[40k] Dark Eldar Options Rating

[barit]

So in an effort to move away from buying more space marine models I have picked up some Dark Eldar.

I have learnt a lot from painting 5000 points of marines and special characters so I thought I would log the progress of this army here to pick up on anything I could improve on and to help motivate me to have a force done in time for Terracon.

The following is my full army list:

HQ:
Archon
Haemonculus
Lelith Hesperax/Lady Malys
Baron Sathonyx (Hellion)

Elites:
8 Incubi
8 Grotesque
10 Wracks

Troops:
54 Wyches
20 Warriors (proxy for Elite Trueborn)

Fast:
15 Hellions (-1 for the Baron) also can be troops
6 Reaver Jetbikes
10 Scourges

Heavy:
3 Ravagers
1 Talos

Dedicated transports:
5 Raiders
2 Venoms


Will post up some progression pics from spure to finish and hopefully have everything done in time!

This post has been edited by barit: Apr 13 2012, 11:48 AM

[barit]

So, got a bit of a start:

This was all of the gear I currently have, laid out on the floor:



I also spent a fair bit of time working out a colour scheme that I could manage without too much time spent on each model. Saying that it should allow me to go back later and do further highlights and edging detail when I have the time.

The basing is a plastic mesh that I will arrange differently depending on the models pose, pretty happy with it and I think it further adds to the impression that the model is attempting to leap off its base right at your face...





The colours are fairly muted in the pictures but there are 7 easily identified colours with 2 washes, one for the flesh and one for the hair/sword.

Black, purple, mithril silver for the armour
Tallarn flesh mixed with dheneb stone and a ogryn flesh wash for the skin
A mix of Scab red and blood red for the hair
Mithril silver, dwarf bronze and a baal red wash for the weapons

Further details to be added to each minature down the track:
Eyes, eyebrows and face shading
Washes to the armour and edging highlights
Further basing details with slain orks/marines

[myan8844]

I like the basing you have, the painting looks a bit dull atm, but maybe that's because of the lighting/lack of highlights?

Also looking to get into DEldar after too much painting of MEQs! So will be watching this develop with interest.

BTW, noticed troops in your list have no transports? Is this intended as a foot list?

[barit]

Here is a better picture showing off the colour scheme, need to work on a better way to shoot these photos:




Not listing the transports was an oversight on the list, I will have 5 Raiders.

[myan8844]

That looks alot better! Look forward to seeing some washes/highlights applied.

[Lazarus992]

dam that model looks like a she man, i think that head dont look right. Not female.

[barit]

The hair comes attached so I am pretty sure it ain't a dude

[Origin]

all dark eldar are she-males, thats what makes them dark, mysterious and appealing to barit...

[barit]

All so true...

Got the first 10 wyches all based up, pinned and posed ready for painting, will grab some pictures tonight. The rest of my kit arrived today so I will start getting some vehicles done up this week with a little bit of luck.

[barit]

So I have been a bit slack with the progress pictures but there is work going on!

I have built and assembled the following so far:

3 Ravagers
30 Wyches
15 Hellions

So only 6 more vehicles and 74 more units to go!

What I had done from last week:



The assembly line for 20 Wyches, 10 of them have been cut/twisted/modified to add further variety to the models.



The custom steel grating I am doing for my bases: (and a Vulcan model in the background)



Primed and partially assembled Wyches - holy crap they are so much more fiddly to assemble than Space Marines!!!


Next week I aim to get the remaining 5 Raider hulls assembled then finish off my beast master pack and beasts:

4 Beast Masters
2 x 2 Razorwing Flock
2 x 5 Khymeras (modified from the Vampire Counts Dire Wolves)

[barit]

Assembly of part 5078 through to 9000...

MY BEASTS!

2 Razorwing Flocks and 2 Khymera packs with a beast master, the rest of my animal herders will be modified Hellions. There were not a lot of options (none) for the razorwing flock stand-ins so I forked out for them, split the 4 model pack across 2 bases though. For the Khymeras I had no intention on spending $230 on 10 models that I could proxy in for under $40 though, will be adding some tyranid bits to them to spice them up a bit more.



