Well, okay. They're looking good from my perspective. They themselves are probably having slightly less fun.
I didn't go too overboard on the blood, figuring that the Blood Pact probably didn't have time to torture them, so they'd just be bleeding from being beaten, shot, and tied up in razorwire. C'est la vie, eh Guardsmen?
Really, the Emperor appreciates your sacrifice.
The book I got the idea from, Only in Death, didn't really specify what color the Cadogus regiments paint their tanks; but since Jago, the world it takes place on, is a desert world (or at least the parts of it the Ghosts fought in were), they'd be desert camo. I ended up using a 60/40 mix of Khemri Brown/Dheneb Stone. I was aiming for that particular tan that seems to be the primary color for most real-life desert camo patterns, though I think the camera washed out the color a bit.
I also added a lot of bullet and shell holes or dents. The contrast between uniform tan and blackened, scorched holes really makes the tank look like a beat-up piece of crap, I think. The overall image I wanted to project was a tank that was in a battle and perhaps got a track knocked out or was overrun by enemy troops, was looted by the Pact, and then immediately put into use in the same battle against the Imperials. Presumably later on, after the battle, they'd file off the Imperial symbols, paint the tank red, and adorn it with trophies.
Oh, and my wife pointed out that the Pact tank commander couldn't use his binoculars with his grotesk on. I hadn't thought of that. ><
So what's next in my slow (apologies) march to completion? I've got three things on the table:
- Finish modeling the Loxatl
- Finish painting Pater Sin
- Convert & paint Skarwael
Loxatl will probably be first, since I've been putting them off for so long.
I also managed to procure a Mandrake model to use as the base for Skarwael, so he'll be straightforward. Sabbat Martyr describes Skarwael as pale and hairless (sounds like all Dark Eldar!), dressed in black leather, with a cloak of stitched human skin. So I've got some green stuff work to do, but he'll be a blast to paint.
Oh! And I treated myself this week to something I've wanted for a long time: The Paintier 80 paint pot carousel. My wife finally decided she wanted to paint the Baneblade I bought her (she asked for one for our wedding anniversary!), so we needed somewhere to store all the paints so we could both access them. That was all the excuse I needed. ;) The Paintier is extremely well-made and looks great. It rotates on ball bearings, so it's incredibly smooth-rotating. I'm sure it's possible to make something similar, for less money, but I'm a big fan of products that make things easier. The Paintier totally does that.
Also, a tip - if you buy one of these, get it from FRP Games or The Warstore- they sell them for $40 and $45 USD respectively, instead of $50 from the manufacturer's website. Depending on shipping costs (FRP's shipping cost is location-based, while Warstore's is a flat $4.95 domestic), one or the other may end up saving you a bit of money.
