Hellbrute - Black Legion - My First Post Here

David_Jackson

New member
Hello, all! This is my first submission here. I've been fiddling around the miniature painting world for quite a few years (20 or so years), but only in the last year have I actually gotten really serious about painting.

I would love to improve my technique, so I'm submitting my most recent piece for your critique.

View attachment 15737

The CMON link is: http://www.coolminiornot.com/314012

Your input is valuable to me. I am getting voted down, and I'm not entirely sure why. This piece was well received on Facebook.

Thanks!

David Jackson
 

Aliengod3

New member
Your mini is not necessarily being voted down. The numeric value represents the quality of the painting. This is a pretty standard tabletop quality figure and the scores for such tend to range from 5 to 6. Nothing to take personally, it just is what it is.

For improvement, here are some thing I can suggest:
1. Highlight the areas that are painted black. Even black will have some highlight from above. More highlight and shadow will give the mini more depth and will make it more pleasurable to look at.
2. Edge highlighting on metallics helps them stand out a bit more. Mix some silvery paint with your bronze paint and highlight corners, pointy bits, edges, and rivets.
3. Add some oxidation to your metallics as well. Some blue-green pooled around the rivets of the metal will make the metal look older and will fit the model better, it is chaos after all.
4. On the horns, try putting some striations. This adds more detail to them and will make them look more realistic.

Again, this is just constructive criticism. Just some basic steps I think you can take if you are serious about improving your work. Ultimately the more attention you put into the details of a mini the better the score will be. Smooth blends help too ;)

Also, there are some high quality versions of this mini on CMON. Take a look at them and see what makes them unique. Also ask the painter questions about their techniques. Most people on this site are happy to answer any questions you may have if you send them a PM. :)
 
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Wyrmypops

New member
What you have is rather splendid. It's tidy and bold. The fleshy parts are especially satisfying. But it could use more in various areas.

More contrast makes a mini *pop*. A little extra darkness in the recessess, and a little extra light on the edges.
Techniques involving gradual transitions (layering, blending) tend to be appreciated by a voting audience and viewers in general.

Echoing Aliengod;
Some shade around the rivets and such on the metallics, with some silver mixed into the brassy-bronze for the edges.
Black highlighting can be problematic to get ones head around, but as such it's a commonly revisited topic that a quick search with pull up various threads on for information. For simplicity, I favour a paint called Coal Black from the P3 range, although GW's new range has a pleasent bunch including one Dark Reaper colour that serves well as a black highlight.

Those tentacles coming out the flank of the torso, the highlighting could benefit from more transitionary stages between the blue-gray and white. A thinned down wash (a blue/brown mix or blue/black) could serve well as a means to get some juicy tones in the crevasses, and instead of going straight to that very light highlight do one or two along the raised edges of the whole thing, ending with that very light highlight just on the very extreme tips.

The focus area of most minis, like humans, is the face. What this mini has passing for a face area is a bit of a muddle with the colour choices. With the bone horns, yellow metallics, and the flesh choices of the person inside, they're all a bit similar. A touch more darkness in the area the person is sitting in would make them loom out from dramatically. A bit of red wash in that area could make it look a more organic blending of the person and machine parts.

So it's good so far, but could consider it a work in progress. :)
 

David_Jackson

New member
Thank you for the input, guys. You are right, I need to step up my game a bit. It's easy to take the votes personal.

Here's a shot from the back... I don't know if I am going to continue to work on this one, as it's up on Ebay right now. But I do intend on starting a brand-new Hellbrute today..

View attachment 15759
 

Dragonsreach

Super Moderator
Your input is valuable to me. I am getting voted down, and I'm not entirely sure why. This piece was well received on Facebook.
You've answered your own question.
Facebook is not a critical site, no doubt your facebook is full of your friends, not highly critical model painters as is coolminiornot.
 

supervike

Super Moderator
Me shaving my head was also well recieved on facebook.

Not so much in real life...>LOL

I think you've got a good looking mini, but the contrast that the other fellows speak of is crucial.
 

Bailey03

New member
Don't get discouraged. You are doing a nice job and those first few posts have some good advice on how to improve. As for the rating... just remind yourself that CMON is judging you on a really really really high standard. If your figures are in the 9's it means you should be winning international competitions. I like to look at the ratings as a challenge... if you're in the high 6's then set your goal to make it into the 7's, then 7.5+, then 8's. It can be depressing to see your hard work get lower marks than you think it deserves (believe me, I've felt that way quite a few times), but when you do get that high rating you'll know you really earned it. There are no A's for effort on this site.
 

Hasdrubal

New member
As others said, the rating standards are really hard, and sometimes a piece you've spent time and effert on will get voted down for no apparent reason.
The best ay to get quality feedback is to post your work on this sub-forum, as people will comment on your mini, point out what was well done, and areas was could be improved.
Don't forget to state what your painting goal is, as obviously we won't expect the same quality for a tabletop mini or a painting competition entry!

Feedback for your Hellbrute:
- basecoats are neat and tidy, good point that this is the cornerstone that will allow you to work on further techniques successfully
- the colors you chose work well together
- work on consistency: you put more efforts into the front than the back or base of the mini (some ribs and cabling in flesh tones haven't been washed in the back, the stone slab could is very rough)
- work on controlling your washes to limit the pooling effect: use several thin layer to progressively darken areas you want to shade

Don't be discouraged and, more important, have fun! It's OK not to finish a model you've lost interest in.
 
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