My HQ retinue with two Haemonculi (one of them being the Urien), these guys are probably the best finecast models I have got to date with about 50% of the stuff I have bought needing to be exchanged.



Also have 8 Incubi that I am whacking together somehow, had to get the black under coated models replaced as they were just warped too badly but the replacement pack they sent out only had 3 models in it instead of 5... Having a great time with Finecast over here... I will have to hack them to bits to get them usable so will probably just do some objective markers out of them or something. What does everyone else do with their bad casts?

[Mitey]

Loving the modelling diary mate, keen to see mroe soon!

As for the miscasts I returned mine to my local hobby store. They sent it back to GW who sent me a replacement. This has only happened once but its still annoying!

[barit]

So I have been a bit slack on the updates, but life seems to be getting in the way all the time... There has been progress though, which is a good thing.

My to do list is still pretty big, starting with assembly:
20 Warriors to be armed
10 Wracks
8 Incubi
8 Grotesques, conversions up the wazoo
Talos Pain Engine
10 Scourges to be armed

Then on to the painting! Most of the stuff I have done has been pretty stock standard apart from the individualised basing for every model... until now.

Filling out my elite spots I needed a sizeable Grotesque unit of 8 bodies, without paying the ridiculous GW asking price of $264 I set out to make my own. My Grotesque farm is made from Skaven Ogres, Chaos Spawns, Talos Parts, Hellion weapons and vehicle bits from the raiders, total cost if purchasing all the bits separately would have been about $65 - but I had a lot already so it cut it down to around $40 - a huge net saving of $224!

I am using the Choas Spawn as my Aberations until I replace them with the FW Renegade Ogryn models, they will then be relegated to the ranks. I am using the liquifier guns from the Talos model to flesh out the unit also. Some pictures of my current progress:









Planning on covering most of the fur on the models and using vials, hooks and chains to add further details. If anyone has done something similar or has any advice for my first custom modelling attempt please tell me what I can do better.

Thanks for looking!

This post has been edited by barit: Apr 16 2012, 02:37 PM

[ormo]

Looking good mate. When you slappin' some more paint on these (she)males?

[barit]

They will be the first thing I go back to since I like the models so much, thinking of adding in some white highlights to the purple armour plates... Will run up a test model to see how it looks.

[ru486baby]

Looking good buddy but your desk is waaaay to tidy

[barit]

BUSY BUSY night...

Playing around with some pain token markers that are easy to transport and little effort to paint and assemble. I came up with the idea for a square base with three drilled holes with a magnet on the bottom. I then follow around the combat drug unit with the marker and add in magnetised pikes to signify the pain token count.



And assembled with 3 pain tokens:



If you were playing against the army would you be happy to see that as a method of tracking the pain tokens?


Also got my warriors based and mostly assembled:





My Grotesque conversions are complete, my haemies are assembled and my wracks are waiting for some GW replacements to arrive before I flesh the squad out to 10. Going to have to return Urien though as he is pock marked with bubbles and his cloack is so thin that it is transparent under light...

The Talos model was also one of the coolest models I have assembled, looking forward to seeing him all painted up and screaming across the table...

[barit]

Slow progress but the painting is coming along!

I have finished the grotesques and the scourges are coming along now. 4 colours on the wings, the flash drowns the subtlety of them down somewhat though. Still undecided about their scheme for their armour though so playing around with 3 variations at the moment.

On to the pics!





Tried my hand and doing a custom skyboard for the Baron, still need to be GS'ed and smoothed over but it looks a lot more beefy than the standard skyboard. Just need to do up a custom model for him now to finish him off.








Also have some pictures of my vehicles back from a commission, free hand logo on the sails, the venoms will also be sporting one on their hull.







More to come soon.

[The Sound of Machines]

Dude, there are some beastly looking conversions in amongst that lot! Well done and congrats on taking on the modeling conundrum that is the Dark Eldar!

More of the Ogres please

[sheep]

That carpark looks amazing, the purples are great!