Dwight Bills

I almost wasn't able to participate in this VIC at all. I recently took a new job, which has kept me so busy I wasn't even able to read the messages from the mini-painting list, much less paint anything. Thus, I had no idea the deadline was approaching until it had, in fact, already passed. I immediately placed an order for the Corsair figure, and went to work on him as soon as I got him.

Basically, with this figure I decided to try to stick to the GW 'fluff' and try to make him a more standard dark elf. Thus, purple and blue were pretty much a necessity. I blended the tabard and undershirt with Apple Barrel, Games Workshop, and Delta Ceramcoat paints. I started with a true navy blue, working up thru cobalt and ultramarine blue, to lightning bolt blue and finally icy blue.

The cloak, as just about everyone else has said, is both a reason to paint this mini and a reason to run screaming in terror from it. For the cloak, I started with a Delta Black Green color, washed with GW Ork Flesh Wash, then drybrushed with three shades of Apple Barrel Hauser Green, and finally Apple Barrel Pastel Green for the top hilite. For the inside of the cloak, I used GW Vermin Fur, Bubonic Brown and Apple Barrel Titanium White and Taffy. Ordinarily I would have tried to blend the scales individually, but with the fact that I was already past deadline I did not want to take so much time.

The boots of the mini were painted black and then given three coats of gloss varnish. I stole this idea from Rob Sakaluk; one of the minis on his page has a black vinyl catsuit and I just wanted to give the look a try. Mine didn't turn out quite as nice as his, but I still like it and can't wait to use it on the Foundry dominatrix mini a friend recently gave me.

For the face, I tried to keep the skin tone light but not sickly or undead looking; for a vampire type character I would take the hilites up further to a pure white, but here I used white very sparingly. The colors used here are Apple Barrel Medium Flesh, Flesh, and White; and Delta Ceramcoat Santa Fe Rose (for the deeper shades) and Santa Flesh for the next to highest hilites.

The armor and the sword are pretty standard metalwork; black undercoat, gunmetal grey and aluminum and silver. The hilites didn't turn out as well in the scan as they look IRL. The 'chain' or belt around his waist I painted in Apple Barrel Antique Gold, along with the little 'Z' emblem. The claw looked like another claw from the dragon he wears, so I painted it about the same as the others with the same colors as I used in the interior cloak.

Finally, the hair was painted with Delta's Gray Plum, washed with Apple Barrel's Purple, then drybrushed with Apple Barrel Lavender and GW Tentacle Pink, with a small hilite of white on the very top.

I was very pleased with the way this one turned out. It was done really in about three days total, which for me is pretty damn speedy painting. I looked back at my entry for VIC 5, and am surprised at how much progress I seem to have made. I can only thank the members of the mini painting list for that; they always have a new direction for me to look at or a new idea to try. Hopefully, if I am able to participate in the next VIC, I will be able to make more progress still.

That's about it. Thanks again to Dominic and everybody who helps with the VIC's; this mini is not one that had appealed to me before the VIC but I really enjoyed painting it; in fact, I am thinking of working on more of these new dark elf models just because I liked this one so much. I look forward to hearing from everyone and welcome any thoughts.

Dwight Bills

Comments submitted on the original site:

Dallas writes...

Hi Dwight,

To be honest it shows that this one was a quickie, but it's a
nice quickie. I like the metallic armor. In fact the more I look
at it the more I like it. The face is nicely painted, with a
nice feel to the shadeing. The pointing hand could use some dark
lining in the crevice along the armor to define it a little
better. Also I would like to see a little darker shadow on the
inside cloak, and some parts of the blue tabard. I like the two
tone brooch. I think you've hit the highlights for alll of this
dead on, just somethings need a touch darker shadow. The
shadeing on the talons and teeth looks pretty nice, I wish the
pic was a little clearer.
I like the cloak scales. The dry brushing around the edges with
the scales give it a tough heavy feel wich seems appropriate. I
think I'd like to see one more darker shadeing in his hair.
As a final note the grass looks pretty real, except it needs some
dirt to be growing in.
Overall a good job. It does a great job of showing how nice a
quickie paint job can be.
Keep painting.......

Dallas