleased to pick up a parcel containing my Nomads today. Great little figures, with really crisp casting. I'm looking forward to assembling and priming them over the weekend – and hopefully getting one or two finished.

[Aikuchi]

Nice, especially like the face of the Warmachine-chick. ( Mind to share your technique? faces aren't my thing at all...wish Alguaciles came with closed helmets )

[jherazob]

Nice, especially like the face of the Warmachine-chick. ( Mind to share your technique? faces aren't my thing at all...wish Alguaciles came with closed helmets )

I'm not apologist, but here's a good article about painting faces easier than the usual technique, has worked well for me

[mbdeyes]

I've tried a similar technique and I find my eyes end up just a little too big. It doesn't look bad on things like the Reaper mini in that article, as it looks more cartoony anyway, but I find it looks a little odd on some of my more 'realistic' models... maybe I just need more fine motor control though. Plus, The cheeks look a bit chalky after putting all the layers on.



Don't mean to hijack your thread, though. Looking forward to seeing what you do with that set of Nomads.

[apologist]

I've got a post on my blog, Death of a Rubricist, that has a step-by-step on how I do faces. It's demonstrated on a Games Workshop miniature, so the head's relatively large. However, the same basic technique would apply. The differences I'd make on an Infinity figure are mainly to lighten things up overall (so the tone is lighter and the face more eye-catching to compensate for the smaller size) and cut down some of the grime and dirt. Hope it's useful.

In terms of painting faces, the main things I try to bear in mind are:
1 Miniature painting generally requires a bit of exaggeration to get an effect to work (hence highlighting and shading a miniature, to mimic the way light naturally falls on a full-size person). To get the impression of gender into a face, this means exaggerating the differences between typical men and women – so male miniature faces have heavy stubble, relatively darker skin, and greater contrast to bring out masculine detail; while female miniature faces have relatively lighter skin, lower contrast in tone to give a smoother complexion.

2 Bearing the above point in mind, don't move from exaggeration to caricature. While a hint of blush to the lips and cheeks can add a feminine feel, if it's not done subtly, the figure will look like a drag queen. Similarly, really heavy eyebrows and stubble will make a man look like a neanderthal. Extra layers can cause a bit of chalkiness or grittiness in the paint surface. This can help create a manly feel, but if you want to soften things, repeated very thin washes, or use of a little acrylic flow medium (sometimes called flow enhancer) can help.

3 Don't be sexist – remember that combat troops (like most of the women in Infinity) will be concentrating on ammo conservation more than their appearance; so don't go over the top. Similarly, remember that the figures are human first and foremost – the differences between men and women in miniature painting is subtle. If appropriate, make-up can be added – a little blue or green added to the skin mix can give a nice eye shadow effect, for example – but keep it subtle, and pay the males as much attention, by ensuring their stubble, eyebags and similar 'butch' details give a coherent feel to the group. Think about the character of the figure. A civilian diplomat will look more clean-cut and tidy than a rugged foot soldier.

4 Of course, point 3 has to be balanced against the Manga-style aesthetic, so don't feel you can't exaggerate some bits. If you're painting lipstick, don't paint the upper lip or sides of the lower lip – keep it subtle and on the most visible part of the lower lip. For eyeshadow, just hint at it on the eyelid – don't paint right up to the eyebrow. In terms of general rules for painting faces, I tend to avoid using pure white for eyes and teeth. They look much more convincing in a slightly yellow ivory hue. For a manga feel, you might go for a brighter, cleaner feel overall, in which case pure white and black can help enhance this.

Hope that helps

[apologist]

Well, that update took a little longer than I thought! Here's the start of a first nomad. Assembly was smooth – while the pieces are small, they've been nicely designed with bump and socket joints and are well-cast, so everything goes together well.





I've trimmed away the base tab, and have mounted her on a tupenny bit. This was decorated with some of the spare shapes from Micro Arts' lasercut Wolsung terrain (to tie her in with the scenery I'll likely be using), and then PVA was used to fill the spaces with some fine grit. To prep for painting, I've used red auto primer. Looking forward to getting stuck into the painting itself tonight.

[Maru]

now put Zenital on rthis and tadam To cmmo

[apologist]

Well, that took a little while longer than I'd anticipated! Here's my first completed Infinity model. Love to hear what you think:

Santos Santana

[Icchan]

Certainly not a color you see every day on PanO. I like it.