Post by rudypicardo on Nov 20, 2007 15:57:13 GMT
To readers and mods: my apologies if this post is hard to read. I'm still trying to find color schemes/formats that will allow everyone to read my posts AND see the links within the post
Late January 2007, I completed building and paiting my second of 2 Devilfexes/Dakkafexes. I thought I'd share some of the general details about the model as I painted the piece. I'm submited the finished piece to a small competition on a forum. Although I didn't win, I got an honrable mention. Regardless, I primarily made this Devilfex for a few reasons
1) I wanted to try to make a Devilfex just with the pieces that come in a Battlebox or Carnifex kit (with green stuff of course)
2) I built and painted this model within 1 month (whenever I had free time, not literally of course)
3) In games starting at or over 1500 points, this unit is one of the most cost effective units in games.
4) I don't like the dual pistol look of the 2 TL devourer. A MC should have a more intimidating looking weapon.
--------------
Modeling the TL Devourer
Although I don't have too many WIP pics regarding building, I thought I'd share a quick close-up of the TL Devourer rifle (this image was taken from my first Devourer rifle, but you get the idea). From a sculpting perspective, I consider it average work, if not poor. I've seen great green stuff work and this isn't it. But I think for the beginner or average sculptor, I think this is pretty feasible. Essentially I took the Barbed Strangler and added green stuff around it. I then added some additional Devourers and toxin sacs, that came with the gaunts sprue; and the implant attack tongue from the Carnifex. I used primarily the GW sculpting knife to get some of the green stuff details.
----------------
Base work
Although its not great green stuff work, I did want to spend a bit of time working on the base. As you can see from a close-up of the unpainted base, it uses various elements including
a) The GW Hero basing kit
b) GW gravel and sand
c) Green stuff
d) Plaster rocks using a casting mold and materials from Woodland scenics
-------------
Initial painting steps
In this WIP (painting) pic, I thought the most important aspect was that I didn't glue the model to the base until after I painted the major colors on the Devilfex; The base was just shown here to get a feel for the overall look. After priming my Devilfex and base separately, my general steps to this pic were
a) Basecoat of Shadow Grey (1:1 mixture with water)
b) Adding a layer of blue ink to get into recesses (1:1 mixture with water). I also added a small drop of dishwashing liquid to help break the surface tension of the ink. This allowed the ink to get into the recesses a bit more easily. And when I mean a small drop, I mean I used a tooth pick to get a small dab.
c) After drying the model overnight (as ink takes longer to dry), I drybrushed 1-2 layers of fortress gray on the exoskeleton
d) I then dry brushed 1-2 layers of skull white on the exoskeleton
e) On the carapiece sections, I loosely painted those areas Shadow Grey (1:1 mixture of water)
The overall process is a bit long, and doesn't look great at this stage, but it makes it easier to start adding details later on.
-----------------
Intermediate steps
Although I don't have any WIP pics of these steps, I did a basic outline here
1) 95% of base was painted. The areas I left "unfinished" were areas that I planned on gluing to the feet of the Carnifex.
2) I made pins (using paper clips) and attached them to the feet. On the base, one of the pieces that was going to be pinned was a resin piece, the other was a piece of large slate. Both of these pieces were from the Hero basing kit. In both cases, I used my pin-vice to drill the holes. The diameter of the drill bit used for the feet and pin was slightly larger than the hole I drilled in the pieces of the base. This was to take into account that I wasn't going to get an exact hole when I drilled it. I then pinned the pieces using the Citadel Superglue
3) Working from inside the model to out, I painted the rest of the Devilfex.
---------------
The finished product
Devilfex (side view)
Devilfex (front view)
Devilfex (top view)
Ok first things first: Someone asked me why I but the adrenal gland there. Well I wanted to demonstrate reinforced chitin (if I needed to in some games). So I added that extra carapiece that you have from the kit. I just added the gland, because you never know. I prefer to overmodel my pieces.When looking at the front of the model somewhat closely, I was trying to use colors that only contrasted the model slightly. And I wanted certain aspects of the model to stick out. So colors such as orange, yellow, and green were used in various parts of the model.
The Devourer Rifle, although crude looking is a bit more intimidating, compared to 4 "pistols". When I showed my first Devilfex to people at the GW Store in Springfield, Virginia, the GW reps told me I should look to invest in a Devilfex. When I show them my model, their general response was always, "No, you want to have 2 TL Devou...(pause)...Oh (pause)...Oh man..Nice"
I may not win a Golden Daemon, but that response alone is worth it.
