xzedroikgre Posted October 29, 2012 Report Share Posted October 29, 2012 So I recently came across this game and was immediately drawn into it. I bought $400 of minis, a $100 of minis from another game that I want to mod into this one. I'm not a complete noob to war gaming as I used to play 40k, Warhammer, D&D minis, but it's been many, many a year since I've played, much less painted. So the main few questions I have are as follows... 1. What tools and adhesive would I need for the pewter figures in this game? My work was comprised of plastic models prior to this so I'm kinda at a loss as to what I will and wont need to get to assemble them. 2. What's a good paint set to use? I've been looking at the Vallejo game set, $230 I think, and more importantly where can I find brushes. I tried looking at ccgarmory but they didn't have detail brushes for sale, Side note, inks for shading, does anyone have any recommendations on what to use, it's a technique I've never tried before and would like to learn how to do on these models. 3. Lastly, I bought some relic knights figures from soda pop miniatures to mod into this game, leading to a two part question. First, how hard would it be to mod them to fit this game(stats, abilities, etc.)? Secondly, is there a blank stat card available for download to use with minis you mod into this game? I wanted to recreate some characters from a mmo I used to play to make a crew based on one of my old guilds, lol. I appreciate any and all advice, and thank you for your time reading this, >< Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omenbringer Posted October 29, 2012 Report Share Posted October 29, 2012 I would start with a good look at one of the How to Paint Citadel Miniatures books. They will be very Games Workshop centric however will provide a lot of answers to several of these questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adran Posted October 29, 2012 Report Share Posted October 29, 2012 I Believe Ratty has on his webpage a black stat card to allow you to create your own figures. On Assembly, Superglue and pinning are your friend. Green stuff or similar can be helpful for some joins. Flash cleaning is similar to plastic. If you used to play 40K I'm surprised you've never used any metal models. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xzedroikgre Posted October 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2012 Well it's been a good 8-9 years since i played/painted 40k. Back then I couldn't afford metal minis so I opted for the plastics, quantity over quality I suppose, now I'm much older and wanted higher quality pieces and really take the time to take in the art of painting them. I chose this particular game because the theme and the sculpts are simply stunning. I've got a lot to learn and sadly I live in the middle of nowhere, so hobby stores or people that share my hobby don't exist. I'll have to look into the blank stat card, I managed to contact some sculptors to have a couple of custom sculpts made, dunno how it'll work out as that's something I didn't even know was possible to be done till recently. As for the pinning I'll have to do some research into that as well, as it's something I didn't have to do with the plastics. A bit afraid I might accidentally damage the model while attempting it to be honest. I appreciate the responses though. >< Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twisted Metal Posted October 29, 2012 Report Share Posted October 29, 2012 I used Vallejo paints exclusively. Make sure you cut it with some water before your paint. I tend to do a 1:1 ratio of paint to water but it really comes down to personal preference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huang Da Wei Posted October 31, 2012 Report Share Posted October 31, 2012 I use Vallejo and swear by them, lovely paints to use. For washes I like gw ones but dont tell anyone I said that. Brushes I tend to find you get what you pay for, buy the best you can afford and they will last if looked after. Kolinsky or Windsor and Newton sable brush for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xzedroikgre Posted November 2, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 2, 2012 well I ordered the vallejo game color set, bit pricey but i've read good things about their paint. got a couple p3 studio brushes to go with it. i'm a bit at a loss on washes...what exactly are they for?(probably a stupid question i'm sure, -.-") last time i painted minis all i did was base coat with primer then put on paint and called it a day, so washes, finish coats, and tone are new concepts to me. I've read on finish coats it's better to use a matte finish, so the figures aren't shiny, as for tones/washes though. what do they do and what will i need to get? Still need to get my assembly tools/supplies together too, lol. what was supposed to be a cheap mini's game is costing me a small fortune, ><. