Preparing for Armies on Parade WIP

This year I plan on putting together a display for Armies on Parade. The entries I saw last year at my local store left me shaking my head and wondering why I hadn't entered. This year I plan on changing that, and I have begun work on my display board. This also provides me with a perfect excuse to work on some of my terrain sitting around unpainted and unfinished, in addition to getting some new toys and doing some converting.

I chose my dependable 199th Valhallan as the star army for the display this year. Finished a few years ago, the army is one of my best ones I have built and painted and I have a lot of IG terrain I can employ for the army.

The above shot is from 2 months ago when I began the process of painting some defensive terrain and getting an idea for how I wanted the board to look like. The following shot are from a month ago with the final winter board ready to go, now I just need to get the terrain finished. You might notice that I am using one ForgeWorld's newest terrain pieces for my display. I have also converted some FW Pillboxes with some planet strike bits to make them able to mount the defensive guns. I still have a few more additions to the army and terrain before it's all done....so more to follow!







Enjoy! :)

Base Coating Models with Snow

Base coating anything is always the final touch in the process of painting models. It also adds another dimension of good looking to any model. Many people avoid basing because they think it's too time consuming, but it really doesn't take that long if your willing to do it....from simple backyard dirt to snow to urban wrecks, basing is one of those things that really makes any model stand out. This time I am going to offer my tutorial on basing SNOW. Snow is rare among basing simply because most models look good on dirt or broken rock terrain instead. There are some model lines like Valhallan Ice Warriors that scream being based in snow, it's a natural environment for this IG Army. My recent project this summer with my Valhallan army has allowed me to try basing in snow....Let us begin!

1. Let us begin with some basic materials your going to need....the First of course is Snow basing. This bottle should be enough....



Along with the snow you will need a few more items that will help you keep the snow in place....Water, White PVA Glue, and White Paint.....



2. Now of course we are going to need some willing guardsmen who want to join the snow patrol. Make sure that everything is painted finally before beginning this basing project.



3. Once your done painting the model, paint the base itself White, and proceed to Seal your model if you wish, this will give your base a nice basic white color.



4. Once your models are base painted white and sealed your ready to start the snow process.



5. Mix the Water + White PVA Glue + White Paint to coat your base for the snow. While the mix doesn't have to be muddy, it shouldn't be watery either, a nice consistency of watered down paint should be perfect.



6. Coat your models base with the above mix, the white mix with the white painted base will help keep everything looking bright white.



7. Finally dip your model in a container of snow base and leave for a few minutes to get as much basing material as it can take. The glue mix will mix with the snow, and since its white once it dries it will still have a great white snow look to the base.



8. Once it drys the snow will be glued down real well, and you should be able to clean up the excess and paint the rim of the base if you want, or keep it black as is your choice. Repeat as often as you need with any size base and soon you will have a great looking snow force!



Enjoy! =)