Berserker! (and how I paint wolf pelts)

I'll ask of the berserks, you tasters of blood,

Those intrepid heroes, how are they treated,
Those who wade out into battle?
Wolf-skinned they are called. In battle
They bear bloody shields.
Red with blood are their spears when they come to fight.
They form a closed group.
The prince in his wisdom puts trust in such men

Who hack through enemy shields.

Extract from the 9th Century Hrafnsmál ('Raven's Song')

These are Gripping Beast's metal Úlfhéðnar (old Norse for 'Arrow Magnets').

 

I'm thinking I should darken their eyes a little more, they look blind in these close-ups.

How to paint wolf pelts:

I was interested in their wolf pelts. I painted them in Derivan Unbleached Cloth, then washed the whole pelt in Army Painter Soft Tone, then defined a darker area in Army Painter Strong Tone. I added a black wash down the centre (after the picture immediately below was taken) to get the final result, shown in the end picture. I also did a black nose and dark brown eyes. I was thinking of adding a few grey hairs, but was happy with the look and didn't want to accidentally ruin it. I have to say it was quite easy to get the effect shown using the washes, which was my first (ahem) brush with the Warpaint Quickshades.

L-R: Unbleached Cloth, Soft Tone, Strong Tone

L-R: Unbleached Cloth, Soft Tone, Strong Tone

Final result, after black wash central stripe

I will whinge that I don't like the 'Playmobil' hands, and if I wasn't lazy I'd have done a lot more work to get the weapons sitting properly in their grip. (I'd either carve off the thumbs, secure the weapons, and green stuff new ones, or cut the hands off and replace them with plastic ones already holding weapons). Also, the wolf tails are sculpted more like horse tails. Anyway, they're a crucially thematic addition to my Vikings, and I can't wait to get them on the table. 

Check out Svein the Berserk, from 'Erik the Viking':