Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Fantasy Adventures => Topic started by: Kaluthmar on September 11, 2021, 02:53:55 AM
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A few months ago I painted up some Empire and Mordheim figs to use in Frostgrave. They turned out great and reminded of my first love, and what started me in the hobby, my Warhammer Empire army. That reminder also made me a bit sad, as after almost 29 years of collecting it, only 20% of it is painted.
So I have set myself a goal, finish painting everything. By my count, I have 148 figures painted out of the 739 that make it up. Here is a group shot.
(http://i.imgur.com/vlWKkgMm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/vlWKkgM)
I plan on never getting rid of The Empire. Hopefully I will be able to get in some Oathmark games with them, or Kings of War, or perhaps they will hit the table again with the Warhammer Old World reboot.
Here is what I have painted up so far. The ones I used for Frostgrave are the first I have painted in years.
(http://i.imgur.com/i2AoWihm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/i2AoWih)(http://i.imgur.com/Yy68ViKm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/Yy68ViK)(http://i.imgur.com/AsYsU96m.jpg) (https://imgur.com/AsYsU96)
(http://i.imgur.com/ruYszREm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/ruYszRE)(http://i.imgur.com/d1Xnbg0m.jpg) (https://imgur.com/d1Xnbg0)(http://i.imgur.com/e6Ptr1bm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/e6Ptr1b)
(http://i.imgur.com/4kcfCFAm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/4kcfCFA)(http://i.imgur.com/myOzyhym.jpg) (https://imgur.com/myOzyhy)(http://i.imgur.com/wIdfzUim.jpg) (https://imgur.com/wIdfzUi)
(http://i.imgur.com/ZiDo44Dm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/ZiDo44D)(http://i.imgur.com/vZEhmdPm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/vZEhmdP)(http://i.imgur.com/KPGfZTam.jpg) (https://imgur.com/KPGfZTa)
I also have a castle and a village I need to paint.
(http://i.imgur.com/S5mYnLXm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/S5mYnLX)(http://i.imgur.com/AAzdYFEm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/AAzdYFE)
I primed the few items that still needed it this week. I plan on updating this thread with units as I finish them.
Kaluthmar
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That is a big task, but you have a good start already with the painted figures. Just take it one unit at a time and it will get done.
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Kudos for the choice to go ahead on these. I await the work, as I think you are starting off well!
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Good luck!
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lovely project. keep it up.
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A good start, keep on painting.
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You should be able to get cracking with castle really quickly. Its crying out to be dry brushed to bring out the detail so grab a big brush and away you go.
Good luck.
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+1 Kudos, finished ? we never do that. Mores the point you still have an amazing army to work with.
And any modern or even vintage rules will do, old school or new, its all good, as long as you have the troops to fight the battle
I managed to get a small second hand empire army in the collection/pile some years ago ::) 10 ish.. its waiting its resurrection.
But you don't need to use AOS, who cares, the old world lives as long as we want it to and you have or can get whatever edition rules you like!
Looking forward to see you get it done - sooner than I will for sure lol
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Great project.
As you have gone with white base coat, it would be well worth looking at contrast paints to help with blocking in the colours on the units.
I see as well as the many infantry you have some bigger stuff lurking at the back
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Fred, unfortunately, I do not have any contrast paints. I might need to try some out, especially on the uniforms. The current plans is basecoat, wash and pick out a few highlights. The main thing I need to overcome (and what helped slow me down in years past) is not trying for perfection, but just for a table ready standard. No one but me is going to notice small mistakes.
Tactalvanic, I am hoping to use Oathmark with my friends. It seems to be the sweet spot between complexity/playability/time available. I also have the Lion Rampant/Dragon Rampant books.
Modelwarrior, I primed it Army Painter Wolf Gray so all I would need to do is drybrush, add some washes and vary the color of a few of the stones. It should be relatively quick, so I was going to save it as a reward for staying on task as finishing something that large would seem like I made a lot of progress with a little work.
Kaluthmar
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Definitely worth buying a couple of pots of contrast paint - the blue and red I have are really good at giving the effect of block paint and wash in one quick to apply coat. You might want to add some highlights after, but these can be quick dry brushing or edge highlighting.
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Well I for one . Think you should give your head a bang.
There's nothing shameful in that collection. I'd be well and truely chuffed if my Empire collection allowed for so many options in Force. No-one is going to be able to accurately predict the force you plonk on the table.( and build a list to counter it.)
I'm not a fan of the 'pile of shame' snobbery thats crept into the workshop fanboys lexicon. ( no aspersions cast your way of course.)
A lead pile is something one delves into from time to time . To find inspiration or just rediscovering and enjoying a sculpt.. (Which is much more difficult to do with their plastics as every thing is exploded across multiple frames.)
Like most of us it's taken a fair few years to amass these armies( unless your TWD and your collection seems to multiply every time you look away.)
I'm glad your tackling it head on. I'm doing a similar thing admittedly my entire Empire force is likely to equal exactly what you've already got painted ( at which point I'll be feeling quietly chuffed and secretly a little smug.)
