It was taller than I envisioned, probably one and a half times taller than a dreadnought. The gigantic sword gleamed in the true-day lights, as did the clock, which read 1:21 AM. As I pulled my camera from its bag, I knew I wouldn't be going to bed until quarter to 2, which meant I wouldn't fall asleep until 2:30. In my college days this wouldn't have been cause for concern, but things are different now. Not to say I'm old, but when I stayed up all night in college I didn't have to be up at 6.
Construction
This model is a beast. The legs alone total eleven pieces per side, and that's with virtually no pose-ability. The lower torso is essentially stuck in one position, except the feet plug into the legs with a ball-and-socket joint. This is limiting in the extreme, which explains why every dreadknight in this month's White Dwarf is virtually identical in pose. The strange part is the upper torso itself is brilliantly constructed, allowing for a fully realistic range of motion. While appreciated, it does beg the question of why the dreadknight couldn't have been given the same flexibility below the belt.The rest of the kit is pretty cut and dry, save for a modular arm mounting system built in to support the different gun builds. Each of the three guns is constructed with flexibility in mind, allowing two of the three designs to be fully constructed and fit on either arm, largely without the need for extra bits.
It begs the question of how the designer of this kit could have gotten the formula so perfect on only half the model. Unfortunately, the static legs ultimately prevent this model from being a must-paint, much like the often neglected Eldar Wraith Lord.
Nemesis Greatsword
What a weapon. I remember pulling the plastic from the sprue for the first time, wondering if I had gotten the right kit. For those of you who are curious, the answer is yes, this can double as a letter opener. I just had to make sure the paint job lived up to the standard set by such a magnificent sculpt.
If you look at the way a lot of people paint sword blades, it's a pretty simple formula. They fade from brightest to darkest and back a couple times and then do the opposite on the other edge.
I started with two coats of Ice Blue to give the blade a clean, solid base color. I then hung the sword upside down and gave it a wash of watered down Necron Abyss. The spiked loop on the end of the pommel made this simple. I then went back in with ice blue to build up the base tone in the highlighted areas.
The easiest way to build a gradient is with thin layers of pigment, in this case I was using a modified version of basic drybrushing. I then used washes and watered down paint to push the tones down on the blade shadows.
The Painting Mojo
So why was I literally losing sleep to finish this guy?First and foremost, I was on a roll and I knew better than to try and stop. It's a waste of time and energy as I end up returning to paint regardless. I'm a fan of doing what works for you.
As humans, we work in cycles. I've realized in any given situation I have two choices, work with the cycles or suffer. If I wake up wide awake at 3 AM and I absolutely need to paint, I don't waste any time getting the brushes out. The sooner I get it out of the way, the sooner I can get on with other thing.
A painting hero of mine refers to this as the "Painting Mojo", the drive that keeps you joyfully on task. As painters, part of our job is to make sure that the mojo is flowing and ready when it comes time to paint. How and where we accomplish that is up to the individual, but it is certain that once that wave comes in, you ride it to the very end.
