Blood Bowl Skaven

Blood Bowl Skaven- 'Rodent Vector'

After the Dwarves and the nuns, my next Blood Bowl team was the Skaven (I'm thinking this was early 00's). I'd been out of the GW loop for a while, and was stunned by the Warhammer multi-piece plastic kits. I made a team with some Milliput conversions, and then went a bit nuts with sideline staff and mutations.

Gutter Runners

Throwers

Storm Vermin

Line Rats

Rat Ogre

Mutations: Big Hand, Long Legs, Foul Appearance

Star Player Hakflem Skuttlespike

Team Wizard

Team Coach (Splinter)

Team Apothecary

Turn Marker

Rerolls (Reaper miniatures)

Compared to my later painting style, there's not as much contrast here as I would like, and they're a little muddy. Still, they hold up, and I'm quite pleased with the overall team appearance.

I've literally dusted them off because we're starting a BB league locally this weekend, and I thought it was time for me to get a few games in with an older team. I'll tart them up when I get the chance- reattach a few tails and add some different flocking to the bases.

15mm modern armour- T-72Bs

This is the Zvezda 1:100 T-72B. A nice, simple snap-together plastic kit. The kit has different armour from the box depiction. I accidentally snapped off the turret attachment- it's a fine fit, and the layer of spray paint on both surfaces made it stick... I hand-drilled appropriate holes and stuck a bit of paperclip to hold it together. I failed to learn from another blogger (whose post I can't re-find) who did the same thing...

One of the reasons I dislike painting armour is tracks and roadwheels. Thankfully, the Zvezda 1:100 T-72B has covered running gear so I only have to paint half as much! (not to mention they're single-piece tracks and wheels, so you don't have to assemble the damned things). Still, I wish I'd left the tanks partially disassembled for ease of getting into the nooks and crannies. It was still painful.

I painted and weathered it the same as my BTR-80, see here and here. Well, almost the same. After thicker brown and black washes, I picked out edge and panel lines with GI Green and Iraqui [sic] Sand. The increased contrast looks better at this smaller scale, but I'm still not entirely happy with it.

Before weathering

Zvezda 1:100 T-72B

It's a nice, mean-looking tank with a busy turret. Could do with a roof-mounted MG and smoke launchers.

15mm modern armour- BTR-80 Part 2

In this post I'll show you how I weathered my Zvezda 1:100 BTR-80s. Again, there are many different techniques that you could use, but this is my current technique. To see how I got them ready for this stage, see my post here.

I use Woodland Scenics washes for my weathering. They're grittier and more pastel than, say, Army Painter washes. They dry quite flat. I water them down and apply to taste, trying to get more in dirtier areas- wheel wells, front plates, and dust build up at the junction of vertical and horizontal surfaces.

First, paint chipping using the sponge technique and German Grey. Concentrate around areas of wear and tear. It shows up best against the tan stripes.

Then, an all-over wash using Woodland Scenics C1221 Raw Umber. This tones down the model and acts as mud, oil and rust all in one!

Next I do a pin wash using Army Painter Quickshade Dark Tone, with a particular focus on hatches.

Finally, another all-over wash using Woodland Scenics C1217 Concrete to represent dust build-up. I  apply this over the hull and turret, and work this around the tread on the tyres. I drag off excess with my finger.

Finally, detailing. Black to the vision blocks. Light blue-grey to the headlights. Dark grey to the gun, and then drag a lead pencil over it. Dark grey to the smoke grenade covers. Dark red to the brake lights. Done!

Finished

Front

Rear

The final wash tones down the vehicle and ties it into the ground, but at the expense of tabletop presence. I'm rarely happy painting vehicles. My infantry have developed into a higher contrast 'pop', but my vehicles devolve into a labour-intensive attempt to get them looking like a 1/35th centrepiece. I think they lack a little je ne sais quoi on the tabletop. Maybe I should emphasise the highlights more.