Reeve Irremborg Planomap: Bones 4 Dreadmere Figure (Completed)

     I'm going to try something different this week.  Once again, over the past week my painting time was cut short, and I was not able to complete this week's figure.  But instead of posting nothing, and just putting it all off until next week, I thought I'd post as far as I've gotten today, and then add the rest when I complete it, which I hope will be Thursday.  Let's see how this works out.

     So, this past week I painted "Reeve Irremborg Planomap"  from the Bones 4  Dreadmere Expansion. While it's a relatively simple figure, it has a lot of fiddly details in all the buttons and embroidery sculpted into his clothing, and that was one thing that slowed me down.

    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 trimmed the figure's integral base a little, and glued the figure to a 1" metal washer with some Aleene's Tacky glue.  I then placed the figure in my painting grip.   

     I began by painting his face and hands with Americana "Shading Flesh".  I then painted his coat, vest, and pants with Folk Art "Burgundy"; and his coat cuffs, collar, and the scalloping under the vest, with Americana "Antique White".  After that, I painted his cape, and shirt cuffs with Americana "Dove Gray".

     Next, I painted his hat, the strap across his chest, and his shoe with Ceramcoat "Black", and then painted his cane and wooden leg with Accent "Real Umber".   I then painted his hair and beard with Americana "Light Cinnamon", and the feather in his hat with the "Burgundy". 

     I then painted all the buttons, embroidered trim, and the fittings on his cane and wooden leg, with Accent "Mustard Seed".  I let this dry, and then painted over it with Folk Art Metallic "Pure Gold".  After everything had a while to dry,  I went back and gave everything, except the shirt cuffs and cape, a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash.   When this was dry, I gave the shirt cuffs and cape a coat of Citadel "Nuln Oil" wash. 

ADDED THURSDAY:    

 When the washes were all dry, I painted his eyes, and highlighted his face with Reaper MSP "Rosy Skin", and then Reaper MSP "Rosy Highlight".  Next, I highlighted his coat, vest, and pants with a mix of the base "Burgundy" and some Americana "Burgundy Wine".  I then did some lighter highlights with the "Burgundy Wine" mixed with some Crafter's Acrylic "Tutti Frutti".  I then moved to highlighting the fringe under his vest, his coat cuffs,  and coat lining using the base "Antique White", and then some Americana "Bleached Sand".

     Next, I highlighted his cape and shirt cuffs with the base "Dove Gray", and then some Americana "White".  I then went back and added ermine spots with the "Black".  After that, I highlighted the hat, shoe, and strap with Ceramcoat "Denim Blue".  I then moved on to his cane and wooden leg, highlighting them with Folk Art "Teddy Bear Brown".  Finishing up, I highlighted his beard with Accent "Golden Oxide", and ll th gold bits with Ceramcoat "Wedding Gold".   Lastly, I painted the figure's base with Americana "Mississippi Mud".

      I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish. I then used some white glue to glue some fine sand to the base.  When the sand was dry, I painted it with a coat of Americana "Charcoal Grey". When this was dry, I drybrushed the sand with the "Mississippi Mud", and then with some Apple Barrel "Rock Grey"; lastly I drybrushed it with a little Americana "Dove Grey".  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote". 

     And here he is complete!  I'm generally happy with how he turned out.  As with so many of Reaper's figures, this little guy just has a ton of character! 

Here is a photo next to a wizard I recently featured here on the blog, to give a sense of the size of the Reeve Irremborg Planomap figure next to a human miniature.

Oman Ruul, Wizard: Bones 4 Figure

      This past week I painted "Oman Ruul, Wizard" from the Bones 4 Greybeards set.  

      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 trimmed the figure's integral base a little, and glued the figure to a 1" plastic base with some superglue.  I then placed the figure in my painting grip.   

     I began by painting his face and hands with Reaper MSP "Rosy Skin".  I then painted his robes with Pathfinder MSP "Urgathea Red", and his cape with Reaper MSP HD "Indigo Blue". 

     Next, I painted his collar, hat, and sash with Anita's "Violet", and his shoes with Americana "Cranberry Wine".  After that, I painted his beard and hair with Americana "Zinc", and his bracelet and the skull emblem on the back of his collar with Americana "Antique Gold".

         I let everything dry for a while, and then I gave his face and arms a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash.  When this was dry, I gave his entire outfit and beard a coat of Citadel "Nuln Oil" wash.  When these washes were dry, I panted his eyes, and then did his teeth with Americana "Bleached Sand"  After that, I highlighted his skin with the base "Rosy skin", and some Reaper MSP "Rosy Highlight".

