My lazy Tyranid Prime conversion, Part 3...

Part 1 found here.

Part 2 found here.

RECAP:


I've made a Tyranid Prime conversion using a Warrior, a special base, a large Scything Talon flipped around to be a Bonesword, and a Trygon headpiece converted into a large shield that is a 'counts-as' Lashwhip.

So after finishing the conversion, it was time to paint!

This is a bit of a milestone for me because now that the Prime is put together I can actually play my first game if I want -- he's my first HQ.  Granted, it would be a game with a couple small units of little bugs, a Prime, and a Trygon, but still...  Getting there.  It's probably enough that I could conceivably field it against either side of the contents of an Assault on Black Reach box.  And lose to the Marines.

Not those Marines!

There are a couple challenges I had to overcome to paint this model and have it look good.

First, I wanted it to stand out.  In more than just a modelling sense.  I wanted it to have some accents that the other Warriors didn't have to really draw the eye towards this model.

Second, I didn't know what to do about the Bonesword.  I didn't want to do it the same colour as the carapace, because that would be a little boring.  I also didn't want to try and do anything too fancy, as I'm not very talented.  I also had to blend whatever colour it was seamlessly into the purple below it, because I filed down the defined edges while converting.

So I shamelessly borrowed from Ghoulio, who commented on an earlier post:

"@Atreyu: What you said about Hive Fleet Leviathan is pretty much my exact thinking as well. I really didnt like the pure white of the scheme and decided that I wanted to go with something that had a bit more depth to it. Hence the brown. I also did ALOT of test models (like 10 hormagaunts) until I finally hit on that neon green as the contrast colour. Originally it was pink, which was just too close to the Purple."


Well, that's worth a shot!  I like the way his models look, and purple/green is a great contrast.  So I tried it just for the detailing on the shield arm:

I like it, but it's oddly familiar.... where do I know that from?

Awesome!  Keep in mind that the picture above is just basecoated.  It still needs black wash and then successive highlights on the green.


So I went ahead and added it to the rest of the parts:

That purple and green... it's making me angry...

Now for the Bonesword, I started with black and worked it up with successive mixes of green.  This turned out to be a lot more work than it had to be, because I only own one pot of green, and that's an old school emerald green.  This meant that I mixed about 4 of the 6 colours used for the shading, which took some time. Before I do the other 3 Boneswords for my Swarmlord, I will pick up Dark Angels Green and Scorpion or Goblin Green, which should add some more consistency for greens and cut the workload.

So basically the basecoating is done on the model - except for on its base - and it's ready for a coat of black wash followed by some highlights.  Here's a photo of the assembled model before I finish it off for the next post:

...You wouldn't like me when I'm angry!

UP NEXT:

Finished Tyranid Prime! Hopefully!

Also:

Do, or do not.  There is no Trygon.