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatenbypotchky Posted November 2, 2012 Report Share Posted November 2, 2012 Hello, good sir. I've been reading your postings, here, and wish to congratulate you on your choice of Vallejo paints. They are excellent and very much worth the coin when you start adding up numbers like ml against Citadel and others. That said, Citadel has the best washes and glazes and I highly recommend them. Simply put, washes are a speed painter's best friend. Rather than give you a full breakdown here, I'll echo the advice of others on this forum...Citadel's How to Paint Miniatures is an excellent source of basic information. I also recommend Privateer Press' Core techniques video and the HOT LEAD DVD. Meanwhile, try putting your base colors on a model and experiment with a few wash coats after the model is completely dry...I think that you'll see the advantages to washes immediately. PM me with questions, if needed. Good Luck, nox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kuro Posted November 2, 2012 Report Share Posted November 2, 2012 Washes are formulated to have low water tension and flow into all the nooks and crannies of your mini. They bring out a lot of detail with little effort. They can also act to shade a mini slightly. Citadel washes are very good for any level painter, but even more so for beginners. I highly recommend whatever they call the flesh wash nowadays and the darker brown one. I make my own washes with a flow release, but I don't recommend on trying that right away. The warning label on the bottle pretty much told me that I'm fooling with dark forces beyond my comprehension, so yeah... Citadel washes are good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omenbringer Posted November 3, 2012 Report Share Posted November 3, 2012 (edited) Washes are formulated to have low water tension and flow into all the nooks and crannies of your mini. They bring out a lot of detail with little effort. They can also act to shade a mini slightly. Citadel washes are very good for any level painter, but even more so for beginners. I highly recommend whatever they call the flesh wash nowadays and the darker brown one. I make my own washes with a flow release, but I don't recommend on trying that right away. The warning label on the bottle pretty much told me that I'm fooling with dark forces beyond my comprehension, so yeah... Citadel washes are good. The Flesh Wash's (there are three) are Seraphim Sepia (Subtle and light, slightly orange, usually requires a few coats), Reikland Fleshshade (middle range, darker reddish) and Agrax Earthshade (Bolder and Darker, brownish). I highly recommend both as well as Nuln Oil (which is great for Armor and anything Black). Glad you hit on Flow Improver, I would strongly recommend it as well as Matte Medium and Gloss medium. Dont worry about getting from any of the mini paint lines (they are way over priced) get them from Liquitex. These three additives are work horses. You can use them seperately or you can premix them (I much prefer pre-mixing). The mix I recommend is 1 part matte medium, 1 part gloss medium and 3 parts flow improver (this is a starting point, I will also sometimes add 1 part distilled water to the mix as well). This mix will assist with keeping your paints from drying out during longer periods of storage (and protect your investment, some of my paints are 10 years old and still fluid) and also allow you to really thin your paints (all the way to translucentcy if you desire) without losing adhesion or opacity. I would not recommend thining with water (unless its "distilled" water and even then only a bit). With out getting too technical the above mix thins paints (spreads the pigment out) by adding more binder and "wet" water. It also produces a nice satin finish that will showcase your metals and your solids equally. I've read on finish coats it's better to use a matte finish, so the figures aren't shiny, as for tones/washes though. what do they do and what will i need to get? Still need to get my assembly tools/supplies together too, lol. what was supposed to be a cheap mini's game is costing me a small fortune, ><. Matte finishes are great but tend to kill your metals (especially if using metallics), flaten the vibrancy of your colors and dont really offer a lot of protection for the mini. I would recommend a few coats of a gloss or satin finish for protection (of which it is difficult to beat Krylon's clear finishes). After two coats of the glossy finish hit up a matte varnish to bring everything to more of a satin/ egg shell finish. The best matte finish going (though a bit expensive) is Testors Dull Coat followed by Krylon Matte Finish. I prefer spary varnishes but depending on your local area's proclivity for extreames in temp and humidity a brush on might work better (in which case hit the liquitex line of acrylic paints vice the mini-specific stuff). Since you are willing to spend the money on quality product I would also recommend the purchase of some "brush soap" for the cleaning and maintenance of your paint brushes (probably too late but I would recommend either the Windsor and Newton series 7 brushes, Rapheal Kolinsky Sable series, or the Games Workshop 'eavy metal paint brushes over the P3 ones, they are better quality and will last a lot longer. The key feature you are looking for is "kolinsky sable"). Hopefully this has helped PS Aside Wyrd's site (which is great by the way) therer area few other sites