High Elf Prince Althran

High Elf Prince Althran.

After finishing a unit of White Lions, I needed a break from painting lots of gems and lion skins! I decided to reward myself by working on a couple of individual models, including Prince Althran.

Prince Althran

For this model, I tried a couple of things that were new to me. 

Firstly, the gems decorating his cuirass and attaching his cloak are round. Most of the High Elf gems I have painted are shaped liked like a tear drop, so this was a bit different. Also, I went with red gems, rather than green. That meant that instead of simply using a lighter shade of the gem colour, (which would have given me a pink effect) I mixed in orange. I had read about this before but it worked surprisingly well (I think!)

Secondly, I added a couple of scratches to the shield. I'd also seen this before, and after a bit of Googling I knew how to do it, but it required a really, really steady hand.

Prince Althran, notice the slashes to his shield

The technique itself is very simple, but I think it looks good from a distance and adds a bit of story to the model:

1. Add a thin line of Skull White (pure white)

2. Just a fraction above that, paint on another very thin line, the same length, but this time of a darker colour (in this case a GW Calthan Brown)

3. Finally, add an even thinner, darker shade inside the first dark line. 

The third thing I did differently to usual was that I bothered to paint in the wood grain to the reverse of his shield. You can see it clearly in the first picture at the top of this post. 

For some reason, I feel a real sense of satisfaction with this model! Compared to my painting when I started this blog, looking at this model made me realize that (in my opinion at least) I've improved. Regardless of what hobby you are doing, that is a very rewarding - if fleeting - moment!

Here are some photos of the Prince, in progress.

Basecoats, before washes...

After washes...

After basecoats, washes and drybrushing/ layers...

I've added the Prince to my High Elf army page.

Cheers!

White Lions of Chrace - finished!

White Lion Champion, standard bearer, and musician

Continuing with my attempt to expand the small High Elf army I started a year or two ago, I just finished up a unit of White Lions of Chrace. Although my experience with them is very limited, in any High Elf army at the moment, you will probably see a unit of White Lions (very choppy!) or Phoenix Guard (an amazing anvil unit by all accounts). 

White Lions guard the entrance to the Purple Tower.

Simply put, White Lions are about as hard core as it gets when it comes to High Elf hammer units. Sure, Swordmasters put out the hurt, but Lions have a 3+ save against missile attacks, +2 strength and are stubborn too.

I quickly got these guys up to scratch over the last couple of weeks to play a game, but spent some time adding a bit more detail the last few days and thought they were ready to post.

• Completed the green gems on the command models (Champion, standard bearer, musician)
• Painted on a few more details and highlights.
• Painted gloss varnish ("'ard coat") onto every gem on each model outside the command unit.

The gloss varnish was a bit of experiment, but I think it came out ok. If you are looking to save time, then focusing on the command unit or first row and making compromises on the other models can save you a lot of time. It was much faster just to have a nice Dark Angels Green basecoat on each gem and then varnish it, rather than do the four steps and have the steady hand that gems usually take (base coat, lighter basecoats x2, white dot).

Does it look as good as painted gems? No, because it doesn't "pop" as much. It does provide a basic gleam though!

A few compromises at the moment, as this unit came from a big HElf eBay purchase a while back:

1. There are only 19 of them at the moment (but my usual opponents don't mind if I proxy a couple of Spearmen to bring the unit up to 21)
2. The unit champion doesn't have the correct arm! Look closely and you will see that he uses an Archer champion arm, which doesn't have the correct pauldron (but it is at least pointing at the enemy.)

Coming from painting Skaven, it was quite refreshing to have a complete unit at 19 models!

More pics below.

White Lion champion

Standard bearer

Standard Bearer

Musician

Three White lions. Gems here were just gloss varnish over a dark green.

Next up? 

I'd like to go to a single model (probably a Prince) and then 1 or 2 mounted heroes (a Prince and a Mage). This is because I have 8 Silver Helms done from my first attempt at the army. From what I hear running these 3 x 3 is a good balance of offence and size, while still allowing me to push a mounted hero in the 2nd file (protecting them from attacks back). It will be fun to run a unit of cavalry for the first time next time I field this army!

Cheers,

*Squeek*

How to Paint a High Elf Bolt Thrower

*Squeek*

High Elf Bolt Throwers on the field of battle!

One of the signature weapons of any High Elf army, the repeater bolt thrower is a great little model and an easy way to add some devastating firepower to any HE army. I painted these a while ago, so this guide will use the paints I used at the time - the "old" citadel miniature paints. I don't know if anyone has any of those left though, so you can use this conversion chart to see the new equivalents in the current paint range.

In this guide, we will cover both the crew and the warmachine.

Before we get started, please note that I painted these some months ago, so I may not have remembered exactly which paints I used, but I think they are in the ballpark!

