Been doing a bit of painting recently, trying out a few new techniques, and managed to finish up a number of Empire units.
First and most importantly is finally painting Darth Vader. Especially for how simple the color scheme is, I really should have done this one much earlier. Primary color is just a basic Black Templar contrast over the entire body, the picking out some details. For the saber and electronics, I painted Flat White first, then touched them with Pure Red, Viking Blue, and Uniform Grey. The green buttons on the belt are Kraken Skin, and the saber handle and belt buckle are Leadbelcher.
The second unit is one I have wanted to tackle for some time, the Imperial Snowtroopers. These are a contrast layer of Skeleton Bone on the cloth, and Apothecary White on the armor. I then used a drybrush of white over the armor to brighten it up and used Black Templar on the weapons.
Another easy set was the Deathtroopers, requiring only a full body contrast coat of Black Templar. In theory, they were done here, but I added a subtle highlight of Deep Blue with a very thin drybrush. It very slightly lightens the armor and catches just right in the light – enough to provide some interest beyond the basic black of everything.
Finally, I attempted a unit of Stormtroopers. Despite their simple color scheme, these are actually some of the hardest (for me) to paint. I tried a process similar to the Snowtroopers – a first layer of contrast Apothecary White on the armor, with Black Templar on the interior cloth and weapons. I then drybrushed with Flat White to make the armor brighten up, though this ended up muddying up the prior black. Then it was back to touching up the black with more Black Templar. The end result from 5 feet away is acceptable – they are table ready. But if you look closely at the model (as in the picture), the armor is chalky and the detail is messy at best. Definitely not the crisp version I was aiming for, and likely will alter my technique in the next set.
All of the bases are done in my standard for Empire, a layer of Lava Orange covered with Mordant Earth, to give a Mustafar-lava crackle.
