It’s almost the end of October, and accordingly I’ve got Templecon on my mind and trying to decide which faction, which list(s), to pack.Inevitably I set myself up to have a whole bunch of painting to do like I’m some sort of masochist, but I’m pleased to report that at I’ve made progress for at least one game line. Some of you may recall awhile back that I posted pics of models for my Relic Knights Black Diamonds, and I’m pleased to report that I’ve (finally) finished the Battlebox models, and I’ve also painted up Sophia Drake, who should really be leading the Black Dragons into battle but, heck, I don’t own any of those yet…

My weekly timetable only allows so much time for painting amidst family and job responsibilities and the demands of bloggery (some of these articles take a lot longer to write than you’d think) so I had to decide on a scheme that I could paint relatively quickly (which, granted, is still slow as molasses for everyone else) and stick with a tabletop standard of painting. Thankfully, Army Painter do a red primer spray, so that basecoated a large portion of each model for me in one fell swoop. Of course, there’s still three other pots of red paint and a wash involved in getting the red where I want it, and of course the limited window in which I have to work means that the models may not be as cleaned as I’d otherwise like and admittedly not a lot of effort went into the rifles, but they’re done, they look cohesive, and DAMN if a Dragon Forge bases don’t make ’em look that much more classy.

Sidebar: Dragon Forge’s kickstarter for their Ancient Ruins set is chugging along nicely, it’s already funded, and if we hit Stretch Goal #9 we unlock a whole freaking new set of Round Lip bases suitable for Warmachine and Relic Knights. Don’t know about you, but I’d like to see that happen…

Sophia presented me with something of a concern because she’s wearing full Black Dragon armour, rather than the partial that the Diamond Corps are wearing. That means a lot less green is immediately visible, so there’s risk of the model just looking like a red blob on the battlefield. The larger base goes a long way toward making her stand out, and I’m really happy with how her feet made contact with the split level of the base itself, but in the end I decided that in the spirit of the anime-inspired game that Relic Knights is, obnoxiously coloured hair was the way to go. The Studio model has purple hair, but I like painting the light blue, and I think it provides a better contrast.

I had previously painted the number 14 on my little tank as if it had been stenciled on, so I thought I’d do something similar for Sophia, given her tank… but I had no idea what number to give her, so I thought that since she’s working with a bunch of guys in lighter armour who may just be inclined to switch their comparatively dinky shoulder shielding for her much more impressive plate, she should stencil her initials on it so that everyone would know it was hers, dammit!

Primed and ready for work to begin is the PC-9 Breaker Team, and Pal George nabbed a Suspect 7 for me the other day as well, though I’m not sure what will rotate onto the painting table next. I need to get other models ready for Templecon, including some more Super Dungeon Explore heroes. It’s a sickness, I’m sure.

One thing I do want to touch on before signing off for the day: Studio schemes are lovely, they’re painted by amazing artists, and they look super cool… but don’t be afraid to try something new, something just for you. Black Diamonds are normally grey with some purple accents here and there, but if you enjoy painting a different colour, if you thing you’d prefer them in lime green or stark white or hell, paisley… you go for it. Painting models is as much a part of the hobby as playing the games is. Do what it takes to help you enjoy it… and please feel free to share!