Thunderbolt Mountain's New Wood Elf Champion - Part II

When you're painting a single character that comes mounted and on foot, obviously you're going to be painting the two figures in the same way. Rather than rehash what I've already described in the first article, this one will focus in on some areas that the foot figure doesn't have. So, naturally, a large portion of this writeup will be dedicated to the horse.

For a review of the techniques, tools, and setup I use for these figures, see the first article.

Painting the Mounted Champion

I use the following abbreviations for the following paint lines:

VMC:

Vallejo Model Color

GW:

The current range of Games Workshop colors.

C:

The original range of Citadel paints, since taken over by Coat d'arms. While the names are the same as the new GW range, the colors can vary. These old paints tend to be more transparent, which is partly why I like certain of these paints so much. For the same reason, that's why I use other paints as well.

The Figure

The first half of this article describes an exercise of matching a paint job I've already completed. In my experience, deciding which colors and which techniques to apply are two of the most challenging and time-consuming aspects of painting. So the mounted figure went more smoothly than the foot figure. However, getting the figures to match exactly was its own challenge, especially when it came time to blend paints.

Basecoats

Now that I knew all the colors I would be using in advance, I could base the entire figure in one go. I didn't need 100% smooth coverage for these undercoats, just a dark base to build upon.

Armor

Since I didn't have to pause to consider which layer would come next, I wasn't confined to only using layering on the armor. I used a combination of layering and blending.

A little slip-up here: I didn't consult my notes or pictures because I thought I remembered the steps I had used. I slipped in an extra color, and gave the armor a strong coat of Bestial Brown. This meant I had to do a little give-and-take later to make the armor match the foot troop. D'oh!

Basecoat:

Black and GW Dark Angels Green

Layer:

The above mix + GW Goblin Green, GW Scorpion Green, dulled with hints of GW Fortress Grey as needed.

Layer/blend:

The above mix + C Bestial Brown

Layer/blend:

The above mix + CSnakebite Leather

Layers:

The above mix + GW Bleached Bone, GW Fortress Grey

Layer:

The above mix + White

The top highlights, where I wanted a shine spot, are pure undiluted White.

Then I worked desaturated Scorpion Green back into the crevices, to create a subtle patina and a slightly greener look.

Compare to the armor in the 1st article, and you'll see an extra step. Oops. If your memory is like mine, always check your notes!