When the new Black Templar models came out I thought they were some of the nicest models GW had released in a while. I appreciated how referential the models were to some of the old 3rd edition artwork. The John Blanche artwork from that time is what sold me on 40k all those years ago and is the epitome of the Grimdark style. When GW revealed the Black Templars Castellan model that basically sealed the deal. At some point I would be getting some of these models. I don't really play the game frequently enough to justify trying to build a competitive army but I decided to just get cool looking models as a painting project. I think eventually I will plan out a small fluffy list but for now I'm just building it up slowly for fun.
I wasn't planning to start working on Black Templars any time soon since, as most people do, I already had a decent backlog of projects. One night Andrew, Alex, and I were at the Brooklyn Strategist playing some kill team and on the way out I saw the Helbrecht model sitting on the shelf. I said screw it and bought the model.
Helbrecht was a pleasure to build and paint. I built it in subassemblies: the main body, the head, the backpack, the left hand, the gun servitor, the sword polishing servitor, and the base. I did also paint the Ork that came with the base but decided in the end not to include it. The model was a pleasure to build and paint, as we've come to expect from most new GW models. I wanted to stay pretty close to the box art for the color scheme just because I like the way it looks. For the gold armor I wanted to try out the gold formula that Louise demonstrated in Citadel Masterclass and I'm happy with how it turned out. I tweaked it slightly because I don't have contrast paints but it's essentially this:
- Bases coat with several layers of Retributor Armor until it's well covered.
- Glaze Doombull Brown in the recesses.
- Continue to glaze down to a mix of Doombull Brown and black.
- Bring the bright areas back up a bit with Auric Armor Gold.
- Add some Runefang Steel to the Auric Armor Gold and pick out a few of the high spots.
- Edge highlight with Runefang Steel.
I'm particularly pleased with how the gold turned out on the backpack:
For the servitors I mostly stuck to the box art too. Bluish gray jump suits and unhealthy looking skin.
For the base I painted the rocks with Dawnstone Gray and then did some recess shading with black. Some rough drybrushing with a few lighter layers of gray got them a little brighter. Then the dirt is Vallejo Earth with some drybrushing layers with white added. The final touch was Secret Weapon Pigments Green Earth weathering powder. I just caked it on in several places to make it feel a little dustier. I've had this weathering powder for a while but haven't really used it. It's really simple and creates a great effect so I expect to use it more often.
I'll post another update soon to show the guys who are going into battle with the High Marshall: The Castellan and the Sword Brethren.