        I then highlighted his robes with the base "Urgathea Red", and then mixed in a little Reaper MSP 'Breast Cancer Awareness Pink" for further highlighting.  After that, I highlighted his cape with the base "Rich Indigo", and then mixed in a little Reaper MSP "Frosty Blue" for further highlighting.  I followed that by highlighting his collar, hat, and sash with the base "Violet", and then mixed in a little Apple Barrel "Apple Lavender" for further highlights.

     Next, I highlighted his shoes with the base "Cranberry Wine" with a little of the "Breast Cancer Awareness Pink" mixed in.  I then highlighted his beard and hair with the base Z'inc", and then mixed in a little Crafters Acrylic "Storm Cloud Grey".  After that I painted his bracelet and the skull on his collar with Folk Art Metallics "Pure Gold", and highlighted it with some Ceramcoat "Wedding Gold".  

     I then worked on the orb, painting it with Citadel Contrast "Templar Black".  When that was dry, I repainted it with Folk Art "Color Shift" "Black Flash".  While it was still wt, I added in thin swirls of Deco Art Metallic "Festive Red".  Lastly, I painted the figure's base with the "Mississippi Mud".

      I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish. I then used some white glue to glue some fine sand to the base.  When the sand was dry, I painted it with a coat of Americana "Charcoal Grey". When this was dry, I drybrushed the sand with the "Mississippi Mud", and then with some Apple Barrel "Rock Grey"; lastly I drybrushed it with a little Americana "Dove Grey".  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote".   When the "Dullcote" was dry, I went back and repainted the orb with a little Americana "DuraClear Gloss" varnish.   

     I'm really happy with how this guy turned out.  I had originally planned to do the orb as a glowing light blue color, but I chickened out in the end not wanting to risk the paint job I had done.  So, I went with more of a loose LOTR Palantir look. 
      

Dreadmere Townsfolk Fisherman: Bones 4 Figure

   This past week I painted the "Fisherman" townsfolk figure from the Bones 4 Dreadmere Expansion.

   All I could see when I looked at this figure, was the Gorton's Fisherman, so I decided jut to embrace that image, and Googled some photos of him to get a clearer idea of how exactly he was dressed.

     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 trimmed the figure's integral base a little, and glued the figure to a 1" plastic base with some superglue.  I then placed the figure in my painting grip.   

     I began by painting his face and arms with Reaper MSP "Suntan Flesh".  I then painted his outfit with Americana "Antique Gold", and his shoes with Reaper MSP "Turkey Brown".

     Next, I painted his belt and sheath with Reaper MSP "Shield Brown", and his fishing kreel with Ceramcoat "Territorial Beige".  I then painted his side pouch with Americana "Terra Cotta", and the front pouch with Ceramcoat "Charcoal".  After that, I painted his gloves with Americana "Charcoal Grey", and the bottle with Americana "Leaf Green". I finished up his accessories by painting the rod with Americana "Sable Brown", and the reel and fish with Americana "Zinc".

     I then painted the fish with Folk Art Pearl "Aqua Moiré", and the reel with Folk Art Metallic "Gunmetal Grey". After that, I painted the fittings on the rod and the knife with Folk Art Metallic "Pure Gold".   

    I let everything dry for a while, and then I gave his skin and clothing a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash.  When that was dry, I gave his accessories a coat of Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash. Another drying period, and then I gave the front pouch and the fish a coat of "Nuln Oil" wash. 

     When all the washes were dry, I painted his eyes, and then highlighted his skin with Reaper MSP "Tanned Shadow and Reaper MSP "Tanned Skin".  Next, I painted his hair with the "Zinc", and then highlighted hit with Folk Art "Dove Grey".    After that, I highlighted his clothing with first Americana "Primary Yellow", and then Crafter's Acrylic "Bright Yellow".

     Next, I worked on highlighting all of the accessories.  First I highlighted his belt and sheath with Folk Art "Teddy Bear Brown", and then I did his fishing kreel with a mix of the base "Territorial Beige" and some Folk Art "Butter Pecan".  I then highlighted his side pouch with Reaper MSP "Hallowed Orange", and the front pouch with some of the "Zinc".  After that, I highlighted his gloves with a mix of the base  "Charcoal Grey" and some Apple Barrel "Rock Grey", and highlighted the bottle with some of the base "Leaf Green" and some Americana "Margarita" along with a little Americana "Snow White". I finished up by highlighting the rod with Reaper MSP "Olive Skin Highlight", and his shoes with the "Sable Brown". 

