ATHENA - Steampunk airship (104)

Hi all,

the current work is very repetitive - add damage and scratches.

It is slow and a bit boring. Thus not much to update.

But one of the little scenes is at the rear balcony, in front of the stained glass window and between the two NEMESIS CIWS'

Two of the crewmen use the spare time after the campaign and hit some golf balls :)

On Wednesday I took a little break from painting and cleaned some of my hobby stuff away.

I then realized with the 3 painters on the ATHENA deck ( http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--5r3EUlU26c/Ugs_adtAUbI/AAAAAAAARoc/XsQZk9ZuKpo/s1600/IMG_5270.JPG  ) I will no longer need/use the old ATHENA bridge.

So I took it apart and tried to see what I can salvage from it.

These items here will definitely be used in an upcoming project. The rest will most likely end up part of some scenery....

I was actually hoping that I could use the little shrine and the "Vade Retro" image on the ATHENA, but both pieces are too big to be of any sensible use ....

oh well...

 Thanks to DavidXD and etiennerondeau for pointing out that my front banner slogan makes absolutely no sense.

I went back through my notes and realized I goofed up big time :P

I mixed some notes from an older project, references I had, AND made a spelling error!

lol, how bad can it get?

So I updated the slogan to "Sine Timore - Invictus Maneo!"

It should now make sense :)

 

The starboard side's upper level is now prepared and ready to get the damage paint.

 

And I prepped the scene for the paint duty scene...

 

I think this will look nice once completed.

 

I hope you like today's update.

Cheers

Klaus

ATHENA - Steampunk airship (103)

Hi guys,

time for the ATHENA to continue.

@Steward - Hmm, using the Queen from the 2P is an intriguing idea :)

Nice profile. I think it could fit on the bomb chutes...

Thanks for the idea, and if I ever get to Oxforshire, I will shout out.

Once I was satisfied with the ATHENA image on the MOROS turret, I added the obligatory scratches and chipped paint - to the image and the rest of the turret and barrels.

 

 

And then it was finally time to paint the wood on the rear deck.

I gave it a good paint coat with Vallejo Earth, but making sure to leave many of the deep groves dark.

After that I gave it two washes of thinned Vallejo Smoked Ink.

To give it a worn look i added some black soot and scratch marks - like leaked oils and hydraulic fluid as well as tire marks.

Then a final wash of the thinned Smoked Ink and complete it was :)

 

I'm really pleased with the result. It almost looks like real wood.

 

And even in daylight, without artificial lighting it looks great.

 

With the wooden deck out of the way I started painting the steampunk ornaments and the portholes on the port side of the body.

 

and after that it was time to start the damage.

 

Its a lot of work, but the result is worth it :)

 

 

 

That#s it for today's update.

I hope you like it and I look forward to your comments, feedback, criticism, suggestions.

Cheers

Klaus

ATHENA - Steampunk airship (102)

Thanks guys!

with the first section more or less complete I thought about if, where and what kind of freehand to add to the ship.

There is already the large "Vade Retro Xenos" window mural in the back and Athena herself on the back of the superstructure wall.

Also I was thinking what kind of freehand to add. On the ZEUS I had several different freehand with mixed topic and styles. 

But I think for the ATHENA I will try to limit the topics to Athene herself.

One obvious spot for a large freehand is the top of the MOROS triple Earthshaker turret.

Most images of Athena one can find on the Internet show her standing gracefully, with her Owl and a spear in her hand. Since I already have a similar image for the rear wall mural, I was looking for a more combat-style image.

I found an image on deviantart.com by Paul Renaud ( http://www.deviantart.com/?q=paul+renaud#/art/Athena-issue-4-cover-141612075?_sid=59b1c335 ) in which her pose seemed just right.

So I drew a quick pencil sketch onto the MOROS roof.

Then I started with Bubonic Brown as base color for the gold

A kind of fiery background

Grey as base for her hair.

And then I started with the face. Since its framed by the helmet it is hard to get a really good look.

 

But I think I managed a decent result...

 

After that I did some cleanup and added another layer of Bubonic for the gold areas

 

Then I added shadows and highlights to the gold.

 

And since I needed a slogan as well as I wasn't really happy with the chest area, I added a parchment with the slogan "Imperator misit me!" - The Emperor sent me.

Since it was still very brightly colored and comic-styled I added a thorough layer of Devlan Mud and some Badab Black

And this is how it looks on the ATHENA

So, what do you think?

Also, if you have some idle moments, help me identify spots that can do with a freehand :)
Cheers

Klaus

ATHENA - Steampunk airship (101)

Thanks guys!

Thank you for your well wishes :)

Well, I continued painting the ATHENA, and since she now has some real damage, I decided to see how I can paint her to incorporate the real and "fake" damage together.

As stated in the last post, I worked on the forward section.

The deeper damages are hand painted, while the minor damage is done with a sponge.

 

I also painted and remounted the wooden chests. I think they fit nicely :)

 

The actual detailing and damage is complete for this section, but in the end everything will get another coat of dirt (usually a wash of Devlan Mud and some Badab Black) and then lots of stains and grime.

The forward banner received its slogan:
"Sans Preur, Invictus Maneo" - "Without Fear, I remain unconquered"

I was asked how I draw the deeper damage (since I don't use the "Salt technique").

So I start off with the damage in a dark grey-brown.

Then I paint the shadows of the damage in Terracotta (simulating the rust resilient paint)

and the highlights with Shadow Grey

Some of the really deep grooves also receive a bit of Boltgun Metal

and to even things out, I add some minor damage with a sponge (using the first dark brown-grey again)

Its a bit more work than using the salt, but I feel more comfortable this way :)

It also works for bigger damage, like this patched up blast damage.

Well, it's been a long and hard campaign, and the Orks on Dencara 5 proved to be a worthy enemy. There was hardly any time for maintenance or cleanup.

Now that "Operation Redeemer", the battle campaign against the Orks on the southern hemisphere, is over and the ATHENA on its way back north, to Xanthium, there is time.


And with free time comes boredom - to keep up discipline the first work details are assigned by the officers. Some of the not-so-fortunate (or not-so-brave) sailors are grabbing their paint buckets and paint rollers and start their dreaded imposition...

 

That's as far as I got over the last two days.

I hope you like today's little update.

Cheers

Klaus