Darkshade Raider, Sea Lion, Creature of the Blood Reef

[Adrift]

Welcome again friends to some more 4-5 hour tabletop painting.

 

Darkshade Raider. This sculpt is metal and is so eerily thin that when you get it in your hands it is quite strange looking. When I examined this sculpt I didn't like her so much as a Dark Elf, but more as a Vampiric Assassin. I don't know why I thought that, but it probably has to do with the kama's. I went ahead and tried to give her the look of a (former) living drow but give her a touch of undeath. The quality of the casting wasn't so great with respect to the facial details as you might see in the online store so I had some work around to do there. Reaper colors: Gory Red, Sun Yellow, Vampiric Shadow, Spattered Crimson, Woodstain, Nightshade Purple, Dusky Skin Highlight, Violet Light, Blood Red, Yellowed Bone, Linen White, Pure White.

 

Sea Lion. Bones and lots of mould lines, many of which didn't get cleaned up enough but I'm a bit over trying to pick over the mould lines. Adventured into some freehand on the creatures back to enhance the fish feel and tried to warm up the facial features to tie back into the lion/mammal feel. The base is from the Scibor Egyptian Ruins Terrain and was perfect for a sunken pillar. The pillar featured 5 scarabs and while 4 were covered as sea growth, the other was turned into Sebastian. I'm not much of a sculptor but I'm happy with how the crab turned out. Reaper colors: Driftwood, Redstone, Ultramarine Shadow, Nightmare Black, Tanned Leather, Woodstain, Nightshade, Oiled Leather, Dusky Skin Highlight, Pure Black, Yellowed Bone, Linen White, Rusty Red, Gory Red, Sun Yellow, Vampiric Shadow, Jungle Moss.

 

Creature of the Blood Reef. Probably the worst Bones figure I've ever had/painted. The mould lines are really bad and are diffuse; this is on top of obvious sculpt imperfections that litter the figure...reference the right leg. I tried to paint around it as best as possible to minimize the defects. That said, I'm pleased with how the paint job turned out and will happily replicate that color scheme on other fish monsters. Reaper colors: Redstone, Ultramarine Shadow, Nightmare Black, Woodstain, Nightshade, Bright Turquoise, Blue Liner, Burgundy Wine, Pure White. 

 

Comments, criticisms and ideas on how to do it better next time always welcome from ANY level of painter. 

 

~Adrift

Edited December 26, 2014 by Adrift

[72moonglum]

Those are really nice! I love the colors and how muted they look even though they are bright hues! My favorite is the darkshade raider and her red cloak!

[Chaoswolf]

They look really good! I had to really look for the mold line; I'm not even totally certain I found it, so your efforts to disguise seem to ahve worked.

[Pingo]

I like the blend of warm and cold on each of these. The contrast between that Darkshade Raider's skin and her bandages is nicely done. I like the fishy tiger stripes on the Sea Lion's back. I'm sorry you had trouble with the Creature of Blood Reef, but the salmon color goes well with the turquoise.

 

Wait, these are 4-5 hour paints? Oh, my.

[zoroaster100]

I love the inspired color selections on all three and think all three came out beautifully. Since you asked for suggestions for where you could do better, the one thing I can suggest is darker shadows for the red cloak in the raider.

[Limey72]

These are outstanding adrift, your work is a pleasure to view thank you and well done ;)

[Tricksay]

Love your work on these! And ,maybe in person you can see the mould lines, but I sure couldn't find them! Love your colour choices, you've inspired me to try something like this out, but mine will take weeks not hours.

Thanks for sharing.

[Mattnuke]

I really like all three, but that drow is outstanding. I might steal that color to paint all my drow with.

[CashWiley]

Now you're just showing off.

 

Really great color choices, they all look great and different than any take I've seen on them before.

[Darcstaar]

These came out great. I think the undead choice for the assassin was right given the tattered nature of the cloak. I can't see mold lines on the third one either, so good job. I'd be darn proud of all three.

[scorpio616]

Love the fishman.

[Kangaroorex]

For a half days work, each of these are terrific. The raider in particular is nice work the color choices are excellent. On the sea creatures, I would have liked to see some more definition in the colors, my eye gets a little confused with all the color and patterning, but that could just be me.

 

Good work on all three!

[tiniest rhombus]

Nice smooth brush work, excellent color selection! Love them all. You did a great job hiding the mold lines. I'm having a hard time deciding which is my favorite!

[scorpio616]

Also, are the aquatic minis normally aimed upwards, or did you adjust them to that position? Because it really adds a nice touch.

[ub3r_n3rd]

Fantastic works!