Off the painting table ... Juiced, Orange Marines

Warhammer 40,000 – The decals are done and these marines are wrapped up. I'm pretty impressed with how quick I was able to get these assembled and painted. The decals were probably the most time consuming part of the process only because I have to wait for the chemicals to do their job and melt the decals to wrap the shoulder pads. 

I've learned quite a bit from this commission that will help with the next full scale army I have to paint. 

• Have a plan. Before I even opened the box to start the job I made a list of everything that would need to be painted and grouped them according to similar shapes and sizes. By breaking these down to things that would fit on my table at the same time I maximized my time and focused on the task at hand.
• Clear your pallet. This was a three color + job, so before I began I picked out what the colors would be for everything. Any paint that didn't fit this list was put back on the shelf. Base Colors: Red, Orange, Gunmetal. Accent Colors: Bone, Green, Yellow, White, Black, Sterling Silver, Flesh, Brown. Washes: Earthshade, Black.
• Grind it out. When I finally sat to to start painting I already had all the decisions made in advance. On my table was a chunk of models and a limited pallet of paint. I started with the Orange and quickly covered the majority of the model with it. Next I'd go back in with the red and paint any trim or decorative parts. Finally I'd take the gunmetal and paint any metallic parts. Once I finished the last model in the line I went back and applied the wash over the whole thing. The difference between doing this and just dipping your model is that you have control with the brush that allows you to direct the flow of the wash to the areas you want it to go. Once the wash is applied set them aside to dry.
• Details. This is the more time consuming part of the process. But by selecting one color and painting everything on a model that will use that color before moving onto the next let's you get through the details very quickly. 

Using these steps I was able to grind through a massive marine army in less than a month. Granted they won't win (m)any awards but they do look good on the table and suit my clients needs. Which is really what it comes down to.