The Vermindoom has been unleashed upon the Mortal Realms with hordes of Skaven pouring into reality. The aptly named Skaventide boxset from Games Workshop launches both the new edition of Age of Sigmar and also updated models for both the Stormcast Eternals and Skaven - perfect opportunities to put The Army Painter paint ranges to the test!
We reached out to several members of The Army Painter Factory Team to see what wonderful creations they had devised from this newest box set, and they seem to have all been partaking in a bit of Warp Stone because they’ve all chosen the new Skaven to paint up. I thought they were supposed to be The Army Painter Factory Team, not the Clan Moulder Factory Team! Let’s check in with Uncle Atom, Phil the Glacial Geek, and Sam Lenz to see what chittering creations have emerged from their collections of Warpaints Fanatic, Air, and Speedpaint.
Uncle Atom from Tabletop Minions
Uncle Atom: I knew I wanted to get these clan rats painted quickly, but I also wanted them to look good, especially when there's such a big group of them - 20 figures is frequently at least TWO warbands in the games I usually play!
So, I primed them black with my airbrush using the Warpaints Air Matt Black Primer and then sprayed them with a heavy zenithal of Warpaints Air Oak Brown. After that was dry, I gave them a standard zenithal highlight with Warpaints Air Bleached Bone. After that, it was washes like Warpaints Fanatic Soft Tone for the skin, and then different shades of green and lighter brown Speedpaint for the cloth and Speedpaint Metallics for the armour and blades. It allowed me to get through them quickly - but they still look good!
Be sure to follow Uncle Atom on Instagram at tabletopminions and at his YouTube channel!
Phil the Glacial Geek
Phil: The new Skaventide box is chock full of awesome minis! When I got my hands on them I immediately knew that the first one I wanted to paint was going to be a Skaven. Those rats are such cool models!
I chose the Warlock Engineer and got to work. I painted him with a whole bunch of different Speedpaint to get a properly ratty base of colours with nice dimension. From this base, I went back in with some Warpaints Fanatic to boost the highlights and the Effects paints to bring in some proper weathering. I was especially excited by how the Verdigris Effect Paint worked on the Brazen Copper Speedpaint, and I became even more of a fan of the dynamic duo of the Dark Rust and Fresh Rust Effect paints every time I use them! In the end, I think I came out with a dang good-looking rat, Yes, Yes!
Be sure to follow Phil on Instagram at glacialgeek and on his YouTube channel!
Sam Lenz
Sam Lenz: When I got my hands on the Skaventide box I wanted to emulate the feeling the title gives. A sea of rats, but I also wanted to finish painting it within a week.
I don't paint many Skaven and there's not much of a reason. I'm just more prone to Orks and such when picking an ugly monster to paint. So, I was happy for something different. The Grey Seer has always stood out in the ranks, partly because of albinism but also just a great concept. Magic rats with horns and ragged robes - fun!
The Skaven offer a lot of choices for colour schemes - I feel they're less locked in than some of the other armies. With that freedom of choice, I put together a split complementary scheme of yellow, green, and a spot colour of blue. There is also a unifying highlight of Warpaints Fanatic Space Dust mixed into most colours. For example, the rags on the Clanrats are mixed from Warpaints Fanatic Matt Black and Space Dust, which gave me a series of gray tones that graduated to a warm highlight. The main figure, the Grey Seer, would have no trouble fitting in and standing out with its white fur and brighter pink face.
Overall, I'm happy with this one. The motion and symmetrical lines are pleasing from a compositional standpoint, and the fundamentals are in play with the colour choices. For the glory of the Horned Rat, I now have my own piece of the underground empire in my collection.
Be sure to follow Sam on Instagram at samsonosmas and at his YouTube channel!
