After the initial base coat of black Ceramacoat, I mixed up a nifty couple of earth tones inspired by the base colors of Multi-cam and other desert pattern camouflage. I painted weapons with a darker earthy color similar to the FN SCAR battle rifle, and stuck with a traditional medium type green for the web belt and pouches. Finally, I picked a red to be the color for the visor. Made the eyes pop.
This time, I did not force perspective with my paint. I mixed up my white and yellow Cermacoat, and a little bit of Liquitex Burnt Sienna and Raw Umber and proceeded to paint a single coat of each color on the models.
I decided to use some dark walnut oil based wood stain to create the darker regions in recessed areas. First phase was the infamous dip method. A pair of pliers holding the base, and dip the models directly into the bucket of stain.
Eight hours later, or the next day, I can't say I liked the look. Something was missing to my technique...
...oh, yeah, now I remember!
I needed to wipe the stain off the higher surfaces leaving the stain to fill in the lower recesses of the figures!
The effects of the simple dip and wipe on a single coat of paint are astounding! Other than drying time, this technique works wonders for knocking out large numbers of miniatures in short period of time with decent detailing. Why didn't I try this earlier with my other armies?
Finally, I finished them off with some model railroad ballast. Fine and coarse. Above is the first step using the fine ballast (N-scale track ballast). Below is the last step using the coarse ballast (HO-scale track ballast). All I might include in the future is static grass, and maybe a larger chunk of 1:1 scale pea size gravel to replicate a much larger rock. In the mean time, the camo fits the arid climate base of the miniature.
Part of a Squad of soldiers ready for duty on the gaming table!
I've determined I'm going to get some more Reaper Bones miniatures in the future! They certainly are quality miniatures for the price you pay, and it would be hard to find a better mix of price point and quality mixed with ease of painting and detailing using some of the most basic wargame army painting techniques (and inexpensive materials).
