Spring cleaning Challenge: Blanchitsu Aeldari

Since I forgot to do a step by step for the falcon it only feels right I write down the process with the windriders (although I’m very old school I love the romantasim with that name over jetbikes).

Hand undercoating was done with the genestealers originally out of necessity with the eldar it needs to be done by hand for it to work. The undercoat can not be even. Instead you need to dry brush the white down so it flows with the model. This is what does all the work later on.

Once I apply the stain, the patterning becomes more pronounced, and it starts to resemble bone.

Because there is varnish, in the stainer, going over with a thinned down black wash, and a light white drybrush just brings out the detail.

It’s been too hot to do anything recently. The heat has just been sapping my will to do anything.  So rather than do anything I have just been sat reading about what to do

With the new army list and points been finally released by GW I have a bit more structure about where I am heading.

From what I have read on the Facebook groups eldar are seen as over powered and even banned from some tournaments (not they I have played in any for 10 years). The weird thing is this army that was designed with what I have and fits a early 90s art aesthetic has become viewed as a top tier army.

I’m sure most people have stripped models back especially if they are doing this challenge. My method though is hardly fool proof and is having mixed results so I’ve written this post on what I’ve done, so if anyone has better ideas and can use them.

These are some of the metal models I have to strip. Most are lead and have had paint sat on them for just under 30 years (jesus I feel old)

I got this stuff out of a UK store called Poundland

After leaving it in a sealed jar I’ve had mixed results. Some stuff the paint just fell off, others in seems to have stained the plastic and others have patches still stubbornly holding on.

This could be down to my old toothbrush been a bit too old. My plan is to pick up a cheap one from sainsburys tomorrow.

I still need to have a go and stripping back the plastic Guardians. I’ve been recommended the paint stripper you can get from Wilkinsons. Has anyone has experience with this product or others that are worth looking at?

So with 40k been in vouge, it is time to scale up the accidental kill team to a bigger army.

I still want to keep the theme and look of a kill team, but with bigger units.

Before I put the effort into all that I need to have a crack at a tank.

I’d inherited a falcon from somewhere that had been painted in two separate schemes by different people. So this was the tank I chose to do.

I would love to show how the falcon was stripped, but I wasn’t there. A mate of mine is through it in with a load of jungle fighters he’s working on, and it came back nearly new.  The alcohol had stained the plastic slightly green but other than that not a problem.

So I painted the falcon in exactly the same was as the guardians and it worked

It took a little longer to dry but the process was the same. I was slightly worried by the flat panels but I teased the stain as it was drying and it just added to the overall effect.

It’s been a couple of weeks since John Blanche announced his retirement, and I thought it was a bit remiss of me not to put something on here.

Blanche’s art has been a big influence on my life.

This image had me hooked on 40k. The full insanity of this picture made me get a sisters of battle force and I’ve played them since I was 16.

His art work hasn’t just effected my love of warhammer but has also influenced my other work.

His busy landscapes, saturated with colour and extreme contrasts has also influenced by photographic work too.

(shameless plug) If you are interested prints and cards are available of this picture and a range of other images.

A friend of mine is doing a Vietnam Imperial guard army and has been buying lots of old models from ebay and has offered to strip some of the more complex models in this ultrasound cleaner he has. So as a test he has taken a falcon and the jet bikes to have a good with.

Also one of my staff has given me a load of helmetless eldar heads that he had in his bita box.. This should help me with the corsair look I’m hoping for.

This project has won a golden button…

I’m really not sure I deserve it, and it was really surreal listen to my highly stylised painting been discussed on XLBS.

This project started life as a kill team idea, which was fine. Paint a couple of eldar models but keep on with the Ultramarines. Then all the 10th edition stuff started to drop and the people I play started planning armies again.

This left me with two options. Either give up or go big. I’ve gone for the latter.

Ive no idea how eldar play in 40k and no idea how to build forces for this new edition. On the plus side nor does anyone else. So I’ll keep cracking on with what I’ve done so far. A full squad of banshees and guardians first and then the big challenge how will this method translate to big flat panels on the falcons and jetbikes