Dark Angels Terminator Chaplain Step-by-Step Painting Guide

With the 2014 NOVA Open right around the corner, I think I will spend the next couple of posts showing off last year's army.  Dark Angels.

If you have not registered yet, do so now.  It is one of the biggest and funnest Sci-Fi miniature gaming conventions on the East Coast.  NOVA happens every year over Labor Day weekend in the Washington DC area.

I can especially recommend the Narrative campaign.  There are still a couple of slots available, so if you want to take part in a unique and on-going struggle for Earth and our solar system, register today.

But back to the Dark Angels I took to the 2013 NOVA Open.

First up, here is a step-by-step look at the Terminator Chaplain:

Step 1: Prime the whole model white and base-coat the armor and any steel-colored metal dark gray.  Leave some of the armor white so you can paint some dark green later in order to provide some Dark Angel-ness to the paint scheme.  I chose the "halo" around the head, the storm bolter (not pictured yet), and the grip for the Crozius Arcanum (not pictured yet).  Cheatin' Steve's Painting Tip: I used Vallejo  Game Color Sombre Grey diluted to 2 drops of paint to 1 drop of water (2:1).

 Step 2:  First, go back and basecoat that chain in front that you forgot to paint in Step 1.  Now, cover all dark gray with black wash (Secret Weapon Washes Heavy Black undiluted).  Next basecoat all gold metal, parchment, and bone intense brown (Vallejo Beasty Brown diluted 2:1).  Next basecoat all red (Vallejo Gory Red undiluted).  Next, basecoat green areas as discussed in step 1 Vallejo Heavy Blackgreen diluted 2:1).

Step 3: Paint all paper with tan, leaving the brown showing in rips and between sheets (Citadel Kommando Khaki undiluted).  Shade the purity seals and the eyes Secret Weapon Drying Blood).  Shade the green (Citadel Leviathan Purple.  If you can find any of this wash anywhere, buy it, it is fantastic.  Their re-tooled purple wash is shit.)

Step 4: Paint skull tan, leaving brown showing in joints, between teeth, and in recesses (Citadel Kommando Khaki undiluted)

Step 5: Paint parchment white, leaving darker colors to show in rips, recesses/folds, and between sheets (Aleen's Premium-Coat Titanium White diluted 1:1, use multiple layers on highlights).  Paint the skull bone white leaving dark paint showing in the joints, between the teeth, and in recesses (Vallejo Bonewhite 2:1, use multiple layers on highlights)

Step 6:  Before I start here, let me put in a plug for the the best gold metallic paint I have encountered in over 30 years of painting: Aleene's Premium Coat.  I have no idea of the specific paint color, as my label is printed "Light Fuchsia." I dont even know if you can get it anymore.  Here is what the bottle looks like:

I got it at an an arts and crafts store in Seattle back in 2001, and am only about half-way through the bottle.  You need to dilute it a lot, and it looks really granular going on, but when it dries it will give you a rich, deep, luminous gold coat that kicks ass on any other gold metallic out there (including those Citadel metals).  If you can find it, buy it.  Then post a comment letting me know what the actual color is!

So, back to the Chappy: Paint the gold (Aleene's "Light Fuchsia" about 1.5:1-dilute until the acrylic medium starts to show 'milky' as you blend the paint.  It will look really bad on your palette and while it is wet on the model, but once it dries you will be psyched).  Next, paint steel metal (Citadel Boltgun undiluted).

Step 7: Shade the parchment (Secret Weapon Parchment Wash).  Shade the skull (Secret Weapon Armor Wash diluted at least 1:1).  Shade the gold and steel (Secret Weapon Armor Wash).

Step 7: Highlights and details.  Highlight gold with original gold color.  Highlight steel with light steel or silver (Reaper Honed Steel undiluted).  Highlight black with dark gray and light gray for the highpoints.  I did the three gemstones using the technique that was originally described in White Dwarf a couple of decades ago.  I assume it is in the Citadel painting guide now.  I may describe that technique in another post, but you can probably find it described somewhere in the interwebs.  Finally, I used Secret Weapon Wash Storm Cloud for verdigris on the Crozius and Censers.  You can see it "pooled up" in the next three pics.

For the script I used black paint diluted 2:1.  This did not produce good results.  In later models I have used black ink undiluted or diluted 3:1 or so to much better effect.  Paint is just too thick.

 Here's How my Chaplain Warlord looked at NOVA last year.