94 replies to this topic

[72moonglum]

So I've been collecting for a while the old Ral Partha TSR miniatures that I really like, but haven't gotten around to painting many of them, so one of my new mini-mini-projects is to start painting some up between other things I'm painting. With a tad bit of encouragement by a certain goblinoid, I decided to do these four as a WIP. Why? Who knows, just a way to chronicle them, and who knows how faithfully I'll keep up with it. I was feeling kind of guilty because they're not Reaper figures, but I do use all Reaper paints, so that should lighten my burden of guilt somewhat.

So here are the first four pictures that I've done so far. I'll try to post a picture when I get to some pivotal point.
First picture is just the figures themselves, primed and on a balsa wood base.

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[72moonglum]

Then I started up with the basic skin color, for which I'm using Dark Elf Highlight 09165. I usually try to grab the color I want, then work down to black or walnut brown, and then from the base color try to go up to white.

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[72moonglum]

Next, working down to black, I went with some washes of:
Dark Elf Skin 09164
after that:
Regal Purple 09238
and worked that down to:
pure black 09037

I usually would do a wash between the colors so half dark elf highlight and half dark elf skin, dark elf skin, then half dark elf skin half regal purple and so on. I neer seems after all that though you can really tell, but oh well, the method still exists in the madness...

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[72moonglum]

Then afterwards, I worked from the dark elf highlight up to leather white 09062, and then to pure white 09039. And that's where I'm sitting now. The pictures aren't always the greatest I imagine and I had to lighten the exposure of this last one. Next will be eyes and faces, which hopefully I get to work on some time this week.

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[Metalchaos]

The skin tone is very good, but what about the hands. Will they all be wearing gloves or you're planning to come and paint them later?

[72moonglum]

Hi Metalchaos!

They actually are all wearing long gloves. All the skin that is exposed has been painted. I'll probably end up painting the gloves and boots all the same color but that still remains to be seen.

[Last Knight]

Hi Metalchaos!

They actually are all wearing long gloves. All the skin that is exposed has been painted. I'll probably end up painting the gloves and boots all the same color but that still remains to be seen.

I was wondering the same thing, I'm glad somebody else asked first. They're looking very nice, will be watching this with interest for my Bones drow when the KS arrives.

[klyons99]

Thanks for posting a WIP on these, they're looking great!

[72moonglum]

So for whatever sick and twisted reason, I couldn't sleep this morning, so ended up getting up at four a.m. and painting the eyes on these figures along with their eyebrows. Worked to about five fifteen, then went back to bed for a few minutes (have to get up before six to get to work by seven).

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[72moonglum]

And then tonight was working on their eyes for a few hours. Now I'm starting to put some close ups on their faces and as I look at them so closely, I do shudder a bit. The Drow with the sword's eyes are way too big on one side, even though that's the way they seem to be more or less sculpted. I did dots of walnut brown first, and then over them either blood or carnage red, but to get the reds to stick and show up properly was a paint. I'd love to one day be able to put that adorable little white dot on the pupil, but that is just such a small space. Pending to do in some far-flung future..

I also worked on lips and the teeth.

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[buglips*the*goblin]

Nice! They've got a good charcoal look to them, like proper old school drow should.

Ral Partha actually had Drow Flesh in their TSR paint line and, as near as I can make out, it's the rarest of all the colours. It's the only one I've never seen anywhere since circa 1996.

The Reaper paint looks like a good substitute.

[72moonglum]

Thanks Buglips! Yeah, I really like Reaper's version of drow skin. It's got a hint of purple in it, even though it doesn't seem to show up in the pictures. Next I'm going to be working on hair, then must get down to their chainmail, and after that the nitty gritty of figuring out what colors I'm going to do them in. I'm tossed up between deep reds, blues and purples, or just go more black. We'll have to see what inspires me once I actually get that far, maybe in about a week or two.

[Adrift]

I think drow skin is a lot like NMM, everyone has their own formula. Love what I'm seeing!

If you find a way to work orange tones, or golden tones into your pieces, you'll likely be able to pull out the purple of the skin tone since you mixed purple into your formula.

[72moonglum]

Not sure about oranges, but I'm sure there will be gold in the weapons somehow and on belt buckles and such. If there are actually purple clothes, do you think that would bring out the purple in the skin?

[Adrift]

No, yellows/oranges are the complimentary colors of purples so you're served by including the compliment of the other for making something pop!

Browns are basically yellows/oranges with purple mixed in.

That's not to say that a more singular palette won't be striking and amazing! I'm sure you're going to do great just based on the skintones, my suggestion was just more of a way to bring the purple out in the skin...but we all now how drab the drow tend to be with fashion!