Clear the Desk Project

[Rat13]

Now that my Ghost Archipelago project is complete it's time to start a new one. Like just about everyone else I have quite a few projects ready and waiting (maybe even too many), but after such a long project containing so many animals and monsters I wanted something different.

 

If you were following my Ghost Archipelago project you may have seen a large assortment of random figures in the background of some of my pictures. That collection is comprised of figures that have been sitting on my desk for far too long, well that and my latest picks from the last box of goodwill. 

As you can see it's a pretty varied assortment. It's also not a crazy amount either, just a nice (hopefully) quick little project before jumping into something heavy again.

 

Wanting something sci-fi after all those fantasy creatures I grabbed the two identical space soldiers. Unsure what I really wanted to do I played around with the idea of a straight policeman/peacekeeper scheme. Slowly that morphed into a peacekeeper/private security group based around a mining or space operation. With that in mind I thought blue armor with an almost orange jumpsuit would make for an interesting security force where both colors could make sense, even together. 

Looking at them basecoated I can't help but think of some of the X-men color schemes from the nineties. Certainly odd but not exactly terrible; the colors give them just enough personality that I can see using them for a lot of games/encounters.

[Rat13]

Started off a quick session with a couple of washes that really brought the figures up a bit. The contrast of the desert-esque base also really helps them stand out.

Looking at them now at roughly table length I've got to say these guys look really good. The blue looks great while the bits of orange simply pop.

 

Though parts still need a bit of touching up I didn't want to wait for things to dry so I grabbed another model. Attacking it with only a rough idea for its colors I didn't expect to get it so far along.

In short order everything was basecoated and even in this incomplete state I'm really happy with it. Hopefully my next couple of decisions won't be mistakes because if they are I'll put the work in to get back to this point. That's just how much I like the look of this paintjob so far.

[Rat13]

I've found myself with a rare weekend alone with nothing to do. The wife and kid are away and I don't have anything to build or fix around the house or even maintenance on the vehicles. Knowing that definitely meant at least one long painting session at some point. I spent the first couple hours alone focused on some deep cleaning projects around the house. This eased my conscious a little, making it easier to justify so much time at the desk. It also came with the added bonus of catching up on some of the harder cleaning jobs that are easier with no one around. 

 

With my conscious clear I actually ended up at my desk around my usual time. First up I applied small amounts of two washes to my Knight. I was even lucky enough not to mess it up but heighten everything I already loved.

Rather than drench it in a dark wash like I usually do I've opted to leave it as is and consider this one done.

 

 

Moving on I grabbed my last three Imperial Guard psykers. These models were actually started on January 14th of 2020 when I first basecoated their Khaki coats. I simply couldn't resist and went back through an old thread to see just how long they had been unfinished.

Well aside from my usual sealing and flock they're done now. 

 

 

Now it's just a question of what I choose next. So far bouncing back and forth between fantasy and sci-fi miniatures has really been working for me so I'll probably continue the trend. I won't deny this is working great as a project to help me forget my last one. 

[Rat13]

Painting on and off throughout the day I was able to add four more miniatures to the finished pile.

 

I started the day with a figure I pulled from the latest box of goodwill. Though it's a nice figure I mostly pulled it so I could steal its cowboy hat for my "Macho Man" Randy Savage commissar. That of course left this one with a GW commissar cap, but I don't think it changed the figure too much.

I probably should have went with something other than the cliché man in black but I simply couldn't resist. Though the picture doesn't show it very well I actually used two different blacks and his pants are actually brown. 

 

Next up was another figure I pulled from the box of goodwill on a previous circuit. It's been primed for quite awhile and languishing on my desk. This whole time I thought it was a regular person with a ton of scars but I think it's actually supposed to be a reanimated corpse. I didn't discover this however until after I had painted the flesh. In the end I decided to stick with my original plan. I pulled this mostly because it reminded me of John Henry Irons. I mean who could resist painting up a Shaquille O'Neal Superman?

Even with the stitches I think it came out alright. 

 

Moving on I pulled the sci-fi cowboy. I actually bought a large box of these guys quite awhile back and this was intended to be the test model. Other projects came up however so he sat on my desk for a long time. 

 

Once again here is another pull from the box of goodwill. Though I'm not certain I believe this is also from the most recent circuit. Going in I had no plans for its colors and just used what I had on my palette. That actually happens a lot when it comes to one off models but it usually works out. 

 

Lastly I started work on another doctor/scientist from Kaos Ball. I had recently painted one of these for my Stargrave crew but a backup is nice to have. Having already painted one colors didn't matter too much so again I went with colors I was already working with. 

 

All in all I think it was a pretty productive day. I even resisted the temptation to paint all day, instead opting to paint in small sessions throughout the day. Those breaks even had the added benefit of helping me catch up on a few other hobbies. 

[Rat13]

Got back at it and quickly finished my second doctor/scientist. All it really needed was a wash to hide the sins of my badly painted white coat.

Too close like this it looks bad but at tabletop it works. 

