“ORK” NURGLE HERALD. STEP BY STEP_40K

FORGEWORLD’S Nurgle Herald

Never thought much of this guy when I saw it came together with the ForgeWorld Nurgle Prince… But standalone, without being dwarfed by the purulent huge abomination that comes bundle with, I realized it was in itself a pretty decent Warboss-sized chunk of rotting flesh and slimy detail…

I’ll walk you through the process of a one-day paint-job I did on this guy, with an extra one in between for the greenstuff to cure.

Filling the gaps: First thing to notice, didn’t feel like washing the resin first… So either the guy I got it from Ebay did it for me (unlikely considering the brittle flask it came surrounded with) or the dreaded unmolding agent paint-peel is not such a common occurrence. Couple of first ones for me here! Never worked on a resin miniature, before. (well, there were some unworkable models back in the day) And at the same time, this are my first steps into greenstuff territory. @Bonecruncha recently suggested to me that I should get some decent modeling tools to begin with… But this was all wet scissors, finger-nail and the back of a modeling knife. For first steps, I thought Nurgle-theme would be perfect! Just realized the guy is missing a huge horn from its right side… Very fluff… But I actually like it like this, come to think of it.

The mold-lines were pretty terrible… so I used greenstuff to level some of the areas that were badly misaligned. My first thought to familiarize myself with the puty, was to work on the base. I started with regular modeling clay (that had to be super-glued back on the base, once dried) and used the precious green matter to try and simulate a trail in the sand. Was a pretty random and sticky experience.

(Click on pictures for closeups)

Undercoat: Spray of Chaos Black Citadel brand Undercoat. I could/should have done this after the cape, but that was an afterthought, once I saw the base attempt kind of worked. What I wanted from the beginning was the “snail-trail” to leave a path of burnt/warped/corroded material on it’s wake. Since the resin base was a dense brick of resin I had to apply a lighter and leave it to burn for a good while to get the effect I wanted. If the base were to be the regular hollowed-out black plastic ones, I might had not dared to try it, but now I think it would have been more spectacular if less an easily “under-control” process… Not the healthiest thing to do. Instant Nurgle Seal of Approval!

Rugs: To loose my virginity on greenstuff conversion I knew Eldar or Tau were probably a bad idea to start with. Slaanesh would have liked my daring, but none like Nurgle would take my attempt as worthy… Well maybe the Horned Rat or Nagash, if you are into that kind of thing. Greenstuff? It’s like working with chewing gum on a hot evening. Once it’s half-dry, though, it can be quite plasticine-like, so far as the tools stay a bit wet. Had to dry it free-hanging (face up) since it’s own weight would make it fall, thin as it was, that didn’t help.

Texture: After a black undercoat to the hold thing, again, and to make the surface more even and Nurgle-like, I applied two generous layers of Typhus Corrosion “technical paint”. Noobish fingerprints begone!

Testing the surface: After a Ceramic White drybrushing to help me define the areas of interest I painted the rugs with Zandry Dust. The Corrosion effect really made it look like a continuous surface with the hood.

Base and Wash: I painted the upper body with Goblin Green, the lower with Nurgling Green, making a wet-paint mix in the middle section, I used a random mix of those greens to base each nurgling and Averland Sunset Yellow on the exposed fat patches and pustules. The hold skin was then washed with Athonian Camoshade (light green wash) and the rugs with Agrax Earthshade (sepia wash). The mechanical arm got a drybrush of Warplock Bronze. The rug was highlighted with a drybrush of Screaming Skull (yellowish white).

Spreading the infection: The upper skin got a wash of Ork Flesh (dark green). I then mixed equal parts of Nuln Oil (light black wash), Red Wash and Purple Wash and used that on the lower part, wounds and to stain the drape. Used some to accentuate the drool/puke area. All the washes were applied at the same time, allowing for some mixing. Mixed with some nurgling green, it gave a semi-translucent Pink that was used as highlight on the damaged areas.

Good ol’ Black Ink: On the cape and hard edges. Once half-dry, I used a wet cotton-stick to clean/highlight some of the ink away.

Adding detail: To finish the rugs, they were highlighted using again Zandry Dust (light brown). The pustules and blisters were highlighted in yellow, some of the ork skin, too. The tail got some flesh-tone highlights. The larvae all over its body were painted in pure white, added many extra smaller ones as freehand. Ceramic White also on the teeth and “fingernail”. Nurgling Green was used as highlight around the wounds, which crevices were highlighted using pure Red Wash, here and there. The mechanical arm was drybrushed on even areas with Vallejo’s Brass, and the big panels were washed in red, all highlighted with a drybrush of Vallejo’s Gunmetal Grey. Bugs were painted last on it.

Pus for the God of Pus: Red Blood, (Citadel technical Blood for the Blood God) was applied on the deepest wounds, and trails of it added. From the mouth, an uneven trail of blood, Drakensomething Nightshade (light blue wash) was accentuated. The stand got a white base.

Finishing touch: The hold thing was then washed with Badab Black (medium black wash), super-glue was spread onto the base, and then sparkled with crushed cat-litter, then painted with Tamiya’s Desert Yellow. Side was painted in Zamesi Desert. (used to be the slightly different Bubonic Brown). The snot/slime/acid is a mix of Averland Sunset (light mustard yellow) and Snot Green (light green) applied as freehand trails. A starting pass, and then some accents with a bit more yellow into the mix. It was then remixed with water and made a wash that was applied to the end of the tail, and a bit over, to give the translucent wet-like effect. The mechanical arm got some Typhus Corrosion applied to it.