I would give it a second thought to the Warhammer reboot. There's not a Sigmar player or FB player who wouldn't want such a collection.
The only not of caution I'd proffer . Don't let the Mrs know there's a second hand market for these. As your 29 year collection is well into a 'new kitchen' and a holiday territory( well thats were my Dark Elves went anyway lol.)
Looking forward to seeing your project progress.
Mark.
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Well said Mark.
So keep on painting.
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Nice task. But, admittedly it's a perfect example of why I only ever assemble when I'm ready to paint...and now only game with painted figures. Seeing a task in full like that is pretty daunting (one of the things I advise most people never to do!) :D
I'd consider finding some colour primers and a way to mask. That would take a lot of work out of it. If you have a mini which will be 80% one colour...find a suitable colour primer to match and get rockin'. Then it's just faces, shields, weapons, belts, doo-dads, highlights and washes.
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Omg. Amazing collection. I do reckon you should slim it down though. No rules system needs all this. But I wish you every success in getting as much as possible painted.
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[...] after almost 29 years of collecting it, only 20% of it is painted.
It's a lovely collection of models, and 20% of an army that size is still better than most people (including me) ever manage!
[...] I plan on never getting rid of The Empire.
And well you shouldn't! You have enough stuff there to make at least two very large Empire armies, both from different eras, and you could even do them in different provinces' livery if you like. Worst case, you could have a civil war between them. ;)
As others have suggested, Contrast paints are a quick way to block in lots of bright heraldic colours, although these work best over an undercoat that is smooth and not too porous. You may therefore need to paint the models with a thinned coat of white first, to ensure that your primer coat doesn't leave you with a blotchy/uneven finish.
Some colour primers are also a good idea, and I would absolutely consider:
Green/brown/black/whatever for all the unit trays. Easy win here, and it will immediately "finish" the look of your painted units.
Silver. Good for the Steam Tank, artillery guns, and any units that are mostly armoured (like knights).
Light brown/Tan. Good for the Griffon, artillery carriages, horses, flagellants, wagons, and anything else that's going to be some shade of brown. Choose a lighter colour than your final intended one though, and then you can just apply a wash all over (which will darken it) before adding highlights to finish. The lighter shade also works well as a base for any flesh colours.
Finally, I would group all the painted stuff together, and see what else you would like to field, and start with that. The painted section is already very inspirational; it makes sense to grow the painted portion from that core of units with things you fancy playing with, rather than "starting again" by doing more of the same units you already have. (At least for now anyway!) :)
Good luck, and I look forward to seeing your progress.
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My two Penneth is play some games nothing better for inspiring you to paint new units to cover deficiency in your force, counter your opponents forces…it’s a great collection and a serious investment in time and money so enjoy it at your pace don’t try to do too much too soon. Keep posting progress!
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I finished off my first new unit this week, a detachment of swordsmen from Altdorf.
(http://i.imgur.com/o86ZRTKm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/o86ZRTK)
I also finally based some Ostermark spearmen and a warrior priest I had painted years ago.
(http://i.imgur.com/FL2uM9Am.jpg) (https://imgur.com/FL2uM9A)
With the swordsmen, and a correction to my spreadsheet, I have 176 of 739 painted. As I am an anal-retentive engineer, by my tally, it took just under 15 hours to paint the swordsmen, but I am very happy with how they turned out. I will need to learn to take better photos as they look better in person.
Mark, I admit, "My Empire of Shame" was a bit of a clickbait title. It is more along the lines of my Empire of Annoyance in that I should have painted more in the years before house/wife/kids. During that time, I did purchase almost everything new for the Empire that GW put out, as I am a bit of a completionist.
Major Gilbear, the models primed years ago were done with Armory spray primer, and the recently done ones were sprayed with The Armory Painter white and grey. Do you think that a spray of a gloss varnish would give the correct smoothness for contrast paints to work properly? I was thinking of getting some next time I am at my FLGS, but I have never used them before. I had not thought to paint the movement trays, that is an excellent idea, thank you.
To keep motivated, I had planned to start with some infantry and rotate which province they come from, that way I am painting some of the same poses over and over, but in different colors. Once that gets a little boring, I will alternate in cavalry, monstrous cavalry and steam tanks to keep it fresh.
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Good progress!
Don’t over think the contrast paints, buy a couple of pots and try them!
I never use GW primers. My figures are a mainly hand primed with Vallejo Grey Primer - which is a very very pale grey, or Halfords grey spray primer, which is a mid grey.
The contrast paints work great over the light grey Vallejo primer. Over the mid-grey they are much less effective, but a white dry brush over the grey works.
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Wow, forty more models done already - well done! :D
Major Gilbear, the models primed years ago were done with Armory spray primer, and the recently done ones were sprayed with The Armory Painter white and grey. Do you think that a spray of a gloss varnish would give the correct smoothness for contrast paints to work properly? I was thinking of getting some next time I am at my FLGS, but I have never used them before. I had not thought to paint the movement trays, that is an excellent idea, thank you.
