In my last offering, you saw my Ultramarines army that was entered in Armies On Parade at Games Day in Chicago this year. Entering AoP was an afterthought. My main reason for attending Games Day this year was to enter the Golden Demon painting competition. Last year, entering Golden Demon was an afterthought and I didn't make the first cut. Disheartening, but I'd read offerings from better painters than I who were shut out in their first attempt as well. This year I had many entries planned, but as so often happens, time got the better of me. I only got 1 of my serious offerings finished; A unit of 20 Plaguebearers which will ultimately be used in my Daemons of Chaos armies (I want Daemons so I can use the minis in both 40K AND Fantasy.) I'll start the photos off with a unit I painted as part of a trade, which gave me the idea to paint Plaguebearers for Golden Demon based on how fast I was able to get the basic paint jobs done.
'Ere we go!
Here's 4 of the 5 models I painted for the trade. I knocked these out in one evening and they look really good on the table. Their owner is quite happy with them. I figured this basic technique could be built upon to paint an entry for Golden Demon. Would you be happy with models that look like this if you only had a half hour or so into each one?
Here's the next evolution of the technique! Push the contrast a lot, and decide on a really bright, eye-catching spot color; check! Use all of the composition knowledge I gained from Mathieu Fontaine's Master Painting Class a couple of years ago to try to keep the judges' attention on my entry; check! Try out brand new techniques like using weathering powders to rust the weapons; check! Try ground glass product (from Secret Weapon Miniatures) to make the snow sparkle on the bases: check! Nurgle up the command group by adding color coordinated ooze to them; check! Up the Nurgle factor by making nasty yellow and brown patches of snow; Check! Result: my first Demon trophy!
A little more table level view.
The unit from the back
Command group from the front.
Command group from the back.
A few random models.
The same batch from the back.
A few more random models for variety.
Rear view of the same group.
The whole gang partying in front of the trophy!
Obviously, I'm pretty proud of winning the trophy. More important though is the validation of work I've done (in collaboration with a friend) over the past few years to build a set of skills that let me paint good looking models fast. Ultra high end painters like Todd Swanson (won his 5th Slayer Sword this year in Chicago) put hundreds (plural) of hours into 1 single model. I can't do that. I paint armies and play the games. I need painted models on the table, and I want them to look good. This entry (20 models) was painted over the course of 2 weeks. I did not keep close track of my per model time, but I know its well under 3 hours per model. In truth, I'd be really surprised if it was over 2.5 hours per model. I normally try to keep my per model time under 1 hour per model. Two and a half hours per model to win a Silver? I'm down with that.
So why do I bring up the painting time? To brag? Not really, although I admit it will look that way. My goal is to get people to realize that they can have nice looking models and great looking armies without having to spend hours and hours to get each model ready for the table. A few basic techniques and you have an awesome army instead of the gray tide. A few more expansion techniques and a relatively small additional investment in time, and you too could take a shot at the Golden Demon. Believe it!
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