Skitarii Vanguard

So here we are, my Skitarii Vanguard finished up. To my surprise. I thought this would be a project sat on the WIP desk for a lot longer, but things picked up pace and here we are. Only nine months after release, but that's still a victory.

The muted colour scheme is lifted by the blues on the weapons and the little white symbols on the coats. Orange cabling is in to try and give an effect of glowing power passing through. I tried this a few years ago on another model and really liked how it turned out - so it's back!

I realised too late that I'd messed something up when priming these last year, so there's a slight texture on the surface of some areas. Not sure how, and it's irritating, but there we have it. Here's the squad in all their glory.

Skitarii Vanguard WIP #1

The other set from the Kill Team box. Long have they sat on my desk, biding their time.

This colour scheme has been through a few iterations in the last couple of weeks. Initially I had much brighter metals and pastel cloaks (below), to echo what I'd painted with my Genestealer Cult, to show there was little difference between loyal servants of the Imperium, and those on a different path ... but it was too similar.

As I just finished re-reading Dark Adeptus by Ben Counter, the scheme was modified with the remaining loyal inhabitants of Chaeronia in mind. After a thousand years, any loyalists left would have adopted a more practical approach - with well worn leathers, dulled metals and nothing overtly shiny to attract attention. Even in the world of the Adeptus Mechanicus, the environment they have to face on a daily basis is a harsh, unforgiving one.

Much happier with these, even if achieving something leather-esque took a lot longer. If you're interested in the recipe ...

• Light Rust
• Smokey Ink glaze
• Light Rust stippled to create an irregular texture
• Light Rust + Elf Skintone (4:1) stippled on highlights
• Soft Tone to knock back the brightness of the Elf Skintone
• Light Rust + Elf Skintone (2:1) stippled along edges
• Flat Black glaze into shadows
• Brown Leather glaze on midtones to soften any transition to black
• Black Red stippling to break up surfaces
• Elf Skintone scratches
• Black Red glaze to soften the scratches

Enjoy!