Octopus Overlords

baelthazar wrote:To qualify my post, the Citadel sprays are apparently partially chemical found in primer, which means some of the spray "etches" into the model. This makes overspraying dangerous as it can damage a model, but also means you get a smooth and vibrant base coat with no primer. I have only tried the blue, but so far I love it.

Just don't use it on Bones. That same chemical will permanently ruin the miniature. It reacts with the plasticizer and turns the miniature perpetually sticky.

Are the Bones minis resin? I have never heard of primer doing that to minis!

PVC

I just ordered a handful of Bones miniatures to use as Wizards and Apprentice figures for Frostgrave. I would normally prime my figures with rattlecans designed for plastics (it's primer and paint in one). Are you suggesting this is a bad idea?

Seppe, Zarathud and I are trying to get a Frostgrave game going ourselves. What a co-inky-dink.

I'm using the official Solider kit to create some quick and dirty fighters but wasn't really crazy about the metal mages I found. The Bones figures I discovered were quite nice, so I figured I'd give them a try -- but I don't have any experience painting Bones figures at all. I'm also painting up some ruins and using my existing block walls for additional obstacles. I really like that I already have so much of what's needed to play and that the rules are pretty minimal. I'm going to start painting the soldiers so I'll definitely start taking photos of them tool and I'll post 'em here. If you guys are also starting up a game, I might start a new thread when I setup the scenario/table (hopefully) in a few weeks.

Cool, I'd like to see that.

We also latched onto Frostgrave because of the "use whatever you have" gameplay it espouses. And thanks to Reaper, we have a ton in our group.

Smoove_B wrote:Are you suggesting this is a bad idea?

No, I am stating it outright. Many standard spray primers will react with the plasticizers in Bones, causing permanent tackiness that can be temporarily masked, but will eventually return. It is just the nature of PVC. Read. It is the reason I only ever used Army Painter on them before switching to airbrush priming.

I've had the same problem on some board game miniatures. The Gears of War miniatures I primed with regular Krylon are sticky - and they were primed years ago.

Awesome. Thanks for the tip. Still learning new things every day!

Smoove_B wrote:I just ordered a handful of Bones miniatures to use as Wizards and Apprentice figures for Frostgrave. I would normally prime my figures with rattlecans designed for plastics (it's primer and paint in one). Are you suggesting this is a bad idea?

Double check, but I don't think Bones figures need priming...

I do a primer+paint base coat now on all my miniatures - speeds up the painting tremendously. For example, here's the Shadows of Brimstone Behemoth Goliath primed+paint with the Krylon Ultra Flat Green camo rattlecan:



I'd be inclined to prime+paint the Bones figures with a similar product, probably grey. I did find some D&D figures by WizKids that are primed but when I got them home they're 32mm scale and look like giants compared to the 28mm scale of the Frostgrave figures. I'd still recommend the D&D figures though if you're looking for something a bit larger, incidentally.

I picked up one of the WizKids pre-primed miniatures. The only complaints that I had were that they over-primed them, and that they didn't clean the mold lines before priming, meaning that if I want a decent paintjob, I'm going to have to clean them then re-prime them again, meaning a thick, thick layer of paint (or else de-prime them first, which is an even bigger pain.)

I am sorry if there was already a discussion on this, 22 pages is a lot of posts to read.

In your opinion, what are the essential color paints that a beginner should have?

I'd say black & white, ROYGBIV (can probably skip the V), brown, tan, flesh. A silver and a gold. Matte varnish (don't use Testor's Dullcote.) That will get you started. As a next step, I'd add Vallejo black and sepia washes.

Don't forget to get some primer.

I would also suggest getting a lighter tone of each color, and the Army Painter set of bottled inks. Washes and inks darken up the model, but dry-brushing with a lighter tone can help with the contrasts.

Reaper paints can be purchased in some pre-assembled sets.

Zarathud wrote:I would also suggest getting a lighter tone of each color, and the Army Painter set of bottled inks. Washes and inks darken up the model, but dry-brushing with a lighter tone can help with the contrasts.

Reaper paints can be purchased in some pre-assembled sets.

I would agree with getting a lighter tone of each, but as an add-on if you're wanting to spend more or are wanting to figure out what to add next. It isn't essential to get painting, though, for the same reason I didn't list gray: Any color + white = lighter tone.

So far I have: Leather Brown, Pure Black, Dragon White, Blade Steel, Polished Silver, Mountain Stone, Harvest Brown, Naga Green, Dragon Blue, Candlelight Yellow, Desert Sand, Marigold Yellow, Dark Highlights, Heather Blue, Dragon Red, Bleached Linen, Ebony Flesh, Scholar Flesh, Dragon Bronze, Filigree Silver, Brilliant Red, Woodland Brown, and an Ink Wash.

Today I ordered: Suntan Flesh, Caucasian Flesh, Malvernian Purple, Leaf Green, Sunrise Orange, Sky Blue and Auburn Shadow.

I also added glass beads to every bottle.

I've been struggling for years with how exactly to base my miniatures. I know this isn't an usual problem, but I've run through about half a dozen types of basing strategies and I think I finally found the one I like. After doing more research, I picked up a jar of Vallejo Fine White Pumice with the idea of using it as soil bases for my Shadows of Brimstone miniatures. Here's a photo of what it looks like after application and drying, then on the right is after a black base coat, followed by brown paint and a bone color dry brushing. It's exactly what I wanted and I'm surprised it took me this long to figure it all out.



