Chitin - Carapace coloring

[pikapp515]

I need some help from you much more talented people out there. I do 40K for the strategy - the game with some cool fluff. The modeling and painting are more of a hurdle...

BUT.. I've found I do kinda enjoy coming up with a good looking model/army... but I've taken over a year to really decide on a scheme

I've decided on the body:
-Base: Tallaran Flesh
-Dry Brush: Bone White
-Wash: Gryphone Sephia
-Repeat Dry Brush & Wash 2-3 times on larger models.

Recently I've decided (thought I had) to do the carapace Boltgun Silver with a Gryphon Sephia wash to make it look less metalic and more like chitin....

But... still not sure on this...

My two questions then:
1) How would you take a metalic color and blend it in best on a nid carapace to make it not look machine like... ?

2) What are some good looking but simple carapace designs... that look like carapace! .. not to offend, but I just can't understand purple, pink, blue, etc on Tyranids... I see them more biologically... perhaps catachan green with some brown wash?.... I look at feathering as well and just don't think I have the hand or patience for a good feathering. I love washes and dry brushing.

Thanks!!

[VoragoTitan]

well I have no idea how you could do a metallic nid (I don't like the look it gives at all), but there are these types of paints that shift colors depending on light angles and whatnot that are really cool... they are called pearlescent paints and they look amazing but are rather pricey.

I honesly have to say that feathering looks best on nid carapace's although there are afew other methods but I am not familiar with many of them. these include stippling, washing, and blending, also adding actual patterns (if doing a pattern, try to keep it simple but still awesome). many people also like to add gloss to the carapace.

Also, feathering the carapace is really easy! at first it is kinda hard, but soon it is quick and takes little effort

hope I helped you out some, good luck with your nids and if you ever have any questions feel free to ask us and we will do our best to help you.

VoragoTitan

[cyanide]

Purple Carapace



Pink



Blue


The world is full of colour, you just have to look for it! There is nothing unnatural about purple, pink or blue.

I would go with a pearlescent metallic colour, as similar colourings can be found in many insects. Go for a blue-green metallic shift maybe?

[Alice]

^Ohhh! Cute!

I think having metallic carapaces is actually a good idea though!

I have seen a model painted to look like chrome before, but I can't find the picture now. I think they'd basically used a scheme sort of like this:



except the reddish colour is substituted for the colour of whatever is on your bases. If you have good blending skills I think that would be an interesting one to try

But if you're dead set on removing the metallic-ness, you could try coating it with matte varnish as well.

[pikapp515]

Cyanide, :-D Thanks, I had to know someone was gunna call me out on that one. Those creatures are gorgeous. 'My' view of nids though just isn't 'happy' colors like those... more...um.. 'carnage' ... to each their own! I do love the diversity of color schemes on nids people have.

Alice, Thanks. I just don't want them to look like machines/robots, but like nids.

Tonight I'm going to experiment on a bunch of gaunts again with colors like:
-Catachan Green; snot green & dark angel green
-A light brown
-The range of silvers
and any other suggestions...?

I'll then brush them with a standard brown wood varnish. I tried a little dipping a while back and I'm about to go back to it after comparing methods. It can still come out looking great and going MUCH faster. I've got a LOT of figs to paint and it's about time to get them painted.

Any suggestions on colors to try are appreciated!

[Alice]

How come you decided to use silvers anyway? Just curious

[Voice of Reason]

sounds a little like how I'm doing my new scheme:




I paint their bodies dark reddish, wash with Devlan mud
paint the chitin mithril silver, then glaze over with thinned down colors - usually about two layers will do it.

Varnish with purity seal (matte varnish)
wash over the chitin with a very thin mithril silver
coat the chitin with a thick coat (two layers) of 'ard coat.

this makes the chitin shiny, somewhat metallic. I don't get the irridescent color-shifting sheen, which is a shame, but I like how it looks.

[pikapp515]

Striogi, I like your scheme a lot. I like the carapace in particular. I love the effect. That's a lot of layers for 200+ figs though.. wonder if I could just mix a silver (chain mail.. bolt gun?... mithril?) with dark angel green 50/50 and get a similar effect.

Alice, Dunno.. I just thought of it a while back as something different and I've liked it above most other things. I keep experimenting on my poor gaunts and I keep coming back to a metalic-like carapace.

[loate]

You could try doing a heavy drybrush of dark grey on the carapace (starting with a basecoat of black), then a lighter drybrush of medium grey, followed by a light drybrush of light grey at the edges, and then doing a green wash over it. Dunno if that would be the effect you're looking for but it would be fairly painless to do.