I would gloss varnish by hand one model, and then use it an another regular-primed model to try Contrast paints on. That way you can see which effect you prefer before you commit to doing a whole unit. If you have something like an artillery crew, where there are a few models which wouldn't look out of place if they were a little different from each other, that would be a good place to test them.
Generally, Contrast paints are strongly-coloured and quite runny. You apply them fairly thick, and the stuff runs off the raised parts and into the recesses - much like a wash, but thicker so that the raised parts are tinted more strongly. You do need a fairly smooth pale undercoat for this to work most efficiently, but they will work over other surfaces and colours too (even if you get different effects). If the undercoat is too rough, or absorbent, or the colour isn't bright enough, then you may find the results of the Contrast paint are a bit underwhelming for their cost compared to just regular thinned paint - hence my recommendations/suggestions.
You can also make your own versions of Contrast paints by adding paint, some ink, and various artists' paint mediums to an empty pot, but if you have a very large number of models to paint then the consistency of the "official" paints may be attractive.
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Finished up another unit. 24 Altdorf handgunners with full command options. These guys had fewer grimdark details than the swordsmen.
(http://i.imgur.com/4VR7lqrm.jpg) (https://imgur.com/4VR7lqr)
I also painted the banner on this standard bearer. I painted him ages ago and later swapped out the metal banner pole with a plastic banner from a command sprue.
(http://i.imgur.com/JqQisEym.jpg) (https://imgur.com/JqQisEy)
I am planning on purchasing or making some waterslide decals for the heraldry as my free hand skills are weak. As I seem to have some motivation, I will work on the largest unit next; 40 Averland halberdiers.
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Awesome stuff! I have a similarly large Empire army, about 2/3 painted. You have a couple of things I am yet to get my hands on including the early wheel-less mortar.
There's no shame whatsoever in having a large collecton of unpainted stuff. If nothing else it is YOUR hobby so enjoy it how you like. Perhaps more importantly, if I had not collected so much stuff back in the day I wouldn't be able to manage it now. Stuff is way more scarce and postage only further compounds the already crazy prices.
Revel in your collection sir! Paint it when you feel like it or just look at it when you don't. My SWMBO occaisionally finds me just standing in front of the display cabinet "reviewing the troops" ;)
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I finished another unit last week. 40 halberdiers from Averland. As I suspected, the process dragged on in the second batch of 20, but now my largest single unit is complete.
(http://i.imgur.com/htIKiEql.jpg?1) (https://imgur.com/htIKiEq)
I think a steam tank might be next.
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They look quite good, so call that a success even if the process dragged on! It is probably a good idea to paint something you’ll enjoy working on, such as the steam tank - it helps rebuild enthusiasm for a project. Keep up the good work!
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Well here I was feeling pretty chuffed I'd managed to paint a total of fifty foot figure's. ( 20 great swords 20 spear men 10 archer's) Then you rock up with one unit that's 80% of my entire infantry contingent. lol.
Mind you I did manage to paint up a fair chunk of my fantasy castle in between units. I've also got some Highland miniatures Winged Lancers as test pieces on the go to.So I'm still moving forward.
Your coloured in collection is moving on at a pace. I think your on the right track punctuating grinding out units with a statement piece be it a hero/ champion or a war machine.
I personally find I keep motivated by keeping only the things I have painted visible. I have a box with several units built and undercoated under the desk.( the rest is unmade in a bag.)
I randomly grab a unit out of the box and avoid concentrating on the actual contents of the box. Grind through that unit place it with the other painted units and allow my self a couple of days of glancing across at my progress( and a degree of feeling chuffed that it's beginning to look like something. ) Then that warmth warm fuzzy glow to hit the undercoated box before it wears off, and it dawns on me there's still a shed load to paint.
Or more commonly before Mrs TSG realises I'm not actually sculpting but 'playing with my toys' lol
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Inspirational. I love the old Empire figures (so Renaissance).
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Work was a bear the first three months of this year, so I didn't paint much. To get back up to speed I decided to work on some terrain.
(http://i.imgur.com/Vr1uL8hm.jpg?1) (https://imgur.com/Vr1uL8h)(http://i.imgur.com/LwcBrzym.jpg?1) (https://imgur.com/LwcBrzy)
I painted the guardhouses/outhouses first as a test. Then I painted the tower.
(http://i.imgur.com/zHQOccmm.jpg?1) (https://imgur.com/zHQOccm)(http://i.imgur.com/bEpSBOSm.jpg?1) (https://imgur.com/bEpSBOS)
They were surprisingly fun to paint. I used mostly craft paints and homemade washes.
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Don't feel bad, I have the tower, chapel and fortified mansion built for years and they still don't have a lick of paint on them. (I did paint some of the fences though, heh heh.) They came out really nice and maybe shamed me a little bit into returning to mine. In any case thanks for sharing. And your army is awesome and something surely to be proud of.
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I think this is a wonderful project.
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With these twenty Averland crossbowmen complete, I have just crossed 35% painted.
(http://i.imgur.com/NOqQyXAl.jpg) (https://imgur.com/NOqQyXA)
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Love the thread rename :D