AntiMatter

Hi folks! It has been years since I posted here but it has also been a while since I painted anything. This is a step-by-step tutorial for painting the Daggertooth King Lizard made by AntiMatter Games for ShadowSea. The way this model is painted is in steps that require the paint to completely dry before going to the next step. It is a lot of washes and glazes that build up on top of each other and not wet blending. Step 1 was to prime entirely in white. Then in Step 2 the underside was painted with a mixture of Liquitex Muted Gray and Matte Medium, about 50/50, then thinned with a touch of water. By touch, I mean dipping the tip of the brush into water after putting the color on the brush. The ink mix needs to be thin enough to flow but not so thick it collects in thick pools. Step 3 was to paint the top side with thinned Yellow Oxide from Golden Fluid Acrylics, mixed with Buttermilk (Americana Brand). More water was added to glaze this color onto the edges of the Muted Gray underbelly. Step 4 was a shading step, where the underside was given a wash of Black Ink + Phthalo Blue ink (20/80), mixed with Matte Medium (50/50 of mixed color to medium). Black can overpower the color, so only a small amount is needed. The top side was given a wash of Burnt Sienna ink + Matte Medium (50/50). The inside of the mouth was given a wash of brick red paint mixed with black paint and a bit of matter medium. The underside was done first and allowed to dry. When painting the top side, the model was flipped upside down so that the ink did not run down onto the underside. Sep 5 is something a little different. This is a glaze of thinned white paint to reduce the “intensity” of shadows and even things out. More layers were applied to the tops of muscles and areas that are highlight zones and to also make the belly lighter overall. The white paint was basic craft paint from Americana brand. Step 6 was a glaze step. Glazes of Burnt Sienna ink, thinned with about 50% water, were painted on the upper body and head and Burnt Umber ink was applied to the top of the back. The claws and spikes were given a wash of Burnt Umber ink + black Ink + Matter Medium (50/50 with color). Step 7 was to give paint some stripes. This was pretty simple, using black paint + Turquoise ink, thinned with water so it was translucent (maybe 60/40 water/color). Step 8 was the basic highlight stage. Thinned Buttermilk color was painted on the top edge of scales to simulate light reflection while thinned white was used to highlight the legs and underside. This was done with a very small brush, unlike all of the previous steps. The spikes on the back were painted with more Burnt Sienna ink mixed with Buttermilk to blend them, then thinned Buttermilk for the edge highlights. Some final highlights were with thinned white on the top of the spikes. Step 9. Final Highlights and Base. The claws were painted like the spikes in Step 8 while the teeth were glazed with white to build up brightness, then painted in the edges with pure white. Small details, like eyeballs were done here also, using bright yellow and orange for the eyeball and back pupil with a small white dot for the reflection. The base had rocks painted in gray paint and the ground a light tan. This was allowed to dry, then a wash of a mix of Raw Sienna + Turquoise ink + Matte Medium was applied. The ground was washed with Raw Sienna ink + Matte Medium. Highlights were made with the tan paint on a bristly brush (an old drybrush brush with bristles pointing all around). The paint was put on the tips of the bristles and stippled around to add some random patterns. A bit of thinned white was used to add some edges to the rocks. Then the while model was given a coat of Dullcote, which ended up being a bit glossy, but that’s how it goes sometimes. cheers, Eric antimatter-games.com

Are you going to do a zenith prime of white on the base? I think that will make it easier to get bright colors on the coral and sand.

Thanks guys. Here is a shot next to the Argonaut sub for deepWars.