As shown from this reverse angle of the Devourer rifle, I used tried to use colors that stood out to show the devourer heads and added spots (using a Fine point Pilot pen) for detail. IMPORTANT NOTE: If you plan on using a pilot pen for stippling or details, this should be the final step before spraying the model with matte varnish or gloss coat. The pen ink does not dry very well and can easily ruin the model if you smear it. If you needed to know a general order, I worked my way down the model: Staring with the shoulders, then the devourer rifle, then worked my way down the legs and tail.
I really made an effort to paint the mouth of the Devilfex, which I agreed was something I needed to improve upon. For the tongue, I started with Scab Red, then a layer of Liche Purple. I then added Tentacle Pink on the tip, and drybrushed areas with Skull white. For the teeh, I first added a 1:1 chestnut ink/water mixture to get into the recesses (using a dab of dishwashing liquid). Then I added some bestial brown (1:1 mixture). I then painted some highlights with bleached bone, and a final layer of skull white.
For the base of the model, I wanted the skeletons to stick out as much as possible. I tried to add both the lichen (from the Hero Basic kit) and static grass (separate tub), but the more I added, the worse the base ended up looking. So I just stopped to cut my losses. The static grass was the second to last piece added to model (before the pilot pen stippling marks). In hindsight, I'm not sure if I should have added the grass and lichen.
----------------
Final Reflections
I had a lot of fun building painting this piece. I was happy just to make and paint a model within 1 month, which gives me alot of hope for my potential 1750 list, considering how much more work I need to do.
I continue to find mould lines during painting which annoy the heck out of me. I work hard in trying to remove them, but I always find them.
I consider this a moderately difficult project, but I think something that any modeler could do. From a modeling perspective, the hardest part is the green stuff. I think painting can be done, if you're willing to put the time into it. And I think any of the Tyranid MC are worth the time. So this wouldn't win a Golden Daemon, but I definitely think it could win a "Pewter Nurgling". I think its at least Table Top quality, if not slightly better.
Hopefully with the images and steps, many of you can do the same, if not better work. Please send me a PM if you have any questions or comments.
Late January 2007, I completed building and paiting my second of 2 Devilfexes/Dakkafexes. I thought I'd share some of the general details about the model as I painted the piece. I'm submited the finished piece to a small competition on a forum. Although I didn't win, I got an honrable mention. Regardless, I primarily made this Devilfex for a few reasons
1) I wanted to try to make a Devilfex just with the pieces that come in a Battlebox or Carnifex kit (with green stuff of course)
2) I built and painted this model within 1 month (whenever I had free time, not literally of course)
3) In games starting at or over 1500 points, this unit is one of the most cost effective units in games.
4) I don't like the dual pistol look of the 2 TL devourer. A MC should have a more intimidating looking weapon.
--------------
Modeling the TL Devourer
Although I don't have too many WIP pics regarding building, I thought I'd share a quick close-up of the TL Devourer rifle (this image was taken from my first Devourer rifle, but you get the idea). From a sculpting perspective, I consider it average work, if not poor. I've seen great green stuff work and this isn't it. But I think for the beginner or average sculptor, I think this is pretty feasible. Essentially I took the Barbed Strangler and added green stuff around it. I then added some additional Devourers and toxin sacs, that came with the gaunts sprue; and the implant attack tongue from the Carnifex. I used primarily the GW sculpting knife to get some of the green stuff details.
----------------
Base work
Although its not great green stuff work, I did want to spend a bit of time working on the base. As you can see from a close-up of the unpainted base, it uses various elements including
a) The GW Hero basing kit
b) GW gravel and sand
c) Green stuff
d) Plaster rocks using a casting mold and materials from Woodland scenics
-------------
Initial painting steps
In this WIP (painting) pic, I thought the most important aspect was that I didn't glue the model to the base until after I painted the major colors on the Devilfex; The base was just shown here to get a feel for the overall look. After priming my Devilfex and base separately, my general steps to this pic were
a) Basecoat of Shadow Grey (1:1 mixture with water)
b) Adding a layer of blue ink to get into recesses (1:1 mixture with water). I also added a small drop of dishwashing liquid to help break the surface tension of the ink. This allowed the ink to get into the recesses a bit more easily. And when I mean a small drop, I mean I used a tooth pick to get a small dab.
c) After drying the model overnight (as ink takes longer to dry), I drybrushed 1-2 layers of fortress gray on the exoskeleton
d) I then dry brushed 1-2 layers of skull white on the exoskeleton
e) On the carapiece sections, I loosely painted those areas Shadow Grey (1:1 mixture of water)
The overall process is a bit long, and doesn't look great at this stage, but it makes it easier to start adding details later on.