     I then highlighted the metal parts, using Deco Art Dazzling Metallics "Bright Brass" for the pole and knife fittings.   Lastly, I painted the figure's base with Americana "Mississippi Mud".

     I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish. I then used some white glue to glue some fine sand to the base.  When the sand was dry, I painted it with a coat of the "Charcoal Grey". When this was dry, I drybrushed the sand with Americana "Mississippi Mud", and then with some of the "Rock Grey"; lastly I drybrushed it with a little Americana "Dove Grey".  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote".  When the "Dullcote" was dry, I went back and repainted the fish and bottle with a little Americana "DuraClear Gloss" varnish.   

 

     Well, I like how this guy turned out.  He doesn't quite look the part of a medieval fantasy character in the bright safety yellow, but it's such an iconic look for a fisherman maybe the anachronism doesn't matter. :)  

Sheriff Drumfasser: Bones 4 Dreadmere Figure

     This past week I painted the "Sheriff Drumfasser" figure from the Bones 4 Dreadmere Expansion set.  

     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.  I then placed the figure in my painting grip.    

I forgot to take a "before" picture prior to applying paint, so this is the shot from the Reaper webstore.

     I began by painting his face and hands with Reaper MSP "Bronzed Skin".  I then painted his vest with Apple Barrel "Apple Maple Syrup", and his coat with Accent "Forest Green". 

     Next, I painted his lapels, jacket lining, and cuffs with Americana "Antique Gold", and his boots, hat, scabbard pouch, and strap with Ceramcoat "Black".  After that, I painted his boot tops with Americana "Terra Cotta", and the scroll he's reading with Americana "Antique White". 

       While painting the cuffs, I had debated with myself whether they were in fact gauntlets that covered his hands, but had gone ahead and done them as cuffs.  I reversed my decision at this point, and went back and repainted them with the "Black" to be gauntlets.  I then painted all the buttons, fittings, etc., that I thought should be metal, with Folk Art Brushed Metal "Brushed Bronze".

     I let the figure dry for a while, and then I applied a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash to his face. After that, I applied some Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash to his vest, collar, coat lining, and scroll. And, finally, I applied some Citadel "Nuln Oil" wash to the outer coat, boots, hat, gauntlets and scabbard. 

     When the washes were dry, I painted his eyes, and then highlighted his face with the base "Bronzed Skin", and a bit of Reaper MSP "Bronzed Highlight".  I then painted his beard and hair with Reaper MSP "Coal Black", and then highlighted it with a little Crafter's Acrylic "Cool Blue". After that, I highlighted is vest with the base "Apple Maple Syrup", and a little Americana "Buttermilk".  I then applied a stippled pattern of Apple Barrel "Lemon Chiffon" in an attempt to give it the appearance of a little texture. 

     Next, I highlighted the boot tops with some of the base "Terra Cotta", and some Reaper MSP Hallowed Orange".   I then highlighted his coat with the base "Forrest Green" mixed with some Crafter's Acrylic "Holiday Green".   After that, I highlighted the lapels, and lining of the coat with the base Antique Gold", along with some Crafter's Acrylic "Bright Yellow", and some Crafter's Acrylic "Daffodil Yellow".

       I then highlighted the scroll with the base "Antique White", and then used Americana "Bleached Sand", and Crafter's Acrylic "Light Antique White" for further highlights.  Next, I highlighted the boots, scabbard, pouch, strap, and gauntlets with Americana "Zinc", and a little Americana "Grey Sky".  I went back and did some writing on the scroll with the "Black", and then highlighted the metal parts on the figure with some Folk Art Metallics "Pure Gold".   Lastly, I painted the figure's base with the "Mississippi Mud".

     I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish. I then used some white glue to glue some fine sand to the base.  When the sand was dry, I painted it with a coat of Americana "Charcoal Grey". When this was dry, I drybrushed the sand with the "Mississippi Mud", and then with some Apple Barrel "Rock Grey"; lastly I drybrushed it with a little Americana "Dove Grey".  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote".       

     I'm pleased with how he came out.  I noticed in the final photo that there is a black splotch under his right eye...and I'm not sure how it got there unless I smudged the black paint there accidentally while doing  the script on the scroll.  His right eye, located as it is under the hat, and wedged between his raised arm and the scroll, was not fun to work on from the start. And even now I can see it's a little lopsided.  But good enough; as trying to work further on it in that tight space will most likely not help.  I may however go back and try to fix that cheek splotch. 