that offer great painting advice for all levels of skill. ---------- Post added at 09:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:19 PM ---------- Also just realized that I haven't read anything about primers, so... You have two choices; brush on and spray on (each has its advantages and disadvantages). Good brush ons are the Reaper Master Series Brush on primer (white) and GW Imperial primer (black). These are great for those who live in extreame temp humidity range areas. The down side is they can leave "brush streaks" and can obscure detail when applied to heavy (I am not a huge fan of them myself though know a lot of the top tier guys prefer them). Good spray ones are Duplicolor Sandable autobody primer (available in lots of colors, from most autoparts stores, and fairly inexpensive) and Krylon spray on primer (available in a few colors, inexpensive and obtainable from most craft stores). Keep in mind these are "true" primers, they will slightly etch the material they are applied to giving great surface to apply paints to (regardless of material) and assist with protecting the paintjobs from chipping later on. There are other "mini specific" primers that are out there but not all of them are "true" primers, most are nothing more than spray paint. The two that I have suggested are great (read as the gold standard of the spray on primers) and very forgiving (they have a wide temp and humidity range). They also dont usually obscure detail (even when sprayed close and heavy). The biggest disadvantage to spray on primers is they can be finicky in certain temp/ humidity ranges (though I have sprayed in the four temp/ humidity extreames without many problems i.e. cold and dry, cold and wet, hot and dry, hot and wet). If its to hot, cold, dry or humid to be outside in normal clothes its also probably to extreame to spray primers (or varnishes, which will "milk"). I would also offer some advice on stripping but there are already a number of those threads out there. Edited November 3, 2012 by Omenbringer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xzedroikgre Posted November 3, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2012 Again thanks so much for all the responses. I do plan to get the citadel mini's guide on painting sometime soon, kinda already spent too much as is, lol. 800 in and still have a long long ways to go. Waiting on my mini's and paints to be delivered at the moment and wanted some advice on things I wasn't sure about. I'll look into GW's washes more now that I have an idea of what they are for. As for the brushes, I'll have to look into that as well, the P3 brushes we're offered at the same place I got the paint set so that was just a matter of convenience to get them both at the same time was all. As for primers, I have a question regarding those. I've read some people prefer to prime in black and others in white and yet others in color. Black I know darkens the colors later painted over it and white makes picking out details on a mini easier to see. What's the advantage of priming in colors though? Sorry for all the questions. Working 12 hour days, 6 days a week doesn't leave me with very much free time to research all this stuff, -.-". The community here is really helpful and friendly though, so it's making it easier to learn, probably have a ton more questions once my stuff gets here, ><. I'll try to post pics when I get the chance as I complete models, so you guys know you're insight/advice isn't going to waste. Again thanks all for the responses, it's very appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morpsele Posted November 3, 2012 Report Share Posted November 3, 2012 For primer it all depends on what you are looking for. I use black mostly because it's easier for the shading. Whits is better if you want vibrant colors. And i have heard that a grey primer is the nice center of it all. I have used both kind of primer white and black. And for my style of painting i would go with black almost all the time. Good luck and welcome to malifaux Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omenbringer Posted November 4, 2012 Report Share Posted November 4, 2012 Gray is in deed a great color to prime if the model has colors that are both very dark and very vibrant (or if you are unsure of exactly how you want the final product to look). Colored primers are better when a model is dominated by a specific color i.e. most GW Space Marine paint scemes. When you start with the colored primer you can usually omit the base coating step (since teh model basically already has it applied) and move straight to the high lighting steps. If you want to play around with a slightly more advanced technique you can apply multiple primer coats (i.e. Solid black coat, then a thin coat of grey from a specific angle and about 10-12" away from the model, and finally a white primer sprayed thin and from the same specific angle as the grey but this time from 12-16" away), this technique will simulate light shining on the model say at noon or three o'clock. There are some online tutorials that explain the process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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