Hello All!

At Dianna's request, I have decided to begin what I hope will be a monthly article covering miniature gaming. This will include modeling tips and discussion as well as coverage of the games themselves. I do, however, apologize for any general rambling that may go on (a trip inside my head can make Cedar Point's roller coasters seem tame).

Since Dangerous Dee asked for it (she can be very persuasive), this month's article will cover the techniques I used to paint Excelsior Entertainment's "Tormented". This mini is from their Chronopia line, one of my favorite games…

Let me start by saying that this was a model I was always afraid to do. I'm sure everyone who has ever painted knows what I mean when I say that this one had to be perfect. I really love this model for some reason (sick, huh?). The painting contest at Adventure Hobby gave me the excuse to see if I could pull it off. I'm not an expert painter by any means, and like half the minis I own I'm still a work in progress. Pictures of the tormented can be seen in my miniature gallery located on this site. Now…on with the show…

The mini was primed in gray (it's just what I was into at the time I primed it). Even though I now prime mostly in white, the gray stayed. I then "slop-coated" it with a watered-down royal blue. Slop coating for me is just laying on the first coat of the main color of the mini. I use this time to "get into the groove" of what I'm doing. After letting the base-coat dry, I began to add white to the blue for dry-brushing. For the uninitiated, dry-brushing is a very easy and effective technique for mini painting. I start by adding a small amount of a lighter color (usually white) to the base color I have already used. After applying paint to your brush, wipe it off onto a paper towel. Brush gently over your model and the detail will begin to appear before your eyes (it's really like magic the first time you pull it off). By adding more white (or even switching to lighter colors), wiping off more paint, and applying less pressure with your brush on the model, you can create the illusion of depth, detail and lighting on your figure. Look at the muscles on the tormented to see what I mean…I can wait.Pretty cool, huh?

Like I said, there are people out there who are much better at this than I am. You can look at just about any mini-oriented web site and find more info about dry-brushing, and I have found it does take practice. If you are new to this, be patient with yourself, and don't start out with your $60dragon mini that you want on your mantle or at the head of your army. Next, I went over the "guts" part of the figure with a blood red. This again was dry-brushed with successively lighter shades of red. The spine was painted with light brown, followed by highlights with yellow and white. What I did next may shock you…I then covered this whole area with a red wash. Washing is a technique where watered down paint or ink is brushed onto a lighter area. This is another way to bring out detail, and red ink has the added bonus of looking like blood. Yes, it did obscure a lot of the detail I had just put on, but I imagined this figure's wounds would bleed for eternity. Sometimes interpretation is everything. While the wash was drying, I painted all of the armor, chains, and metal belts on the figure black. I usually do this under anything I am going to paint with a metallic color. It seems to bring them out more. This didn't take long to dry, and I then applied silver to the armor, back plate and chains. When this was dry, I applied brass to the metal belt on the back and to the outline and ornamentation of the armor. These areas were then washed with black to make them appear dull (this thing's been lumbering around for a while I figure). The leather belts on the figures back were painted brown and highlighted with a lighter shade.

My tormented was starting to take shape now, and I decide to do the face next. I dry-brushed purple from the face back to the model's neck, and then highlighted the purple with pink. The eyes and tongue were painted green, and highlighted with florescent green. Painting the eyes on a figure is always exciting for me…it seems to bring them to life. I then applied brown to the horns and teeth, followed by highlights with yellow and white. Just to keep things nice and disgusting, I dripped red ink around the large cranial horn, down the face, and along the shoulder armor rings (which are modeled to look like they are piercing the skin). The last colors added to the monster itself were black followed by white to the claws.

The base of the model was then painted with dark brown, dry-brushed with lighter shades. I added static grass in spots (I just use elmer's glue for this), and then (yes, believe it or not…) added more red ink to both the figure and the base to give the appearance of a large blood trail.

The model was then given two coats of dull-coat, and the armor, bloody areas and mouth were given a coat of brush-on gloss varnish. I had never tried this before, and it really gave the model a cool look (especially the gory areas!!!)

That's it, and I really enjoyed finally bringing this monstrosity to life. Now I just have to see how he does on the table. Like I said before, interpretation is everything. I loosely followed the color scheme on the figure's box because I like the way it looks, but don't be afraid to do something completely different (it's your figure, after all). Remember also that mini painting is like anything else…the more you do it, the better you get. Feel free to leave any comments or questions on Adventure hobby's online forum. There are special sections devoted to both wargames and miniature painting. I'm on there a lot, and I will respond to you on the forum or by email if you leave your email address.

Until next month's rant…

Rick