Willow Greenivy, Witch: Bones 4 Figure

      This past week I painted "Willow Greenivy, Witch" from the Bones 4 Core Set.    My temptation with witches is to usually go for a traditional palette of  black, purple, maybe green, perhaps red; so I wanted to  go a little different with this figure and try something lighter in the "good witch" vein.

       I prepped the figure in the usual way, soaking its pieces in a dish of water with a couple drops of dish-soap added, then giving them a light scrub with a soft toothbrush, and then rinsing and drying them.  I then glued the hat and hand in the left sleeve, and the staff/wand and hand in the right; both with Gorilla Gel Super Glue.  Next I glued the figure to a  1" plastic base with the same glue, and then placed the figure in my painting grip.

     I began by painting her face and hands with Reaper MSP "Tanned Skin".  I then painted her dress and hat with Americana "Fawn", and her tabard and hat band with Americana "Asphaltum".

      Next, I painted her hair with Americana "Forest Green", and then did her belt and scabbard with Crafter's Acrylic "Forest Green". After that, I painted her wand/staff with Folk Art "Barn Wood", and the pouch hanging at her side with Ceramcoat "Territorial Beige".

     I let everything dry for a while, and then gave her face and hands a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash.   I let that dry, and then gave all her clothing, hair, and accessories a coat of  Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash.   When that was dry, I painted her eyes, using a little of the Americana "Forest Green" as an eyeshadow, and then highlighted her face and hands using the base "Tanned Skin" as well as Reaper MSP "Tanned Highlight".  After that, I highlighted her hair with Americana "Festive Green", and then give it a light highlighting with some Folk Art Color Shift "Green Flash". 

     I then highlighted her dress with the base "Fawn" mixed with increasing amounts of Crafter's Acrylic "Light Antique White".  And after that I highlighted her tabard with the base "Asphaltum" mixed with increasing amounts of Folk Art "Teddy Bear Brown". I also highlighted her wand/staff with "Reaper MSP "Graveyard Bone".   

      Next, I highlighted her scabbard and belt with he base Crafter's Acrylic "Forest Green", and then painted the sword's grip with Folk Art "Hunters Green".  I went back and gave the grip a quick highlight with some Apple Barrel "Apple Christmas Green".  I then highlighted the pouch with a little Reaper MSP "Olive Skin Highlight", and then some Americana "Antique White".   

     I then tried the same Citadel Contrast Paint technique on the gemstone in her wand that I had used three weeks ago with great success on the Wizard Arakus Landarzad .  I painted the gem with Ceramcoat "White", and then let it dry.  When dry, I gave it a coat of Citadel Contrast "Creed Camo".  Unfortunately, on such a small and faceted stone, with the interspersed twigs holding it in place, it didn't quite work as well.  So, I went back and use a little of the "Festive Green" mixed with some Americana "Snow White" to add some highlighting.    

     After that I painted the sword hilt, buckle, and coin/tokens hanging from the belt, with Folk Art Brushed Metal "Brushed Bronze".  I then went back and highlighted them with Folk Art Metallic "Pure Gold".  Lastly, I painted the figure's base with the "Mississippi Mud".

     I let the figure dry overnight and the next day I gave it a coat of Americana "DuraClear Matte" varnish. I then used some white glue to glue some fine sand to the base.  When the sand was dry, I painted it with a coat of Americana "Charcoal Grey". When this was dry, I drybrushed the sand with the "Mississippi Mud", and then with some Apple Barrel "Rock Grey"; lastly I drybrushed it with a little Americana "Dove Grey".  Another overnight dry, and I sprayed the figure with Testor's Dullcote".  When the "Dullcote" was dry, I went back and repainted the gem with a little Americana "DuraClear Gloss" varnish.

     I'm really pleased with how she turned out.  I wish I had had time to do a little trim on her dress, and perhaps a design on her tabard,  but in the end I think the plain look doesn't look bad on the figure; perhaps the green hair has enough of a visual impact on its own that she doesn't need fancy clothes.  And yes, I did use some green, despite my mental attempt to steer away for colors you usually see on witches. But I kept being drawn to the color...maybe it's because it's in her name!