Paints:

• Chaos Black (spray undercoat) 
• Chaos Black
• Skull White
• Bleached Bone
• Codex Grey
• Snot Green
• Dark Angels Green
• Snakebite Leather
• Calthan Brown
• Tallarn Flesh
• Dwarf Flesh
• Elf Flesh
• Mithril Silver
• Dwarf Bronze
• Shining Gold
• Liche Purple 
• Warlock Purple
• Sunburst Yellow

Washes:

• Devlan Mud
• Ogryn Flesh
• Gryphonne Sepia
• Badab Black

Step 1: Preparation

Smooth down any mould lines left on the model. I usually use a file for this.

Step 2: First Basing

Sand/ file down the edges of the base and apply PVA glue to the top (or watered down PVA glue). Then sprinkle a few pieces of crushed coral on. After that, quickly dip in modelling sand.
Crushed coral is available at any pet shop in the aquatic section. I find that it adds a bit  of interest to the base by providing some small "rocks". Allow to dry before Step 3 (below)

Step 3: Undercoat 

I usually use GW Chaos Black or Skull White spray cans for this for the sake of convenience. In this case I used Chaos Black. 
Many people probably use a light undercoat for High Elves as this gives a brighter overall effect at the end, and requires fewer coats of paint to cover. I like Chaos Black because it hides mistakes and forms natural shadows when left in the creases of a model.

Important: Don't hold the spray too close to the models! That could make the undercoat too thick and can obscure detail on the model. It is better to have not enough and then do a second layer if necessary.

Step 4: Basecoat(s)

This is where we add the basic colours to the model. Later on we will add highlights and washes to add depth.

CREW:
Codex Grey: Robes. After the Codex Grey then add... 
Skull White (NOTE: you may have to do 3-5 layers of white to get a smooth effect!)
Mithril Silver: Armour/ scales, vambraces, helmets, belts, bolt tips etc.
Calthan Brown: Boots
Liche Purple: Edges of hauberk/  sashes
Tallarn Flesh: Skin (face, hands)
Dark Angels Green: Gems on belts and on bolt thrower.

BOLT THROWER:
Bleached Bone: Bolt Thrower arms and legs.
Dwarf Bronze: Metal pieces on bolt thrower (tips of the arms, levers, feet)
Dark Angels Green: Gems on belts and on bolt thrower.
Mithril Silver: Bolt (tip), and "stock" (the rear of the weapon).

You can see in the image above that with only basecoats applied, the models are looking better, but are very "flat". The next step, "Washes", will add shadows, making the model seem more natural and "3D"

If you are wondering about the gems, we will get to them in Step 6...

Step 5: Washes

You can see the washes on
the bolt thrower metallics - darker areas. The crew are NOT washed here.

Washes are an easy way to add very realistic looking shadows and visual interest to your models, and they are dead easy to apply! (Literally, just wash them over the model...
...BUT NOT THE SKULL WHITE ROBES!!)

CREW:Ogryn Flesh: Skin, hands.
Badab Black: armour.
Devlan Mud: crew bases.
Gryphonne Sepia: On the hair (if you did it sunburst yellow previously)

BOLT THROWER:
Gryphonne Sepia: Any areas of the bolt thrower where you used Dwarf Bronze.

Step 6:Layers

Adding washes will have toned down the whole model and added shadow. Now we will "Layer" on some lighter tones of the basecoats that we used before, in order to add highlights.

CREW:
Tallarn Flesh/ Dwarf Flesh/ Elf Flesh: Skin. (50/50) Add Elf Flesh to make skin even lighter.
Skull White: eyes.
Chaos Black: pupils.
Liche Purple/ Warlock Purple mix (50/50) Edges of hauberk/ sashes. Layer up with an intermediate mix (30/70) to a pure Warlock Purple

Green Gems: Dark Angel Green/ Snot Green mix:  (70/30 mix, layering up to a 30/70 mix along the bottom edge of the gem).  Add a tiny dot of Skull White at the top of each gem.

Step 7: Drybrushing/ Edge Highlights

You can just make out that the armour and vambraces have been
lightly drybrushed or highlighted

CREW:
Mithril Silver: Swords, helmets etc.
You could either drybrush or edge-highlight (or both). In the photo above the armour plate over the stomach has been edge-highlighted along the top edge.
(It looks better when viewed a few feet away on a gaming table)
Sunburst Yellow: Hair.


BOLT THROWER:

Bleached Bone/ Skull White: (70/30 mix) Edge highlights on the edges of the bolt-thrower arms etc.
Shining Gold: Edges on the Bolt thrower metallics.

Step 8: Final basing

CREW:
Calthan Brown: Overbrush across the base, being careful to avoid the boots/ legs of the model
Snakebite Leather: Drybrush across the base. Paint the base edges. I usually find 2 coats gives a nice smooth finish.
Paint on PVA glue, and then sprinkle static grass onto the base.

Here are some shots of the finished unit:

*Squeek*

The Tower of Xereus

*Squeek*

"Now, unbeknownst to many of the peoples of Ulthuan,The Purple Sons of Xereus have a tower of their own. Although not as famous a tower as the great Tower of Hoeth in Saphery, and despite a dwindling population, the citizens of the land around the famed monument of Xereus still heed the call of the resident mage in times of peril."

