inload: Warhammerfest T-2

+ Finishing touches – T-2 days to Fest +

+ I'm working on a Catachan guntruck as my maiden entry for Warhammerfest, and – wonder of wonders – I think I'm going to have it finished in time, rather than scrambling at the very last second. +

+ Above you can see a detail of the Goliath's nickname – I took the idea for the rather swanky style of handwriting – and speech marks – from photographs  of tanks from the Second World War. I've used a lot of real-world reference for this project; for the Imperial Guard in particular I think it suits them to have clear antecedents – it's how these are swathed and blended into the 40k milieu that makes them interesting. +

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+ What's new? +

+ Since the last inload, I've added the squirrel marking I explained there – shown in the pict-capture above prior to oil glazes. Besides that, most of the changes were to the crew – fairly subtle additional detailing and refinement of their equipment. The major addition is the base. +

+ A scenic base is, I think, very important to give some context and narrative to the vehicle, so I've created a section of jungle trail. It was with some trepdiation that I approached this, as I don't have much experience with this aspect of modelling. Still, the best teacher is experimentation, so I got stuck in. +

+ The underlying structure of the base is layers of corkboard overlaid with Polyfilla. While wet, I added fine sand and embedded some small twigs and debris. I also added a large root that I fortuitously dug up while gardening a few weeks ago. It makes a good basis for a nice twisted jungly tree. This was secured to the cork using superglue before adding the Polyfilla. +

+ Once it had all dried, I painted a layer of watered-down PVA over the whole thing to seal it. Once that had dried, I sprayed it successively with black, and brown spray, then used some more directed khaki and olive touches – the former for the trail, and the latter for the surrounding undergrowth. I was aiming for a fairly subtle modulation +

+ After polishing off as much of the vehicle and crew as I could (I'm still waiting for the oils on the flag to dry to add the finishing touches), I attacked the base with a variety of earthy brown and green oil paints to vary the broad areas of colour that were in place after the spraying. +

+ This was a nice quick job – lucky, as it was getting late, and I'm determined not to be dead on my feet for the actual event! Before turning it, I couldn't resist getting a couple of shots of everything in place. The plinth base is a temporary one – a larger one is (rather nail-bitingly) in the post, so I'm crossing my mechadendrites that it arrives in time. +

+ Not only is it a treat to see your model looking more as it'll appear, this stage is proving very useful, as it will give me a chance to make some tweaks. The base is not yet finished; I want to add lots of static grass to brighten things up, add a sense of life and bring in some tonal contrast to make the vehicle pop. +

+ If time allows, I'd also like to add some little details like a skull-headed bird, some evidence of an enemy (perhaps a sunken skull or an Eldar soulstone?) or a signpost, to give some sense of purpose to the piece. Then again, perhaps we're edging into diorama territory here... + 

+ For the moment, I'll leave you with these work-in-progress shots. Here you can see the idea of the base – to give a sense of speed and forward motion, with the vehicle just about carrying itself over the lip of the textured area, and into space. +

+ Note here how the multilaser and flag lead the eye back in, and up towards the tree. I'm also pleased with the contrast between the wet, churned-up dark red-tinged mud on the trail and the dried, grey-yellow mud between the rutted tracks. I've used the same colours on the ground, tree and rocks – forest routes like this tend to merge into similar colours, and having everything so cohesive ensures the eye isn't drawn away from the vehicle. +

+ I always think it's a good sign when you find yourself grinning at a piece you've done. It's far from perfect, but I really feel like I've pushed myself and learned a lot in the process (with more to come!). Most importantly, I've genuinely enjoyed it. It's been a really engaging, enjoyable and engrossing project for me. I'm glad I spent all this time, thought and energy on it, whatever the result. +

+ *Vroom vroom beep beep!* +

+ This shot's a good example of how important it is to balance the markings. Too subtle initially, and they'd be lost when subsequent glazes are added. Too bold, and they'll stick out like a sore thumb. Too many, and you'll create a confusing finish; too few and it'll be a bit boring. Have I struck the magic balance? I dunno – but that's why it's good to have a day or two to ponder and consider in the cold light of day. +

+ Deciding something's finished is always a tricky call to make. You can keep on refining and tweaking and fixing – but these aren't always improvements, and it's possible to overwork the piece. Let me be clear that I don't think that's the case here – I can see quite a few little bits and bobs that could do with tidying up... + 

+ This shot shows my major concern at this point – the banner. It's just not coming together. At root, it's because I don't like the raised symbol on it. It's obtrusive, a bit (dare I say?) clichéd, and not particularly cleanly sculpted – the leaves of the laurel wreath in particular are blurry and soft. I should, perhaps, have cleaned it off earlier in the process, but you live and learn. +

+ It's perhaps too late to sub it out, so I'm going to have to adapt and overcome. The second problem with it, which is entirely self-inflicted, is that I've gone for a yellow field, which means I've made a rod for my own back in terms of colours. At the moment, I'm leaning towards adding some chequerboarding freehand and a black heralcic pale (that is, a vertical stripe down the centre) to give the skull and company sigil some contrast. + 

+ The other concern is that the big branch is obscuring the view of the techpriest. I do like the branch, but perhaps I need to move it elsewhere on the tree so it's less obtrusive. +

+ So, there we are. This is likely to be the last inload before Warhammer Fest, so wish me luck in getting this finished, and I'll see you on the other side. If you're planning to make the trip up, do let me know – would be great to put some faces to names. +

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