Expanding Cygnar

Last week's gaming evening fell through due to some unfortunate circumstance, but since there was a possibility that we were going to be playing a 15 pts Duel list I took a pause from ongoing project to paint up my Sentinel Warjack.

This 'jack brings my Coleman Stryker Battlebox list to a clean 15 pts, enabling me to play against my buddy Nipo who decided to straight paint a 15 pts list instead of starting with the Battlebox.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I drew inspiration from SchnauzerFaceMini's tutorial for the other 'jacks in my small Cygnar force. Although using the hairspray technique was good learning, I was a bit skeptical to its effect on such small model (relatively speaking). That skepticism was proven by the Sentinel, unfortunately; as the process didn't lend itself to the small details of the model.

This is probably due to the type of hairspray/hairspray bottle I used, as it was really tough to keep the layers thin and even. That'll be something I'll be looking for before I try this technique again. Ideally I'd like to use my airbrush - if that's even possible? I'll have to do some research!!

The point I wanted to make, however; is that in most cases even a "failed" experiment will produce a fair result for the tabletop. In the coming years, as I add more and more models to my collection of Cygnar models, the particular unsatisfactory finish of this one model with fade into the background of "my army".

I think this is an important point because a lot of painters seem to get very caught up in establishing a set scheme and following up specific painting steps - worried that variation will result in messing up their army/collection. I know because I used to worry about this myself. However, after a while this fear becomes very constraining as it forces one to stick to one particular approach to painting. Even if one can overcome the boredom of this as any flashy scheme inevitably becomes old and familiar - one will still be restraining oneself from developing one's experience and skill-set.

Obviously there is a defining framework to any given scheme - such as the blue/white and metal/brasswork scheme of my Cygnar models - but even within such a framework there is a lot of room to play. Such as trying different approaches to painting a particular color (perhaps finding tips from other tutorials, or trying paints from a different paint range), trying other blending techniques (NMM perhaps?), or attempting other techniques such as weathering, freehand, etc.

Results will differ a bit. Some you'll be happy with, others will require more practice; but in the end you will have gained some experience and added another model to your collection. The reason I find this important is that it keeps the painting itself live and dynamic. I believe that even if you're painting exclusively for more models on the tabletop it is important to keep the painting fun for its own sake.

So even if I was disappointed with the finish of the Sentinel, I'm happy I gave it a go and pleased to see the Cygnar force grow a little. Now I just got to get the next games evening happening...