Hi folks, The new Deepstar Kraken model is coming out soon for DeepWars and I painted up this one for display using a lot of inks and liquid acrylics. This model (not really a miniature when this big) was done in different stages. The base painting was done with blue skin and light tentacles. The mantle and top of the tentacles were given two washes of Marine Blue (Ultramarine) liquid acrylics (Dr. Phil Martins brand) mixed with matte medium and water. When the first was dry, the second was applied. The underside of the tentacles was done with a mix of Cerulean Blue ink (Liquitex) + white paint + Matte medium and water. After removing from the base, as it was making it difficult to reach the bottom of the tentacles, I applied many light blue glazes (Cerulean Blue + Ultramarine Blue + White) for highlights and some dark (Ultramarine Blue) glazes for shadows. The goal was to make the blending mostly smooth but not to go overboard and spend too long on it. The reason will become clear soon. The next stage was the big one. Dots of blue-green, green, yellow-green, white and various shades of orange and Burnt Umber were applied to the mantle and tentacles. This was done using Liquitex inks and Phil Martin liquid acrylics to make sure the dots were very pure in color and, more importantly, flowed evenly off the end of the brush, which was held and used like a pen. After the dots had dried, glazes of inks colors were applied, yellow-green to the mantle and tips of tentacles and bright orange to the “face”. When this dried, more dots were applied over them and highlights were applied to some of the dots using a bit of white or yellow mixed into the ink. The eyes were done with yellow liquid acrylic mixed with white, black, and a bit of blue as the base. It was highlighted with more white and a touch of yellow. The black iris was painted, then more white highlights were applied around it to clean it up. Finally, the big highlight was added at the top with thinned white. The eyes were not painted as gems (bright bottom, dark top with hot-spot secular reflection) here as the light was meant to be diffused by the water. Maybe next time. The base was done with washes of Burnt Sienna ink first, then washes of Pthalho blue and Marine Blue ink to darken the rocks. it was all drybrushed with Americana brand Buttermilk, then some glazes of greens, magentas and purples were added to the sponges and corals. The barnacles were drybrushed with some white to make them stand out.

Thanks folks. I also tried these liquid paint from which is essentially the same thing as the inks. Dr. Ph. Martin's Spectralite [link removed]

Here is a painted Ogre Guard done mainly in washes and glazes of Liquitex inks. I really liked this sculpt and Bobby gave the model some real character. The Bones model was also really solid. There was a strange bit of miscast on the skull on the front of his belt so I made it into a jelly bowl for some squashed hobbit jelly.

You may want to consider using washes and glazes of inks to bring out textures, like scales. Smooth surfaces like wings still require blending but many large creatures with textured surfaces can be done really efficiently with washes and glazes. Here is an old example a dragon done this way.

Hi folks, Here is my painted version of the Sea Hag, Ol’ Ginny Greenteeth for the Nereids of Blood Reef, for DeepWars. It's a pre-production model as the final one is coming out later. She was done with a lot of washes and glazes over a “zenith-primed” base. Most of you already know how this is done, with a base coat of black primer all over, then white primer sprayed from above to simulate how light falls on the model. The skin was started with Phthalo Green ink + black paint + Matte medium. The clothing was started first with an olive hue, made with an Ivy green paint mixed with Burnt Umber and Burnt Sienna ink. The skin was highlighted with the green ink + a light golden white (Buttermilk color – Americana brand) and white. This clothing was highlighted with addition of the golden white paint. Kelp was painted with additional Ivy green and highlighted with a touch of yellow and buttermilk. Shells were glazed with golden white and then glazed with Burnt Sienna ink before getting edge highlights with pure white. Her hair was done with a “Sea Foam” color, which was Phthalo green and a touch of Phthalo blue ink and white paint for the base, then highlighted with white. The base was done with a light glaze of Burnt Sienna ink over the rocks, then let dry, while the spiky coral was painted with Deep Violet ink. When all dry, the rock was washed with Phthalo blue ink. The crab was painted with a light glaze of Burnt Sienna ink, then Pthahlo blue on the back shell and highlighted with thinned white. The worms were painted with a blue-purple gray, highlighted with white.

