Dreadmere Mercenary, Axeman: Bones 4 Dreadmere Figure

  This past week I painted the "Dreadmere Mercenary, Axeman" from the Bones 4 Dreadmere Expansion.  With the Darkreach Expansion complete, I thought I'd start picking away at Dreadmere next.   

     Though I mostly paint with regular craft store acrylics, over the years I've managed to collect a few dozen Reaper paints.  Some have been freebies included with orders or giveaways through promos like their Goulie Bags and Stockings; some were purchased at a show were a dealer was clearing out old stock for $1 a bottle, others were bought for a buck each when Reaper cleared out the remains of their HD line; and some were purchased outright (mainly the skin triads) from Reaper.

    So with this fellow, I thought it would be a fun challenge to see if I could paint him entirely with Reaper paints.

      I prepped the figure in the usual way, soaking it in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving it a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying it.  I then glued the figure to a brown-primed 1" fender washer with Aleene's Tacky glue, and then placed the figure in my painting grip.

     I began by painting his face and hands with Reaper MSP "Tanned Skin".  I then painted his shirt with Reaper MSP "Graveyard Bone", and his pants with Reaper MSP HD "Umber Brown".   After that, I painted his robes with Reaper MSP Pathfinder "Medusa Green". 

     Next, I painted the coat with Reaper MSP Pathfinder "Urgathoa Red"; and then painted the boots, belt, and sword grip with Reaper MSP HD "Golden Brown".  After that, I painted the scabbard with Reaper MSP HD "Rusty Red", and the axe handle with Reaper MSP "Turkey Brown".

    I then painted the axe head, sword fittings, and belt buckle with Reaper MSP "Dark Elf Skin", and the binging on the axe using Reaper MSP "Ginger Cookie".  After that, I painted his hair and beard with Reaper MSP "Pumpkin Orange"; and then attempted a plaid pattern on the coat with a cross-hatch of Reaper MSP "Coal Black", followed by a cross-hatch of Reaper MSP "Golden Glow". 

     Next, I painted the axe head, sword fittings and belt buckle again, this time with Reaper MSP "Aged Pewter".  I then let the figure dry for a while, and followed with applying a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade wash to his head and hands.  When that was dry, I applied a coat of Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash to the rest of the figure.

     I let the washes dry, and then painted his eyes, and highlighted his face and hands with the base "Tanned Skin", and Reaper MSP "Tanned Highlight".  After that, I highlighted his hair with "Hallowed Orange", and his shirt with Reaper MSP "Peppermint White". 

     Next,  I highlighted his robe with a mix of the base "Medusa Green" and the "Peppermint White".  I then highlighted his shoes and belts with Reaper MSP "Bronzed Skin", and his scabbard with a mix of the "Bronzed Skin" and the base "Rusty Red".  I followed up by highlighting the binding on the axe with the "Graveyard Bone", and the axe handle with a mix of the base "Turkey Brown" and the "Graveyard Bone". 

      I wasn't sure how even to begin highlighting a plaid jacket, nor was I sure I wanted to get involved with doing so, but I at least made and attempt to pick out highlights along the edges. I used Reaper MSP Bones "Cinnamon Red" mixed with the base "Urgathoa Red" for the red edges, the "Coal Black" mixed with a bit of the "Peppermint White" for the edges of the black stripes, and the base "Golden Glow" for the tips of the yellow stripes. 

     Lastly, I highlighted the axe blade, sword fittings and belt buckle with a mix of the base "Aged Pewter" and Reaper MSP "Sparkling Snow".  I wrapped things up by painting his base with some of the "Turkey Brown".

         I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish.    Then, when  the varnish was dry, I used some white glue to flock the base.  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed it with Testor's "Dullcote". 

     Well, in general I'm pleased.  It's not an award winning plaid coat, but it looks pretty good at arms length on the game table. It's a weird combination of colors, but I was limited by my assortment of Reaper paints.  I actually kind of like how it looks.