How Not To Paint: Otherworld Firenewts

So this week’s (day late) How Not To Paint will focus on a miniature that only a handful of people own. However, if you really really want a copy of it, it is still possible to get one, you just have to ask very very nicely!

So, I started out using Macharius Solar Orange for the flesh. Boltgun Metal for the armour and Dwarf Bronze for the gold detail. Battlefield Earth was used for the backpack and scabbard. Desert Yellow for the undergarment and the boot tops. Thornwood Green for the boots and Bloodtracker Brown for the trousers.

Using a mix of Baal Red wash and Scab Red I washed all the flesh. Using Devlan Mud I washed the armour and using Ogryn Flesh I washed the trousers, boots etc.

Next I added another coat of Macharius Solar Orange to the flesh.

Then using a mix of Macharius Solar Orange, Iyanden Darksun and Orange I highlighted the flesh. This was applied to all the raised areas without being too extreme.

I then applied a final highlight by mixing in some Sand.

Adding even more Sand to the mix I then painted the underside of the model. By this I mean the inner arms, under the jaw and the lower eyelids. Adding some bleached bone I did this again.

Using Scab Red I began to add a mottled effect to the skin. I did this using a pointed clay shaper, which is better than a brush for a few reasons. Firstly it always gives a rounded effect and depending on how much pressure you apply you can alter the size of the dots. Secondly, doing this kind of effect trashes the point of your brush! I then added a second series of dots in Orange.

I then washed all of the flesh with a mix of Orange and Ogryn Flesh. This has the effect of muting the dots as well as helping to shade the join between the light and dark flesh parts.

Finally, using Scab Red and Baal Red mix I added some shading around the nose and other recesses.

Next I rehighlighted the lighter flesh with Sand and added in the eyes using Bloodtracker Brown, then a lighter mix of bloodtracker brown.

The eye was then washed with Brown Ink. After it had dried I added in a dot of Bleached Bone using my clay shaper. I also added in the teeth using Bleached Bone.

Next I used Greatcoat Grey to pick out the bed roll and Desert Sand for the backpack. I also picked out the undergarment and boot tops using Desert Sand.

Using bleached bone I picked out the edges of the backpack, boot tops and undergarment. Mixing up a lighter shade of Bloodtracker Brown I picked out the straps around the bedroll. Mixing some Bleached Bone with Greatcoat Grey I highlighted the bedroll, adding some more bleached bone for a second highlight.

The trousers were highlighted with Bloodtracker Brown, followed by Bloodtracker brown and Bleached Bone. The boots were highlighted with a mix of Thornwood Green and Bleached Bone and then washed with Devlan Mud.

Finally I added a coat of gloss varnish to the flesh to bring out the pattern in the skin.

Next the armour was highlighted first with Chainmail and then with Mithril Silver. The gold areas were highlighted with Shinning Gold followed by Burnished Gold.

The armour was then washed with a mix of Boltgun Metal and Badab Black. When this was dry the details were put back with a wash of Devlan Mud. The gold was washed with Ogryn Flesh.

Finally the shield was added. The gold was painted with Dwarf Bronze, washed with Ogryn Flesh, then highlighted with Shinning Gold and Burnished Gold before being washed again with Ogryn Flesh. The wood was done with Battlefield Earth, followed by lines of Desert Sand and Bleached Bone. This was washed with a mix of Brown and Yellow ink, followed by a wash of Ogryn Flesh. The Green gems were done with Knarloc Green, followed by Golden Yellow and washed with Vallejo’s Dark Green Ink.

And that’s pretty much it. I based the minis using Decorplus extra fine cork and basing grit. I added a couple of stones from Gale Force 9 and a tuft of Noch grass. Finally I sprayed everything with GW Sealant.

Right, I’m off for some sleep. See you all in a week!

The Duke