My experiments trying to create a convincing crackle effect on Plague Marine armour using the new Citadel Technical Paint Agrellan Earth continue, as do my attempts to rediscover the joy of painting. One of these goals seems to be working out quite nicely, the other one…not so much. So, what are we looking at:
As you remember, I painted a first test model, trying to bring out a rather pronounced crackle effect on the models armour. It worked, but not as well as I would have liked:
So I figured I would try a slightly different approach for the next model in line: Paint Agrellan Earth - undiluted – on areas of the entirely unpainted model and hope for a more convincing crackle effect to set in, then add all the remaining paint on top, trying to preserve the effect as much as possible.
First I had to come up with another model to use as a guinea pig, though, so I kitbashed a Plague Marine, using some of the more decrepit bitz I had lying around. And then, I added Agrellan Earth on top. Here’s the effect, after a bit of waiting:
As you can see, the crackle effect was far more pronounced this time around. So far, so good, right?
In principle, yes. But it is rather hard to retain the effect through multiple layers of paint without covering it up. While it worked until after undercoating, the following layers of paint destroyed some of the subtler touches. I tried to counter that by adding a bit of Agrellan Earth on top again, but it performed just as unevenly as before:
Apart from that, I once again used several simple weathering effects (as well as a generous helping of Nurgle’s Rot) to make the model as disgusting and decayed as possible. Here’s the result:
From a crackle perspective, the effect is still not as pronounced as I would have liked. Nevertheless, I really like the overall look of the model — and Nurgle’s Rot once again performed admirably, as you can see, with green goo leaking from the model’s armour in many places. This guy may not have crackled as much as I had wanted him to, but he surely looks like a follower of Nurgle: As a matter of fact, I can almost see myself painting a small squad of Plague Marines, just for fun, crackle or not crackle.
Here are the two test models I have completed so far:
And a colour comparison with Nurglite champion Malchius Blight, completed as part of an earlier project:
As you can see, the colour is somewhat different, with Malchius much closer to the Nurgle Terminator Lord I build as a smaller side project:
You can learn more about this guys here and here.
Tell you what, seeing how this is turning into a bit of a Nurgle showcase, let’s throw in some of my really ancient Plague Marines from the 90s, complete with my vintage paintjobs, trying hard to emulate the “official” ‘Eavy Metal paintjobs from second edition 40k:
I still love that icon bearer model, by the way — maybe I should strip the paint from it and repaint it in the “modern” style?
Anyway, here’s one of those old guys with his “younger” brother:
I somehow can’t help feeling immensely fond of those simplistic early 90s plastics — at the very least, they have aged far better than their loyalist counterparts: Just take a look at the Space Marines that came with the 2nd edition starter box!
But wait, where does all of this leave us with regard to the crackle effect?
Well, I believe I will have to give a dedicated crackle medium a go next, maybe the one offered by Vallejo will do? I could also use Agrellan Earth and use washes and shades to do the actual colouring, as some of you suggested after my last post.
In any case, this experimentation has been quite a lot of fun so far, and definitely a much needed boost for my painting modjo!
As always, let me know what you think! Thanks for looking and stay tuned for more!
Filed under: 40k, Chaos, Conversions, paintjob Tagged: 40k, agrellan earth, chaos, chaos space marines, Citadel Technical Colours, conversion, crackle effect, death guard, decay, nurgle, Nurgle's rot, painting, paintjob, plague marine, retro models, rot, weathering