-----------------
Intermediate steps
Although I don't have any WIP pics of these steps, I did a basic outline here
1) 95% of base was painted. The areas I left "unfinished" were areas that I planned on gluing to the feet of the Carnifex.
2) I made pins (using paper clips) and attached them to the feet. On the base, one of the pieces that was going to be pinned was a resin piece, the other was a piece of large slate. Both of these pieces were from the Hero basing kit. In both cases, I used my pin-vice to drill the holes. The diameter of the drill bit used for the feet and pin was slightly larger than the hole I drilled in the pieces of the base. This was to take into account that I wasn't going to get an exact hole when I drilled it. I then pinned the pieces using the Citadel Superglue
3) Working from inside the model to out, I painted the rest of the Devilfex.
---------------
The finished product
Devilfex (side view)
Devilfex (front view)
Devilfex (top view)
Ok first things first: Someone asked me why I but the adrenal gland there. Well I wanted to demonstrate reinforced chitin (if I needed to in some games). So I added that extra carapiece that you have from the kit. I just added the gland, because you never know. I prefer to overmodel my pieces.When looking at the front of the model somewhat closely, I was trying to use colors that only contrasted the model slightly. And I wanted certain aspects of the model to stick out. So colors such as orange, yellow, and green were used in various parts of the model.
The Devourer Rifle, although crude looking is a bit more intimidating, compared to 4 "pistols". When I showed my first Devilfex to people at the GW Store in Springfield, Virginia, the GW reps told me I should look to invest in a Devilfex. When I show them my model, their general response was always, "No, you want to have 2 TL Devou...(pause)...Oh (pause)...Oh man..Nice"
I may not win a Golden Daemon, but that response alone is worth it.
As shown from this reverse angle of the Devourer rifle, I used tried to use colors that stood out to show the devourer heads and added spots (using a Fine point Pilot pen) for detail. IMPORTANT NOTE: If you plan on using a pilot pen for stippling or details, this should be the final step before spraying the model with matte varnish or gloss coat. The pen ink does not dry very well and can easily ruin the model if you smear it. If you needed to know a general order, I worked my way down the model: Staring with the shoulders, then the devourer rifle, then worked my way down the legs and tail.
I really made an effort to paint the mouth of the Devilfex, which I agreed was something I needed to improve upon. For the tongue, I started with Scab Red, then a layer of Liche Purple. I then added Tentacle Pink on the tip, and drybrushed areas with Skull white. For the teeh, I first added a 1:1 chestnut ink/water mixture to get into the recesses (using a dab of dishwashing liquid). Then I added some bestial brown (1:1 mixture). I then painted some highlights with bleached bone, and a final layer of skull white.
For the base of the model, I wanted the skeletons to stick out as much as possible. I tried to add both the lichen (from the Hero Basic kit) and static grass (separate tub), but the more I added, the worse the base ended up looking. So I just stopped to cut my losses. The static grass was the second to last piece added to model (before the pilot pen stippling marks). In hindsight, I'm not sure if I should have added the grass and lichen.
----------------
Final Reflections
I had a lot of fun building painting this piece. I was happy just to make and paint a model within 1 month, which gives me alot of hope for my potential 1750 list, considering how much more work I need to do.
I continue to find mould lines during painting which annoy the heck out of me. I work hard in trying to remove them, but I always find them.
I consider this a moderately difficult project, but I think something that any modeler could do. From a modeling perspective, the hardest part is the green stuff. I think painting can be done, if you're willing to put the time into it. And I think any of the Tyranid MC are worth the time. So this wouldn't win a Golden Daemon, but I definitely think it could win a "Pewter Nurgling". I think its at least Table Top quality, if not slightly better.
Hopefully with the images and steps, many of you can do the same, if not better work. Please send me a PM if you have any questions or comments.