Hi folks, A couple more here, done with washes and glazes. These were given a zenith prime with black all over before white from above. What we have here are two new models for DeepWars, the Vanguard Scout and the Ethereal Thotag Crab. The Vanguard Scout armor was first given a base wash of Burnt Sienna ink while the weapon, respirator and scale armor were done in bright gold. Skin, tentacles and the crystal warheads were painted with Cerulean blue ink. The cloth on the back was given a light wash of Ivy Green paint. For the crab, the carapace was washed with a mixture of Turquoise ink and white paint on the top and golden yellow and white paint on the underside, having them overlap a bit a the middle and on the face. The Chelae were painted with the Turquoise/white mix with a bit of Phthalo blue ink mixed in. Next, the scout was washed with 50% Phthalo blue ink mixed with a bit of black paint and 50% Liquitex matte medium. This glopped on and got into all of the cracks and tinted the shade down a lot, though leaving an orange hue to the armor. The metal parts were washed with 50% Burnt Umber / 50% matte medium while the cloth was washed with a mix of 50% medium and 50% Dioxazine purple ink mixed with a a bit of Sap Green ink. when it was all dry, the armor plates were glazed with Burnt Sienna ink and the edges of the armor plates and barnacles were then painted with an golden white (Americana brand Buttermilk). The biofouling growth on the armor was given a light glaze of Sap Green ink after highlighting with golden white. After the armor was highlighted. The metal parts were highlighted with bright gold and silver, with some gems done with Phthalo green + a bit of yellow, given the classic "gem" treatment with shadows and hotspot highlights. The skin on the feet was highlighted with thinned white mixed with Cerulean blue, adding a few lines for texture. The crystal warheads were washed with Turquoise ink first to shade them, then highlighted with white and shaded a bit on some of the facets with thinned black. The cloth was highlighted with Ivy Green paint mixed with golden white, adding a bit of crosshatch texture here and there with very thin lines. Tentacles peek out from under the armor here and there and they were shaded with 50/50 Phthalo blue ink + medium, with the tips glazed with magenta ink. Highlights were applied with thinned white paint by making small lines across the tentacles and a single line along the bottom on each side. The base was first washed with Burnt Sienna paint (Golden Fluid acrylics), a shade less saturated than the ink. Then, the rock parts were washed with Phthalo blue ink + matte medium (50/50) while the vegetation god Sap Green ink, the sponges Magenta ink, some little mussels with Dioxazene purple ink and the shelf coral 100% Burnt Sienna ink. This was all done fairly wet so some colors blended into each other. Highlights were applied when everything dried, using golden white and then white for some hotspots. Fine lines and small dots in thinned white were added all over the rocks for texture. For the crab, Washes of Turquoise ink + Phthalo blue ink + matte medium (40/10/50) were applied on the top of the carapace while the bottom got some light washes of the same mixture but with 90% medium and about 10% ink. The Chelae were washed with some additional blue ink. Highlights were applied using golden white with some pure white paint on hotspots. The eyes were the main feature and are just classic gem style using red paint with dark red shadows, orange highlights and a white hotspot highlight. The base was meant to be a shadowy sand bar, so it was painted all over first with golden white then allowed to dry fully. When dry, it was washed with Phthalo blue ink + matte medium (20/80) and allowed to dry. Then fine edge highlights were painted along the rand ridges with thinned white. Here is a combo shot with them both so you can see the size difference.

Thanks, glad you all liked it.

Hi all, Here is one more step by step painting tutorial for the Sea Serpent for DeepWars, Blood Reef. This scaly creature is related to dragons so it has very heavy scales that work well with washes and glazes. Inks are Liquitex Pro inks and the Matte Medium is by Liquitex. Paints are Golden Fluid Acrylics. White and black are standard Americana brand craft paint. The first step was to paint the whole body in a light yellow shade over white primer, leaving only the mouth white. This was left to dry. Next, the body was given a wash of Pthalho Green ink, mixed with a touch of Sap Green ink, mixed with Matte Medium and water. The fins and mouth were washed with a Magenta ink, medium and water mix. The ratio of ink/medium/water was around 40/40/20. This was allowed to dry fully before the next step. Now comes the ugly step of shading down everything. The body, fins and mouth was washed with a mixture of Violet ink and a bit of black paint to darken it, and mixed with medium and water. The ratio was 20/30/50, so thin enough to go into all of the cracks but not so dark that it stained all of the green into oblivion. This was allowed to dry fully before moving onto highlighting. Finally, the step that makes everything pop out of the shadows again. The scales wee lightly drybrushed with wet layers of a mixture of Cerulean Blue ink, Sap Green ink and white paint. This was like a drybrush with a glaze, with the mixture at around 20/80, paint+ink to water. The key was to try to be subtle and give a bit more softness to the shading on the scales. The idea is not to paint completely over the green scales though or even to add a bright blueish highlight. After the glaze-drybrush, edges were painted in thinned white paint using the tip of a brush. This seems a bit tedious but is quicker than you may think since only the portion of the scale facing the light needs to be highlighted. Some scales on the neck behind the head needed a bit more highlight in the center, so a very thin glaze of thinned white was applied with the tip of the brush. The mouth was given washes of black to shade it more, then highlighted with thinned white, then glazed with Magenta ink. The tongue was shaded with Dioxazene purple ink, then highlighted with Magenta ink + white. fins were highlighted on the edges with white, then had some tiny white dots added for additional texture. The eyes were done with yellow over white, shaded with Burnt Sienna ink, then given a black slit pupil and hotspot reflection of pure white. To finish things off, the body was shaded with glazed of Deep Violet ink + black paint + medium and water (20/40/40) ratio of color, medium and water. adding the color more to the bottom of the body. An additional glaze of Pthalho Blue ink was applied to deepen the shadows. When these glazes dried, some scale edge highlights needed to be re-applied. The base was done with Raw Sienna ink first, then when dry, given a wash of Pthalho Blue ink + medium and water. Corals were glazed in Burnt Sienna ink and Violet ink. When all dry, it was drybrushed with a light golden sand paint.