Arakus Landarzad, Wizard: Bones 4 Figure

     It took me two weeks, but I finally finished "Arakus Landarzad, Wizard" from the Bones 4 Grey Beards set in the Core box.   I wanted this guy to serve as a wizard for a Human army I'm building for an under-development set of Fantasy rules called "Wars of Orcs and Dwarves", based on the recently published "Wars of Ozz" ruleset. The army I'm building is generally yellow-themed in color scheme, so I wanted this guy to be yellow too. 

The first unit of Spearmen I created for my army.  These are Oathmark plastic figures.

   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 1.5" fender washer with Aleene's Tacky glue.  I then placed the figure in my painting grip.  

     Since the units for the army have a yellow, grey and black color scheme, I wanted to do something similar for the wizard.   I began by painting his face and hands with Reaper MSP "Tanned Skin".  I then painted his robes and hat with Americana "Primary Yellow", and his under-sleeves with Ceramcoat "Territorial Beige"

     Next, I painted his cloak with Reaper MSP "Dark Elf Skin", and then his belt with Accent "Real Umber".  After that, I painted his pouch with Americana "Asphaltum",  his staff with Ceramcoat "Black, and his beard with Apple Barrel "Burnt Sienna". 

     I then let everything dry for a bit, and when I returned I gave his face, hands, and beard a coat of Citadel "Reikland Fleshshade" wash.  I followed with giving his under-sleeves, belt, and pouch a coat of "Agrax Earthshade" wash.  I had read somewhere about using purple as a shadow for yellows, and how good it looked; so I wanted to try that with this guy.  So, I mixed some of the base "Primary Yellow" with some Crafter's Acrylic "African Violet", and painted his the recessed shadow areas of his robes and hat.   

          Next, I painted the eyes and then highlighted the face and hands with the base "Tanned Skin", and Reaper MSP "Tanned Highlight".  I then worked on highlighting the robes using the base "Primary Yellow" mixed with varying degrees of Crafter's Acrylic Daffodil Yellow".  I ended up having to use a little of the "African Violet" as well to blend into the shadows properly. In retrospect,  I should have just done the whole robes this way to begin with.  I know some folks like to do the mid-tones, then paint the shadows then the highlights, and I even do it this way when I use the citadel washes; but doing it with straight blending was difficult, since in doing the highlights now, I ended up having to redo the mid-tones anyway in order to transition properly into the highlights.  Anyhow it was a good learning experience.  Afterwards, I worked on the cape, highlighting that with the base "Dark Elf Skin", mixed with a little "Reaper MSP "Dark Elf Highlight", and for the lightest highlights I mixed in some Americana "Dove Grey". 

     I then highlighted his under-sleeves with Reaper MSP "Ginger Cookie", and afterwards highlighted the belt using Folk Art "Teddy Bear Fur", and the pouch with Americana "Sable Brown".  I worked on the beard next, using Reaper MSP "Pumpkin Orange", and Reaper MSP "Hallowed Orange" for the highlights.  After that, I highlighted the staff with Americana "Zinc".

     Next, I wanted to try an experiment with the gem in his staff, and attempt to use Citadel Contrast paint to achieve a gem effect.  So, I painted the gem with Citadel Contrast "Iyanden Yellow", and then set the painting grip so it was inverted and balanced between two craft paint bottles, with the figure hanging upside down.  I hoped this would cause the contrast paint to pool at the top of the gem.  When the "Iyanden Yellow" dried, I had the darker top on the gem I wanted, but the I felt the bottom of the gem had not gotten light enough and was still a mid-tone yellow that I thought wasn't right.  So I mixed a little of the "Primary Yellow" with some Ceramcoat "White", and attempted to blend some highlights into the lower part of the gem.  When I was happy with the effect, I added some highlight light spots to the gem with the plain "White."

      I also decided the staff needed some more bling, so painted the gem fitting and rings with Folk Art "Pure Gold".    I realized at that point that I had forgotten the wizard's little frog familiar, so I painted him quickly with some Citadel Contrast "Militarum Green", and when dry, painted his underbelly with some of the "White".  I then added some tiny black eyes, and gave each a tiny white highlight dot. Lastly, I painted his base with Americana "Mississippi Mud".

      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". When the "Dullcote" was dry, I went back and repainted the gem and frog with a little Americana "DuraClear Gloss" varnish.

     In general I am quite pleased with how this fellow came out.  I like the purple shadows in the robes; I think that looks good.  And I think using the Contrast Paint for the gem turned out much better than I had even thought it would!  The highlights on the cloak aren't great, but I had given a lot to working on the robes when I did those, and just wanted to get the cloak done so I could move on to playing with the gem.  :)