PROJECT DEBRIEF: OLD WORLD ORCS
Armies and larger projects present their own challenges and rewards. The rewards being a wicked collection of models you’ve helped bring to life to match your own vision. The challenge being, it takes some doing to sort.
Planning and setting the standard for your new project is where it all starts. When I started this small 500 point Orc army for the Old World, I had some basic parameters in mind:
It had to be completed quickly. Using steps that meant I can paint large batches of infantry in a setting or two.
It had to fit the vibe. Old school Orcs, bright vibrant colours, with some modern inspiration and techniques that still complement the aesthetic.
Cost efficiency! I have played zero old world, have zero nostalgia of WHFB and as such, it makes sense to invest in this as conservatively as possible. I decided very early on that this would be a project I printed almost entirely.
With all this in mind, and an army list written, it was time to wire in and get on it!
The Printing:
First step. I needed to pick the models i’d use for this project. I could have dived in with the GW Orc models, but this cost wasn’t what I was happy to commit to. I HAVE a big Kings of War Army box that i’ve had for years that is screaming to be worked on, but I wanted to flex my printing muscles, and dedicate some time to the investment in my Saturn 4 Ultra.
Enter, Celtic Miniatures! They’re a digital sculptor with a nack for the the old school. They had just launched a kickstarter for their Orc range (The Boyz) for standard infantry with different weapon loadouts, elite infantry (Black Orcs), boar boys and a chariot! They also have ranges within your favorite chaotic barbarians, spooky scary skeletons, and your old school Heroquest shenanigans! Please go and check their Instagram and sub to their patreon if able.
When the files dropped, I played about with some testers and used the presupported files as given. I was able to print off everything in my 500 point list. For my boar boss, I upscaled a standard armoured boar and rider with a big axe and helmeted head to run as the Boss.
The bases were ordered from ebay seller Axis 3D Pro, who sell mass packs of bases complete with a hole for a magnet, and the magnets too!
The Painting:
The entire army was super glued to their bases, and a blended mix of course and fine bird cage sand PVA glued to the bases, and left overnight to dry. I was in two minds as to stick with a grassy plainy kind of basing. But never one to tow the line, I wanted something different. The paint scheme itself I decided I wanted to be a mix of old school and new. Nice vibrant reds, bright luminous skin tones with a radiant recess shade, but I also wanted nice believably worn and rusted metallics. Because the green skin was going to be varied and quite striking across the army, I decided to go for a neutral badlands/desert finish for the basing. So as not to take away from the finish on the model.
The paint scheme was devised a while ago thanks to Celtic Miniatures sending me some advance files to play around with. I used this gesture to create some painting content to promote myself and CM. You can see the video here:
https://youtu.be/12Sc4BE8iwg?si=BXnX55XMyjZ3YBAq
The only additional details from this are, I mixes the skin tones up across several green speedpaints, and included some weathering pigments in to the bases for a more genuine dusty finish.
I really enjoyed playing around with varying green skin, and free handing rough and shoddy glyphs on shields. Ensuring each model is unique, but the vibe across the force remains consistent.
The Black Orcs skin was painted a little darker and consistently to ensure they stuck out for the benefit of my opponents.
Summary:
Overall, this was a great little project to execute. The vision never changed and everything was painted over all across about 5 days of work. It cost around £20 in resin (very VERY few failures occurred), and the vibe was peak 80s fantasy.
The plan going forward is to up every mob to 30 for the infantry, and 20 for the boards. I want to sort out some trolls, a shaman, a rock lobber, some Arrer boys and maybe some gobbos. I’ve got movement trays en route from Hobby Heaven on ebay, and they debut game is coming up!
Be sure to check out the socials to see how it all goes and if you have any questions or queries, please just shout to the socials below.
Special thanks for this project go to:
Celtic Miniatures: https://www.instagram.com/celticminiatures?igsh=MXN6bmJlY3RxMDRiZA==
Orange Brushes for their amazing painting brush sets. Head to Www.orangebrushes.com and use the code UNRELENTING10 for 10% off your order!
Www.facebook.com/theunrelentingbrush
Www.instagram.com/the_unrelenting_brush
Www.theunrelentingbrush.co.uk
Peace! 🤘🏻
Chris