At the suggestion of Elessehta of Yvresse over on Ulthuan.net, (an excellent site for all things High Elven) and seconded by Talifan, tonight I went ahead and gave the Battlefield in a Box Elven Tower a make over to match my High Elf army colours. (Naturally, work started after consulting with the leaders of The Purple Sons of Xereus - my two kids - and getting their permission!)

Results below!

The Tower of Xereus.

The Tower in its original Battlefield in a Box colours

Base of tower (Door and gem detail)

Base of Tower (gem detail)

Balcony and upper tower (detail)

The whole makeover took around a couple of hours. It included:
1.) Changing each gem (window?) from red to green. (To be exact, Snot Green with Dark Angels Green at top, Skull White/ Snot Green mix at bottom, and a dot of Skull White) 

2.) Changing the entire roof to my purple army colours. (Liche Purple, Devlan Mud wash, 2-3 drybrushes with progressively lighter shades of Warlock Purple.)

3.) Detailing the gem (window?) edges with Shining Gold.

4.) Edge highlights on door frames, handles etc. (Mithril Silver)


I think it was worth it though!

Thanks again to Elessehta of Yvresse for the idea!

Cheers,
*Squeek*

High Elf Battle Standard Bearer - done!

*Squeek*

An army battle standard needs to be big. Really big.

Hey everyone, been working on adding a High Elf Battle Standard Bearer to The Purple Sons. I think he is ready to join up so here are a couple of pictures. (Not good ones. These were taken at night and then I messed around with them in Picasa.)

It took a few nights to finish this BSB. As you can imagine, there were two things that took a long time.

1. Skull White layers.

I have nearly finished my pot of Skull White, so it looks as though I will be coming into the new Ceramite White soon (if my wife is reading this, it is Father's Day in Japan this coming weekend hint, hint). Sadly, that won't be in time to help reduce the time it took to do these layers of white (don't ask me how many I did. I lost count midway through the process!)

2. Banner details and highlights.

Having collected mainly Skaven I have never had a BSB where the army heraldry was moulded into the standard before. 

On the one hand, it is a really nice design (credit to the scuptor - sorry I don't know their name), on the other, it is pretty complicated to paint AND it is different from the rest of my army.

Now of course, with a bit of work I could replace this banner with a generic one without a design, so I am just being lazy.

It is a shame the colours in the photos suck, because the eagle at the top of the banner actually turned out much brighter than this. I used a Calthan Brown/ Shining Gold mix as the base and a Devlan Mud wash, followed by pure Shining Gold highlights.

A Noble with Battle Standard - that's another 110 points added to The Purple Sons right there!

:-)

Cheers,

*Squeek*

Finished High Elf Army with Pics!

*Squeek*

The Purple Sons of Xereus are ready to rock and roll! 

At about 1.00am this morning I put the finishing touches to the High Elf Silver Helms that I had been working on as a present for the kids. My first post about High Elves was on March 16th of this year, so it has taken me about 3 months to get this army done (nights only after the kids had gone to bed). As I was already late in giving the army to my kids as a surprise present (the Battlefield in a Box Elven Tower that was to complete the army hadn't arrived until this week) I decided that today, Saturday, would be the hand over.

So, before heading off to bed, I finished off the final details (scabbards), set out the army in the living room so the kids would see it, and added a quick hand-made card...

When I woke up, the kids had already had a look, and fortunately seemed quite happy! I was ALSO pretty happy (relieved!) to hear that yes, purple was still their favorite colour. I don't know how I would have felt if that had changed! 

Here are some pictures:

The assembled Purple Sons of Xereus

Mage and Elven Tower

Silver Helms

Silver Helms

Swordmasters of Hoeth, Bladelord, Musician and Banner

Spearmen, Sentinel, musician and banner.

Swordmasters of Hoeth (second unit of x10)

Swordmasters of Hoeth.

Repeater Bolt Thrower

Archers with Hawkeye, musician and banner

Silver Helms

Mage

As a dad, I was very happy to see them looking through all the models, picking them up and playing with them. (Of course, being kids, they immediately noticed that some of the Silver Helm mounts had lost their tails...)
It also looks as this is something that we can share going forward too. My oldest, (10) and I sat down, and she was happy to hear about the different troops and was quite excited about the prospect of playing a game! She likes maths, so she had a go totaling up the points cost of each unit and we put it at about 1300 (before magic items etc.)

Here is the army as it stands now. I have lots more models to work on, but I am calling it "finished" at this point because it is playable (I think) and this is the state that I handed it over to the kids.

x1 Mage (Commander)
x10 Swordmasters of Hoeth.
x10 Swordmasters of Hoeth.
x8 Silverhelms.
x10 Archers.
x10 Archers.
x20 Spearmen.
x2 Repeater Bolt Throwers and crew.

I have a Battle Standard Bearer primed, so that will probably be the next model, and then there are lots more things I could add.

It has been quite a busy 3 months on these, but I feel it was definitely worth it. I think it is really important to try to find something that gives you something to talk about with your kids. Ultimately, I don't want to force my kids into my hobby. If they aren't interested, then no harm done - it remains my hobby. 

Cheers,
*Squeek*