 

Choosing my next fantasy miniature I went ahead and grabbed the two chibi kobolds. Having a real passion for kobolds (even playing a couple over the years) they're a lot like skeletons for me, though I already have far too many everytime I come across a cool sculpt I pick it up. These two came from the box of goodwill at some point but I just never got around to them till now. 

 

I opted for a very simple color scheme but that might have been a mistake. Though it makes them more in line with "typical" kobolds perhaps a more grandiose scheme was warranted. In any event, though they're very different from the rest of my collection these two will probably be seeing a lot of use on the tabletop. 

[Rat13]

Moving on to yet another sci-fi figure I grabbed the slightly modified 40K ork. Awhile back I was attempting to really learn greenstuff modeling without much success. One of the things I tried to make was a piece of turtle shell armor. Deciding to focus on the shell I slapped a basic paintjob on the rest of the ork and got to work.

 

Using a reference photo I did my best to replicate a really vibrant shell. After working on it for awhile I realized it was just too small for what I was attempting. Scaling back to a very simple paintjob I almost got what I had been trying to replicate. Though it falls apart upon close inspection I think it does read as a turtle shell from tabletop distance. 

 

Going back to fantasy I selected my next two miniatures that I had started quite a while ago. Though they're not exactly a true batch I had started painting them together so it seemed fitting to finish them together. 

 

First up was a typical armored skeleton. Like most of my skeletons I had started painting him with a black and red scheme. This idea harkens back to a time when I had planned to do a ton of different miniatures in a similar scheme for use as a large criminal empire in D&D. Though the idea was never truly realized I still use the scheme quite a bit anyway. As the armor had already been painted I managed to finish it pretty quick. 

 

Next up was the headless horseman. Again I had originally planned to use the red and black combination. Seeing as there was no real reason to deviate from my original idea I stuck with it and almost finished the figure.

[Chaoswolf]

You've been pretty busy, good work all around!

 

Do you happen to who makes the first 2 sci-fi troops you showed?

 

 

[Rat13]

5 hours ago, Chaoswolf said:

Do you happen to who makes the first 2 sci-fi troops you showed?

Sorry but I don't and I couldn't find any pictures of them before gluing them into their bases. I was sure they came from a box of goodwill but after combing through all the circuits I was in I didn't find them.

 

They were however metal slotta bases, so my best guess is Northstar miniatures but I couldn't find them on their site. 

[Rat13]

Starting off the session I cleaned up the skeleton and highlighted the base effectively finishing it.

 

Likewise I cleaned up the headless horseman, highlighted it's base, and added a glow in the jack-o-lantern's eyes and mouth. As I recently learned inks can easily create pretty good glow effects, so a couple quick coats later it was finished.

 

Moving back into sci-fi I grabbed two figures I had intended to save for last. Unable to wait any longer though I started on the two Genestealer Cult figures. Having recently pulled these two from the box of goodwill they are technically the first two figures in my next army. Though at the moment I have no immediate plans to buy anymore it feels good to finally start my next big army project, even if it's in such a limited manner. 

 

As luck would have it I also came across a very helpful step by step painting guide that took a lot of the guesswork from color selection. I did need to find the Reaper approximations however, but that was easy enough. As with my Guard I prefer to start my army's with their "advertised" scheme before branching out into others (especially the outlandish ones).

 

I only managed to basecoat most of them before calling it a night, but they're already looking very nice.

 

[Rat13]

Getting back to the genestealers today I was able to almost finish them. I'm a bit on the fence with a couple of the colors and a few of the techniques/steps need tweaking but overall these turned out almost like I wanted.

 

The dirt still needs it's highlight color and I plan on redoing the eyes on both of them but otherwise they're done. Now I have to decide on what to paint next.

[Glitterwolf]

Good progress!

Love those Genestealers, brings back memories.

[Rat13]

Starting off the session I went back and repainted one eye on each Genestealer. Now they look a little better. I also highlighted their bases so they're done for now.

 

 

Moving back to fantasy I selected the undead friar. Color choice for this one required an internal debate. It took a real effort not to paint the cloak/cassock brown or black (especially black as it fits my established undead color scheme). Wanting to do something different though I opted to paint it red instead, making it unique amongst my collection as red is usually just an accent color on my undead.

Though I can certainly see myself painting another at some point in more traditional colors I'm really pleased with how it turned out. It still needs a bit of work but already I can see this becoming a real undead workhorse miniature.

 

While waiting for things to dry I also selected my next miniature and quickly basecoated it's base with some leftover paint. 

[Glitterwolf]

Cool!

[Rat13]

Only got a little bit of painting in today but it was enough to mostly finish the red and yellow basecoat on my next Angry Marine. Its at the point just before adding the freehand and the minor details that it looks like a clown faction.

[Rigel]

Been doing heroic work here! I love the Space Peacekeepers (leg-breakers for the Company Store out in the asteroid belt?) 
Shorts Scientist and the headless footman are looking great. 
Those chibi kibbies are adorable!