Why hello there reader,
Well, last weekend was certainly an eventful one, wasn't it?
The release of Indomitus and 9th ed Warhammer 40,000 was a big moment for the hobby, and I know both myself and my fellow warlords felt the excitement keenly. However, being the only one out of our group not to buy a copy of Indomitus certainly left me feeling a bit deflated. What can I say, all these new Marines and especially the Necrons had me very tempted to start another new force!
Fortunately, the Ai'elethra (or the Path for any Mon'Keigh reading) has allowed me to resist temptation and continue on with my Craftworlders. For Month 2 we were tasked with painting up a full 25PL, ready to begin playing our first Crusade games as and when we are free to roll our dice with abandon. Having only managed to paint 11PL last month with my one completed unit of Wraithguard I'd have to get through a chunk of models to make that target. Unfortunately, as I'll go into, life had other plans for my hobby time.
After finishing my first unit for Month 1, I had a paint scheme sorted out and was ready to crack on. First up on the painting desk was Spiritseer Irlinelle to lead my army into battle.
When assembling the Spiritseer, I realised just how wonderful the sculpt is. The seams are (mostly) intelligently hidden, the detail is crisp and characterful and really helps to add to the model. I'm a particular fan of the featureless mask the model has, as it ties so well into the unsettling look of the Wraithguard.
Painting the model, as it turned out, was also a joy. All the flowing robes were a much-needed change of pace from the rather monotonous Wraithbone form of the Wraithguard. The model also gave me a chance to really experiment with painting a much cooler gold and also focus on generating transitions across it, something I've struggled with in the past. As there are also more than the average level of gems (even for an Eldar model), I added a secondary colour for them by introducing some pink to further compliment my paint scheme. There are a few more shots of the Spiritseer below.
When painting this lovely lady, I ran into two big problems when painting. The first was freehanding all of the lines across the fabric. Freehand is not something I've got a considerable amount of experience with, and despite my brushes best efforts, they just don't have the sharp I need to generate a smooth line. Nevertheless, I'm happy with the end result I've achieved, and the only way to improve is practice, practice and then a little bit more practice.
The other pain point for me was the Witchblade the Spiritseer is wielding. Having selected turquoise as my core colour, it meant that the classic power weapon scheme was off the table for me. Initially, I felt that perhaps a bright neon green colour would work well, but then the Necron images started showing up, and I realised how odd it would look. I settled on trying for a more muted, pastel blue to still tie into the scheme but actually stand out against the rest of the blue.
Again, I'm overall delighted with the end result I've achieved, and it's something I'm confident taking onto the rest of the Witchblades in my army.
At this point, I was ready to head straight into my next squad of Wraithguard to wrap my "core" units up and complete 25PL; however at the end of July I had to move house, the difficulty of which I didn't quite appreciate. Having to furnish an entire bedroom in the middle of a pandemic is a bit challenging, to say the least, but I managed to find everything I needed in the end. Still, this took a good 2 weeks out of my painting time, which has meant unfortunately I've not been able to complete my final squad or write a back story for my Crusade force. I've popped a picture of my progress on the Wraithguard so far, and I'm aiming to get them done in the next few days.
 |
| The Bonesingers work has been delayed by some minor upgrades to the Craftworld |
As well as topping off the Wraithguard I've also got some additional units to paint to bolster my force up to Crusade ready status! So on the painting desk in August I'll be adding some more flair and character to my army in the form of Farseer Taeleath and Wraithlord Caerlion. In addition to this, I really want to get some backstory for the force written up. Having read the lovely narrative that Medge is forging for his Tau and Commander O'Ashi, I definitely want to apply the same level of attention and love into my forces story.
That's all for this month. It's been disappointing to not get everything done like the rest of the group, but with my new room all settled and a hobby desk in place (a post on this coming soon!) I'll be zooming through my Craftworlds in no time. Much like the Eldar, I won't let the failures of my past determine the potential of my future.
Until next time,
James
Gorgeously smooth! Look fantastic
ReplyDelete