Thanks! The base actually comes with the mini.

No, they are just regular colors.

Hi all, It has been a while since the last post, but here is a quick, step-by-step painting guide to the Silver Death Fish for DeepWars. This model is suspiciously similar to an ancient Xiphactinus fish, but has slightly different fins, with a few finlets near the tail like a tuna. This model was primed in white and painted using the techniques very similar to the Dire Fish-Lizard from the AMG painting guide, Painting Scaly Beasts. The key was to use washes and glazes to give it the basic colors, then lighten sections with thinned white paint and make edges pop with pure white. The majority of the colors were Liquitex Professional Acrylic Ink, while paint was Golden Fluid Acrylics and Americana white and black. All ink was mixed with Liquitex Matte Medium and water to give it more body to flow into the cracks. Otherwise it tended to stain the scales instead of flow into them. So the first step was to paint the upper sides, back with very thin washes, almost glazes, of Deep Turquoise ink and medium. The mixture was around 20% ink, 40% medium and 40% water. These are not exact numbers, but the mixture was light enough to apply color and flow into scales but left a lot of lightness. A key here was to set the model upside down while it dried so the color did not flow down the entire body. When it was dry, the next color applied was Quinacriadone Magenta ink, painted in a very light glaze around the middle of the body and onto parts of the head and the fins. The mixture was more about the same density as before but less was held on the brush so it did not run everywhere. The model was held upside normally while applying this glaze also. Next, The head, belly and lower body was painted with a glaze of the original turquoise mixture. Finally, a wash of Pthalho Blue ink (same medium and water percentage as before) was applied on the top of the back. The model was inverted and light brush strokes were used to push the glaze further down the back and blend it with the Turquoise scales. The next step was basic shading, done with more glazes or Pthalho Blue ink on the back and Turquoise ink on the sides, going over the Magenta scales. This glaze was very thin, closer to 10% ink, 40% medium and 50% water, with the here to tie all of the colors together with blue. Also applied were glazes of black paint mixed with Pthalho blue ink onto the top of the back and in the mouth. It looks pretty messy now, but you can make out the basic idea of the light and shadow. When all of the color had dried, the next stage was adding basic highlights. This was done with slightly thinned white paint, maybe 60/40 paint and water, applied lightly onto areas that would reflect light. This mixture was used with very careful drybrushing in multiple layers on the scales to build up edge highlights. It is important to brush perpendicular to the scales and not scrub in all directions here as otherwise the scales just get a coating of white. The goal is to just do the edges of the scales lightly and build up layers. Also, a glaze of white was applied along the upper third of the body to increase lightness there, allowing it to flow into the cracks and all. This glaze is just paint and water and was "scrubbed" around a bit with the brush to blend it. This technique is also called "feathering" but is basically just quick brush strokes to reduce the sharp edge of the glaze. The final stage was done with edge highlights of more white paint, mixed with less water, around 80% paint, 20% water. This mixture was used for some edge drybrushing on the scales, and on the fins and teeth, with some additional black paint glazed in the mouth and around the base of the teeth. This mixture was uses with a fine brush to pick out scales using the tip of the brush to add highlights where the drybrush missed. Some pure white paint was used on scales that were lightened in the previous step. On the fins, the edges were highlighted with 80/20 white, but some fine line details were added with 50/50 white using a fine-tipped brush. To finish off the glazes, a light mixture of Raw Sienna ink and Primary Yellow paint (10% color, 40% medium, 50% water) was applied along the middle of the body, above the magenta section, and on the head and around the eye. The eye was painted with a mixture of yellow and white paint, with a black pupil and a tiny dot of pure white for a hotspot reflection. The base was done in steps similar to the body, with a wash of Burnt Sienna paint, medium and water (20/40/40), then when dry, two washes of Pthalho Blue ink (20/40/40) to build up color. The base had some small cracks in it that were filled with extra Matte Medium and allowed to dry, then painting over them. Sections of sponges were painted with Pure Burnt Sienna ink and the starfish was done with Dioxazene Purple ink + white paint. Some Sap Green ink was applied as a glaze to add more color to the rock.

thanks!