Long-Time Painter, First-Time Flocker

So here are my first ever models that I’ve based using grass! Every other model I have fully completed have had resin bases or simple groundwork without grass.  So this is a pretty cool (albeit super basic) milestone for me.

Anyway, here they are, the first 10 Screaming Eagles:

They are completely finished, from top to bottom.  This includes the hilts of their combat knives that I somehow forgot to paint initially, as well as their base edging, which I did in P3 Traitor Green, as I think that best resembles olive drab.

I am not entirely impressed with the groundwork underneath, though, as I glued the sand directly over the Desert Tan-primed putty.  I needed the putty to level off the difference between the bases and that annoying bit of oval base that’s at the bottom of a lot of metal minis, especially older ones, I find.  I prefer the long thin slotta tab instead, although I much prefer plastic minis anyway that don’t have anything below the feet at all!

Okay, rant over.  So I plum forgot to add a darker paint over the tan on the first model that I added sand to, and made the (somewhat wrong) decisions to both not scrape off the sand and do it again, and to do the same thing to the rest of the models.

So instead I just added sand over the tan basecoat and then added some Devlan Mud wash hoping to make it all darken and unify.  It did the latter a bit, and the former just a touch.  It’s not what I was intending originally, but I guess it doesn’t look horrible.  Just not as good as it should.  Since this is only one squad of (potentially) many, I will likely add something like Beast Hide to the rest of the bases before sanding, just so the colour underneath doesn’t stand out so much.

And now, on to the flocking.  I chose the lighter Glade Grass from Citadel, and I think that turned out alright.  I was originally going to go with Scorched Grass, as I was afraid the brighter one would be too tacky.  But I sprinkled one on to a Screaming Eagle, then the other, and I quite like how the bright green pops.  So I went with it.  I believe I’ll have enough in the little pot for the rest of the BA models that I will eventually pick up, although I can’t be too sure.  Actually, I’m not sure how many models I will eventually pick up, as I haven’t even played a single game yet!

Hopefully Andrew and I can rectify that soon and get some proxies down on the table for a game.  I put together some 500 point lists that don’t use vehicles so we can figure the rules out.  I’m also hitting up my graphic designer buddy Les (who’s written about Lord of the Rings over at Tales of Gamers) to work on some chit-pull, action and pin markers so that I don’t have to buy the dice (even though I love how they look and work, I need to save that money for models).

Speaking of more models, I will likely go and pick up either a 1000pt starter box for one of the armies (likely Germany), or I’ll start buying the units/sets piecemeal.  I won’t get the Hetzer tank hunter that you practically get free in the starter box, but I am hoping to avoid vehicles in this game anyway.  Which is why I possibly might pick up the Flames of War Open Fire! starter that I said I wasn’t going to get.

…I’m weak.

Decisions, decisions.  And while I decided, I can get back to my next hobbying project.  The list continues to grow, so next post I’ll throw up a Workbench Update so we can see what I’m up to.

Thanks for reading.