You can paint it up any number of ways (to simulate various base themes) and eventually I'll probably get to the point where I'm adding static grasses or small stones to give them some more character. The product itself is a bit like toothpaste with those little pumice chunks in it, which should make the addition of other basing elements much easier. Could I make the same product with sand and acrylic paint? Probably, but it's not worth my time.

The other thing I've started using is a wet palette, constructed using this video here. Not only am I painting better but it's ridiculously helpful in keeping my paints ready to go in between sessions. Didn't cost me a dollar to make, which was a nice bonus and an unexpected rarity for this hobby.

Smoove_B wrote: Could I make the same product with sand and acrylic paint? Probably, but it's not worth my time.

That looks great!

FWIW, the results are the same as a very standard basing process - cover the base in a thin layer of white glue, then dip it in sand. It is the basis for almost all of my bases that aren't sculpted or stamped. I keep little plastic tubs of a number of different sands I've found for different results. Super-fine beach sand for grass/dirt, coarser sand for gravel, coarser sand with bigger bits for rougher terrain, etc. It costs the price of white glue.

I've tried the sand and white glue process and I didn't like it. I'm remembering it was ultra messy, though it might have been my relatively inexperience with the process overall as I'm pretty sure it was one of the first I tried. I had been using sawdust flock and glue and had the same feeling. What bothers me the most is how much of the basing material sheds during movement or storage. I've tried going back over everything with watered down glue but there always seems to be little bits that fall off. What I really like about this Vallejo pumice stuff is that it's bullet proof. I'm going to continue to use the clear acrylic bases for certain figures (when seeing tiles or the board is important), but I think I'm going to start swapping out into this style now. Not sure how many years it took me to get to this point, but it's one less point of stress, that's for sure.

I've no idea what process you used, but shedding doesn't really happen for me. My process:

1. Put a couple of drops of glue on the base, then spread it around with a toothpick.
2. Dip it in sand (or sprinkle sand on it, but usually dip.)
3. If I want a thick base, I allow it to sit in the sand for a while. If I want a thin base, I take it out immediately and tap the excess off.
4. Allow it to dry completely.
5. Tap the excess off, then, take a larger paint brush I don't use for anything else and brush it off. This removes any excess that might every come off.

The whole process, minus drying time, takes maybe two minutes per miniature, almost all of which is the time it takes to spread the glue.

Oh, and I do all of this after washing, but before priming. The base, including the sand, is primed along with the rest of the miniature.

I think that was my main problem - basing was done after the miniature had been finished - so it was never being "sealed" in with everything. I had been viewing the basing as a final step and never incorporated it into my priming -- which would have been much smarter. Even still, I like this pumice product because it adds a non-uniform (i.e. random) texture to the bases. I'm guessing we arrive at the same point (more or less), I'm just spending $10 for a jar of this product, to be applied after priming but before painting.

I achieve that through a different process, but yeah - absolutely. For every effect on a miniature, there are multiple approaches. Everyone finds the one that works best for them and suits their needs the best.

I'm lazy, I've started using Army Builder pre-colored basing materials and I've been really happy with the results. One less painting step is a bonus for me.

I've been toying with the idea of starting to use clear bases for a while now. Most of them, like the ones from Litko Gaming Systems don't appeal to me because they're very thick, and I think that makes it almost more obtrusive than a mis-terrained base on the battlefield.

But I've seen some good use of the Pulp Alley "inviso" bases. I might buy a pack to experiment with.

I use laser cut wooden circles painted black. That way they have the same style as any pre-painted minis used. I can get them from Gale Force 9 in Chinese food containers for $15/20 at GenCon or Origins.

I really like the clear bases for my Mansions of Madness characters; I should grab a picture. The one thing I learned from them is not to use KrazyGlue (or equivalent) because it "fogs" when it dries on the clear bases. If you're sloppy in any way it'll look like hell (and ruin the point of having clear bases). Instead I have some a tube of an equivalent glue that dries clear. I don't like the tube format, but having the bases stay clear after application wins.

FWIW, here's a free book on miniature prep and painting.

Kasey Chang wrote:FWIW, here's a free book on miniature prep and painting.

Thanks. I'll have to check that out!

I haven't been painting much the last few months due to burn-out, but I did need to paint up a character for a D&D game I've been invited to play in starting tomorrow. I really wanted to spend another hour or two on him, especially the red wrap and his hair, but had to rush to have it ready for tomorrow.

Wanted to post up some of the projects that I have done.

This one was fun to paint.
Base coats



details added


Mostly finished




Finished:

Another big one:

These are awesome!

Yeah, I'm not even sure what I'm looking at, but they' look great. Love the toxic barrel and the last..uhh..thing with the sword.

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Fri Oct 27, 2017 6:36 pm Yeah, I'm not even sure what I'm looking at, but they' look great. Love the toxic barrel and the last..uhh..thing with the sword.

Google "Nurgle"

Given his background, he’s seen worse.

Ah ok. I wasn't sure if it was a 40K thing. They looked like they might be, just not units I'm familiar with (or recognize on sight). I actually picked up the new 8th edition core set over the summer and it includes Plague Marines...and I guess there's a similarity there, at least in theme. Didn't realize (I guess) that there were all kinds of plague units. Then again, in retrospect, that makes more sense.

Thank, the 40k nurgle units are fun to paint. Lot of detail on them. The two big ones took a few weeks.