WIP: retouched AoBR tactical squad

Time to touch up my original Assault on Black Reach squad!

Because I was new to the hobby, my technique wasn't great, and I made some bad decisions about paint and materials, these guys just don't look as good as they should.

I wanted my first army to be Blood Ravens. But when I started in the hobby, I decided that I was too smart to pay $4 for a small pot of paint, and instead went to the local art store and bought whole tubes of acrylic for $1.50 each. I went to art school, and I knew my paints, so I refused to be ripped off!

Shockingly, the art store red paint took dozens of coats to cover, and still looked like crap. I tried an ultramarines scheme and realized that the blue took even more coats! Broken hearted, I settled on a scheme that was grey, so I could use spray primer I had on hand, and be done with it.

To make matters worse, I made my own wash with paint and water! Look at this poor guy here - he's so dark and covered in fine grit from my home made wash.

Thankfully, I saw a GW painting guide, and some great online tutorials on youtube, and realized the error of my ways. I painted the rest of my models using proper paints, washes and techniques. But I was always ashamed of this squad - the grimy, red headed stepchild of my force. They were sent on the deadliest, often suicidal missions, so they could be removed from the table first.

I used my army color, vallejo cold grey, on the surfaces, and a mix of cold grey and dead white to create edge highlights. I touched up the shoulderpads with ultramarine blue, and the trim with old gold and a highlight of silver.

I spent last week retouching two models every night, to bring the squad in line with the rest of my force. And while the poses are a bit stiff because they are starter set models, the fresh paint makes a load of difference.

-trip